History of Mindanao, Part XVII: The Construction of the Iligan-Marahui Road, 1903

In the very first "History" entries, Parts I and II, I offered excerpts from the book, "The Great White Tribe in Filipania," [sic] by Paul T.Gilbert (Cincinatti: Jennings and Pye) (1903). Those two entries concerned memoirs of two leaders of the Northwest Mindanao Insurrectos, General Rufino Delfino and Captain Isidro Rilla. My current entry comes from that same book but concerns the author's experience, observing first hand as the 10th and 28th Infantry Regiments of the US Army managed to hack out the Iligan to Marahui Road, and how life was lived in the American expat colony in what is now Iligan City, circa 1903,



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Chapter XV: "Along the Iligan-Marahui Road":

The recent victories achieved by Captain Pershing over the fanatic Moro Tribes in the vicinity of Lake Lanao have opened up for military occupation a new territory equal in fertility and richness to the famous Cagayan Valley of Luzon. The Moros under the American Administration will be recognized as independent tribes and be restricted probably to reservations similar to those the Indians (NATIVE AMERICANS) now occupy. This means that a great tract of land will someday be thrown open for American development. The soil will yield abundant crops of corn, tobacco, coffee, rice, and other products while the forest wealth appeals to the imagination. Rubber, sugar, hemp, copra are the natural products of the country near the coast. The lake itself is situated on a high plateau with a prevailing temperable climate. Where the mountains do not intervene, the land slopes gradually down to the sea.

One of the most important military operations that was ever undertaken in the Philippines was the construction of the Iligan-Marahui Road, which for some time having been open to the packtrains and the heavy traffic, at present nearing its completion. The the work was planned by members of the Corps of Engineers, all the clearing, grading, and filling in were done by soldiers who had never until then knew what it meant to handle a pick and shovel. The younger officers who, for the first time in theirives, were superintending [SIC] a construction job, went out and bossed the gang as well as many an experienced and seasoned foreman could have done. The soldiers, who deserve no little credit for their work, are members of the 28th and 10th Infantries.

It was about the last of Janurary that I made a trip to Iligan, arriving in a Moro sailboat from another port on the northern coast of Mindanao. Two or Three Army Transports with the Flag of Quarantine flying (for Cholera was still in evidence) lay quietly at anchor in the shy. Along the shore a warm breeze ruffled the green branches of the copra palms. Near the new dock a gang of Moros were at work, perspiring in the hot rays of the tropic sun. A tawny group of soldiers, dressed in khaki, rested in the shade of a construction house and listened dreamily to far off bugle calls.

The Moros were dressed picturesquely in a great variety of costume, ranging from bright colored silk to dirty corduroy. Red Buya juice () dripping from the corners of their mouths. Their turbans, though disgracefully unclean, were silk. Their coats were fastened with military brass buttons and their sashes, green and red, with a long fringe were tied around their waists. Their trousers, like a pair of riding breeches, buttoned up the side.

While spending the first evening at the club, I had seen mingling with the young lieutenants, immaculate in their new olive uniforms, bronzed mud besplattered officers in the blue army shirt and khaki with the Colt six-shooter hanging from an ammunition belt. These were the strangers from the town of white tents on the borders of the woods. At midnite pissibly, or even later, they would mount their horses and go riding through the night to the encampment on the hill. The very next day one of the immaculate lieutenants, laying off the olive uniform, might have to don the old campaign hat and the flannel shirt, and follow his unshaven comrades up the road.

We stretched our army cots that night in the roulette room (this is not a country of hotels) to the rattle of the balls and the monotonous droning of the croupier, "teen and red wins," dropped off to sleep. On the following day the "Doctor Hans" dropped in with Generals Wade and Summer and the jingle of tge calvary was heard as they rode out with a mounted escort to inspect the operations of the road. After a dance and reception at the residence of the commanding officer in honor of the visitors, "guard mount," the social feature of the day, was viewed from the little pavillion in the little plaza where the exercise takes place. Its dignity was sadly marred that evening when q Moro Datu, self important in an absurd, overwhelming hat, accompanied by an obedient old wife on a moth eaten Filipino pony, and a dog, ignoring everybody jogged along the street through the lines.

