The Story of the Philippines and Our New Possessions, by Murat Halstead

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"'Why did I not think of granting indulgencies with the fish I
sold, when a fisherman? We would have been rich, and Judas, instead
of selling the Master, would have sold sardines and tinapa! [6]
I would not have been obliged to cowardly apostatize, and would not
have suffered martyrdom. Verily, I say, that my friend down _Below_
leaves me behind in the matter of knowing how to make money; and yet
I am a Jew.'

"'Of course, don't you know that your friend _Below_ is a Gallego?' [7]
Said a little old man who had been _Up There_ but a few years. His
name was Tasio, and, addressing himself to me, he continued:

"'You are a great Doctor, and although you have contradicted yourself
many times, I hold you as a privileged character of vast erudition,
for, having written your books, Retractationum, and Confesiones;
and since you are so different from your sons who try, when defending
themselves, to make black appear white, and white green, I will state
my complaints, so that you, as their Father, may put a stop to it all.

"'There exists on earth an unfortunate, who, amongst many foolish acts,
has committed the following:

"'1st. He holds solidary of all that I have said during my earthly
life, an Indian called Rizal, only because said Indian has quoted
my words in a book that he wrote. As you can see, should we follow
such a system of reasoning, Rizal would also agree with the views
expressed by friars, policemen, etc., and you, yourself, Holy Doctor,
would also be solidary of all that you ascribe to heretics, Pagans,
and above all, to Manichees.

"'2nd. He wants me to think as he himself does, since he quotes me
as saying 'The Bible and the Holy Gospel.' It may be well that he,
as all fanatics, should believe that these are one and the same
thing. But I, having studied the original Hebraic Bible, know,
that it does not contain the Gospel. That the Jewish Bible, being
a history of creation, treasure and patrimony of Jewish people,
the Jews, who do not accept the Gospel, should be authority. That as
the Latin translation is incorrect, the Catholics could not lay down
the Law, notwithstanding their habit of appropriating everything to
themselves, and of misconstruing to their advantage the translation of
the original text. Besides, the Gospels, with the exception of that
written by Saint Mathew, were written in Greek later than the Bible,
and conflict in every respect with the Law of Moses, as proved by the
enemity between Jews and Christians. How, then, could I, knowing all
this, express myself as a fanatic, or as an ignorant monk? I do not
exact from any monk the speech of a free-thinker and therefore, they
should not exact that I express myself as a monk would. Why do they
want me to consolidate under one name two distinct things, which, to
a certain extent contradict each other? Let the Christians do so, but
I must not, and cannot. If I call them separately, it is in accordance
with the thought inspiring two works, two legislations, two religions,
on which they want to found the Catholic Religion. Your son, moreover,
reasons finely, when he says: 'I did not know that the Gospels were
different from the Bible, and not a principal part of it.' Tell him,
Holy Father, that in every country a part, no matter how principal may
it be, is always different from the whole, for instance: The principal
thing in Friar Rodriguez is his habit: but his habit is different from
Friar Rodriguez, as otherwise there would be one dirty Friar Rodriguez,
another shining, another creased, another wide, short, long, greasy,
etc. On the other hand, the habit is different from the monk, because
a piece of cloth, no matter how dirty, could never be presumptuous,
despotic, ignorant or obscurantistic.

"'3d. To prove the existence of a Purgatory, he quotes: 'Saint
Mathew says in Chapter twelfth, thirty-sixth verse----.' But he
quotes wrongly, as from that verse cannot be derived the existence
of a Purgatory, nor anything of its kind. The Hebrew text says:
'Wa 'ebif 'omar lakam kij 'al kal abar reg ashar idabbru 'abaschim
yittbu heschboun biom hammischphat'; the Greek text, 'Lego de hynun
hote pan rema argon, ho ean lalesosin hoi anthropoi, apodosousi peri
auton logon en hemera kriseos.' All these translated into Latin say:
'Dicto autem vobis, quoniam omne verbum otiosum quod locuti fucrint
homines, reddent rationem de co in die judicii,' which, translated
into English means, '_And I say to you, that on the Day of Judgment,
men shall have to account for every idle word_.' From all these texts,
you can see, Holy Doctor, that the only thing to be derived is that
on the Day of Judgment, Friar Rodriguez will have to give such an
account of himself, that very likely it will take him two days to
account for all the nonsense he has said.

