The National tribune., 1901-10-17

Several days passed, and then one night
there was sxcite4ent ip camp. Spies in
were going to attdck Maiabon and the
long line Of intrenchuients extending sew
eral miles 10 the eastward the next morn
ing. Speakers addeessed the excited SOL
diers and workedthem up to high pitch
of enthusiasm: They said the Filipinos
were ''muy vdlierte;" that their defenses
could not be tantured by the Americana
pigs; that there ssould be ''grande com
bate menana," and>that the ground would
be covered with ''muchos muertos Ameri-
| canos." i,.sxaf
At this the sjabhant EilipinOs howled
with JOY. e5rsf,
Bulger listened Iin amusement and dis
gust. mutteriHg to himself, Yes, there
will be big fight tomorrow, sure enough,
and there may be many dead Americans
! on the ground, but they won't do a thing
to you fellows. Every mothers son of
You who amt dead will be 10 miles from
here tomorrow night and he spat on the
ground to emphasize his contempt.
Long before the first gray of dawn
flushed the east he heard the first call and
reveile i'll the American camp and saw
| the sky Redeemed with the glow of fires
preparing breakfast that was to be the
last on earth for many of the laughing men
who gathered around it. Soon to his ears
| came the faint sounds of distant battle.
Il
regiment took up the firing
/ Then came loud report from an
| eartren redoubt in front of Caloocan, and
a shrapnel shell came smuggling towards
him and burst nearly over head. Then
| came another and another. rs rapidly rs
the three guns of the Utah Battery could
| fire them, searching the Filipino trenches
| for a mile to the right and left. Eo.leys
| of musketry accompanied them, and the
crashing of the shells and bullets through
the trees and bamboo clumps in which
| the trenches were hidden made Il racket
| that three times their number would not
| have caused i'll Omen ground.
The terrified Filipinos crouchcd bahin;
| their protecting walls of eaIth, and fired
| their guns as fast as they could load them.
| thrUSting the muZZCS over the top and
pulling the triggers mt random, for mt one
of them had Coura%" enough to put his
head M far enough t. take aim. Bn!ger
had been given Mausor and told Il fl :hi
or he would be killed. so he lay in IN,
trench shooting at the moon occa <ionrliy
ard Keeping up a running comment on the
conduct of the 'muy valicnte" soldiers
In little while he head tn american
hughes sound ''crasC firing and III mute
later ''attcEtion." ard he know whit WIS
coming. He jumped to his feet yelIins
Now you niEgers. get ort Of here unIrss
you want to stay fo; ever and list ned for
the next command. Soon it came. for
ward" and suddenly long line of blue
shirts and campaign hats appeared in
front OF the American trcH"hcs and ad
vanced towards the woods The F'ilipinos
kept mp their wild and rapid fire and
Bulger kept IN hi. yelling. until he saw
the advancing line go down upon its knees
He lodged down behind the trench inst
i'll time to escape the Voiiey that swept its
crest. Again the line advanced and again
it halted and swept the trench with vol
leys.
Finally the buglc sounded charge" and
the line rushed forward, every man yelling
like n Comanche Indian.
The Filipinos could stand it no longer.
They fled in terror into the woods behind
their trench, while Bugcr, yelling as loud
ly as any Of the charging line, ran after
them, shooting nj them as fast as he could
press clips into his. Mauscr. Over the
trench the Afnericans SWEPT, and began
potting the fleeing Filipinos, and fully a
score made target of the half crazy
Bulger. whose "bed-tick'' uniform made
him look like 4 Filipino. He fell with
bullet through. his left shoulder. and well
it was for him that he lay face downward
and was insensible, for had the excited
soldiers recognized a white man in an In
surgent uniform, 81 dozen bullets would
have found lodgment in his body.
The line swept on in pursuit of the fee
ing foe. and it was n whole hour before
Bulger was found by the hospital corps
and carried to the field hospital, where his |
wound was dressed and he was sent TO the |
hospital at Manila.
The story that the missing Corporal of
Company - had been wounded and cap
tured while fighting with the Insurgents |
spread like wild fire through the army, and |
many were the imprecations called down |
upon his head.
When he began to recover he told his |
I,,t III.
cept that portion relating to his visits to |
the girl. After that they had a theory of |
their own. One day beautiful mestiZo |
girl drove up to the hospital in Victoria |
and presented a pass admitting her to see |
the despsed renegade. 1t was Maria. She |
beamed upon him, and was overcome |
with JOY when he showed signs Of great |
pleasure at seeing her. But her joy was |
short lived, and faded when she learned |
that the reason of his happiness was that |
he now believed he could prove the truth |
Of his story. Her heart was torn with |
conflicting emotions, when she understood |
that she must speak the word that would |
restore him to his friends and honor and |
thus send him away from her forever, or |
failing to speak it she condemned him to |
the death of traitor The struggle was |
long, but true love won, though lucky for |
him it was that she knew nothing of the |
girl waiting for him in that mysterious |
land beyond the sea.
A few weeks later an army transport |
sailed ont of Manila Bay with regiment |
of volunteers going home to- be mustered |
ont, and as it weighed anchor and passed |
slowly through the fleet, amidst the |
salutes of steam-whistles and cheers from |
a thousand throats. a mestizo girl stood on |
the stone dock and watched it with tear.
dimmed eyes until it was but a black |
streak of smoke on the horizon towards |
Corregidor Island. The next morning |
lone fisherman found girls body en- |
tangled in the bamboo netting of his fish |
trap, and dragging it into his dug0ut canoe |
he delivered it to the Corporal of the guard |
at the door of the Custom House.