LUKBAN
harvested in the north , the insurgents are in no need of food ,” said Gilmore in his report . He said the insurgency would end if more troops were deployed . With few troops , natives friendly to the Americans dared not say so for fear of being killed , he said .
At the end of his report , he requested for a small gunboat to patrol the northern coast of the island to intercept rebel forces that come from Luzon in support of Lukban . The boat could also be used up the Catubig river , and its “ moral effect would be tremendous .” At this time , the Americans had to commandeer commercial ships that happened to be in the harbour at a time when needed . He noted that there were many large rivers in that section of the island that made travel on foot impractical . “ By the time any large force succeeds in crossing , the enemy has escaped to the hills … With a boat the force could be carried up several of these rivers or landed at points along the coast , where effective work could be done before notice got around that troops were there ,” he said . 1
Rebels surround major towns
Back in Calbayog , where the Americans ’ major detachment was located , rebel troops could be seen on the 21 st of May just outside the town . Gilmore had to dispatch Capt . Spellman with 80 men to make a reconnaissance in the direction of the village of Bato . Just a short distance from Calbayog , Spellman encountered a party of rebels armed with bolos and rifles , which prompted them to start shooting in their direction . This made them scamper away , Spellman said . He could not say if any of the rebels were killed . Near Bato , again another party of 30 rebels – with the same results .
Near Catbalogan , in Caroymon on the 25th , a considerable force of insurgents made their presence felt . Spellman sent Lt . Jones to investigate , but found the place deserted . The road between Caroymon and Calbayog was said to be full of mantraps which his men almost fell into .
The information about the presence of rebels in Sta . Margarita sent Spellman hurrying to the town with 50 men on board the gunboat Pampanga on the morning of the 25th . When they were close to the town , they bombarded it using the big guns of Pampanga . Spellman estimated that some 200 rebels were seen leaving when the bombardment began .
The next day , Capt . Fair was sent to Bato once more on a reconnaissance trip . A short distance from Calbayog , he discovered a party of insurgents digging trenches along the roads and trails . The soldiers fired upon them , killing 8 rebels . He also found a great quantity of rice which his troops destroyed . At around 8:00 that evening , the
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