THE INSURRECTION OF 1896-97--CONTINUED.
The Division encamps at San Nicolas--Work of the native engineer
soldiers--The division marches to Salitran--Second action at
Anabo II.--Crispulo Aguinaldo killed--Storming the entrenchments
of Anabo I.--Burning of Imus by the rebels--Proclamation by
General Polavieja--Occupation of Bacoor--Difficult march of the
division--San Antonio taken by assault--Division in action with
all its artillery--Capture of Noveleta--San Francisco taken by
assault--Heavy loss of the Tagals--Losses of the division--The
division broken up--Monteverde's book--Polavieja returns to
Spain--Primo de Rivera arrives to take his place--General Monet's
butcheries--The pact of Biak-na-Bato--The 74th Regiment joins
the insurgents--The massacre of the Calle Camba--Amnesty for
torturers--Torture in other countries.
On the 10th (March) the division marched to Presa-Molino, which was
occupied that same evening, and leaving three companies of infantry to
guard the position, the division continued its march through a most
difficult country, arriving in the afternoon on the Zapote River,
in touch with the 4th Brigade, formerly commanded by Galbis and now
by Barraquer.
From there Lachambre with his staff rode over to Paranaque, and
reported himself to the Captain-General Polavieja.
The troops encamped on the downs of San Nicolas, one brigade on
each side of the River Zapote. Notwithstanding the comparatively
favourable emplacement of the camp, the troops and their officers
suffered severely from the effect of the climate upon frames weakened
by over-exertion, by indifferent nourishment and by sleeping on
the ground. Malarial fevers, intestinal catarrh, dysentery, and
rheumatism sapped their vitality, whilst nostalgia preyed upon the
younger soldiers and depressed their spirits. Since the 15th February
the division had lost in killed, wounded, and invalided, no less than
135 officers, and troops in greater proportion.
Yet still greater exertions were to be required from the soldiers. The
4th Brigade was incorporated in the division, and two additional
battalions, one from the 3rd Brigade and the other from the Independent
Brigade, brought the number of combatants nearly up to 12,000.
Having previously made a practicable road by Almansa to Presa Molino
and Salitran, defended by redoubts at the most difficult fords,
and having organised his transport with such means as the country
afforded, Lachambre again set out, his objective being Imus, but the
attack was to be from Salitran.
The work of the native engineer soldiers, and of the 74th Native
Regiment in constructing this road and the redoubts, merits the
highest praise, and it must be admitted that it is almost impossible
for an army of white men to carry on a campaign in the Philippines
or in similar territory, without the assistance of native pioneer or
engineer troops.
The road being ready, and the convoys of provisions having gone
forward, on the morning of the 22nd March the division started on
its march to Salitran, where it arrived on the evening of the 23rd,
having had some sharp skirmishes on the way.
Early on the 24th the division set out for Imus, and once more the
formidable trenches and redoubts of Anabo II., restored, strengthened,
and crowded with determined defenders, barred their path. These works
had once already been taken by assault, and had cost the division
the loss of the brave General Zabala and other officers and men.
Protected on each flank by a deep ravine with a river at the bottom,
and with open ground in front, the attack had been rendered more
difficult by flooding the arable land before the trenches, and the
position of the rebels was an exceedingly strong one. Lachambre had
to accept a direct attack, but he sent a body of troops forward on
each flank to advance simultaneously and overlap the ends of the
entrenchment.
The infantry deployed, the firing line advanced under fire without
stopping to within three hundred yards of the parapet, when
they halted, taking what cover they could and keeping up a steady
fire. Then the mountain battery was brought up and fired common shell
at close range, breaching the parapet. A rush forward soon brought
the firing-line within 150 yards of the parapet. General Marina,
watching the engagement well to the front, had one of his staff
officers killed at his side; seeing the favourable moment arrive,
he gave the order for the assault.
Once more the troops exhibited their conspicuous bravery. The long
line, led by its officers, dashed forward with the bayonet, the
bugles sounding the charge, and with impetuous speed, soon reached
the parapet. However terrible the attack, the stout-hearted Tagals
stood firm, disdaining to fly.
Bolo and bayonet clashed, European courage and Malay fury had full
play, till in the end, as ever in equal numbers and in stand-up fight,
the European prevailed. Many of the defenders fell, the rest sought
safety in flight.
The engagement lasted two and a half hours without cessation, and
over three hundred rebel dead were counted in or near the works,
amongst them was Crispulo Aguinaldo, a brother of General Emilio
Aguinaldo. The Spaniards lost 9 killed and 108 wounded.
