1st Battalion 22nd Infantry Operations 1904-1905 Part 2

Campaign Streamer awarded to the 22nd Infantry for its service in Mindanao 1904-1905

The above report was attached to the monthly returns
of the 22nd Infantry for the month of April 1904 and is
signed by Lieutenant Colonel Henry E. Robinson.

Robinson was the Executive Officer of the 22nd Infantry
and commanded the Regiment from May 1904 until August 1905
while Colonel Henry Wygant was in and out of hospitals and on
sick leave dealing with the many illnesses he contracted during
his deployments overseas.

Robinson was assigned to the 22nd Infantry from April 1904
to October 1908.

The Private John C. De Ginther mentioned in the first paragraph
as being wounded would eventually be promoted to Quartermaster
Sergeant and would be killed in action by hostile Moros a little over
a year later on June 25, 1905

Lt. Col. Henry E. Robinson

There were still, however, a great many hostile Moros in the Taraca region. To pacify them became the duty of the troops at Camp Wheeler.
Friendly overtures were made; natives were encouraged to return to their homes and to resume their agriculture. A few of them at length returned,
but minor sultans and dattos that had not felt American power exerted bad influences. To allay hostility and to show the Moros that they
should not be molested so long as they remained peaceful, the troops made practice marches all over the region. At many places the troops
were invariably fired upon;* natives lay in hiding near the camp and reported any unusual preparations being made; cunningly devised snares
were laid along paths that the companies would use; attempts were made to lure officers to their deaths. Rains made the eastern lake country
one great swamp, but still the command marched and worked for the establishment of peace and order. Frequently companies
were sent from Marahui to cooperate with the Taraca companies. And slowly but surely American influences extended; Moro firearms
were captured or surrendered; Moros returned to their homes and again worked in the rice fields.

* Wounded in action at Gandamato, May 10, 1904: Artificer Bruno Heyne, company B.

Meantime, at Marahui, the general condition was also improving. The necessity of guarding the large post and the quantities of supplies
prevented frequent expeditions; but once a week troops made practice marches in the neighborhood of disaffected regions.
On the night of July 10, 1904, a sentinel was cut down *, and his rifle stolen. The assailants were traced to Marantao. The sultan of that place
refused to surrender either the stolen rifle or the Moro that had made the attack. Before daylight on the morning of August 1, 1904,
the Marantao district, extending three miles along the western shore of the lake, was surrounded. At daybreak the troops were fired upon.
They immediately attacked the numerous cottas, destroying the houses, and inflicting severe losses on the enemy.

* Private Benjamin Oswald, company I. Fingers of left hand almost severed; in addition, left knee-cap cut.

Of the many expeditions sent out from Camp Wheeler, that against Malug is typical of the service required operating against the Moro.
After the general campaign against Taraca, April 2 to 10, 1904, the greater part of the Maciu tribe disappeared.
No great casualties had been inflicted upon them, yet thousands of them were afterward missing. It was not believed that so many Moros
could live permanently in the mountains; search and inquiry failed to discover them along the lake shore.

While exploring a trail through a cañon on August 12, 1904, detachments from companies I and K encountered a strong cotta,
that completely controlled the trail. It was of formidable proportions, with walls twenty feet high and a surrounding ditch, twenty feet in depth,
filled with running water. The trail leading to the entrance was an incline four feet wide. At the head of this was, apparently, a great bamboo gate;
to one side of the gate, an entrance that admitted only one man at a time.

When the troops came in sight of the cotta, angry Moros on the walls ordered them away. As the troops did not obey, the Moros opened fire
with rifles and lantacas. Only an overwhelmingly superior force could have taken this cotta by direct assault; accordingly the small detachment
endeavored to keep down the fire from the walls while several men ascended the incline and tried to burn the large gate. On approaching the gate,
however, it was seen that, behind this gate, which inclined outward, was a great heap of boulders. The gate was controlled by a bamboo lever that,
when sprung, would drop the gate outward and hurl down the incline several tons of rocks. Through slits in the woven bamboo, Moros were seen
attempting to spring the lever. These Moros were shot down at once. Several men then started to climb over the gate, while their comrades
protected them by a covering fire from the outside. Just as they reached the inside of the cotta, one of them was shot and speared by concealed Moros.*

