Part 11 (2/2)
”Stop drinking!” ordered Ben, when still at a distance. ”That water has been doctored and will make you sick.” He refrained from saying the water was poisoned for fear of creating a panic.
The water was at once poured out on the ground and the barrel smashed up. Then a surgeon was found, to whom Ben related the facts of the case. A canteen of the water was examined, and the surgeon decided to give the man who had drunk the stuff an emetic. A few of the soldiers were taken with cramps inside of an hour afterward, and two of them were seriously sick for a week; but no lives were lost. But if the soldiers could have got at the Filipino who had poisoned the water, they would have shot him on the spot.
As soon as the danger was over, Ben returned to the wood, and had two men carry the wounded man back to the cottage, where he was left in charge of his wife and his niece. Through Gilbert it was learned that the wife had also remonstrated against using the poison, so it was fair to suppose that the aunt would protect her niece to a certain degree. ”But she'll have a hard time of it for doing us a service, I'm afraid,” said the young Southerner, as he and Ben resumed the march.
The scouts, under Chief Young, were in advance, and now a steady firing from the front told that another battle was at hand. Soon General Lawton came das.h.i.+ng through the crowd on the road, followed by his staff.
”Forward, boys!” was the cry, and then Ben's command left the road and took to the rice-fields on the outskirts of Baliuag. The line was a long one, with the Oregon and Minnesota soldiers forming the skirmis.h.i.+ng end, and Scott's battery in a paddy-field on the extreme right. So far the insurgents had kept well hidden; but as the Americans drew closer to the town they could be seen running in half a dozen directions, as if undecided whether to fight or to flee.
The townspeople themselves were in a panic, and down the streets ran Filipinos and Chinese, some with their household effects piled high on their backs. They had heard of the coming of the _Americanos_, but had hoped almost against hope that their beloved town would be pa.s.sed by unmolested.
Ben's regiment was moving along rapidly when they came to a ditch which seemed to divide the rice-field in half. A short pause followed, when along came the cry of ”Down!” and every man dropped, and none too soon, for the insurgents had opened up unexpectedly from a cane-brake behind the rice-field.
”We must take that cane-brake,” came the order from the colonel, and the word was pa.s.sed along quickly, and away went the companies with a ringing cheer, firing as they ran, and reloading with all possible speed.
Ben was now truly in his element, and, waving his sword, he urged Company D well to the front, so that the cane was soon reached. But the rebels were not game for a hand-to-hand encounter and fled once more, through the cane and over a field of heavy gra.s.s leading to the very outskirts of the town beyond.
”They are running away!” was the cry. ”On we go, boys, and the town will be ours in less than half an hour.”
But now a halt was ordered, on the edge of the cane-brake. From the outskirts of the town appeared a Filipino waving a white rag over his head.
”Flag of truce!” cried the American general. ”Cease firing!” And the order was instantly obeyed. ”Major Morris, you can select a detail of three men and find out what they want.”
”I will, general,” answered the major of the first battalion, and saluted. He had soon chosen his men, one of whom was Gilbert Pennington, and, waving a white flag before them, the party of four advanced into the open field.
CHAPTER XIII
IN WHICH A FLAG OF TRUCE IS FIRED UPON
Major Morris well knew the wiliness of the Filipinos, yet he did not doubt but that they would pay due respect to a flag of truce which they had themselves invited. Accordingly he advanced boldly with his little party, until the four had covered fully one-half of the distance which separated the American troops from the point where the rebels had taken a stand.
”He is thrustin' thim a whole lot!” groaned Dan Casey, who was the closest man in the ranks to Ben. ”If he gits plugged--”
”They won't dare to fire, Dan,” said a companion. ”If they did--”
The speech was cut short by the pop of a Mauser rifle, followed by two more pops, and the private who carried the white flag was seen to fling the banner down and fall headlong. In the meantime, the Filipinos who had appeared with the white rag were running back to their own ranks with all possible speed.
”They have fired on the flag of truce!” The cry arose from a hundred throats, and then a scattering volley rang out. At the same time the Filipinos opened up in a body, and Major Morris, Gilbert, and the third man were seen to pitch into the tall gra.s.s in such a manner that they were almost hidden from view.
”Gilbert is shot! And Major Morris too!” Such was the painful thought which ran through Ben's brain. He looked at the colonel pleadingly.
”Advance at once, Captain Russell, with the first battalion, to the rescue of the flag of truce,” ordered the colonel, understanding him fully. ”After this, give the enemy no quarter.”
”Forward, men, to the rescue!” shouted the young captain, almost before his superior had finished. ”Deploy to the left and fire at will. And make every shot tell!” he added bitterly.
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