"'I imagine that your son, instead of the thirty-sixth verse, meant
to quote the thirty-second, which says: "And all who shall say word
against the son of man will be forgiven; but he who says word against
the Holy Ghost, shall not be pardoned; neither in this life nor in
the next." From this they have tried to derive the existence of a
Purgatory. What a fertile imagination!

"'4th. Because Saint Ireneus, St. Clement of Alexandria, and Origenes,
three in all, although not being the first Christian, had some
remote idea of Purgatory, it does not follow that the Christians of
the first century did believe in it, unless it could be previously
established that three persons represent a totality, even if amongst
such a totality existed, contradictory ideas. But, as a proof that
was it not so, you, yourself, Holy Doctor, being their father, having
flourished in the fourth and fifth century, and supposed to be the
greatest amongst the Fathers of the Church, denied most emphatically,
in various instances, the existence of a Purgatory. In your CCXCV
cermon, beginning by: 'Frecuenter charitatem vestra,' etc., you said
very decidedly: 'Nemo se slecipiat fratres; _Duo_ cuim _loca_ sunt
et _terius_ non est ullus. Qui cum Christo reguare non meruerit, cum
diabolo _absque dubitatione ulla_ perebit.' This translated means,
'Do not deceive yourselves, brethren; there are but two places for
the soul and there is no third place. He who should not deserve to
live with Christ, _undoubtedly_ will perish.'

"'Further on, in de Consolatione mortuorum, you say: 'Sed recedus
anima quoe carnalibus oculis non videtur, ab angelis susciptur et
collocatur, aut in sinu, Abrahae, si fidelis est, aut in carcerio
inferni custodia si peccatrix est.' This means, 'But at the departure
of that soul which the eyes of the flesh cannot see, the angels will
receive and carry it to the Bosom of Abraham, if it has been faithful;
or to Hell, if sinful.' On the other hand, I could quote a large
number of your own texts showing that for you, Purgatory was not an
impossibility. Add to all this what Saint Fulgentius, who flourished
after you during the fifth and sixth century, says in Chapter XIV.,
of his 'de incarnatione et gratia,' etc.: 'Quicumque regnum Dei non
ingreditur, poenis oeternis cruciatur.' That is to say, 'He who could
not enter the Kingdom of God, will suffer eternal punishment.'

"'5th. Your son either cannot read, or else acts in bad faith;
otherwise, how could he, from my estatement, 'The Protestants _do
not believe_ in it; neither do the Greek Fathers, because they miss,'
etc., try to make 'The Greek Fathers DID NOT believe in a Purgatory?'

"'How could he deduct from a present, a past tense and twist the
sentences to make from it 'The Holy Greek Fathers?'

"'I used '_believe_,' the present tense, although in my time the _Holy
Greek Fathers_ did not exist, but simply the fathers belonging to
the Greek Church. Moreover, as I was following an historical order,
how could I refer to the Protestants, first, and to the _Holy Greek
Fathers_ afterwards, who believed what they wished, and who at the
time of my earthly life were a past to me?

"'And enwrapped in such bad faith, he dares to qualify as a slanderer,
imposter and ignoramus, the man who only quoted me!

"'But such proceeding is worthy of Friar Rodriguez, who, following his
system of confusing a part with the whole, tries to condemn another's
book, and mistakes the rays of the sun for the sun itself, all with
the purpose of slandering the author and calling him Freemason.

"'Tell me, Holy Doctor, after what I have told you, who is the real
ignoramus, impostor and slanderer?

"'6th. Instead of accusing others of ignorance, and presuming to know
everything, he should be careful, because he has not even read your
books, notwithstanding you are his father, and that it is his duty to
know what you have said. Should he have done so, he would neither have
written so much nonsense nor would he have shown the shallowness of his
knowledge, which, by the way, he derives from some little books, which,
to propagate and maintain obscurantism, were published in Cataluna,
[8] by Sarda y Salvany.'

"Thus was old Tasio expressing himself, when the voice of the Almighty
was heard summoning me to His presence.

"Trembling, I approached, and prostrated myself at His feet.'

"'Go to Earth,' said the voice, 'and tell those who call themselves
your sons that I, having created millions of suns, around which,
thousands of worlds, inhabited by millions of millions of beings,
created by my infinite Mercy, gyrate, cannot be an instrument to the
fulfilment of a few ungrateful creatures' passions, simply handfuls
of dust carried away by a gust of wind; insignificant particles of
the inhabitants of one of my smallest worlds!'

