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Chapter Six: August 1899
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110 Chapter Six August 1899 Dog Days Carter’s road to recovery was a slow process, and he continued to have significant issues with his digestion and with his feet, which made walking very painful. He details his afflictions, from his bowels to the suppurating sores on his legs and feet, often in graphic terms. His disability kept him from going into the field during the months of July and August to take part in what amounted to futile minor actions intended to disrupt and interdict a lively trade with the insurgents on the other side of Laguna de Bay.1 In fact, things were slow enough for Lawton to take his family by launch to visit some hot springs in the same area. At 1st Division headquarters in Paco, after some initial reservations, Carter found that he got along well with his new commanding officer, Major Guy Howard. He found him to be a demanding superior and a hard worker, and he respected him for that.With a change in command came new responsibilities , including work in the evening and on Sunday. Life in the tropics continued to be a challenge, with cockroaches and other vermin, as well as heat, damp, mold, and disease, not to mention monsoons. One soldier told his daughter: “Everything in leather molds,” and “clothes sour as soon as worn.”2 In addition, “typhus, malaria, dengue, and a dozen other diseases flourished in fouled sewers, stagnant backwashes, and public wells.”3 Large numbers of mosquitoes in combination with the overall filthy conditions, particularly in Manila, was a formula for the spread of disease. Carter compares the local variety of mosquito with its puny American cousin . He writes of damp bedclothes; frequent changes of clothing, particularly underwear; as well as the disintegration of his luggage due to the climate. Like all large cities, as Carter discovered, Manila could be a dangerous place. He August 1899 | 111 recounts the need to shoot a wild dog,4 as well as a dinner out followed by an unwanted encounter at a “rough house” hotel. Moreover, the price of goods, especially food, remained high, no doubt due to local businesses taking advantage of the American soldier, flush with gold or silver come payday.5 On the positive side, Major Howard secured new quarters for Carter and the other clerks, with the added benefit that they were closer to the Lawtons’ home. Carter’s bedroom was airy, and he looked out over a paved street and not a muddy rice paddy. In addition, since he left the hospital in July, he had been particularly careful about his diet. As was the custom, he and his roommates pooled resources and hired a cook. They were able to purchase better food locally or at the Commissary in order to supplement their rations. In fact, at times they would barter away the Army ration.6 Unless his system was really acting up, or he was visiting the Lawtons, he took his meals at his quarters. The Lawton family continued to look out for Carter, and he was a frequent visitor at their home. In fact, Mamie Lawton carried on a regular correspondence with the senior Carter. During one memorable visit to the Lawtons’ home, Carter was introduced to Brig. Gen. Frederick Dent Grant, the oldest son of the former president, who served briefly in the 4th Cavalry under Col. Ranald Mackenzie, along with Lawton and Carter’s father. Moreover, Grant Escolta Street, Binondo District, Manila, P.I. 112 | A Civilian in Lawton’s 1899 Philippine Campaign was a class behind Bob Carter at West Point. Grant never tired of telling stories of his early exploits and warmed to the occasion. No doubt with Manley Lawton in mind, he told tales of when his father took him to war during the Vicksburg Campaign.7 General Grant would be involved in the pacification effort in Pampanga, Bataan, and Zambales Provinces later that year.8 During another visit to the Lawton home, Carter witnessed evidence of Lawton’s legendary temper in an exchange with Diaz the cook.9 Carter met another colleague and classmate of his father’s when he unsuccessfully applied for a commission in a newly formed regiment commanded by Col. William Birkhimer. In addition to a letter explaining that all commissions had already been assigned in Washington, Birkhimer, himself, paid a visit to the young man. Although obviously disappointed, Carter takes this as another sign of the high regard for his father. Birkhimer’s...