United States Senate Committee on the Philippines
Encyclopedia
The Committee on the Philippines was a standing committee
of the United States Senate
from 1899 to 1921. The committee was established by Senate resolution on December 15, 1899, to oversee administration of the Philippines
, which Spain had ceded to the United States as part of the settlement of the Spanish-American War
. The committee was established by Senate resolution on December 15, 1899, even though the treaty of December 10, 1899, had not yet been ratified.
In 1921, the Committee was terminated and jurisdiction over legislative matters concerning the Philippines was transferred to the newly created Committee on Territories and Insular Possessions.
, and trade issues. Matters relating to the suppression of the Philippine insurrection were often referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
, Republican
of Massachusetts
, was the committee's first chairman, serving until 1911. During this time, the committee was informally known as the Lodge Committee. In 1902, under Chairman Lodge, the committee carried out an investigation into allegations of war crime
s in the Philippine-American War
. The hearings commenced on January 31, 1902 and adjourned on June 28, 1902. They were closed to the public, except for three press associations. The final report came to 3,000 pages.
A remark to a Manila News reporter by newly-promoted Brigadier General
Jacob H. Smith
on November 4, 1901, triggered the hearings, which eventually led to Smith's own court-martial
and conviction. Smith said that he intended to set the entire island of Samar
ablaze, and would probably wipe out most of the population.
Senator George Frisbie Hoar
had been demanding an investigation after increasing evidence of U.S. military war crimes in the Philippine-American War
. Hoar introduced a resolution to establish a select committee to conduct the investigation on January 13, 1902. However, Chairman Lodge
argued that the hearings would be better conducted by the existing Committee on the Philippines. Anti-imperialists
in the Senate feared a whitewash, because Lodge had been avoiding investigating mounting allegations of war crimes so much so that the U.S. Senate Committee on the Philippines had been inactive for several months.
During the time of the committee investigation, the minority on the committee consisted of Democratic
and Republican
anti-imperialists, led by Senator Hoar
, while the majority was dominated by imperialists, led by Chairman Lodge
. Hearings often degenerated into shouting matches between the imperialists and anti-imperialists. Nothing came of the hearings.
Eugene Hale
was the only other Republican to vote with Hoar against the Treaty of Paris
Governor William Howard Taft
had arrived in the Philippines in June 1900 with the Taft Commission
to set up a civilian government. Taft was the first to testify in the Lodge Committee. As a lawyer, Taft would be assumed to have been a safe witness for the imperialists, but he conceded under questioning that "the torturing of natives by so-called water-cure and other methods" had been used "on some occasions to extract information"..."There are some amusing instances of Filipinos who came in and said they would not say anything unless tortured; that they must have an excuse for what they proposed to say." As Miller writes, "Very few died from the water cure, a mild form of torture."
Taft was immediately followed by three pro-imperialist witnesses. General Robert P. Hughes, chief of staff to General Elwell S. Otis, testified for two weeks in March 1902. In his testimony, Hughes conceded that Filipino houses were burned indiscriminately as a strategy to eliminate shelters and hiding places for guerrillas and as a deterrent. During questioning, Senator Charles Dietrich
followed up by asking Hughes to estimate the value of these houses. Hughes said they only took a few days to build, and cost between $1.50 and $4.00. Senator Joseph Rawlins
continued the questioning:
Senator Hale commented that the war had become less and less civilized with each successive commander, to which Hughes agreed saying "from summer to summer, the conduct of the war was sterner, stiffer, as you call it."
David Prescott Barrows, school director in the Philippines testified, claiming that anti-imperialist factions in the press had grossly distorted the situation. For example, concentration camps and the water cure
were explained in the press as "more terrible than they are." He claimed Filipinos in the camps were "there of their own volition," for they "are pleased with it, because they are permitted to lead an easier life--much easier than at home." He went on to claim that alleged torture via the water cure "injured no one." While stating his belief that the natives had benefited from the war, Barrows stated he did not "wish to wish to assent to the proposition that war is a good thing...but where you have a war existing, it is, I think, better to go ahead and pursue it rigorously and finish it."
A fourth witness, General Elwell Stephen Otis testified the week of March 20, claiming here had been no warfare in the Philippines for the past two years. Senator Hale questions that statement, saying "there have been a good many fights since." Otis alleged any such fighting was due to "robbers," and that he and his men "were laughed at by the Spainards and European officers for the humanity that we exercised." The committee proceeded to take a two week break before continuing with hearings.
