e
wound was not at all serious, but he was told to be quiet for a few
days. He was given one of the rebel horses to ride back to Manila, and
he felt like a real hero in many ways.

CHAPTER XIX.

RETURN TO MANILA--IN THE HOSPITAL--CONGRATULATED BY ALL--WRITING TO
THE PAPER OF HIS EXPERIENCES.

IT took the regiment much longer to march back to Manila than it had
taken it to follow the rebels, for the wounded of both sides had to be
carried, and the arrangements for carrying them were very imperfect.
Fortunately, most of them were able to ride horses, and the officers
were successful in securing wagons enough to carry most of the others,
but there were about a dozen who could neither ride horses or lie in
wagons, but had to be carried on stretchers all the time. Of course this
was slow work, and the officers were glad enough when they reached the
town with the three-story building. Here they found things very much as
they had left them, two days before, save that the inhabitants were more
abject than ever to them, now that they had captured most of the rebel
force.

It wasn't an easy matter to find quarters for so many men, and some of
the Filipinos were obliged to camp in the public square overnight, while
the wounded and ill were given beds in the various houses of the town.
The inhabitants were required to furnish food, too, for the Americans
were entirely out of almost everything. They still had some hardtack,
but of meat and coffee there was none. The people of the town pretended
to be very glad to serve their "masters," but every one knew that the
natives would be only too glad of a chance to cut the throat of every
Yankee soldier.

The officers again occupied the old building which they had used during
their former stay, and Archie was invited to share it with them, for
they expected to rest in this town over the next day, before proceeding
to Manila. The men's uniforms and equipment generally needed cleaning
and repairing, and the colonel was anxious for them all to appear as
well as possible when they returned victorious to the island capital. So
the next day was spent in cleaning and washing, and by evening most
of the soldiers looked as if they had never left Manila. Then came a
surprise for every one, for into the town marched a regiment of
militia from Manila, sent out to see whether the first regiment needed
reinforcements. They set up a great cheer when they learned that most
of the rebel fo