The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-07-19
FROM MANILA
Are Full of Interest for Mis-
soula People.
IT WAS A HARD CAMPAIGN
Three Months on the Firing Line.
Night Marches Too Much for the
Men - Opportunities for
Men With Money

! brought to Missoula people several let
| ters from friends who are with the
Montana regiment in the Philippines
Some of these letters are full of inter-
est to Missou1a people, as they mention
many of the men who are well known
here One of these letters, received by
Superintendent Charles Russell from
his half brother, Robert McCulloch,
who went out with Company NJ will
appeal to the sympathy of everybody
who reads it. There is in it no word OF
complaint, but it shows what OUT boys
have been through and helps to throw
some light upon their hardships and
privations. The letter. in part, is as fol-
lows:
Il doubt if this ever reaches you, for
1t is very hard to send mail in from this
place (San Fernandez to Manila, the
nearest postoffice, which is 40 mics
away. We have been on the go for over
three months without being relieved
from the firing line, but we expect to
be sent back to Manila in few days
now, to be sent from there to Gods
country. The boys are all overjoyed at
the news that we are soon to be mus
tered out We have had a hard time of
would only stand up and fight we
would have put them out of business
long ago, but they cannot stand a
charge. They lie in their trenches until
we get within a few hundred yards and
then they pour lead into our ranks un-
til we get sometimes within 20 yards of
them. Then they screw their nuts
into the bamboo thickets, which are
very numerous here. The only time
that We make a killing is when we get
them started out of their trenches. 1t
lis impossible to do them any harm be-
hind their works. for they don't even
expose their heads while we are ad-
Vancing on them. They just stick their
guns over the trenches and shoot.
That's why they don't get any more of
us than they do. After we start them
once it takes us about four days to
catch them again, and then it is the
same thing over again.
haven't much paper, so / can't
write a book, but | will tell you all
about these niggers when | get home
You remember Jack Campbell, who
used to work for you in the train SER
vice. He got killed in the battle of
Caloocan. He died game. but we have
lost so many of the boys since then
that poor Jack is almost forgotten al
ready. We expect to start home in a
month, and l think that we will be
mustered out in Frisco. / would like
to get a pass from you from there To
Montana. If it is any special trouble
you needn't bother about it, for we will
have enough money to get home on,
but | haven't enough clothes to flag a
baby carriage with, so If | can get
pass to Montana, l can fit myself out in
Frisco.
Your friend. Lieutenant Mercer, is
here with us and has been on the firing
line all the time. Captain Duncan is
all right, but these long marches proved
too much for him and he got knocked
out short way out of Caloocan. He
has been in the hospital ever since.
Lieutenant Conrad got transferred to
the regulars. They say that he is a
fighter from HI. Lieutenant Mercer
has proved a good friend to me. When
] was sick in Manila, through his in
tluence | got treatment that | would
not have received under ordinary cir
cumstances. I got through all right
and have been in every scrap that my
company has taken part in
The letter closes with personal mat
ter There is something pathetic in the
condition Of the boy who has not clothes
enough ito flag baby carriage with
He ought to have a pass.
Another letter that is of deep interest
is one that was received Sunday by
Judge Woody from Sergeant Sweeney
of Company Fl. Sergeant Sweeney is
well known to many of the readers OF
the Standard. He enlisted from Flat
head county and has made an excellent
record. After writing of the condition
of the boys, which he describes in much
the same way as McCulloch, Sergeant
Sweeney devotes considerable space in
his letter to a description of the cOun-
Try and his impressions will be read
with interest. He says, in part:
NtAi- 10. in
when the people are taught to pay a
little more attention to things material
and less to things spiritual, it will be-
come a source of great revenue to what
every country possesses it, The climate
away from Manila city is, | should say,
good. The mornings until 8 and tho
evenings after o'clock are just fine.
At these periods the boys begin to long
for their bicycles and driving horses, as
the roads--where they have any-are
very good. being macadamized. So far
as the health of the men is concerned,
they have been freer from disease while
campaigning than while we were in the
city, doing comparatively nothing. The
one thing that has told on them has
been the marching in the heat of the
day. When this had to be done. it was
usually done in a hurry and the men
naturally were weakened by heavy per-
spiration. I am told that sunstroke IS
hlhllb"il mere anu. JutSlHS tlO1ll lIlt
time that il takes the men to get back
10 duty after they have been knocked
out by the heat, four or five days, l
SHOULD think that this might be SO. I
notice but very little rheumatism
among the men except in one or two in
stances, where the men brought it with
them. Quite a number of the men are
afflicted with bowel troubles, hut in
Nest cases this can be traced directly
to caTeleSsness Of the person in regard
to diet. Men, after they have been fed
on government ratiOns for four or five
days straight and then get something
in the way OF a rlange are apt to get
careless. The animal in them FREEDOM
mates and this animal in this case
seems to b" the hog. This accounts for
stomach and bowel troubles.
As To products, they are too numer-
Gus to mention. Anything in the line
of cereals. vegetables OF fruits tunless