Lake City Graphic
Lake City, Iowa
August 31, 1899

BEN MATHER TELLS OF FIGHTING WITH BIG GUNS

Serious Engagement at Las Pinas in Which Private Wagner of Des Moines Was killed-Artillery Duel at Fifty Yards.

Iowa State Leader, August 22, 1899.

The following letter was written by Ben Mather, one of the members of Company A, Fifty-first Iowa, who was detailed for artillery duty, to his brothers James and Frank, in Omaha. It is of deep interest because few of the letters from the Philippines have dealt with the work of the artillery:

"Manila, July 5, 1899.- Dear Jim and Frank: It has been some time since I wrote to you, but all through the month of June I have been on the move in the field and didn't have an opportunity to do any writing.

"On the first day of June we struck out with General Hale's expedition against the insurgents east of the water works. We found nothing till we got to the foot hills east of the water works and here the natives were. We engaged them but they made a poor stand and retreated up into the heart of the mountains and finally they made another stand. Their position on the mountain side gave them a great advantage, and we had some difficulty in dislodging them here. We lost several men, that is our soldiers, not the battery.

"After we had driven them out of this position we camped for the night. The next morning we continued our march through the mountains and this was the hardest work I ever did in my life, We had to drag our guns up mountain trails that a man could scarcely climb alone. It was awful work and continued for two days. I never was so worn out in my life, and all the men were in the same condition. We finally came to Antipolo and took it with little trouble. The next day we made another jump into the mountains and after two more days came out at Morong, on the lake.

"General Lawton's division had already taken the place. We were to meet him there and assist him in taking it, but the mountain roads were so bad that we were a day behind time and he had the town taken when we got there. We rested here a day and then struck out for home along the lake shore and arrived June 20. We had had three engagements on this trip. On June 11, we were ordered to proceed to San Pedro Macati and join General Lawton's division, which was to advance on Paranaque.

In the afternoon of the 11th we went to Macati and before daylight were moving pieces of artillery on this expedition, consisting of four 3.2 inch guns, four three-inch guns (which are ours) and four 1.6 inch guns belonging to E battery of the First artillery. Well, we hadn't gone far when we came onto the Filipinos entrenched on the brow of a hill. They were soon dislodged from there and retreated toward Paranaque, which was six or eight miles from this place. We followed, and it was just a continous fight all the distance. The counyry was very open, for this country, and the heat was something terrible. Men fell out exhausted by the hundreds. I came near going once, but got some muddy water out of a hole and put on my head and managed to keep going. We couldn't get a drop of water to drink that day. Well, by 4 o'clock we had driven them into the town and we were close to it. They were heavily entrenched on our front, so our division swung around to the left and threatened their flank and rear, and they left their trenches and retreated clear through Paranaque and Las Pinas. We advanced past Las Pinas that night and camped to the west of the place.

General Ovenshine, with his brigade, entered Paranaque that night. Most of the fighting had been done in crossing the country. By threatening their rear we had rendered their entrenchments useless and prevented them from making the final stand that they had intended. They had the finest lot of entrenchments before Paranaque that I ever saw, but they were of no use to them.

"The next morning we entered Las Pinas. We had been in two mighty hot places before Paranaque, but had only had a horse shot. In one place just before Paranaque there was a strong force of natives across an open rice field in a strip of woods, and they were pouring in a flank fire upon the troops that were being marched toward the city. A skirmish line was sent out to dislodge them, but was not able to do so, and men were being hit every minute as they crossed a stream where we were lying. They finally ordered the artillery after them, and our four guns were given the job. I tell you I didn't lke to start. Well, we went out on the jump and the first thing we came into full sight of was the natives, for there was nothing but 800 yards of level field between us. Our infantry line was about 300 yards against a rain of bullets that the natives were pouring in before we could go into action. It was a ticklish job and a man had an awful desire to run all doubled up. Somehow I had an idea that I was going to get hit in the stomach. I don't know why, but bullets were stiking all around us, and it seemed as though it were impossible to get out without being hit some-where. I think this battery has some charm which protects it, for there wasn't a man touched, and we reached the infantry line and went into action. As soon as we began throwing shrapnel the natives got out. They can't stand artillery.

