Chapter III: Of Military Justice (1)

_Article_ 25.--When any commandant of a detachment shall receive
notice of an individual in the service having committed a fault or
having performed any act reputed to be a military misdemeanour,
he shall inform the Commandant of the District of the same, and
this officer shall appoint a judge and secretary to constitute
a Court of Inquiry in the form prescribed in the instructions
dated 20th instant. If the accused held the rank of lieutenant,
or a higher one, the same Commandant shall be the judge, and if the
Commandant himself were the accused the Superior Commandant of the
Province shall appoint as judge an officer of a higher rank, and
if there were none such the same Commandant of the Province shall
open the inquiry. The judge shall always hold the rank of chief.

_Article_ 26.--When the Court of Inquiry has finished its labours,
the Superior Commandant shall appoint three assistant judges of
equal or superior rank to the judge, and a Court-Martial shall be
composed of the three assistant judges, the judge, the assessor,
and the president. The Commandant of the District shall be the
judge if the accused held the rank of sergeant, or a lower one,
and the Superior Commandant shall be judge if the accused held the
rank of lieutenant, or a higher one. This court shall pass sentence
in the same form as the Provincial Courts, but the sentence can
be appealed against before the Superior Council of War.

_Article 27_.--The Superior Council of War shall be composed
of six assistant judges, who shall hold the minimum rank of
Brigadier-General, and the War Office adviser. If the number of
generals residing in the capital of the Revolutionary Government
be insufficient, the number shall be made up by deputies to
be appointed on commission by Congress. The President of this
Council shall be the general of the highest rank amongst them,
and if there were more than one of the same rank, one shall be
elected by themselves by majority of votes.

_Article 28_.--The Superior Council shall judge and sentence,
without right of further appeal, Superior Commandants, Commandants
of Districts, and all officers who hold rank of Commandant,
or a higher one.

_Article 29_.--Military misdemeanours are the following:--

(1) Violation of the immunity due to foreigners, both as to
their persons and their goods, and violation of the privileges
appertaining to sanitary establishments and ambulances, as well
as the persons and effects in, or belonging to, one or the other,
and persons employed in the service of the same so long as they
commit no hostile act. (2) Want of respect for the lives, money,
and jewellery of the enemy who surrenders his arms, and for
prisoners of war. (3) The entry of Filipinos into the service of
the enemy as spies, or to discover war secrets, make plans of the
revolutionists' positions and fortifications, or present themselves
to parley without proving their mission or their individuality. (4)
Violation of the immunity due to those who come with this mission,
duly accredited, in the form prescribed by international law.

The following persons also commit military misdemeanours:--

(1) Those who endeavour to break up the union of the
revolutionists, fomenting rivalry between the chiefs, and forming
divisions and armed bands. (2) Those who collect taxes without
being duly authorized by Government, or misappropriate public
funds. (3) Those who, being armed, surrender to the enemy or
commit any act of cowardice before the same; and (4) Those who
sequester any person who has done no harm to the Revolution, or
violate women, or assassinate, or seriously wound any undefended
persons, or commit robbery or arson.

_Article_ 30.--Those who commit any of the above-named
misdemeanours shall be considered declared enemies of the
Revolution and shall be punished on the highest scale of punishment
provided for in the Spanish Penal Code. If the misdemeanour be
not provided for in the said code, the culprit shall be confined
until the Revolution has triumphed, unless his crime shall have
caused an irreparable injury which, in the opinion of the court,
would justify the imposition of capital punishment.

Additional Clauses

_Article_ 31.--The Government shall establish abroad a
Revolutionary Committee, composed of an indefinite number of
the most competent persons in the Philippine Archipelago. This
Committee shall be divided into three sections, viz.:--Of
diplomacy; of the navy; and of the army. The diplomatic section
shall negotiate with the foreign cabinets the recognition of
belligerency and Philippine independence. The naval section shall
be intrusted with the study and organization of a Philippine
navy and prepare the expeditions which the circumstances of the
Revolution may require. The army section shall study military
tactics and the best form of organizing staff, artillery and
engineer corps, and all that is necessary to put the Philippine
army on a footing of modern advancement.

_Article_ 32.--The Government shall dictate the necessary
instructions for the execution of the present decree.

_Article_ 33.--All decrees of the Dictatorial Government which
may be in opposition to the present one are hereby rescinded.

Given at Cavite, June 23, 1898.

_Emilio Aguinaldo_.

The Promulgation of the Constitution of the Revolutionary Government was accompanied by a Message from Emilio Aguinaldo, of which the following is a translation:--

_Message of the President of the Philippine Revolution_

It is an established fact that a political Revolution, judiciously
carried out, is the violent means employed by nations to recover
the sovereignty which naturally belongs to them, when the same has
been usurped and trodden under foot by tyrannical and arbitrary
government. Therefore, the Philippine Revolution cannot be more
justifiable than it is, because the country has only resorted
to it after having exhausted all peaceful means which reason and
experience dictated.

The old Kings of Castile were obliged to regard the Philippines
as a sister nation united to Spain by a perfect similarity
of aims and interests, so much so that in the Constitution of
1812, promulgated at Cadiz, as a consequence of the Spanish War
of Independence, these Islands were represented in the Spanish
Parliament. But the monastic communities, always unconditionally
propped up by the Spanish Government, stepped in to oppose the
sacred obligation, and the Philippine Islands were excluded from
the Spanish Constitution, and the country placed at the mercy of
the discretional or arbitrary powers of the Gov.-General.

