k in the afternoon of March 26th.

The old lady was wonderfully elated to receive the new jewels which
Marie had stolen. She put on the rosary and danced about in the native
hut like a young child on Christmas morning, when it sees the gorged
stocking fastened to its bed.

CHAPTER VII.

OFF FOR BALER

That night Marie had a good rest. The next morning, fired with ambition
and discontent, she lit her accustomed cigarette and started for
Manila. Instead of going overland, she went in a row boat via the
Pasig river which drains the lake into Manila bay and which flows
through the city of Manila situated at its mouth.

While stealthily prowling around through Manila during the next few
days, Marie accidentally discovered that plans were being carried
out by the Americans to relieve the remnant of the old Spanish
garrison of fifty men stationed at the little town of Baler, near
the eastern coast of Luzon. This garrison was of course surrendered
to the American forces with the remainder of the Spanish army on
August 13, 1898, but as all lines of communication with them had been
destroyed by the Filipinos they had never been officially notified
of the capitulation. Scouting parties brought in the information that
they were being besieged by a horde of blood-thirsty Filipinos which
outnumbered them ten to one, and that it was only a question of time
before all would be exterminated.

Accordingly, Admiral Dewey and General Otis decided that something
must be done at once to relieve them. A rescuing party was formed and
placed aboard the "Yorktown," which carried them around the southern
point of Luzon and then northward to the mouth of the Baler river.

Marie, nerved by the thought of a new exploit, forgot her oath not
to take up arms against the Americans again during the insurrection,
and hastily departed overland for Baler to notify the besieging
Filipinos of what was to take place, and to help them as best she
could to resist the advance of the rescuing party.

Although Baler is situated on the Baler river, near the eastern coast
of Luzon, and Manila is on the west side of the island Baler is,
nevertheless, almost directly north of Manila. This is caused by the
deep indention of Manila bay, on the extreme eastern side of which
Manila is situated, and by the abrupt inclination to the westward of
the eastern coast line of Luzon directly above a point straight east
of Manila.

In starting on her journey Ma