Adams County news. [volume] (Ritzville, Wash.) 1898-1906, 1899-11-01
OUR SITUATION IN MANILA
AFTER SEVEN MONTHS WAR
The Present Campaign-The Situa-
ton of Our FOrces-Ra Cap
tured-The InsurrectlOn Grows
Outside LuxOu IsIand-RObbers
Observation-Disclosures Needed.

Chicago, Oct. 30.-Here are some fig
ures made seven months and half after
our campaign against the Filipinos be-
gan:
Say it is 81 miles Angeles, we hold
possession of the railroad up to that point.
We can fairly claim to possess the land
q half mile on each side of the track.
We have possession of the wagon road
and, let us say, half mile OH each side
from San Fernando through Bacolor to
Santa Ana, eight miles, with four to
Guaga. We have a road from Malolos to
Balinag, IL miles northeast. We can
claim IL square miles here, we have Ma.
Mia, out as far as the water works, five
miles away. That gives us, say 25 miles
around the city.
Then we have the road and half mile
each side down Is miles to linus. Then
we have Calamba and some other points
on the lake that General Lawton captured
before he was ordered back. These tow ms
are not approached by road, but by boat
across the Laguna de Bay, and we only
COhtlol bhC ldilo ohs OuhA
ming up our total possessions, we find we
have III square miles.
The island of Luzon contains $4,000
square miles.
Outside of Luzon the instruction seems
to be growing.
The insurgents hold ports in Mindanao
the next largest island to Luzon in the
Philippines, and said to be intellectually
rich in gold and silver mines, iron and
copper ores, coal and other minerals, be-
sides wonderful forests OF hard woods.
No Americans have dared venture there
as yet, as General Otis has sent no troops
to the island. Englishmen and Germans
are prowling about the island, getting
all the concessions they can. 1t is SAID
several prospecting parties are at work.
General Otis reports conflicts between
"the robber bands and American sol
diers in Negros and Cebu. The Nine
tenth, the Eighteenth, the Sixth and one
battalion of the Twenty-third infantry are
now in these islands fighting the rob
Der bands" who dig trenches and occupy
towns and make night attacks after the
fashion of the insurgents in Luzon.
A late report from Cebu is that 10000
robbers were menacing our forces and a
collision was imminent.
The next campaign is going to be differ
ent from the last. We will get out of the
fiat, open country, into the mountainous,
thickly wooded country. If we do not end
the war here, We will have to carry ii
into the high, rocky mountains of Luzon.
1t will be no violation of state secret
to say that the first object of the next
campaign will be to take the rest of the
railroad from the hands of the insur-
gents. The insurgents ought to be firmly
convinced by this time that we want the
Manila and Dagupan road, as we have
fought along that line seven months.
They know we want it and they also
know we are going to get it, for they are
already tearing up the track, burning
the ties and burning the rails north OF
Angeles.
The country east of the railroad, north
of Angeles, is more like it is south of Ma
Mia, except high and broken. West Of
the railroad are high mountains that will
offer the insurgents better opportunity Of
retreat and escape than they had in the
low country.
With the taking of the railroad, we will
have cut off the provinces of Zambales,
Paggasinan, Tarlac, Pampanga and Ba-
taan from the main part of the island and
can lay claim to good deal more country
than the precise amount of real estate on
which our army is now holding.
Another great need of the army is light
draught steamboats, for use in the many
lakes and rivers in Luzon. There is hard
ly place in the world where an army
could use river steamers to greater advan-
tage.
With almost $4,000 miles of territory
from which to draw supplies, and with
boats coming in without any opposition
from Hong Kong, Japan, and from Cen.
trail and South America, and Australia.
the insurgents are probably doing well as
far as supplies are concerned.