Under these circumstances the country clamoured for justice,
and demanded of the Peninsular Government the recognition and
restitution of its secular rights, through reforms which should
gradually assimilate it to Spain. But its voice was soon stifled,
and its children were rewarded for their abnegation by punishment,
martyrdom and death. The religious corporations, whose interests
were always at variance with those of the Filipinos and identified
with the Spanish Government, ridiculed these pretensions, calmly
and persistently replying that liberty in Spain had only been
gained by the sacrifice of blood.

What other channel, then, was open to the country through which
to insist upon the recovery of its lawful rights? No other remedy
remained but the application of force, and convinced of this,
it had recourse to revolution.

Now its demands are no longer limited to assimilation with the
Spanish Constitution. It asks for a definite separation therefrom;
it struggles for its independence, with the certainty that the
time has arrived when it is able and ought to rule itself.

Hence, it has constituted a Revolutionary Government, based
on wise and just laws, suited to the abnormal circumstances
it is passing through, preparatory to the founding of a real
Republic. Accepting Right as the only standard of its acts,
Justice as its sole aim, and honourable Labour as its sole means,
it calls upon all Filipinos, without distinction of birth, and
invites them to unite firmly with the object of forming a noble
society, not by bloodshed, nor by pompous titles, but by labour
and the personal merit of each one; a free society where no egoism
shall exist--where no personal politics shall overflow and crush,
nor envy nor partiality debase, nor vain boasting nor charlatanry
throw it into ridicule.

Nothing else could be expected from a country which has proved
by its long suffering and courage in tribulation and danger,
and industry and studiousness in peace, that it is not made for
slavery. That country is destined to become great; to become one of
the most solid instruments of Providence for ruling the destinies
of humanity. That country has resources and energy sufficient to
free itself from the ruin and abasement into which the Spanish
Government has drawn it, and to claim a modest, though worthy,
place in the concert of free nations.

Given at Cavite, June 23, 1898.

_Emilio Aguinaldo_.

These public documents were supplemented by the issue, on June 27, of "Instructions," signed by Emilio Aguinaldo, which, as they relate solely to working details of the Revolutionary Government offices, are of minor interest to the general reader.

Since June 30 the rebels were in possession of Coloocan (the first, station--beyond Manila--on the Manila-Dagupan Railway) and the Manila suburbs of Santa Cruz and Tondo. The rebels purchased four vessels in Singapore and armed them, but, later on, Admiral Dewey forbade them to fly their flag pending the ultimate settlement of the whole Philippine problem. They also took possession of the waterworks of Santolan (near San Juan del Monte), but did not cut off the water-supply to the capital. Dissensions arose in the rebel camp between Emilio Aguinaldo and the leaders Yocson and Sandico. Yocson was the chief who carried on the war in the northern provinces during the absence of Aguinaldo and his companions (_vide_ pp. 399, 407). The Americans had no less difficulty in dealing with the natives than with the Spaniards. There were frequent altercations between individual rebels and American soldiers which, in one case at least, near Cavite, resulted very seriously. The rebels were irritated because they considered themselves slighted, and that their importance as a factor in the hostilities was not duly recognized; in reality, there was nothing for them to do in co-operation with the Americans, who at any time could have brought matters to a crisis without them (by shelling the city) but for considerations of humanity. Aguinaldo's enemies were naturally the Spaniards, and he kept his forces actively employed in harassing them in the outlying districts; his troops had just gained a great victory in Dagupan (Pangasinan), where, on July 22, the whole Spanish garrison and a number of civilian Spaniards had to capitulate in due written form. But experience had taught him that any day an attempt might be made to create a rival faction. Such a contingency had been actually provided for in Article 29 of the Statutes of the Revolutionary Government already cited. Presumably with a view to maintaining his prestige and keeping his individuality well before the people, he was constantly issuing edicts and proclamations. He was wise enough to understand the proverbs, "_L'union fait la force_," and "A house divided against itself shall surely fall." Not the least of his talents was that of being able to keep united a force of 30,000 to 40,000 Filipinos for any object. His proclamation of the Constitution of the Revolutionary Government on June 23 implied a declaration of independence. He really sought to draw the American authorities into a recognition of it; but he did not seem to see, what others saw, the inopportunity of their doing so at that stage of America's relations with Spain. The generals were not the arbiters of the _political_ situation. Then Aguinaldo adopted a course quite independently of the Great Power which had undertaken the solution of the Philippine question, and addressed a Memorandum to the foreign Governments, with a copy of an Act of Independence. The result was altogether negative; not a single Power chose to embarrass America, at that critical period, by a recognition of Aguinaldo's party. The Memorandum read as follows:--

(_Translation_)

_To the Powers_:--

The Revolutionary Government of the Philippines, on being
constituted, explained, by means of a message of the 23rd June
last, the real causes of the Philippine Revolution, and went on to
show that this popular movement is the result of those laws which
regulate the life of a nation ardently desiring progress, and
the attainment of perfection by the only possible road of liberty.

The Revolution, at the present moment, is predominant in the
provinces of Cavite, Batangas, Mindoro, Tayabas, La Laguna, Morong,
Bulacan, Bataan, Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Pangasinan, La
Union, La Infanta, and Zambales, and is besieging the capital,
Manila. In these provinces the most perfect order and tranquillity
reign; they are administered by the authorities elected by
themselves in conformity with the decrees of the 18th and 23rd
of June last.

Moreover, the Revolution has about 9,000 prisoners of war, who are
treated with the same consideration observed by cultured nations,
agreeably with the sentiments of humanity, and a regular organized
army of more than 30,000 men fully equipped on a war footing.