"'Tell them that my Name must not be used to extend the misery or
ignorance of their brothers, nor shall they restrain in my Name,
intelligence and thought, which I created free. That they must not
commit abuses in my Name, cause a tear, nor a single drop of blood to
be shed. That they must not represent me as being cruel, revengeful,
subject to their whims and executor of their will. Not to represent me,
The Fountain of Goodness, as a tyrant, or an unkind Father, pretending
that they are the only possessors of Light and Eternal Life. How? I,
who have given to each being air, light, life and love, that he may be
happy, could I deny to one of the most transcendental, true happiness,
for the sake of others? Impious! Absurd! Tell them that I, who am All,
and apart from whom nothing exists, nor could exist, I have not and
cannot have enemies. Nothing equals me, and no one can oppose my will!

"'Tell them that their enemies are not my enemies; that I have
never identified myself with them, and that their maxims are vain,
insensible, blasphemous! Tell them that I pardon error, but punish
iniquity; that I will forgive a sin against me, but will prosecute
those who should torture an unfortunate. That being infinitely
Powerful, all the sins of all the inhabitants of all the worlds,
thousands of times centuplicated, can never dim an atom of my
glory. But the least injury to the poor and oppressed I will punish,
for I have not created man to make him unhappy nor the victim of his
brothers. I am the Father of all existent; I know the destiny of every
atom; let me love all men, whose miseries and needs I know. Let each
one perform his duty, that I, The God of Mercy, know my own will.'

"Thus spoke the Almighty; and I came here to fulfill his command. Now,
I say to you:

"That the miseries of the unhappy Indian whom you have impoverished
and stupefied, have reached the Throne of the Highest. _There_ have
arrived so many intelligences obscured and impaired by you! The cry
of so many exiles, tortured, and killed at your instigation! The tears
of so many mothers and the miseries of so many orphans, combined with
the noise of your orgies! Know that there is a God, (perhaps you doubt
His existence, and only use His name to advance your ends) who will
some day call you to account for all your iniquities. Know that He
needs not the money of the poor, nor is it necessary to worship Him
by burning candles and incense, saying masses or believing blindly
what others say, contrary to common sense.

"No! His luminary is greater than your own sun; His flowers more
fragrant than those on earth. He suffices to Himself. He created
intelligence for no subservient purpose; but that with its use, man
could be happy in raising himself to Him. He needs no one. He created
man, not for His sake, but for man's own. He is happy for all eternity!

"You obstinately uphold the existence of a Purgatory, using even the
most ignoble weapons and means to defend your belief. Why, instead
of wasting your time in affirming the existence of that which you
never saw, do you not preach and practice love and charity amongst
yourselves? Why not preach words of comfort and hope, to somewhat
soothe the miseries of life, instead of frightening your brothers by
tales of future punishment? Why? Because Christ's True Doctrine would
bring you no earthly wealth, and all that you look for is gold, and
gold! And to satisfy your end and bleed the timid souls, of money,
you have invented a Purgatory! Why afflict orphans and widows with
dreadful tales of the next life, only to extort from them a few
cents? Have you forgotten what the Apostle said? 'Nolo vos ignorare,
fratres, de dormientibus, ut non contristenuni, sicut qui spem non
habent,' which means, 'I do not wish you to ignore, brethren, that
which concerns those who sleep, that you may not be saddened, like
those who have lost all hope.' Also, that I, myself, have said? 'Hoec
enim est Christianoe fidei summa: vitam veram expectare post mortem,'
that is 'Here is then the summary of the Christian faith: to hope for
a true life after death.' But you, lacking in charity, and for a vile,
greedy interest, live in opposition to Christ, and pretend to be able
to mould Divine Judgment. All the strength of your philosophy seems
to be derived from your own theory, which denies the existence of
souls sufficiently sinners to be condemned, or pure enough to enter
the Kingdom of God! By whose authority do you pretend to oppose the
judgment of Him who weighs and considers the smallest thought? Who
knows it is impossible to expect perfection from beings made of clay,
subject to the miseries and oppressions of earthly life? Who told you
that He will judge as you, with your narrow, limited intelligence,
do? That the miseries of this life are not expiations of sins?

"Cease in your avaricious hoarding of wealth! You have now enough. Do
not wrench from the poor his last mouthful of bread.

"Remember what Saint Fulgentius said: 'Et si mithetur in stagnum
ignis et sulphuris qui nudum vestimento non tegit, quid passures
est qui vestimento crudelis expoliat? Et si rerum suarem avarus
possessor requiem non habebit, quomodo aliaenarum rerum insatiabilis
raptor?' Meaning, 'And if he who never clothed the naked is sent to
the pond of fire and sulphur, where will he, who cruelly stripped
them, go? And if the greedy possessor of his own wealth may never
rest, how shall it be with the thief, insatiable in his greed for
the wealth of others?'

