The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-10-09
Returned Soldiers Say
He Is Incompetent
to Rule.
SOME ANGLUM RECRUITS BACK.
All Say Private Rochelle is
Innocent of the Grave
Charge.


diers who returned Saturday
from the Philippines were seen
by The Spy man and they all
were willing TO talk of their life in the
Philippines.
These men have had varied expert
ence that would fill large volume.
They all left this city early in May Of
last year, being mustered into the SER
vice by Capt, then Lieut., Daniel F..
Anglum, at the recruiting Office in the
Walker building. In that short space
of time, not quite year and half,
they have Journeyed half way round
the world and have taken an honorable
part in the fighting of two distinct
wars.
Not one man in the party said that
he would ever again go to that country
to fight the Filipinos
they were also quite outspoken in
criticizing Maj. Gen. Otis, whom they
characterize as an old woman, and ut
terly incompetent to manage the affairs
OF great campaign.
In talking with The Spy reporter.
Corp. Philip ]. Soully said that he had
all the service that he desired at least
ed to go to that country some time and
endeavor to locate some of the gold
with which the country abounds. As
for going there as private soldier
bound to obey orders, he had enough
of that When asked by The Spy man
If he liked Gen. Otis, he
said: He is held in but slight esteem
by the rank and file of the soldiers in
the Philippines. When we were doing
guard duty about his palace at Manila
ne would not stir out from the grounds
for days at time, and spent the best
part of his time in playing billiards.
He is handicapped by having a small
force of men there, but he is thoroughly
incompetent of handling even that body
Of men. There are villages that he has
taken and sacked three times in a
week, and every time he has taken
them it was at loss of life. He could
just as we'll take village and then
garrison it, instead of taking it and re-
taking it, with an enormous loss of
life. The reports say that he has the
situation we'll in hand. If he has, no
one knows it but himself. He is truly
styled an old woman, for his methods
are not good enough to even compete
with those tactics practiced by the I'M
tutored savages whom he says that he
IS chasing about the country. He is
chasing them all right, but that is
through no fault of his, but because of
the soldiers he has under him. What
they gain by their bravery, he loses
for them by his lack of ability, and
their work is to be done all over again.
There is no question about the abili-
ty Of the American soldiers to whip the
Filipinos and If either Lawton or Brig.
Gen. Funston was at the head of the
army there the war would be over now.
Put anyone at the head of the army
who has won the confidence Of the
| rank and file, as have Funston, Bell,
Lawton, Wheeler, or any of those men
who are not afraid of getting their
! precious skin punctured with Mauser
bullets, and you can be sure that the
| Filipinos will come to terms
| American soldiers are not fighting the
Filipinos as they should, and if Otis
had any sand at all, the country would
be now subdued, as the majority of the
| natives are not interested in the war,
but are forced into it by the native
leaders. Why out In the country
where the American troops have as vet
not been enabled to get, Aguinaldo has
ordered that the pursuit of farming be
taken up again by the natives.
! Corp. Scully was the firm friend of
| Private William j. Rochelle, who is
undergoing a sentence of ten years for
the alleged killing Of Chinaman In
regard to the killing of the Chinaman,
he said that it has not been to this
day proven that Rochelle was guilty
of the crime with which he has been
charged, but some of the officers of the
regiment who were not over and above
noted for their bravery were RESPONSE
BILE for his receiving such sentence.
1T was March I'd Of this year that
Rochelle who had been appointed as
sistant cook, was given four hours
leave of absence. He went into the city
of Manila, and returned about two
o'clock in the afternoon. He was then
perfectly sober, but he went out later
and returned at O'clock The first
intimation we had Of any trouble was
when he was placed under arrest and
taken into Company G street
Here two Cinnamon went along the
lines of men drawn UP before them, and
they stopped before Rochelle and said
something that the Spanish interpreter
translated as being to the effect that
Rochelle was the man who committed
the deed. We learned later that Ro-
Ghetto went into a dope house in the
city of Manila, and there got into a
row with Chinaman. The latter. it
is said, struck Rochelle with a chisel
on the head and gave wounds that
he still bears. Rochelle, in self-de-
Tense, grasped the chisel and struck the
Chinaman over the head with it, killing
him. On the Sd of May, Rochette was
tried by a general court martial and
adjudged guilty. He was later SEN
fenced to serve ten years under guard
at the island of Iloilo Just before Soul
ly left the Philippines, he endeavored
to talk with Rochelle, but he would
not be allowed to enter the prison. The
chaplain of the Twenty third, G.. w.
Wood, of Oakland, Cal, went to the
prison and found Rochelle in fine spir-
its and health. His former company
commander, First Lieut.. SchIey, son Of
Admiral Schley, left for this country
some time before the Worcester boys
got started and he told Scully that he
firmly believed in Rochette's inno-
cence.