After a short rest the division resumed the advance upon Imus, and
bivouacked after marching about a couple of miles.
On the 25th the advance was continued on a broad front. Scarcely had
the division marched for half-an-hour when the leading ranks came
in sight of another line of entrenchments more than two miles long,
six feet high, and five feet thick, well protected with cane fences in
front, one of these being at a distance of 100 yards from the parapet.
Lachambre orders the centre to make a direct attack and the wings a
flanking movement. The rebels retain their fire till the Spaniards
arrive within two hundred yards, and then the parapet is crowned with
flame both from small arms and lantacas. The scene of the day before
was repeated, the parapet stormed, with a rebel loss of over six
hundred. After a short halt the advance against Imus was resumed. The
distance was short, and the appearance of the thousands of bayonets
and the explosion of a few shells produced an indescribable panic
amongst the inhabitants and the many who had come from other towns
to assist in the defence.
They took to flight, disregarding the protests of their leaders
Emilio Aguinaldo and Andres Bonifacio. In order to cover his retreat,
the former ordered the magazine to be blown up and the town to be
burned. This delayed the advance of the Spaniards in the centre, but
the wings moved forward and the thousands of fugitives were exposed to
a flanking fire, and more than eight hundred of them bit the dust. It
was afternoon before Lachambre could enter what remained of Imus,
when as a mark of honour for their splendid services, the colour
of the 74th Regiment of Native Infantry was raised upon the tower
of the church--all the troops presenting arms and afterwards giving
enthusiastic cheers.
Thus was taken the citadel of the Katipunan with a loss to the
Spaniards of 25 killed and 129 wounded.
The taking of Imus gave General Polavieja an opportunity of offering
an amnesty to the rebels, which he did not neglect. On the 26th of
March he issued a proclamation offering pardon to all who had borne
arms against the Royal Authority, or who had assisted the rebels,
provided they presented themselves before Palm Sunday the 11th of
April. Leaders of the rebels were to present themselves with their
forces and arms.
On the 26th March the division, leaving a garrison in Imus, started
for Bacoor to take the defences in reverse, and such was the effect on
the rebels of their defeat at Imus and of the advance in overwhelming
force, that they fled, and the division occupied Bacoor almost without
firing a shot.
It was otherwise with Binacayan, for Marina's Brigade having made a
reconnaissance in force on the 28th, were received with a heavy fire,
and after an hour's skirmish in which some were killed on each side,
they returned to their camp at Bacoor; Lachambre considering that
an attack in that direction would result in a useless waste of life,
for the advance would be along narrow causeways across swamps. Having
received provisions and ammunition by sea from Manila, he returned
with his division to Imus, the garrison of which had not been molested
by the rebels.
At daylight on the 31st March, the division left Imus and marched
across country in a westerly and southerly direction, fording numerous
streams running at the bottom of deep ravines, as well as many
irrigating canals and ditches. Soon after the start the right flank
was fired upon, the fire increasing as the column moved forward. The
engineers had to improve the approaches to the fords of the Rivers
Julian and Batong Dalig under fire.
The leading brigade carried several entrenchments on its front and
flank without halting, but extending skirmishes on either flank to
beat off the enemy. The rear brigade was attacked on both flanks and
had to fight a rearguard action as well. The division bivouacked for
the night at Bacao, a point from which it threatened the rebel towns of
San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Rosario and Noveleta, all within easy reach.
The losses on the day's march were 6 killed and 37 wounded, whilst
400 rebel killed were counted on open ground, and many must have
fallen amongst the bushes and trees.
They, however, were not at all dismayed, and surrounded the bivouac
at night, firing repeated volleys and engaging the outposts.
On the following day (1st April), the division with all its baggage
crossed the River Ladron, and took up a position in the centre of a
large tract of rice-fields, having Noveleta on the north, San Francisco
on the south, Rosario and Santa Cruz to the west, and San Antonio on
the east. San Antonio was first taken by assault after the parapet
had been breached by the fire of two batteries of mountain guns. The
fugitive Tagals who escaped with their lives took refuge in Noveleta.
The situation was now as follows: Arizon's Brigade threatened Noveleta,
Marina's Brigade threatened Rosario and Sarralde's Brigade attacked
Santa Cruz--the baggage being in the centre and out of fire.
At this moment a dense mass of the enemy issuing from San Francisco,
made a desperate attack upon the Spaniards nearest to them.
The whole of the division with its twelve guns, was now in action
and surrounded by the enemy, Lachambre in the centre keenly watching
the fight. When he judged the right moment had arrived, he ordered
Arizon's Brigade to storm Noveleta.