Under these circumstances the representatives of the townships
comprised within the provinces above mentioned, interpreting the
popular will of those who have elected them, have proclaimed the
Independence of the Philippines, and requested the Revolutionary
Government to petition and solicit of the foreign Powers
an acknowledgment of their belligerency and independence,
under the conviction that the Philippine nation has arrived
at that state in which it can and ought to govern itself. As a
consequence, the annexed document has been signed by the said
representatives. Wherefore the undersigned, using the faculties
reserved to him as President of the Revolutionary Government
of the Philippines, and in the name and representation of the
Philippine nation, implores the protection of all the Powers of
the civilized world, and beseeches them formally to recognize the
belligerency, the Revolutionary Government, and the Independence of
the Philippines, because these Powers are the bulwarks designated
by Providence to maintain the equilibrium amongst nations by
sustaining the weak and _restraining the ambitions of the more
powerful_, in order that the most faultless justice may illuminate
and render effective indefinitely the progress of humanity.

Given under my hand and seal in Bacoor, in the Province of Cavite,
this 6th day of August 1898.

_Emilio Aguinaldo_,

_The President of the Revolutionary Government._

The accompanying Act of Independence, dated August 1, 1898, and couched in the flowery language of the preceding edicts and proclamations, was signed by those Filipinos who had been appointed local presidents of the townships in the provinces referred to. The allusion to "the ambitions of the more powerful" could well be understood to signify an invitation to intervene in and counteract America's projects, which might, hereafter, clash with the Aguinaldo party's aspirations. At the same time a group of agitators, financed by the priests in and out of the Islands, was straining every nerve to disseminate false reports and create discord between the rebels and the Americans, in the hope of frustrating their coalition. But, even then, with a hostile host before Manila, and the city inevitably doomed to fall, the fate of Spanish sovereignty depended more on politicians than on warriors.

In the absence of a Spanish Ambassador at Washington the French and Austro-Hungarian Governments had accepted, conjointly, the protection of Spanish subjects and interests in the United States on terms set forth in the French Ambassador's letter to the Secretary of State in Washington, dated April 22, 1898. In August the city of Santiago de Cuba was beleaguered by the Americans under General Shafter; the forts had been destroyed by Admirals Schley and Sampson; General Linares, in command there, had been wounded and placed _hors de combat_; the large force of Spanish troops within the walls was well armed and munitioned, but being half-starved, the _morale_ of the rank-and-file was at a low ebb, and General Toral, who succeeded General Linares, capitulated. The final blow to Spanish power and hopes in Cuba was the destruction of Admiral Cervera's fleet outside the port of Santiago de Cuba. Cuba was lost to Spain. No material advantage could then possibly accrue to any of the parties by a prolongation of hostilities, and on July 22 the Spanish Government addressed a Message to the President of the United States (Mr. William McKinley) to inquire on what terms peace might be re-established between the two countries. In reply to this inquiry the U.S. Secretary of State sent a despatch, dated July 30, conveying an outline of the terms to be stipulated. The French Ambassador at Washington, M. Jules Cambon, having been specially appointed "plenipotentiary to negotiate and sign," by decree of the Queen-Regent of Spain, dated August 11, 1898, peace negotiations were entered into, and a Protocol was signed by him and the U.S. Secretary of State, Mr. William R. Day, for their respective Governments at 4.25 p.m. on August 12, 1898. It is interesting to note the exact hour and date, in view of subsequent events.

Protocol of Peace

_The English Text_ [200]

_Article_ 1.--Spain will relinquish all claim of sovereignty over
and title to Cuba.

_Article_ 2.--Spain will cede to the United States the Island of
Porto Rico and other islands now under Spanish sovereignty in the
West Indies, and also an island in the Ladrones to be selected
by the United States.

_Article_ 3.--_The United States will occupy and hold the city,
bay, and harbour of Manila, pending the conclusion of a treaty
of peace which shall determine the control, disposition, and
government of the Philippines_.

_Article_ 4.--Spain will immediately evacuate Cuba, Porto Rico, and
other islands now under Spanish sovereignty in the West Indies; and
to this end each Government will, within ten days after the signing
of this protocol, appoint Commissioners, and the Commissioners so
appointed shall, within 30 days after the signing of this protocol,
meet at Havana for the purpose of arranging and carrying out
the details of the aforesaid evacuation of Cuba and the adjacent
Spanish islands; and each Government will, within ten days after
the signing of this protocol, also appoint other Commissioners,
who shall, within 30 days after the signing of this protocol,
meet at San Juan, in Porto Rico, for the purpose of arranging and
carrying out the details of the aforesaid evacuation of Porto Rico
and other islands now under Spanish sovereignty in the West Indies.

_Article_ 5.--The United States and Spain will each appoint
not more than five Commissioners to treat of peace, and the
Commissioners so appointed shall meet at Paris not later than
October 1, 1898, and proceed to the negotiation and conclusion of
a treaty of peace, which treaty shall be subject to ratification
according to the respective constitutional forms of the two
countries.

_Article_ 6.--Upon the conclusion and signing of this protocol,
hostilities between the two countries shall be suspended, and
notice to that effect shall be given as soon as possible by each
Government to the commanders of its military and naval forces.

Done at Washington in duplicate, in English and in French, by
the undersigned, who have hereunto set their hands and seals,
the 12th day of August, 1898.

_William R. Day_.
_Jules Cambon_.

For a month before the Protocol was signed the relations between Spaniards and Americans were verging towards a crisis. The respective land forces were ever on the point of precipitating the end. General F. V. Greene had his brigade encamped along the Cavite-Manila road, about 2 1/2 miles from the Spanish fort at Malate, with outposts thrown forward to protect the camp. The rebel lines were situated nearer to Manila, between the Americans and Spaniards. On July 28 General Greene took possession of a line, from the road already occupied by his forces, in front of the rebels' advanced position, to be ready to start operations for the reduction of Manila. The American soldiers worked for three days at making trenches, almost unmolested by the Spaniards, who had a strong line of breastworks not more than 1,000 yards in front. No Americans were killed or wounded whilst so working.

