The National tribune., 1902-01-02


with roar of bursting bamboo like tn
rattle of musketry from large army Il
action while the sky was lurid from tn
flames, and thousands of refugee
streamed out OF the blazing habitaton
loaded with goods or plunder and sough
places of safety beyond the reach of tn
flames. while ever and anon was heart
the genuine crack of a rife as some Eli
ipino skulker took a shot at the soldier
who were at work eXtinguishing the fire
or the street patrol brought down one o
these sharpshooters with u well-aime(
shot and tumbed him from u window O
roof of a building.
1t was d wild night, one which vii
never fade from the memory of those wht
were in the thick Of the confaSratlon ant
the fray. How the FilipinoS happened Il
pick out the 22d of February for this eff
fort to destroy the town is not known
but in all probability the selection was
but a coincidence and the apparently i'm
pr0mptu celebration of the birthday of the
Father of His Country was by no means
intended as such. However, the Amer
lean soldiers so considered it, and in tht
midst of the work and the shooting joked
about it in genuine American style.
AMERICANS AWARE OF PLOT.
The first attack made by Aguinaldo's
army upon Manila was on the night OF
Feb. 4, resulting in the utter rOut of the
aSSailantS, who were driven back sew
eral miles into the country. After Gen.
Otis had by a few days fighting estab-
ished his lines at the points where he
intended to hold them for the permanent
defense of the city, he waited for rein
forcements, and it was during that period
of waiting that the plot to destroy the
city and capture it in the confusion was
laid and attempted to be executed. For
nearly six weeks, both before and after
the attack upon the town, the Americans
had been given repeated warnings of an
intended uprising in the city, to be ac-
companied by an attack from the outside.
All the troops were in readiness for such
an attempt, and every regiment, company
and battery had its position assigned to
it, TO which it should promptly go upon
the sounding of a general alarm.
These alarms became frequent, some
times in the daytime and sometimes at
night Ny own regiment, the I'd Ore,
was portion of the provost guard en-
trusted with the policing of the city, and
In consequence We were called out much
more often than the regiments that had
no such duty to perform.
One battalion went so often to Vic
toria street, within the walled city, and
roasted on the cobblestones waiting for
orders, that the street became known as
the Victoria trenches"
1t was Z common remark when the men
sought their bamboo hunks at the sound
of quarters, well, l wonder how many
times the goOgoos will get us out to-
night One facetiouS soldier said that
when he got home he was going to write
another story, to go with the title I'm
the Midst of Alarms"
The Captain of one company, whose sta
ton was ON one of the bridges, went TO his
post so often at night that he assured me
he could detect and describe every brand
of smell that fioated down the Passig
River
The Secret Service, or Information Bu-
reau, was in constant receipt of informa-
ton about plots of various degrees of bar
barity for the complete determination Of
the white population. This Information
Bureau used TO be somewhat of a joke in
the army. 1t had number of natives in
its employ, and it was the common Opin-
ion that these natives furnished infOrma-
ton to both sides. Certain it was that
nothing the army undertook was unknown
TO the insurgents. As for US, we knew
great deal about what the insurgents
were not doing, though how much of what
they We're actually doing was reported
to us by these agents was question. At
any rate, it was reported that such and
such a night was the one selected for the
grand uprising, then another and another,
until it became 4 joke in the army. In
almost all cases Sunday was the day Sc
lectcd.
1t is a peculiarity of the Filipinos that
they nearly always select Sunday for
battle Possibly they think so sacred a
day the best for their sacred cause. or
this do not know, but noticed before the
fail OF Manila that there was fight
every Sunday, and after AGuinaldo un-
dertook the job of driving the Americans
into the sea Sunday was his day of spe-
cial activity. We We're always specially
watchful ON Sunday.
During this period it was dangerous
work for the street patrol, because of
their liability 10 secret assault. The au-
thorities had been guilty Of the bad jHdg-
ment of dismissing the native police force
composed largely Of Macabebcs of I'M
doubted loyalty, because they were dis
liked by the Tagals. This police force,
which it has since been found neceS-
sary TO re-establish, had been very active
in discovering and disarning insurgents
within the city limits, and complaints had
been made by Aguinaido's following about
them. As il was then the policy to pla
cate and coddle the insurgents as much as
possible, this very useful organization was
disbanded, and the army provost guard,
utterly ignorant of the natives and their
work of the city. The i'll effects of the
change were soon apparent, but the policy
was persisted in for the reason given.
BOLOID AT HIS POST.
Several Of the street patrol had lively
experiences, but perhaps that of sentinel
of the Wyoming battalion was the most
exciting. 1t is the custom Of the Fill
pinO TO carry his bolo out Of sight under
his clothing, the poSs"sSor maintaining
that simple and harmless appearance that
was referred 10 by Bret Hart in his bal
lad of the Cinnamon whose smile il was
chldliEc and bland" Two such ami
gOs' passed this Wyoming sentinel on his
beat along a road in the southern suburbs
of the city. touching their pOmpadour hair
in the awkward salute the average FL
ipino gives 10 white men, and rcmarking
''BueifOs E"chcs, senor; muchos amigos"
10 which the sentinel replied. "Bueno
n0che," and passed on. Instantly he WAS
slashed from behind by one OF them with
n bOlO, the knife laying open a horrible
cash down the side of his face, neck and
shoulder. He fell to the ground and the
bOlomen ran, hut they did not get away
Partly rising the wounded man brought
his Springfield 10 bear on the fleeing fig
ures and dropped one Of them. Hastily
inserting another cartridge, hc drew a
bead on the other, now but hn indstinct
figure fast vanishing in the dim light Of
the stars, and fired Then he collapsed
The noise Of the shooting brought the
Corporal with relief, and the wounded
man was taken to the hospital, while the
body Of the dead Filipino was left for
burial the next morning. When daylight
came the body of the second man was
found IN the swamp grass by the side of