Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1909-07-13
flight AGAINST
OUTLAW FIERCE
MORO CHIEF AND BAND DIED
BATTLING DESPERATELY
LEADER OF BANDITS REFUSED
TO ACCEPT TERMS
Enemy Was Bottled in Small Cave
with Several Women and Declined
to Surrender Himself and
Party
(By Associated Press.)

MANILA, July 12.-Whle detailed
accounts of the last fight of Jijiri the
famous Moro outlaw chieftain, who
was killed and his band exterminated
in a pitched battle near Patian, on the
island of Jolo, July 5, are lacking sew
eral brief dispatches and letter or
two from American officers who fought
against the outlaw give fairly coin-
plete story of the fight.
Hunted from place to place by the
regulars and constabulary who had
been in close pursuit for days JlJlri
with seven followers, two women ana
one child, composing his party, TOOK
refuge in a cave which pierced the side
of the crater of an extinct volcano.
The narrow hole had two entrances
the principal one opening on leuge
of rock. high up on the steep slope.
Here the outlaws gathered TO make
! their last stand.
AS the soldiers came up the scouts
located the party and the troops worked
their way around the place uhtll IL
was entirely surrounded and there was
no chance for escape. -
cant George l.. Byram of the SlXth
cavalry, who commanded the atlaCh
ing force then ordered a white nag
displayed and. through his Interpreter,
called upon Jijiri to surrender me
outlaw leader IGluSGNl anu pNNiiii@N 49,
to accept a safe conduct for the women
of his party who remained with tile
band and bore their share OF the
fighting.
Cant. Byram ordered up the guns ana
n terrific shell fire was opened on lliS
cave. The missiles broke above anu
around the opening, but the ledge pro-
tected those inside from the hre or tile
do inflicted.
Stormine parties then worked their
way up the steep slope and gained
footing on the ledge, attempted 10 rush
the larger entrance to the cave.
The lighting for few minutes was
desperate, but the outlaws drove thelr
assailants back by savage spear
charge. ,..o,,,
routed however, and taking up their
posts at the ends of the ledge poured
a terrible rifle fire into the mouth or
the cave. the bullets glancing from the
walls and throwing showers of sharp
splnters of rock among the besieged'
Accounts of the final encounter dlfler'
one dispatch says that the rifle fire
made the cave untenable, and that the
outlaw band finally rushed from the
entrance in d body to assault the be-
siegers All persisted on the narrow
ledge. fighting with barongs and krisses
against the bayonets and dubbed rifles
of the troops.
Died Fighting
The other version Of the struggle de-
scribes the natives as coming from the
cave one by one to face the bullets OF
the soldiers. Both accounts agree,
however, that they died fighting to the
last.
Jiiiri himself singled out Lieut.. Ar
thur H. Wilson of the Sixth cavalry,
who commanded one section of the at
lacking party Dashing from the cave,
the outlaw leader flung himself on the
American before Wilson could raise his
pistol. With one hand gripping the
officers hair, the bandit slashed at his
neck with the heavy native knife he
carried. endeavoring to behead him.
Lieut.. Joseph A. Baer of the Sixth cav
airy saw his comrades peril and dashed
to his aid As Jijiri swung back the
knife to strike again Baer shot him
dead, and Wilson dropped to the
ground, covered with blood, flowing
from the gashes in his throat II is
feared Wilson will be incapacitated for
further service in the army, as the
muscles and chords of his neck were
severed by the bandits knife.
Writing of the fight American officers
say that in the desperate hand-to-hand
engagement on the narrow ledge some
of the attackers may have been
wounded by their own fire. In their
anxiety to save each other they were
forced to shoot quickly, and high-power
rifles at close range are doubly dan
gerous, as the bullets will pillow through
several men.