Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1902-02-06

his bodyguard, about ~ 0l Whom WerP
drawn IN to receive them as friends,
and killed one or more of them, and
wounded two Of his personal staff with
out disclosing the situation to them,
and giving them an opportunity to sur
render.
s. THAT on the morning of the day
when this attack was made in disguise
the attacking party had been supplied
with food and saved from starvation by |
Aguinaldo.
In my earlier letters, which you pub |
lishrd on the LIST and 18th Of last April, |
| said that on the authorities cited, |
the killing of u member of Agllinaldo's |
budyguard under the circumstances as |
then stated (which have now been con
firmpd by Gen. Funston twas not war,
but assassination, and the approval Of
his conduct by the President, as evil
denced by his promotion to the rank Of
brigadier general in the regular army
of the United States, was nothing
short OF national calamity and dis
grace.
1.-THE Honorable President of the
Philippine Republic" might himself
have been assassinated by these dis.
guised cmissarics of the United States.
He says in his narrative that they fired
ut him as he stood by the window,
wondering what the firing was about
and giving orders to stop it. This is
confirmed by Gen. Funston, who says
in his narrative:
We hurried across and took command of
the excited and yelling Macabebes, who
were filling the air with bullets, firing in
every direction. We Americans ran at once
to Aguinaldo's house, and reached there
just in time to take pnrt in the last Of the
scrimmuge, and save the lives of the prison
ers from the Macabebes, who had recognized
the unfortunate dictator, and were chasing
/ him about the room.
Referring to the moment when the
| Macabebes opened fire, Gen. Funston
says:
At tho first shots, Aguinaldo. who did not
suspect the situation, stepped to the window
and said to his men; "Stop that foolish
ness. Do not waste your ammunition He
evidently thought the men were firing in the
air to celebrate. At this juncture, Hilairo
threw his arms about Aguinado, and bore
him to the floor, saying, You are a prisoner
to the Americans. Segoviu drew his re-
volvcr and shot Villa twice and Command
ante Alhnmbru once.
1t was under the following circum-
stances, ms told by Gen. Funston, that
the disguised savages in the pay of the
United States opened fire upon their
| unsuspccting victims:
! In the meantime, the Mncabebes were
| crossing the river in the boat eight at a
! time. and forming on the bank. All across,
! they were marched up to the plaza, near
| Aguinaldo's house, not more than 100 yards
from the landing and formed in line facing
| the 80 soldiers of Agunaldos escort 40,
| Aguinado says), who were drawn up to re-
| A.
| ing ont of the window, saw the Americans
! tthc Ostensible prisonersD approaching, and
| excusing himself for moment, stepped out
| of the house and told Gregorio Cadhit to
open fire on the escort. Gregorio yelled out
in Spanish, Now is your time, Macabebes,
I give it to them.
| do not need to add to the authori-
/, ties cited in my first letter to the effect
that while the laws of war allow de-
ceptions and stratagems, they forbid
| perfidy; that the false use of the flag
or the uniform of the enemy is per-
tidious, and that to fire on an enemy
while disguised in his uniform is
punishable with death. One of the
most recent writer's on the Law of
Nations (Dr. Hannis Taylor, some.
Madrid, who cites and summarizes
the authorities on the laws of war, saws
(sec. 1881 "a false uniform or flag
must be ;fbandoned just before the dc,
livery Of fire. and captured uniforms
must have in battle some distinguish
ing mark. He also says Sec 1897 !:
Assassination. or injury by treachery,
is never permissible; such methods
have no place in an honorable contest
of arms. If general can be captured
by a charge, no rule is violated, Ii
soldier in uniform breaks through the
cncmy's lines in battle, or even into
camp, and kills the commander, his
life may be sacrificed, but not as a
penalty for the breach Of military law.
The putting Of price upon
an encmy's head and the gaining Of
admission into his lines by false pre-
tcnccs or by DISCUSSES arc, however,
forbidden. Il X While an ab
normal state called war opens the door
to deception, it closes tho door to
pcrtidy AS the American regulations
put it, men do not cease to he moral
beings because battling with arms. ; !"
In regard to such persuasions as
Gen. Funston employed to induce
Segisinundo to betray his chief, what
ever they were DIR, Taylor says sec.
1881; ut is unlawful to incite the
cnemy's soldiers to desert or to betray
their cause, Just as ii is to encourage
crime of any. kind in the enemy's
country.
Another recent writer CSir Sharston
Baker1 says that AL agree that we
nave no right to attempt to tamper
with the fidelity of m encmy's officer
or soldier. -
Pertidy breeds pertidy, and although
the filiuinos have not vn+ tnlron a
forgery and disguise US a means of
gaming access to headquarters and
capturing our generals OF assassinatinp
their bodyguards, there is no TELLING
how soon they may try to follow our
example. A worse example Nc could
hardly have given, involving as it did
the subornation of Segismundo,s
treason by ''lnuch persuasion - tho
forgery of letters from Lacuna for the
, purpose Of making Aguinaldo receive
his enemies as friends; the use of the
Filipino uniform US disguise "to
gain access to his presence . the at
tack Of our savage mercenaries, while
so disguised, on his hodyguard, in thc
; moment of friendly welcome, and on
> the very. day when food which he had
| furnished had saved them from starya.
tion. va
Instead of being the highest trial
OF right, war; SO conducted, would
inevitably degenerate into sheer an
argng ana promlscuous slaughter.
inc othcer who has hcen made n,
hrlgildler-gcneral in the regular army
: OIL Inc United States for the success
%hleh attended his violations of the
J laws OF war has returned from the
Philippines, hut the President who