The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-05-28
ANACONDA news.
IT WAS HIS LAST Letter
Murphy Wrote the Standard Six
Days Before His Death.
HONOR WHERE HONOR DUE
Savageness OF the Natives Is Greatly Elk
aggerated- Advantage in Favor OF
the Insurgents = Charles A.
Murphy Was Popular.

A letter was received yesterday at TINS
office from Charles A. Murphy, the mem
Der of company NJ LIST Montana who was
killed in the battle of April IS at Manila.
Murphy had written the letter at Maloles,
P. l., on April o. six days before his
death. The letter reads as follows:
"Malolos. P. l., April 22.-To the Ed
itcr of the Anaconda Standard: 1t
is to be regretted that the disciples
of yellow journalism have succeeded so
well in impressing on the American pub
lie the belief that the Filipino insurgents
are a race of naked savages, armed with
bow and arrow. The natives of these is
lands particularly the island of Luzon,
are a mixture of Chinese and Malay
While some are fairly intelligent, the in
stirct of the savage is noticeable in the
masses. 1t is recognized fact that the
insurgents all through this campaign have
been armed with rifles far superior to the
Springfields of the volunteers. Another
thing, the Mauser and Remington of the
insurgent will shoot and kill at 500 to 500
yards farther than our antique Spring
fields
.'At present, as was the case during the
Spanish trouble, the world has been de-
pendent for war news on the narrow
minded reports of yellow correspondents
to large extent.
1--WE are now camped at Malolos, tire
insurgent capital The town is not much
to look at. being collection of bamboo
shacks with one or two frame houses
This place was taken March 81, little re-
slstance being offered. Two modern
Krupp guns, one and one S-inch, were
found buried in the street.
For the past 10 weeks we have been
passing through a country that rivals
Darkest Africa. We have waded swamps
and forded rivers, in a great many in
stances the clothes Were torn off men in
their efforts to double-time through bam-
boo thickets. y
THE life of volunteer soldier in this
country is not a bed of roses and the
long-haired individual who writes poetry
about the beauties of the tropics would,
We're he here, with canned beef staring
him in the face drop his romantic ideas
and from sensible standpoint exclaim
with Johnnie Sherman, War is helr The
weather has been extremely hot here for
a month, this being the dry. hot season.
Arthur O'Leary, who left Anaconda
with K company, is now second lieuten-
ant of NJ company, and is voted by the
boys to be O. K. He is as cool as an old
veteran under fire, and wears the same
size hat as when only a corporal.
II understand that an advance will be
made ON Calumpit tomorrow Sunday
Calumpit is five miles north of Malolos.
The enemy is said to be strongly in
trenched there.
Jack Onarheim with the smoke of the
last battle still in his whiskers is pa
tiently waiting for orders to go home.
Bart Kennedy, Con O'Connor, Fred
Cain and Sergeant e. ]. Hanlon repre-
sent the happy family.
Harry Hamley is raising whiskers on
his chin and George Sper is raising h
on the bugle. So ] must say adieu."
Murphy was one of the best soldiers in
company NJ. He was well liked by all
the boys and they respected him, for he
was soldier who was entitled to all the
praise given him. He had a cousin, Mi
chael Burns, weighmaster at the refinery
Murphy came to this city in 1895 and had
been employed at the lower works until
the time of his enlistment
Murphy was bright and well-educated
young man. He was the soldier who, on
the occasion of the departure from Ma
Mia of Lieutenant Gerald Sullivan made
the address of presentation and presented
the gold watch to the lieutenant
Murphy was also very bright writer
and he once published in Manila newspa-
Honor is Due The article reads as fol-
lows:
Just now the sensational newspaper
reporters of the United States are writ
ing longwinded articles under f1aring
headlines, and the yellow journals partic-
ularly are devoting columns of space in |
narrating, in a manner that rivals the |
most realistic tpipe dream) of Rider
Haggard, all about our gallant soldier
leaders-Miles, Shafter, Sampson, Schley,
and last, but not least, our Dewey, the
king of the sea.
"fhere is another that figures some
what in the defeat of the Spanish-I mean |
the private soldier.
Very little is heard about him. al
though 1t is he who undergoes the long |
weary marches, tramps through mud and
water, eats the .slum gullion, sour bread,
beans and wormy hard
tack.
And If on pay day. after drawing his
SD. 60 per month"; he spends his dinero for |
,tWo-cent-one, gets a jag, stands on his
mead walks on his hands and talks