Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-01-08
STORY OF CAPTIVITY
Lieut.. Gilmore Tells of His E1pe-
riences as a Prisoner.
PARTY CAME NEAR BEING shot
He Speaks in High Terms Of His
Rescuers
HIS VIEWS ON THE WAR

A dispatch from Manila, es;erday says:
I.ieutenant ]. c. Gilmore of the United
States gunboat Yorktown who was cap
TuTed by the insurgents last April. near
Bdler, on the east coast of Luzon. and res
ciled few days ago by Colonel Luther
Hare Of The SD Volunteer Infantry, sat to-
dag III the apartment of his sister Mrs
Price. al the Hotel Oriente, in Manila, and
t0ld remarkable story of his eight months
il captivity. ending with his dramatic de-
liTcraHce from a death that seemed inevi-
1abI-.
The steamer Venus came into the harbor
last evening from Vigan. province of South
1loc"$. with Lieutenant Gilmore and nine
teen other American prisoners, including
seven of his sailors from the Yorktown.
Lieutenant Gilmore. after reporting came
ashore and hobbled along with the aid of
i cane, TO the Hotel Or.ente, where AMER
-can officers and ladies were Waiting
through the halls 10 the strains Of ''Aguin-
ADDS March,
Although tanned aud rudy from expos
Ere, he i weak and nervous, showing the
results Of long hardSh-pS. He speaks warm
y OF AgEinaldO and very bitterly against
General Tine. declaring that While in the
formers jurisdiction he was treated SPLEEN
d!cly but that after he fell into Tino'S
hands he suffered everything.
Colonel Hare and Lieutenant Colonel
Howe. the latter of he 34th Volunteer In
fantry. rescued Gillmore's party on Decem-
Der j.. near the headwaters Of the Abalut
river. after they had been abandoned by the
FiIpinos. and were expecting death from
the savage tribes around them. When the
Tescuing force reached them they were
nearly starved. but were building RATS in
The hope Of getting down the river to the
coast Lieutenant Gilmore made the fol-
lowing statement to a correspondent Of the
Associated Press:
abandoned by the FilipinOs.
The Fiiipinos abandoned US on the night
Of December 16. We had reached the Aba
Tut river. near its source. that morning.
and the ElipinOs RATED us over. We then
went down the stream, along a rough trail,
guarded by company Of Fflipinos. That
nigh W. were separated from this guard.
and another company. armed with Maus-
ers. was put i'll charge Of Us. ] suspected
some ming. and questioned the lieutenant in
command He said: i have orders from
General Tho to shoot YOU all. bur my con-
science ferbids. l shall leave You here
Il begged him for two rifles 10 protect US
from The .SaYaSes. adding that l would give
him letters 10 the Americans, who would
pay him well and keep him from all harm
Tie refused This, however. saying that he
would not dare to comply. Soon afterward
lie LIFT with his company,
We had seen some savages in war paint
ar";ftsi us and We prepared to fight them
with cobblest6nes. the only weapons that
we're available to Us. The next morning
We followed the trail Of the Filipino SOL
stick To them than 10 be murdered by saw
agrs, but We could not catch up with them.
Then l ordered III men to build RATS. in
the hope Of floating down the river IL was
a f0rlurn hope. but l knew the river must
en- PITY into the sea somewhere | was so
weak myself that / did not expect 10 get
out, but / thought some of the men could.
ION the morning Of December Is while
We We're working on the rats, the AEneri-
cans came toward us. yelling. one Of my
mon shouted. They are on US He was
flashing a aft of bamboo. l. however.
knew il was not n e yell nf savaeeS. but the
Yell Of Americans The rtscuinS troops
thought We had Filipino guards. and called
20 us in English to lie down. 50 that they
could shoot the FiIipincs. That was the
finest body OF officers and men I ever saw
Came Down the River ON Rats.
Lieut.. Gilmore could not speak enthu-
sia<ticaliy enough about the 14u picked men
who had rescued him and his party The
command spent the day in making RATS.
Col Hare thought Lieut.. Gilmore too weak
10 live through the trip. but there was no
alternative They shot many rapids. the