I walked out to the camp next morning with Lieutenant Harris. Even for this short stretch the road was not considered altogether safe. We forded the small river just beyond the calvary corral, where an old Spanish blockhouse stands, and where a few old fashioned Spanish cannon still lie rusting in the grass. A Moro fishing village- now a few deserted shacks around the more pretentious dwelling of the former datto- may be met near where the roadway joins the beach. Pack trains of army mules, with their armed army escorts, passed us; then an ambulance, an escort wagon, and a mounted officer.

Two companies of the 10th Infantry were camped in a small clearing near the sea. Leaving the camp, we went along the almost indistinguishable Moro trail to where the mighty Agus River plunges in a greenish torrent over an abrupt wall into the deep, misty cavern far below. The rushing of the waters guided us in places where we found the trail inadequate. Arriving at the falls, we scrambled down by means of vines until we reached a narrow shelf near where the cataract began its plunge. Upon the opposite side an unyielding precipice was covered with a damp green coat of moss and fern. It took 5 seconds for a falling stone to reach the seething cloud of mist below.

The trail back to the camp was very wild, it led through jungles of dense underbrush, where monkeys scolded at us, and where wild pigs, with startled grunts, bolted precipitously for the thicket. A deep ravine would be bridged by a fallen tree. The Iligan-Marahui Road now pentrates the wildest country in the world, and the most wonderful. Turning abruptly from the coast about 5 miles from Iligan, it winds among the rocky hills through forests of mahogany and ebony, through jungles of rattan and young bamboo, and spanning the swift Agus River with a modern steel bridge, finally connects the lake and the sea. It has been built to meet the military road from the south coast, thus making possible, for the first time, communication from the interior. The new roads practically follow the old Moro trails.

The scene at early morning on the road was one of great activity. Soon after the revellie the men are mustered. Armed with picks and shovels in place of the more customary "Krag," and long before the tropic sun has risen over the primeval woods, the chatter of the monkeys and the crow of the jungle-cock is mingled with the crash of trees, the click of shovels, and the rumble of a dump-cart. The continued blasting on the upper road, near the "Point of Rocks," disturbs the colonies of squawking birds that dart into the forest depths like flashes of bright color. As the land is cleared for fifty yards on either side in order to admit the sunlight and keep the Moros at a proper range, the great macao-trees, with their snaky, parasitic vines, on crashing to the ground, dislodge the pallid fungi and extraordinary orchids from their heavy foilage. Deep cuts into the clay soil sometimes bisect whole galleries of wonderful white ants, causing untold consternation to the occupants.

Each squad of soldiers was protected by a guard besides the officer, who, armed with a revolver, acted as the overseer. The work was very telling on the men, and often out of a whole company, not more than twenty-eight reported. Some grew as strong as an oxen under this unusual routine; others had to take advantage of the sick report. The soldiers were required to work five hours a day, and double time after a day of rain. Considerable Moro labor was employed on the last sections of the road.

A unique feature of the work was the erection of small bridges made of solid logs from the material at hand, and bolted down by long steel bars. The "elbow" bridge which makes a bend along the hillside near the first camp is a triumph in the engineering line. The camps were moved on as the work progressed, and the advance guard ran considerable risk. The Moros had an unexpected way of visiting the scene of operation, and admiring it from certain hiding-places in the woods. As they could hike their thirty or fourty miles a day along the trails, they often came much nearer to the troops than was suspected. Sentry duty was especially a risky one, as frequently at night the Moros used to fire into the camp, only about one hundred yards along the trail a soldier, who had gone into the woods for a "shortcut," received one from a Moro who was waiting for him in the shadow of a tree.

The camp at night, illuminated by the blue light of the stars, the forest casting inky shadows on the ground, seemed like some strange, mysterious domain. The officers around the tent of the commanding officer were singing songs, accompanied by the guitar and the mandolin. The soldiers also from a distant tent- it was their own song, and the tune "The Girl I Left Behind Me"- practicing close harmony, began:

"O, we're camped in the sand in a foreign land
Near the mighty Agus River,
With the brush at our toes, the skeeters at our nose,
The jimjams and the fever.

We're going up to Lake Lanao,
To the town they call Marahui;
When the road is built and the Moros killed,
We'll none of us be sorry.

