LUKBAN
to the main column . The group under Porter ’ s command would move ahead slowly and follow Waller ’ s trail , which would be clearly marked .
But this plan completely miscarried because of some communication problem . By the morning of 4 January , Waller ’ s party had made such little progress that he decided to return to Lanang . In a message sent by native carrier to Porter , Waller informed him of his new decision and instructed him to go to the Suribao river and start building rafts until his ( Waller ’ s ) party returned . Porter had to abandon the idea later because he discovered that wood was not suitable for rafts . When Waller failed to appear , Porter sent Bearss to find him .
Waller in the meantime pushed on for a few kilometres and found , to his great relief , a small clearing planted with bananas , coconuts and camote , a variety of sweet potato . He also espied another prosperous clearing on the opposite side of the river and a trail that led to still another clearing with a shack about five minutes away .
Bearss now caught up to Waller and reported that Porter ’ s group was only about an hour and a half away . Waller thereupon sent a second message to Porter instructing him to march to these clearings , feed and rest his troops , then continue the march along Waller ’ s marked trail . In short , Waller reverted to his first plan : he would push on , rendezvous with Duncan , and send back a relief party .
After waiting an hour for Porter , Waller crossed the river to a new clearing , messed his troops , and saw to it that their feet “ were well washed with soap and bathed in a good strong bichloride solution .” At this point Waller ’ s native runner returned and reported that the insurrectos were so numerous he had not gotten through to Porter . Capt Bearss told Walter he was sure Porter would come along anyway as “ he was considering it when he [ Bearss ] left .” With that , Waller resumed the march .
Waller ’ s party soon struck a well-defined trail that eventually led to a native shack where they arrested five persons . Two of them , a man and a 12-year-old boy , knew the way to Basey . After a rugged march of two more days , the small party picked up the Sojoton river and , eventually , Dunlap ’ s party . They reached Basey on 6 January 1902 .
Waller takes off again
Although exhausted , Waller immediately organized a relief party which he personally led out on 8 January . Altogether he spent nine days in a fruitless search for Porter ’ s group . Severe floods had removed traces of his own camp sites , thus making it difficult for Waller to trace him . His troops giving out , he returned to Basey and collapsed . His ankle was in a bad shape , his body covered with sores . He was feverish and
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