In 1895, for the benefit of one dearer to me than life, I went to Kirksville, Mo., and from Dr. A. T. Still learned something of the principles and practice of his great art. The subject grew in interest; I became a regular student of the American School of Osteopathy, and, in time, completed the course and took the decree. In the islands it was a great pleasure to me to help our sick soldiers; scores of them, with touching gratitude, have blessed the use that I made of my hands upon them. Officers and men came daily for treatment. Soon the Filipinos came, too. Women walked many miles carrying their sick children; the blind and lame besought me to lay my hands upon them. It was noised about that I had divine power. My door was beset. I gladly gave relief where I could, but for the most of them help was one hundred years too late.

I recall with special pleasure one successful case. A woman came to me who said she had walked forty miles to bring her sick child; for compensation she offered a pigeon and three eggs. I could not look out of my window without seeing some poor sick native squatted on the ground waiting to see if I could do anything for her sick child or herself. The natives when burning up with fever think they dare not wash their bodies; they will lie hopeless and passive on the ground or on a small bamboo mat. It is pitiable to see them so utterly destitute; not one single thing that would go to make up a bed or pillow, nor do they seem to have any mode of taking care of their sick at all.

Our army hospitals were very well kept, indeed, but it was a great struggle to get help enough and to get the things needed for hundreds of sick soldiers. There were many large buildings, but as soon as the government attempted to purchase them, the Filipinos asked exorbitant prices. And then the sanitary conditions are such that it is hard to establish hospitals anywhere. I read with great pleasure that the capitol of Luzon will be on a plateau in the mountains where the temperature will be lower, the air better, and the water purer.

I am sure that Americans can live in the Philippines; I know that the resources of the islands are vast, especially in agricultural and mineral products; that we have, indeed, acquired in our new possessions immeasurable riches.

As soon as any Filipino wishes to become a friend and to impress you that he is rich and has vast possessions, the entire family, father, mother, and children, will call and bring quantities of fruits, fine clothes, carved shells, and native pearls with curiously wrought gold settings, and present them with great earnestness of manner and many words of praise. They tell you what great value they place upon your friendship, and that of all the people in all the world you are the one person that they do most ardently believe in, and finally that they consider you the greatest acquisition to their islands.

A Filipino general and his wife came again and again to see me; they brought a magnificent sunburst of diamonds which they urged me to accept with their greatest love and affection. I declined positively and absolutely. They seemed very much downcast that I would not accept this little token of their deep affection. They went home, but in about two hours came back, brought the diamonds, and again urged and urged so strongly that I finally consented to let the wife pin the elegant brooch on my dress; perhaps I should find out the hidden meaning of this excessive devotion. As soon as the officer in command returned, I told him of the gift, of my refusal, and of their return. A written note was hastily sent to the general that he must come and remove the brooch at once. Fearing the wrath of the officer, he came immediately and I returned the diamonds. Even after this the family renewed their efforts. I found out afterwards that the general had violated his oath of allegiance; his bribe was to buy my influence with the commanding officer.

It was evident that many of the better class of natives, in spite of oath and fair face, were directing and maintaining the murderous bands of banditti. Often letters were found that the Filipino generals had written to their women friends in Jaro, Iloilo and Molo, to sell their jewels, to sell all they could, to buy guns, ammunition, and food, and later other letters were captured full of the thanks of the Filipino army for these gifts. While the good Filipinos were taking the oath of allegiance with the uplifted right hand, the left was much busier sending supplies to the insurrectos.

The hypocrisy of the upper classes was matched by their cruelty. A native of prominence was gracious enough upon one occasion to direct a party of officers on their way. He was attended by his servant who walked or ran the entire distance carrying a heavy load suspended partly from his shoulders, and partly by a strap about the forehead.

The servant failed to start with the party, but in a short time he caught up by running swiftly. The master calmly got off his horse, motioned to the servant to drop his load, and proceeded to beat the man unmercifully with a cane made out of fish tail, a sword-like, cruel, barbed affair, about four feet long. The poor servant never uttered a cry. As soon as possible the officers interfered and stopped the torture. So bloody and faint was the poor victim that they gave him a horse to ride. The master was angry, declared he would not have his authority questioned and left the party.