We're blasting stumps and grading bumps;
Our arms and backs are sore, O!
We work all day just a dreamin' of our pay,
And damn the husky Moro!"

When Taps sounded, we turned in beneath two blankets in a wall-tent lighted by a feeble lantern. All night long the restless jungle sounds, the whispering of the mysterious forest, and the distant booming of the sea, together with the measured tread of the night sentry, made a lullabye which ought to have worked wonders with the "Jim-Jam" and the fever patients of the 28th.

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I will continue with yet another excerpt from this book in a following entry

History of Mindanao Part II: Captain Isidro Rilla, Insurrecto, Circa 1902

In my previous History entry I focused on a great unsung hero of Mindanawon, neigh,even Philippine History, Insurrecto General Rufino Deloso who commanded a force of 400 plus men in the Anti-American Insurgency, from March 1900 until his surrender to the Philippine Constulbary in March of 1902. In this entry I will focus on one of Deloso's underlings, Captain Isidro Rilla. During Deloso's liason with the Maranaw (Maranao) Chieftians around Lake Lanao things had gotten so bleek as to warrant Deloso undertaking a loan from one chieftain for the absolutely astronomical sum of what Deloso said was $500 in gold. Needing a hostage to ensure repayment Deloso left Capt.Rilla. In the book,"The Great White Tribe in Filipinia" (Cincinatti: Jennings and Pye) (New York: Eaton and Main)(1903) the author Paul T.Gilbert included a short recounting of this episode in Capt.Rilla's own words.

Before beginning, I wanted to point out to readers two very salient points in both this and my preceding History entry; in Capt.Rilla's own words, and I quote verbatim, "The Moro tribes, because they recognize no ruler but the local datto, are unable to accomplish anything of national significance. Concerted action with them is impossible." It is an absolutely important point to take away. This is exactly why the young Muslim intellectuals of the late-1960s devised the whole "Bangsamoro" fantasy. Unless Filipino Muslims overcome their petty tribal and regional differences they will never amount to anything ON THEIR OWN. If instead they become attuned to Filipino Culture at large they may be able to accomplish great things.

The second point? Filipino Muslims love to label all Christians on Mindanao as "Settlers." The Filipino Government, in my estimation, is almost criminally negligent in not educating ALL Filipinos as to the true history of Mindanao. Muslims have never lived in more than a tiny coastal area in the southwest portion of the island. They never "ruled" Mindanao and Islam itself came to Mindanao at almost the same time that Christianity arrived on the island (remembering that Magellan erected a cross at Butuan). Filipino Muslims truly need to study objective, mainstream history.

I included explanations on three specialised bladed weapons, by using all capital letters in parentheses immediately after the word. At the bottom I will include a short gloassry for antiquated or Spanish words so readers can fully comprehend the narrative. Also, the "Lake" being discussed is Lake Lanao.

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Chapter XV: "Captain Isidro Rilla's Narrative"

I was to have been educated for the Church; but after studying for some time in Cebu prepatory to a course at Rome, I set aside the wishes of my parents, who desired that I become a Jesuit, and took unto myself a wife.

You wonder, probably, why we Visayans, who are very peaceable, should have assumed a hostile attitude toward the Americans. Of course, we do not really like the game of war. But what positions would we hold among our own communities if we were to be easily imposed upon? You would have thought it a queer army that assembled at Mt.Liberdad in 1901,-barefooted hombres, ignorantes from the rice-pads and the hemp-fields, armed with cutlasses and bolos- for we had no more than fifty guns- undisciplined and without military knowledge, but the appearance of your army in the War of Independance caused amusement to the British soldiers- for awhile? The Government generously recognized a number of the leaders of the insurrection, and in doing so has not done wrong. Our leaders are to-day, among our people, what your patriots are in your own land. And even you have no respect for those who hid themselves among the women during the affair at Oroquieta. Left alone, we could soon organize our government, our schools, and army. But, of course, conditions render this impossible, and so we think American protection is the best.

You ask for some account of my experiences with the Moros during our excursion to their territory. Our army was at first five hundred strong, but nearly half the men deserted on the way. We had not counted on so much hostility among the Moros, although they are ancient enemies of ours, until very recently they have raided our coast villages and carried off our people into slavery. But when we wanted slaves we purchased them- young Moros- from their parents at Misamis.