On July 31, at 11 p.m., the Spaniards opened a furious infantry and artillery fire upon the American lines and kept it up for two hours. Fort San Antonio Abad (Malate) with five guns, Blockhouse No. 14 with two guns, and connecting infantry trenches, concentrated fire upon the American breastworks, which caused considerable annoyance to the Americans. The night was pitch-dark, it rained in torrents, there was mud and water everywhere, and the ground was too flat to drain. The 10th Pennsylvania Regiment and four guns of the Utah Batteries occupied the American line, with two batteries of the 3rd Foot Artillery in reserve. The last was brought up under a heavy fire, and taking up a position on the right, silenced the Spaniards, who were pouring in a flanking fire. The whole camp was under arms, and ammunition and reinforcements were sent. The regiments were standing expectantly in the rain. The 1st California was ordered forward, the bugle sounded the advance, the whole camp cheered, and the men were delighted at the idea of meeting the enemy. Over a flat ground the American troops advanced under a heavy Spanish fire of shell and Maueser rifles, but they were steady and checked the Spaniards' attack.

General Greene went forward to the trenches, firing was exchanged, and the wounded were being brought back from the front in _carromatas_. The contending parties were separated by bamboo thickets and swamp. The Americans lost that night 10 killed and 30 wounded. The Spanish loss was much heavier. Most of the Americans killed were shot in the head. The Maueser bullet has great penetrating power, but does not kill well; in fact it often makes a small wound which hardly bleeds. As pointed out at p. 369, four Maueser bullets passed right through Sancho Valenzuela at his execution and left him still alive. Captain Hobbs, of the 3rd Artillery, was shot through the thigh at night, and only the next morning saw the nature of the wound.

During the following week the Spaniards made three more night-attacks, the total killed and wounded Americans amounting to 10 men. The American soldiers were not allowed to return the fire, unless the Spaniards were evidently about to rush the breastworks. There was some grumbling in the camp. The Spaniards, however, got tired of firing to so little purpose, and after the third night there was silence. Meanwhile, in the daytime the Americans went on strengthening their line without being molested.

On August 7 Admiral Dewey and General Merritt sent a joint note to the Captain-General in Manila, giving him 48 hours to remove women and children, as, at any time after that, the city might be bombarded. The Captain-General replied thanking the Admiral and General for their kind consideration, but pointed out that he had no ships, and to send the women and children inland would be to place them at the mercy of the rebels. On the expiration of the 48 hours' notice, i.e., at noon on August 9, another joint note was addressed to General Augusti, pointing out the hopelessness of his holding out and formally demanding the surrender of the city, so that life and property of defenceless persons might be spared. The Captain-General replied requesting the American commanders to apply to Madrid; but this proposal being rejected, the correspondence ceased.

On August 11 a Council of War was held between Generals Merritt, Anderson, McArthur, and Greene, and the plan of combined attack arranged between General Merritt and Admiral Dewey was explained. For some hours a storm prevented the landing of more American troops with supplies, but these were later on landed at Paranaque when the weather cleared up, and were hurriedly sent on to the camp, where preparations were being made for the assault on the city.

Whilst the Protocol was being signed in Washington the American troops were entrenched about 350 yards from the Spaniards, who were prepared to make their last stand at the Fort San Antonio Abad (Malate). From the morning of that day there were apparent signs of an intended sortie by the Spaniards, and, in view of this, the rebels marched towards the American lines, but were requested to withdraw. Indeed, the native forces were only too anxious to co-operate with the American troops, or at least, to have the semblance of doing so, in order to justify their claim to enter the beleaguered city as allies of the invaders. General Merritt, however, discouraged any such alliance, and issued precise orders to his subordinate officers to avoid, as much as possible, all negotiation with the Aguinaldo party.

Why the Spaniards were still holding the city of Manila at this date is perhaps best understood by the Americans. To the casual observer it would have appeared expedient to have made the possession of Manila a _fait accompli_ before the Protocol of Peace was signed. The Americans had a large and powerful fleet in Manila Bay; they were in possession of Cavite, the arsenal and forts, and they had a large army under Maj.-General Merritt and his staff. General Augusti was, for weeks previous, personally disposed to surrender, and only refused to do so as a matter of form, hence the same means as were finally employed could apparently have brought about the same result at an earlier date. [201] The only hope the Spaniards could entertain was a possible benefit to be derived from international complication. From the tone of several of the Captain-General's despatches, published in Madrid, one may deduce that capitulation to a recognized Power would have relieved him of the tremendous anxiety as to what would befall the city if the rebels did enter. It is known that, before the bombardment, Admiral Dewey and his colleagues had given the humane and considerate assurance that the city should not be left to the mercy of the revolutionary forces.

