Remembering that Admiral Dewey was not being interrogated as to the
statements of the "Reseña Veridica," it will be seen that he has,
nevertheless, covered them fully.

It was my good fortune to be long and intimately associated with
Admiral Dewey while serving on the first Philippine commission. He
always grew indignant when the subject of any promises relative to
independence said to have been made by him was so much as mentioned,
and gave to the commission in writing the following:--

"The statement of Emilio Aguinaldo, under date of Sept. 23, published
in the _Springfield Republican_, so far as it relates to reported
conversations with me, or actions of mine, is a tissue of falsehood. I
never, directly or indirectly, promised the Filipinos independence. I
never received Aguinaldo with military honors, or recognized or
saluted the so-called Filipino flag. I never considered him as an
ally, although I did make use of him and the natives to assist me in
my operations against the Spaniards." [48]

As Dewey's allegations flatly contradict those of Aguinaldo, we
must choose between the two. While I have no doubt as to where
the choice will fall, I will now submit some additional matter of
interest. Let us first consider the history of the "Reseña Verídica"
in which Aguinaldo makes the charges above quoted. On September 12,
1899, Buencamino wrote of it to Apacible in Hongkong, saying:--

"This work is entitled 'Reseña Verídica de la Revolución Filipina' in
which Don Emilio relates in detail his acts with Admiral Dewey. It has
been distributed to the Consuls and you are ordered to reprint it there
translated into English and send some copies to the United States,