. We could have taken the city at any moment we had the troops
to occupy it."

Admiral Dewey has made the following statements relative to the
importance of Aguinaldo's military operations:--

"Then he began operations toward Manila, and he did wonderfully
well. He whipped the Spaniards battle after battle, and finally put
one of those old smoothbore guns on a barge, and he wanted to take
this up--wanted me to tow it up so he could attack the city with
it. I said, 'Oh, no, no; we can do nothing until our troops come.' I
knew he could not take the city without the assistance of the navy,
without my assistance, and I knew that what he was doing--driving the
Spaniards in--was saving our own troops, because our own men perhaps
would have had to do that same thing. He and I were always on the most
friendly terms; we had never had any differences. He considered me as
his liberator, as his friend. I think he had the highest admiration
for us because we had whipped the Spaniards who had been riding them
down for three hundred years.

* * * * *

"_Senator Patterson_ (continuing). You sent this short dispatch to
the Secretary of the Navy:--

"'Aguinaldo, the revolutionary leader, visited the _Olympia_
yesterday. He expects to make general attack on May 31. Doubt his
ability to succeed. Situation remains unchanged.'

"Do you recall that visit?

"_Admiral Dewey_. Yes.

"_Senator Patterson_. He came to tell you, did he, that he was going
to make a general attack, and you--

"_Admiral Dewey_. Yes.

"_Senator Patterson_. And you doubted his ability to succeed?

"_Admiral Dewey_. And he wanted me to assist him. He wanted me to tow
one of his guns up into position. I knew he could not take the city;
of course he could not.

"_Senator Patterson_. Did you urge that he should not make the attack?

"_Admiral Dewey_. I do not remember that; very likely I did.

"_Senator Patterson_. And was he not persuaded or restrained by you
from doing so?

"_Admiral Dewey_. I do not remember; but it is very likely. I did
not want to see a lot of them killed unnecessarily, because I knew
they could not take that walled city. They had no artillery, and they
could not take it, I knew very well, and I wanted the situation to
remain as it was until our troops came to occupy it.

"_Senator Patterson_. But you found that whenever you expressed a
strong objection to anything being done at that time that Aguinald