Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1902-03-12
FUNSTON TALKS OUT.
Says Filipino sympathizers Here
Are Responsible for War.
He Would Rather See a Few American
Traitors at Home Hanged Than One
OF Onr Soldiers BIS Killed on
the Field of Battle


the Field OF Battle.
New York, March 10.-Brig. Gen.
Funston was the guest of honor at a
dinner given Saturday night at the
Lotus club. More than 300 members
of the club were present. Frank r.
Lawrence, the president of the club,
was toastmaster. Mr.. Lawrence, in
Producing Gen. Funston, said:
There are some things which do
not enter into the realm of contro-
versy and among them are the BRAY
cry and intrepidity of the armies we
have sent to the Philippines. have
the pleasure of introducing to you
one whose single act almost brought
an end to the war in the Philippine
islands. We greet him very heart
ily."
Gen. Funston said that, judging
from the remarks of the president,
he was expected to talk about the
war in the Philippines. ''To talk
about war over there is not an agree
able subject" said he "but what 1
may say may aid some of you in
forming opinions as to the condition
of affairs in the islands. The army
has been doing as we'll as it could
under the circumstances.
when Manila was surrendered to
Dewey and Merritt, some thousands
of Spaniards were in the city. In
the eyes of the world these people
looked to us for protection, and to
have turned them over to the uncon-
trollable mob known as Aguinaldo's
army would have been the BLACKLIST
page of American history, one that
thousand years of repentance and
restitution would not have satisfied"
Gen. Funston then told in minute
detail of the instances which led to
the warfare between the American
army and the insurgents, and in the
narrative told of the shooting of
several sentries by Filipino scouts
who had passed the lines. He said
that, on the opening of the battle be-
tween the army and the insurgents,
Maj. Metcalf, of the Twentieth Kan
sas regiment, had come to his quar-
ters and said, ''The dance has be-
gum
What dance?' l asked, and Mai.
Metcalf replied, Go out and hear it,
L went out and heard the pattering
ming of the war over there
Gen. Funston then said: "AlI sorts
of men get into the army. There
are good, bad and Indifferent, but I
believe that 95 per cent. of the Amer
lean soldiers are brave and humane
lot of men. The other five per cent
who have been writing letters to
newspapers have ornamented the in
sides of grOg house for a longer
time than they have distinguished
themselves in the fields.
"An of those men who have fallen
since December, 1900, have been vic
Tins of a lot of misinformed and mis-
guided people here in the United
States" said the general. 'It is per-
fectly proper for us to have all sorts
of opinions as to what we should do
with the Philippine islands, but, for
heavens sake, let us keep them to
ourselves until every square inch of
that territory recognizes the sover-
eighty of the United States.''
The general said there was not
one of the so-called Filipino patriots
who could not be convicted of MUIR
der if he was tried by a jury. He
war in the worlds history where the
soldiers had shown such humanity
as had the American troops in the
Philippine islands. He then told of
"a American soldiers who had Joined
the, Filipinos and who were after
ward captured and executed as trait
ors, and then said:
There are many men in the United
States who did more with their
mouths and minds to aid the insur-
gents than did these poor men with
the Krag-JOrgensen rifles. I would
rather see those men hanged for trea-
son than to see one of our soldiers
dead on the field of battle
The general then declared the
Filipinos could not be classed with
the Cubans and he said that if the
United States troops should now leave
the Philippine islands there could be
half dozen different kinds of civil
war there and the world would hold
the United States responsible for
them.
This concluded Gen. Funston's adj
dress and he was loudly cheered.
Then President Lawrence got up and
said that all those present would
like to have Gen. Funston tell the
story of the capture of Aguinaldo
Gen. Funston responded and told of
this in detail.