General Monet set out on his terrible southward
march amidst recurring scenes of woe and despair. At every few miles
between San Fernando and Macabebe his progress was hampered by an
ever-increasing terror-stricken, weeping crowd of European women
and children who besought him not to let them fall into the hands
of a revengeful enemy. In the course of his march at most another
hundred fighting men, a few of whom were natives, were able to join the
retreating column. Their ammunition was scarce; they had no artillery
waggons; every _carromata_ (gig) of the districts traversed had been
seized by the enemy. Near San Fernando his passage was disputed,
but he entered the town, nevertheless, and evacuated it immediately
after, having secured only 12 carts for the transport of the sick
and the wounded and what little remained of the war-material. The
greatest difficulty was how to feed the swelling mob of refugees. At
6 a.m. on June 14 a start was made for Santo Tomas, but they were
so fiercely attacked on the road that, for the moment, annihilation
seemed inevitable. Concentrated between Apalit, Santo Tomas, Bacolor,
and Mexico the rebel forces were estimated at 9,000 well-armed men,
between whom Monet's column had to pass or die. The sobs of the
children, the lamentations of the women, the invocation of the saints
by the helpless were drowned in the united yelling of half-starved
troopers in their almost superhuman struggle for existence. Fortunately
the best order possible, under such distressing circumstances, was
maintained by the splendid officers supporting Monet. They were men
personally known to many of us years before. Lieut.-Colonel Dujiols
commanded the vanguard; the rearguard was under Major Roberto White;
the refugee families were in charge of Lieut.-Colonel Oyarzabal, all
under the superior orders of Colonel Perez Escotado. At length they
cut their way through to Apalit, where the railway station served
them as a stronghold, which they were able to defend whilst food
was served out and some attention could be bestowed on the sick and
wounded. On leaving Apalit a group of rebels approached the column
with a white flag saying they were friendly Macabebes, but when they
were close enough they opened fire. Nearly the whole town turned out
against the fugitives, and Monet had to hasten the march by deploying
his troops to keep the road clear. Understanding well that Monet was
acting only on the defensive to cover his