Realizing that this cotta could not be taken by such a small force without great loss, the detachment withdrew.
On the following morning, reinforced by companies L,, M, and F, from Marahui, the troops again attacked the stronghold and captured it without loss.
After entering, the large gate was sprung; the cotta was then examined. It was admirably constructed; well-arranged bomb proofs
had protected the defenders from any possible artillery fire. Beyond question, it was the strongest cotta that has been captured in the Lanao district.
The position and size of this fortification was evidence of something beyond that the Moros were anxious to conceal from the Americans.
Detachments were promptly sent up the trail. Upon reaching the crest of the first foothills, the mystery was explained, the whereabouts
of the Macius discovered. Cottas, cultivated fields, and thousands of Moros burst upon the sight of the troops. From this unknown rendezvous,
war was to be continued indefinitely.

On the day following this discovery, representative Moros appeared at Camp Wheeler and made a proposal to surrender all firearms.
These negotiations are still pending.

It becomes again, after a very brief interval, the painful duty of the Regimental Commander to announce the death of an officer of the regiment:
2nd Lieut. Fitzgerald S. Turton, who died at this post on the 29th instant.
Lieut. Turton had been with the regiment only a few months, but during that time he had firmly established himself in the confidence,
respect and esteem of all who knew him. His conduct while a member of this regiment was characterized by strict attention to duty and courage,
gallantry and coolness in action.
Lieut. Turton was born in New Zealand, on July 15, 1874. He entered the U. S. army on April 18, 1900, and served as private, sergeant,
first sergeant and battalion sergeant major, 16th infantry, until October 9, 1903, when he was commissioned a second lieutenant
and assigned to the 22nd infantry.
The officers of the regiment will wear the usual badge of mourning for thirty days.

BY ORDER OF LIEUT. COL. ROBINSON:
R. L. HAMILTON,
Captain, 22nd Infantry, Adjutant.

The middle of August, a detachment of ninety men— Captain O. R. Wolfe, commanding—was sent to the Cottabato district
to operate against Dato Ali. Nine men were selected from each of the ten companies at Marahui; only the strongest, most active men were sent.
At the present writing, the command is still in the Cottabato district. The work they have been called upon to do has taxed the endurance
of even specially selected men. They have worked unceasingly in mud and water, at times on short rations.

The Sultan of Oato was numbered among the Moros professing allegiance to the United States. Accompanied by a retinue of followers and slaves,
he made frequent ceremonious visits to Marahui. Military authorities were therefore greatly surprised when, in the latter part of September,
this Sultan greeted the gunboat Flake with rifle and cannon fire.

His territory contained three stone cottas, two of them on commanding hills. The surrounding country was known to be rough,
and in many places impassable.

On the morning of October 24, 1904, the 2nd battalion, 22nd infantry, embarked at Marahui and proceeded toward Oato.
Troop F, 14th cavalry, left Marahui at the same time, moving by trail, with a view to cover Oato's territory on the north and west.
A battalion of the 23rd infantry and the 17th field battery had left Vicars a day earlier to cover the southern and western borders
of the disaffected country.

The battalion of the 22nd arrived at Oato at daylight. The Moros promptly opened fire with lantacas and rifles; under cover of a return fire
from the Flake, two companies were landed in row boats, and after a hard climb, drove the Moros from minor cottas on the first hills.

The gunboat Flake, named after 2nd LT Campbell Flake of the 22nd Infantry, who was killed
during the Ramaien expedition in January of 1904.

According to the general plan, the field battery was to have joined at this point to shell the main cottas, about 900 and 1,500 yards distant;
but a reconnaissance showed that the nature of the country would delay the battery's arrival some hours.

The nearest fort flew many war flags; from its walls Moros brandished spears and krises; from loop-holes came a desultory small arm fire.
The battalion's advance was necessarily slow; underbrush, boulders, and a maze of stone walls obstructed the approach to the cotta;
small parties of the enemy were driven from cover to cover until, at about noon, the first cotta was charged and captured. A number of lantacas
and iron cannon were found, the largest cannon firing a six inch solid shot.