The Brigade greeted this order with thundering shouts of "Viva Espana,"
and with the pluck that has always distinguished the Spanish soldier
when well led, carried the entrenchments at a run, and fought a hand to
hand combat with the defenders, who were either killed or driven out,
notwithstanding that these were the very best of the rebel troops,
amongst them being many of Aguinaldo's Guards, wearing a special
uniform, some of them having served in the native regiments. Here,
again, the 74th Native Infantry distinguished themselves by their
remarkable bravery, and once more their colour was displayed from
the church tower as a recognition of their valuable and loyal services.
The capture of Noveleta placed the division in communication with
the marines occupying the entrenchments of Dalahican.
This action cost the division 11 killed and 58 wounded, but many
hundreds of the rebels were killed.
In consequence of this, the rebels abandoned Cavite, Viejo, and
Binacayan, which were occupied the following day without resistance.
The rebels, however, on the 4th, and again on the 5th, attacked the
troops in Noveleta and sustained the combat for some time, killing
10 and wounding 33 Spanish, but leaving 50 of their own dead on
the ground.
On the 6th the division marched from Noveleta, which was occupied
by a garrison of marines, and took the direction of San Francisco,
the advanced guard in extended order across the same open ground upon
which the engagement of April 1st was fought. The rebel positions
on the right flank were marked by lines of skirmishers with their
supports and reserves. The Tagals had, however, inundated the part
of this plain immediately in front of the town, and the advance was
made with great difficulty; the guns and ammunition boxes having to
be carried by the gunners with the assistance of the infantry. With
undaunted bravery the troops struggled on under a heavy fire, but
Lachambre, realising the difficulty and the danger incurred, changed
the direction of the advance. The right wing under Arizon inclined to
the right, and the left, under Marina, bore away to the left. Half a
brigade crossed the River Ladron, notwithstanding the opposition of
the rebels, and attacked the town from the east. Firmer ground was soon
reached, the guns that had cost so much labour taking up, were mounted,
and a rain of shell soon fell amongst the rebels. The infantry poured
in steady volleys, advancing in the intervals of firing. The whole
combined attack being within a proper distance for the final rush,
Lachambre gave the word, and like greyhounds released, the Spanish
and native infantry leaped to the assault. The parapet was high and
deep the ditch, for the defenders had not spared their labour on it,
and as the Spanish line reached the edge, the rebels boldly mounted
the parapet and discharged their arms at close quarters. In this
critical moment the moral superiority of the white man once more was
manifest. The Spanish troops reached the parapet and a hand-to-hand
combat with the bolder rebels took place, the bayonet against the
spear or bolo. The less-determined of the enemy fled, and in a few
minutes 120 Tagals lay dead against the parapet, and five guns and
eighty rifles remained as trophies to the victors. The companies
re-formed for the pursuit, but the enemy fired the thatched huts
to interpose a curtain of flame between them and their pursuers; a
measure which was only partially successful, for some of the troops,
nimbly darting through the lanes, shot down or bayoneted many of
the fugitives, killing 400 in the pursuit, besides those who died at
the entrenchments. The Spanish loss was 25 killed and 125 wounded,
including several officers. The fighting had lasted four hours over
very difficult ground, and the troops were exhausted. Lachambre
therefore camped in the town, which has many fine edifices and a
spacious, church and convent. The bells of the church, in a joyful
peal, announced the Spanish triumph. The rebels were under the command
of Andres Bonifacio, the President of the formidable Katipunan. This
terrible blow to the insurrection was followed by the occupation of
the towns of Santa Cruz and Rosario, without firing a shot.
Many of the natives had joined the rebellion under compulsion, and
had long desired to submit themselves. Now they came in by hundreds
every day to claim the amnesty offered by General Polavieja.
Fifty-two days had the campaign lasted, fifty-seven combats had taken
place, and the total loss of the division was 1 general, 14 officers,
and 168 men killed, and 56 officers and 910 men wounded. Probably a
far larger number died or were invalided from disease, induced by the
fatigue, exposure and privations inseparable from such a campaign,
especially as most of the men were mere youths, raw recruits, and
with little possibility of taking care of themselves, even if they
knew how. Notwithstanding the excessive fatigue and the depressing
nature of the surroundings, the Spanish troops maintained a fine
martial spirit, and ever showed themselves ready to respond to
the calls made upon them. They were well led by their officers,
who devoted themselves unsparingly in their country's service, and
they had confidence in their generals, who were untiring in their
exertions to do their best for their men. Lachambre displayed the
greatest solicitude for the well-being of the force under his command;
whilst showing the utmost resolution, and pushing his attacks home
in every case, yet he sacrificed his men as little as possible, and
always had patience to wait till his flanking attacks could join in
the assault. The distances the division had to traverse were very
small, but the absence of roads and bridges made the provisioning of
the army a matter of the utmost difficulty.