, submitted a report to the committee, which Chairman Lodge laid before the committee on April 10, 1902.
The Committee on the Philippines refused to subpoena Major Cornelius Gardener in a May 1, party-line vote. Committee members Senator Thomas Patterson
decried this move in a speech on the Senate floor. Senator Benjamin Tillman
, a Democrat
from South Carolina
, similarly objected to this move, claiming information was being "smothered."
, the Filipino general and independence leader, and several others they thought necessary for the committee to hear. In addition to Mr. Auguinaldo, Mr. Rawlings proposed calling Apolinario Mabini
, one of Aguinaldo's principal advisors; Sixto Lopez
, an advocate for Philippine independence; Judge Pio del Pilar
, General Torres, Howard W. Bray, an Englishman, who has spent many years in the Philippines, Robert M. Collins, and Harold Martin
, both Associated Press
correspondents. The committee refused this request as well as one that would have sent a subcommittee to the Philippines to collect testimony.
Instead, Mr. Lodge subpoenaed several veterans from a so-called "safe list" supplied by Secretary of War Elihu Root
. However, when the soldiers appeared, they began to lecture the committee on the necessity of shooting and burning all Filipinos because of their "inability to appreciate human kindness."
Sergeant L. E. Hallock, Private William J. Gibbs, George C. Boardman, Captain Lee Hall, Richard Thomas O'Brien
all testified to what they had seen during their service in the Philippines, including torture of Filipino prisoners, including use of the water cure
, murder of natives, and other harassment.
Chairman Lodge countered with details of the murder of Private O'Herne. The witness said that in June 1900, O'Herne, with two other members of the company, had been sent to Iloilo for mail, and that on their return, on June 30, they were ambushed by 100 natives, and O'Herne's companions captured. O'Herne had made a dash to get away, and after escaping from the attacking party, had fallen in with other natives supposed to be friendly, but that instead of proving to be so they had devoted the entire next day to his torture and death, beginning at daylight by cutting him with bolos and then roasting him all day by a slow fire, not finishing up until night. All these details had, the witness said, been gathered from the confessions of the men to whom they had given the cure. Sergeant Hallock described the torture of around a dozen natives at the town of Leon, Panay
. He said they were captured and tortured in order to secure information of the murder of Private O'Herne.
Corporal Richard O'Brien, testified he had been present at Igbaras when the water cure was administered to the Presidente (or chief) of that town. "There was a Spanish woman in town--a woman of education--who was attacked by the American officers." The witness said he could not give the names of the officers, adding that he had not witnessed the incident, but that the woman's husband was his authority for the statement." O'Brien further testified that there was an “unwritten law out there to take no prisoners.” He said “dum dum” bullets
, or expanding bullets, were issued in the regular way with other ammunition. He had seen them strike a man and take the top of this head off.
General MacArthur testified before the committee twice. On April 13, he initially discussed the short war with the Spainards and the American cooperation with the Filipinos. Then later that month, he testified again, regarding the capture of Emilio Aguinaldo
. The General testified he had used deception to capture Mr. Aguinaldo, saying "I am responsible in that matter in every way and particular. It was one of the deceptions frequently practiced in war, and whatever deception attached thereto, I take." He attributed the plan to Gen. Funston, but said he (MacArthur) was responsible for approving the plant. However, he insisted doing so did not violate the rules of civilized warfare. MacArthur also distanced himself from any alleged orders of General Jacob H. Smith
to turn Samar
a howling wilderness.
MacArthur said that absolute chaos would result should the Filipinos be given complete independence and the United States entirely withdraw from the islands. Aguinaldo also had told him it would be impossible at this stage of their evolution for his own people to establish a stable independent Government. He said Aguinaldo was at the time of the conversation a "qualified prisoner," but that there was no coercion or duress resorted to extract the statement.
In regards to the death toll in the Philippines, he said, "The destruction is simply incident to war, and of course embraces a very small percentage of the total population, which is dense." In response, Senator Patterson noted that the death toll in one province was nearly a third. Gen. MacArthur spoke of the capture of papers from high Filipino officials in which the information was contained that, if President McKinley should be re-elected, the insurgents would surrender to the authority of the United States.
