La Junta tribune., 1899-12-02
FROM rns en,l,rr,nts.
An interesting Descriptive Letter From
Our Island Possessions.

Shelton, OF the Holbrook country.
Curtis is now a member OF the
Thirty-fourth Infantry Band. U. S.
A., doing service in the Philippines.
He writes very entertaining and
instructive letter which will be
read with interest by his many
friends in La Junta. 1t is as fol-
lows:
PAsAy, p. L., October % '9o.
FOLKS AT HoME:--
Nearly two weeks have passed
and we are still in our first camp.
We have been holding a line OF
trenches south OF Manila. say
we have been holding them, but
the men have done nothing but lay
in the trenches at night and imagine
they see Filipinos. There have
been as many as seventy shots
fired in one night at imaginary
men, when as matter offact there
is not native in five miles who
has nerve enough to show himself
at night.
| There have been several scout
ing parties sent out from here. !
went with one of them. We started
at 3 o'clock in the morning and got
back some time in the afternoon.
What saw OF the island on that
little trip was anything but encour-
aging. We passed through moth
ing but jungle all the way. There
is no road on this part of the island
worthy of the name. Every one
travels by paths. Sometimes they
ara wide enough for two carts to
pass, bnt more often they are foot
paths. One cannot go far up these
paths without running iuto a native
bamboo house. They are every
where-except in the place where
you would expect TO find them.
The underground is so thick that
you cannot see house until you
hear the dogs bark, and then you
have to look close to find them.
There is practically no land un
der cultivation SO far. as have
/
seen, and l have not yet been able
to figure out how the people live,
as they do nothing but smoke cigar.
rettes-eyery one of them, from
the little children who can just
walk to the Oldest men and women.
1t was amusing at first to see
woman or little child going along
neither with any too much clothing,
on, and each putting away at a
great big cigar or cigarette. But
! have witnessed the sight SO often
now that it is more disgusting than
anything else. They are also great
people to gamble. and although it
has been stopped in Manila. every
one here, even the children, will
bet as long as they have anything
to bet with.
have been very favorably I'M
pressed with the intelligence of the
natives, and believe they are very
much shrewder than the people of
America think. There is as much
or more dissatisfaction expressed
here as at home over the policy
but as am not the commanding
officer here, had better keep
quiet. The general opinion here
is that the insurrection proper will
be broken this winter, although
there will be rowing bands Of
brigands for years to come. If any
one tells you that the war is over
tell them to come over here and
see. There is going to be a great
deal OF hard fighting and harder
chasing before this thing is over,
or else everyone here will be great
ly surprised.
The men of the Thirty-fourth
have enjoyed remarkably good
health thus far. We have not lost
a man. nor even had any serious
illness since enlisted. We only
had one or two men in the hospital
during our thirty-three days on the
L l al &l... Lad-