Several days before.
"_Senator Patterson_. To whom did you eommunieate the arrangement
that you had?
"_Admiral Dewey_. General Merritt and, of course, all of my own
captains--General Merritt, and I think a council of officers on board
of one of the steamers. I think there were several army officers
present when I told the General that; and I may say here that I do
not think General Merritt took much stock in it.
"_Senator Patterson_. What statement did you make to them, Admiral,
in substance?
"_Admiral Dewey_. That the Spaniards were ready to surrender, but
before doing so I must engage one of the outlying forts. I selected one
at Malate, away from the city. [139] They said I must engage that and
fire for a while, and then I was to make a signal by the international
code, 'Do you surrender?' Then they were to hoist a white flag at
a certain bastion; and I may say now that I was the first one to
discover the white flag. We had 50 people looking for that white flag,
but I happened to be the first one who saw it. I fired for a while,
and then made the signal according to the programme. We could not see
the white flag--it was rather a thick day--but finally I discovered
it on the south bastion; I don't know how long it had been flying
there when I first saw it.
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