The next day, Saturday, August 13, the Americans again demanded the surrender of the city within an hour, which was refused, according to Spanish custom. Without the slenderest hope of holding the city against the invaders, the Spaniards preconcerted a human sacrifice, [202] under the fallacious impression that the salvation of their honour demanded it, and operations commenced at 9.45 a.m. The ships present at the attack were the _Olympia_ (flagship), _Monterey, Raleigh, McCulloch, Petrel, Charleston, Baltimore, Boston_, and _Concord_, with the little gunboat _Rapido_, and the captured (Spanish) gunboat _Callao_, and the armed steam-launch _Barcelo_. The _Concord_ watched the Fort Santiago at the Pasig River entrance. The American commanders confined the bombardment to the forts and trenches situated to the south of the city. The whole of the walled city and the trading quarter of Binondo were undamaged. The fighting-line was led by the _Olympia_, which sent 4-inch shells in the direction of the fort at Malate (San Antonio de Abad). A heavy shower of rain made it difficult to get the range, and every shell fell short. The _Petrel_ then took up position and shelled the fort with varying result, followed by the _Raleigh_. The _Rapido_ and the _Callao_, being of light draught, were able to lie close in shore and pour in a raking fire from their small-calibre guns with considerable effect. The distance between the ships and the fort was about 3,500 yards, and, as soon as this was correctly ascertained, the projectiles had a telling effect on the enemy's battery and earthworks. The _Olympia_ hurled about 70 5-inch shells and 16 8-inch shells, and the _Petrel_ and the _Raleigh_ about the same number each. There was rather a heavy wash in the bay for the little _Callao_ and the _Barcelo_, but they were all the time capering about, pouring a hail of small shell whenever they had a chance. The Spaniards at Malate returned the fire and struck the _Callao_ without doing any damage. The transport _Zafiro_ lay between the fighting-line and the shore, having on board General Merritt, his staff, and a volunteer regiment. The transport _Kwonghoi_ was also in readiness with a landing-party of troops on board. In another steamer were the correspondents of the London _Times_ and _New York Herald_, and the special artists of the _Century Magazine_ and the _Herald_. The field artillery took no part in the operations. The shelling of the Fort San Antonio Abad from the ships lasted until about 11 a.m., when the general signal was given to cease firing. One shell, from Malate, reached the American camp. The firing from the ships had caused the Spaniards to fall back. General Greene then ordered the 1st Colorado to advance. Two companies deployed over a swamp and went along the beach under cover of the Utah Battery. Two other companies advanced in column towards the Spanish entrenchments with colours flying and bands of music playing lively tunes. The first and second companies fired volleys to cover the advance of the other columns. They crossed the little creek, near Malate, in front of the fort; then, by rushes, they reached the fort, which they entered, followed by the other troops, only to find it deserted. The Spaniards had retreated to a breastwork at the rear of the fort, where they kept up a desultory fire at the Colorado troops, killing one man and wounding several. Fort San Antonio Abad was now in possession of the 1st Colorado under Lieut.-Colonel McCoy, who climbed up the flagstaff, hauled down the Spanish flag, and hoisted the Stars and Stripes amidst cheers from the army and fleet.

Four companies of the 1st Colorado advanced across the fields, entered the Spanish trenches, crossed the bridge, and moved up the road, the Spaniards still keeping up an ineffective fire from long range.

The 3rd Colorado came up with a band of music, and then the whole regiment deployed in skirmishing order and maintained a continual rifle fire until they halted on the Luneta Esplanade. The band took up a position in an old Spanish trench and played as the troops filed past along the beach. The Spaniards were gradually falling back on the city, and the rebels who were located near the Spanish lines continued the attack; but the Americans gave them the order to cease firing, which they would not heed. The Americans thereupon turned their guns upon the rebels, who showed an inclination to fight. Neither, however, cared to fire the first shot; so the rebels, taking another road, drove the Spaniards, in confusion, as far as Ermita, when Emilio Aguinaldo ordered his men to cease firing as they were just outside the city walls. The rebel commander had received strict orders not to let his forces enter Manila. The American troops then developed the attack, the Spaniards making, at first, a stubborn resistance, apparently for appearance' sake, for the fight soon ended when the Spaniards in the city hoisted the white flag on a bastion of the old walls. Orders were then given to cease firing, and by one o'clock the terms of capitulation were being negotiated. General F. V. Greene then sent an order to the troops for the rear regiments to muster on the Luneta Esplanade, and there half the American army waited in silent expectation. The Spanish entrenchments extended out from the city walls in different directions as far as three miles. The defenders were about 2,500 in number, composed of Spanish regular troops, volunteers, and native auxiliaries; about the same number of troops being in the hospitals inside the city. The opponent force amounted to about 15,000 rebels and 10,000 Americans ashore and afloat. The attacking guns threw heavier shot and had a longer range than the Spanish artillery. The Americans were also better marksmen than the Spaniards. They were, moreover, better fed and in a superior condition generally. The Americans were buoyed up with the moral certainty of gaining an easy victory, whereas the wearied Spaniards had long ago despaired of reinforcements coming to their aid; hence their defence in this hopeless struggle was merely nominal for "the honour of the country."

For some time after the white flag was hoisted there was street-fighting between the rebels and the loyals. The rattle of musketry was heard all round the outskirts. The rebels had taken 300 to 400 Spanish prisoners and seized a large quantity of stores. General Basilio Augusti, who was personally averse to useless bloodshed, relinquished his command of the Colony about a week prior to the capitulation. Just before the attack on the city he went on board a German steam-launch which was waiting for him and was conveyed to the German cruiser _Kaiserin Augusta_, which at once steamed out of the bay northwards. General Fermin Jaudenes remained as acting-Captain-General. [203] Brig.-General of Volunteers and Insp.-General Charles A. Whittier and Lieutenant Brumby then went ashore in the Belgian Consul's launch, and on landing they were met by an interpreter, Carlos Casademunt, and two officers, who accompanied them to the house of the acting-Captain-General, with whom the draft terms of capitulation were agreed upon. In his evidence before the Peace Commission at Paris, General Whittier said: "I think the Captain-General was much frightened. He reported in great trepidation that the insurgents were coming into the city, and I said that I knew that that was impossible because such precautions had been taken as rendered it so. "His fear and solicitude about the natives entering the city when I received the surrender of Manila were almost painful to witness." Lieutenant Brumby returned to Admiral Dewey to report, and again went ashore with General Merritt. In the meantime General Jaudenes had taken refuge in the sacristy of a church which was filled with women and children, presumably with the wise object of keeping clear of the unrestrained mobs fighting in the suburbs. For some time the Spanish officers refused to reveal his whereabouts, but eventually he and General Merritt met, and on August 14 the terms of the Capitulation were signed between General Nicolas de la Pena y Cuellas and Colonels Jose Maria Olaguer Tellin and Carlos Rey y Rich, as Commissioners for Spain, and Generals F. V. Greene and Charles A. Whittier, Colonel Crowder, and Captain Lamberton, U.S.N., as Commissioners for the United States. The most important conditions embodied in the Capitulation are as follows, viz.:

