Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-10-08
HISTORY OF PULkJANE
Rise of the "Red Legs" in
Leyte. -
RECRUIT BY INTIMIDATION
Old Woman Was the Mother of the
Band.
NOW BEING CRUSHED OUT
Choice Band of Cut-Throats and Some
Crimes for Which They are
Responsible.
Special Correspondence of The Star.

! MANILA.
| Just because one Filipino mother could
| not raise two of her sons in the way they
should CO. a part of the island of Leyte is
overrun with that particular breed Of ban
| dit known as pulajlne, or red leg At
| least that is one story that comes from
Leyte. among many others. 1t is probable
that the island would have been stirred up
| in any event but the old woman in ques-
| ton is responsible, in a degree, for the
! swift coming of the climax to peaceful
measures and the adoption of the bolo and
| frebrand the best way to express the
| dspleasures of part of the people with
things in general. And the story of how it
! all came about is told in many different
| ways there are men telling it.
However, the authorities here accept the
statement that the old woman precipitated
alters, while declaring that politics is the
! real cause. 1t might be said here that the
| population of Leyte is 10000. the people
| living mostly along the coast line, and that
the pulajanes and dissatisfied natives mere
never numbered more than 1000.
1t seems that the old lady in question was
a resident of Barauen, small town IN
about the center of Leyte. Outside the
town, in the bOSque (woodS or feldS), a
small band of the red legs was lying in a
quescent state. Pulajansm has been lat
ent in Leyte ever since Lagaspi made the
| first serious attempt at civilization In the
Philippines. and that was before the settle
ment of jamestown. The Pulajanes are re-
ligious fanaticS-at least they were relig-
ious fanatics at the beginning, and they
still maintain sort of religious ritual In
the conduct of campaigns. The or1ginatorS
of this movement found that the work OF
going about converting the unwashed to
their beliefs, with bolos, was paying prop
osition. The man who refused to be con-
verted or who declined to assist in the work
with supplies to the faithful was treated to
all sorts of diversions. A simple case of re-
| fuSal to conform was treated ilghtly ana
without difficulty: If the non-eonformist
had valuable lands or caraboa. the "relig-
ious'' simply confiscated the property they
could use and burned or laid waste the re-
mainder If he objected to this proceeding
his life paid the forfeit, and his family was
fortunate if it escaped There We're differ
ent degrees OF punishment for backsl1ders.
If man simply refused aid when called
upon, the severance of an ear was conSld-
cred ample; If he refrigerated so far as to
| inform the authorities as to any contem-
plated movement of the band, he would
probably lose an ear and his lips would be
neatly carved.
Neat Forms of Mutilation.
And there were many other forms Of
| punishment for offenses, far too many to
| mention. People are found in the province,
| not only in Leyte but in many of the north
! ern islands, whose hands have been crushed
| between two huge stones; whose tongues
| have been slit, and in some cases cut out;
whose noses are severed from Their faces
| and whose legs tendonS have been neatly
| cut, after the manner of hamStrlnSinS Il
horse These methods were used by the
bandits. whether they be ladrones thieves),
| pula ;ancS or what not And they We're
! learned centuries before tie Americans
came here.
So much for the pulajanes' early history.
To get down to date. For more than a
! 7 hnc hDn Ia
OF the Philippine archipelago TO which
| the government felt it could point with
pride. 1t was one of the most quiet of
! the thousand odd islets that form this
| archipelago. 1t had an American governor
| in the person of Maj. Peter Borseth, who
/ had inspired the people with confidence in
| American Institutions and made pula janism
! a very Improbable business. 1t did not
| entirely quench the religious enthusiasts
! who were red trousers. but 1t inspired the
| people with that degree Of courage which
made it possible for them to present a
more determined front against their outlaw
| brothers, and the island began to enjoy
| a period of prosperity that was most salts
! factory. Then came the provincial cleo
! ton. The people managed to control the
vote as FAR as munic pal candidates were
concerned but a very undesirable class of
politicians swung the provincial governor
| ship to their own candidate.
The "Up-state" Vote.
| This happened to be a native, Senior de
| Veyra, who is an able man, but whose
popularity with the people is a negative
quantity. 1t might be said here that De
Veyra had the support of many of the
Americans in Leyte and still has Borseth
was the opposing candidate. He was the
disciple of the common people. They all
| loved and respected him. The Americans
who opposed him are of a kind prominent
offic; al of the islands told me We're extreme
| ly ''unGesirahle" Borseh mad made himself
unpopular with them by his poIicy of help
| ing th. natives as much as he could
The election over il was found that while
De Veyra had carried the province the can
ddates of the opposing party were pretty
well sprinkled the iSlad as municipal
presidentes and te like 1t is easy to see
that there would BE more or less friction
between the provincial and municipal au-
thorities. especially when it is recognized
that this is the kind of a country where the
defeated must eat dog, with a crowd of
their enemies watching them do II and
bringing on fresh supplies. While De Ncyra
is an able man he is not above trying to
get even with his enemies. and municipal Of
tcers of the opposite parties soon found
that they were MOI getting the support Bor
seth had given. In some instances the
municipal police Were actually disarmed,
| on the ground of economy, in order to put
the presidentes in a hole. There We're nu-
merouS towns in Ieytc prior to June II
| that were absolutely without the protection
| of firearms of any kind. And then a new
which the people did not understand or APP
preciate. and which the provincial authori-
| ties did not appear to be anxious to fully
| explain, especially to the municipalities
| that had hostile presidentes and consejales
(councilmen) This law was designed to
| equalize taxation and had the effect of
| making the rich pay their just share of the
public expenses, a very unusual thing in
Spanish countries.
Mother of the Band.
| This brings us up to June II, when the
! old lady, who has been mentioned, be-
came the cause of the present disturbance.
| With such conditions have been rected.
! band of Pulajanes waiting for an oppor-
! tunity to do business and a governor unwit-
| tingly preparing opportunities for them, it
| is easy to see how the old lady brought
| things to a head. She lived in Barauen, as
has been stated, and the presidente of
! Barauen was one of the men who on
the governors blacklist His policemen
! still had their guns, and though he did not
! have as many policemen he ought to
| have had, when he was informed that a
/ band of forty-odd red legs was waiting
outside his town to begin business in the
surrounding country he did not hesitate
| to send ont after them. Now it SO hap
| pened that~the Old lady who lived in Bar