Colonel Wagner said that one of the principal purposes of concentrating the native people in the Philippines was to protect them against the Ladrones, which had been admirably accomplished. Another object of the camps had been that of facilitating the collection of the rice supplies in order to starve out the Ladrones and guerrillas. The result had been that hostile parties had practically disappeared and their leader, Malvar, had been captured. The policy had been necessary to "protect life and property, and he did not see how any other policy could have been successful. He said that the people were fed and given medical supplies, and the sanitation of the camps was looked after. He insisted that American camps in the Philippines no more could be compared to Valeriano Weyler
's reconcentrado camps in Cuba than mercy could be compared to cruelty.
Over loud Republican protests, Senator Culberson
began to read a letter from one of J. Franklin Bell
's officers, which had been quoted in the Senate by Mr. Bacon, in which the officer described a concentration camp as a "suburb of hell." The chair ruled that unless the senator identified the author, who had asked to remain anonymous, it was "hearsay evidence" and directed the witness not to comment on it. But Culberson had already read part of the letter:
Wagner said that he knew that one village had been burned because the citizens would not give information of the murderers of a native friendly to the United States.
After intense cross examination, Wagner agreed that some "innocents" had suffered in the Philippines, but he added that the same was true of every war and that it was an injustice as old as man. "The Almighty destroyed Sodom, notwithstanding the fact there were a few just people in that community." Senator Albert Beveridge
replied, "I was thinking of that instance of Sodom and Gomorrah."
. . . gleaning from the record anything that remotely supported his conclusion that the war was one of the most humane ones in history . . . [Beveridge felt that] the Lodge committee had destroyed the malicious fiction of "the slanders of the Army".
Standing Committee
In the United States Congress, standing committees are permanent legislative panels established by the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate rules. . Because they have legislative jurisdiction, standing committees consider bills and issues and recommend measures for...
of the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
from 1899 to 1921. The committee was established by Senate resolution on December 15, 1899, to oversee administration of the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, which Spain had ceded to the United States as part of the settlement of the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
. The committee was established by Senate resolution on December 15, 1899, even though the treaty of December 10, 1899, had not yet been ratified.
In 1921, the Committee was terminated and jurisdiction over legislative matters concerning the Philippines was transferred to the newly created Committee on Territories and Insular Possessions.
History
At the time of the creation of the committee, the Philippines were in a state of civil turmoil that greatly concerned the Senate, where a debate raged between those who wished to extend U.S. sovereignty over the Filipinos and the anti-imperialists. Like the Committee on the Pacific Islands and Puerto Rico, the Committee on the Philippines focused on primarily on legal and economic matters, such as Philippine independence, administration of the islands by the U.S. Philippine CommissionTaft Commission
The Taft Commission, also known as Second Philippine Commission was established by United States President William McKinley on March 16, 1900. The Commission was the legislature of the Philippines, then known as the Philippine Islands under the sovereign control of the United States during the...
, and trade issues. Matters relating to the suppression of the Philippine insurrection were often referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Chairmen
- Henry Cabot LodgeHenry Cabot LodgeHenry Cabot "Slim" Lodge was an American Republican Senator and historian from Massachusetts. He had the role of Senate Majority leader. He is best known for his positions on Meek policy, especially his battle with President Woodrow Wilson in 1919 over the Treaty of Versailles...
(R-MA) 1899-1911 - Simon GuggenheimSimon GuggenheimSimon Guggenheim was an American businessman, politician, and philanthropist.-Life:He was the son of Meyer Guggenheim and Barbara Guggenheim, and was the younger brother of Daniel Guggenheim and Solomon R...
(R-CO) 1911-1913 - Gilbert M. Hitchcock (D-NE) 1913-1918
- John F. ShafrothJohn F. ShafrothJohn Franklin Shafroth was a United States Representative and Senator from Colorado. Born in Fayette, Missouri, he attended the common schools and graduated from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor in 1875. He studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1876 and commenced practice in Fayette...
(D-CO) 1918-1919 - Warren Harding (R-OH) 1919-1921
Lodge Committee
Henry Cabot LodgeHenry Cabot Lodge
Henry Cabot "Slim" Lodge was an American Republican Senator and historian from Massachusetts. He had the role of Senate Majority leader. He is best known for his positions on Meek policy, especially his battle with President Woodrow Wilson in 1919 over the Treaty of Versailles...
, Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
of Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, was the committee's first chairman, serving until 1911. During this time, the committee was informally known as the Lodge Committee. In 1902, under Chairman Lodge, the committee carried out an investigation into allegations of war crime
War crime
War crimes are serious violations of the laws applicable in armed conflict giving rise to individual criminal responsibility...
s in the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
. The hearings commenced on January 31, 1902 and adjourned on June 28, 1902. They were closed to the public, except for three press associations. The final report came to 3,000 pages.
A remark to a Manila News reporter by newly-promoted Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
Jacob H. Smith
Jacob H. Smith
General Jacob Hurd Smith was a United States Army officer best known for ordering an indiscriminate retaliatory attack on a group of Filipinos during Philippine-American War after more than forty American soldiers were massacred in a surprise attack on the Island of Samar...
on November 4, 1901, triggered the hearings, which eventually led to Smith's own court-martial
Court-martial
A court-martial is a military court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.Most militaries maintain a court-martial system to try cases in which a breach of...
and conviction. Smith said that he intended to set the entire island of Samar
Samar
Samar, formerly and also known as Western Samar, is a province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital is Catbalogan City and covers the western portion of Samar as well as several islands in the Samar Sea located to the west of the mainland...
ablaze, and would probably wipe out most of the population.
Senator George Frisbie Hoar
George Frisbie Hoar
George Frisbie Hoar was a prominent United States politician and United States Senator from Massachusetts. Hoar was born in Concord, Massachusetts...
had been demanding an investigation after increasing evidence of U.S. military war crimes in the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
. Hoar introduced a resolution to establish a select committee to conduct the investigation on January 13, 1902. However, Chairman Lodge
Henry Cabot Lodge
Henry Cabot "Slim" Lodge was an American Republican Senator and historian from Massachusetts. He had the role of Senate Majority leader. He is best known for his positions on Meek policy, especially his battle with President Woodrow Wilson in 1919 over the Treaty of Versailles...
argued that the hearings would be better conducted by the existing Committee on the Philippines. Anti-imperialists
Anti-imperialism
Anti-imperialism, strictly speaking, is a term that may be applied to a movement opposed to any form of colonialism or imperialism. Anti-imperialism includes opposition to wars of conquest, particularly of non-contiguous territory or people with a different language or culture; it also includes...
in the Senate feared a whitewash, because Lodge had been avoiding investigating mounting allegations of war crimes so much so that the U.S. Senate Committee on the Philippines had been inactive for several months.
Members, 1902
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
and Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
anti-imperialists, led by Senator Hoar
George Frisbie Hoar
George Frisbie Hoar was a prominent United States politician and United States Senator from Massachusetts. Hoar was born in Concord, Massachusetts...
, while the majority was dominated by imperialists, led by Chairman Lodge
Henry Cabot Lodge
Henry Cabot "Slim" Lodge was an American Republican Senator and historian from Massachusetts. He had the role of Senate Majority leader. He is best known for his positions on Meek policy, especially his battle with President Woodrow Wilson in 1919 over the Treaty of Versailles...
. Hearings often degenerated into shouting matches between the imperialists and anti-imperialists. Nothing came of the hearings.
| Majority (imperialists) | Minority (anti-imperialists) |
|---|---|
|
George Frisbie Hoar George Frisbie Hoar was a prominent United States politician and United States Senator from Massachusetts. Hoar was born in Concord, Massachusetts... , Massachusetts Massachusetts The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010... Charles Allen Culberson Charles Allen Culberson was an American political figure and Democrat who served as the 21st Governor of Texas from 18951899, and as a United States Senator from Texas from 18991923.... , Texas, Thomas MacDonald Patterson Thomas MacDonald Patterson was an American politician and newspaper publisher from the 1870s through the 1910s.-Biography:... , Colorado Joseph Lafayette Rawlins Joseph Lafayette Rawlins was a delegate from the Territory of Utah and a Senator from Utah.Rawlins was born at Millcreek, Salt Lake County, Utah on March 28, 1850.... , Utah Eugene Hale Eugene Hale was a Republican United States Senator from Maine.Born at Turner, Maine, he was educated in local schools and at Maine's Hebron Academy. He was admitted to the bar in 1857 and served for nine years as prosecuting attorney for Hancock County, Maine. He was elected to the Maine... , Maine |
Eugene Hale
Eugene Hale
Eugene Hale was a Republican United States Senator from Maine.Born at Turner, Maine, he was educated in local schools and at Maine's Hebron Academy. He was admitted to the bar in 1857 and served for nine years as prosecuting attorney for Hancock County, Maine. He was elected to the Maine...
was the only other Republican to vote with Hoar against the Treaty of Paris
Treaty of Paris (1898)
The Treaty of Paris of 1898 was signed on December 10, 1898, at the end of the Spanish-American War, and came into effect on April 11, 1899, when the ratifications were exchanged....
