Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-04-21
CURE WAS EFFECTIVE
Lieut.. Flint, Of Massachusetts.
Testifies Before the Senate
Philippines Committee.
Had Seen Water Cure Admins.
tered Several Times..Was
Always Effective.
Burning Of Filipino Villages Was
an Idea Borrowed From
Weyler.

Washington, April 21.-The senate
resumed the examination of witnesses
in connection with the investigation Of
affairs in the Philippine islands. Gro-
yer Flint. of Cambridge, Mass, who
served as first lieutenant in the Thir-
ty-fifth Volunteer Infantry, testified
that earlysgin May, 1900. he had been a
witness to water cure, as adninis-
tered to the natives by Maccabebe
scouts and that this was done to get
Information as to the whereabouts Of
their guns. The guns were delivered.
The following day some men Of his
own regiment applied the cure" but
their act WIS without authority of their
commanding officers. The Macca-
bebes at the time referred to were not
under the command of commissioned
officer, but under a sergeant of the
United States army. Flint had been,
he said, a witness to at least twenty
cases OF the water cure" He fleven
had seen any one die as a result OF the
Cure but had seen a hospital corps
man working on native who had been
rendered unconscious. II also had been
reported to him that one Filipino died
from the effects of the water "cure-n
Witness then described the method
of administering the "cure" and said I'm
some cases where it Was given to old
men he had seen their teeth fall out.
Flint said he was present upon these
occasions, Ito draw the line on ex-
cesses." He did not recommend to his
major that this practice cease. nor did
he give any orders to his men to stop
the torture.
Witness declared the effect Of the
cure was immediate, the victim invari-
ably turning in his gun or bOlo and
giving information as to the where
abouts of others He said 1t was inn
possible to judge whether the victims
were insurgent soldiers or peasants.
but they appeared to be peaceable bar
rios or. villagers. Some of them we're
thrown down by force, others.who were
timid would submit readily, while
those who resisted were simply held
more tightly. The treatment, he said,
never got to the point OF great brutaii-
ty. Witness stated he had been refused
a commission in the regular army be-
cause his colonel had reported him as
using intoxicating liquors to excess.
Witnses deplored the raising of this
question, but Senator Beveridge said
it had an important bearing on the
case. Flint denied on any occasions
when he had witnessed the water
cure" he was under the influence of liq-
uor He insisted that in justice to him
self he ought to state that he was not
drunk, but had been a careless drinker.
He had. he said. released several men
who did not appear to be fnsurrectos.
Major Geary. of his regiment. was al
ways near, but had not interfered in
the administration of the cure, SIM
ply assisting the commissioned officer
to see that the men did not go too far.
After considerable questioning he
finally admitted he approved OF the
water cure" and said it was not an
American invention, but was as old as
the "Chronicles of Newgate" Asked
regarding the Filipinos in the guard
houses he said they were treated ex-
actly the Same as American prisoners.
except they were supplied with the
food which they were accustomed to
and not with army rations. Witness
described the burning of the small viii
lagos. the idea being, he said, to drive
the people to the woods or to the towns
and control them.
"who did the army borrow that
from?" inquired Senator Culberson.
81 saw it in Cuba" answered the wit
ness, under authority of General Wey-
Ier" Witness was then excused and
the committee went into executive ses-