Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1902-06-06

| like cargoes have passed through before.
manfacs and broken In mental health as the
| result of service in the Philippine islands.
''Mr. President, every one of these
| maniacs, every one of the many like
freights of horror that come back to US
from the Philippine islands was once an
American boy, the delight of some Amsri-
can home, fairer and nobler in his young
promise, we like to think, than any
other the round world over. All, Mr.. Pres
ident, it was not 81. COO that we paid as
the price of sovereignty 1t was the souls
OF these boys of ours that entered into the
cost.
Censure for Funston.
ST do not wish to dwell at length on the
circumstances which attended the capture
of Aguinaldo. But they have been elab-
orately defended in this body, and it is said
that the officer who captured him had a
good record before, and especially as he has
been decorated by a promotion by the adj
vice and consent of the senate, / cannot let
it pass in silence.
81 understand the facts to be that that
officer disguised the men under his COM
mand in the dress of Filipino soldiers;
wrote, or caused to be written, a forged let
ter to Aguinaldo, purporting to come from
one of his officers, stating that he was about
to bring him some prisoners he had cap
tured. and in that way got access to Aguin-
aldos headquarters. As he approached he
sent message to Aguinaldo that he and his
friends were hungry; accepted the food at
his hands and when in his presence threw
down and seized him shot some of the SOL
diers who were about Aguinaldo and
brought him back prisoner into our lines.
That is the transaction which is so highly
applauded in imperialistic quarters.
II do not believe that the senate knew
what it was doing when it consented to Gen.
Funston $ promotion.
Mr.. President, we have two guides for
- In rfnhn fy
cumstances. They apply not only to this
act of Gen. Funston. but they apply to most
of the conduct of our military officers of
which complaint has been made. One of
these is instructions. for the government of
armies of the United States in the field, pre-
pared by DR.. Francis ieber and promul-
gated by order Of Abraham Lincoln.
1.-The other is the convention at The
Hague, agreed upon by the representatives
Of this government with the others on the
10Th day of July. 1899. and ratified by the
senate on the 14th of March. 1902.
Infamy of FunstOn's Act.
$50, Mr. President, the act of Gen. Fun
ston-not Gen. Funston himself if he acted
under orders of his superior-but the act of
Gen. Funston is stamped with indelible in
fanny by Abraham Lincoln articles of war,
to which the secretary of war appeals, anG
the concurrent action of "a nations and the
unanimous action of the senate this winter.
''Mr. President, in this attempt to force
your sovereignty by this process of benev-
olent assimilation we have been brought to
the urexampled oishonor of diSregarding
our own rules for the conduct of armies In
the field and to disregard the rules to which
our national faith has just been pledged to
substantially all the civilized powers of the
earth.
proved by his superior officer, was in viola
tion n OF only of the laws of war, but of that
law of hospitality which governs alike
everywhere the civilized Christian or pagan
xvba he 1ioh of e.
trated. He went to Aguinaldo under the
pretense that he was ahungered, and
Aguinaldo fed him. Was not that an act
of perfidy? 1t violated the holy rite of hos
pitality, which even the oriental nations
hold sacred.
The Water Cure.
''Mr. President, the story of what has been
called the water torture has been, in part,
told by other senators. have no inclination
to repeat the story. cannot help believing
that not twentieth part of 1t has yet been
told. l get letters in large numbers from Of
ficers, of the friends of officers, who repeat
what they tell rae, all testifying to these
crueltieS. And yet the officer, the Of
GERS friends or kindred, who send these let
tiers to me send them under strict injunc-
ton of secrecy. Other senator's tell me they
have a like experience. These brave OFF,
GERS, who would go to the lannon's mouth
for honor, who never finchIin battle finch
before what they deem the certain ruin Of
their prospects in life if they give the evil
dence which they think would be distaste-
full to their superiorS. / do not undertake
to judge of this matter. Other senator's can
judge well as L can. The American peo-
pie can DO it better.
''Mr. President, it is said that these hor-
rors, which never would have come to the
public knowledge had not the senate or
dered this investigat ton, were unknown to
our authorities at home. l hope and be-
lieve they were unknown to the war depart
ment. know they were unknown to Pres
ident Roosevelt, and I know they were I'M
known to President Mckinley. But 1 can
not think that the recent declaration of
that honorable gentleman, the secretary of
war, made on memorable occasion, that
the war our part been conducted with
uneXampled humanity, will be accepted by
his countrymen.
Let US not be diverted from the true is
sue. We are not talking of retaliation. We
are not talking of the ordinary brutalitfes
of war. We are not talking about or in
curing into acts of vengeance committed
in the heat of battle. We are talking about
torture, torture-cold- blooded, deliberate,
calculated torture; torture to extort infor-
nation.
us it denied that these things have been
done? Is it denied that although you are
still on the threshold of this inquiry and
have only called such witnesses as you hap
pen to find 10000 miles away from the scene
that these things have been proved to the
satisfaction of the majority of the commit
tee, and that no man has yet been punished,
although they were going considerably
more than year ago?
Choice of the Hour.
st have sonnet times fancied that we might
erect here in the capital of the country a
column to American liberty which alone
might rival in height the beautiful and SIM
pie shaft which have erected to the
fame of the father of the country. I can
fancy each generation bringing its in
scription, which should recite its own con-
tribution to the great structure of which
the column should be but the symbol.
''And what have we to say? Are we to
have a place in that honorable company?
Must we engrave that column: We