Initial hearings
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the tenth Chief Justice of the United States...
had arrived in the Philippines in June 1900 with the Taft Commission
Taft Commission
The Taft Commission, also known as Second Philippine Commission was established by United States President William McKinley on March 16, 1900. The Commission was the legislature of the Philippines, then known as the Philippine Islands under the sovereign control of the United States during the...
to set up a civilian government. Taft was the first to testify in the Lodge Committee. As a lawyer, Taft would be assumed to have been a safe witness for the imperialists, but he conceded under questioning that "the torturing of natives by so-called water-cure and other methods" had been used "on some occasions to extract information"..."There are some amusing instances of Filipinos who came in and said they would not say anything unless tortured; that they must have an excuse for what they proposed to say." As Miller writes, "Very few died from the water cure, a mild form of torture."
Taft was immediately followed by three pro-imperialist witnesses. General Robert P. Hughes, chief of staff to General Elwell S. Otis, testified for two weeks in March 1902. In his testimony, Hughes conceded that Filipino houses were burned indiscriminately as a strategy to eliminate shelters and hiding places for guerrillas and as a deterrent. During questioning, Senator Charles Dietrich
Charles Henry Dietrich
Charles Henry Dietrich was the 11th Governor of Nebraska.-Biography:Dietrich was born in Aurora, Illinois November 26, 1853. He was employed as a clerk in a hardware store in St. Joseph, Missouri. He moved to Chicago, Illinois and engaged in the hardware business...
followed up by asking Hughes to estimate the value of these houses. Hughes said they only took a few days to build, and cost between $1.50 and $4.00. Senator Joseph Rawlins
Joseph Lafayette Rawlins
Joseph Lafayette Rawlins was a delegate from the Territory of Utah and a Senator from Utah.Rawlins was born at Millcreek, Salt Lake County, Utah on March 28, 1850....
continued the questioning:
Rawlins: If these shacks were of no consequence what was the utility of their destruction?
Hughes: The destruction was a punishment. They permitted these people to come in there and conceal themselves and they gave no sign. It is always--
Rawlins: The punishment in that case would fall, not upon the men, who could go elsewhere, but mainly upon the women and little children.
Hughes: The women and children are part of the family, and where you wish to inflict a punishment you can punish the man probably worse in that way than in any other.
Rawlins: But is that within the ordinary rules of civilized warfare? Of course you could exterminate the family which would be still worse punishment.
Hughes: These people are not civilized.
Rawlins: But is that within the ordinary rules of civilized warfare?
Hughes: No; I think it is not.
Dietrich: In order to carry on civilized warfare both sides have to engage in such warfare.
Hughes: Yes sir; certainly that is the point, I think that if I am allowed to go on I will come to a place where I shall have something to say that will bear directly on the subject.
Senator Hale commented that the war had become less and less civilized with each successive commander, to which Hughes agreed saying "from summer to summer, the conduct of the war was sterner, stiffer, as you call it."
Water cure
Water cure may refer to:* Water cure , a course of medical treatment by hydrotherapy* Water cure , an alternative method for the very last step in cannabis cultivation by submersion in water vs. hanging in air...
were explained in the press as "more terrible than they are." He claimed Filipinos in the camps were "there of their own volition," for they "are pleased with it, because they are permitted to lead an easier life--much easier than at home." He went on to claim that alleged torture via the water cure "injured no one." While stating his belief that the natives had benefited from the war, Barrows stated he did not "wish to wish to assent to the proposition that war is a good thing...but where you have a war existing, it is, I think, better to go ahead and pursue it rigorously and finish it."
Hearings continue
Major Cornelius Gardener, a West Point graduate serving as provincial governor of Tayabas, the province next to BatangasBatangas
Batangas is a first class province of the Philippines located on the southwestern part of Luzon in the CALABARZON region. Its capital is Batangas City and it is bordered by the provinces of Cavite and Laguna to the north and Quezon to the east. Across the Verde Island Passages to the south is the...
