Annual Report (or Report) of the Secretary of War

An effort is now being made to establish in Iloilo a district school for the purpose of giving the more intelligent and advanced men in the various provinces an opportunity to not only improve their education, but to be more thoroughly instructed in all branches of constabulary work. Owing to the difficulty in finding good noncommissioned officers for our force it is believed the service would be greatly benefited if candidates for promotion were given a six months' course in this school and be required to pass an examination touching their fitness for the position for which they may have been recommended. The interests of the service require that many posts be commanded by native noncommissioned officers or privates, and the work has heretofore been such that the officers have not been able to thoroughly instruct those post commanders in all their duties. It has been found that a native when placed in a position of power is inclined to go beyond the limits of his authority and even does things which require severe censure. By a course of training in a central school these men would not only be familiar with the rules and regulations of the constabulary, but also with the laws of the Commission and the procedure thereunder. There is no doubt that a few months of such instruction would make post commanders the best equipped in civil law of any of the inhabitants of some of the outlying posts. Such branches of a military education as will be beneficial will also be taught in this school. Another reason for the school is that the conditions of ladronism on the island of Panay often necessitate an extremely large force in order to make concerted operations successful, and the details of the students for such work would not only be a great benefit to the province, but would serve as a most practical illustration of the subjects taught in the school.

The work of the constabulary in this district for the past year has been most satisfactory, and the officers and men have exhibited fortitude in the face of many adverse circumstances, in meeting every emergency and accepting the responsibility of maintaining peace and order within their jurisdiction. At the beginning of the year one of the chief difficulties was overcome by the receipt in nearly all the provinces of a considerable number of Springfield carbines, which, because of their superiority over the Remington rifle, served to increase the confidence of the men by the effectiveness of their work. The supply of arms, clothing, and other equipment, and especially so during the past six months, has been very satisfactory, and it is hoped that all provinces will shortly have ample equipment. It has been quite noticeable in the past few months that requisitions sent in by supply officers are filled quite promptly. With the constabulary well equipped in arms and clothing, there is yet, however, considerable to be desired in order to place the organization on a thoroughly sound and substantial basis. It has entirely outgrown the character given it upon its inception and can no longer be considered an organization of police in the common acceptation of the word. The work in this district has of necessity been of a military character, and the ordinary police duties have been, by district order and later by law, reserved entirely for the municipal authorities and the municipal police. While the constabulary may not be quite a military organization, yet the character of the service requires that it be organized on those lines. The belief that the conditions in the islands would permit members of the constabulary to go to their homes at mess time, to be called together only for routine duty and in the event of an emergency arising, has been by the conditions which we have been forced to meet entirely changed, and the question of rationing the men is, in my opinion, paramount to all others. The discipline and esprit de corps of the organization make it at this time a most imperative necessity. The Filipino of the class which is drawn to our organization is not accustomed to subsist himself for long periods between pay days. In nearly every walk of life the Filipino desires to make a contract for work which includes "chow," and you may offer double the wages and a man will refuse to work unless you furnish him "chow." He will prefer to take his chances on making a few pennies from day to day to gain his subsistence. He can not live on credit, as his reputation for honestly meeting his obligations has not yet been favorably established. The efforts to pay the men regularly each month and to supply them with rations to be deducted from their pay are not resulting as satisfactory as might be wished. To reduce the pay and furnish the men at least a ration of rice would be accepted with great joy by both officers and men in this district. As it is, the men are constantly in debt, to the local discredit of the organization. The officers in many instances advance the necessary funds from their own pockets and support the charges of the Government. Where men are required to subsist themselves at the prevailing prices in their posts it often takes their entire month's salary for subsistence alone, as the prices are double that at which the Government could furnish the rations. Some supply officers furnish rations to the men on memorandum receipts of the post commander, to be charged against the men on the pay rolls. As this involves considerable risk to the supply officer it is not at present entirely satisfactory. As has been heretofore recommended, a reduction in the pay to 12 pesos, making it equal in all provinces

alike, and furnishing a ration would cost the Government no more in the maintenance of the constabulary. The increase in efficiency can not be calculated. The record of the past year of the payments to the enlisted men has not been satisfactory, owing to the difficulty of supply officers receiving their funds promptly and the lack of transportation when such funds were received. If the supply officer has funds on hand to meet his obligations as they become due there is usually some transportation available to inaccessible posts within two or three weeks, which would not make payments very tardy. When the funds do not arrive for from six to eight weeks after obligations become due payments are in many instances three months late. Should the requisition for funds be sent in earlier and the funds shipped from Manila not later than the first of the quarter for which they are appropriated it would be a considerable advantage.

