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Touching History |
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 By Jose G. Caedo
On a rainy cinco de Mayo afternoon, this writer had the opportunity to examine a
fine collection of artifacts from the Philippine American War. The tour was
arranged by Mr. Rudy Asercion, Public Relations Director of the San Francisco
war Memorial commission.
The artifacts were part of the personal collection of U. S President Theodore
Roosevelt, presently housed at the War Memorial Building Trophy Room. It
includes the personal memorabilia of famous protagonists of that war such as
then Commodore George Dewey, victor of the Battle of Manila Bay on May 1, 1898;
and then col. Frederick Funston, who captured Philippine President Gen. Emilio
Aguinaldo at Palanan, Isabela in a daring commando-like raid. Parenthetically,
Funston later became Commanding General of the U.S. army station at the
Presidio, and led the relief efforts during the Great Earthquake of San
Francisco in 1906.
The items on exhibit were mostly militaria and ephemera dating from that
conflict, 1899 through 1901(?).Of particular note were firearms and bladed
weapons used by the opposing forces then engaged in the Philippines.
We examined two 1889 Trapdoor Springfield rifles, which were in very good
condition. This firearm was the standard shoulder arm in use by the vast
majority of American troops during the Spanish American War, and during the
ensuing Philippine conflict. The black powder, single shot, breech loading rifle
fired a cartridge using the .45 caliber bullet, propelled by 70 grains of black
powder. Hence, the designation, ".45-70". It was a heavy rifle, slow to load
through the trapdoor-like breech lock, with heavy ammunition, and had the
disadvantage to the user of spewing a cloud of gray white smoke after firing,
thus exposing one’s position to the enemy. There were two fine examples on
display which we handled. Some speculate that one of the rifles was the actual
rifle fired by Pvt. William Grayson of the Minnesota volunteers on San Juan del
Monte bridge the night of February 4, 1899. That was the shot that started the
Philippine American War.
Another rifle we examined was the 1896 Krag-Jorgensen. This was the first
bolt-action, box magazine fed rifle adopted by the U.S. Army from Norway.. It
fired a .30 caliber bullet propelled by 40 grains of powder, hence the
designation ".30-40". At the outbreak of the Spanish American War, there were
only a few thousand of these rifles issued to regular units, with a total of
30,000 units purchased by the US Army. The rifle mechanism was rather frail,
which was at a disadvantage to the robust German designed Mauser, which fired
the 7 x 57 MM powder cartridge . At the outbreak of the war, American ammunition
manufacturers had yet to commercially produce smokeless powder. The Krag was the
first American firearm to use a smokeless powder cartridge. Note that it was
only in 1903 that the famous ".30-06" cartridge was adopted for the equally
famous and robust Springfield 1903 rifle. This was the firearm universally used
by the American Army from 1903 until the 1937 adoption of the Cal. 30 M1 Garand,
which also used the same round. Ironically, the U.S. Army paid Mauser $500,000
for rights to use the Mauser-design bolt action/ magazine system for the 1903
Springfield.
The Krag-Jorgensen, however was a vast improvement over the 1889 Trapdoor
Springfield in that it used a five round box magazine feed system. The user
could use either this system, or load and fire the action as a single shot unit.
The Krag’s lighter, faster, flat trajectory .30-40 round also allowed the
soldiers to carry 100 rounds, as opposed to the heavier, slower, parabolic
trajectory .45-70, which was carried in basic loads of 60 rounds per man. A
faster velocity meant a flatter trajectory, thus making the Krag easier to aim
and fire with more accuracy.
Curiously, there was a badly-corroded Cal. 45 Automatic Colt Pistol on display
with the three rifles. It was missing the hammer, and safety lever, and the
slide could not be worked. The original Army contract holster made by the Boyd
company was displayed with it, and in very good condition. This firearm was
developed specifically because the U.S. Army discovered that the standard .38
Special revolver cartridge in use in the Colt and smith & Wesson revolvers at
the time were inadequate in stopping power against the Filipinos, particularly
the Muslim fighters. Numerous field reports of Muslim warriors continuing to
charge despite taking several hits from a .38 made the Army reconsider using a
heavier bullet, like the old .45 Long colt which the .38 Special superceded. So,
John Moses browning’s designs of both the cartridge, and the pistol which fired
it, were adopted for official use in 1911 to replace the .38 Special revolvers.
