The San Francisco call., 1898-09-24

that led Company or the gallant CdlI- fornians to get ahead of Company B. The boys followed Colonel Smith and Major Slime down the street, fighting every inch of the way, until the barri- cade had been passed. The balance of the Californians and the regulars were coming fast but not quite rapidly enough The lads of 'B" were brave. The lads of "I'' were not to be denied. With not less han 2500 Spaniards con- cealed in the houses of Malate and Hermita they fought their way down through those suburbs and were under the guns of the walled city, at the mercy of merciless foes, as it seemed, before they saw the white flag waving from the southwest corner of the city walls, know the peril of that cross ing of the wide open space forming the breathing ground of this capital for. crossing with >.4e boys, 1 myself heard the sharp singing of Mauser bullets, fired from behind me, about my ears. It is a sound that once heard I do not believe will be ever forgotten. A kind of small shriQ screaming as of a wasp tangled in a snare. General Greene and his staff rode across the Luneta after the coming of the Californians and were also under the fire of the Spaniards concealed in the houses be- hind them. Perhaps their passions were too thoroughly aroused to permit them " SCC illC SlSIl Ol LII rOlQ U1d- nila. Perhaps it was Spanish treachery to hoist the white flag to lure the foe to death. At all events, with armed men in thousands behind them and the walls of the old city bristling with other thousands of rifiemen, while be- yond the first went an advanced line of infantry crouched back of temporary earthworks, certainly the lives of that little band of Americans who had fought their way through all obstacles the spots of blood staining the stones of the Calle Real, showing how deadly had been their fire, nor of their com manding general were worth a mo- mentS purchase.
 General Greene and his staff rode out across the Luneta to where the white flag waved, at the outermost corner of the walled city, and after brief par ley with the official at the gate near the seaside was directed to the gate farther west, before which the Cali fornians, now joined by Companies D and Fl, the balance of the battalion, and by some of the regulars, had halted
 IL was at this moment 2000 Spanish troops, driven into Hermita from Santa Ana way by the advancing line of Gen. eral McArthur. were fired upon by some insurgent devils who had managed | somehow to sneak in between McAr- l
 
 moment as though the signal for massacre had come The Spaniards | on the walls prepared to fire, and the | Americans, caught between the lines | of fire, threw themselves down, seek ing what cover thev could. Colonel | Smith, Major Slime, the Spanish officers, | exerted themselves to stay the fatal l struggle. Two Americans had already | been shot when the insurgents were | stopped and the crisis had passed. Gen. | eral Greene came up, the balance of | the left wing moved through Malate | and Hermita still galled by the sharp shooters, and the two sides halted for | a breathing space. The First Battal- l ion of the Californians had come up and, still leading his men of the Sec ond Battalion, Colonel Smith rode | down the long road, sweeping in a curve about the walled city, which forms part of the pleasure drive of | Manila, and took possession of the sus- pension bridge leading into the south 1 western suburbs, and of the stone | bridge known as the Puente ESpano, | which leads from the walled town into | the Escolta, the main business street | and Binonda, the shipping district The | appearance of the American troops 1 here seemed to set the people of the l city wild. They did not know the | town had fallen, and they would not | believe at first that these brawny, brown-clad. bearded men, sinewy as lions and 1.-the as partners, were the troops of the nation they had been taught to despise. Riding across the Puente Espano and down into the Els colta, was the first American to en- ter the business heart of Manila, and | though the people who damned the | narrow street fell back in front of me | as l rode, l could see from the scowl- ing faces that the position was not safe one, even with the white flag fly | ing. From our position on the bridge, l indeed, the white flag was not visible. | Only the yellow standard of Spain fioated from the flag staff in the cita- del. as it had fioated every day for hundred years.
 That flag was soon to come down. never, let 1t be hoped, to .-y there | again. General Merritt, from the Za fro, had seen the white flag and sent | Adjutant General Whittier, accom- | panied by Lieutenant Brundy of the flagship, ashore to arrange the terms | of the equalization. Close behind the | launch which brought the officials came | the Call-Herald launch with represen- tatives of those newspapers on board the first newspaper men to land in the l walled city There was some little | trouble experienced in finding Governor | General Jaudenes Alvarez, although l he was finally discovered concealed in | the sacristy of church where a num- | Der of women and children had taken | refuge and then he was greatly alarmed | at learning that fighting was still in | progress to the southwest of the city. | The Spaniards who held the trenches | there had not heard of the white flag, | and from their distant station could | not see 1t. They had fought, therefore, | as well as they knew how and were | still fighting. Perhaps they were doing their duty as they thought better than | some persons in Manila of higher au- thority. The Governor General was at | last prevailed upon to treat, and the | terms of equalization as finally agreed | upon were in substance as follows:
 The surrender of the Philippine Is- | lands. Officers to be allowed to retain | their swords and personal effects, but | not their horses.
 During their stay in Manila the off, | cers to be considered on parole, but | strictly speaking they are not paroled | owing to some peculiarity of the Span | 1sh military regulations.
 The troops to be prisoners of war, | surrendering their arms at depot ap- pointed by General Merritt.
 All necessary supplies to be provided