Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1913-08-19
Of bAGSAk ONE
OF The F|ERCEST EVER
FOUGHT IN PHILIPPINES

movement, the officers were at Oil
ner with their families or at the clu
and many of the soldiers were at tn
cinematograph show. Call to arm
was sounded and in an incredibl,
short time the troops designated t
take the field were aboard tn
launches. The officers were assem-
bled and received their instructions
Transporting the Troops.
The troops were ordered to proceed
to bun-Bun, the point on the beach
from which the attack was to b.
made, as follows: The mountain gul
attachments of Lieuts. Van Matt;
and Mckinney on the Wright, thu
guns to be placed in sapits and towet
behind the ship; the Twenty-nincl
Scouts, Lieuts. Wright and Brewer
on the launch Jewell; the Forfeit
company, Lieuts. Sperbeck ant
Walker eighth Infantry %attached)
on the Geary; the Twenty-frst com
pany, Capt. Dixon, Lieuts. Young and
Kiser, on the New Orleans; Maj
Shaw, Lieut.. Gordon, a. d. C., and
Lieut.. Townsend also on the New
Orleans; Capt. Moylan, with Lieut.
Cody and the Twenty-first company:
Lieuts. Craven and Tacker, with the
Twenty-fourth company; Lieut.. Sayles
with fifty men of Troop Fl. Eighth
Cavalry and a pack train, marched
overland to Bagsak. Capt. Parrot,
with Lieut.. Alden and the Thirteenth
company, accompanied by Capt. Nc
Elderly and Lieut.. Miller and Lieut..
Dillman's mountain gun detachment.
marched overland to the attack at
Sahipa's Gotta.
The Wright and The three launches
arrived at Bun Bun at 4 a. M. the
morning Of June II, and by SIS all
vance on Bagsak had begun.
The right wing was ordered to at
tack the Languasan stronghold. 1t
consisted of Company M, Eighth in
fantry. Lieut.. Adams commanding.
Lieut.. Brush with Lieut.. Shute at
tached: the Fortieth company and
McKinney's mountain gun detach-
ment. the whole commanded by Mai.
Shaw. The left wing was to attack
the cottas on Puyacabao and Matun-
kup and consisted of the Fifty-first
and Fifty-second companies of Moro
Scouts. with Van Natta's mountain
gun. Capt. Moylan, with the Twenty
fourth and Thirty-frst companies OF
Scouts, was ordered to cut off the
rear by taking position on the south
slope of the Bagsak range.
Simultaneous Attacks.
After preliminary Smelling by the
mountain guns stationed at advan-
tageous points, the various columns
moved to the attack. So we'll was
the movement timed and executed
that Capt. Nichols and his Moros took
Pukacabao at noon sharp. Capt.
Charlton and the Fifty-first Moros
took Matunkup at 1905 and Langu-
asan fell at 1920. The attack would
have resulted in heavy loss to the
American troops and possibly failure
had there not been the greatest co.
operation between the column COM
manders.
In taking Matunkup Capt. Charl.
tons Moros had to climb a sheer cliff
more than a hundred feet high by
hanging on the vines and grass. Three
scout sWere killed and five wounded.
Liept. Rackley vas painfully wounded
in the foot later while accommodating.
Capt. Nichols took Puyacabao with
out the loss of a man by a very
pretty maneuver. He had five wound
ed, however. With his company of
Moros he passed between Puyacabac
and Matunkup (Which are less than
300 yards apart, at times crawling
through the underbrush, and reached
a point behind and above Puyacabao
without being cen by the enemy. He
opened upon the Moros at close range
and then dropped into the Gotta and
finished them up in a hand-to.hand
fight.
Moros Make Rushes.
Languasan, while innocent enough
looking, was the. most difficult to
hold, and it was on it's bald top that
the fire was hottest from Pujagan
and Bunga. Only one man was
wounded in taking the Gotta, but two
Enghth infantrymen and one scout
were killed and two infantrymen and
three scouts were wounded in hold.
ing it.
The surviving Moros from the three
cattas taken retreated to Pujagan,
Bunga and the stone Gotta on Bag
SAX. Firing was kept up on the
Bunga and Pujagan cottas all the att
ernoon and night of the eleventh.
The mountain guns pounded away at
and Pujagan all the following
day. June IL. and there was a great
deal of diminishing. Anil va among
the killed in Pujagan, and the FIRE
became so hot that the MOlOs were
out of the Gotta.
Then began a series of rusbes
upon the American lines on Langu.
The fanatics would rush ont
IF the Pujagan Gotta in parties of
from twelve to twenty and charge
ACROSS the intervening 300 yards. The
topography Of the country made it
impossible for the troops to see the
anatics after they left Pujagan until
hey were within 20 yards of Langu-
lsan, but In every instance the charg-
ng Moros we're accounted for before
hey reached the trenches.
Death of Capt. Nichols.
It was after one OF these charges
hat Capt. Nichols was killed, He ives
shot through the head by a bulle.