The record-union., 1899-02-06

assurances to that effect conveyed by
General Otis to Washington from time
to time during the past few months.
The forces under his command, as
shown by the records of the Adjutant
Generals office December 10th, the date
of the last report. were 21,649 troops.
and of these there were present for
duty 1876 men. This command is
composed of the following organiza-
tions:
Company A, United States Engineer
Battalion; Companies C, E, G, /, K
and l., Fourth United States Cavalry;
troop of Nevada cavalry; Companies
G, K and L of the Third and D and G
of the Sixth United States Artillery;
Companies A and D of the California
and A and B of the Utah Artillery, and
the First Wyoming Battery; the Third
and Fourth United States Infantry;
the Fourteenth and headquarters and
Companies B, D, F, H, I, M, L and N
of the Seventeenth United States In
fantry: the Eighteenth, Twentieth and
Twenty-third United States Infantry;
the First California. the First Colorado,
the First Idaho, the Fifty-first Iowa,
the Twentieth Kansas, the Thirteenth
Minnesota, the First Montana, the First
Nebraska, the First North Dakota, the
Second Oregon, the Tenth Pennsylva-
MIA, the First South Dakota, the First
Tennessee, the First Washington and
the First Wyoming regiments of vol
unteer infantry.
A portion of this force, the Eighteenth
Infantry and battery of artillery. are
at Ilolo, where General Miller was sent
month or more ago. Approximately
6,OtO men are on their way to ioin
General Otis, in four separate expedi-
tons, though none are expected to reach
Manila for three weeks or a month.
There are the Fourth and four compa-
MES of the Seventeenth Infantry. LIPS
men, under Genral Lawton, which sailed
from Gibraltar last Friday; the Tween
tieth Infantry, comprising 81 officers
and l,26S men, under General Wheaton.
which left San Francisco January 9th:
the Twenty second Infantry, in com
mand OF Colonel Egbert, which left
San Francisco early in the present
month, and 2,440 men and officers of
the Third and Seventeenth United
States Regiments of Infantry, which
left New York Friday on the Sherman.
There is a big transport, the Sheri-
dan, now making ready in New York
to carry the Twelfth Infantry and a
battalion of the Seventeenth Infantry.
1,S20 men in all, and she will start not
latfA than the 14th. That is all that
canf5e supplied to General Otis in the
way of reinforcements, according to
General Corbin, if the soldiers are to be
of service in this campaign. More. Of
course, will follow as rapidly as they
can be gotten ready, if General Otis
needs them in any future operations
he may plan; but, as already stated,
1t is believed this particular crisis will
have passed before they can be trans
ported the distance from the United
States to Manila. These troops, with
those now in Cuba, represent the cream
OF the American army, according to
General Corbin. It is true that only
about 5000 of General Otis soldiers are
regulars, but his volunteer soldiers
have been under thorough discipline for
months, some as much as eight months
and many participated in the engage
emnts attending the capture of Manila
and are practically as good as the reg
ulars
NO one here knows the real strength
OF the insurgents opposed to General
Otis. The accounts of their number
men, under General Lawton, who sailed
from reliable sources. : Still. the best
belief of the authorities at the War De-
partment is that they number about
oo,otO men, but they are not compar-
able to the American forces in person.
mel, discipline or quality of arms. It is
known that they have some Mausers.
some Remingtons and a variety of
other firearms, and it is suspected they
have been quite plentifully supplied
with ammunition from outside sources.
Taken as whole this armament is
decidedly inferior to that of the Amer
lean troops. Then, with inexperienced
officers, in many cases even the Colo
nels of regiments being not more than
II years of age, and their lack of
knowledge of tactics, they are at a
great disadvantage. Their strong
point is their knowledge of the country
and a certain fanatica1 bravery in on
slaught that would be formidable to a
volunteer force not we'll trained to
stand fire. Like the Cubans. they rely
too much on a sword-like weapon, cor
responding to the machete, a weapon
of little value against long-range rifles
Altogether, the War Department officials
have not the slightest doubt of General
Otis ability to hold his position indef-
initely, and the only cause for appre-
henson is the fear that by taking to
the interior of the country, practically
impossible for American troops in the
approaching rainy season, prolonged
Indian-fighting style of campaign may
follow
Besides his soldiers, General Otis has
at his back in Manila Bay, command
ing the city, veritable rock of Gibral-
tar in Dewey's fleet. With the vessels
he now has and those about to join
him, Dewey will have twenty-one ships
of various types. OF full-fledged war
ships he has now nine, as follows: The
flagship Olympia, Boston, Baltimore,
Charleston, Concord Monadnock, Mon
terey, Petrol and Buffalo,. He also has
three armed supply ships which are
just as effective as warship almost
in attacking troops outside of fortifica-
lions and in maintaining the blockade.
They are the Culgoa, the Nan Shan
and the Zafiro. The vessels on the way
to Join Dewey are the gunboat Helena,
now at Colombo; the Castine, at Glib
raltar; the Princeton, due at Port Said
Tuesday; the Bennington, the Brutus
and Yorktown, probably at Guam on
their way to Manila; the battleship
Oregon and the Waterfront Iris at Hon.
ls01ulu
The Solace is about to start any mo-
ment from Norfolk for Manila. This
leaves out of account the army trans
ports under Otis command, which could
be made of great service