The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1900-01-19

ippine question aud give our readers
accurate information az to the islands,
tho natives aud their customs, their
eapahility for self-government; the war
and its causes and the merits Of the
conflict; the oapability Of General Otis
IA a commander; impressions Of Az.
uinaldo, the rebel chief, az cleaned
from a personal acquaintance BY Chap
lain Stull. In short, tho interviews
will he an accurate history OF the Phil.
ippine war. i~ntelsperaed with interest.
Ing "Reminiscences Of the soldiers and
the natives, and The Gazette considers
that IL Ia fortunate that Reverend
atull has consented to puhlish, for the
first time, his experiences In these col.
umns, The interviews are published In
a conversational strain, the questions
Of the reporter being omitted IN order
that the narrative may not be discon.
neotad or maIred,l
"The matter Of Spanish prisoners. "
said Mr., Stull, continuing his inter-
view Of last week. twas q very inter-
esting Que, and also very intricate,
Que studying the conditions that sur
rounded the entrance Of the American
feet, and subsequently the American
army. can readily conceive that our in
tention was simply to destroy Monte
JOS feet, then In the harbor, aud await
further developments. II Ia q question
whether the authorities realized that an
jnaurrectiun was Oh aud that at the
time the boats were destroyed In the
harhor the insurgents were hard press
Ina tho apaniards, even to the gates Of
the city Of Manila. Prisoners were all
over; In all tho small villages cuntigu.
Gus to Manila you would fluid bands Of
them from an hundred to 1900 or
2 1000, Among these were quite a mum
bar Of padres. remember that OIL my
first visit to tho Colegio de Conception
I came In contact with a very brainy
Filipino priest, who was held az a pos
sible spy. He stated to me that there
we're probably 5000 Of these priests,
confined In various parts Of the islands
and that they we're being very inhu.
manly treated, Subsequently, COM
ing from the American hospital, I met
Father Dougherty, who had gone out TO
Manila with Gen. Wesley Merritt, and
In conversation with him upon. the sub.
jeet no said that 1t was actually true
that almost all the padres Of the vari.
Gus orders had been imprisoned and
were being subjected to very harsh
treatment, Just why this might be ]
was unable to ascertain, but 1t was evi.
dent In solne way the people had be.
come pYejudieed against the Spanish
iriars and padres, simply because they
would not ooneede equal privileges to
the native OF Filipino priests. Hear.
Ina that Their was a village about nine
miles distant from Cavite, where quite
a number Of prisoners we're held and
among them some priests, I obtained
permission from my commanding Off.
Ger and In company with the major sur.
aeon of our regiment, started for Rosay.
10 10 find II 1t were possible to anchor
ate the condition Of these prisoners,
and TO get some idea Of the topography
OF the country. Passing through San
Rogue we saw evidences Of the labor
saving instinet Of the Spanish soldiers,
for some small 7 rails had been OBJ.
tanned from some source and laid for a
distance OF some six miles to a place
AZ subsequently, called Fort Rice, and ON
this they had bean IN the habit of
wheeling such necessities All were need
cd for outpoats; too lazy to take much
interest In the work that was before
them, the inevitable consequence was
that the cars were lying all along the
road,
1--WE passed some beautiful homes in
San Rogue, among them the home OF
General Eatrella, who at that time WAS
In command OF the Cavite provincial
sort OF governor general, You may
obtain some slight conception of the
size of this province when ! suggest to
yoR that IT was sixty miles long and it's
width had never haen computed in
miles, because " stretched far and far
ther away, into forests that had never
been penetrated, aud to mountains, the
base ct which had never bean trod by
the feet of either spaniard or native,
Passing through San Rogue we came to
Fort Rice, 80 named by the Americans
after their occupancy, This we found
TO ha a very rndely constructed affair;
q double set Of posts-bamboo posts
tied together at the tops and filled in
with sand taken from the sea shore; 1t
was the easiest way for q Spanish SOL
diar to make a trench, and therefore
the only practicable way, There were
but two OF M in our aariametta, drawn
by A native pony, aud 1t would have
heen Interesting to tho American trave,
leI 10 have seen how wa accomplished
this journey, Leaving Fort Rice we
were compelled to take the sea shore,
and every faur or five yards our horse
would dispute going further and we
were compelled 10 get ont and walk IN
front Of him, TO show him, in the first
place, that our Intentions we're good,
- ~ aforementioned - x.nk