Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1899-04-14
OUR PHILIPPINE LETTER.

DEAR FRIEND LEE; We are still at Cal
ocean, in the trenches, where i've took up
our position after the battle of Feb 10th.
All has been quiet here for q couple OF
weeks. The natives seem to realize the
uselessncss of trying to drive us from our
present position, and we don't seem to
be ready to drive them from theirs. We
soon will be, though.
New troops are arriving continually.
The Goth regulars arrived on the Scandal,
and the 22d regulars on the Ohio and the
Senator-six companies on each vessel
The Morgan City has arrived, also, with
supplies, and the wives Of many officers
of the Goth regulars We expect the
battleslip Oregon any day. The Buffalo
and Bennington arrived several days ago.
Dewey's fleet is now one Of the most for
midable in the world, and he knows how
to handle it, too.
Those scachights are a great help to
us and terror to the insurgents The
vessels can turn them on almost any part
of our lines, thus making a surprise at
night impossible. do not understand
how the men who manipulate the lights
are able to see objects when timber or
a hill are between them and that object,
but am told they can, and, from what
| have observed, they seem TO. ! guess
it is by reflection They will turn the
light on the insurgents intrcnchments,
which are from 300 to 500 yards from
our lines, and our "out-posts' can see ii
ANYTHING unusual is going on there.
The natives have peculiar habit OF
calling to one another during the night
don't know what it is for it seems to
be to let them know that their 'out'
posts" are there still. 1t sounds some
thing like go-o-go-o, SO we call them
Goo-goos. It's lots shorter than nsur-
gents and corresponds better with our
idea of them.
don't believe ever told you how We
were fixed when we went into a fight.
Well, we. wear our brown duck uni
forms, with hat, leggings and a stout
pair of shoes. Underneath the uniforms
we wear a light suit of underclothes
This makes about as comfortable fight
ing suit as we can get as it is very hot
work. We carry a belt full OF cartridges
and 100 rounds in our havcrsacl besides;
making 200 rounds altogether. You
have permission to carry as much more
ammunition as you like, but lew care to
carry much oyer that amount. Do we
ever shoot more than that much! Some
times. If the fight lasts more than three
or four hours at time you are likely to
run out of ammunition. The gun gets
so hot YOU dare not touch the steel part
of it but must be careful to hold 1t by
the wooden part or strap. Afght hard
" ever lasts over three hours without a
stop, but when you get into a tight
place you want. plenty OF ammunition
and good gun. The other regiments
here call the goth Kansas U. 5. Y. the
Fighting GOTH ] don't know Just
why. We fight of course, when we get
the chance, but don't know that we
did better than we should. When our
regiment is told to take any certain DO
sition, it takes it. The other day they
did not tell us just where to stop, so we
kept on going until General McArthur's
orderly caught up with us and told that
was as far as we should go. There was
nothing to hinder us, and there were
"Goo-goos" in sight, and that was what
we were after, so we kept on. Hereafter,
maybe they will state just how far they
want the Goth Kansas to go.
There has been some lighting on the
right of us several miles. That is Gener-
al Kings brigade. 1t is said that the
51st Iowas were in a fight over there
and had very exposed place to cross,
so General King told them to stop; but
guess they did not understand HIM for