The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-07-28
CAPTURE OF cALAMBA.
Lively SI&trmish In Which the
Americans Easily Triumphed.

Lively IN AAS
Americans Easily Triumphed.
MANILA, July N.-An expedition com
posed Of troops from San Pedro Macau,
Pasig and Morong, under Brig. Gen. r.
II. Hall, yesterday, captured Calamba, an
important trading town on the south
shore of Laguna de Bay after two hours
sharp fighting, during which four soldiers
were killed and twelve wounded. The
trenches commanding the harbOr were un-
der water, but the swampiness of the
land made the work harder.
The troops boarded cascoes Tuesday
night. The force comprised 400 of the
Washington volunteers, $50 Of the Twenty
first infantry, $50 of the Fourth cavalry
and two guns of the First artillery. These
and the gunboats Napidan and Costa as
sembled opposite Calamba Wednesday
afternoon. Crowds of people in carts and
on foot were seen rushing to the hills
Natives escaping from Calamba In canoes
said 100 insurgents held the town.
A force under Capt. McGrath, of the
Twenty-first infantry, and Capt. Elton
Herd, landed east of the town, but found
a river intervening. Capt. McGrath and
Lieut.. Batson swan the river under a
fire from twenty Mauser rifles. Having
crossed the stream the officers procured
a casco to ferry the troops over. The
insurgents retreated through the town
shooting from houses and bushes as they
fed to the hills. Three members of the
Washington regiment waded from cascoes
through the swamps, often shoulder deep,
while a group of Filipinos concealed in
haystacks were shooting at them, until
the Napidan focused her siX-pounder and
Gatling guns at the stacks for few
minutes. Most of the work was done be-
fore the Washington volunteers could
reach the town.
The Filipinos left three dead OF the
casualties on the American side, two of
the killed and three wounded were mem
bers of the First cavalry, and two killed
and eight wounded belonged to the Twen-
ty-first infantry.
There was much shooting by amigos
who emerged from the bushes with white
flags. After the fight dozen men hold
ing up their hands and shouting "castil-
lanos'' met the American cavalry. Even
Spanish soldiers embraced the Americans
Historically. There were fifty Spanish
prisoners at Calamba, of whom some
were civil officers and some were soldiers.
They had been given the choice of join
ing the Filipino army or becoming SER
wants to Filipinos, and chose the army,
intending to surrender at the first OPP
portunity Most Of the civilians reached
but the insurgents took others away with
them in their retreat. Gen. Hall captured
twelve Filipinos with guns.
Maj. Gen. Henry w. Lawton, Prof.
Dean c. Worcester, of the American
Philippines commission; Mrs Gen. Law
ton and Gen. Lawton's son accompanied
the expedition on board a launch, and
sat coolly in an unprotected boat, close
to the shore, during the fighting, the
bullets splashing about them.
Today Gen. Hall brought to Manila the
Spanish whom the expedition had re-
leased from captivity of more than a
year.
Lieut. Larson, commanding the Napi-
dan, today found long-missing Spanish
gunboat, which had been SO covered with
bushes and fshnets as not to resemble
vessel.
The Filipinos having met reinforcements
and thinking that the Americans had
evacuated the town descended from the
hills today, intending to reoccupy Calam-
ba Gen. Hall easily drove them back.
Gen. Hall will leave a garrison at Ca
l.r,a aI1o