In this district at the present time there are not as many officers as desired, and in view of the fact that during the coming year some will be entitled to leaves of absence it is safe to estimate that the force of officers should be increased by at least onefourth in order to meet conditions as they will be when officers are on leave.

Recent legislation providing for the maintenance of municipal police will undoubtedly go a long way toward solving this vexatious problem, for the constabulary officers have found it more difficult to do effective work with or make an efficient organization out of a body of men who seldom receive any pay and who for the most part are charges on the municipality. The municipal police, however, are not so entirely worthless as they are generally reputed to be, and many instances can be cited where they have rendered most efficient service alone and in cooperation with the constabulary. Armed with a most improper weapon, the Remington shotgun, they have, in several instances, taken desperate chances against bodies of bolomen that would serve to cause a force of constabulary to move with care. A municipal police force is usually gauged by the wealth of the town and by the character of the presidente. In some of the southern provinces, where the municipal police are not furnished with rifles, they have in reserve a fair force of volunteer bolomen and spearmen, and usually these under a good presidente are enabled to defend their town against the depredations of any band. In nearly all of those towns where the police have been furnished with rifles they have gone out when the occasion required as a part of the constabulary, and their work is to be appreciated. In those localities where there is seldom any disturbances it is very difficult to thoroughly organize or make an effective organization of police, but once the section is aroused by assaults or depredations of outlaws the response to the call of the constabulary officers is usually sufficiently spirited to bring together a very effective corps of volunteers.

The senior inspectors and supply officers have always had difficulty in keeping up with their office work, and it is to be hoped that some plan may be devised to lighten their present burden. I recently recommended the appointment of an ex-hospital steward with the proviso that he organize a provincial hospital and care for the sick of the constabulary, and in addition that he would take charge of the office of the senior inspector. Such an officer would have plenty to do, yet would greatly relieve both the senior inspector and the supply officer. The report of Capt. Henry E. Winslow, the surgeon for this district, here follows. The work already accomplished by Captain Winslow and his promptness in meeting many emergencies are deserving of every praise and consideration.

"ASSISTANT CHIEF CONSTABULARY, THIRD DISTRICT,

"Cebu, Cebu, P. I.

"CEBU, June 30, 1903.

"SIR: I have the honor to herewith submit the following report of the medical department of the Philippines constabulary of this district for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1903.

"A first-class hospital has been established in Jaro, Panay, for the treatment of sick and wounded soldiers of the constabulary. It will accommodate at least 25 men, with an officer's ward containing 10 beds. It contains an excellent operating room, dining room, kitchen, and office. A bathroom and closet have been built in connection with the house, and a well, dug by provincial prisoners, has been sunk upon the premises. The water from the well can only be utilized for washing purposes. Drinking water for the hospital is supplied through the courtesy of the U. S. Army quartermaster in Iloilo.

"Patients for this hospital at this time are from Negros and Panay.

"Lieut. L. F. Raymond is in charge and is doing excellent work in the treatment of the sick and in the instruction of the men assigned as nurses to the hospital. There are 5 of these, one with the rank of sergeant and four second-class privates. All of these men have had more or less training in medicine and hospital work before entering this service and have shown considerable aptitude in their care of the sick.

"The average number per day sick in the hospital is about 15. Most of these cases are malarial fever and dysentery, and are usually ill from five to ten days.

