The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1902-03-19
GREAT SUFFERINGS
Of United States Marines on the
Island Of Samar.
a LIEUTENANT's ACCOUNT.
How Remnants of the Famished Par
ty Were Rescued. Trickery of
the Natives in Time
OF Need.

Or Need.
The eastern mail has brought the
report of Major Waller upon the fam
Gus expedition conducted by him across
the Island of S&rlar, resulting in the
loss Of a number Of the marines and
hardShipS ana sutferingS on the part
Of the Others beyond anything yet
known in the Philippine campaign.
Major Walters reports are formal and
do not go into the details of the move
ments of the marines, bat the news Of
the affair is contained in a report from
Lieut.. W. r. Shoemaker, l. S. n,
who conducted the relief expedition
that succored the marines. After de-
failing the arrival into the American
lines of Capt. Porter and Lieut.. Will
liams, with a portion Of the men. the
report says:
Capt. Porter and Lieut.. \. S. Viii
Jams, in conversation. gave me sub
stantially the following account Of
their wanderings:
''On January !, being then on half
rations with very little food left, Maj.
Waller decided to split the pasty-he
taking Is Of the strongest men and
pushing on for Basey, and Capt. Por-
ter following his trail as rapidly as
possible with TIE main body. On the
End a notice came back from Waller
with note, stating that he, Waller,
had given up the idea Of getting
through and would return, and direct
ing Porter to make directly for the
river and build RATS for the entire
party. This Porter tried tC do but
failed to find wood that would float.
It was raining hard at this time and
the river was about 10 feet above its
normal leveland running with violence.
AS Major Waller did not appear, Por-
ter sent Capt. BearSS to him to aScer-
tain bis plans, then return and report.
Bears failed to return but he reached
Waller and went on with him.
ION the 3rd. I think, Porter rushed
ahead to get assistance with eight OF
the strongest men. leaving Williams
to follow with the crippled and lame
as far as the boat, Secreted on the way
up, to be used in an emergency like
the present. Porter reached the boat
but found she had been damaged and
was unfit for use. So he started on a
25 mile hike for Lanang, reaching
there with three men on the after
noon Of the 1lth. Five men had Civ
en- out, but, living on two dogs that
had strayed their way, they finally
reached the post.
THE relief expedition, under Lieut..
Williams, First infantry, on account
Of the height Of the river was unable
to get away until the morning OF the
14th. Williams deserves the highest
praise for his 25 mile fight against the
current and up the rapids, hauling his
boat along by hand good part OF. the
way. 1t was not until the morning Of
the 18th that he reached the starving
marines in their last stopping place
near the river. Their condition at
that time was terrible. For days no
man among them had strength to car
~ rifle. Nine Of them had either
gone crazy or had fallen by the trail
half dead from starvation and expos
ure. 1t had rained steadily for eigh-
teen days. Lieut.. \. S. Williams had
made every effort to get them along
but had to abandon them. He could
only save the men who were able to
reach the boat by the river, the prob
able point of arrival Of the relief ex-
pedidion. He got there on the night
of the 10th instant, his party having
been without food, except roots, the
pulps Of plants, and very few sweet
potatoes, for fifteen days. To fur
ther complicate matters, the native
bearers, about 80 in number, became
;sulky, practically refusing assistance
to the white men. They would build
;shacks as a protection from the con-
tinual downpour for themselves only,
and knowing the edible roots and
plants, were more Skilful in obtaining
food. 4 time came when no white
man could carry rife, and those not
lost were IN the hands Of the natives;
under the altered condition, it reQuir-
ed considerable diplomacy on the part
of Lieut.. Williams to handle them all.
Just before reaching the river two
bearers tried to Kill Williams, stab
bing him about the chest with bolo.
He tried to shoot but had not sufici-
ent strength to pull the trigger. Then
they tried to kill him with his own
pistol, but did not know how to work
the weapon. Williams was rescued By
a few OF his men who tottered up,
armed with sticks, and the natives
took to the bush. No FilipinOS were
seen in the region, there being no food.
The relief party saw some coming
from the direction Of Hermane; so it
is probable that the insurgents about
there got wind Of the desperate con-
dition Of the 4arineS and were hur-
rying up to take advantage Of it. Re
lief came just in time.
1T took practically ali Of January
is to get the sufferers. 81 in number,
including two ofIicers-lS in stretch
erS unable to noye-acr0ss the river
and out through the surf to the YES
sci. The job was finished at $50 p. m.
and at s So'clock We started for TaclO-
ban direct, as an army surgeon said al
Lanang. that an hour saved in transi!
might mean an AIM or a leg to some
We reached Tacloban at $50 q. N.
and the worse cases were at once
transferred to the hospital. The 9th
ers, including eight or ten nati:es, not
included in the above total Of 81, va:
transported to Basey, meeting MajOi
Waller. His party appears, from tht
statements Of the officers, to have
been reduced to nearly the same e1
rrernjtv aS tho other They had Drac