The Philippines - Past and Present (Vol. 1&2) - Dean C. Worcester

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the very time during which Messrs. Wilcox and Sargent passed through the Cagayan valley. It paints a vivid picture of conditions, and as the painter was the ranking Insurgent officer in the valley during this entire period, he cannot be accused of hostile prejudice. I therefore give the letter in full’—

      “Aparri, December 4, 1898.

      “Don Baldomero Aguinaldo,

      “The Secretary of War:

      “Dear Sir and of My Greatest Esteem: I take the liberty of addressing this to you in order to state that owing to the lack of discipline in the soldiers whom we have brought, since they are all volunteers and whom I am not able to reduce to rigorous subordination, for the revolution would find itself without soldiers with whom to win triumph, they committed many abuses and misdeed which, for the lack of evidence, I was not able to punish, although I knew of these abuses but had no proof, and as a lover of my country and of the prestige of the Revolutionary Army, I took care not to disclose the secret to any one, in this way avoiding the formation of an atmosphere against the cause of our Independence to the grave injury of us all. But it happened that, in spite of the good advice which I have given them and the punishments which I have given to some of the 3d Company of Cauit, they did not improve their conduct but have gone to the extreme of committing a scandalous robbery of 20,800 pesos which sum the German, Otto Weber, was taking to the capital, which deed has caused me to work without ceasing, without sleeping entire nights, for I understood what a serious matter it was to take money from a foreigner. After making many inquiries, it was discovered that a very large part of the money which reached the sum of $10,000, a little more or less, was buried under the quarters which the said company occupied, this with the sanction of all the officers, it appears to me, because it is impossible that such a sum could be brought into a house where so many soldiers are living without the knowledge of the officers.

The Culion Leper Colony

      The Culion Leper Colony

      Here all known Philippine lepers have been isolated and humanely cared for. As a result, leprosy is rapidly disappearing from the Islands.

      “Indignant at such shameful behaviour, I reprimanded the officers and preferred charges against the ones I deemed to blame in the matter.

      “Afterwards I found out that they had attempted to murder me for trying to find out the originators of the crime. On account of this, and in order to prevent a civil war which would have broken out against the said soldiers if precautions had not been taken, I decided to disarm them, to the great displeasure of the Colonel who was not aware of my motives.

      “This bad conduct has been copied by the soldiers of the 4th Company stationed in Ilagan, and I believe the Colonel, guided by my warning, will take the same measures in regard to them.

      “As the officers are the first ones to commit abuses and misdeeds, it is easily seen that the soldiers under their orders, guided by them, will commit worse ones than the chiefs, and as these seem to lack the moral strength to control and reprimand them, I propose to you, if it meets your approval, that all these soldiers and some of the officers be returned to their homes by the steamer Luzon, if there should be sufficient coal, or in another if you order it, since they tell me themselves that because they are far away from their homes they do not wish to continue in the service in this province. This is easily arranged as there are now men stationed in this province for instructing the native volunteers, many of whom have been students, and will therefore make good officers and non-commissioned officers, and in this way a battalion could be formed, well disciplined from the beginning and disgraceful things would be avoided not only towards the natives of this province but also towards foreigners, which is the most important. Having stated my case, I place myself always at your disposal, requesting you will attend to this affair.

      “With reference to the 4th Company stationed in the Province of Isabela, whose captain is Don Antonio Monzon of Panamitan, there are many complaints of thefts and assaults committed by the soldiers, and in answer to my questions, Don Simeón Adriano y Villa, Major and Sanitary Inspector and doctor of this battalion, whom I have stationed there for lack of a competent person, tells me that he has always punished and offered advice to officers and soldiers in order to prevent the recurrence of thefts and assaults, but he has never been able to suppress them completely, because the soldiers are abandoned by their officers, and because of lack of example on the part of the latter; they do not understand that it is a great blot when they commit these abuses, since when they discover the goods or house of a Spaniard they believe they have a right to appropriate everything which they encounter.

      “I have learned lately, that some foreigners, residents in that province, among them some employees of the Tobacco Factory, ‘El Oriente’ and of the firm of Baer Senior & Co., who have Spanish employees in various pueblos of that province, have some very serious complaints to make of assaults committed against them prejudicial to their interests; however, I hope that now with the arrival of General Tirona he will regulate matters, although I believe that this gentleman is not sufficiently energetic in proceeding against the officers and soldiers, as I have seen when I reprimanded and punished them for faults committed he has pardoned them, and it appears that he censures energetic acts which we must use in order to subject them to rigorous discipline. The same thing happened when Major Sr. Victa wished to discipline them; it appears that the Colonel reprimanded him when he punished some soldiers for gambling in their quarters, since, as you know, that gentleman believes that he who is right is the one who comes to him first, and who is best able to flatter him.

      “The Colonel has agreed with me that his first act on arrival at the province of Isabela should be to disarm and take all the money he finds among the soldiers of the 4th Company (Panamitan) in order to serve as indemnity for the property of the foreigners in case they should make any claim.

      “I request that you send some leader or officer in order to superintend our actions, and to lift the doubt which hangs over the person who has worked faithfully and honourably in the sacred cause of our Independence.

      “I am filling the position of First Chief in the Port of Aparri temporarily on account of the absence of the Colonel who has conferred on me all his duties and power. After the military operations which were carried on as far as the last town in Isabela, being tired and somewhat sick, I was put in charge of these military headquarters, which I found to be very much mixed up, the town, moreover, being desperate on account of the assaults committed by my predecessor, Rafael Perca, who was appointed by the Colonel, and who was formerly 2d Captain of the steamer Filipinas. After arriving and taking charge, having received numerous complaints against him, I had him arrested and I found that he had been guilty of robbery, unlawful use of insignia, illegal marriage, rape and attempted rape. I hold him in custody only awaiting the arrival of the Colonel in order to convene a court-martial for his trial, in which the Colonel will act as President and I as Judge Advocate.

      “With nothing more to communicate, I hope you will attend to my just claim and send a special delegate to investigate our acts and see the truth, for perhaps if a statement comes direct from me you will not believe it.

      “I am your affectionate and faithful subordinate, who kisses your hand,

      The troops complained of by Leyba were made up of Aguinaldo’s fellow townsmen. They never obeyed any one else, and left a trail of murder and rapine behind them. Aguinaldo never punished them, and from the time when one of them tried to murder their commander until a guard composed of them murdered General Antonio Luna in June, 1899, they are mentioned only with fear and execration.

      Blount describes with enthusiasm the establishment of civil government in Cagayan.

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