The record-union., 1899-09-05
MAILING THE LIE AGAIN.

The River News" says:
1t is beyond question true that Ag-
uinaldo was promised absolute free
dom by representatives of this Govern
ment, acting with and by the consent
of the President and his Cabinet. Let
those promises be fulfilled. BY all
means peace first
Why is it beyond question? Who has
cited a single line of proof of the truth
of the assertion? Where is there a sol
itary witness to its verify? Even Ag-
uinaldo himself has not and cannot be
quoted as affirming the charge. The
TACT is that it is a lie out of the whole
cloth by the Englishmen Bray, indeed
he may have understood from some fell
low that such a promise was made, but
very soon thereafter explicit, emphatic
and indignant denial was made by Con
suls-General. Pratt and Wildman, and
soon after by Dewey himself
The fact that no such promise was
made or could possibly have been made
was fully set forth in the Record
Union" not long ago by careful analy-
sis of all the official correspondence and
documentary evidence sent to Congress
by the President in response to the res
olution Of the latter body. From this
exposition these facts appeared:
THAT Aguinaldo in none of his
speeches, proclamations, interviews or
correspondence has ever claimed that
there was any agreement to recognize
the independence of his so-called re-
public
THAT all our Consuls disavow hav-
ing given any promise of recognition to
Aguinaldo.
3-That they never did give any such
promise on anything looking that way.
THAT Aguinaldo did ask Pratt to
secure for him such recognition, and
Pratt very bluntly told him he had no
such power and that Aguinaldo knew
it.
5-That the Secretary of State early
cautioned the Consuls to make no prom
ises to the insurgent forces as the
United States recognized them only as
rebellious subjects of Spain and that
the Consuls had no authority to bind
their Government, and the Consuls re-
sponded that they understood and had
made no promises, Wildman alone say
ing that he had said to Aguinaldo that
he could trust the American Nation to
deal with the Filipinos justly.
6-That if any such promise was made
it was without authority and AguinaIdo
knew it, since no power below that of
the National Executive would have au-
thority to bind the Government in that
way, and it may be doubted if even he
could do so, except in case of state
Of war where peace negotiations were
pending, and such promise was made
part Of the contract of peace.
THAT the only charge regarding the
alleged promise to Aguinaldo that has
been preferred attaches the alleged
promise to Pratt. Wildman or Dewey,
or all three of them. Each of these
have, emphatically denied the truth of
such charge.
S-All the official correspondence be
tween our Generals and naval officials
In the Philippines, and Aguinaldo and
his officers; all the appeals by Aguin-
aldo to the President Of the United
States, to our Generals and officers; all
the notes passing between AguinaIdo
and our officials, disclose the unmistak-
able fact that the United States insist,
ed from the beginning upon submission
by Aguinaldo to the authority of the
United States, and that no after consid-
erations were permitted to enter into
the communications.
The conclusion then is as was our
premise, that the charge, that we prom
ised Aguinaldo recognition is a lie. hav-
ing not even the merit of possibility; is
the outgrowth of falsehood chatter by
certain of the Hongkong and Straits
Settlements press, enlarged upon by
the vain imaginings of the Atkinson
lied Americans. who. like the crowd
that Halstead faced at Cincinnati would
rejoice to see the troops of their native
land driven into the sea by semi-sav-
age Malays, and the American flag
tialled Deneath the 1eet or IagaloS and
Bolo men.
It is necessary to keep mailing the
infamous falsehood upon it's forefront
because the anti-expansion and copper
head press persist with malignant spirit
in reiterating the story, and treating 1t
as undeniable, whereas there is not q
scintilla of evidence to support it, but
mountain Of testimony directly to the
contrary.
Senator Morgan of Alabama, concern
ing whose devotion to the Democratic
party no question can be raised by any
one, does not take to Mr.. Bryan's
scheme to commit the party to Atkin
sonation. He declares that the party