The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-09-15
They Were Always in the Thick.
est of the Fighting.
MANILA Is UNHEALTHY
More Than One Hundred Thousand Men
Needed to Conquer the Filip!nos.
Natives Hate the Americans
and Are Treacherous.


has written an interesting letter to AL
phonse Gagne, who resides on East
Park avenue in this city. The letter
follows:
Forgive me for not having written
nooner. | have been very sick since
we arrived here at Baliuag. 1t is the
same old song. l had the fever, ana
this climate does not agree with me.
So far it has not been so bad as Cuba,
I but / think before the rainy season
is over it is going to be worse than
Cuba ever was. 1t is not raining to-
day. but it has been raining for five
Z days continuously.
( 1.-THE water is eight and ten inches
deep in the fields here in town. We
I are obliged to so barefooted, shoes be-
\ ing Of no account here when it is rain
4 ing We have a river here which we
are obliged to cross to get to Malolos
\ for our rations.
sometimes we can cross it and some
/. times we can't, because the current IS
4 so strong that it sweeps everything in
y its way. So at times we. get fresh
beef and bread and other times we
Z don't In these times we are obliged 10
4 DEPEND on bacon and bareback, but l
generally look ahead, Eggs are cheap
4 here; so are bananas, pineapples ana
Y chicken. In fact, all fruits are very
7 cheap here in this town.
I THE Filipin0s are very familiar with
7 the soldiers here, but still l know there
# is hatred in their hearts for the Ameri-
\ cans They have made more money
! from the soldiers since we have been
. in this town than they have made in
the past 25 years. There are good
x many 'gogoos in this town, 'gogoo' be-
, ing a nickname which we have Tor the
y Filipino soldiers. This is the town that
Aguinaldo was born in, and he does
+ not want the town burned
= AT the same time, we are expecting
Z a visit from the 'gogoos' very soon.
4 Their object is TO get us out in the
/. rain, as they think the Americans are
/ made of sugar. They think we are gu
\ ing to melt in the rainy season. |
\ think myself. that there is going to be
llots of sickness if we are obliged to take
Z the field in the rainy season. Yet we
\ are going to give them d hot reception
Z if they attack this town.
They have to have at least six men
f to our one. Still, there are only 10
Companies with my regiment, one troop
of cavalry mounted, and two pieces OF
light artillery and one rapid-firing gum.
The 'gogoos' may come here in large
force. but we will stand them off for
awhile, as we have gOOd lOt OF nSnl-
ling men in this regiment.
Il will give you an account of the
voyage from Fort Smelling, Mimi, to
tManila l enlisted in Boston on Sep
TENDER i last, and went to Fort Shell
ing. There life was different than
here. l was city messenger there
and had a jolly time, but here life Is
wild and romantic. The regiment left
Fort Smelling January 80. 1t was
morning l will never forget, as l froze
both my ears.
Arriving at Brooklyn, we boarded
the transport Sherman. February :
we left Gravesend bay. While at sea
we encountered heavy storm, some OF
the men having narrow escapes from
being washed overheard. Precautions
were taken against accidents to our
rations We left Gibraltar February l.,
and the trip on the Mediterranean was
more enjoyable than across the At
lantic.
ION Washngton's birthday a SOL
der named Kenney, of Company l.,
18th United States infantry, was
drowned by falling overheard. We
were then at Port Said. We arrived at
Manila March %, and landed the next
day. ] met some of my old friends from
Montana there, and they were all in
perfect health. By the way, there are
lots of Montana men in my regiment
and they all have the reputation of be-
ing great soldiers. We left the oath for
the firing line and we We're on the
road until May "a. The hardest bat
tie ! was in was on our way from San
Miguel to Balinag. About a mile out
side of San Miguel the enemy were at
different points awaiting our approach.
They had a large force, and we had
TO fight our way into this town. My
company that day guarded the wagon
train, and the rest was in the advance
time, the wagon train being obliged to
stop in the road to let them pass.
THE commanding officer gave my
captain orders to hold the wagon train
about one mile behind his men, and
to let the commands proceed ahead
while we waited. Seven privates be-
sides myself came very near being cap
tured. but we stodd off 20 'gogoos' un-
til reinforcements arrived. : My COM
pany had to fight until dark. and |
was thinking at one time that our am
munton would be exhausted before re-
endorsements would arrive.
I'VE gave the 'gogOOs' more than
they wanted. because they stopped fir
ing. We lost four men, with Il wound
ed We captured one captain and >.
natives. The struggle. l think. is just
beginning here. If the United states
does not send more troops / think that
this is going to be a long insurrection
with the amount of troops which have
been sent here. We need at least 100
600 men. A lot of men say that the
insurgents have been treated 100 kindly
and they say that makes them stub.
born"
The following letter was given tc
Belanger by member of Company NJ
with the request that it be published in
the Standard:
ION February 10 we charged on Cal,
ocean, and commenced to advance al
about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, and
we have been on tho firing line ever
since. ] don't think there is any use
of me giving you any details on Oul
fighting qualities. as the papers have
stated that the Montana boys did theil
duty every time they were called on.
Company NJ has cut quite a figure
I'm the present campaign. They were or
outpost when every attack was made
from the time the present trouble
started. We had great slaughter Ot
FilipinoS Yesterday morning. They