The sun., 1902-03-10

sending them with Hilario Placido and
three or four others whom he mentioned,
Hiario Placdo and three other officers
who accompanied us had been insurgents;
two of them had been captured about
three months before and the others had
voluntarily surrendered. No particular
inducement was offered TO them TO JON
us, except that we told them we would
reward them pretty well and We would
have a pretty good time. llaughter'
They were not informed as TO the actual
purpose of the expedition until we had
sailed from Manila, as II was not considered
advisable to take too many into our con-
fidenco
DELUDHERED AN ISsURGENr TOWN.
However, we sailed from Manila on the
Vicksburg, and by the way II was lucky
thing for us to get such ship as the Nicks-
burg, and SO fine ali officer as Capt. Barry
I'm command of her and such lot OF sailors
as manned her, because IL We had had TO
depend on any merchant ship in the world,
or any picked up crew OF men, | don know
what In hell wei mean we would never
have put that expedition through sue
cessfully Great embarrassment on uns-
toms part az he caught the Rev. DR.. Minot
J. Savage's eye.
The Vicksburg sailed from Manila on
the 9th Of March with force consisting OF
five American officers. including myself,
nty-nine Macabebe scouts. four ex-
insurgent officers and Segovia, who had
given up the correspondence from Agui-
naldo. Four days later we reached Casi,
guran Bay on the east coast OF LuZon' ana
ran up the bav for about ten miles, ana
there we landed, a hundred and ten miles
south of whore Aguinaldo was.
The country between the place OF disefn-
bsrkation and his camp was almost impas-
sable mountains. mountains which had
never been crossed by white man except
once, by jesuit priest. about twenty-five
years before. The country was inhabited
mostly by savages. but there was about
twenty miles north OF our landing place
village known as Casigiran, small Town
of not over three hundred people. lhey
had Presidente. or Mayor as we would
call him, and a small force OF insurgent
soldiers.
IN JAIL As PART OF THE COMEDY.
We knew IL would be necessary for us
to land southwark OF this town, because
the coast from there north was absolutely
inaccessible, being composed OF precipi-
tous cliffs. / knew also that landing an
armed force In this town would cause the
inhabitants to take TO the woods unless we
sent some correspondence 10 them 30
we wrote another letter. This letter was
signed by Hilario Placido and merely said
TO the Mayor OF the town that he was on
his way north to join Aguinaldo; that he
had captured five American prisoners and
that he would remain in his town for about
two days, and told him 10 provide quarters
and rations for his men at once.
We sent Cecilia Sigismondo, two soldiers
and two Macabebe scouts 10 town Win
this letter. and we went In later. When
we reached there the people were out TO
greet US. They looked with considerable
curiosity at the American prisoners,
we being the first they had ever seen. The
Macabebes, though, thought Il was great
Joke. and II was with great difficulty that
we were able 10 keep these men from laugh
ing and giving the whole business away.
Before disembarking from the ship we
five Americans were dressed entirely as
private soldiers, in the uniform OF the
United States Army, but with no insignia
OF rank Each man wore campaign nat,
a blue shirt and pair of khaki trousers.
and carried no extras. | believe, but few
that didn't weigh very much anyhow,
and when we reached Casiguran we were
turned over TO the Casiguran authorities
and put in the town Jail. In case i ever
run for Office osck In Kansas, ] don't want
that fact brought out.
srARTEp ON scANr or FooD.
We remained two days and two nights
in the town Of Casiguran, and none OF the
people, neither the Presdente nor any OF
the other town officials, nor any OF the
soldiers, ever suspected anything az all.
We obtained from the Presidente runner
and tell him we we're coming on. These
men carried the two decoy letters written
over the signature of Iacuna, and also a
letter from Hilario Placdo To Aguinaldo,
in which he stated that in accordance with
orders received from Lacuna, he had taken
up his march and after nineteen days spent
in crossing the mountains, had reached
Casguran and was now on his way north;
that on his way he had fallen in with
of ten American soldies, Of
4. 4. 1. l1.,lt . Ind
and he was bringing the other FIVE, us as
prisoners.
Ii had been our hope that in this town
OF CasiguTan We would he enabled to OBJ
tain some provisions that We could carry,
but we found the people there living almost
exclusively on sweet potatoes and fresh
fish For obvious reasons II was impos-
sible for us 20 carry enough Of those articles
to last for seven or eight days. The Presl-
dente told us that il We would remain a
week he would get us some cracked corn,
which was portable and would not deteri-
crate. hut il was impossible for us TO delay
for that length of time, because the Nicks-
burg was TO meet us on the 21th, and we
knew from the way the Nicksburg did
things that she would be right on time,
and we would have 10 b. there, too
SIMPLY TOOK CHANCES, THAT MARCH
Il is TO long a story TO go through that
terrible march. We left Casigurnn unable
10 bDldIH u lull SuIIll VI NlhNh'h W u
we left with what would be about three
days ration. counting on two meals day,
and with probably one days ration of dried
meat We simply thought We would take
chances II the march had lasted another
day, if we had been twenty miles further
away, not a single one of Us would ever
have got ont Of the country alive When
We finally reached our destination some
of the Macabebes had given up, some
Of them were crawling on all fours, and !
myself had to lie down every half hour for
a minute or two, so weak that could not
walk.
ATE sNAILs, LINPETs AND An OCTOPUS.
For the first six days we made this cracked
corn hold out, with the dried meat: then
we caught small snRils and ate them; we
Scraped limpets OF the rocks and ate them,
for we were marching along the sea, and
regret 70 saw that we also ate an octopus.
know the octopus is supposed 20 live in
New York and therefore ! am afraid 20
speak about that. This octopus il a sort |
~ small devil fish, and the Macabehes /
made n stew of IT, took some and don't |
I T..