, submitted a report to the committee, which Chairman Lodge laid before the committee on April 10, 1902.
Of late by reason of the conduct of the troops, such as the extensive burning of the barrios in trying to lay waste the country so that the insurgents cannot occupy it, the torturing of natives by so-called water cure and other methods, in order to obtain information, the harsh treatment of natives generally, and the failure of inexperienced, lately appointed Lieutenants commanding posts, to distinguish between those who are friendly and those unfriendly and to treat every native as if he were, whether or no, an insurrecto at heart, this favorable sentiment above referred to is being fast destroyed and a deep hatred toward us engendered.
The course now being pursued in this province and in the Provinces of Batangas, Laguna, and Samar is in my opinion sowing the seeds for a perpetual revolution against us hereafter whenever a good opportunity offers. Under present conditions the political situation in this province is slowly retrograding, and the American sentiment is decreasing and we are daily making permanent enemies.
The Committee on the Philippines refused to subpoena Major Cornelius Gardener in a May 1, party-line vote. Committee members Senator Thomas Patterson
Thomas MacDonald Patterson
Thomas MacDonald Patterson was an American politician and newspaper publisher from the 1870s through the 1910s.-Biography:...
decried this move in a speech on the Senate floor. Senator Benjamin Tillman
Benjamin Tillman
Benjamin Ryan Tillman was an American politician who served as the 84th Governor of South Carolina, from 1890 to 1894, and as a United States Senator, from 1895 until his death in office. Tillman's views were a matter of national controversy.Tillman was a member of the Democratic Party...
, a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
from South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, similarly objected to this move, claiming information was being "smothered."
Emilo Aguinaldo
Democrats on the committee pressed Lodge to call as witnesses Emilio AguinaldoEmilio Aguinaldo
Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy was a Filipino general, politician, and independence leader. He played an instrumental role during the Philippines' revolution against Spain, and the subsequent Philippine-American War or War of Philippine Independence that resisted American occupation...
, the Filipino general and independence leader, and several others they thought necessary for the committee to hear. In addition to Mr. Auguinaldo, Mr. Rawlings proposed calling Apolinario Mabini
Apolinario Mabini
Apolinario Mabini y Maranan was a Filipino political philosopher and revolutionary who wrote a constitutional plan for the of 1899-1901, and served as its first prime minister in 1899...
, one of Aguinaldo's principal advisors; Sixto Lopez
Sixto López
Sixto López was secretary of the Philippine mission sent to the United States in 1898 to negotiate US recognition of Philippine independence.Sixto López surrendered to General Arthur MacArthur, Jr. during the Philippine-American War....
, an advocate for Philippine independence; Judge Pio del Pilar
Pio del Pilar
Pío del Pilar is a Revolutionary General of the Philippines. He was born as Pío Castañeda Isidro. To safeguard his family and prevent them from harassment, he changed his surname to del Pilar...
, General Torres, Howard W. Bray, an Englishman, who has spent many years in the Philippines, Robert M. Collins, and Harold Martin
Harold Martin
Harold Martin may refer to:* Harold Martin , VFL player and VFA coach* Harold Martin , Member of the New Jersey General Assembly* Harold Martin , politician of New Caledonia...
, both Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
correspondents. The committee refused this request as well as one that would have sent a subcommittee to the Philippines to collect testimony.
Instead, Mr. Lodge subpoenaed several veterans from a so-called "safe list" supplied by Secretary of War Elihu Root
Elihu Root
Elihu Root was an American lawyer and statesman and the 1912 recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. He was the prototype of the 20th century "wise man", who shuttled between high-level government positions in Washington, D.C...
. However, when the soldiers appeared, they began to lecture the committee on the necessity of shooting and burning all Filipinos because of their "inability to appreciate human kindness."
Sergeant L. E. Hallock, Private William J. Gibbs, George C. Boardman, Captain Lee Hall, Richard Thomas O'Brien
Richard Garrick
Richard Garrick was a director and actor. He was born Richard Thomas O'Brien in the townland of Portlaw, County Waterford, Ireland. His father, James E. O'Brien, was a master tailor in that town, counting among his clients Lord Waterford as well as other nobility and landed gentry. In 1882, James...
all testified to what they had seen during their service in the Philippines, including torture of Filipino prisoners, including use of the water cure
Water cure
Water cure may refer to:* Water cure , a course of medical treatment by hydrotherapy* Water cure , an alternative method for the very last step in cannabis cultivation by submersion in water vs. hanging in air...
