The following information relative to the conduct of the Insurgents in the Cagayan valley is chiefly taken from manuscript copy of "Historia de la Conquista de Cagayan por los Tagalos Revolucionarios," in which the narratives of certain captured friars are transcribed and compiled by Father Julian Malumbres of the Dominican Order.

The formal surrender of Aparri occurred on August 26.  Tirona, his officers and his soldiers, promptly pillaged the convento. [276] The officers left the Bishop of Vigan ten pesos, but the soldiers subsequently took them away from him.  Wardrobes and trunks were broken open; clocks, shoes, money, everything was carried off.  Even personal papers and prayer-books were taken from some of the priests, many of whom were left with absolutely nothing save the few remaining clothes in which they stood.

On the same day Villa, accompanied by Victa and Rafael Perea, [277] went to the convento and told the priests who were imprisoned there that their last hour had come.  He shut all of them except the bishop and five priests in a room near the church, then separated the Augustinians, Juan Zallo, Gabino Olaso, Fidel Franco, Mariano Rodriguez, and Clemente Hidalgo, from the others and took them into the lower part of the convento where he told them that he intended to kill them if they did not give him more money.  The priests told him that they had given all they had, whereupon he had their arms tied behind their backs, kicked them, struck them and whipped them with rattans.

Father Zallo was thrown on his face and savagely beaten.  Meanwhile two shots were fired over the heads of the others and a soldier called out “One has fallen,” badly frightening the priests who had remained shut in the room.  Villa then returned with soldiers to this room, ordered his men to load, and directed that one priest step forward to be shot.  Father Mariano Ortiz complied with this request, asking that he be the first victim.  Villa, however, contented himself with threatening him with a revolver and kicking and striking him until he fell to the floor.  He was then beaten with the butts of guns.

Father Jose Vazquez, an old man of sixty years, who had thrown some money into a privy to keep it from falling into the hands of the Insurgents, was stripped and compelled to recover it with his bare hands, after which he was kicked, and beaten with rattans.

Father Aquilino Garcia was unmercifully kicked and beaten to make him give up money, and this sort of thing continued until Villa, tired out with the physical exertion involved in assaulting these defenceless men, departed, leaving his uncompleted task to others, who continued it for some time.

The net result to the Insurgents of the sacking of the convento and of the tortures thus inflicted was approximately $20,000 gold in addition to the silver, bank notes, letters of credit, jewels, etc., which they obtained.