THE PHILIPPINES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 11377, 21 March 1899, Page 5

THE PHILIPPINES.

CHAKGES AGAINST THE

AMERICANS,

Prass Association—By Telegraph—Copyright, SYDNEY, March 20. (Received March 20, at 9.25 a.m.)

Manila news slates that many incendiary fires have been suppressed. A letter published in tlie Hongkong Daily Press asserts that the Americans jawoked hostilities with the Filipinos for the purpose of forcing the United States Senate to ratify tho Pence Treaty. The whole scheme of the Ainericiin attack showed that it was premeditated. The writer regards the bombardment of defenceless towns and of the suburbs around Manila without warning' as a monstrous outrage on civilisation. In Paco the American soldiers called people from their houses and shot them like dogs, without regard to sex, and then fired the houses. The papor, commenting on this letter,. says : ". Something more than an ex parte statement is required to induce the public to credit the charge preferred against the Americans."

MANILA, March 20. (Received March 21, at 0.25 a.m.)

Thirteen, priests who were captured by Filipinos efl'ected their escape. They report that the rebels killed 43 priests, while 300 friars are still imprisoned.,

DETAILS OF THE BATTI/H

In view of the .statements made in the above cablegram, it is of interest to know, from particulars received at Sydney by the Gitangsha, which vessel was at anchor at Manila' Bay when hostilities commenced, that for some special reason the American, authorities at Manila■' greatly ; under-esti-mated the number of rebels killed in the Hist, engagement. The Americans, in their good nature, blundered in supplying the rebels with the ammunition and weapons captured from the Spanish, and by the irony of fate these have since been used against them. Each day the Filipinos grew bolder in their talk about driving the Americans out of the island, and the massing of armed men about Manila at last put the Americans strictly on their guard. An outbreak on the part of the Filipinos was expected at any moment, as the greater part of 10,000 of them had entrenched themselves around Manila. The native outposts continually insulted the American sentries, who, however, had strict orders not to lire upon them unless the natives began the attack. The common practice before the war' actually started was for the Filipinos to advance near the American line and ostentatiously sharpen their dagger-like knives, at the same time challenging the Americans to come on. They were also armed with breech-loading rifles, and had brass cartridges, horrible missiles, as a mere scratch from them is liable to produce mortal results. • In readiness for the attack on the Americans the rebels had large orders for daggers executed in Manila, the Chinese manufacturing them. As they barbarously pus it, there would be at least several daggers for the ribs of every European resident of the place. The best laid plans, however, often cannot be carried out by their authors, and when it actually did conw^to fighting the natives got very little opportunity of carrying out their truculent intentions.

fhe Filipinos outnumbered the Americans by lit least five to one, and they chose the night to start fighting. They calculated thai under the cover of darkness they could pour themselves in such numbers on the place that the Americans would be simply overwhelmed. Preliminary reconnoitring hud informed the Americans oxacily how the rebel forces were located, and when firing lisgan on the outskirts of the town the Americans at once got in the most deadly work where the enemy were thickest. Millions of bullets wizzed through the night air. and the yells and cries from the Filipinos' position soon told of the effective work of the Yankee marksmen. The natives on the other hand proved unable to hit the proverbial haystack. Chiefly, no doubt, owing to their practice of shooting from the hip instead of from a lying down position, most of their bullets went into the air.

The Filipinos .were the first to got to work with their artillery, and the exchange of projectiles went on throughout the night of Saturday, 4th February, till Sunday morning, when the Americans brought their artillery into p\ay, and assumed the aggressive. The forcing tactics of the Americans seemingly paralysed the natives, whose idea of fighting is for the combatants ti> keep in their places like duellists,' but their ideas of the ethics of war received a rude shock, us the rebel prisoners afterwards admitted, by the manner in which the Americans rushed their position. By Sunday night the Filininos were completely routed, and were driven in all directions from the town like rabbits. The Americans proved themselves accurate shots, and most of the desd Filipinos were shot through the head. It ■was the fire ironi the American ships more than anything else that won the battle. The ships' guns dropped shells repeatedly amongst the Filipinos' ranks all day on Sunday, killing them by hundreds. A train loaded with native soldiers early on Sunday morning brought reinforcements to the rebels. As soon as the train was sighted 1.113 fleet opened fire upon it, and eyewitnesses say that the shells simply blew it to matchwood. As the Filipinos on Sunday retreated from Manila, they were harassed by the men-of-war, which fallowed them along the coast.

There were at least 10,000 rebels killed and wounded, while nearly 2000 were taken prisoners. The American losses by comparison were wry slight—namely. 120 killed and 300 wniimied—even these figures being stated by some of those who made inquiries on the soot to bo too large.

The American :-oldiers wore blue flannel shirts, kharkce triMisers, and slouch hats. They were mostly volunteers who were at Jianila, and they are described as a rollicking, careless looking lot. " They fight: like the very mischief, though," one passenger of Hie (Jiinng&ha remarked. The Tennessee regiment at Manila were a daredevil body. Their (ightable propensities were so well' recognised by the American authorities Unit before the outbreak they were afraid to station them anywhere near the Filipino lines, for fear of the Tennessee boy* disobeying orders and going straight at" their insulting tormentors. But when the fighting broke out the Tennessee regiment raised the Southern war yell, and \\i'vt> iimncdbtely in the thickest of the

fray. On Sunday eyening they, were all missing, anil the inquiry wont round, what hud become of them? " They're 'till right," was Ihe answer; '' they'll bo back when their ammunition is all spent."

H was a rather amusing sight on Monday morning to sec a white Hag hung out of'the n-indDws of ovei'y lioiisc owned by the rebels, and in these very 'houses on the morions Saturday tho .rebels .were expectin..; to be masters of. the situation very sr.'ijn. In connection with this war it may bo stated that; whilst driving in a carriage on Sunday, February 5, Colonel Colton ♦;t!i attacked by a rebel, who .''jumped into hi« carriage with a, drawn swovd. but was h/slanlly shot dead .by. the colonel.