Uncle Sam's Boys in the Philippines; or, Following the Flag against the Moros Read online

  UNCLE SAM'S BOYS IN THE PHILIPPINES

  Or

  Following the Flag against the Moros

  by

  H. IRVING HANCOCK

  Author of Uncle Sam's Boys in the Ranks, Uncle Sam's Boys on Field Duty,Uncle Sam's Boys as Sergeants, The Motor Boat Club Series, The GrammarSchool Boys Series, The High School Boys Series, The West Point Series,The Annapolis Series, The Young Engineers Series, etc., etc.

  Illustrated

  "It Won't be Necessary, Corporal." _Frontispiece._]

  PhiladelphiaHenry Altemus Company

  Copyright, 1912, By Howard E. Altemus

  CONTENTS

  CHAPTER PAGE

  I. THE FILIPINO DANDY 7

  II. A MEETING AT THE NIPA BARRACKS 26

  III. PLOTTERS TRAVEL WITH THE FLAG 42

  IV. CERVERRA'S INNOCENT SHOP 54

  V. ENOUGH TO "RATTLE" THE VICTIM 65

  VI. LIFE HANGS ON A WORD 70

  VII. THE KIND OF MAN WHO MASTERS OTHERS 81

  VIII. THE RIGHT MAN IN THE GUARD HOUSE 87

  IX. NEWS COMES OF THE UPRISING 98

  X. THE INSULT TO THE FLAG 112

  XI. IN THE FIRST BRUSH WITH MOROS 124

  XII. THE BROWN MEN AT BAY--FOR HOW LONG? 131

  XIII. A TALE OF MORO BLACKMAIL 141

  XIV. THE CALL FOR MIDNIGHT COURAGE 149

  XV. IN A CINCH WITH COLD STEEL 161

  XVI. DATTO HAKKUT MAKES A NEW MOVE 168

  XVII. "LONG" GREEN AND KELLY HAVE INNINGS 177

  XVIII. SENTRY MIGGS MAKES A GRUESOME FIND 187

  XIX. HAL TURNS THE GATLING GUN LOOSE 196

  XX. CORPORAL DUXBRIDGE'S MISTAKE 208

  XXI. SCOUTING IN DEADLY EARNEST 220

  XXII. PLAYING GOO-GOO IN A GRIM GAME 228

  XXIII. DOOMING THE DATTO 236

  XXIV. CONCLUSION 246

  Uncle Sam's Boys in the Philippines

  CHAPTER I

  THE FILIPINO DANDY

  "We've solved one problem at last, Noll," declared Sergeant Hal Overtonseriously.

  "Only one?" demanded young Sergeant Terry quizzically.

  But Hal, becoming only the more serious, went on earnestly:

  "At last we begin to understand just what the 'lure of the Orient'means! For years I've been reading about the Orient, and the way thatthis part of the world charms men and holds them. Now, that we are hereon the spot, I begin to understand it all. Noll, my boy, the East is agreat and wonderful place! I wonder if I shall ever tire of it?"

  "I believe I could tire of it in time," remarked Sergeant Terry, of theThirty-fourth United States Infantry.

  "But you haven't yet," insisted Sergeant Hal.

  "What, when we've been here only three days? Naturally I haven't. And,besides, all we've seen is Manila, and certainly Manila can't be morethan one little jumping-off corner of the Orient that you're soenthusiastic about."

  "You're wild about the Far East, too--even the one little corner of itthat we've seen," retorted Sergeant Hal. "Don't be a grouch or aknocker, Noll. Own up that you wouldn't start for the United Statesto-morrow if you were offered double pay back in the home country."

  "No; I wouldn't," confessed Sergeant Terry. "I want to see a lot more ofthese Philippine Islands before I go back to our own land."

  "Just halt where you are and look about you," went on enthusiasticSergeant Hal. "Try to picture this scene as Broadway, in New York."

  "Or Main Street in our own little home city," laughed Sergeant Terryquietly.

  Certainly the scene was entirely different from anything that the twoyoung Army boys had ever seen before.

  They stood on the Escolta, which is the main business thoroughfare ofNew Manila, as that portion of the Philippine capital north of thelittle river is called. South of the river is Old Manila, the walledcity of the old days of the Spanish conquerors. South of the walled citylie two rather fashionable residence suburbs, Ermita and Malate.

  But the Thirty-fourth was temporarily stationed in big nipa barracks atMalate. It was in the newer Manila that the two boyish young sergeantsfound their greatest interest.

  It was a busy, bustling scene. There is nothing exactly like the Escoltain any other part of the world. The whole of this crooked, windingthoroughfare seemed alive with horses and people--with the horses inmore than goodly proportion.

