Omaha daily bee., 1902-08-15
BATTLE NONE TOO FIERCE
Crowds Which swAmsd Over the Field
Hamper Movement Of Troops

Crowds Which swarmsd Over the Field
Hamper Movement Of Troops
MOON HIDES AND SHUTS OFF THE LIGHT
Crowd variously Ertimsted at from
T~wenty-Five to Thirty Thew
sand witnesses the
Spectacle.
The grand military demonstration and
sham battle. heralded az the big spectacular
feature Of the reunion of the National
Society, Army Of the Philippines. attracted
a crowd conservatively estimated at s 1000
people to Lake Manawa yesterday even
ipg. Soldiers in uniform have and Will
probably always prove a strong drawing
card, but soldiers in battle array. with
cannon and the other accountrements Of
warfare. mimic though 1t might be. proved
the strongest kind Of an attraction, as
evidenced by the masses Of people-men,
women and children. who crowded the
forty acres selected for the military display
and by their numbers prevented the carry
ing out Of the program as originally arr
ranged. Al least the failure to carry out
the published program was ascribed BY
those In charge to the immense throngs
which crowded the field and made the pre-
arranged eyolutIons Of the troops impossi-
BILE.
From early morning the people began
gathering at the lake, this being especially
true Of the country folk who drove there
in wagons and in almost every conceivable
kind OF vehicle. These took their dinner
and supper with them and made q day Of
It at the resort, with the intention OF being
early on the field and securing a vantage
point from which to view the battle. others
waited until they had seen the parade in
the city. then they FASTENED to board the
cars TO the lake and from shortly after
noon until 9 o'clock at night every train
bound to Manawa was laden TO its ca
pacity.
The crowd was the biggest In the history
OF the lake resort. This was generally con-
cedsd and many estimated the number Of
people there at 8 O'Clock, the time an
nounced for the commencement of the miii-
tary spectacle at $4,000.
Soldiers Seated Free.
The soldiers were taken to the lake
shortly after 5 o'clock and given dinner
there. The ~grandstand had been transferred
from the base ball field to one corner Of
the forty-acre tract and this was speedily
filled, despite the fact that so cents wac
exacted for each seat. This charge nearly
caused the whole display to be called OF.
Lieutenant Macrae insisted that Manager
Grinhth permit the soldiers attending the
reunion to occupy the grandstand free Of
charge. The management demurred and
Lieutenant Macrae. as president Of the
Iowa society, threatened to declare the
/ -. A.tkr~ - .,d orHow kho noldfara haQd
to the city. The privilege TO the visiting
soldiers was finally conceded and announce
ment made that the program would be
carried out.
Eight o'clock came but no sign Of the
sav~. Hall past eight arrived snA stlM
no sign Of anything doing. The crowd.
however, was good natured and amused
itself by cheering the different companies
as they marched into the field. stacked
arms and waited for orders which came
not. BY this time nearly the entire field
was covered by the crowd and Lieutenant
Gray, to whom the management OF the
grand military demonstration and sham
battle" had been assigned. was kept busy
using the soldiers on the field in trying tn.
drive the crowd back.
At Q O'Clock the Dodge Light Guards gave
the 'shooy-ny'' drill, but this was only
visible to a portion Of the crowd In the
grandstand. There was no moon. although
one had been scheduled for the night and
had evidently been relied upon by the man
cement to make Its appearance. Incandes-
cent lights had been strung part way around
the field, but they only served to make tho
darkness the more apparent. A searehhsht
located in one corner Of the Held was
thrown across the arm OF the lake and sue
ceeded in dimly outlining the b~iockhouse
and revealing the forms Of the white-clad
cadets. representing the Filipinos, as they
crossed the pontoon bridge and disappeared
from sight among the weeds Of the island.
They crossed this bridge at s o'clock and
waited patiently in the weeds for over an
hour, while the mosquitoes fed on them.
to be attacked or be given the opportunity
to attack something, even II it was only a
ham sandwich or a sack Of craeker-tack.
orders Come Late.
onacers and men. regulars and militia. lay
around on the grass waiting for the orders
for the sham battle until nearly $3.50 o'clock
when orders were given to the Twenty-sec-
ond infantry 70 deploy across the field as
far as they could. Then things began to
move a bit and the crowd was on the tiptoe
Of expectation. From afar on there was
q yoiley, but who fired II was only known
to those In the immediate vicinity. After
an interval Of about Ave minutes there was
another volley and then silence again
reigned supreme except for the good
natured cheering Of the crowd.
But at last the battle, II II could by any
stretch OF the most fervid imagination be
called such. began. The regulars were
thrown in an open order across the field
and nred volley after voiiey. The gat-
ling guns we're drawn into action and used
up soSa e heir ammunition. The militia
boys had seventy rounds Of blank ammu-
milton each and they were itching to ex-
pend them on the midnight air. An orderly
dashed up to Lieutenant Gray and said:
"Lieutenant, we have seventy-nve rounds
OF ammunition. For heavens sake give as
the chance to IRE them" The lieutenant re-
piled that he would and another orderly
was dispatched TO order the militia into tbs
combat which was now raging fast and
furious SO far as the expenditure Of blank
cartridges was concerned
= a.. ~naauflnna tha E41fntn0a ware he