Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1899-03-23

tney nave tearueu lTom tue hopaui"iuS,
who waste q tremendous amount OF
ammunition in volleys at long range
and run when the enemy presses
them. The chief credit for our vic
tories must go to General Elwell s.
Otis, whose disposition of troops at
every point where they were likely to
come in contact with the enemy has
shown him to possess military talents
of high order. Besides feeling and
engaging the enemy in the environs
of Manila, he has had to police dis
affected city; in other words, to deal
with an internal as we'll as an external
foe. Vigilance has insured success.
There never has been time, either
Ey night or day, when General Otis
has not been master of the situation.
May /, 1898, August 13, 1898, Feb
ruary 5, 1S99-these are the dates OF
the three battles of Manila. The first
victory was unattended with any loss
to our side; the second cost about
fiftv men, killed or wounded; in the
third the list of our casualties was
five times as great as in the second.
The losses suffered by Spaniards and
natives on these three occasions land
the Filipinos must strictly be regard
ed as subjects of Spain until Spain
has ratified the treaty of peace) will
never be quite accurately stated; they
were probably about eleven OF twelve
times as severe as ours.
Firing began at quarter before
nine O'Clock on Saturday evening,
February 4. Two native soldiers re-
fused to obey the order of sentry
who challenged them, as they ad-
vanced toward the outpost of the First
Nebraska Regiment, stationed be-
tween Manila and Santa Mesa. The
necessity of maintaining the integrity
of our lines, especially at night, has
been impressed upon all by the con-
duct of certain Filipinos who had
slipped through week earlier and
attempted to assassinate American
soldiers. The Nebraska sentry again
called upon the two natives to halt
and, as they paid no attention to his
order, levelled his rife and fred upor
them. The sequel shows that they
had been sent for precisely this pur
pose, to draw the sentry's fire, a:
part of preconcerted plan to place
the responsibility for beginning the
action upon our troops, and to make
America appear the aggressor.
Twenty thousand Filipinos in theil
trenches, block houses. and little vii
lagos dotting the plain evidently
thought themselves ready to drive thu
American lines in upon the city
They possessed several quick firing
and Krupp feld-guns; many of then
were armed with Mausers of the lates
pattern, and number of Spanish sol
diers had joined their ranks.
About thirteen thousand of oul
troops were holding the positions
formerly occupied by the Spaniards
midway between Manila and the band
of Filipinos north, east and south o
the city. A semicircular fighting
line, seventeen miles in length, wa
formed of the following regiments, be
ginning with those stationed on Ma
nila Bay north of the capital: th,
Twentieth Kansas, First Montana
Tenth Pennsylvania and Third Artil
lery, under Brigadier-General Harri
son G.. Otis; the First South Dakota
First Colorado and First Nebraska
commanded by General Hale, sur
ported by Batteries A and B of th
Utah Light Artillery, nnder Geners
Macarthur, northeast to east of th
city; the First California, First Idaho
First Wyoming and First Washing
ton, under General King, east an
southeast, near the Pasig River; th
Fourth Cavalry, Fourteenth Infantry
First North Dakota Infantry an
Sixth Artillery Division. commando
by General Anderson, near the sout
shore of the city.
Like an echo of the sentry's shot
gun was fred from Block k-house No.
and the signal for attacking our trool
had been given. The Nebraska reg
ment was made the frs. 'erget; pre-
emily. however. the 6riph 'preed {