  Along the Escolta are the principal wholesale and retail houses of thecity. Here is the post office, there the "Botanica" or principal drugstore, operating under English capital and a Spanish name; down near thewater front is the Hotel de Paris, a place famous for the good dinnersof the East. Further up the Escolta, just around a slight bend, is theOriente Hotel, the stopping place of Army officers and their families,of passing travelers and of civil employees of the government.

  At this point along the Escolta are the busiest marts of local trade.The sidewalks are crowded with hurrying throngs; the streets jammed withtraffic, for in Manila few of the whites or the wealthier natives everthink of walking more than a block or two. The _quilez_, the littletwo-wheeled car drawn by a six-hundred-pound pony, is the common meansof getting about. A dollar in American money will charter one of these_quilez_ for hours, and the heat renders it an advisable investment forone who has far to go.

  Automobiles were scarce, though they had penetrated even this congestedEscolta. Here and there an Army officer or orderly appeared on horsebackin the crush of the street. If he attempted to ride at a canter thehorseman seemed to be taking his life in his own hands, with the chancesall against him.

  Save for the lazy calls of drivers--_cocheros_--to their horses, the humof human voices was subdued. In the heat of the Escolta the people ofall colors seem to have reached a tacit understanding that it requiresless exertion to talk in low tones.

  White people of both sexes appeared, clad usually in the white attire socustomary in the tropics. Filipino dandies affected the same garbing,with the exception of here and there a natty, nervous, little brown manwho appeared in the more formal black frock coat. But few, even ofthese, had the courage to come out in sun-up hours wearing the silk hatthat is the usual accompaniment of the long-tailed frock coat.

  Despite the heat, the faces of most of the people in the crowded streetsappeared cheerful, even happy. Life is not taken too seriously in theOrient. The natives always find plenty of time for laughter; thestranger soon acquires the trick.

  Banks, stores, restaurants, mineral water kiosks--all the places ofresort along the Escolta--were abundantly patronized, yet none save the_cocheros_ perched up on the little seats of the _quilez_ appeared to beat all in a hurry.

  Yet one man in particular appeared to be devoid of hurry. In fact, hepaused or halted whenever the two boyish young sergeants did. Heinvariably kept about a hundred feet behind them in this queerlybustling yet ever leisurely crowd that thronged the sidewalks of theEscolta.

  While Hal and Noll were curiously noting the fact--that the Escoltaseems always so busy, but the individuals who make up the life thereseem never in a hurry--the man who was plainly following them neverglanced at them directly, yet never once lost sight of them.<
br />
  Neither Hal nor Noll had yet noted the man, about whom there were somepoints that would have been amusing to the American youngsters.

  This man was a Filipino. At first glance one would have believed him tobe a Tagalo, or member of the most warlike and ambitious of all theeighty-odd tribes that make up the peoples of these islands. The Tagalosare the tribe most frequently found in and around Manila, and in theprovinces nearest to that city. In apearance the Tagalos look agood deal like underfed Japanese. It was to the Tagalos that the_insurrecto_ leader, Aguinaldo, belonged.

  These Tagalos, however, consider themselves in every way the equals andmatch for any white man. The Tagalos have absorbed much of the Spanishcivilization. Many of them are wealthy and the sons of such familiesgenerally hold degrees from Philippine colleges. Well-to-do Tagalos,despite their undersized stature and dark-brown skins, affect all theculture--and the vices--of well-to-do white people. They conduct banks,engage in commerce, mingle with white society, and consider themselvesas bright lights of civilization. Above all, every Tagalo takes keeninterest in politics. Yet these Tagalos, up to date, are only veneeredMalays.

  This Filipino who was so patiently following Sergeants Hal and Nollappeared to belong to the well-to-do class. Certainly he was animmaculate dandy. He was about five feet two inches in height, and woreneat-fitting, well-tailored white duck garments. The blouse was buttoneddown in front, a military, braided white collar standing up stiffly,rendering the wearing of a shirt unnecessary. On his feet were highlypolished tan shoes of American make. On his head he wore a jaunty,straight-brimmed straw hat of the best native manufacture. In his righthand this irreproachable Filipino dandy lightly swung a feather-weightbamboo cane.

  His eyes were dark, gleaming, intense--fitted either to reflectlaughter or sharp anger. But what rendered this man, who appeared to beclose to thirty-five years of age, ridiculous to American eyes was hismustache. This was blue-black in color, waxed to two fine, bristling,upturned points--a fashion that this dandy had undoubtedly caught fromsome former Spanish military officer.

