Daily camera., 1899-09-01
THELITTLE FILIPINOS
Pecu1iarities of the People Under
Aguinaldo.
Odd Experiences of Uncle SANS Sol
dieFs with the willy Natives of
Luson-Their style OF
FikhtinH

This little black man who is causing |
us the same kind of trouble that the |
boy experiences with hornets nest |
cannot be understood in day. When |
captured he acts as if his lot had fallen |
among old friends. He gnns and points |
beyond our sldrmishers, seeming to
think that the aspect of his fleeing coun- |
trymen is a huge joke. The next min |
ute, but give him the chance, he is likely |
to send bullet into an Americans
back. For such an otfense Maj. Gen.
Anderson once had Filipino strung
up to tree on the spot, this being the
only American military execution thus
far recorded in the Philippines.
A giant private of the Montanas chose
a different method. When he was fired
on at distance of about ten yards and
missed, he caught his enemy, took his
gun away from him and then laid him
across his knees. After he had vigor-
ously applied a piece of bamboo he
seized the snenv ~ the seat of the
trousers and threw h.:o toward the
rear.
"There!" he said. Don't you let me
catch you playing with firearms again."
The little black mans confidence in
the European rifle has waned. In the
beginning he thought that he had only
| to discharge his mauser at white man
and the white man was dead This led
to the firing from the houses and the
reckless chances which the Filipinos
took at first when their losses were 80
great. Now they apparently are good"
after they are captured, and they do
not fire from houses. Most of whatever
their leaders know of military practice
they have learned from the Spaniards.
| They are as facile in imitation as the
Chinese. Their buglers now do our calls
as well as their own. By watching us
they found out that they have been
firing too high, and now they are try
ing to fire low. They succeed until the
volleys from our skirmish line begin to
pour in. Then they cringe too much in
their trenches to aim on level. Their
trenches (of the Spanish type) are built
| under cover, at strategic points, which
admit of easy defense andretreat, with
the smallest possible exposure, once the
| Americans advance. On wall above
the line Of one insurgent trench were
16 abrasures by bullets in space two
feet by one.
Such music as was played there is
disconcerting. The little black man will
not remain to hear it after our men are
within 200 yards. At running he is
easily the Americans superior His
bare feet never get sore. He has no
| fln 10 do l. &c
cotton shirt and trousers. He knows
the bypaths and the fords of the
streams. But he feels that it is very un-
fair of us to make him retreat. We are
not practicing warfare as he un-
derstands it at all. What is the use of
rifles that will shoot 1880 yards if you
are going to try to catch the enemy with
your hands?
ARuinaldo's officers are highly in
censed about our artillery, it is said. If
they have no guns we ought to use
none, and if they have three or four or
five, we ought to use only three or four
or five, as the case may be. What has
happened, however, was to have been
expected after we refused to fire back
and forth between trenches in the
moonlight, which is the only kind and
, generous method of making war in the
tropics.
In the march to Malolos our men
marched and fought all day under the
, beating sun, slept on the ground, swan
rivers and did everything which it was
supposed by the natives shat white men
, could not do. They thought that we
would not attempt to drive them out
of more than one of the intrench-
ments at time, and then rest at least
n week after each effort. prisoncrex-
planned his feelings by saying:
"Thr-r-r-r-t!" and making rapid
movement with his hands.-Frederick
Palmer, in Golfers Weekly.