La Junta tribune., 1899-05-06
BRAVE KANSAS MEN.
HEAR WONDERFUL ACHIEVE
MENT.
YIrs aaa Ch.ss Thousands Of Fiiipiaos
Yroa Their Trenches.

-
From Manila to the Record give fur
hcr details Of the remarkable success
- OF the American troops few days
Ago In the face Of great obstacles. The
correspondent says:
The taking OF the bridge over the Rio
srande ut Calumpit was a deed Of as
1Onishing daring. II was the most
strougly defended position held by the
Insurgents. Located on the north shore
pf the Rio Grande, opposite Calumpit,
1t Is the most valuable strategic point
In Luzon. The fact that 1t was guarded
Hby the most trustworthy and best dis
cipliped regiments of General Aguin-
nldoe made the feat the more note
worthy. Army officers tonight say the
haring displayed by the American
Aroops to-day is almost unparalleled
an the annals OF modern warfare.
% 1t was a red-letter day for the Twen
4ieth regiment OF Kansas volunteers,
Commanded by Colonel Funston. One
hundred and twenty men belonging TO
3hat regiment crossed the river in the
Face OF a deadly fire from 5000 insur-
gent Mausers. This torrent Of bullets
&rvas augmented by the fusillade OF n
Maxim gun of which the insurgents
#haveAObtained possession.
Nv Colonel Funston, with only nine men,
charged the trenches manned by thou
lzsands of insurgents. dischnrging their
Zrifies as they ran up the embanknent.
The American artillery, on the south
shore of the Rio Grande, poured shot
and shell into the Filipino stronghold.
XThe rebels We're stampeded. They
went to the north toward Bacolor.
DeSpite the extraordinary risks and
chances taken by the Americans. our
troops suffered very few casualties.
4Only one man was killed and the
wounded do not exceed dozen. The
insurgents lost heavily. fully twenty
five were killed during the mad charge
OF 1plonel Funston's men on the
TRENCHES.
counted fifteen bodies in the trench
es and along the railway in n distance
OF a quarter of Il mile.
The bridge where the desperate fight
ing took place Is about 100 yards long.
/ 1t extends over the Rio Grande and Is
the gateway. practically, to the entire
northern portion of the island of Lu-
zon. All the ties and rails had been
removed from the structure, making It
almost impossible to cross. as the men
: had to creep along the iron framework.
At the further end of the bridge, op-
posite Calumpit. were the most care
4 fully constructed and formidable
earthworks They seemed almost i'm
pregnable. They were in the form OF
semicircular trenches around the ap-
q proaeh of the bridge. These trenches
have roofs of steel rails. These roofs
Il formed a splendid protection against
4 bursting shells, and for time made
& the work OF the artillery almost futile.
u About 800 yards west of the railroad.
= on the north shore of the Rio Grnnde,
In de6p narrow stream empties into the
3river. Beyond this stream are other
~ IN c1nrn
7 of the river.
y The. American forces occupied the
4 soM1 shore. within 400 yards of the
n insurgent earthworks.
Early in the morning the Filipinos
/ began steady fire from both their in
/ fantry and artillery Most Of it was
directed upon the freighthouse where
the 9th artillery gun was stationed.
The Americans. however, returned
suclfa heavy fire that the insurgents
I were Obliged to keep beneath the cover
4 Of their 'eartl1works.
1t WIS during this fire that Colonel
! Funston and his 100 Kansans per-
fornSed the exploit of the day.
They marched down to the river,
distance of 300 yards from the freight
house, in plain view OF the insurgents.
Immediately the Filipino fire was di-
rected upon the Kansas men. Colonel
Funston and his men were prepared to
cross the river SO that they could make
a flank attack upon the rebels in the
trenches.
Privates White and Trembly of com
pany ID of the Kansas regiment strip
ped Off their uniforms. jumped into the
river and swan directly toward the
Filipino breastworks. Almost immedi-
ately they drew the fire from the
trenches of the insurgents, but evi-
IDENTIFY they had not been noticed by
the insurgents Mt the end Of the bridge.
The latter were fully occupied by the
artillery and infantry fire Of the Amer
leans.
When White and Trembly reached
the shore they carried rope to the
beach, tied 1t to an upright of the
bridge, and by making a tremendous
noise frightened the insurgents out.
They had no arms, but they threw
clOds of dirt into the trenches and kept
up such terrific yelling that the in
surgents thought whole company
was upon them. All this time Colonel
Fun6ton and his men on the south
shore Of the river kept up n steady
fire, thereby protecting White and
Trembly. Two more Kansans follow
ed In small boat with the clothes and
rifiesAwhich had been stripped on by
Trembly and White, but the boat cap
sized. Its contents were lost and the
two men in 1t were obliged to swim
for their lives.
Colonel Funston in the meantime fol-
lowed on q raft with about twenty
men. Close behind him came two more
RATS on which were thirty men. The
appearance OF this number revealed to
the main force of the Filipinos the dar-
ing tyick which had been practiced up
in them. Immediately they directed
wild fire toward the RATS. 1t was in
effective. As soon as Colonel Funston
reached the opposite shore with his
fifty men he rushed down to the small