Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-03-28

This is considered a great victory |
for the United Mine Workers of Amer
lea. Ottumwa people are familiar
with this organization, whose Iowa
branch held a convention here last
and the name of John P. Reese
@>->-~-<~-> -<>->>-e> >->-~-< >->-ee-<< e-e-e
the query and this hesitation cone
firmed the insurgent chief in his be-
lief that the policy which would bring
him the greater honor was that OF a
splendid isolation" from either of the
two powers, Spain and America, the
two millstones between which it was
the doom of the rebels to be slowly
ground to powder, and upon the meth
er stone of which Aguinaldo is now
pinned.
At that time the Americans had not
more than 1900 men in the field,while
Aguinaldo had between 10000 and So
600 armed troops surrounding Manila
alone. On Feb. the rebels made an
attack and were defeated, the battle
being excessively fierce, and in the
fourteen hours fight they were beat
en- back with loss of 1,90O men, over
14O Americans being killed and wound
their success, the American troops
followed the insurgents into the jun
giles and then commenced the hunt af-
ter the person of Aguinaldo, which has
formed largely the nucleus around
which the thousands of guerrilla skir-
mishes between the United States
troops and the natives have centered.
Re-enforcements Then Sent.
Matters then proceeded from bad to
worse and the coming on of the wet
season rendered for a time pursuit
Impossible, and the Filipino chief, in
Iured TO the weather of his native
country and accustomed to travel in
1.-THE fearful forests of the islands,
laughed to scorn the heavily clothed
land disciplined soldiers of the Amer
lean troops forced to stay in camp be-
cause of the weather, while he and his
supporters made life miserable to
them by harrassing and calling fire
at inopportune times and places.
When the year began to draw to a
close however, and the season which
had rendered operations ineffective
and useless had passed away, Aguinal-
do found reason to regret the fact
that he had arrayed himself so de-
',rninedly against the American
troops and his life in turn was made
! a burden grievous to be borne by the
bulldog pernacity with which he was
| followed and made to leave every po-
sition which he fattered himself had
been made impregnable. All this time
moreover, the insurgent leader had
been sending emissaries thruout the
| islands rousing hostility to the Amer
leans, and producing a upas three
| fruit, the gathering of which has caus-
ed the United States much suffering
and which is not yet garnered.
MalaIos Is the Capital.
With his plan of empire thwarted
on every hand by the closeness and
ardor of his pursuits, Aguinaldo sue
4 ceeded in giving his enemies the slip
for a couple of months, and in the
spring of 1900 was sufficiently strong
by that time to install his capital at
| Malalos, to intrench it strongly and
to array his troops in that district as
to be able to defy the Americans, even
if he was not able as he had hoped, to
conquer them and drive them from the
island. In fact SO sure was he of his
4 ability to keep the Americans at a
respectful distance that Malalos in it
self was not suitable for extensive
Notifications and was finally easily
captured when the United States
4 troops succeeded in penetrating the
jungles and eluding the ambushes
which the crafty Malay had planted
at efery place.
4 Then began the game of moving cap
i itals and installing alleged impregna
BILE fortresses on every hilltop and in
every marsh, until "Aguinaldo and his
capital became a standing joke il
America. Not so however, to the sol
diers in Luzon, who under the weight
of heavy accoutrements decimated by
disease, shot at from behind every
tree only found in every change o
capital new march more objection
able than the last and more prolific o.
maledictions upon the rebel who 81
, craftily sapped their strength in the
pursuit of what appeared to be all {
will o-the-wisp.
Leader Becomes Fugitive.
} From Tarlac driven to Bayombong
cut off by high mountains and appar
emily inaccessible to the world, movet
, Aguinaldo, with the white troops al
ways sufficiently near to be all bu
catching him, and with members of hi
} retinue and staff ever being killed o
: captured, moved the rebel only to fin,
! that he had penned himself in a tral
: and that tho his enemies could not ge
, at him, they made Gordon around hin
thru which he could not break. Her
t he fed alone, an humble fugitive, leay
;, ing his documents and his arms be
: mind him and escaping merely wit
: his life.
! So, from day to day, and from wee
I to week, Aguinaldo, leader now onl
in name, with an empty shadow of hi
former greatness as Nemesis owe
y lhis head was hunted by a relentles