The Savannah morning news., 1904-02-29
FIRST LADY OF
THE PHILIPPINES
WAS PRETTY ENGLISH GIRL.
FELL IN LOVE WITH FAMOUS FILL
PINO DIR. RIAL.

When He Was Treating Her Fa-
Tiers Eyes-OppOsed by Her Fam
lily She Married Him on the Day of
His Execution, witnessed the
Tragedy from n Carriage, Public
Iy Denounced the SpRniards, and
PFOphesied Their DOwnfalI-Then
She Joined the Army of the Fill
Against Her Husbands Execution
ers.
The First Lady of the Philippines"
as the Filipinos delighted in calling her,
recently sailed from New York for
Brazil. This was the widow of the
famous Filipino patriot, political re-
former. poet, writer and martyr, DR..
Jose Rial y Mercado.
The story of how Josephine Taufer,
who, as Rizars widow. is honored in
the Philippines as Mrs. Ulysses Grant
was honored in this country. is one of
the most romantic incidents in the
history of the archipelago.
Josephine Taufer, young and pretty,
was one of the bellies of European So
cial circles in Hong Kong. Her father
had been a British army officer, but
later went into commercial life. Then
his eyesight began to fail him, and he
prepared to make a. trip to Europe to
consult the best oculists that were
known. But before this was finally
decided upon, there came to Hong Kong
stories of a young Filipino in Manila
who had worked wonderful cures as an
oculist, and the English officer deter
mined to try him first. So father and
daughter took steamer to Manila, but
reached there too late to find the young
native surgeon. DR.. Rial had just
been banished to Dapitan. a small iso-
lated military post in Mindanao. on
account of some revolutionary utter
ances accredited to him.
Followed Her Lover Into Exile.
But the Englishman was able to
procure passport, and he and the
girl, with a ntive servant. followed
Rial to his exile. The Filipino UNDER
took to treat him, so he stayed on. In
this way Josephine Taufer first met
Rial.
Spaniards and Filipinos who were
in Dapitan at that time tell how the
young doctor and his patients daugh-
ter often strolled along the beach to-
gether or under the avenues of arch
ing mango trees, that make the town
one of the prettiest in the Philippines.
Rial, in spite of his dark brown skin,
was one of the handsomest men in the
islands and certainly the brightest, ,
The girl was not much below him in
tellectually, and she was pretty. The
result was almost inevitable; they fell
in love with each other, and Rial
asked the fathers consent to marry
his daughter.
But whether for social or political
reasons, Miss Taufer's father would
not consent. He became extremely
angry with the turn that affairs had
taken, and wanted his daughter to re-
turn to Hong Kong with him at once.
She refused, and as SHE was too old
to be legally compelled to obey, he re-
turned alone, vowing that she should
never again be as a daughter to him.
Condemned to He Shot.
Not long after this a change of adj
ministration brought RizaIs enemies
into greater power, and he was taken
to- Manila and charged with treason.
In one day he was tried and condemn
ed to be shot on the Lunette.
On the morning of Dec. &c. 1896, the
day on which he was to be executed,
Dr. Jose Rial married Josephine
Taufer. The ceremony took place in a
death cell of the old Santiago prison
where Rial was confined.
That evening, just as the sun was
sinking behind the hills on Carrgador
Island, Rizal was taken out on the
public square and confronted by a cor
porars squad of Spanish soldiers. They
fired and he fell, only wounded, but a
thrust from a bayonet finished the
work. A great thong witnessed the
execution.
Madame Rial beheld all from car
riage. AS her husband fell, she rose
and Historically addressed the assem-
bled multitude. She predicted the ap-
preaching downfall of Spanish power
in the Philippines. She denounced the
instigators of her husbands death by
name and called them things no per-
son had ever done before and lived.
She declared she would never cease
her efforts until she had seen Rizals
blood avenged. The people heard her
in horror, believing her words would
cost her her life.
But she was not molested. The Span
iards did not dare TO prosecute her
She was allowed TO drive home in
peace.
Her Prophecy FULFILLED.
Madame Rizars prophesy of impend-
ing disaster to Spanish power came
true. The natives rose In Cavite, and
in the first battle defeated the Span
ish with heavy loss. A week after
Madame Rial disappeared from Ma
Mia and many thought that s\e had
become a victim of Spanish VENGEANCE.
A few weeks later another battle took
place between the Spanish troops and
the insurgents. The Spaniards were
defeated again, and when they came
into the city, driven back by Agui-
naldo. they told of woman who had
stood on the insurgent breastworks and
fired into their ranks.
Madame Rial had joined the insur-
gents in the field. Years later she told
how she rode out and was halted by a
Filipino outpost.
WHO goes there?" he cried.
The widow of Hose. Rizal." she re-
piled
The insurgent lowered his gun, and
bowed as he would never have bowed
to Aguinaldo himself.
The Filipino officers received the
widow of their national hero as though
she were another Joan dare. Where
ever she appeared, the natives paid her
homage. She organized a Red Cross
Society of women nurses, and she and
the Filipino women nursed the insur-
gents who had been wounded in bat
tie.
But when fight was on Madame
Rial took UP a gun and went out on
the firing line, and the Spaniards would
know she was there by the cheers and
yells that arose. She was the daughter
CT a soldier and knew how to shoot. In
one Of those fights a Spanish colonel
ell fol UTtl