A ball was given in the town of Jaro by the officers who were there and in the town of Iloilo. Army, navy, ladies, and nurses from the hospital were invited. It was considered quite an unusual thing to do at this time, as the Filipino soldiers were near at hand day and night, approaching and firing upon the town. One of the Filipino women said, “I do not see how the American officers dare congregate at so dangerous a time.” The men decorated the huge ball room with magnificent palms and ferns which they had gathered and put up many flags. The regimental band was stationed on the porch at the rear of the building. It was, altogether, a very fine gathering, and all went merry “as the marriage bell.”

There was a German on the dance programme that was to end in a mock capture. Not thinking that it might occasion alarm, at a certain point, some of the soldiers were instructed to fire off some cannon crackers; in addition the soldiers thought it would be just as well to fire off a few pistols. The surprise was very great. The colonel of a volunteer regiment nearby heard the commotion and gave orders for the company to turn out and find out where this fusillade was occurring, not supposing that it could be in private quarters. The Presidente of the town was greatly alarmed, as he was expecting any moment to be captured for serving under the U. S. government as head man of a town. The firing created a great commotion, people ran hither and thither to find out where the battle was going on; the musicians, who did not understand about the firing, were frightened, too; there was a call to arms and great commotion. But soon explanations came, and immediately it was on with the dance. It was a huge joke, and when the sentry told that a colonel and his wife were the most frightened of all, barricading their doors and having extra guards placed around, the merriment knew no bounds.

It was seldom that the officers had any of these receptions or balls, but when they did everybody felt they must attend, and those taking part in the dance enjoyed themselves very much. Sometimes the officers would charter a small steamer and go to one of the nearby islands, but it was rarely they could do so, because of the skulking natives and their manner of signaling where these parties landed, making it unsafe for any but large companies to attend these excursions.

It was often the duty of our officers and men to stop the cruelties they saw practiced upon dumb brutes. I have in mind the way pigs were brought to market, their forefeet across a bamboo pole and their heads bound so that they could not squeal, and in this uncomfortable way they were carried many miles. Of the many stories that were told of the cruelties our soldiers perpetrated upon the helpless Filipinos, I do not believe one word; indeed, our men were constantly assisting the natives in every way possible.

On the 4th of July, 1900, our officers decided to tender a reception to the Filipino families whose hospitalities they had enjoyed. They issued invitations and decorated their quarters in fine shape with flags, bunting, palms, and pictures. It was quite the talk of the town. The beauty and chivalry of the island were there. For refreshments they served commissary supplies with ice cream and cake. The guests thought it a very poor banquet for such pretentious people as the officers were. The Filipinos always have a ten or twelve course meal at twelve o’clock at their dances, especially when they have festivals or wedding banquets. There were many of these given. I could often watch the throng from my window; they went at this particular kind of hilarity in the same listless, slow, silent manner in which they did everything. The popular dance is the “Rigadon.” There is a great deal of swinging of couples and going forward and back. None of the common people seem to indulge in any form of a dance, so far as I could learn.

We invited upon several occasions some Filipino men and women to dine with us, and it was interesting to hear their remarks about various dishes we had prepared for them. They would ask questions concerning the preparations. Mince pies, which we made of canned meat and canned apples, were a source of great wonder; they would ask where they could get the fruit for that kind of a pudding. I know that they made wry faces at some dishes, and I know that we did ourselves, for some of them were beyond comparison; no chef in all the world could produce a good thing out of such materials.

The May festival was given by the children, chiefly by the little girls of the cathedral congregation. The leader was a woman of fine character and standing. She worked hard every day with these little tots to train them to do their parts well, which consisted of marching into the cathedral by twos’, arranging themselves into a circle about the Virgin Mother and throwing flowers and bouquets, singing and speaking. The ludicrous part of it all was that these little things were supposed to be dressed like American children. The models had been taken from some old magazine,—huge sleeves, small waists, skirt to the knees, and pantlets to the top of shoes. The shoes were painfully tight and the little feet, unaccustomed to being held in such close quarters, limped and hobbled piteously. The festival was carried on every day for weeks. Bushels of flowers were thrown at the figure of the Blessed Virgin.

Some of the festivals in the larger cathedrals in Manila were gorgeous indeed. There were floats on which were carried the different patron saints, all gorgeously arrayed in the most magnificent costumes. Evidently the churches were never meant for the common or poor people, so few of them were ever seen within their walls; but without were vast crowds of beggars, of the blind, the deformed, the diseased; victims of smallpox and of leprosy in every stage of suffering. It is said that the first thing ordered by Bishop Brent, who took charge of the Protestant Episcopal church in the Philippines, was soap.