The American Nation A History of the United States, Combined Volume (14th Edition)

601

paragraph attributed Funston’s courage to
the fact that he was too small to hit.
But now, if he captured Aguinaldo,
Funston, the little man, would become a
great one.
On March 23, 1901, Funston’s
Macabebes and their five American “prison-
ers” met up with a contingent of Aguinaldo’s
army. Deceived, Aguinaldo’s troops escorted
Funston’s band into the town of Palanan.
Aguinaldo watched from a window above.
When shots rang out, thinking the troops
were firing a salute, he shouted,“Stop that
foolishness. Don’t waste ammunition!”
Then Funston burst into Aguinaldo’s
compound: “I am General Funston. You are a
prisoner of war of the Army of the United
States of America”
Dazed, Aguinaldo replied, “Is this not
some joke?” Funston seized Aguinaldo,
dragged him through the jungle to the coast,
where the USS Vicksburgwas waiting. It took
them to American headquarters in Manila.
After being subjected to intense pressure by American
officials, Aguinaldo renounced the Filipino revolution, swore allegiance to the United States, and called on his followers to
do likewise. The Philippine-American conflict was virtually over.
Frederick Funston had almost single-handedly won the war.
For a time, Funston was a sensation. He was promoted to
brigadier general. Newspaper editors and politicians champi-
oned him for governor of Kansas or for vice president on a
ticket headed by Theodore Roosevelt in 1904. But within a few
years Funston all but vanished. Anti-imperialists pointed out
that Funston’s men had surrendered and then fired their
weapons, and that the Macabebes had been wearing enemy
uniforms; both actions violated international law. Worse, several
reporters and some of his soldiers claimed that Funston had
ordered the execution of Filipino prisoners. He was ordered to
an inconsequential command in San Francisco.
One hundred years after Funston’s capture of Aguinaldo,
U.S. troops would again be tracking a rebel fugitive: Osama bin
Laden, mastermind of the September 11, 2001, attacks on the
World Trade Center and Pentagon. That virtually no one recalled
Funston’s single-handed pursuit and capture of Aguinaldo was
one measure of how completely he had slipped from view.
But Funston’s name resurfaced in 2010, after major
earthquakes had triggered widespread looting in Haiti and
Chile. The New York Timesobserved that when the 1906
earthquake destroyed much of San Francisco, General
Frederick Funston had immediately marched his troops into
the city and taken charge; sometimes, the Timesnoted, lead-
ers must act decisively.

Philippine

Sea

Lingayen

Gulf

Laguna

de Bay

Palanan

Bay

Pasig River

Baler

TarlacSan José

Malolos

LUZON

Caloocan

Bayambang

Dagupan

Rosario

San Quintin

San Fernando

Candon Banque

Oscaris

Lingayen

Bontoc

Lubwagan

Enrile

Tierra

Virgen

Palanan

MANILA

Batangas

U.S.S. Vicksburg

Aguinaldodeparts, March 14, 1901

November 13,

1899

Aguinaldo captured,

March 23, 1901

oC

dr

ill

er

a

Ce

nt

ra

l

Sie

rra

Ma

dre

Ra

ng

eG

ulf

Aguinaldo's trek

Funston's march

The Defeat of the Filipinos and Capture of Aguinaldo, 1899–1901
Aguinaldo’s flight, and Funston’s pursuit and capture.

Cartoon of Uncle Sam drowning in pursuit of Aguinaldo.

Question for Discussion

■To catch Aguinaldo, Funston employed tactics of doubt-

ful legality. A century later Americans have been accused

of using torture and other unsavory methods to win “the

war on terror.” Are such techniques morally or legally

wrong? Why or why not?