The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1899-08-14
ACCUSATIONS DESTROYED.
Real Facts in Regard to Treatment
of Filipinos.

We printed recently an editorial ut
terance of the New York Evening
Post" acknowledging it's error in at
tributing too great trustwOrthineSs to
letters from volunteers in the Philip
pines describing deeds of prodigious
rapacity and cruelty by our forces
there. The Investigations upon which
the Post" made this acknowledgment
of error were made for it by Captain
Harry L. Wells of Oregon, under in
structions from the paper. His letter
details with clearness and apparent
fairness the results of a thorough in.
vestigation of the whole matter, which
he made at the request of the editor
To the conclusions in respect of mat,
tiers of fact which the writer of the
letter ayers the Evening Post gives
full confidence, and expresses regret in
manly fashion if it has placed too much
faith in the veracity and Importance of
some of the letters at the time of theil
publication, much preferring to believe
that an occasional American soldier 10
a liar rather than to believe that the
American army is composed of barbar-
1anS. The correspondent of the
Evening Post" earnestly and with
reason contrOverts the natural opinion
that the private letters of officers and
soldiers are likely to be good authoritY
when they undertake to narrate then
own exploits. Not expecting the let
tiers to be published, and having de-
sire to seem to have had extraordinary
experiences, they are apt to draw the
long bow" without shame or pru-
dence. Thus it has happened that
many of those whose letters have been
published and have come back to the
army are the victims of very unhappy
experiences. the common designation of
this class being trough writer's" HIS
tells of captain who lost all discip
line in his company for time because
of one of these boastful letters. Most
of the writers of such letters, he as,
serts, never see the firing line. being
special duty men or the class that
straggle in BATTLE
All legends of this exaggerated typo
have their foundation in truth, and
Captain Wells has been at great pains
to discover the facts upon which the
superstructure of sensation has been
reared. He says that the report of the
killing of prisoners and of orders to
take no prisoners was common talk in
the army last February, growing out
of incidents of the first week of fight
ing around Manila. 1t was then found
out that natives when wounded, OF
feigning to be wounded. would if they
could, kill our soldiers when passing on
a charge This made our men afraid to
leave wounded Filipinos on the ground
behind them. During that week" he
says Il frequently heard it asserted
that the word had been sent out fol
the Eighth army corps to take no more
prisoners; but there never was any
truth in the statement 1t all grew out
of the frequent assertions of our men
and officers in the line that they would
take no more chances with wounded
Filipinos. and would have only dead
men behind them when they charged
and captured the enemys line" He
confesses that at that period of the war
these threats were carried into effect,
but he knows of only one case where
prisoner once captured was subse-
quently killed. s4
There is, unfortunately, less discredit
to be cast upon the assertions as to
wanton burning and looting. Although
the orders have been very strict, they
were not strictly enforced in the earlier
months of the war; In this business
the volunteers have been leaders, per-