  "They are boys--they will suit my purpose excellently," murmured theFilipino to himself, as he halted before a window where tropicaloutfittings for men were attractively displayed. Yet, though he gazed inat the window, he saw Sergeants Hal and Noll out of the corners of hiseyes. "They are young, ambitious; they are enlisted men, therefore poor.Even in this short time these boys must have learned the craving for thethings that money alone will buy. No man, in the Orient, can escape thatknowledge and that longing for money. That is why it is so easy to buymen's souls here in the East. Shall I go up and speak to them? But no!There they go into a curio store where they will find much that they maywish to buy. I will follow my young _sergentes_ inside in fiveminutes--or ten. _Then_ they will be ripe for the man who talks money."

  Hal and Noll had entered one of the most attractive little shops to befound anywhere along the Escolta. This store is kept by a Chinaman, whosells the more costly curios of the Far East. China's choicest silks arehere displayed; also her finest teakwoods and curious boxes and cabinetsof sandal and other valued woods, inlaid with pearl, or studded withrare jades. Here are wonderful creations carved out of ivory, idols ofall kinds and sizes, of the highest grades of artistic workmanship. Hereare wonderful beaded portieres and the most costly of curious Chinesegarments for women. In a word, the bazaars of China are noblyrepresented on the Escolta. But there is much more besides. The mostattractive curios from India, from Ceylon, the Malay Peninsula and ofnative Filipino workmanship are all to be found here. It is not theplace to enter when one has not much money.

  No wonder Sergeant Overton and Sergeant Terry moved from counter tocounter, pricing and sighing. Each young Army boy wanted to send homesomething worth while to his mother. Yet how small a sergeant's payseems in such a bazaar!

  Hal Overton and Noll Terry need no introduction to the reader of theearlier volumes in this series. "$1," as our readers are aware, detailshow Hal and Noll, reared in love of the Flag and respect for themilitary, determined, at the age of eighteen, to enlist in the RegularArmy. Our readers followed the new recruits to the recruit rendezvous,where the young men received their first drillings in the art of being asoldier. From there they followed Hal and Noll westward, to FortClowdry, in the Colorado mountains, where the young soldiers wentthrough their first thrilling experiences of the strenuous side of Armylife, proving themselves, whether in barracks, on drill ground or underfire on a lonely sentry post, to be the sort of American youths of whomthe best soldiers are made.

  Readers of "$1" already know how Hal and Noll went several steps furtherin learning the work of the soldier; of their surprisingly good andhighly adventurous work in practical problems of field life. In thisvolume was described field life and outpost duty, and scouting duty aswell, as they are actually taught in the Army. In this volume is toldalso how Hal and Noll while out with a scouting party supplied theircompany with unexpected bear meat. Our readers, too, will remember thethrilling work of Hal and Noll, under Lieutenant Prescott, in capturinga desperate character badly wanted by the state authorities. These youngsoldiers were heroes of other absorbing adventures; their fine workeventually leading to their appointments as corporals.

  In "UNCLE SAM'S BOYS AS SERGEANTS" our readers will recall a host ofhappenings that belong to military life, among them the stirringmilitary tournament in which a battalion of "Ours" took part at Denver,and the all but tragic results of that tournament; the soldierhunting-party up in the Rockies, in which Hal and Noll thoroughlydistinguished themselves both as hunters and as soldiers and commanders.

  And now we find the entire Thirty-fourth Infantry in Manila, stationedthere briefly pending details at other points in the islands.

  As we look in upon Sergeants Overton and Terry to-day we find them twoyears older than when they first enlisted--but many years older in allthe fine qualities that go to make up the best manhood.

  Either young sergeant's word was as good as his bond in theThirty-fourth. Truthful, ambitious, manly, thoroughly trained andcapable of commanding; in a word, _men_ in character and abilities,while yet boys in years.

  This much had two years of life in the United States Army done for HalOverton and Noll Terry. Could other training have done more?

  And these were the young Americans whom the alert-eyed, trailingFilipino dandy had already singled out and had planned to corrupt to hisown purposes.

  Yet the astute man of the world knows more than one way of ruining anddisgracing simple-hearted, true-souled young fellows. Not even Satan iscredited with appearing often in evil guise at first.

  Perhaps this Filipino, a wicked fellow of long training, knew how to goabout his work.

  "Going to buy anything, Noll?" asked Hal at last, after the two youngsergeants had made the round of the bewildering, attractive store.

  "I would, if I could find anything worth while that didn't take asergeant's whole year's pay," sighed Terry.

  "Things are fearfully dear here, aren't they?" murmured Overton. "Yet Iwant to send something home as a remembrance to mother."

