The Boys At Caloocan

Anaconda Standard, Tuesday March 28, 1899

THE BOYS AT CALOOCAN

Interesting Letters From Montana’s Fighting Men

DESCRIBE THE BATTLE

Many of the Letters Are Accompanied by Diagrams—-Chaplain Stull’s List of Killed and Wounded

The mail which arrived from the West yesterday brought several letters from the Anaconda fighting men in the Philippines. One of the letters is from Chaplain Still and give the list of killed and wounded in the Montana regiment up to Feb. 13. It is dated at Caloocan and gives the following casualties up to 7 o’clock p.m. An interesting letter is that written by Private James A. Callahan of Company K, of this city. Mr. Callahan writes from Camp Wallace, Caloocan, under date of Feb. 20. It contains a graphic description of the fight. Mr. Callahan says:

Shortly after taps on Saturday, Feb. 4, heavy firing began on the outpost at the city limits, in what is called the Binondo district. A few minutes later the call came for the Montanans to go to the front. We were held in reserve until 11 a.m. Feb. 5, when we were ordered out to the firing line. Reaching the line four companies of Montana, H, K, L and M, under command of Lieutenant Colonel R.B. Wallace, advanced across an open rice field toward the Binondo Chinese cemetery,[1] which lay on a hillside on our front. Here the enemy lay in wait for us. They allowed us to advance to within 300 yards of them, when they opened fire on us, and the warm reception they tendered us for three hours afterward will not be forgotten by any who participated in the festivities. We had but one man wounded—Sorenson of Company L, shot through the head with a Mauser bullet. He is still alive and strong hopes for his recovery are entertained.

Our boys kept up a continuous fire on the cemetery, but not a very effective one, for the enemy was well entrenched behind tombstones and graves, but a few well-directed shots from a piece of artillery, which had been run up the road to our rear, soon had them on the run, with the four companies of Montanans following on their rear, the 3d artillery on the left flank and the Pennsylvanians of the right flank, jumping them out of their entrenchments and hiding places. We continued our line of advance until we captured the church and block house, in which they were fortified. That night we lay in the trenches on the firing line with no trouble, but an occasional volley at some troublesome natives who would persist in coming up and taking a shot at the lines.

Feb. 6 opened up clear and warm. We had foraged chicken[2] for breakfast, of which we made a meal. At 9 a.m. we advanced our line, the Kansas regiment on our left, next to the bay shore, and the 3d artillery on our right, advanced about a mile on both sides of the railroad, driving the enemy ahead of us and burning everything as we went. We camped on the reserve for the balance of the day. There was no disturbance, except an occasional shot from a sharpshooter. A Kansas lieutenant was wounded. At 7 p.m. Company K was ordered on the firing line, but the night passed without incident. On Feb 7 at 7 a.m we were relieved by Company A of Great Falls. We laid on the reserve line all day and at 9:30 p.m. were called out and lined up. There was heavy volley firing on the firing line, which was kept up at intervals all day and night. On Feb. 8 we were on the support line all day and all night, everything being quiet. On the 9th Company K was on the firing line with fighting all night. One man was wounded in Company B.

On Feb. 10 at 7 a.m. we were relieved on the firing line by Company D of Virginia City. About 3 p.m all the troops were drawn up for battle. Uncle George Dewey[3] threw three shells into the timber on our left, which was the signal for an advance. When the command was given the Montanans were over their entrenchments skirting the timber, in which the insurgents were entrenched. The advance was continued under a very heavy fire routing the enemy as they came out of their trenches and hiding places. We traversed a distance of at least three miles on the run all the way, keeping up a continuous fire. The enemy made a stand at the town and grave yard of Caloocan, but were soon compelled to retreat, leaving a great many of their dead behind them. Our company had but one man slightly wounded.

Company M, Captain Hallahan’s has the honor and distinction of being the first to raise the American colors over the town of Calooncan. The majority of the insurgent with whom we battled are now at Malabon, a mile and a half from here. We have the town practically surrounded. The town is built on a peninsula with a road running across a lagoon, which is covered by the Utah battery. Their only way of escape, therefore, is to the northwest through some timber of which Dewey has a commanding view, day and night. We are expecting to attack Malabon any moment. Our forces hold the railroad from Manilla to Caloocan, which is very useful for transporting troops and supplies. The road is managed by an English syndicate.[4]

There have been a shower of promotions in Company K during the last month. Second Lieutenant Philip Greenan received his promotion at first lieutenant last month; Sergeant Myles Kelly and Corporal O’Leary received their commissions as lieutenants on Jan. 18. Lieutenant O’Leary was assigned to duty with Company M and Lieutenant Kelly with company H, but since has returned to Company K. Our captain, Thomas S. Dillon, who led us through last Friday’s battle in the taking of Caloocan had the command of Companies K and H of Montana, proved himself a very efficient officer on the field.

Our life on the field is now becoming monotonous. We sleep in the trenches at night trying to knock out mosquitos. John J. Campbell of Anaconda, who was wounded in Friday’s battle by a brass-coated bullet, died on the 17th of blood poisoning at the reserve hospital.

NOTES

[1] The Binondo Chinese Cemetery, founded in the 1850s on the northern edge of Manila, was the oldest Chinese burial ground outside the city walls. During the Philippine–American War, its raised tombs and mausoleums provided the insurgents with ready-made fortifications. To U.S. volunteers like James, the fight among gravestones was disorienting and brutal—enemy fire seemed to come from behind every monument.

[2] Foraged chicken: Soldiers in the field often lived off whatever they could take from nearby villages or farms. Chickens were especially common—easy to catch and a welcome change from army-issue hardtack and canned beef. But every “unofficial ration” came at a cost: these thefts deepened the hunger and hardship of Filipino civilians, many of whom were already on the edge of starvation.

[3] Uncle George Dewey: Commodore (later Admiral) George Dewey was the commander of the U.S. Asiatic Squadron. His victory over the Spanish fleet at Manila Bay on May 1, 1898, made him a national hero. In James’s account, Dewey’s guns provided covering fire for the Montanans’ advance at Caloocan.

[4] English syndicate: The Manila–Caloocan railroad was managed by the Manila Railway Company, a British-owned enterprise. American soldiers like James noticed this, as the railway became critical for troop movements and supply during the campaign.