Let us continue with his testimony as to cooperation between Aguinaldo and the naval forces of the United States:--
"_Senator Patterson_. Then, Admiral, until you knew that they were going to send land forces to your assistance you thought there was a necessity to organize the Filipinos into land forces, did you?
"_Senator Patterson_. You thought it might prove of value to you?
"_Admiral Dewey_. I testified here, I think, in a way that answers that. I said to Aguinaldo, 'There is our enemy; now, you go your way and I will go mine; we had better act independently.' That was the wisest thing I ever said.
"_Senator Patterson_. But you stated that you were using these people and they were permitted to organize, that you might use them.
"_Admiral Dewey_. They were assisting us.
"_Senator Patterson_. Very well, they were to assist you. Did you not either permit them or encourage them--I do not care which term you use--to organize into an army, such as it was, that they might render you such assistance as you needed?
"_Admiral Dewey_. They were assisting us, but incidentally they were fighting their enemy; they were fighting an enemy which had been their enemy for three hundred years.
"_Senator Patterson_. I understand that, Admiral.
"_Admiral Dewey_. While assisting us they were fighting their own battles, too.
"_The Chairman_. You were encouraging insurrection against a common enemy with which you were at war?
"_Admiral Dewey_. I think so. I had in my mind an illustration furnished by the civil war. I was in the South in the civil war, and the only friends we had in the South were the negroes, and we made use of them; they assisted us on many occasions. I had that in mind; I said these people were our friends, and 'we have come here and they will help us just exactly as the negroes helped us in the civil war.'
"_Senator Patterson_. The negroes were expecting their freedom--
"_Admiral Dewey_. The Filipinos were slaves, too.
"_Senator Patterson_. What were the Filipinos expecting?
"_Admiral Dewey_. They wanted to get rid of the Spaniards; I do not think they looked much beyond that. I cannot recall but I have in mind that the one thing they had in their minds was to get rid of the Spaniards and then to accept us, and that would have occurred--I have thought that many times--if we had had troops to occupy Manila on the 1st day of May before the insurrection got started; these people would have accepted us as their friends, and they would have been our loyal friends--I don't know for how long, but they would have been our friends then.