Those who know the poverty of the Spanish Army in animals,
vehicles, and stores, will understand what Lachambre and his staff
accomplished. On the 12th April, 1897, the division was broken up,
and the brigades were stationed at various places in Cavite and the
neighbouring provinces.
The general, brigadiers, officers, and troops, are fortunate in having
as chronicler of their exploits, so painstaking and appreciative an
officer as Lieut.-Colonel Don Federico de Monteverde y Sedano, who in
his book, 'La Division Lachambre,' published in 1898, gives a detailed
account of the campaign, with sketches illustrative of the various
actions. Senor Monteverde does justice to every Spaniard, from the
divisional-general downwards. I could wish he had said something more
about the services of the 73rd and 74th Regiments of Native Infantry,
who seem to have been always in the forefront of the battle and where
the hardest work was being done, as in assisting the magnificent
engineer corps, without whom I doubt if the campaign could have been
successful. His book, however, is invaluable to those who may have
to conduct operations in the Philippines, and the invariable success
achieved by Lachambre, contrasts remarkably with the failures in the
early part of the rebellion, and one cannot help seeing a parallel
between this little war and the greater one in South Africa. Each was
mismanaged at the beginning, but as soon as the invading forces were
organised in one command, success was achieved.
A few days after the breaking up of the division, General Polavieja
embarked for Spain, very much broken in health. In a letter written
on the 9th March to the Minister of War, Polavieja declared himself
too ill to ride and asked for his relief. He, however, still remained
at Paranaque, directing the campaign till after the capture of San
Francisco.
The Spanish press took sides for or against him, the papers advocating
the interests of the friars praised him, whilst the Liberal press
held him up to ridicule.
There is no doubt that he directed the military operations in an
efficient manner, but under his government the arbitrary arrests,
cruelties, and tortures, inflicted upon all who were suspected of being
sympathisers with the rebels, or from whom money would be extorted,
that had begun under Blanco, continued and increased. For Blanco,
having been informed of the cruelties inflicted, issued an order
forbidding the practice.
The next governor-general was General Primo de Rivera, who had held
that office from 1880 to 1883, and had found it a very profitable
one. He arrived on the 23rd April and went to the front on the 29th;
on the 4th May, Naic was taken, also a small place called Quintana,
and Indang. At Naic there was very heavy fighting, and some at Indang.
The troops then advanced to Maragondon, which was taken on the 10th
after a most stubborn resistance, the Spaniards losing many men and
the rebels still more heavily.
This place was the last where the rebels made a stand, in Cavite
province. After this defeat they dispersed in roving bands and kept
on the move.
The whole province was a scene of desolation, towns burnt, churches
bombarded, stone houses blown up, property looted, putrefying bodies
lying about in hundreds, the fields laid waste, the cattle driven off,
the country depopulated, a remnant of the inhabitants hiding in the
woods; a few of the bolder ones returned to the ruined houses. Such
was the result of this unhappy rebellion.
I have this description from an eye-witness, and he assured me that he
had been told by a colonel commanding one of the most distinguished
regiments engaged in the campaign, that not less than 30,000 natives
lost their lives in that province alone during the rebellion.
The rebels gave no quarter to Spaniards, and the Spaniards only
occasionally took prisoners. However, once taken they were usually
released after being exhorted to return to their homes.
Whilst the operations of Lachambre's division were proceeding in
Cavite, General Monet, with a force of 3000 men, was carrying on an
indiscriminate butchery of men, women, and children, in Bulacan and
Pampanga, but he displayed no military qualities, and ultimately
escaped, leaving his forces to surrender.
The Spanish Volunteers in Manila continued their series of abominable
outrages, although in August, Primo de Rivera issued a decree
forbidding intimidation, plundering and ravishing. He was ultimately
obliged to disband them.
Driven out of Cavite, the remnant of the rebels under Aguinaldo took
refuge in the hills and held a strong position near Angat, in the
province of Bulacan. As it would have taken a long time to reduce them,
Primo de Rivera tried conciliation, and employed Don Pedro Paterno,
a native gentleman of means, who had been educated in Spain, as
mediator. By his instrumentality, an arrangement was arrived at which,
after being approved by the Government in Madrid, was signed by the
mediator as attorney for the rebels and the governor-general for Spain.