"Preach then, the religion of Hope and Promises, as you, above
all, are in need of pardon and forgiveness. Do not speak of rigor,
nor condemn others, lest God should hear and judge you according to
the laws by you formulated. Bear always in mind Christ's words, 'Vae
vobis scribae et Pharisae hypocrite qui clauditis regnum coelorum ante
homines; vos non intratis, nec introeunts sinitis intrare!' This means,
'Woe to you, Scribes and Pharisees, who close to men the Kingdom of
God, and neither enter nor allow others to enter!'

"Now, to you personally, I will say: You are an unfortunate fool,
who speak numberless absurdities, although I could not expect aught
else from you, and would not punish you for them. But you have had the
audacity of not only insulting others, by which you forgot truth and
charity, but praised yourself and called attention to your own praise.

"Referring to yourself, you said. This Father, whom I well know (liar,
you do not even know yourself), although he may appear a little hard
headed (a little hard-headed? Ask my crosier if your head is not harder
than stone), never speaks in vain (this is true; every word you say
causes as much laughter on earth as in Heaven), nor uses words without
first thinking (if such is true, your intelligence is very limited).

"For such foolish vanity I ought to punish you severely, so that you
would stop forever your senseless writings, saving me the trouble of
coming to reprimand you at every instance.

"Were I to judge you according to your own theory, you should at
least go to your Purgatory. But, after all, you are not so bad,
as many learned persons are made to laugh at your writings.

"It would be well for your pride if you allowed the Indians to pass
by you without taking off their hats or kissing your hand. But then,
they would be imprisoned or exiled, and it would not do to increase
the wrong you do them.

"Shall I make you lame and dumb? No! Your brothers would claim it
was a trial of your forbearance, to which God had submitted you. No;
you won't catch me on that!

"What shall I do with you?"

The old Bishop meditated for a few moments, and then, he exclaimed:

"Ah! Now I know! Your own sin shall be your punishment!

"I condemn you to continue saying and writing nonsense for the rest
of your life, so that the world may laugh at you, and also, that on
the Day of Judgment you may be judged according to your deserts!"

"Amen!" replied Friar Rodriguez.

The vision then disappeared; the light of the lamp regained its
yellowish flame, and the soft perfume dispersed.

On the following day Friar Rodriguez started writing greater nonsense,
with renewed energy.

Amen!

_Jose Rizal._

Note.--The foregoing admirable translations from the writings of
Dr. Rizal were made by Mr. F.M. de Rivas, of Chicago.

CHAPTER XV

Events of the Spanish-American War.

No Mystery About the Cause of the War--The Expected and the Inevitable
Has Happened--The Tragedy of the Maine--Vigilant Wisdom of President
McKinley--Dewey's Prompt Triumph--The Battles at Manila and Santiago
Compared--General Shafter Tells of the Battle of Santiago--Report of
Wainwright Board on Movements of Sampson's Fleet in the Destruction of
Cervera's Squadron--Stars and Stripes Raised Over Porto Rico--American
and Spanish Fleets at Manila Compared.--Text of Peace Protocol.

