Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-05-24
RO'MUDANDWATER
Gen. Young's Campaign Against
Aguinaldo.
bow INSURGENTS WERE SCATTERED
A Story Of Wonderful En-
durance.
A MEMORABLE EXPEDITION

| The War Department has given out the
| report of operations of Brigadier General
| S. B. NJ. Young, commanding provisional
| cavalry brigade. between October IL. 1892
and January /. 1900. In northern LuZon.
| during which he broke up the boosted I'm
vincible army of insurgents.
The date from which the more interest
| ing of these operations began is the 9th of
October 1899, when General Young returned
| from Manila, after a conference with Cen
erals Otis and Lawton and rejoined his
| command at San Fernando, Pampanga AT
| that time General MacArthur's advance
post was al Angeles, a point on the Manila
and Dagupan railroad, about fifty miles
| from Manila, where he had two troops of
| the 4th Cavalry, Light Battery E, LIST Ar
| tillery. and the sod Infantry. The 22d In
| fantry was at Candaba, the Sd at Baliuag,
and a detachment at Calumpit: Wheeler
with the 1st Brigade, was below Angeles,
and Grant with the I'd Brigade at San Fer
nando.
The insurgents were scattered between the
Pampanga river and the railway. Aguinal-
| do, with the insurgent government being
at Tarlac.
Objects of the Expedition.
General Young. at San Fernando, had
been intrusted with protecting the right
| out with Major Balances battalion of the
22d, the Macabebe scouts under Batsor, and
Loves scouts under Cashier, moving IN
the east bank of the Pampanga. Two bat
talions of the 24th. the mounted battery,
ard the unmounted squadron of the 4th
Cavalry, were at Mexico, but on the 11th
they moved to Santa Ana, the objective
being the capture or disintegratioa of
| Aguinaldo's army, the release of the Span
ish prisoners known to be with him. and
the possible recapture of Lieut. Gilmore of
| the navy and his party.
Capture of Arayat.
Early on the morning of the 18th. Lieut..
Col. Keller with one battalion of the 9th
Infantry, rushed the nsurgent works be-
fore Arayat, and by $50, with bu: one
| casualty, had possession of the city. This
point, a town of some 1000 people, ten
miles east of Bacolor. a point the rail-
way about fifty miles north-northeass Of
Manila, was made Il base of operations and
the command reorganized, being joined by
Balance and Baldwin, with their battal-
| ions of the 22d, and engineer detach-
ment under Lieut.. Cakes. San Pedro Ma
galang was taken on the 18th, and later
in the day Batson, with two companies of
MacabebeS who had marched up the LETT
| bank of the river from Calumpit, Joined
the command
Cabiac, a town of some 10000. on the
Pampanga. was the next objective, and De-
were strongly intrenched. The first fight
was at Libutad, where a front attack was
made on the enemys position. which had
been strengthened by breastworks and a
well constructed blockhouse, and where
stubborn resistance was made, bu. the town
was captured without serious resistance.
and was entered by Balances column about
9:30 in the morning. In the afternoon of
the same day Balance moved forward on
the road to San Isidro. At San Fernando,
about two miles out from Cabiao, the in
surgents were found to be intrenched on
both sides of the river. A brisk fire was
opened on the column from both banks, but
they We're driven from the intrench-
| ments without loss and San Fernando was
entered that afternoon.
Advance on AbominabIe Roads.
The overwhelming defeat of the nsur-
gents at Libutad and San Fernando, and
the capture of so large a number of them
at the very beginning of the advance,
seemed to have a marked influence in dis
heartening them, so that little opposition
was encountered until reaching the works
In front of San Isidro Hayes, with
mounted squadron of the 4th Cavalry, and
Scott with a mounted battery of the 3Ith,
came up on the night of the 18th and
joined Young, who was escorted by ChaSe'S
troop of the Sd Cavalry. The roads and
trails encountered during this weeks adj
vance were among the most abominable;
officers and men were not only drenched
with filthy water but We're covered with
mud from head to foot. Notwithstanding
this Gen. Young moved out early on the
morning of the 18TH with Balances bat
TALON of the nd. the Light Battery, the
mounted troopcf the 37th and attachments
of the 4th Cavalry all under the command
of Major Balance.
Crossed Stream Under Fire.
Some two miles beyond San Fernando
there is unfordable stream, which the
main road crosses floating bridge that
~ had att cd IN As
this stream could not be forded, a screen
of scouts assembled at the bridge, where
they were met by strong fire from con-
cea,ed enemy, but without faltering they
rushed across the stringers, gaining the OPP
posite bank, which they held and protected
the bridge until the arrival of Balances adj
vance, although p per cent of their num-
Der were shot in doing So Gen. Young re-
ports that even after being severely wound
ed these scouts continued to use their rifles
The bridge was then repaired sufficiently to
permit the passage of the artillery and the
advance continued to Calaba, where
the insurgents had intrenched themselves
in bamboo grove the far side of an
opening, not over eighty yards wide
through which our troops had to pass. Not
withstanding this disadvantage our troops
charged across the opening. driving the
enemy from their Entertainments and
through Calaba.
From Calaba to San Isidro the road has
two forks, one leading direct to the town
and the other following up the river, and
the insurgents were intrenched on both of
these forks. Balance took the direct road
to the town with his battalion of the 22d,
two dismounted troops of the 4th Cavalry,
under Captain Rivers, four guns of the
Light Battery, and the dismounted troop
of the 37th. Chase, with two guns of the
battery two troops of the 4th Cavalry and
a company Of infantry, proceeded along the
river road.
Capture of San IsidrO.
The advance of the skirmish line and cap
ture of San Isidro were among the liveliest
engagements of the campaign. The direct
road ran through submerged rice fields, in
terspersed with lagoons and thickets,
through which it was exceedingly difficult
and at times almost impossible, to proceed
The men were drenched with water and COW
cred with mud, but the firing and skirmish-
ing was almost incessant for the two miles
to San Isdro: but, without hating, the
thoroughly exhausted cavalry kept up the
run through the town on the Gapan road,
past the barrier of San Nicolas. where the
last dead insurgent was seen, and where the
pursuit was ended, for the reason that 1t
was too dark to proceed Owing to the ra-
pidity of the advance and the fact that our
men had been fighting all the way and
nearly all the time from early morning until
dark they were unable to search for the
daad insurgents hut on the following dav a