The M1911 carried a seven shot box magazine, and fired a bullet weighing 230
grains at 820 feet per secondmuzzle velocity. Because there is still a question
on the actual cessation of hostilities in that conflict, the corroded Colt
pistol was included in the firearms display.
Three bladed weapons were quite interesting. The first was a Filipino dagger of
some 14 inches. It has a solid brass hilt, pommel, and guard, much in the
European style. The handle was nicely checkered. Its tempered blade, however,
was of Malay design, like the famous " Kris" that is found in Southern
Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, to this day. The "Kris" blade and European
guard and handle was a curious mix, and makes the weapon highly unusual. The
weapon reportedly made on Luzon, was stamped with "1899" and various animal
figures, and was made as a first year Independence commemorative item Of the
Katipunan. Mr. Larry Ayundelo graciously offered it for display for the exhibit.
There was also a sword made for Katipunan officers, manufactured at the town of
Kabankalan, on the island of Negros, in the Vizayas. About 24 inches long, it
appeared to be a mass produced item, with a heavy untempered steel blade, and
plain European style D-guard, and Philippine hardwood grips. The only
distinctive feature is the eight-ray Sun badge on its grip, similar to the
Philippine Flag’s sun.
The third blade examined was the sword worn by U. S. Army Captain Reinhold
Richter, the first American officer killed during the Philippine American War. A
light straight bladed court-sword with slim 26-inch tempered blade, and a
conservatively decorated brass hilt, guard, and pommel This was what Capt.
Richter was carrying when killed in action.
The piece d’resistance of the exhibit was a blood staned and worn satin Filipino
battle flag. Similar in appearance to the modern-day Philippine flag, its
distinctive features were a hand-painted sun with a mythical face, and eight
rays. The three hand painted stars at the corners of the triangular white field
have six points. The upper blue field was emblazoned with flowers. Much interest
and controversy was sparked by the discovery of this flag last year,and has
drawn the attention of numerous historians and curators. It was, according to
research, acquired by Colonel Funston, who presented it to Commodore Dewey. It
then formed part of the President Roosevelt collection, and was exhibited at the
St.Louis World’s Fair in 1904. Some scholars asserted that it was the actual
flag flown by Emilio Aguinaldo at the June 12, 1898 Declaration of Independence,
the Malolos convention, or was the same flag taken by Col. Frederick Funston
when he and his men captured Aguinaldo at Palanan, Isabela on March 23, 1901.
The controversy over the flag’s provenance continues. Whatever the scholarship
may finally uncover, this flag is definitely one used during the period, and is
therefore a unique part of Philippine history to be preserved for future
generations.
Other interesting items on display were two "Cedulas", or Residence Certificates
issued by the Spanish colonial government dated and stamped 1896. These are
similar to the documents which Andres Bonifacio and his followers tore up at the
"Cry of Balintawak", symbolizing their rejection of the Spanish overlords that
same year.
Among the other items were the medal struck for presentation by President
Roosevelt to then Admiral George Dewey to commemorate his victory at Manila Bay.
Additionally, his two-star epaulette was also there. A number of other medals
such as Spanish-American Campaign ribbons, and a Philippine Insurrection
Campaign medal with ribbon minted in Philadelphia were examined. General John
Pershing, conqueror of Mindanao, then American Expeditionary Force Commander in
France during WW I, and later the only Six-star General of the American Army,
has his saber and cap on display as well.
The San Francisco War memorial Trophy room is truly a treasure trove of
memorabilia dating back to the Spanish American War. Serious collectors,
researchers, students, militaria aficionados, or plain old history buffs will
enjoy a visit to the facility don’t miss the Philippine American War exhibit.
*********************
Posted in Gutom.org with permission from Jose Caedo.
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Posted on Friday, May 20 @ 12:07:30 CDT by don |
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