The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1900-12-04
WITH THE BOYS OF
THB FORTY sixth.
An Interesting Letter From
Private George M. CrOwl.
nY KING AFTER THE GuGUs.'
Philippine News as Published In the
Leading American Newspapers Gives
Him That Tired Feeling
Ambush Described.

III IL letteT ITOln NreOTBC W. ClOWi, VIM
Is member of Company L. Forty-slxth
United States volunteers, in the Phil
ippines, he says there Is great deal
more activity among the Fillpinos at
present than when he landed. almost
year ago. Private Crowl is former
Lisbon boy, but he is known In Can
ton, and has many friends here. He
writes from Silan, p. l., under date OF
September "a, as follows: II had not
intended to write again 50 soon, but
after receiving our last mail and read
ing the different articles published in
the leading daily newspapers from the
Pacific to the Atlantic coast on 'the
situation in the Philippines gave us
boys over here such tired feeling that
] could not forebear from giving the
view of our situation from a private 8
standpoint, who Is out hyking after
the Gugus almost every day.. By read
ing the papers published in the States
yes, and the Manila papers too
you are led to think that we soldiers
over here are living on f!owery bed
of ease, but IL you have such impress
sions as that and were only over here
for few days they would be very rap
idly dispelled / will now try and
show you how we are situated and the
work we are doing, how we did it when
we first came over and how we are do
ing 1t at the present time and any COM
mon sense person can tell by that
"where we are at" Now l will only
tell you about the work of the 46th
regiment. but by meeting members of
other outfits one is the same as
another. To start with there Is n great
deal more activity among the insur-
gents for the last two months than
when we first landed here. December
IA, 1899. and we have had more skir-
mishes and lost more men in August
and September than all the rest of the
time put together. Does that look as
If "the insurrcction in the Philippines
was over and all of the natives have
returned to their work and homes"
Such stuff as that Is disgusting to a
man that is over here and knows the
true state of affairs. would enjoy
seing some of the people that are writ
ing such stuff over here for short time
and l am sure they would not fill their
columns with the rot they are now. IT
may be some political scheme to cover
the true state of affairs over here and
that Is the general opinion, but then we
are not In position to talk on that
question, so l won't say any thing more,
but tell you how 1t is with US. We will
start with July II, and some of you may
have read of how our band was am
pushed. Ever since we had been here
(until very recently, the officers
thought detail of about four men were
sufficient to escort wagon team from
one town to another without any dan
ger. The band had been making a trip
from one battalion to another, staying
for ten days at a place, and were or
their return to this place (as our head
quarters are herc) when they were am
bushed and three of the men were
killed. None of them were killed out
right as could be seen when they were
brought In, but only wounded so as to
disable them, and as the escort only
consisted of u corporal and three men
they were powerless against 200 Gug,is
and they were all boloed almost beyond
recognition. Then came the attack on
the engineers camp, which was sit,i-
ated three miles from any reinforce
ments with only a corporal and seven
men from our company. I happened to
be one of them and we had all the
fighting we bargained for then-yes.
moro too. 1t had been raining all day
and night and I went on guard at
a. M, the night so dark you could not
see your hand before you. At about
1:20 a. m. single shot was fired fol-
lowed Immediately by a volley from
three sides. We held our position for
an hour and half when the Gugus be-
a,.lr H.. 4
to make move as we were outnum-
bered fifteen to one and made our way
through the flanking party and re-
treated into this town all but one man,
who showed UP the next day. This at
tack occurred July 81. The following
week, August 4th. we lost two men
who were killed from ambush while
acting as escorts to the meat wagon.
Now from this date on 1t would take up
too much space to tell OF the different
details that have been sent out from
here for different purposes and We're
attacked, some losing men and others
having to fight their way through
great superior numbers. rr
"Just last week detail OF seven
men were waylaid and a signal corps
sergeant lost his life. This was a very
sad case. He was a nice looking young
man of 27 years of age. had served six
years In the army and his time was out
the last day of the month. He had all
arrangements made to go home and
expected to be married on his arrival,
but the black devils got him after all.
/ also knew ayoung fellow who was
sergeant in our company, but was
transferred to company II, who was the
sole support of an aged mother and he
died in the hospital here about two
weeks ago. The niggers use all manner
of schemes to draw us. out in small
detachments, their favorite one being
the cutting OF telegraph wires which
they do almost every day. Last week
half way between here and Dos Mari
mas they cut the wire, hitched car
raboo to it and pulled down about a
mile of 1t and then fastened 1t across
the road in several places and laid In
ambush for the wagon train which was