1. The surrender of the Philippine Archipelago.

2. Officers to be allowed to retain their swords and personal
effects, but not their horses.

3. Officers to be prisoners of war on parole.

4. The troops to be prisoners of war and to deposit their arms
at a place to be appointed by General Merritt.

5. All necessary supplies for their maintenance to be provided
from the public Treasury funds, and after they are exhausted,
by the United States.

6. All public property to be surrendered.

7. The disposal of the troops to be negotiated, later on, by the
United States and Spanish Governments.

8. Arms to be returned to the troops at General Merritt's
discretion.

The Capitulation having been signed, Lieutenant Brumby immediately went to Fort Santiago with two signalmen from the _Olympia_ and lowered the Spanish flag, which had been flying there all day. Many Spanish officers and a general crowd from the streets stood around, and as he drew near to the flagstaff he was hissed by the onlookers. When the orange-and-red banner was actually replaced by the Stars and Stripes, many in the crowd shed tears. The symbol of Spanish sovereignty had disappeared for ever. The attitude of the mob was not reassuring, so Lieutenant Brumby asked an infantry officer who was present to bring his detachment as a guard. A company of infantry happened to be coming along, and presented arms, whilst the band, playing "The Star-spangled Banner," enlivened this dramatic ceremony. Whilst this was going on the Spaniards hoisted the Spanish flag on the transport _Cebu_ and brought it down to the mouth of the Pasig River, where they set fire to it. A party of American marines boarded her, hauled down the Spanish flag, and tried to save the hull, but it was too far consumed. The Spaniards also destroyed barges and other Government property lying in the river.

In the official reports furnished by Generals T. M. Anderson and A. McArthur and published in America, the total casualties on the American side are stated to be as follows, viz.:--On August 13, five killed and 43 wounded. Previous to this in the trenches there were 14 killed and 60 wounded, making a total of 122.

The approximate number of European Spanish troops in the Archipelago during the year 1898 would stand thus:--

Total of troops under Gen. Primo de Rivera in
January, 1898, say 25,000
Shipped back to Spain by Gen. Primo de Rivera
after Aguinaldo's withdrawal to Hong-Kong
(_vide_ p. 400) 7,000

At the date of the Capitulation of Manila

Prisoners (regular troops) in hands of the rebels 8,000
Detachments in the Luzon Provinces (subsequently
surrendered to, or killed by, the rebels) 1,000
Killed or mortally wounded in general combat 1,000
Wounded and diseased in Manila hospitals 2,600
Approximate total in Visayas and Mindanao Island
(General Rios' jurisdiction) 3,000
Approximate total of able-bodied troops in Manila,
prisoners of war (to America), up to December
10, 1898 2,400

25,000

General F. V. Greene marched his troops down the _Calzada_ and entered the walled city, where he massed his forces. Sentinels were placed at all the city gates; some rebels got inside the city, but were disarmed and sent out again. At 7 p.m. the American troops took up their quarters in public buildings, porches, and even on the streets, for they were tired out. One might have imagined it to be a great British festival, for the streets were bedecked everywhere with the British colours displayed by the Chinese who were under British protection. That night General Merritt, General Greene and the staff officers were served at dinner by the late Captain-General's servants in the Town Hall (_Plaza de la Catedral_), the splendid marble entrance of which became temporarily a depot for captured arms, ammunition, and accoutrements of war.

No hostile feeling was shown by Spaniards of any class. The inhabitants of the city looked remarkably well after the 105 days' siege. Trade was absolutely at a standstill, and American troops were drafted out of the walled city to occupy the commercial quarter of Binondo on the opposite side of the river. The government of the city was at once taken over by Maj.-General Wesley Merritt, appointments being made by him to the principal departments as follows, viz.:--

By General Order dated August 15, Brig.-General T. M. Anderson became Commandant of the Cavite district, the garrison of which would be increased on the arrival of the transports on the way. Brig.-General Arthur McArthur became Military Commandant of the walled city of Manila and Provost-Marshal of the city of Manila, including all the suburbs, his barracks and staff-quarters to be within the walled city. The Commandant was to take over the offices, staff, and functions of the late Civil Governor. Colonel Ovenshine became Deputy Provost-Marshal of the walled city south of the river; Colonel James S. Smith was appointed Deputy Provost-Marshal of Binondo and all districts situated north of the river.

By General Order dated August 16, Brig.-General F. V. Greene became Treasurer-General; Brig.-General of Volunteers C. A. Whittier was nominated Commissioner of Customs.

By General Order dated August 15, it was provided that within 10 days a complete list should be sent to Washington of all public establishments and properties of every description, including horses; that all private property, including horses, would be respected, and that lodging for the prisoners of war would be provided by the Military Commandant of the city in the public buildings and barracks not required for the American troops. Colonel C. M. C. Reeve was appointed Chief of Police, with the 13th Regiment of Volunteer Minnesota Infantry for this service.

