Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1901-03-28

/ meeting accomplished and intelligent
countrywomen again. Mrs Newell
( had a cat, the first glance at which
gave me al impression that it was not
3 Filipino. It's neatness and self-con-
fidence spoke its descent, and learned
it was born on the transport Sherman
/ OF pure American parentage.
The following morning we escorted
a paymaster, Major Pickett, a son Of
the confederate general Pickett who
made the famous charge at Gettys-
burg. The major was on his way to
| pay company of the gath to the
north OF US. / rode in the DoheIty
wagon with him. A wagon with IN
Irish name would naturally suggest
nothing more imposing than a wheel,
barrow or at most dump-cart, but
! Doherty is very fine ambulance with
side doors and seats arranged like
those Of stage coach that can be
| changed to fore-and-aft seats when
required
The major proved a good talker and
| story-teller and he made our ride very
J enjoyable. He is rotund and jolly
and speaks with a rich Virginia infiec-
ton. As we neared Cabanatuan we
met the burial corps with a long, lugu-
| br1ous procession of wagons loaded
with long wooden boxes containing
dead soldiers going home" poor fell
lows, to sadly waiting friends and rel
atives. The escort reported they had
fr~c1 hr-N
the town. l closed up our cavalcade
and left the Doherty's grateful shade
| and mounted my black pony. AS we
| neared the lower end of Santa Rosa a
| rifle cracked spitefully in front of us.
We have become used to the distinc-
tive qualities of the discharges of the
various firearms used in the islands
and always guess the character of the
men discharging them by the sound.
This discharge did not have the rend-
ing quality Of the Krag. report, nor
was it as dead as the Mauser. |
forced my horse rapidly to the front,
dismounted the advance guard and
rushed through field of growing
vegetation full of thistles and nettles
only to find that the alarm had been
an innocent one. We heard some
men shouting in English on our right
and presently discovered three men
from the garrison with shotguns out
on permission to go hunting They
had fired in the rice fields and
alarmed the burial corps.
Major Picket took breakfast with us
and pushed on to Cabanatuan In the
evening he returned and passed the
night.
Today Captain Dowdy with the
mounted men went by order of Gen.
Funston to Cabanatuan to meet a very
impatient hombre who was coming
down the pike and escort him this
way. The party returned at three in
the afternoon with the man who in
sisted he was no less a parsonage
than special messenger from the elll,
sive and retiring Aguinaldo. He said
he had left Aggie on the 18th of Janu-
airy in Isabella province in the north
eastern part of the island near the |
coast and that he was commissioned |
to believer communications to all the |
lnsurrecto generals. He had found |
the sentiments of the people undergo.
ing such change in favor of the |
Americans that he had Ired of his lob |
and tried to surrender himself and |
men to Major Detchmendy at Baler. |
but the Americans had driven them |
away with mucho boom-boom They |
had then wandered on and finally got |
lost in the wilderness, become foot
sore and weary, and desperately |
hungry for chow-chow, when por la
gracia de Dios they found themselves
at Punta Bangan and were kindly re-
ceived by the Americanos He further
said that General Emilio's army IS
muy POGO and that they have very
little chow or anything else. A cav
airy detachment took the saddened |
insurgent to San Isidro accompanied |
by the paymaster and his clerk.
LincoIn's Forgiveness.
Among the stories told me by Major
Ficket while l rode beside him in the
Doherty was one of President Lincoln
which l think of some interest. He
said that the appointment of his
father to West Point in 1912 was Sc
cured through the friendship and in
fuence of Abraham Lincoln. That al
though Virginian, his father studied |
law in Springfield, H., and became
we'll acquainted with Mr.. Lincoln. He
said that at one time during the OWL
war, when their Virginia home was
within the lines of the union army, |
the president called there to see his
mother, when he, the m .jor, was a |
bhe in cradle.
Il am Mr.. Lincoln he said. "the |
friend of George Pickett. And you
may tell hirs,'' he added, as he chucked |
the baby under the chin, that l for
give him, the rascal, ON account of
your laughing brown eyes and your
mothers sweet smile"
The major also said his father re-
ceived rcany letters from Mr.. Lincoln.
Laurence A. Curtis.