The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-02-04

! General Wheeler.
question everyone who had been within
| the enemv's lines Their answers were
written down and the numerous state
ments were carefully classified and com
pared. All classes OF men whose state
ments General Wheeler could secure were
! cateehised They included escaped Span
| ism prisoners. escaped American prisoners,
Filipino prisoners, and deserters from the
insurgent ranks. Filipino citizens and
| Cinnamon. When number of statements
/ by persons between whom there had been
| no intercourse, were the same or were cor
roborated by other information, he assum-
ed them TO be reliable.
The information thus obtained included
facts concerning the strength and arma :
ment of the enemy at various garrisons, the
nature of defences, the condition OF
roads. and the names of insurgent COM
manders BY such simple but rather tedi-
GUS efforts he secured much accurate and
valuable information, and set an excellent
example to other officers
In places where General Wheeler had
command, he managed TO take good care of
his soldiers without using churches for
hospitals or any other purpose. leaving
them protected for religious services alone.
This was done at Santa Rita and also at
Panique. and after he became the eomman-
der at Tarlac he promptly provided good
accommodations for the sick. leaving the
church TO the priest and his people.
Marching Troops in Luxon.
Much has been said about the difficulty
Of marching troops in Luzon on account of
the climate and what are called impsssa-
BILE roads. Without doubt the worst and
most difficult road thus far encountered is
the one Travelled by General Wheeler on
November % from Panique to San Miguel
de Gambling. commonly called Gambling"
The road had not. been used for long
time. and had been declared by Filipino
citizens 10 be absolutely impossible. The
enemy were reported as concentrating at
Gambling, probably with the view that at
that place they were secure from the at
lacks of American soldiers. \ scout from
the Thirty-sixth Infantry had been sent
toward Gambling and had returned, re-
porting it TO be impossible TO proceed far
Their than two and half miles.
General Wheeler. however, had insisted
that troops could go anywhere in the ISL
and, and he determined 10 prove it. He
accomplished the journey, but admitted
that the road more nearly approached be-
lHB lBpdoSdbit dlAN lldu YET
encountered. The road crosses several
rivers and lagoons, four of which are so
deep that the native horses were compell-
ed to swim. The soil IN many places is a
bog, into which horses frequently sink as
deep as twenty inches. The men were al
most entirely immersed at times, and OFF,
GERS as well as men were frequently in
water up to their waists Officers who
had been in the DOGGY country south of
Manila stated that this road was far
worse than any they had travelled or heard
Of.
When General Wheeler advanced upon
Mabalacat on the morning Of November s.
he encountered three high lines of Filipino
breastworks, with deep trenches which he
had TO level before the artillery could pass;
and he was also compelled TO rebuild a
bridge which The insurgents had destroyed.
BY personally leading his troops, he ac-
complished this work and made the march
of nearly five miles in one hour and forty
nine minutes. and when he reached Ma
balacat his troops were fresh. and he beg
ged permission to move forward and pur-
sue the enemy.
At Capas, at a. m, November 10, he
was ordered 10 march to Tarlac. IIa di
rected Colonel Bubb. the commander of
the leading regiment, to time his march
SO as to reach Tarlac, distance of about
twelve and a half miles, at 10 o'clock. The
colonel replied that to make the march
to Tarlac before 10 o'clock would incspaci-
tate the command for two weeks.
Wheeler Marches ON Foot
General Wheeler gave his horse 10
sick soldier, took the gun OF a sergeant
who was i'll. and started on foot at the
head OF the command, his purpose being to
learn from personal experience the best
rate OF marching. He made short halt
every hour and at 10 o'clock he marched
into Tarlac, the command entering half an
hour later. General Wheeler was not ia
tigued and devoted several hours in in
specting quarters and comfortably locating
his command. That night and the next
morning Colonel Bubb reported his troops
to be in good condition and not detrimen-
tally affected by the march.
The other regiment OF General Wheel |
rrs brigade the Ninth Infantry, marched
from Bamban 10 Tarlac, a distance of
sixteen miles, between 7:30 "A. m. and ; |
p. m, and came in buoysnt and in good |
condition.
On November % General Wheeler march |
ed 100 infantry 10 attack force reported |
to he at Sulpa, distance OF nine miles, |
between 2:3o a. m. and 6:i5 a. m. This /
march involved the crossing OF two con-
HibfIdDit IiNftE. anu Int lfptDS ndu " I
traverse the marshy bottoms for dis |
lance on each side.
On December he marched 80 infantry |
from Panique 10 camp. near San lgnscia, |
a distance Of nearly seventeen miles, be- 4
tween a. IN. and y. NJ. This included |
the fording OF several rivers and lagoons. |
and the passage through a jungle where for |
three miles horses sang in the DOGGY mud /
from six to twenty inches.
On December 5 General Wheeler marched
a small force Of infantry from San Igna-
clio TO Moriones, distance Of fourteen
miles. between $3.50 .. m. and 1:42 n. m.
In none OF these marches did the troops
suffer In any way whatever. These move
ments would indicate that the statements
as TO the difficulty OF marching soldiers in
the Philippines have been greatly exagger-
ated. and that. by careful, conservative
troops can cover ground as
well there as in any other warm couu-