"The infantry line had had a lot of men hit while advancing up the field. They advanced by rushes and then laid down behind the rice banks while we were all bunched up and had to advance standing straight up. Well, we had got to Las Pinas. The natives were known to have some artillery out west of there, and four of our guns were sent out with a small infantry support to silence it. They went out a short distance and fired a few shots, but could get no return fire by which they could locate the natives' guns; so they kept advancing. Suddenly a terrible fire was poured into these two companies, and if the truth must be told, they turned tail and ran through rivers and everthing else till they reached the beach of the bay and could go no further. Their officers were nearly all shot and altogether about fifty of them killed and wounded. The Monadnock was lying not far out from the shore and she saw what had happened and immediately landed some marines who stood the natives off till more infantry arrived.

"Reinforcements were now rushed forward. Four of our guns were ordered up to reinforce the battery. We advanced up the road which was somewhat elevated and thus left us more exposed than we cared for. Pretty quick the infantry on both sides got at it and we bagan to get some idea of their location, but still we couldn't tell exactly for there was between us a heavy growth of brush and jungle which obscured our sight a great deal, but we pumped it into them as fast as possible. Every few minutes we advanced up the road several hundred yards till finally when we got within about 200 yards of their trenches we could see what we were doing. Here we had it for a time hot and heavy. We had them located now and poured it into them, and the infantry on each side did the same. We all wondered why they were making such a fierce stand when it was discovered that between us was a river about fifty yards wide and the bridge burned.

"They thought it impossible that we could get at them, but they didn't know the American soldier, evidently. We continued to bang away from the center while the Fourteenth infantry on the extreme right and the Twenty-first on the extreme left managed to wade or swim the river and got a cross fire on the trenches, and then we made a charge on the center as far as we could go, which was the river bank, and here we had it at fifty yards. This last advance was the disastrous one for us in the battery. In the last 100 yards, to the end of the bridge, the road was very exposed spot and in plain sight of the trenches and here our charm didn't seem to work, for in a few minutes we had two men killed and five wounded. One of the killed was Wagner, one of the five from Company A of the Fifty-first. He was shot right through the neck. It cut his jugular vein and broke his neck. He was killed instantly and fell without a word or groan. It looked for a minute as though there would be no battery left, but we kept going and wheeled into action at the end of the bridge and began exploding shells at them as soon as they left the muzzle of the gun. We were at fifty yards range. Here was the most exciting fight of the war, I believe. Half of the bridge was unburned and we ran one gun onto this and poured it into them.

"General Lawton and his staff and a lot of other officers bunched right on to the bridge and were blazing away with their revolvers. This was the only time I ever saw revolvers used in action. It was a fight like you read about. One of the old-timers.

"Well, when the natives saw that part of the troops were across the river and had them flanked, they thought it was getting too hot for them, and they vamosed pronto.

"When it was over, we had just two shrapnels left for our four 3 inch guns. We patched up the bridge and crossed over and followed the Filipinos about a mile; then came back and camped on the river. We captured one of their 6 inch guns here and blew it up. I think we must have lost 100 men here, killed and wounded. I don't know how many the papers stated. The natives lot heavily. I counted thirty-seven lying in the trench in one place.

The next day they pushed on and took Bacoor and Imus, but the natives made no more hard stands. We were left at the bridge. After that we were chased back and forth from the bridge to Paranaque, till June 30, when I went on sick report and came in to the battery headquarters here in Manila.

"Ness has been relieved from the battery and is back with the company. Wagner is dead, and Mason, Hutchison and I went on sick report and were sent into quarters and I think will be sent back to the company in a few days. i haven't been well for over a month. I have indigestion and a bad diarrhoea (sic) all the time. Fifty-one men who enlisted int eh battery for the war are being discharged today. I tell you it makes a man want to go home when he sees a big gang all getiing ready to leave for the good old states.

"Our regiment is still at San Fernando, and has been having some pretty heavy fighting lately. I expect I will get out in time to do some infantry scrapping. The rainy season has set in, and it rains every day, and is a fright on outpost duty. I hate to go back to the regiment and do outpost duty in the rain.

"This is the first time I have ever been in the city for more than one day at a time, and quarters are two miles form the business part of town. Being on sick report, I am confined to quarters. Besides that, I haven't received a cent of pay for four months, and I guess I won't get any for two months more, as I have missed this pay day, and they only pay every two months here. So you see my financial conditon will not permit me to buy much, if should see something I want.

Well, I have written a pretty long letter this time, and have "batted 'em out" as they call it, considerably, and will stop till some future time.

Yours, Ben