Evening star., 1899-04-29
General Anderson Explains the Move
ment Against the Filipinos.
EXPEDITION UP The PASIG
Intended to Cut the Enemy's
orces in Two.
WORKED OUT WITH SUCCESS

CHICAGO, April ga special to the
Record from San Francisco says
Major General of Volunteers Thomas NJ.
Anderson, who returned to the United
States on the steamer America Maru, in
an interview, says:
The order notifying to report to the
adjutant for assignment to duty in this
country was issued in January, at time
when it was generally believed in the
United States that there would be no fight
ing in the Philippines. The order was sent
by mail and it was some time in reaching
me. Meanwhile the fighting broke out, and
before l was actually called on to lay
down my command 1 had accomplished
practically all that was assigned to me in
the plan of campaign which was put in
operation Immediately following the attack
of the insurgents on our forces February 4.
Fighting Was Expected.
while there was a feeling in the United
States that there would lie no fighting, we
who were on the ground felt that there
would be. Our orders were to act on the
defensive. to conciliate the Filipinos, to as
sure them of the good intentions of the
United States and in every way possible Sc
cure their confidence and good Will. But
this was a difficult matter to do.
1T was hard, in the first place, to get
presentation Of our sentiments to them, -
harder still to convince them of good
faith. One result of this was that we had
to endure many trying things at their
hards, and another result was that ideas
of the necessity of independence, of driving
out the Americans as successors IN oppreS-
sion to the Spaniards gained ground, and
finally resulted in the outbreak of the In
surrection.
THE plan Of campaign was first to divide
the insurgent forces by advancing eaSterly
from Manila along the Pasig river, opening
up that stream and the Laguna de Bay to
the gunboats We had constructed. This
part of the work was assigned to the diVis-
ion l commanded. We forced our way up
the Pasig river capturing the three prin-
cipal villages between NJ 3nila and Laguna
de Bay, scattering the forces to the south
of it and cutting them off from commune
cation with the forces to the north and
from the capital of Malolos.
Few Rebels South of the Pasfg.
"One brigade marched down the Laguna
de Bay about fifteen miles. BY the time l
turned over my command to Gen. Lawton,
March % the region to the south of the
Pasig river. for twenty or thirty mtles from
Manila, was practically free from insurgent
forces. and we controlled the river and La
guna de Bay.
Then the second part of the plan was
taken up. This was to divide the forces
to the north by advancing along the line
of the railway running to Dagupan.
large part OF the men OF my division were
transferred to General Macarthur for this
purpose. and the advance to the north be-
gan. Most of this work, l see, was accom-
plished after l left Manila. The insurgents
were driven back from village to village
and from the strip of territory between Ma
Mia bay and this railroad, and out into the
Businesses of the swamps and mountains
The capture Of Maloos was not impor-
tant in itself, as we knew that driven from
there, Aguinaldo would simply establish
his headquarters and capital somewhere
else. 1t was simply a part of the larger
plan of the campaign
One object was to get complete control Of
this line Of railroad and all the territory
that 1t commands. This has been done and
the insurgents have been driven back from
Manila in all directions for as great a dis
lance as there are troops to command our
lines.
Insurgents Take to Swamps
During this fighting to the north bodies
of insurgents secreted themselves in the
swamp region and about Madiban ISL
and and were thus in our rear. The navy
attempted to shell them out of this position
but could not get close enough to them.
and troops had to be sent to dislodge them
What the next move will be | can hard
ly say. 1t will probably depend a good deal
on what the insurgents themselves do. The
health of the army is good. Deducting
those on the sick list, those required for
provost duty and those down at Iloilo and
at Negros Island, the effective fighting force
is somewhere In the neghbOrhood of TX ono