The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1899-07-25
hostile territory before striking the right
track for home.
swAMrs ARE rnAvERsEp.

With daybreak Hale's force was advancing
on Calumpit, now not to exceed four or five
miles away by the direct route But 1t was
further than this by several miles for the
ever-swinging fire line. Several swamps
were encountered. A large district. low and
covered with dense marsh grass and weeds,
had to be covered. Traversing this the army
came upon corn fields we'll cultivated. These
lay between the Baybay and large tidal
branch OF the Pampanga, that connects the
Baybay and Rio Grade de Pampanga above
their main junction. This forms an island,
on a part of which Calumpit is situated
Back OF the tidal branch were works as
strong us skill could DEVISE They were SO
thick as to be able to resist artillery were
porthoed and covered. Railroad ties and
| iron rails were used In making the works
| along the Manila-Dagupan road impregn-
able. The roadbed itself was converted into
| strong defensive work, the slopes being cut
down and bitches being dug through the
grade to enable the defenders to pass unex-
posed from one side to the other. Finally,
section OF the railroad bridge at Calumpit
had been sawed and drilled through and
dropped. This headed Off an invansion by
Wheaton and hindered the American adj
vance in many ways.
| Halls brigade had been given until We'd
| nesday morning, April 26. to clear the coun-
try from Quingua. General Wheaton, NOV
| ing along the railroad from Malolos. en-
pressed great surprise at the rapidity with
which the thanking movement had been exc
| cuted AS Hale's long line neared the Pam
panga branch before Calumpit the struggle
| commenced. The Utah battery guns with
both brigades famed forth, their deadly
shells tearing the trenches beyond the river.
The guns on the armored car opened The
natives from the trenches replied spritedly
and the bullets whistled amazingly close.
Soon along Hale's front the volleys began to
thunder. The American fire was SO we'll
directed that the bullets found their way
like hail into the portfolios of the enemy's
works, shattering and splintering the tim
beers of the sloping roofs.
| ORDERS ARE misunderstood.
Orders were for Hale's brigade on the right
not to go into the bamboo thickets skirting
the river, nor to try to ford the Pampanga
branch. Somehow the order was given to 20
forward and the line started to dash into the
woods with that ominous yelling cheer. 1t
was stopped with difficulty, but not until the
Iowa right had swung SO close to the river as
to pour In deadly fire, partially enflading,
on the tnsurgent works along the bank be-
You'd. The peculiar curve of the Pampanga
branch here made the muslletry work unu-
Usually effective. The natives broke from the
works near the railroad bridge and the Ne
braskas, plunging into the river. were soon
across. Stormed on three sides, the natives
farther down could not hold out and in
leaving the trenches were badly Slaughtered
By 2 o'clock in the afternoon the Americans
had possession of the town as far as the big
railroad bridge spanning the Rio Grande.
The men in Hale's brigade expected in
faith that the fighting for Calumpit was not
over. There were strong positions beyond
the Rio Grande not yet taken. They waited
the next day, thinking every minute u call
to arms might come. But it did not. The
Insurgents did their best to destroy the big
bridge over the Pampanga, but the Kansas
|sharpshooters held them off, Discouraged
they withdrew toward San Fernando, and on
the 9th the Kansas troops moved in, enter
ing Apalit beyond the Rio Grande de Pam
panga.
DO ESCORT DUTY
The Iowa troops soon forded the Pambanga
branch and were quartered in the native huts of
Calumpit. But little rest was in store for the
First battalion. April 20 it proceeded to Bo-
caiel and the next day escorten wagon train a
part uof the distance out to Lawton's force.
Some ten miles eastward, on the edge of the
foothills, an empty train with an escort of the
Twenty second. WIS met. The First battalion
returned with the empty train, leaving the
loaded one in charge of the Tweuty-second.
The train was large, containing twenty five
wagons and ffty-one pack mules and was i'm
portant from the fact that part of the water
oxen of Lawton's train had given out. This
curtailed his facilities for transportation great
ly. Some resistance to the escort had been ex-
pected and in consequence hard advance guard
service was necessary. But all passed quietly.
The men were given little chance to study the