The war between Spain and the United States was a long time coming,
and there is no more mystery about its cause than doubt as to its
decisions. It was foretold in every chapter of the terrible stories
of the conflicts between the Spaniards and their colonists, largely of
their blood, in Central and South America. The causes of war in Cuba,
and the conduct of warfare by Spain in that island were the same that
resulted in revolutionary strife in Mexico and Peru, and, indeed, all
the nations in the Americas that once were swayed by the sovereignty
of Spain. The last of the islands of the Spanish possessions in the
hemisphere introduced to the civilized world by Columbus were lost by
the western peninsula of Europe, symbolized and personified in the
Crown, as the first crumbling fragments of the colonial empires of
Spain fell away from her. Only in the case of Cuba there was the direct
intervention of the United States to establish "a stable government"
in the distracted island, desolated by war, pestilence and famine,
that had evolved conditions, of terrible misery incurable from within,
and of inhumane oppression that should be resented by all enlightened
people. It had long been realized by the thoughtful men of Spain
capable of estimating the currents of events, that the time must come,
and was close at hand, when the arms of the United States would be
directed to the conquest of Cuba. It was not only in the air that
this was to be, it was written in the history of Spanish America,
and more than that, there was not an Atlas that did not proclaim in
the maps of the continents of the Western world, that Cuba would and
in the largest sense of right should, become a part of the United
States, and must do so in order to be redeemed from the disabilities
deeply implanted, and released from having the intolerable burdens
imposed by the rule of Spain. The consciousness of the Spaniards,
that the shadow of the United States lowered over the misgovernment
of Cuba, and that there was a thunder-cloud in the north that must
burst--with more than the force of the hurricanes that spin on their
dizzy way of destruction from the Caribbean Sea--aroused the fury of
passion, of jealous hatred and thirst for revenge, in anticipation of
the inevitable, that caused the catastrophe of the blowing up of the
Maine, and kindled with the flame of the explosion, the conflagration
of warfare in the Indies West and East, that has reddened the seas and
the skies with the blood of Spain and the glow of America's victory
both in the Antilles and the Philippines, wiping from the face of the
earth the last vestiges of the colonial imperialism of Spain that gave
her mediaeval riches and celebrity, for which--as the system always
evil became hideous with malignant growth, so that each colony was
a cancer on the mother country--there has been exacted punishment of
modern poverty, and finally the humiliation of the haughty, with no
consolation for defeat, but the fact that in desperate and forlorn
circumstances there were seen glimpses of the ancient valor in Spanish
soldiers, that was once their high distinction among the legions of
embattled Europe.

The United States was not ready for war. Our regular army was a 16
to 120 Spanish troops in Cuba, our field guns 1 to 6 of Blanco's
batteries, our siege train nowhere, and fortified cities to assail;
and the ability and industry of the Spaniards as well as their
skill and strength in surveying and fortifying military lines,
and their food resources were dangerously undervalued. The war was
rushed upon the country, contrary to the calm executive judgement of
the President. The army and navy were admirable but faulty in hasty
equipment, the navy a perfect machine in itself, but without docks
and arsenals in the right place for the supply of a fleet in the old
battle field of European navies, the West Indies. The energies of the
Government were put forth as soon as the war was seriously threatened,
and the mighty people arose and swiftly as the aptitudes of Americans
in emergencies could be applied, deficiencies were supplied. The first
stroke of arms came as a dazzling flash from the far southwest, in
the story of the smashing victory of Dewey at Manila. That splendid
officer, gentleman and hero did not signal his fleet as Nelson
at Trafalgar, that every man was expected to do his duty, but he
reported that every man did his duty; and the East Indian fleet of
Spain vanished, smashed, burned and sunken by a thunderbolt! The theory
of war countenanced by the impetuous and demanded by the presumptuous,
was that our aggressive forces must attack Havana. In and around that
city were an enormous garrison, abundant military stores, forty miles
of trenches defended by sixty thousand men; and far more to be dreaded
the deadly climate, the overwhelming rains, the deep rank soil soaked
under the tropical sun and the dense vegetation, and still more the
pestilence--the ghastly Yellow Fever, and scarcely less poisonous and
fatal pernicious malarial fevers, and dysenteries that exhausted as
fast as fever consumed. Fortunately, it was decided that the place
to attack Havana was Santiago, and there the regular army, with the
exception of the regiments sent to the Philippines, was ordered and in
due time reinforced by volunteers, safely embarked and disembarked, to
become the winners on bloody fields and receive the surrender of the
Spanish garrisons of the city and province of Santiago. The vaunted
fleet of Cervera, having attempted flight, perished--the wrecks of
his fine ships strewing the southern coast of Cuba, where they remain
as memorials, like and unlike the distorted iron that was the Maine,
in the harbor of Havana, and as the shattered and charred remnants of
the fleet of Montejo, at Manila, still cumber the waters of the bay off
Cavite, telling the story of the glory of our victorious heroes there.

The responsibility of the Chief Magistrate of the United States in
the late war was remarkable. Everything of moment was referred to
him from the Cabinet officers of the Government, and he gave all the
closest attention, making, after conscientious consideration, the
decisions that determined the course of action taken. This was true
in unusual measure of the Treasury, State, War and Navy Departments.

It is well the President resisted while he could the "rush line"
in Congress, that strove headlong for war, and strenuously urged
in the time gained essential preparations, and that he pressed the
war the day it was declared with a hurry message to Admiral Dewey,
who won his immortal victory on the other side of the world within
a week of his orders by cable to "destroy" the squadron of the enemy
that might be found somewhere on the west coast of Luzon.