General Greene, who reads and translates Spanish with facility and whose Spanish speech is plain, treated with marked courtesy the Filipino committee to Hongkong and thence the commissioner and his secretary from Hongkong to San Francisco, on the way to Washington and Paris.  General Greene, while according distinction to the representatives of the insurgents, stated to them that his attentions were personal and he could not warrant them official recognition at Washington or anything more than such politeness as gentlemen receive from each other.  The commissioner was Don Felipe Agoncillo, and his secretary, Sixto Lopez.

Saturday, September 24, the Salt Lake newspapers contained stories to the effect that the Germans had entered into an alliance offensive and defensive with the Aguinaldo government and would furnish equipments for an army of 150,000 men.  We were on the Union Pacific Railroad at the time, and I called the attention of Don Felipe Agoncillo to this remarkable intelligence and asked him what he thought of it.  He said emphatically that it was “Nothing,” “No true,” “Nothing at all,” and he laughed at the comic idea.  There was also in the Salt Lake newspapers a statement that the Aguinaldo ‘government’ had sent to President McKinley a letter strongly expressing good-will and gratitude.  There did not seem to be much news in this for Don Felipe, but it gave him much pleasure, and he, not perhaps diplomatically but enthusiastically, pronounced it good.

What Agoncillo Approved.

The dispatch marked with his approbation by the Philippine commissioner was the following from Washington, under date of September 23: 

“The President doubtless would be glad to hear any views these Filipinos might care to set forth, being fresh from the islands and thoroughly acquainted with the wishes of the insurgents.  But it would be plainly impolitic and inconsistent for the President, at this date and pending the conclusion of the peace conference at Paris, to allow it to be understood, by according a formal reception to the delegates, that he had thereby recognized the Philippine government as an independent nationality.  His attitude toward the Filipinos would be similar to that assumed by him toward the Cubans.  As the Filipinos have repeatedly, by public declaration, sought to convey the impression that the United States representatives in Manila have at some time during the progress of the war recognized Aguinaldo as an independent ally, and entered into formal co-operation with him, it may be stated that the government at Washington is unaware that any such thing has happened.  Admiral Dewey, who was in command of all the United States forces during the most critical period, expressly cabled the Secretary of the Navy that he had entered into no formal agreement with Aguinaldo.  If General Otis followed his instructions, and of that there can be no doubt, he also refrained from entering into any entangling agreements.  As for Consul-General