Though our mission was an altogether friendly one,our hosts did not let any opportunity go by of taking an unfair advantage of us. General Rufino was obliged to leave me as a hostage at Uato at the home of Datto Bancurong.

If we could have effected an alliance with the Moros, it would no doubt have been a formidable one. The Moros are well armed and expert fighting men. Most of our weapons have been purchased from them, as they had formerly acquired a stock of stolen Spanish guns. Those living in the Lake Lanao vicinity must have about two thousand Remington and Mauser guns, beside a number of old-fashioned cannon, which are mounted in their forts. They manufacture their own ammunition, which is necessarily of an indifferent quality.

We told the Moros that they would all have to work if the Americans should come. We knew that they were all slaveholders and ladrones; we knew that while they kept their slaves they would not need to work; and so we thought our argument ought to appeal to them.

I was left with Datto Bancurong, security for the five hundred pesos that Rufino had been forced to borrow, I was treated with considerable hospitality. At one time when I had the fever, he secured some chickens for me,- they were very scarce. The datto had three wives, but one of them was rather old. I did not notice any ornaments of gold upon them. They wore silver rings and bracelets, which the native jewelers had made. The women are industrious, and consequently do most of the work. They are quite skillful with the loom, and manufacture from the native fabric, ampic (sashes) which their husbands wear. But for themselves they buy a cheaper fabric from the Chinos, which they dye in brilliant colors and make into blankets. You would probably mistake the men for women at first sight because of their peculiar cast of features. They are dressed much better and more picturesquely than the women, wearing bright silk turbans, sashes with gay fringe, and blouses often fancifully colored and secured by brass or mother-of-pearl buttons.

The Moro tribes, because they recognize no ruler but the local datto, are unable to accomplish anything of national significance. Concerted action with them is impossible. Thirty or forty villages are built around the lake. They are so thickly grouped, however, that one might as well regard them all as one metropolis. The mountains form a background for the lake, which is located on a high plateau. The climate here is more suggestive of a temperate zone than of a place within 400 miles of the equator, and the nights are often disagreeably cold. To become a datto it is only necessary to possess a few slaves, wives,and a carabao. A minor datto averages about four slaves, a dozen head of cattle and two wives. He wears silk clothes,and occupies the largest nipa house.

The Moro weapons are of several kinds- the punal (PRONOUNCED"POO-NYAHL,"A WEDGE BLADED KNIFE), the campalon [SIC] (KAMPILAN IS THE ACTUAL SPELLING, A LONG BROADSWORD), and the sundang (ALSO KNOWN AS a KRISS). They also use head-axes, spears, and dirks. Being Mohammedans, they show a fatalistic bravery in battle. It is a disgrace to lose the weapon when in action; consequently it is tied to the hand. Many of their knives were made by splitting up the steel rails laid at Iligan. The brass work of the Spanish locomotives, also, was a great convenience in the manufacture of their cutlery.

Although they have schools for the boys, the Moro people do not make a specialty of education . The young men are taught from the Koran by priests, who also teach the art of making characters in Arabic. Their music for the most part is religious, inharmonious, and unmelodius. The coluctangn their most important instrument, resembles our guitar. They seem to recognize three grades of priests- the emam, the pandita, and sarip, named in order of superiority. Their churches are great, circular enclosures, made of nipa and bamboo, with no attempt at decoration. Sacred instrumental music is supplied by bells and drums. The drum at Uato, where I was, being of extraordinary size,required two men to operate it.Each town contains a large percentage of ladrones,whose influence is offset by the pandita (or elders) three or five for every barrio. These are the secondary priests, and it is necessary that they go into the church three times a day to pray.At sunrise, at midday, and at sunset they will cry repeatedly, "Allah! Allah! Bocamad soro-la!" All the priests wear bright robes like the dattos, but the clergy is distinguished by a special bangcala, or turban, which is ornamented by a string of silver rings.

There are about five hundred Filipinos living with the Moros, mostly slaves. Deer, jungle-cock, wild hogs, and cattle are to be found in the plains and forests near the lake. The soil is fertile, and sufficient crops of corn,rice,coffee,and tobacco may be raised,Camotes (wild potatoes),fruits,and cocoanuts are very scarce.

