The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1900-01-19
! Z 1 PHILIPPINES Hi
Continued from Fourth Page.

Continued from Fourth Page.
ty was aroused and we entered the ap.
perture, went along the opening aud
came to one Of those dreary places
called a subterranean dungeon. It was
a room possibly twenty feet square,
each stone cut and fitted into its groove ;
the walls were eliptical and the roof
circular; not a particle of light could
enter in any way excepting through the
strong iron. hound door, that opened in
upon the dungeon from the passage. I
inquired subsequently what these we're
used for. and was told by a friend Of
mine that III the early days Of Spanish
occupancy they were very common, and
that if a servant-a Filipino-was &C.
cused Of any %offense, however. trivial,
the f~erocity Of the Spanish nature
prompted the owner to place the ser.
want in q hole of that kind and there
let him rot. Returning to Cavite, I
told my experience to some Of the off,
GERS and men, and they told me in turn
that these same dungeons and subter-
ranean passages were to be found under
the dungeons where the Spanish prison
ers had been quartered prior to our ar
rival. A few days afterward we inves-
tigated and found that it was true, and
by the light of our candles discovered
the rings in the wall and the rusty
chains that were falling to pieces
from the extreme moisture, indicative
of the horrible cruelties that had been
practiced Oh these defenseless people at
all early day, in the reign Of the Span
ish in the Philippine islands. 1t would
be hard to conceive the terrible amount
Of punishment that had been melted out
to this once happy people. who. groan.
ing under the tortures placed upon
them, had rebelled. and as a result Of
their rebellion had been made to feel
creator hardships than they experienced
before. I am frank to confess that l do
not wonder that they desired to get back
to the liberty that o1ce was theirs when,
free from both the vices and presence Of
the Castillion, they we're enabled to en-
joy their liberty in their own way.
"Another thing that attracted us
while we were at Cavite was the po.
sition Of the boats that had been sunk.
The flagship Reina Cristina, that had
been the flagship Of Montejo. together
with four or five other boats, were y.
ing in front Of Cavite. but six others Of
the Spanish feet had sought to get
around behind the city Of Cavite, and
had gone through a narrow passage
way, and were lying in snch a position
that they might not be easily seen by
the American fleet when destroying
the boats that we're out in the bay. 1t
used to be a frequent occurrence for us
to 60 out and go Oh these boats; the
guns, equipment. furniture and all the
paraphernalia that would belong to a
we'll organized fleet had been left by
the Spaniards in their mad attempt to
escape the deadly fire Of the American
vessels. We we're told that as the sail
ors attempted to get away from the
boats that were burning and swim to-
ward the shore, when they were within
easy distance, that they were set upon
by many Of the Filipino soldiers and
killed in the water before they had all
opportunity to reach the shore. We
sometimes would take divers out with
us, and on several occasions, when 60
ing out to these boats in search OF curl
os, the divers would come to the SUR
face and positively refuse to again des.
cend, stating that they had come in
contact with dead bodies that were
floating around in the engine room and
in the gun rooms. While we were at
Cavite three of these boats were raised,
and today Lieutenant Hobson is put
ting the finishing touches upon them,
when they will become a part Of the
mosquito feet that will guard the coast
Of Luzon.
"Another object Of interest to us was
a very large vessel that we used to see
lying over against the shore at a point
called Zapote, Il point midway between
Bacoor and Manila. And one day, get
ting into one Of the small sailing
crafts of the natives, we were taken
over to see what this might be. We dis
covered a large transport that had been
named the Mindinao; we were enabled
tC enter this through an immense gap
in the stern. 1t evidently had been
burned, but it must have been a mag.
nifcent boat. We inquired of the boat
man the cause Of its being there and
were told that at the time the hostili-
ties began in the city of Manila a great
many Of the Spanish merchants and the
weather. residents at Cavite had fitted
up this boat. then lying in the har Dor.
putting on it their costly furniture.
br%ic.a-brac, silks and jawelry, also
their money, and were seeking to get
out of the harbor and get to a place of
safety, ~hen they were ordered by Ad.
miral Dewey where they would have
been absolutely safe, for they would
have been under the protection Of the
American guns. But instead of this
they tried to get out from under the