This, known as the pact of Biak-na-bato, was signed on December
14th, 1897.
In consequence, Aguinaldo and a number of the prominent rebels were
escorted to Hong Kong by a relative of the governor-general, and
there received a sum of $400,000, being the first instalment of the
sum agreed upon.
They lived in a quiet and economical manner upon their own
resources. They did not divide the indemnity nor convert it to their
own use, but kept it as a war fund in case of need.
The event showed the wisdom of this course, for Primo de Rivera had
led them to understand that an amnesty and reforms were to follow,
but, apparently, had caused the Spanish Government to look upon the
arrangement in a very different light, and he subsequently denied
that any treaty existed. No reforms were ever granted, and things
in Luzon went on in the same old way. The friars joined in raising
a large subscription for Primo de Rivera, and this seemed to incline
him more favourably towards them.
The amnesty was disregarded, and the priests continued their arbitrary
courses against those who had been concerned in the rebellion. Bands
of marauders infested the provinces and the country was in a very
unsettled state, some insurgent bands approaching Cavite.
On March 24th, the 74th Regiment of Native Infantry in garrison at
that town, the regiment that had distinguished itself so remarkably in
Lachambre's division, being always in the front, was ordered to march
out against them. Whatever the reason, whether they felt that their
splendid services had not been duly acknowledged, or, as is likely,
their pay was months in arrears, they refused to march against their
own countrymen. Eight corporals were called out of the ranks and shot
then and there in the presence of the regiment, which was again ordered
to advance, and a threat made that a refusal would mean death to all.
All did refuse and were sent to barracks to await sentence. The next
morning the entire regiment with arms and equipment, marched out
and deserted in a body to the insurgents, saying they were willing
to fight the foreign enemies of Spain, but not against their own
friends. The following day another regiment joined them, but I have
no note of its number.
It was now that an event occurred in Manila that showed how little
desire there was amongst the Spaniards to treat the natives with
ordinary justice, much less to conciliate them.
This was the massacre of the Calle de Camba, quite a short distance
from the American Consulate, and it was perpetrated on the 25th and
26th of March. On the first of those day a number of Visayan sailors
from the vessels in the Pasig had assembled in a house in the above
street, which was their usual resort.
Somehow the story got about that an illegal assembly was being held,
and the police, without more ado, attacked the meeting and shot down
a dozen, taking sixty-two prisoners. The next morning the whole of
these prisoners were marched to the cemetery, and all shot, though
many them were known to have been merely passing by at the time.
This is vouched for by Mr. Oscar F. Williams in an official letter
to Mr. Cridler, dated 27th March, 1898. It could hardly have been
a mere coincidence that a revolt of the Visayas broke out about ten
days later, when they made a desperate attack upon the city of Cebu
in which many lives were lost and much property damaged.
It seems hardly worth while to relate any more instances of Tagal
revenge or Spanish brutality. The country that had been almost pacified
was now again in revolt and amongst the insurgents were two battalions
of well-trained and veteran troops.
But now events were impending of transcendent importance--the
Spanish-American War had broken out.
Previously, however, Primo de Rivera left Manila to return to Spain,
but before going he granted an amnesty to all who had tortured
suspected persons to extort evidence from them.
Some of the victims had died under torture rather than bear witness
against their friends, for the Tagal is a Stoic after the manner
of the Red Indian. Others survive, mere wrecks, maimed for life,
and living mementoes of Spanish cruelty.
Torture for extracting evidence from suspected persons is illegal in
all Christian countries and their dependencies, and also in Japan,
but has not yet been entirely routed out in British India nor in
Egypt. In 1897, four cases of police torture in the North-West
Provinces and Oudh, ended in convictions.
In Spain, some police officers are now on their trial for applying
the thumb-screw to the fingers of anarchist prisoners in the Castle
of Monjuich with such severity, that one of them, a railway porter,
lost the use of his hands and arms. And Ysabelo de los Reyes, a native
of Ilocos, declares that he was tortured in the same prison by thirst,
having been fed upon salt food and deprived of water.
Last March (1900), a captain of police was tried at Sambor, in
Austrian Galicia, for torturing prisoners with the thumb-screw
and by deprivation of food, and was sentenced to a long term of
imprisonment. In Corea, China, and Siam, torture forms part of the
legal procedure before sentence, to say nothing of the various
and lingering deaths the judge may order after the prisoner has
confessed. Let us hope that now there will be no more of it in the
Philippines.