The Lafayette gazette., 1902-06-14
IN The PHILIPPINES.
Interesting Letter from WilfreO
BOudrSauN, IL Teacher in the
Public Schools, Describing
Conditions in the
Islands-The Military and Civil
Governments and the In
SurrSStiON.

Mr.. W1lfred BOudreauN. OF st.
Landry parish, who is engaged
as teacher in the Philippines by
the United States government,
has written the following letter
to a friend in this town. The
impressions and views of Mr.
Boudreaux, who has had an Op-
portunity to see these things as
they really are in Uncle Sam 5
inSular possessions, will be
found to contain a great deal of
valuable information not obtain
able from the censored and doc
tOred reports circulated in the
United States for political rea-
sons. Mr.. BOudreauX is on the
grounds and, being an intelligent
man, his impressions can not
fail to prove unusually inter
esting:
MANILA, p. l., NJ >Y 4. 1902.
There many things about which l
should like write to you concerning these
islands, but the thing which dominates every
other in importance and which is of the
citizen in the Philippines is the political
situation it is to-day and as it has been
since my arrival here IN August, 1907.
When 1 left home in July | under the
impression that the Philippine Archipelago
had been pacified and | had the best as
from the government that such
was the case was not in Manila AS hours.
however, before l began to realize that
mis- tod and. ~,
conditions far from being satisfactory.
This impression based upon number
of facts and observations which 1 and
made every day l remained Manila. TO
begin with the soldiers and guards en-
ployed by the provost marshal alto
gether ou, of proportion with the number
which should have been employed, if the |
inhabitants had been peacefully inclined-
In addition this force the regular police |
force of the city did duty usual. Eu- |
were af1oat OF secret places of meeting !
of the insurrectos, and one night alarm
spread through the city that uprising
would take place, and preparations were !
made to prevent it. Besides, every day |
the papers contained dispatches from the
provinces to the effect that the Insurrectos
had been engaged i'll three four places
and that six seven Amcricanistcrs
(Filipinos friendly to the Americans had |
been murdered by orders of the ka,ipernan
Society.
These things opened my eyes and when
arrived in Tacloban in September l found
still more food for reflection, for fifty three
American soldiers were massacrcd the day
after my arrival in bario, calc'! Balinggi,
on the island of S.,mar, some 20 miles from
IaCioban- From Tacloban I procee led to
Palompor, Leyto,, and began teaching the
children, who l find very bright. On
my arrival in this town there garris
of fifty soldiers occupying the place, but in
January they were removed t" ormoe as
the people of Iaompon we've considered
friendly and as there was no indication of
there being insurgents in the vicinity. n
week after the departure Of the American
soliiers for Ormoe, the government of
Leyto sent force of fifteen constabuIaries
or .nsular police to occupy Pol"mpon. and
for a month or two everything went along
smoothly. On Good Friday, March IS,
however, ! had the scare of my life. 1t
was right after dinner ond l was practicing
5tenogra ply VIXEN I heard the sound of
about hundred rifles and felt few bullets
vhstling past my cheeks $50 Thought at
he time. I jumped from my chair and
ooked out of the window and about
$50 insurgents pouring lead into the quartet
occupied by the native troops.
The position of my house such that
, large number of the shots came my way, | ,
20 that I put my coat, buckleI my ,
evolver and sailed forth hatless, follow ed :.
,y Gayle who bad nothing on but his paja
mas. We succeeded in making way
,!elapidated wall which built $50 !;
'ears ago by the Jesuits protection |
gains the Moros of Mindanao. !
Here remained for over hour
linking of our happy homes beyond the
ea and of ''what fools mortals be- and l
# the liffic ulties of teaching in the Philip {
nos. We expected to be carved alive t
Don discovered, but were as:eeally :,
ri<ed hour later where met the
aptain of the band, .'Jesus Ildelfonso de .
-eyra,' who assured us in the convento j
nat he did not wish to harm us, that all he 7
auted were the rifles of the con stabularies, {.
nj he went far to tell to keep
~ revolver, and gave me his card.
To make long story short, the constabu- y
,e insurrec,os robbed Gayle and me of
very hing had and after setting the a
uartel on fire they retired to the mountains.
| made my way to Ormoe by boat, and q