MANILA AND THE PHILIPPINES 



By Major A. Falkner von Sonnenburg, 

 Imperial German Army, Late Military Attache at Manila 



After Admiral Dewey's splendid victory at Cavite, the neutral 

 powers sent their ships as quickly as possible to Manila bay. 

 It was expected that the quiet waters of the capital of the Phil- 

 ippines would become in the near future the scene of great 

 military and naval activity, and that many still doubtful ques- 

 tions in modern warfare would there find a practical answer. 



It was only by chance that Germany had at that time a rela- 

 tively strong squadron at hand on the eastern station. The 

 territory acquired in China only a few months before had made 

 it necessary to assemble there two cruiser divisions, and as the 

 news of the complete annihilation of the Spanish fleet became 

 known, the admiral of one of these divisions had to go down 

 from the Chinese and Japanese seas to the Philippines. The 

 division was at that time engaged in drill and training in evo- 

 lutions and target practice, and so it is easily to be understood 

 that the division commander would not wish to divide his 

 squadron, but, on the contrary, would be glad of the opportu- 

 nity to make use of the trip down to Manila for training and 

 evolutionary purposes. I do not believe that any order of the 

 German government had been given to assemble a strong squad- 

 ron at Manila. I understand that the leader of the division, 

 who is fully responsible for the training of his men, had in this 

 regard an absolutely free hand, as is usual in our navy and armj'. 



But besides these purely technical reasons, it was to be consid- 

 ered that hundreds of our countrymen, who lived outside of 

 Manila, scattered over the Philippine islands as traders, planters, 

 or engineers, might be in a very dangerous position. The in- 

 surrection of the Filipinos against the Spanish rule had become 

 general, and rumors were heard that all the small ports, like 

 Lloilo, in the different islands, each of which contained a few of 

 <>ur countrymen, were besieged by the insurgents, and that their 

 lives and property were in the greatest clanger. 



Under these circumstances it was to be expected that after the 

 arrival of the squadron in Manila bay ships had to be detached 