  "What do you fancy most?" asked Noll.

  "If you haven't anything else on your mind, come around and I'll showyou," Hal proposed.

  Nodding, Noll accompanied his chum. Hal stopped to rest one hand lightlyon a very wonderful little chest, made out of teak and sandal woods. Itwas richly, wonderfully carved, the darker teakwood being also inlaidwith pearl. Inside were compartments and drawers, including two littlesecret drawers that the smiling Chinese salesman artfully opened andexposed to view.

  "One all same fo' _dinero_ (money), other fo' plecious stones, jewels,you _sabe_," cooed the yellow attendant.

  "It's a beauty and a wonder," murmured Hal. "Mother'd be the proudestwoman in town if I could send it home to her. How much did you say itcost?"

  "Him tloo hundled pesos," stated the Chinaman gravely.

  A _peso_ is the Spanish name for a Mexican dollar, worth aboutforty-seven cents; but
two _pesos_ and an American dollar are reckonedas of the same value in Manila.

  "A hundred dollars gold! Why, that's the same price you asked mebefore," cried Hal in good-natured protest.

  "Yep, allee same; him plenty cheap."

  "It's too much," sighed Sergeant Hal. But the Chinaman, as though he hadnot heard, asked:

  "You likee? You buy?"

  "I can't afford it at that price."

  "All light; come in some other day," invited the Chinaman politely, andglided over to where another possible customer was examining somehandsome jade jewelry.

  "My _soldado_ (soldier) friend has not been long in Manila?" inquired alow, pleasant, courteous voice behind the two young soldiers.

  Hal wheeled. It was the Filipino dandy whom he confronted. That smiling,prosperous-looking native was employing his left hand to twist one endof the upturned moustache to a finer point.

  "No; we haven't been here long," Hal smiled. "Three days, in fact."

  "And you do not yet know how to bargain with these sharp-witted _Chinos_(Chinese)?"

  "I'm afraid not," said Sergeant Overton.

  "May I ask, senor, what you wished to buy?"

  "This box," Hal answered.

  "And how much did the _Chino_ want for it, if I may make bold enough toask so much of the senor's business?"

  "Why, he wants a hundred dollars in gold," Hal responded.

  The Filipino dandy inspected the box critically.

  "You are right, senor; the price is too high. It is _muy caro_ (verydear), in fact. It could be bought for less, if you knew better how todeal with these smiling yellow heathen."

  "I'd be greatly obliged, then, if you would tell me how to put thebargain through."

  "You should get this rare and handsome box, senor, for ninety dollars,gold--even, perhaps, for not much more than eighty."

  "Even that would be a fearful price for me to pay," murmured Hal,shaking his head regretfully. "I shall have to give up the idea, Iguess."

  "Ah, but no!" cried the Filipino, as though struck suddenly by an idea."Not if the senor will do me one very great favor!"

  "What favor can I possibly do you?" asked Sergeant Hal, regarding thelittle brown man with considerable astonishment.

  "Why, it is all very simple, senor. Simply let me feel that I have beenpermitted to do a courtesy to an _Americano_ to one of the race to whichI owe so much. In a word, senor, I am not--as you may perhapsguess"--here the Filipino swelled slightly with a pride that wasplain--"I am not exactly a poor man, not since the _Americanos_ came tothese islands and gave us the blessings of liberty and just government.I have many business ventures, and one of them lies in my being asecret--no, what you _Americanos_ call a silent partner of the _Chino_who conducts this store. Now the favor that I ask--senor, I beg you tolet me present you with this handsome little box, that you may send itover the waters to your sweetheart."

  "Make me a present of it?" demanded Sergeant Hal in amazement.

  "Ah, yes, exactly so, senor; and I shall be greatly honored by your verykind acceptance. And your friend--he shall select anything--valuable andhandsome--that he would like for his sweetheart."

  Neither young sergeant had a sweetheart outside of his mother. It wasfor their mothers that they sought suitable-priced curios. In theiramazement, however, neither Hal nor Noll took the trouble to correctthis smiling, polite stranger.

  "Thank you," said Overton promptly. "We can't accept, of course, thoughit is very kind of you to make the offer--so very kind that it almosttakes our breath away."

  "And why can you not accept?" insisted the Filipino. He was stillsmiling, but there was now something so insistent in his voice that Nollanswered quickly:

  "Because we cannot accept gifts from strangers."

  "Ah, but you do not yet know the Orient. You must have things here; youmust have money to spend, and feel the pleasure of spending it, or youwill die."

