Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1899-12-06
Tells Lieut.. Gibbs About Happen
iugs in Familiar Places,
HOW PEACE Is PROPOSED.
Then an Attack Made soon After.
wards-Captcre Of a small 1un-
boat In the River

- 49, - A"'"f
How woald YOU like to be here and
have taken part In some Of the work We
have been doing Of late? No more
than | wish you had and had'been
with you. even though 1t has not
amounted to 30 very much. II IS sun
day night and there are $50 sacks Of
mail In town and the train off the
track. have been talking over the
work out here and by the different or
CARNATIONS | will tell you what the
Second division has been doing since
you LETT II.
When | went back to San Fernando
found myself shaken up In a sack and
dumped out In the same place with the
Third artillery. Ny old quarters were
made headquarters. and We had a very
delightful mess-Capt. Hobbs, Lieut.
England, LAURA and myself. Your old
Chinese cook kept us-irom longing for
the flesh pots Of America For about
the weeks we were in the midst Of
alarm. and for seven consecutive morn
ings we ate 3 o'clock breakfasts, But
while there was almost daily skirmish-
ing We never went into action. Though
three times we made midnight runs out
to our old corner on the Baoolor road
Then came the S7.inch rain fall that
drowned US all out. Insurgents and
Americans alike. Then the fat country
back Of our quarters from the road In
front to the railroad was one big lake
Whole companies went out to outpost
without any trousers. San Fernando
was wet wet as a drowned rat. The
river was up TO the road in front Of
Gen. MacArthur's quarters. From then
TIL August 9Th everything was quiet.
The volunteer regiments were all gone,
and Bells regiment was In as an extra
outfit All Of the 9TH and Sth II rained,
and at a. m. on the 9th the ball start
ed
You probably know how Bell took HIS
regiment without baggage mot even
tin cups TO rattle) by a detour through
the flooded rice fields between two in
surgent outposts IN single file and into
the town Of Bocoeor. We We're IN posi-
ton about 1000 yards TO the right Of
the BacOlor road on the angle Of the
outpost line. As soon as Bell opened
up on the ast0nished ones at Bac0ior
Capt Hobbs opened on the rebel works
and the armored car OF the works to
the right For about twenty minutes
there was the liveliest hind of work for
ltsN ma. la NaTt ..f hn
got but a scattering fire. The general
advance started the Iowa and Seven
tenth had a few casualties and Mexico
was cleared out without much trouble.
The plan was for Bell TO keep going and
the right OF the Seventeenth to swing
around ana make a big crescent and
advance that way. Well. they made
the crescent all right, but Il bowed the
wrong way, Early in the advance the
artillery under Hobbs got stuck In
Quicksand and had to pull the guns and
mules out uR3er a heavy fire, and be-
fore they got on firm ground the llne
had got past. and dlslodged the rebels.
| Four guns Of the First artillery, under
| Capt. Andrews, kept on up the railroad,
! which was entirely torn up beyond the
| insurgent line. From there a running
! fight was kept up TO Calulit about five
miles. where they made quite a stand.
| and knocked out dozen or more OF our
men. ! also had the ambulance corps
and | worked big gang Of Macabebes
| as litter bearers from Calulit TO the end
| OF the track, where had a car running.
to San Fernando as II was impossible
| for ambulanees 10 get over the road
| then.
In a day or two Gen. Macarthur
| moved his headquarters 60 Santa Rita,
| about four miles northwest of Bacalor,
/ where he took the Ninth infantry. two
| battalions Of the Twelfth, under Col
| Smith, took Angeles and has held 1t
since Everything pointed TO an early
move against Purac. eight miles north
| Of Santa Rita, Gen. Wheeler came out
and took command OF the brigade con-
sisting OF the Ninth and Thirty-sixth.
But everything settled back into the
old run till Sept 2Sth, when Porac was
! taken after q short but sharp skirmish.
! We had some six casualties only, and
! the next day the entire division head
quarters were moved to Angeles, and
we are here yet. The insurgents are
| lust In front OF US, as they were at San
| Fouly; the outposts are only about 100
yards apart at two or three points, and
they have quite few guns, which they
fire promlscuOusly, day OF night, and
we are getting very used 10 having shells
! flying about over our heads.
a week ago tomorrow morning they
| made very determined attack, Begin
| ming with an artillery fire for about half
an hour. followed az 1880 by an add
vance. fret at one point then another,
| Ill they were on three sides, aud till
7 4 "a .f,s~ NltHatu ~. ha1
two men killed and eight wounded and
one OF my ambulance mules was hit
| twice. Since then they have sent In
proposals supposedly Of peace, though
we know nothing Of the details
| san Fernando Is all changed; the hos
| pital moved and Il IL headquarters for
| the Third and Fourth cavalry. Gen.
| Young has ihem and Is making a flying
trip with them and the Twerty-fourth
! Infantry up around Aryat and San lei
dro which, n | am not very much mis-
| takon, will result In the First division
under Gen. Lawton taking the fighting
! away from Gen. Macarthur, rs II
| makes the present insurgent position
| untenahie. nd they will have 10 fan
| back etll father 20 BayOngbong or
Tarlac. which will leave the road open
| for them TO move against Tarlac alone,
or possibly let the two divisions CO.
operate. But as yet there Is absolutely
no sign Of our moving.
| Everything Is going along In the
| same routine way you have seen 70
| much Of so can tel you nothing Of u.
| Angeles Is In some respects q better
town than San Fernando. though II has
not 40 many large fine houses. OF
course you can read with a great deal
Of interest what goes on out here and
know Of the peace committees that
come In and go out again, then have an
attack all along from Iona 10 cal0o-
can just a day OF two after. Gen. Law.
ton and Schwan win fresh laurels for
| themselves by reepturlng the country
around linus and dispensing and
scattering" the rebels. This morning,
oct 23rd. We lust get news Of the cap.
! turc Of q gunboat name unknown) on
the Rio Graude between Calumpit and
CoDdaha. Got stuck In mud and ma