"When the hospital was first established, about the middle of last April, men sick showed a great reluctance upon entering; why, it is difficult to say; but the reluctance was there and was very apparent, and in one instance it was necessary to appeal to the sergeant of the guard to take the man to the hospital. This prejudice has now entirely disappeared, and patients now ordered to the hospital go there willingly and take their medicines with confidence and are apparently satisfied that everything possible is being done for their welfare and prosperity.

"It has been my hope and plan to have established three hospitals in this district ere this, but on account of active field duty and lack of sufficient supplies I have been unable to do so.

"In Cebu it has been an impossibility to secure a house which would answer the requirements. Those houses which would meet with these requirements the owners would not rent when they learned that it was to be used for a hospital. In desperation I have managed to secure the lease upon a small house, wholly inadequate, for one year, and if nothing better suited can be obtained in the next few days I will be obliged to accept this. In the meantime all sick or wounded constabulary soldiers are being cared for in a small room in the carcel. Fortunately our sick report is exceedingly small, the majority being mild types of malarial fever with but 3 cases of beriberi.

"On the 28th of last month I was in receipt of a telegram from Lieutenant Smith, of Bacolod, Occidental Negros, stating that Lieutenant Colmanares and 3 soldiers were sick with cholera and requesting my immediate presence. I left Cebu that day on the coast guard steamer Luzon for Valle Hermosa, Negros, and arrived the following morning at 6 o'clock. I found 4 men sick in the quarters occupied by the detachment stationed in Valle Hermosa, Lieutenant Colmanares having been removed the day previous to my arrival to a friend's home some 4 miles away.

"I immediately ordered the unaffected men into another house and kept them under a strong and strict quarantine. The quarters I utilized for a hospital and purchased beds, blankets, etc., for the sick. That night two more cases developed among the men in quarantine, making a total of 7. I was very much handicapped in my work in not having sufficient supplies and help; in fact, I had no help whatever until the afternoon of the 1st of June, when Lieutenant Tuthill reported for duty. With his assistance my work was greatly relieved, and to him a great deal of credit is due to the final recovery of all those men affected. Lieutenant Colmanares made an uninterrupted recovery and when able to travel was ordered to his home for further recuperation.

"I remained in Valle Hermosa for thirteen days, leaving there on the morning of the 11th of June, 1903, and proceeded to Capiz, Panay, stopping at Tuburan, Cebu, en route. Arrived at Capiz on the morning of the 12th. The sick report from Capiz has never been a large one and I found but 3 men sick upon my arrival, all suffering with malaria.

"The senior inspector of this place I found had been making a practice of calling in a local physician to attend his men when ill, the physician not charging a fee for his services, but for the medicines prescribed. This I disapproved of when I learned that the senior inspector had an ample amount of medicines on hand which had been transferred him by the quartermaster in Manila.

"In cases of serious illness or injury I realize the necessity of calling for professional aid when no medical inspector of the constabulary is present, but for ordinary cases of illness, such as headache, slight fever, constipation, etc., I fail to see the necessity of calling for such aid when the province has medicines of its own. It is unfortunately true that there are a number of posts without the most simple remedies, and with the limited amount of medicines furnished the medical department it is a difficult matter to supply them all, but, with what I have, I am endeavoring to make them go round and hope soon to be able to supply every post in the district. "You no doubt have observed that the death rate throughout the district has been amazingly high for the past six months. We have lost a number killed in action and a number have died later as a result of wounds received in action, but disease has carried off a far greater number. Beriberi has been the chief factor in this, especially in Leyte and Samar. Whether the climatic conditions of these islands are in a measure responsible for this I can not say, not having visited them, but in Cebu, Panay, and Mindanao I am convinced that the ration issued to the troops, or, I should say, the lack of proper ration, is the cause of beriberi spreading so rapidly among the men. Not that I believe the ration is the cause of this condition, but that it is not sufficiently nourishing and when attacked renders him more susceptible and without sufficient vitality to combat it. It is a well-known fact that those people who are well fed

with a good wholesome diet, even though they may be living in close contact with beri-beri subjects, rarely contract the disease, although it is both contagious and infectious.