  "Thank you," laughed Sergeant Hal, "but at present my health isexcellent. As for dying, that has no terror for the soldier."

  "Ah, yes, to die like a soldier!" protested the Filipino, with a shrugof his shoulders. "But would you die of sheer weariness and envy? Thereare pleasures in this country which only money will buy. Without themoney, without these pleasures, life soon becomes bitter. You do notknow, but I do, for I have watched thousands of your _Americano_soldiers here. Now, I have money--too much! It is my whim to see thatthe _soldados_ enjoy themselves. I have begged many a soldier to honorme by letting me purchase him a little pleasure. Come, I will show younow! Wait! I will send for a carriage--not a _quilez,_ but a victoria.Say the word, give the consent, and I will show you at once what iscalled pleasure here in the East--in Manila."

  Though he spoke in low tones, the Filipino made almost extravagantgestures. As he kept on he warmed up to his subject.

  "Shall I call a victoria?" he asked.

  "If you wish," replied Sergeant Hal dryly.

  "Ah, that is the way I like to hear you say it!" cried the littleFilipino, and hastened toward the door.

  He went away so rapidly, in fact, that he did not have time to noteyoung Sergeant Overton's altered manner. From a feeling of embarrassmentover having to repulse a stranger's ill-advised offer of generosity,Hal, his eyes watching the man's face, speedily took a dislike to theFilipino.

  "Come along, Noll," Overton whispered. "We'll get out of this. I don'tlike the fellow."

  "You like him as well as I do," muttered Sergeant Terry.

  At the door of the store they again caught sight of the dandy, who, withhand extended, was at that moment signaling a _cochero_ to drive hisvictoria in to the curb.

  "It could not have been better," cried the little brown tempter. "Justas I came out I saw an empty victoria."

  "I congratulate you," smiled Sergeant Hal.

  "No, but this is the carriage, here," cried the Filipino, as Hal andNoll turned to walk down the Escolta.

  "Get in, then, and enjoy yourself," called back Hal.

  In an instant the Filipino was in front of them, barring their way.

  "But you permitted me to stop a carriage," he protested, bewildered.

  "Exactly," nodded Hal, "and we hope you will enjoy yourself. Step aside,please, for we want to pass on."

  "But you are not going with me, after----"

  "Nothing was said about that," Hal answered, "and we have other plans.Good-bye."

  As the Filipino dandy once more tried to place himself in front of theyoung sergeant, Hal gently but firmly thrust the insistent fellow aside.

  The Filipino stood glaring after them until the two Army boys were outof sight. The glint in his eyes was far from pleasant.

  "Now, what on earth did that fellow want of us?" demanded Nollwonderingly.

  "Nothing good, anyway," returned Hal Overton. "Intending benefactorsdon't act in that fashion. He may represent a bad phase of life outhere. Let's forget him. Say, here's a store we must have overlooked onour way up here. Let's go in."

  Half an hour later the Army boys came out of the store, each carrying asmall parcel. For his first present home each young soldier had boughtfor his mother a small assortment of the wonderfully filmy _pina_ lacehandkerchiefs made by the native women.

  "No _quilez_ around here for hire," said Hal, after looking up and downthe Escolta. "Let's walk across the bridge over the Pasig. We'll be morelikely to find an idle _cochero_ on the other side of the river."

  As they started the sky was darkening, and the lightning beginning toflash, for this was in early July, at the height of the rainy season.

  "I hope we find a _cochero_ soon," muttered Noll, looking up at the darksky. "I don't fancy the idea of walking all the way out to Malate in adownpour."

  They were not quite over the bridge when the storm broke in all itsforce. Tropical thunder crashed with a fury that made artillery fireseem trifling. Great sheets of lightning flashed on all sides.

  "Hustle, before we get drowned," laughed Sergeant Hal, breaking into afast run. "There
's shelter just beyond the end of the bridge."

  The shelter for which both soldiers headed was a kiosk, barely largerthan a sentry-box, that had once been erected for the convenience of thenative boys who stood there with relief horses for the service of theold street car line.

  The door stood open. Eager to make any port in a storm, Hal and Nollbolted inside just in time to hear an angry voice declare:

  "I had them picked out--two young _sergentes_, mere boys. At first theywere very polite--a minute later they made fun of me to my face--me,Vicente Tomba! But I shall know them again, I shall see them, and Ishall make them wish they had never been born. I----"

  The Filipino dandy stopped short as the two Army boys stepped brisklyinside. He gave a gasp as he recognized them.

  "We meet again," remarked Hal dryly.

  The dandy's companion, a big, florid-faced man of forty, in the usualimmaculate white duck of the white man, eyed the boys keenly.