[118]
On July 21 he wrote again asking for passes for a Lieutenant
E. I. Bryan and party, who were making a reconnaissance. [119]
Such records as I have been able to find do not show what response,
if any, Aguinaldo made to these several requests, but General
Anderson's original views as to the willingness of the Insurgents to
cooeperate with him underwent an early change, for on July 18, 1898,
in a letter to the Adjutant-General of the United States Army he
makes the following statement:--
"The Insurgent chief, Aguinaldo, has declared himself Dictator and
self-appointed President. He has declared martial law and promulgated
a minute method of rule and administration under it.
"We have observed all official military courtesies, and he and his
followers express great admiration and gratitude to the great American
republic of the north, yet in many ways they obstruct our purposes
and are using every effort to take Manila without us.
"I suspect also that Aguinaldo is secretly negotiating with the
Spanish authorities, as his confidential aide is in Manila." [120]
This suspicion was entirely justified, as we shall see later.
On July 24 Aguinaldo wrote a letter to General Anderson in effect
warning him not to disembark American troops in places conquered by
the Filipinos from the Spaniards without first communicating in writing
the places to be occupied and the object of the occupation.
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