Though many of the dattos are disposed to treat the Americans as friends, three in particular will entertain a different attitude. There are Bayang, Mario, and Taraia, who, among them, have control of many men, They realize, however, that the new invaders will be harder to oppose than were the Spaniards of the former laissez faire regime.The Filipinos will,of course,be glad to see the Moros beaten in the conflict that is now inevitable.

To conclude my narrative, we finally got the better of our hosts, the enemy. The Moros wanted. $1,500 in return for the $500 they had loaned Rufino. "Then you must let the hostage come to his own people," said Rufino," so that he can use his influence among them and solicit funds; for otherwise we will not ransom him. "The situation did not look so very bright for me; but at a conference of the interested dattos they reluctantly decided that I might depart. Eight Moros were appointed to accompany me as a body-guard. On reaching Iligan it was requested that the post commander furnish me an escort back to Oroquieta, which was done. The Moros profited so much by our excursion, selling us good will and rice, that I am sure they will forgive us for not paying them the ransom money, which is no more than the brokerage on a small loan.
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Ignorantes: Spanish for "dullards" or "dummies"

Ladrones: Spanish for "brigands," "bandits," or "thieves"

Barrio: Spanish for "neighbourhood" though in this sense it is the predecessor to the current term "barangay"

Koran: An alternative English spelling of Qur'an, the Muslim Holy Book comparable to the Christian Bible

Dirk: Antiquated English for "dagger"

Datto: Malay form of "Datu"

History of Mindanao Part I: General Rufino Deloso of Oroquieta, Insurrecto

Rather than undertake the herculean task of a history of Mindanao presented in chronological order I thought it a tad bit more interesting, for myself and for my readers, if I trotted out entries in the form of vignettes, or excerpts from published works. The following is a chapter from the seminal, "The Great White Tribe in Filipinia" [sic], by the American expat Paul T.Gilbert (Cincinatti: Jennings and Pye) and (New York: Eaton and Mains) (1903). Written at the cusp of the 20th Century, with Spain having been vanquished 4 years before Gilbert wrote his book (5 years before actual publication).The phrase "White Tribe" is a double entendre that was supposed to pique interest becaused of a Mindoron legend that spoke of a white tribe living in Mindoro's then, and to a minute degree still, inaccessible interior. On the other hand Gilbert was also referring to Americans such as himself who for whatever reason had recently made their homes in the islands.

The book deals with Luzon and the Visayas as well as Mindanao with Mindanao perhaps getting the least attention but at that time it was still a forbidding place (most think it is still). Many of the tribes we now call "Lumad" still practiced human sacrifice fairly regularly, slavery was endemic and the rule of law was nearly non-existent. "General Rufino," in the words of Gilbert was one of the last of the "Insurrectos" to surrender to the Americans. Insurrectos of course were the valiant Filipinos who casting aside ethnic and tribal rivalries first expelled Spain before declaring the Philippines an independent nation. Unfortunately for these brave Filipinos the Americans had other ideas.

The Americans heavy handed arrival in turn led to a new war of liberation, one with far more tragic consequences than the original uprising. General Rufino Deloso was tasked with acting as a liason to the Maranaw (Maranao) tribal leaders living along the edge of Lake Lanao. The Maranaw are an Islamicised Tribe and then, like now, there was very little interaction between Muslim and non-Muslim Filipino. In fact, it is interesting to note that the areas inhabited by Muslims were perceived by the Philippine Government in Exile as well as the Christianised Filipinos themselves as being extraneous to the Philippines. The general argument is that the Islamicised areas were legally annexed by Spain and then by Spain's legal successor,the United States. The truth of the matter is quite different; I will discuss that very important subject in a future entry.

Ordered by the junta in Hong Kong,to proceed to Lake Lanao from the Northwestern Mindanowan city of Oroquieta (today it is Oroquieta City), Rufino was instructed to pay an absolute fortune to the Maranaws so as to keep them from attacking Insurrecto forces as they battled Americans on the borders of the Maranaw lands. The Maranaw were quite happy to accept what amounted to protection money but didn't have the ability to prevent any other Maranaws from attacking, even if they cared to do so, and they almost never did.

