The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-01-08

-Aol14lclt Jull g. > D. Lieutenant
J. c. Gilmore Of the United States gun
boat Yorktown, who was captured by
the insurgents last April near Baler.
on the coast of LUzon, and rescued a
few days ago by Colonel Luther r.
Hare OF hte Thirty-third volunteer in
fantry, sat today in the apartment Of
his sister, Mrs Major Price, at the
Hote! oriente in Manila. and told a re-
markable story of his eight months in
captivity, ending with his dramatic
deliVerance from a death that seemed
inevitable.
The steamer Venus came INFO the
harbor last evening from Vigan. prov
1nce OF South ilOCOs, with Lieutenant
Gilmore and nineteen other American
prisoners including seven of his sail
Ors from the Yorktown. Lieutenant
Gilmore, after reporting, came ashore
and hObbled along. with the aid of a
cane, to the Hotel Oriente, where
American officers and ladies were
Waiting through the halls TO the
strains of "Aguinaldos March"
AguinaIdo Was Kind.
Although tanned and rudy from ex-
pOsure, he is weak and nervous, show
ing the results Of long haTdShips. He
speaks warmly Of Aguinaldo and very
bitterly against General Tino. declar-
ing that while in the formers jurisdic-
ton he was treated splendidly, but
after he fell into TinO's hands he SUI
fered everything.
Colonel Hare and Lieutenant Colonel
Howse, the latter Of the Thirty-fOurth
volunteer infantry, rescued CfillmOre's /
party on Dec IS near the headwaters
OF the Abalut river, after they had
been abandoned by the Filipinos and
were expecting death from the savage
tribes around them. When the rescu-
ing force reached them they We're near
" starved, but were building RATS in
the hope of getting down the river 20
the coast
Lieutenant Gilmore made the follow
ang statement to a correspondent Of
the Associated Press: The FilfpinOs
abandoned us on the night Of Dec Is. J
We had reached the Abalut river, near |
its source, that morning and the Fill /
pinos RATED US over. We then went I
down the stream along a rough trail, I
guarded by a company Of FilipinOs. /
That night we were separated from /
This guard and another company. armed /
with MaUsers, was put in charge of US. !
! suspected something and questioned (
the lieutenant in command. He said. /
i have orders from General Tino to /
shoot You all. but my conscience for /
bids, / shall leave you here.
L begged him for two rifles to pro I
teCt US from savages, adding that I /
would give him letters TO the AmeTi- |
cans, who would pay him well and /
keep him from all harm. He refused /
this, however, saying he would not dare
10 comply, Soon afteTWard he left
with his company.
Savages in War Paint.
we had seen some savages in war
paint around us, and we prepared to
fight them with cobblestOnes. the only
weapons that We're available 10 US.
The next morning We followed the
trail of the Filipino soldiers feeling
that it was better TO stick so them than
be murdered by savages, but we could
not catch Up with them Then / or
dered the men TO bu RATS. in the +
hope of floating down the river. It
was a f0rlorn hope, but 1 knew the
river must empty into the sea some
where. l was so weak myself that 1
did not expect to set out but 1 thought
some of the men could
ION the morning of Dec. IS, while we
were working on the RATS. the Ameri-
cans came toward US yelling. One of
my men shouted. They are on us He
was lashing a raft of bamb0os. I,
however, knew it was not the yell Of
savages. but the yell of Americans
The rescuing troops thought we had
Filipino guards and called to US in
English to lie down, 40 that they could
shoot the Flipinos. That was the
finest body Of officers and men I ever
saw"
Lieutenant Gilmore could not speak
enthusiastically enough about the 40
picked men who had rescued him and
his party.
Tae command spent the day. making
RATS Colonel Hare thought Lieuten- I
ant Gilmore too weak to live through
die trip. but there was no alternative. 1
They shot many rapids. the men losing
all their effects and Lieutenant Gill
more some valuable papers. Only four
teen out Of thirty-seven RATS survived
he first nights experience, and eighty I
men were practically unable to walk [
when Vigan was reached.
Describing the flight from BengUet
when the Americans approached, Lieu
.enant Gilmore said:
Nearly Starved.
'The Fihpinos, completely terrified, y
eft B6nguet on Dec. T. They hurried c
the trail, not knowing where r
he Americas would attack. After be- t
ng without food for three days they
killed sew raj horses, and We lived on Il
lOrssfesh for several days. I did not b
lave a full meal from Dec. & until t
cached Vigan. Indeed, the rescuing
,arty lived largely upon rice without
alt. There was one day when I was
educed 70 chewing grass and bark
while we were ia the hands of Gen ]
raj TinO's men he issued an order that
my person aiding an American by food
II money should be treated as Grim
nal one citizen Of Nisan, Senior Vera, il
vas probably killed for befriending US <
Ne would have starved but for the a
-indness of some Of the residents Of :
he towns and some of the Filipino y
ol0nels. but others treated US brU- a
ally. Wherever there wes a prison r
re were kept there. Where there was A
10 prison they would lodge Us in a I,
OnVent.. We suffered greatly from
yant Of exercise as well as lack Of I,
oOd." n
Painted the Trail. G
For weeks Lieutenant Gilmore was n
overed with boils and in great pain.
When the FilipinOs found the Amer 3
ans were approaching, the treatment y
ecame better. There was a sign
ainter in the party, and he painted
advertisements on the rocks through
ut the retreat, with other emhlems, Il
Ike a skull and the word Vengeance" ri
3 means of which the Americans were %
bic to follow. ii
The Filipino treatment Of the Span h
b, said Lieutenant Gilmore, was r,
rutal in the extreme. The Insurgents n
ad Did grudges to wipe out against II
lem. Many talk about the reconcen- ri