, murder of natives, and other harassment.
Chairman Lodge countered with details of the murder of Private O'Herne. The witness said that in June 1900, O'Herne, with two other members of the company, had been sent to Iloilo for mail, and that on their return, on June 30, they were ambushed by 100 natives, and O'Herne's companions captured. O'Herne had made a dash to get away, and after escaping from the attacking party, had fallen in with other natives supposed to be friendly, but that instead of proving to be so they had devoted the entire next day to his torture and death, beginning at daylight by cutting him with bolos and then roasting him all day by a slow fire, not finishing up until night. All these details had, the witness said, been gathered from the confessions of the men to whom they had given the cure. Sergeant Hallock described the torture of around a dozen natives at the town of Leon, Panay
Panay
Panay may refer to*Panay Island*Panay *Panay, Capiz*Panay River*Panay Gulf* USS Panay *Panay incident...
. He said they were captured and tortured in order to secure information of the murder of Private O'Herne.
Corporal Richard O'Brien, testified he had been present at Igbaras when the water cure was administered to the Presidente (or chief) of that town. "There was a Spanish woman in town--a woman of education--who was attacked by the American officers." The witness said he could not give the names of the officers, adding that he had not witnessed the incident, but that the woman's husband was his authority for the statement." O'Brien further testified that there was an “unwritten law out there to take no prisoners.” He said “dum dum” bullets
Dum-dum
An expanding bullet is a bullet designed to expand on impact, increasing in diameter to limit penetration and/or produce a larger diameter wound. They are informally known as a Dum-dum or dumdum bullets...
, or expanding bullets, were issued in the regular way with other ammunition. He had seen them strike a man and take the top of this head off.
General Arthur MacArthur
Emilio Aguinaldo
Emilio Aguinaldo y Famy was a Filipino general, politician, and independence leader. He played an instrumental role during the Philippines' revolution against Spain, and the subsequent Philippine-American War or War of Philippine Independence that resisted American occupation...
. The General testified he had used deception to capture Mr. Aguinaldo, saying "I am responsible in that matter in every way and particular. It was one of the deceptions frequently practiced in war, and whatever deception attached thereto, I take." He attributed the plan to Gen. Funston, but said he (MacArthur) was responsible for approving the plant. However, he insisted doing so did not violate the rules of civilized warfare. MacArthur also distanced himself from any alleged orders of General Jacob H. Smith
Jacob H. Smith
General Jacob Hurd Smith was a United States Army officer best known for ordering an indiscriminate retaliatory attack on a group of Filipinos during Philippine-American War after more than forty American soldiers were massacred in a surprise attack on the Island of Samar...
to turn Samar
Samar
Samar, formerly and also known as Western Samar, is a province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital is Catbalogan City and covers the western portion of Samar as well as several islands in the Samar Sea located to the west of the mainland...
a howling wilderness.
MacArthur said that absolute chaos would result should the Filipinos be given complete independence and the United States entirely withdraw from the islands. Aguinaldo also had told him it would be impossible at this stage of their evolution for his own people to establish a stable independent Government. He said Aguinaldo was at the time of the conversation a "qualified prisoner," but that there was no coercion or duress resorted to extract the statement.
In regards to the death toll in the Philippines, he said, "The destruction is simply incident to war, and of course embraces a very small percentage of the total population, which is dense." In response, Senator Patterson noted that the death toll in one province was nearly a third. Gen. MacArthur spoke of the capture of papers from high Filipino officials in which the information was contained that, if President McKinley should be re-elected, the insurgents would surrender to the authority of the United States.
