Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-02-24
Early Next Month He Will Have
More Troops.
SITUATION IS SERIOUS ONE
Fire Could Do Great Damage In Any
Part OF Manila--Our Outpost
Line is Too Thin;

Washington, Feb. 23.-The war depart
ment has arranged to dispatch further
reinforcements to Gen. Otis. The regi-
ments selected are the Ninth infantry,
now at New York. and the Sixth infantry,
now at San Antonio, Texas. 1t is expected
tina the transports taking them will be
able to leave San Francisco by March IL.
BY tina time Gen. Otis will have re-
ceived all the achievements now af1oat
and bound for Manila, save those on the
Sheridan, which sailed from New York
last Sunday. This will give him 5000
more troops, made up of the flower OF the
United States army, regulars tried IN In
dian service, the most of them Injured to
the Cuban climate in it's worst aspects,
having participated in the campaigns
there during the last wet season.
Every report that comes to the war de-
partment goes to convince the officials
that an offensive campaign must be i'm
mediately assumed in the Philippines.
This is 10 longer a matter of choice, but
of necessity, against which the officials
say no sentimental consideration can
stand. In their opinions the lives and
health of the American troops now IN the
nelghDO1lOOu OIL MAMMA uepeuu upOH luc
imitation of such a campaign.
Gen. Otis reports of the fire IN Ma
Mia yesterday and last night, while
agreeing closely with the press reports,
make mention of a rather formidable
demonstration by the insurgents near
Caloocan, the scene of some of the
heaviest fighting succeeding the first
engagement with the insurgents on the
18th. This is taken as an indication
that tho ,plplc ha va NOT vet been thor
oushly impressed with the strength OF
the American AIMS. A disquieting fea-
ture noted in the press reports is the
presence of small bodies Of armed in
surgents within the American out
posts, possibly an evidence thai our
lines are too far extended and too thin
around Manila. 1t is realized that 1t
will he necessary to sweep the country
clear of ain hostile elements. Thu task
will he a difficult one because of the
resemblance of the Filipinos to one an
other, which would make it hard to
distinguish between a non-combatant
and an out and out rebel.
A most serious problem confrontS Gen
Otis in the protection Of Manila and
suburban towns from fire, not only
from the t~reacherous character of the
Philippine rebels, but also because
the outside houses are of the t1lmsles,
bamboo, hung with mating screens
Even the f1OOrS are maze Oh DdIuDOl
strips, separated so as to allow the free
circulation of air. 1t is within thi
power of almost any person to set fir
to the houses from without or within
in a few seconds, and as they are close
ly built the ravages of a single fire II
a quarter so closely constructed Nigh
easily reach the half million dollal
point mentioned by Gen. Otis. The for
eign quarter is of better construction
but still includes many of these ligh
bamboo houses, which the older resi-
dents seem to find cooler than house:
of more solid constructions.
The walled town which the insur
gents threaten to burn tonight, is sai'
to be of substantial construction an
probably is more easily defended
against such an attempt than 9th
err section of the town. The official
here say that if the rebels continu
this sort of tactics in Manila, disre
garding the rules of war and jeopardiz
ing the lives of women and chlldre'
and foreigners who are not involved i
the war, Gen. Otis will be under tn
necessity of making a house to hous
inspection and summarily disposing o
all suspicious characters.