After a short rest, the advance was continued toward the second stone cotta; this also flew war flags; in it tom-toms were beating,
Moros were shouting taunts at the Americans.

It was impossible to approach this cotta except in column of files. Before the battalion reached the cotta, the battery arrived at the first position
captured early in the morning. The battalion was then recalled to allow the battery to shell the stronghold. After this firing had continued
for thirty minutes, the battalion again advanced and captured the cotta without resistance. Very deadly and very accurate had been the battery's work.
Shrapnel and fragments of shell were found all over the cotta; blood in many places showed that many of these had found their mark;
lantacas and cannon in position, loaded and aimed, and many articles of personal property, showed the hasty abandonment of the cotta.

In this engagement, the battalion had one officer and one enlisted man wounded.* The Moro loss was about fifteen killed,
wounded not known. While the losses were not great, the object of the expedition was accomplished. Through friendly Moros it was learned
that the Sultan of Oato declared that he would not again oppose American sovereignty.

* Wounded in action, Oct. 24, 1904:
Captain David L. Stone, company G
Private Peter Duquette, company E.

At the present time of publication of this history ±, the regiment is stationed as follows:
Headquarters, companies B, C, E, F, G, H, I, and K, at Camp Marahui.
Companies A and D, Marahui, Lake Lanao.
Companies L, and M, Camp Wheeler.
Provisional company, Fort Pikit.
The entire regiment is in active service.

On November 24, 1904, Camp Wheeler, on the Taraca River, was abandoned. Prior to the departure, however,
there came to the camp many of the Lanao chiefs to declare their friendship; the Sultan of Bayabas himself brought three other Sultans
to surrender with all their firearms and personal possessions.

The occupation ended, the result was clearly apparent. An extensive, rich, and fertile river valley had been opened to the tide of progress
and civilization, while among the natives themselves the teachings of sound American principles of justice and freedom for all had taken a firm root.

On December 27, 1904, request was made by Daniel B. Devore, Civil Governor of the district, for an expedition to put an end to an impending fight
between the Sultans of-Maciu and Oato, the former having stolen three of the latter's wives. As a result of this request a force of twenty men
of the Twenty-second Infantry, under Captain J. L. Donovan, was despatched to the scene of trouble on the gunboat Flake. Nothing ever came
of the expedition, however, there was no action, and the two Sultans apparently settled their difficulties without any extensive resort to arms.

On January 16, 1905, the name of the regiment's station was changed from Camp Marahui to Camp Keithley.
The following month of February passed quietly for the regiment; nothing of note or interest occurred until March 7, when Private James Morrison,
of Company H, a sentinel on post, was stabbed to death by Moros. As a result of this, Governor Devore, with Lieutenant Harry Graham
and a detachment of forty men, proceeded to Ramaien, and thence on the following day to Oato with 2nd Lieutenant Venable and twenty men.
An expedition to apprehend the murderers of Morrison was organized under Major Abner Pickering, 22nd Infantry, the force consisting
of Companies E, H, I, and L, 22nd Infantry, and one section of the 26th Battery of Field Artillery. On March 15 this expedition embarked
on the gunboats Flake and Almonte, proceeding to a point near the mouth of the Taraca River, where a landing was effected.
Thence the troops marched to the Ragayan territory, where, in the course of a brief skirmish, Private Patrick Burke, Company L, was killed.

Four days later, March 19, a second expedition to the Ragayan country, consisting of Companies A, B, C, D, F, G, K, and M,
was placed under the command of Major J. J. Crittenden. The results of the two expeditions were insignificant, no trace of the murderers was found,
and the people of Ragayan were simply driven back into the hills.

The first part of April again found the regiment quiet, its only activity being the Department Athletic Meet at Jolo, which the Twenty-second won handily.

In May 1905 Private James H. Gilson, a musician in the 22nd Infantry Regimental Band was awarded
a Certificate of Merit for actions he took on February 24, 1905. The following is the citation for his Certificate:

The following extracts are from the Annual Reports to the Secretary of War, 1905:

( Red stars mark engagements in which the 22nd Infantry took part
between August 1904 and May 1905. )

Soldiers of the 22nd Infantry "somewhere" in the Philippines.
Several pack animals can be seen, and, in the left of the photo, some cargadores,
native Filipinos hired to help with the hauling of supplies and camp-making chores.