On August 16 a notice was placarded outside the General Post Office to the effect that, as all the Spanish staff had refused to work for the Americans, the local and provincial correspondence could not be attended to. This was, however, soon remedied.

In an order issued on August 22 it was enacted that all natives and all Spanish soldiers were to be disarmed before they were admitted into the walled city. The insurgent troops were included in the above category, but their arms were restored to them on their leaving the city. An exception was made in favour of the insurgent officers, from the grade of lieutenant upwards, who were permitted to enter and leave Manila with their swords and revolvers.

On August 25 a provisional agreement was entered into between the American authorities and Emilio Aguinaldo, to remain in force pending the result of the Paris Peace Commission, whereby their respective spheres were defined. The Americans retained jurisdiction over Manila City, Binondo, the right bank of the Pasig River up to the Calzada de Iris and thence to Malacanan, which was included. The remaining districts were necessarily in the hands of the rebels, there being no recognized independent government in Luzon other than the American military occupation of the capital and environs.

Towards the end of August, the American Commander-in-Chief, Maj.-General Wesley Merritt, quitted the Islands in order to give evidence before the Peace Commission at Paris, after having appointed General E. S. Otis to be the first Military Governor of Manila.

The British Consul, Mr. E. A. Rawson Walker, who had rendered such excellent service to both the contending parties, died of dysentery in the month of August, and was buried at Paco cemetery.

Philippine refugees returned to the Islands in large numbers, but the American authorities notified the Consul in Hong-Kong that only those Chinese who could prove to his satisfaction previous residence in Manila would be allowed to return there.

Trading operations were resumed immediately after the capitulation, and the first shipment of cigars made after that date was a parcel of 140,000 exported to Singapore in the first week of September and consigned to the _Tabaqueria Universal_. Business in Manila, little by little, resumed its usual aspect. The old Spanish newspapers continued to be published, and some of them, especially _El Comercio_, were enterprising enough to print alternate columns of English and Spanish, and, occasionally, a few advertisements in very amusing broken English. Two rebel organs, _La Independencia_ and _La Republica Filipina_, soon appeared. They were shortly followed by a number of periodicals of minor importance, such as _El Soldado Espanol, La Restauracion_ (a Carlist organ), _The Kon Leche, El Cometa_ and _El Motin_ (satirical papers) and two American papers, viz., _The Manila American_ and _The Manila Times_. Liberty of the press was such a novelty in Manila that _La Voz Espanola_ over-stepped the bounds of prudence and started a press campaign against the Americans. Delgado, the editor, after repeated warnings from the Provost-Marshal, was at length arrested. The paper was suppressed for abusing the Americans from the President downwards, and publishing matter calculated to incite the Spanish inhabitants to riot. The capital was seething with opposition to the new conditions; many were arrested, but few lamented the incarceration, for the prison was the porch which led to fame, and through it all who were ambitious to rise from obscurity had to pass. Moreover, imprisonment (for mere trifles) was such a commonplace event in Spanish times that no native lost caste by the experience of it, unless it were for a heinous crime which shocked his fellows. Meanwhile, in the public ways and the cafes and saloons, altercations between the three parties, Spanish, native, and American, were of frequent occurrence.

For some weeks before the capitulation there had been a certain amount of friction between the American soldiery and the rebels, who resented being held in check by the American authorities. Emilio Aguinaldo had his headquarters at Bacoor, on the Cavite coast, situated between two divisions of the American army, one at Cavite and the other at Manila, and within easy shelling distance from the American fleet. For obvious reasons he decided to remove his centre of operations, for it was becoming doubtful how long peace between the two parties would continue. The rebels had been sorely disappointed that they were not allowed to enter Manila with the Americans, or even before, for since the first few months of the rebellion they had pictured to themselves the delights of a free raid on the city. Aguinaldo therefore removed his headquarters to a place three miles north of Manila, but General Otis requested him to go farther away from the capital. As he hesitated to do so the General sent him an ultimatum on September 13 ordering him to evacuate that place by the afternoon of the 15th, so during the night of the 14th Aguinaldo moved on with his troops to Malolos. From this town, situate about 20 miles from Manila, he could better unite and control the rebel factions here and there over the northern provinces; he could, moreover, either make use of the line of railway or cut off the connection with Manila, or he could divert supplies from the rich rice districts and Pangasinan ports, whilst the almost impregnable mountains were of easy access in case of need.

Aguinaldo declared Malolos to be the provisional capital of his Revolutionary Government, and convened a Congress to meet there on September 15 in the church of Barasoain. [204] Fifty-four deputies responded to the summons, and in conformity with Aguinaldo's proclamation of June 23 they proceeded to elect a President of Congress, Vice-President, Secretaries, etc. The result of the voting was a remarkable event of the revolution. Don Pedro A. Paterno was elected President of Congress! The man whom the revolutionists had, less than four months before, so satirically admonished for his leaning towards Spanish sovereignty, was chosen to guide the political destinies of this budding democracy and preside over their republican legislative body! Deputies Benito Legarda and Ocampo were chosen to be Vice-President and Secretary respectively. Congress voted for Aguinaldo a salary of P50,000 and P25,000 for representation expenses. These figures were afterwards reversed, i.e., P25,000 salary, and P50,000 for expenses; but Aguinaldo, who never showed any desire for personal gain, was quite willing to set aside the vote. A decree in Congress, dated September 21, imposed compulsory military service on every able-bodied Philippine male over 18 years of age, except those holding office under the Revolutionary Government. At an early session of Congress Deputy Tomas del Rosario made a long speech advocating Church Disestablishment. [205]

The night before Congress met to announce the election of President, etc., an attempt was made to poison Emilio Aguinaldo. Dinner was about to be served to him; the soup was in the tureen, when one of the three Spanish prisoners who were allowed to be about the kitchen tasted the soup in a manner to arouse suspicion. The steward at once took a spoonful of it and fell dead on the spot. The three prisoners in question, as well as 11 Franciscan friars, were consequently placed in close confinement. At the next sitting of Congress the incident was mentioned and it was resolved to go _en masse_ to congratulate Aguinaldo on his lucky escape. At 5 p.m. the same day a _Te Deum_ was sung in Malolos Church anent this occurrence.

