The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-09-10

hot, sweating and saying swear words
soto vOce over the unwOnted speed
and difficulty of their push through the
jungle. Lawton smiled grimly, bpt
said nothing as we studied the ground
through our field glasses.
Facing a Skirmish Line.
Then the horses were brought up by
a belated orderly, and. mounting. We
rode out eastward toward the DluIls
overlooking the delta Of the Pasig
and ,the picturesque towns on the
islands below. The Californians were
far from their base, and couldn't keep
up with Lawson's huge black horse. My
pony had to trot or icpe, and before
long we were far from any supports,
with only one orderly and two re-
vo:ve-s-
Wonders, where they nearly shot my
boy" said Lawton, placidly, after we
had gone a mile, and that had nap
pened when the slopes toward the river
were dotted with the skirmishers OF the
Fourth cavalry.
All the lire to the Pasig bluffs ana
back the way we came, not a Filipino
rife cracked, but the North. Dakotas
had caught sight Of us from their BIZ
vouac close TO the river, and rad sent
out a skirmish line to see what was up.
Iawton commented tneH warc-:Iui-
ness, designated points for their pick
cts to occupy On the ridge that night,
and sent them back 20 thu Iasig, TWO
miles away, to get their blankets and
supper.
twenty minutes lateri all Of sud-
den, and not more than i,2OJ Yards
away to the south, up Popped sktr-
lnish line of at least 'eesx slhpinos,
deployed facing us. They had
been watching us evidently for
some time, and, seeing that the Dako-
tas had disappeared, they boldly stood
I'D in plain view. The immediate ques-.
ton was, Will they attack? OF course
we knew that only short distance pc
hind them lay the insurgfnt camps, IN
the shelter of the bambqos, ana, 1ur--
thermore, that they cbuld speedily
summon a hundred to opr one The
little squad of Californiahs were Still
with us, crouching or sprawled along
the crest, but Law'ton stood erect. ms
long legs straddled wide, and calmly
surveyed them through his glass. II
only forty advanced, we could prob
ably stand them off with our bakers
dozen-the sergeant and twelve mem
while Mills, our brave orderly. galiop-
ed to the Dakotas for aid, but they
didn't advance, they didn't even open
fire. They merely wished us TO under
stand, apparently that we had better
not come their way, and Lawton began
to twitch in his eagerness for fight.
Lawton Wanted to Fight.
One thing our corps commander es-
pecially had forbidden, and that was
that we should bring on a battle While
our force on the southeast line was
so small. The regulars had all gone TO
the north to reinforce Macarthur just
then, and only a thin line OF volunteers
interposed between NoriePs swarmlng
camps and the walls of Manila.
Good Lord!'' said LaWton, what
a. pity we let those Dakotas go! If they
were here now we could go Town and
clean those, fellows out in five minutes.
Do YOU think?''- and here he turned to
me and then eyed the little squad OF
San Franciscans.
He was more than half disposed TO
forget his major generalship INA gine
himself subaltern again. and iead
our little dozen down to the ATTACK,
For a moment thought the tempta-
ton might be too much for him as our
eyes met and grin expanded his sun
tanned face, but the veteran Indian
fighters horse sense" presently rose
superior to the troopers lust Tor a
fight, and, with sigh and more tfan
one regretful backward glance he re-
mounted and we rode away.
And Johnny Filipino never seemed to
know how easily. he could have bagged
brace of silver stars that hot March
day, and was very glad he didn't.
CHARLES KING,
Brigadier General, U. S. ".