Soldier without hat to the right of the tree with his arm against tree is 1st Lieutenant Parker Hitt.

During the years 1904 and 1905 the following losses were incurred by the 22nd Infantry.
Places of birth are listed when known.

DOD = Died Of Disease
( A catch-all phrase used in the 19th Century to denote any non-battle death)

John C. De Ginther.....06/25/1905 - Quartermaster Sergeant - KIA - Trenton, Arkansas - Killed by Moro at Camp Keithley, Marahui

Ezra Coder.....01/17/1905 - Private - DOD - Dedham, Iowa - Died of typhoid aboard transport Thomas enroute to join Regiment

Campbell Wallace Flake.....01/22/1904 - 2nd Lieutenant - KIA - Greene County, Georgia - Killed at Ramaien
Eary E. Sansoucie.....05/03/1905 - Private - KIA - Jefferson County, Missouri - Killed near Ipil

Harry Parshall.....04/08/1904 - 2nd Lieutenant - DOD - Sauk County, Wisconsin - Died from Heart Disease
Elick Howell.....05/03/1905 - Private - DOW - Floyd County, Kentucky - Wounded in engagement near Ipil and died same day

Howard Glasgow.....05/03/1905 - Private - DOW - Clermont County, Ohio - Wounded in engagement near Ipil and died same day
John Anderson.....10/31/1905 - Private - DOD - Chicago, Illinois - Died from Chronic Amoebic Dysentery Camp Keithley, Mindanao

Michael Deegan.....02/18/1904 - Private DOD - Portland, Maine - (Discharged for disability January 18, 1904 died one month later)
Charles P. Garst.....08/28/1904 - Private - DOD - Cloud County, Kansas - Died from Typhoid

Anton M. Anderson.....04/09/1904 - Private - DOD - Decorah, Iowa - Drowned in Lake Lanao

David Porter Wheeler.....04/14/1904 - Captain - DOW - Zanesville, Ohio - Wounded 04/11/1904
Samuel G. Vicars.....01/28/1905 - Private - DOD - Knox County, Kentucky - Died of Acute dysentery
Daniel Newport.....05/03/1905 - Corporal - KIA - Scott County, Tennessee - Killed near Ipil

Charles E. Ferguson.....02/03/1904 - Private - DOD - Cincinnati, Ohio - Drowned BNR
Thomas F. Leahy.....02/04/1904 - Private DOD - acute acoholism
George Harrison.....05/04/1904 - Private - Montreal, Canada - DOD
Fitzgerald Swainson Turton.....08/29/1904 - 2nd Lieutenant - DOD - New Zealand - Died at Marahui - suicide
Samuel Weaver.....05/01/1905 - Private - DOW - White County, Tennessee - Near Ipil
Llewellyn W. Bobb.....10/22/1905 - Private - KIA - Richland County, Wisconsin - Killed in the Cotabato Basin by Datu Ali

James Morrison.....03/07/1905 - KIA - Johnstown, New York - Killed by Moros while on sentry duty at Camp Keithley

Albert Collmen.....07/13/1904 - Private - DOD - Hallen, Sweden - Died of Acute dysentery
Lucien McCandless.....02/11/1905 - Private - DOD - Kentucky - Dysentery

Martin L. Bales.....10/22/1905 - Private - DOW - Annville, Kentucky - Wounded at Datu Ali cotta, Mindanao died same day

Patrick Burke.....03/16/1905 - Private - KIA - Columbus, Wisconsin - Killed in engagement at Ragayan, Mindanao

John J. Lynch.....11/01/1904 - Private - DOD - Weston, Massachusetts - Drowned
William Witicka.....11/01/1904 - Private - DOD - Finland - Drowned

Returns from Regular Army Infantry Regiments, June 1821–December 1916. NARA microfilm publication M665
National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C.

Register of Enlistments in the U.S. Army, 1798-1914; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M233