The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1900-03-22
PHILIPPINE IGORROTES.
DURING THE CHASE OF AcUlNALpo
THEY DID GOOD SERVICE.

! HH HE Manila correspondent OF
| the Chicago Tribune writes
the following amusing nc
count of the Igorrote natives
who have been enlisted in our army
and who accompanied Major March
during his pursuit of Aguinaldo:
Major March and his column Of 100
travel-worn men, accompanied by
twice as many Igorrote "szadores, "
or burden bearers, reached Bagnan
mt nightfall. The Major knew that
! Aguinnldo had left the town several
hours before, but hoped to get some
information there which would put
him on the right track.
At Bagnan, which was merely col
lection Of huts on a steep, sloping
mountain side, hundreds of Igorrotos
were waiting to greet us.
As the column entered the town tho
| Presideuta gave signal with his
cane and they burst into loud shout
ing, "Viva Espanol viva Espanoll"
The Major looked discouraged. Be-
fore he did anything elso he called up
tho Presidenta and selected chorus
of lusty lunged Igorrotes md taught
thom to repeat after him, "Viva
Americanosl viva Americanosl" Tho
Igorrotes we're willing. "Viva Ameri-
canos" meant as much to them as
Viva Espanol," or viva Chicago" or
anything else, They are much like
the Chicago newsboys. They wanted
something Ito holler," and one thing
was rs good as another and meant
about as much.
1t was discouraging to tho Major,
after he had carefully drilled his
chorus and informed them who we
were nud whence we came, to have
one of them point at him as he walked
away and soy in breathless tone to
the other Igorrotes about him, "Aqui-
naldo." Major March explained that
ne was not Aquinaldo, but it did no
good.
Only few had any clear idea Of
who or what Aguinaldo was, and
Major March came as near realizing
heir ideal as anybody, so they at
once applied TO him that name.
There was not much to eat in Bag
nan. The chief, and, in fact, about
the only, food Of the people seemed
10 be species OF sweet potato, which
was not sweet In spite of its name,
/ out which the soldiers eagerly bought
! as welcome change from the ever.
lasting rice.
The men made camp fires and
crowded about, for the evening was
decidedly cool. The Igorrotes sat
stolidly huddled up in their blankets
in the middle OF the road and every
where else they could get that was di-
rcctly in the road. 1t was impossible
80 step without walking over an Igor
fote. The soldiers would scowl at
hem to move out OF the way, but
Shey merely looked stupidity ahead
and continued to squat where they
were.
Finally. the oxasperated soldiery,
having exhausted vocabulary OF ex-
oletives that would have made an old
and hardened army mule fall to his
knees in repentance and tears, spoke
no mere to the Igcrrote brethren. If
| shey wanted one to get out of the
coad they simply pushed him over
and rolled him down the trial. If
they wanted ono to 60 to the spring
after water they merely put canteen
in his hand, pulled him to his feet,
burned his face toward the spring and
gave him kick. The momentum
usually sufficod to carry the IgGrote
10 the water and the alluring glare OF
the camp fire brought him back. II
he forgot the water, two soldiers
would kick him at once, and the in
creased stock OF energy was generally
sufficient to carry him to the spring
and enable him to fill tho canteen be.
fore he ran down.
Major March and his officers took
possession OF little building which
the Spanish friars had erected and
used as mission and school house.
There were great cracks on the floor.
and the cold mountain wind swooped
into the room with roar. IT was as
cold as the lake winds in winter. We
tried to sleep, but the floor was the
hardest / had ever slept on. The
| wind hovled and shrieked and it was
80 cold that we would wake up every
i INV AhN thNh WAth OuI beota
and our feet and hands fairly numb.
Added to the cold were some $50
| distinct and separate smells peculiar
| to Igorrote towns. Each different wind
as it whistled up through tho holes in
the floor was laden with new and
more appalling smell. We took the
blankets from our shivering bodies
and wrapped them about our heads to
keep out the Igorrote odors. but those
vigorous and perniciously active
smells would have gone through a
brick wall. and all we could do was to
try to sleep.
Many of the soldiers. especially
those who had no blankets, sat all
night crowded around their camp
fires, where the cherry blaze and the
fresh smell OF burning pine kept away
both the cold aud the smells.
OF course, they had their troubles,
too. They would sent Igorrotes after
fresh WOOD for the fire aud the Igor
rotes would never come back. They
would simply move over and squat
down by the side of another fire.
When the soldiers in despair would 90
themselves after wood they would
ind. when they came back, dozen
gorrotes, their blankets over their
leads, sitting like wooden images
| about the chearful blaze and aomo nf