Harried by the Americans on the long march into Lanao, Deloso ended up losing more than half his force on the two week march, almost all from desertion. Insurrectos weren't professional soldiers. They were truly a people's army. As is so often the case when bullets begin to fly, untrained soldiers turned heel and ran home. Accompanying General Deloso were 2 American junior officers who had deserted from the 40th Infantry Regiment, US Volunteers (known as the 40th US Volunteers in shorthand). The 40th was a battle hardened element stationed near Oroquieta, primarily biouvaced in Cagayan del Misamis, today's Cagayan del Oro City. General Deloso remarks that the 2 deserters had been in Company I, or I COY. I COY,under its CO (Commanding Officer) Captain Walter B.Elliot was deployed along the Agusan and Surigao Circuit, where some of the most effective Insurrecto guerilla units did business. The 2 men would have had their share of combat, certainly by the time they defected to the Insurrectos. The 40th's first course of action upon its arrival on Mindanao was to invade Cagayan de Misamis on March 31st,1900 under Col.Edwin A.Godwin. After taking the town the 40th set up shoppe next to the Church of San Agustin, which was destroyed in WWII, towards the end of the war. However, a cathedral bearing that same name was built more or less on the same spot. It was this element that fought Insurrecto General Capistrano's huge force in a mostly hand to hand battle lasting hours (though the Americans maintain it lasted an hour), in April of that same year, 1900 (roughly 3 weeks after the 40th ensconced).

General Deloso was credited, by the Americans, with more than 20 armed contacts in just 23 months. In terms of insurgency that is an incredible number. He normally commanded in the area of 400 men, a very large number for a guerilla force.On March 7th, 1902 Deloso surrendered to a post of the newly created Philippine Constalbury in Oroquieta and by 1903 was stepping into colonial politics as he ran, and won, the position of"Presidente" (akin to today's"Mayor") in the Insurrecto bastion of Oroquieta. In seeking that position it is fair to say that at least initially he was playing both sides of the fence. It is also worth noting that in 1908 he was jailed for having registered to vote in the neighbouring municipality of Jimenez while still campaigning in Oroquieta. It may in fact have simply been ignorance of the system.As the American judge was keen in telling him in his verdict, "Ignorance is no excuse." Typical colonial mismanagement on the part of the Americans. Taking a charismatic and powerful leader of the insurgency and tossing him in the gaol over such a trivial issue is almost criminal in and of itself.

I included a very short glossary for the Spanish terms at the bottom of this page.
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Chapter XV "General Rufino in the Moro Country"

Rufino's Narrative: We left Mt.Liberdad [SIC] on June 1, 1901 with eighteen officers and privates to the number of four hundred and fourty two. Our destination was the town of Uato, on the shore of Lake Lanao, where, in obedience to our instructions from the Filipino junta at Hong Kong, we were to arrange a conference with the leading dattos in regard to an alliance of the Filipino and the Moro forces to conduct a joint campaign against the American army of invasion.


Among our officers were two deserters from I Company of the Fortieth United States Volunteers, Morgan and Miller, who were mere adventurers, and who desired to clear the country and embark for Africa. Morgan was supposed to have been wanted for some criminal offense in the United States. He claimed to have deserted as a consequence of punishments received by him which he considered to be undeserved. His comrade Miller followed him; but I have heard that Morgan took it hard because his friend had followed such a questionable lead. An understanding had been previously arranged between our officer and Morgan so that when the latter left the lines at Oroquieta we received him and his comrade at Aloran, six miles north.

Our first stop was to be at Lintogout, a station on the river by the same name, that flows into the long estuary that divides our country from the Moro territory. As you can see, our march was very rough. The mountain chain, of which Mt.Liberdad, Mt.Rico and Mt.Esperanza are the most important peaks, is very wild and hazardous. A few miles from the coast the country breaks into ravines and hills. There are no villages; no depots for supplies. The trails are almost imperceptible, and can be followed only by the most experienced Montesco (HIGAON-ON LUMAD) guides. Back in the mountains there are many natural strongholds, which are practically inaccessible. The mountain wall, with its Plutonic canyons and precipitous descents, wrapped in a chilly fog, continually towered above us on the west.

