The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1899-08-03

Special Correspondence of The star
MANILA, July cor the capture Of
san Miguel, have told you. our hri-
gade remained there two days expret-
ng to return To- Mantle. but got orders
10 go on and left san Miguel at y. IN.
May IL. An hour later the SCOUTS had
trouble with the Filipinus who were
we'll intTenChed on the river bank. zen
Filipinos We're killed and as many more
wounded without loss on our side, an !
we captured their bull train, which they
had To leave in their haste.
At Salacot four miles from San Nj
guel we had To cross the river Il, a
ford. The banks are steep on both sides
BY means of ropes the men held the
carts of our bun train from going down
too fast, and helped draw them up on
the other With thirty men pulling On
the rope, the Chinese drivers hitting tn"
buffaloes with clubs, and every
yelling "siccy,' the carts would go up
with rush. 1t was o'clock before abe
last cart got into SaaCot. We got Tice
straw from the fields to- sleep on using
our ponChos and shelter tents as sheets.
Few of the boys ever put up shelter
tents. having discovered that they are
not waterproof and are practically use
less for the purpose designed.
We set out next morning at daylight
for a camping place near San Isidro.
eighteen scouts going i'm advance. Two
miles from San Isidro the scouts cap
tured a bridge and intrenchments. They
killed eleven Filipino soldiers, captured
eight prisoners and sixteen Mauser
rifles.
! There was some shooting all after
noon, and it was necessary to send out
/ details to drive the "insurrectOs" back
/ when they came too close to the camp,
| the grass eight feet high, and the jun
gle, protecting them perfectly. The pris-
oners and wounded were from the pro-
] vince of Albay, and We're the first ma
| tive soldiers we had met who were not
Tagalos. They told us they were tired
of fighting good Americans" and alsC
that there We're several thousand sol.
ders at San Isidro. both of which state.
ments We're false Native sources OF
information are absolutely unreliable
Some of the prisoners had the legs o
their trousers torn off up to the knee
They said they had torn them off il
small strips as they needed gun rags.
BY dark we had rebuilt the burned
bridge, tearing down buildings for ma
teriaL We found Spaniard who ha'
been Killed, shot through the head. II,
was well dressed ard had a LARGE bun
idle of clothing of good quality. We coul,
not find out whether he had been fight
ing with the Filpinos or had been try
ing to escape to the American lines.
Next morning General Lawton order
ed the advance on San IsidrO. Tn
North Dakotas one battalion of tn,
Oregons, the Twenty infantr!
and the Fourth cavalry We're on tn
line, with the four 80 inch guns in tn
center, and the Minnesotas in reserve
The boys always speak of the artiller
as the Peace Commission" and it an
the infantry have solved things tina
mere words and promises have no effeC
on.
The advance was made about o cloC
in the morning The fight did not Ia,
long. Our battalion only fired from t.
TO thirty shots to the man. The "Pear
Commission" got in four shells eacf
: and the Filipinos pass off to the rigf
out of range
Company L. Second Oregon. capture
six rifles and five prisoners, who wer
Immediately put to carrying 9TH
White Mans Burden" of canteens
haversacks, and shelter tents into tow
The North paEotas got about twenty
five rifles. There is an overproductio
of able bodied FilininOS. in proportio
to the number of rifles they are able
carry. so that most of the enlisted me
consider the capture of rifle more i'm
portant than killing or wourding tn
enemy. JOHN b. FINLEY
Second Oregon