On October 1 the _Ratification of Philippine Independence_ was proclaimed at Malolos with imposing ceremony. From 6 a.m. the Manila (Tondo) railway-station was besieged by the crowd of sightseers on their way to the insurgent capital (Malolos), which was _en fete_ and gaily decorated with flags for the triumphal entry of General Emilio Aguinaldo, who walked to the Congress House attired in a dress suit, with Don Pedro A. Paterno on his right and Don Benito Legarda on his left, followed by other representative men of the Revolutionary Party, amidst the vociferous acclamations of the people and the strains of music. After the formal proclamation was issued the function terminated with a banquet given to 200 insurgent notabilities. This day was declared by the Malolos Congress to be a public holiday in perpetuity.

By virtue of Article 3 of the Protocol of Peace the Americans were in possession of the city, bay, and harbour of Manila pending the conclusion of a treaty of peace. The terms of peace were referred to a Spanish-American Commission, which met in Paris on October 1, five commissioners and a secretary being appointed by each of the High Contracting Parties. The representatives of the United States were the Hon. William R. Day, of Ohio, ex-Secretary of State, President of the American Commission; Senator Cushman K. Davis, of Minnesota; Senator William P. Frye, of Maine; Senator George Gray, of Delaware; and the Hon. Whitelaw Reid, of New York, ex-Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States in France, assisted by the Secretary and Counsel to their Commission, Mr. John Bassett Moore, an eminent professor of international law. The Spanish Commissioners were Don Eugenio Montero Rios, Knight of the Golden Fleece, President of the Senate, ex-Cabinet Minister, etc., President of the Spanish Commission; Senator Don Buenaventura Abarzuza, ex-Ambassador, ex-Minister, etc.; Don Jose de Garnica y Diaz, a lawyer; Don Wenceslao Ramirez de Villa-Urrutia, Knight of the Orders of Isabella the Catholic and of Charles III., etc., Minister Plenipotentiary to the Belgian Court; and General Don Rafael Cerero y Saenz, assisted by the Secretary to their Commission, Don Emilio de Ojeda, Minister Plenipotentiary to the Court of Morocco. The conferences were held in a suite of apartments at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, placed at their disposal by M. Delcasse. Among other questions to be agreed upon and embodied in the treaty was the future of the Philippines. For Washington officials these Islands really constituted a _terra incognita_. Maj.-General Merritt and a number of other officials went to Paris to give evidence before the Commission. At their request, conveyed to me through the American Embassy, I also proceeded to Paris in October and expressed my views before the Commissioners, who examined me on the whole question. The Cuban debts and the future of the Philippines were really the knotty points in the entire debate. The Spanish Commissioners argued (1) that the single article in the Protocol relating to the Philippines did not imply a relinquishment of Spanish sovereignty over those Islands, but only a temporary occupation of the city, bay, and harbour of Manila by the Americans pending the conclusion of a treaty of peace. (2) That the attack on Manila, its capitulation, and all acts of force consequent thereon, committed _after_ the Protocol was signed, were unlawful because the Protocol stipulated an immediate cessation of hostilities; therefore the Commissioners claimed indemnity for those acts, a restoration to the _status quo ante_, and "the immediate delivery of the place (Manila) to the Spanish Government" (_vide_ Annex to Protocol No. 12 of the Paris Peace Commission conference of November 3).

The American Commissioners replied: (1) "It is the contention on the part of the United States that this article leaves to the determination of the treaty of peace the entire subject of the future government and sovereignty of the Philippines necessarily embodied in the terms used in the Protocol." (2) It is erroneous to suggest "that the ultimate demands of the United States in respect of the Philippines were embodied in the Protocol." (3) That there was no cable communication with Manila, hence the American commanders could not possibly have been informed of the terms of the Protocol on the day of its signature. The Spanish Commissioners, nevertheless, tenaciously persisting in their contention, brought matters to the verge of a resumption of hostilities when the American Commissioners presented what was practically an ultimatum, in which they claimed an absolute cession of the Islands, offering, however, to pay to Spain $20,000,000 gold, to agree, for a term of years, to admit Spanish ships and merchandise into the Islands on the same terms as American ships and merchandise, and to mutually waive all claims for indemnity--(_vide_ Annex to Protocol No. 15 of the Paris Peace Commission conference of November 21).

For a few days the Spaniards still held out, and to appease public feeling in the Peninsula a fleet under Admiral Camara was despatched, ostensibly to the Philippines. It was probably never intended that the fleet should go beyond Port Said, for on its arrival there it was ordered to return, the official explanation to the indignant Spanish public being that America was preparing to seize the Archipelago by force, if necessary, and send a fleet to Spanish waters under the command of Admiral Watson. Sagasta's Government had not the least intention of letting matters go so far as that, but it suited the Spanish Cabinet, already extremely unpopular, to make an appearance of resistance. Moreover, Senor Sagasta had personal motives for wishing to protract the negotiations, the examination of which would lead one too far away from the present subject into Spanish politics.