To add to our embarrassments, we were harassed by a detachment of United States troops that had been pursuing us. Their plan was to close in upon us in two sections, from the front and rear. Near Lintogout we came to an engagement with Lieutenant Patterson's command. My army was by this time seriously crippled. We had lost one hundred and forty men the previous day by desertion. The deserting men, however, did not take their arms. Lieutenant Patterson's command must have been quite exhausted, for they camped at night on a plateau along the precipice where an attack by us would have been inadvisable. The troops were new and untried; the experience for them was something they had not anticipated. Yet they kept at it stubbornly, slinging their carbines on their backs, and climbing up hand over hand in places where they had lost the trail. Their guides were evidently somewhat of a puzzle to them, as the Montese idea of distance is indefinite. "When I have finished this cigar we will be there," they say; and "poco distancia" with them often means many miles.

We were not inconvenienced much by the engagement. Our American lieutenants superintended [SIC] the construction of entrenchments, back of which we lay, and fired a volley at the enemy. At their advance our army scattered,and a number of our soldiers, taking inexcusable advantage of the opportunity, deserted. On the next day we set out, reduced in numbers to two hundred and fifty-two. None of our men were killed or wounded in the fight.

We then proceeded overland to Lake Lanao, the journey occupying sixteen days, during which time the army had no rice, but had to exist entirely on the native fruits. Our tardiness in reaching Lake Lanao was caused by two attacks by Moros,June 15th. In order to avoid this enemy we made a detour, coming dangerously near the coast at Tucuran. At Tucuran three men deserted. Thence our march led inland to Bacayan, following the south shore of the lake (LAKE LANAO). Before we reached Bacayan we were met (June 29th and 30th) by Dattos Casiang and Pindalonan, with their combined forces. Our side lost two killed, three wounded (who were taken captive); and the Moros, thirteen killed, three wounded. Arriving at Bacayan July 1st, we waited there twelve days.

Then we set out along the south shore (OF LAKE LANAO) to Uato on the lake, which place we reached without engagement on the nineteenth of July. We stopped at Uato ten days, there borrowing $500 "Mex" from Datto Bancurong. We were obliged to leave Captain Isidro Rillas with the datto for security. The very money that we now were borrowing the Moros had received from us for their protection during our campaign, and for them promising not to molest us all the time that we were in their territory. Having loaned us money,they now sold us rice,in which negotiation,just as in the former one, they took advantage of our hopelessness. The deal, however, was a necessary one, because the army had been for a long time without funds or rations. Leaving Uato we proceeded to Liangan, on the north coast, opposite Tudela (on the Jolo Sea). We left the Moro country on the recommendation of the two American deserters, who had been dissatisfied for some time at the turn affairs were taking.

We were attacked the first day out of Uato by the combined forces of three powerful dattos, who had previously borrowed rifles from us on the pretext of desiring to kill game. The engagement lasted until sunset. Of the Moros, ten were killed and many were wounded. Night coming on, the enemy withdrew for re-enforcements [SIC]. They returned the next day several thousand strong, and would have utterly annihilated us (for we were worn by fever and starvation) had it not been for Datto Bandia's advice, which finally discouraged the attack.

We reached Liangan July 31st with two hundred and thirty-nine men. Here we purchased rifles from the Moros, crossed the bay at night, and reached Tudela August 5th. Procrastination on the part of the conferring dattos made a failure of the expedition.We had spent about $10,000 gold for rations, good will, and protection.

Morgan and Miller, when the army was disbanded, lived around Langaran for awhile. One day while they were bathing in the sea,they were cut down by natives, I do not know why. Morgan was killed while arguing with his assailants. "We have done a lot for you" he said; but those were his last words. Miller, attempting to escape by running through the shallow water,was pursued by bancas and dispatched. The bodies were found later in a marsh.
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Montese: Spanish, "Of the Mountains," the Spanish term for the Higaon-on Tribe

Poco Distancia: Spanish, "Short Distance" or "Not Much Distance"

Banca: Generic term of the Central and Southern Philippines for "skiff" or "small boat"

I will continue next time with the rest of the chapter which is comprised of the narrative of Captain Isidro Rilla who had been left as a hostage for the $500 gold General Rufino had borrowed back on Lake Lanao.