Concentration camps
Colonel Arthur L. Wagner, the Army's chief public relations officer, had spent two and one-half years in the Philippines. Wagner testified in May, where he was questioned about concentration camps in the Philippines, 31 including deaths at the camps. In one camp, it was reported that the people were assembled according to villages, so that the people in all cases would have their old neighbors near them. So far as he had been able to observe, there was no evidence of want among the people there congregated. Moreover, they were surprisingly contented. Such camps, he insisted, were created to "protect friendly natives from the insurgents" and to "assure them an adequate food supply," while also teaching them "proper sanitary standards." People were limited to travel within 300 to 800 yards of the camp, beyond which was a so-called "dead line" that anyone caught crossing wold be shot, though he claimed the standing order was not to shoot any helpless persons, or any others if the shooting could be avoided.Colonel Wagner said that one of the principal purposes of concentrating the native people in the Philippines was to protect them against the Ladrones, which had been admirably accomplished. Another object of the camps had been that of facilitating the collection of the rice supplies in order to starve out the Ladrones and guerrillas. The result had been that hostile parties had practically disappeared and their leader, Malvar, had been captured. The policy had been necessary to "protect life and property, and he did not see how any other policy could have been successful. He said that the people were fed and given medical supplies, and the sanitation of the camps was looked after. He insisted that American camps in the Philippines no more could be compared to Valeriano Weyler
Valeriano Weyler
Don Valeriano Weyler y Nicolau, 1st Duke of Rubí and 1st Marquis of Tenerife Don Valeriano Weyler y Nicolau, 1st Duke of Rubí and 1st Marquis of Tenerife Don Valeriano Weyler y Nicolau, 1st Duke of Rubí and 1st Marquis of Tenerife (Seed in Ambos Camarines.-Philippines:In 1888, he was sent out as...
's reconcentrado camps in Cuba than mercy could be compared to cruelty.
Over loud Republican protests, Senator Culberson
Charles Allen Culberson
Charles Allen Culberson was an American political figure and Democrat who served as the 21st Governor of Texas from 18951899, and as a United States Senator from Texas from 18991923....
began to read a letter from one of J. Franklin Bell
J. Franklin Bell
James Franklin Bell was Chief of Staff of the United States Army from 1906 to 1910.Bell was a major-general in the Regular United States Army, commanding the Department of the East, with headquarters at Governors Island, New York at the time of his death in 1919...
's officers, which had been quoted in the Senate by Mr. Bacon, in which the officer described a concentration camp as a "suburb of hell." The chair ruled that unless the senator identified the author, who had asked to remain anonymous, it was "hearsay evidence" and directed the witness not to comment on it. But Culberson had already read part of the letter:
What a farce it all is . . . this little spot of black sogginess is a reconcentrado pen, with a dead line outside, beyond which everything living is shot...Upon arrival, I found 30 cases of smallpox, and average fresh ones of five a day, which practically have to be turned out to die. At nightfall crowds of huge vampire bats softly swirl out of their orgies over the dead. Mosquitos work in relays. This corpse-carcass stench wafts in and combined with some lovely municipal odors besides makes it slightly unpleasant here.
Torture of Filipinos
Col. Wagner said he had no personal knowledge of the tortures of the natives in the Philippines, but he gave several instances in which he had heard reports of torture. In most of these it was found on examination that the reports either were untrue or exaggerated.Wagner said that he knew that one village had been burned because the citizens would not give information of the murderers of a native friendly to the United States.
After intense cross examination, Wagner agreed that some "innocents" had suffered in the Philippines, but he added that the same was true of every war and that it was an injustice as old as man. "The Almighty destroyed Sodom, notwithstanding the fact there were a few just people in that community." Senator Albert Beveridge
Albert J. Beveridge
Albert Jeremiah Beveridge was an American historian and United States Senator from Indiana.-Early years:Albert J. Beveridge was born October 6, 1862 in Highland County, Ohio and his parents moved to Indiana soon after his birth, and his boyhood was one of hard work...
replied, "I was thinking of that instance of Sodom and Gomorrah."
Senator Beveridge's conclusions
Senator Albert Beveridge published a separate senate document containing his views on the committee, published as Senate Document 422 in the 57th Congress, 1st session. Historian Miller criticized this secondary publication, calling it a "deceitful cut and paste jobCut and paste job
A cut-and-paste job or cut and paste approach is a pejorative reference to various kinds of work produced by "cut and paste", i.e., a quick combination of pieces of text collected from various sources, a compilation....
. . . gleaning from the record anything that remotely supported his conclusion that the war was one of the most humane ones in history . . . [Beveridge felt that] the Lodge committee had destroyed the malicious fiction of "the slanders of the Army".
Further reading
- The Philippine Investigating Committee hearings were published in three volumes as Senate Document 331, 57th Congress, 1st Session An abridged version of the oral testimony can be found in:
External links
- Painting the Philippines with an American Brush Visions of Race and National Mission among the Oregon Volunteers in the Philippine Wars of 1898 and 1899 Oregon History Quarterly; Vol 104 No. 1, Spring 2003