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Page 17 text:
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B Berkeley 0ottifort=bag in manila HE was from the Berkeley High School — the soldier boy who enlisted by the simple name of John Smith. He was tall and muscular, the winner of the hurdle race in the last A. A. L. Field-day — the hero of those bloodless battles fought in the cause of the school. Heretofore, in his three years ' struggle in the High School, his thoughts and his strength had been centered on cinder tracks and foot-ball during the athletic season, and on Latin verbs and mathematics the rest of the time. At the close of his senior year in the High School, two months before the gradu- ation, a larger contest, a greater cause, presented itself and called for heroes to give not only their strength but their life and their blood in its behalf. War had come. Volunteers were being mustered from every part of the country to be sent to the Philippines. The fever and excitement were too much for John, and he left the smaller struggle for the greater one. He enlisted in the First California, and in spite of the violent efforts of his family to keep him at home, was ready to sail June twenty-first, on the Indiana, bound for the Philippines. It was an hour or so before the ship was to start. Jack, as his fellow-patriots called him, was wandering along the crowded wharf saying good-bye here and there. A little ways from the thickest of the crowd he met one of the girls of his class. She saw him and came up to speak to him. Do you sail to-day ? she asked. Yes, he answered, I ' m off, to cover myself with glory if I can. Well, she said, when you ' re a major, don ' t forget old friends in the B, H. S. We ' ve just finished those comfort-bags we were making. Here is one for you ; and will you take some for those who have ' nt any ? As she spoke, she took out six or seven of the bags and handed them to him. He took them and thanked her, not mentioning that he had three or four others in his pocket, and saying good-bye, went on. He received several resounding slaps on the shoulder from some of the boys in his class by way of farewells, and such hearty encouragements as : Cheer up, old boy, they can ' t kill you. Finally, the warning cry of All aboard announced that the transport was ready to sail. It really seemed that all were aboard, for every inch of space on deck was taken up, so thickly were they crowded there. So the ship steamed out of Golden Gate far across the ocean to the land of bam- boo and rice, of fierce heat and continual moisture, to land her passengers, — some to remain there forever, some to return, the envy of all at home. On the way, Jack tried to deliver his comfort-bags, but it was a sorry failure. Five weeks on a crowded ship is wearing on the most good-natured man, and these men had nothing to do but make fun at the expense of their companions. So, when Jack came peddling comfort-bags, a source of ridicule was found which seemed in- exhaustible to him. 15
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Page 18 text:
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What do you suppose i want with that little scrap of yellow calico ? said one, The captain might think 1 was a deserter, wearing the Spanish colors. Let ' s see what ' s inside of it though, said another. Might be a letter from the girl he left behind him. Ho, ho, here ' s a thimble. Why, Smith, I couldn ' t get that on my little finger. Too bad you didn ' t have these before you left San Francisco, Jack. I got ten cents apiece for mine at the pawnshop, said a third. In spite of it all, Jack did not cast the bags overboard, but kept them in his pocket, as it seemed a pity, since they were so well intended, that they should be thrown away ; and then, too, they brought to his mind the scenes he had left behind him : the groups of gay chattering girls, the bright bits of calico, the lively steel needles as they passed in and out of the cloth, plied by industrious ink-stained fingers, hi this vision he always saw a particular pair of blue eyes, a particular needle, and a particular hand which would always loom up on the top of each wave or in each secret hiding place when the ridicule had been almost too much for Jack. The transport arrived at Cavite on the afternoon of July twenty-fifth. Ha ing spent the night in an old Spanish guard-house, the troops marched the next day to the spot selected for their camp and set up their rubber tents with bamboo floors and chairs. At this time the attack on Manila was being prepared for. The Filipinos wanted to capture it themselves, but having failed, they delivered up the trenches to the Americans. Our boys took possession and remained in them for two days, purely on the defensive, under a storm of the enemy ' s fire but not allowed to shoot a gun themselves. It rained by fits and starts and soaked the ground so that they were continually in the water. During the two days, arrangements were made with Commodore Dewey to make the attack. It is well known how Manila was taken and how the Spanish were forced to surrender. After the city was taken, it took little more fighting to force Spain to seek an armistice, and peace was declared between the two countries. During these few months, while bartering with the nati ' es for native delicacies and fuel, Jack managed to learn enough Filipino to understand, in a way, what they said. He also found out from them and from other sources as much as he could about the countr It was due to these attainments that he became known in the next conflict; for peace had no sooner been declared than an insurrection of the natives broke out, and our boys found themselves face to face with their former allies, who were as determined, as savage, and as reckless as ever. They knew the country from shore to shore — its hiding places, its pitfalls and its retreats, and they greatly outnumbered the Americans ; but our boys knew how to fight, had un- bounded courage, and superior arms. This struggle with the Filipinos themselves had been going on for about a month, when, late one afternoon. Gener al Otis came to Jack ' s tent with an important re- quest. Jack was elated at this honor, for it was unusual for the General to visit the tent of a private. When the General approached, Jack saluted and placed a bamboo stool for him. The General sat down and proceeded directly with the matter in hand. Smith, he said, I understand from your captain that you have a steady head and understand Filipino a little. Yes sir, a little, Jack replied. i6
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