"What is needed is a greater variety and a greater quantity of food stuff for the ration, well constructed and hygienic barracks for living quarters, a hospital solely for this class of patients built as near the center of the district as possible, where all those afflicted could be sent to receive proper treatment.

"I deplore treating these cases in our general hospitals, although it is being done at the present time out of necessity. This disease is on the increase to an alarming extent among our troops, and something should be done at once to prevent it from going further.

"The district is very much in need of more inspectors who have had some medical training. I would most urgently recommend that a medical inspector be appointed for every province. It would not be necessary for them to devote their time to this work, but could be utilized in many ways by the senior inspector of the province. In this way all men could receive instructions in first-aid work, in sanitation, and the medical inspector could look after and treat all minor cases of sickness and injuries. If this can not be done I would suggest that all officers in command of men should be instructed in first-aid work, so that if a man is injured in action he can receive temporary aid until he can be properly cared for. I believe that if this is done it will be the means of saving many lives. It is my desire to compile a small handbook or even pamphlet, leaving out technical terms and names, to distribute among officers in this district.

"I would respectfully invite your attention to the lack of hospital supplies and medicines in the district. We have not sufficient medicines to equip two hospitals, let alone supplying provinces and posts. Our operating appliances are most meager, there not being sufficient to equip one operating room. I realize that these can not be obtained in Manila, but they can be secured in Hongkong and Yokohama, and at a very reasonable price, cheaper I believe than in the United States. There is but one operating case in the district, one apothecary scale, and one mortar and pestle. It is criminal for a man to administer medicines judging the quantity by his eye. No man can do this correctly, and yet that is the only recourse we have at the present time. All hospitals should be properly equipped to be made a success of.

A hospital corps should be organized at the earliest possible moment. The system in operation at the present time is highly unsatisfactory in every way. Men are now taken from the line and are detailed for duty in the hospital by the order of the senior inspector. This weakens his command quite matc ially, taking away one of his noncommissioned staff. A regular hospital corps should be established on the same lines as that of the Army. In this way only will the corps become efficient and satisfactory.

"A very serious question confronts the medical department at the present time, namely, the subsistence of men sick in hospital. There is no provision made for these men, and something definite should be decided upon at the earliest possible moment. Officers sick in hospital are charged at the rate of $1 gold per day. I believe that men could be subsisted at the rate of 25 cents (local currency) per day, and that amount held out of their pay for each day they are kept in the hospital. Í do not believe that it is possible to subsist them for anything under this amount. "Water sterilizers should be purchased for the hospitals immediately, and all surplus water could be furnished troops stationed around near. Cholera is still with us, and as water is one of the greatest distributors of this disease, in providing sterilized water to the men we reduce the chances of infection to a minimum. In all cases of cholera I have seen occurring among the men it has been directly traceable to the water. This was especially so in those cases occurring in Valle Hermosa. "Respectfully submitted,

"HENRY E. WINSLOW,

"Captain and Surgeon, Philippines Constabulary, District Chief Surgeon." The status and work of the constabulary, condition of supplies and equipment, results accomplished, and other features of interest in connection with the constabulary in this district are to be found in the following tables. Attention is invited to the losses by death from disease for which cholera was responsible for 39 deaths and beri-beri for 17. The beri-beri is more prevalent in the provinces of Leyte and Samar, and it is difficult to find recruits who are not subject to its attacks. It will be noted that those men killed in action are principally from the provinces of Samar, Leyte, and Cebu, where the constabulary has had to contend against the hordes of fanatics armed only with bolos and spears. Of all the deserters in the district but 3 of them took arms and ammunition when they left. One of them has never been WAR 1903-VOL 7—9

heard from; the other two attempted to organize a ladrone band, but a few days after their desertion were captured and the arms which they stole recovered. The other desertions were caused by dissatisfaction with the service or personal affairs with private citizens involving liability to prosecution.

Very respectfully,

W. C. TAYLOR,

Lieutenant-Colonel and Assistant Chief,
Philippines Constabulary, Commanding.

Tabulated statement showing the status of the third district, Philippines constabulary, at the