The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-03-14
What the Little General Said
i'm New York.
No Wonder His Toast Started
People Talking.
THRILLED LISTENERS.
Twice Was He Compelled to
Supplement His Narrative.
Forced to Give Details of Cap
ture of Aguinald0.
SCORES THE KICKERS.
Says Their Attitude Has Slain
American Soldiers.
The FilipinOs Are Not Fit For
Self Government.

General Frederick Funston before the
Lotos club in New York. which has
| caused SO much comment:
| Mr.. Toastmaster and Friends: Judg-
! ing from the remarks of the president
of the Lotos club 1 suppose that 1 am
to talk about the Philippines; at least
1 would gather that. But, in the first
place, want to express my heartfelt
appreciation, not only of the fiattering
introduction from the president of the
club, but for so cordial a greeting from
bears upon it's rolls the names of SO
many of the most distinguished men in
the United States.
To talk about the Philippines, and
about the war over there. is not in all
respects agreeable, but / am glad of the
opportunity to lay before such COM
pany a few facts. 1t may aid some of
you, who have been misled by stories
of various kinds, to believe that the
army in the Philippines has been doing
as we'll as it possibly could, and it may
enable others of you to be prouder than
ever of the patience and fortitude and
humanity which have distinguished the
course of the army and navy in the
Philippines from the beginning of the
war down to the present time. Gap
plause.)
1 shall take a very little of your time,
and you will take into consideration, of
course, the fact that L am not public
speaker. A man could not by knocking
around the world for Is or 20 years ac-
Quire many graceS as a speaker; but
will give you a few plain facts and ask
you. to draw your own conclusions.
WE COULD NOT SCUTTLE.
When the city of Manila was Surren-
dered to the navy under-Admiral Dewey
(Cheers) and to the army under General
Merritt, there were in the city some
hundreds of Spanish families, men, wo-
men and children, and a great many
thousands SnaniGh soldiers
were prisoners of war in the hands of
our troops.
In the eyes of the world these people,
absolutely unarned and helpless were
dependent entirely upon us for protec-
tion. In addition to these there were
many European residents; there were
German and British merchants with
their families; proprietors of banks,
commercial houses, warehouses rail-
roads, representing millions upon mill
lions of dollars worth of property.
To have turned these helpless Span
iards and others over to the mercy of
the uncomfortable mob which eonstitu-
ted the army of Aguinaldo, would have
been a positive crime. The Bulgarian
and Armenian masSaereS would have
been repeated on a smaller scale, and
the whole thing would have constituted
the blacklist page in American history
a thing we could not have blotted out in
a thousand years of repentance Gap
plause-)
MASSACRE AND LOOT FOR
MANILA
1t is not to be supposed that Aguin-
aldo and some of the other higher off,
GERS would have cOuntenanced a maSsa-
ere of the helpless Spaniards, or the
looting of the city of Manila, but there
is no possible doubt as to what would
have happened. The 10000 armed men
who constituted his force would have
been absolutely beyond control, and
one has but to know that pitiable story
of the execution of 200 helpless Spanish
Cn1 in nv ar ir1cR mo Tor.
in the province of Albai-he has but to
know that awful story in order to real
ize to what depths these brutal savages
could go.
No joint occupation of the city of Ma
Mia was possible; only one thing could
be done and that was to put the insur-
gents bag and baggage clear outside of
the city and make them stay outside,
police the city with our own soldiers,
and allow things to remain in that state
until a final disposition of the Philip
pine Islands could be settled, either by
the treaty of Paris or finally by the
people of the United States.
Accordingly, on the demand of the
American authorities, the insurgents
went outside the city instead of going
up to MalOlOS, where their government
went. They formed a line of trenches
running parallel with our own and ex-
tending from the sea at Maliban on one
side to Peracuna on the other. They
dug their trenches to within 100 to $50
yards of our own lines and filled them
with 20, 900 or 10000 armed men, so that
constant vigilance was necessary on our
part.
FILIPINOS PROVOKED WAR.
The insurgents with ribald jests, with |
curses and indecent oaths and insults, !
tainted us as towards, and dared our |
men to open fire, but stern discipline |
prevailed in our army. and we obeyed |
the instructions from Gen. Otis to avoid |
a conflict under all circumstances, or |
delay it as long as was possible; but |
day after day the friction became more /
nearly all of us, I think, re- |
allied that it was not a question of |
months but a, question of few days
until the clash must come.
Aguinaldo and his paper government, |
his cabinet, and his self-appointed con-
gress retired to Malolos and there is
sued proclamations. and sulked.
Finally, probably two weeks before /
the beginning of the war, an inSurgent |
captain who refused to respond to the |
of a sentry on the streets of |
Manila was shot dead That was the
first actual clash.
About three days after that private !
soldier of the First Montana regiment,
who was on sentry duty outside the city
was approached by a man with a rifle
at about 10 o'clock at night; he gave
the usual challenge, but the man did
not respond, but instead of that fired at
him from a distance of a very few
yards, but, Filipino like, missed him.
0aughter.)
Only two days later a private of the
South Dakota regiment on outpost duty,
only two miles north of the city, was