The record-union., 1899-05-13
The Insurgent Congress Divided Oh
the Subject.
Those Holding Balance Of Power Demand
Better Terms From United States.
Fresh Troops Being Sent to the
Front From ManiIa-The First
Nebraska Regiment Appeals to
General Macarthur to be With
drawn From the Fighting Line
in Order to Recuperate.

LONDON, May IA special dis
patch received from Manila says that
the Filipino Congress now sitting at
San Isidor is composed of fifty-six
members, of whom twenty favor peace
and an equal number are irreconcil-
ables. The others, holding the balance
Of power, are ready to admit that abb
solute independence is hopeless of at
tainment, but demand better terms at
the hands of the United States
FRESH TROOPS GOING TO 'FRONT.'
MANILA, May 12.-4:50 p. m.)-
Fresh troops are beginning to go to
the front. Two battalions of the Sew
enteenth Infantry Gegulars), that had
been holding the lines about the city
of Manila, will join Major General Mac
Arthur's division at San Fernando to-
morrow, and one battalion of the SAND
regiment will reinforce Major General
Lawton's division near Bacolor. These
troops will be replaced here by the
Twenty-first Infantry regiment, which
arrived from the United States on the
transport Hancock yesterday.
Captain Grant of the Utah Battery,
whose success in managing the army
gunboats La Guna de Bay and Cava-
donga has won for him the. sobriquet OF
The Dewey of the Army" has been
put in command of the recently pur-
chased Spanish gunboats whose arms
the insurgents captured. These vessels
are now being prepared for operation
on the rivers and along the coast. The
arming of the gunboats is being push
ed with all diligence.
NEBRASKANS ASK TEMPORARY,
RELIEF FROM DUTY.
MANILA, May 12.-(Via HongkongC
The First Regiment, Nebraska Vol
unteer Infantry, is taking the unusual
step of respectfully petitioning the di-
vision commander Major General Mac
Arthur, to temporarily relieve them
from duty at the front. The regiment
is badly exhausted by the campaign in
which it has taken an active part, and
not many more than 800 men of the
! organization are at present fit for duty.
On Sunday last $50 men of this regi-
ment responded to the sick call.
The men, in view of the facts, have
prepared a respectful memorial to Gem
eral Macarthur asking that their regi-
ment be withdrawn for a short time
from the fighting line, in order that
they may recuperate. The memorial
SloLl6S lHdl Inc lIlCI are NlllluS " DSIts
but are in no condition to do so, owing
to the strain of long marching, contin-
ual fighting and outpost duty in which
they have been engaged. 1t is argued
that many of the men have been UNI
able to have their clothing washed for
months past, having been compelled
during all that time to sleep in their
uniforms to be in readiness for fight
ing The memorial adds that since
February I'd the regiment has lost 225
men in killed and wounded and fifty
nine since the battle of Malolos.
The officers of the regiment propose
to present a similar memorial on be-
half of the men The splendid record
of the First Nebraska in the entire
campaign, and the tone of the mem
orial prepared. by the men is such that
no imputation of characterization can
be brought against them. officers Of
the regiment said to the correspondent
of the Associated Press here to-day
that they thought that the men had
been worked beyond endurance, and
should be given a rest, and some of the
regular regiments which are now
guarding the city be sent to the front.
Five volunteer regiments and the
Utah Battery of Artillery are at SAM
Fernando. They muster in all about
900 men. Many of the soldiers are in
hospital suffering from heat or other
causes. The wounded are all suffering
acutely, and showed the effects of ex-
posture to the sun when they arrived
Three days rest has already worked
wonders
Since the army entered Malolos the
soldiers have had little water to drink
except that brought on railway trains
from Manila, and that was of poor
quality. The artesian wells al San Fer
nando are doing much toward making
the men contented.
WASHINGTON, May 12.-No dis
patch received recently from Manila
has been received with deeper interest
at the War Department than that
which was sent by the Associated Press
via Hongkong. War Department OFF,
cials and army officials did not like 10
be quoted upon the subject, but the
comment generally among army officers
was that the troops which had been
fighting so long and continuously are
exhausted, and were really in need of
rest
1t was explained that the men did
not fear fighting but after fighting and
they were no doubt much exhausted.
Some army officers suggested that the
action of the Nebraska regiment was
like town meeting, and that an army
could not be conducted upon such
lines. Comment was made to the eff
feet that the dispatches indicated va
rious regiments were on duty constant
ly, and that there was no reserve to
relieve them when they reached the
limit of endurance.
1t was stated by an officer in the de-
partment that one reason why it had
been impossible to relieve the volun-
teers with the regulars now at Manila
was because the regulars sent to the
Philippines were at least two-thrds re-
cruits. and were necessarily unframed
and lacked the discipline of the volun-
teers who are now veterans. 1t is be-
lieved that General Otis does not care
to risk the hard fighting to untried men.
and that he desires the volunteers to
remain at the front because he is sure