The Irish standard., 1900-04-14


the natives on either side of the road
waved hats and shouted Americana
mucho amigo They hailed us as de-
liverers. They greeted us as friends.
On Aug. 9 our regiment moved into the
trenches for twenty-four hours duty.
My squad upon outpost duty sheltered
at the same house with a squad of Fill
pinos. We posted sentries in one d.
rection, the Filipinos in another.
"In the morning the Filipino COM
missary sergeant, getting around be-
fore ours with his rice and sugar cane.
shared with us. That was when we
were boys together opposed to a COM
mon enemy as Dewey puts it.
"But four days later, Aug. 10, when
these same Filipinos advanced to help
us take the city whose siege had cost
them hundreds of lives, they met our
cleaning bayonets. The next day a
Filipino soldier told me we were no
longer friends, that we had joined the
Spaniards.
"This referred to the fact that the
Spanish officers who were now our
prisoners were allowed to wear their
side arms, while the Filipino officers
who had been our allies were not al
lowed to pass through our lines thus
armed. Can you imagine more humil-
iating and cruel distinction? Put your
self in their place, what would you have
done? And Senator Beveridge says our
mistake with the Filipinos has been
Kindness
when we took from the Filipinos
their side arms we took all but their
pride, for, unlike the Spaniards, they
wear few or no badges. I once asked
Filipino major why this was. He
answered.: 'Spaniards wear badges;
they are all show. Filipinos and
Americanos no care show They put
the stars and red, white and blue in
their banner. They studied our history
and constitution, revered the name of
our Washington. They established re-
public. They looked to us for light and
guidance. We led them out of the will
derness, but took them back to bondage.
We are told that shooting bandits is
soon to be made the program. 1 don't
doubt it. ~
II have studied this problem and
know, as you know, that for every ban
dit Spain exterminated she made hun
dred more. But Senator Beveridge says
IL quote from him because he has
been there and seen, as I have, only
differently-that Spain's disaster in
dealing with the Fi1ipinos was in paus-
ing in the work before it was thorough
ly and forever DONE and this statement
paves the way for this new-coming pol
icy. We have adopted many Spanish
methods in those islands, but when we
begin shooting Filipinos who offer us
all but their liberty I will need help in
choosing between the two flags.
"The Filipinos who did enter the city
Aug. 10, 1893, were ordered out month
later. They obeyed the order, but
formed upon the Lunetta and marched
past and saluted the spot where those
patriots died. AS that barefoot army
of men and boys marched past our bar
| racks one Of their bands 10 show good
will toward us struck up "A Hot Time
in the Old Town'-our national air in
the Philippines, made such by the Colo
RADIO band playing it as it entered the
city Aug. 13-an air every Filipino boy
in Manila could whistle week after we
were in the city. We gave them rous-
ing cheer. They answered. 'Vive, los
Americanos.' No, they did not want to
fight us. We did not want to fight them,
and if we had to fight them it was be-
cause the master magician in this drama
behind the screens, by some trick of the
black art, brought us together.
"You have heard much of Filipino
taunts and insults. But we were the ag-
gressors. We first turned the cold Shout
der on the 18TH Of August. Then fol-
lowed in succession, made more ag-
| gravating by the time that interviewed,
the order to evacuate Malate and Pace;
the order for insurgents to quit SINCE
long and Pandacan. Dewey seized their
boats upon the bay; then General Otis
sent a map to Aguinaldo and notified
him to remove his forces beyond line
! he marked.
"The order of the president establish
ing sovereignty over the islands greatly
excited the natives. Hundreds quit their
stands, carrimetto drivers quit their
posts in such numbers and passed
through our lines to join Aguinaldo's
army that it became next to impossible
to hire a carrimetto, and we soldiers
had to walk. I was in town the day the
presidents proclamation was posted.
II heard Filipinos who had trusted
us till now say we were No more ami
co. saw these proclamations, which
you will remember say so much of the
rights of property, torn down and 9TH
ers put up by the Filipinos that dealt
more with the rights of man. A little
later, Jan. FL, Filipino captain was
shot down by an American sentry at