The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1899-04-29
An Englishman is the Guide Of
the Hongkong Junta.
INTERESTING TALK WITH ITS LEADER
Says the Climate is the Ally Of
the Spanish Rebels.

In letter from Frederick Palmer to
the New York World, dated Hong
Kong, March IS, the following informa
tion is given concerning the Filipino
leaders in that city:
"We are weak and you are strong,"
said Dr. Galicano Apacible, the head OF
the Filipino junta here, to me today.
"but we have an ally and you have
none.
"We have 10000 stands OF arms, 10000
troops in the field, and sufficient ma
terial to make cartridges to supply our
troops for four years to come.
"Our ally is the climate of the Philip
pines Your bullets cannot kill one OF
our men where disease will kill twenty
of yours once you begin your advance
into the interior We will harass your
advance at the same time that we well
come it.
"We cannot fight pitched battles with
you, and we do not need to. We shall
be here today and there tomorrow, at
tacking, then flying. You can no more
catch us or conquer us than you can the
wind
"You began the hostilities. AS con-
querors you Americans, who believe
that governments derive their just rights
from the consent of the governed, forced
us to defend Our lives. Thus far your
civilzing army has killed about 5000 OF
our people,"
DR.. Apacible said this affably and po-
litely, and then nodded nonchalantly, as
if he were offering a commonplace piece
of information, that our soldiers were
assauting women and numbering civil
ians in Manila.
American officers and men who stop
over here On their way home to recruit
from wounds or sickness say:
"For weeks the insurgents came up to
our lines and Knocked us. They shook
their guns in OUR faces; they called us
the vilest names and dared us to shoot.
They even spat in Our faces, and we had
to keep our tempers and make no reply,
for that was the order. AS we lay stew
iEg in the trenches we had to put up
with about all which goes against the
nature of men with red blood in their
veins to bear.
''We soon let those little black men
know that they were not made of the
stuff to stand up against American SOL
diers, and that was the only satisfac-
ton we got out of the fight"
In the next breath nine out of ten of
the returning soldiers hasten to say that
we have no business in the Philippines.
They regret the step which made them
tn: subject of insults from the Filipinos
and are as strongly opposed to expan-
sion as the junta ITSELF
All the juntas which we have heard of
in different parts of the world since the
victory of Dewey at Manila were re-
cruited from the ranks of those patriots
who came to Hongkong with the bribe
money received from Spain in return
for allaying the rebellion they had
started. This sum was deposited in the
Hongkong and Shanghai Bank by
Aguinaldo. One hundred thousand dol
lars remains, the bank refuses to give it
up until compelled to do so by the court
on the ground that the power of attor-
ney which the junta holds from Aguin-
aldo is not sufficiently binding.
Youth seems to be the invariable first
requirement of leadership among the
Filipinos. Only the younger generation
of half breeds have had the advantage
of education. DR.. Apacible and DR..
q Santos CATER Apacible the most promi-
nent member of the Hongkong junta)
are under rs, and both have received the
degree of Doctor of Laws in Spain.
Between them and the numerous
young men who are their associates and
the mass OF Filipinos there is about as
much resemblance as between a quad
room and fullblooded negro. They
were led to organize the rebellion by
4 priest; priests educated them, and by
the irony of fate they now hold hun
oASoo VI tlldIS DIS pIlSOlcIS.
The junta has its office in pleasant
little house in the suburbs, where its
most prominent members live. Busi-
ness is conducted in small room, which
has as furniture few chairs and desk,
with large insurgents flag hanging
back OF it.
One of Apacible's proudest posses