INDIANA SOLDIERS & SAILORS

They just come to eat together and reminisce of the memory of their departed ones and reverently tread the hallowed ground on which the blood of their beloved ones was spilled. These are the widows and orphaned children of theunglorified members of Marking’s Fil-American Guerrilla Troops who died in action November 22, 1944 in the tragic Battle of Sta. Isabel.  San Pablo City was formerly the seat of the Southern Luzon Military Administration of the Japanese Occupation Forces during World War II and later became the capital of the 4th Military District of the “Puppet” Republic. During this period the Japanese authorities consistently rounded up all civilians suspected of being guerrillas and had them unceremoniously killed without any questioning based only on the information given them by the Ganaps or Makapilis with headquarters in the heart of the city. Sporadic encounters between the Makapilis and the guerrillas were not uncommon.

During the dark days of the Japanese Occupation, San Pablo City was also known as the hot-bed of guerrilla activities. The PQOG “Cayacas” Unit under the command of Maj. Juan Eseo operated in the southern part of the city while Maj. Pedro P. Perez, also a PQOG, operated in the southwestern portion. One notable guerrilla unit operating in the city was Marking’s Fil-American Troops under the command of Col. Gertrudo San Pedro. An ex-USAFFE, San Pedro had organized a motley band of guerrillas recruited from the USAFFE, Philippine Scouts, Philippine Constabulary, ROTC cadets, reservists, civilian volunteers and professionals. This unit had sworn to obstruct the Japanese administration economically by underground campaign, counter-act Japanese propaganda among civilians, harass and ambush the enemy where it will not endanger the safety of the civilians, and gather intelligence information for transmission to Gen. Douglas MacArthur through the headquarters of Gen. Agustin Marking.

November 22, 1944 was a fatal day for the Marking’s Fil-Americans who had just established their headquarters at Barangay Sta. Isabel at a distance of a kilometer from the provincial road. Some days earlier intelligence reports received by Col. San Pedro revealed that the Japanese Authorities had knowledge of the existence of the guerrilla camp based on the information supplied by the Makapilis who were avid Japanese collaborators. There was no showing, however, that Col. San Pedro had prepared for this forthcoming attack.

On the early morning of November 22, 1944, a large force of about four hundred battle-tested Japanese soldiers armed with high-powered guns and trench mortars was on its way to attack the guerrilla camp. As early as 6:00 a.m., everyone in camp was busily making preparations for MOVEOUT due to information brought in by Lt. Col. San Pedro who had just arrived, clad only in shorts, breathless and apparently shocked when he saw the long line of Japanese soldiers passing by his hut in Bunot Lake, a distance of only two kilometers from the camp. It appeared that the Japanese were not fully aware of the exact location of the camp so that Lt. Col. San Pedro was able to arrive ahead of the enemy. Then a few minutes later a runner from Barangay San Jose (Malamig), also about two kilometers from the camp, arrived to report that many heavily-armed enemy soldiers were passing said place.

Col. Gertrudo San Pedro, instead of ordering an immediate troop move out, gave orders to hastily serve breakfast before leaving. At about 7:00 a.m., the rationing was being done at a very fast pace. All the while that breakfast was being served, the first batch of Japanese advance guards were already nearing Outpost No. 1, manned by Sgt. Dominador de las Alas.

A few minutes earlier, Pvt. Fernando Caro was sent out of the camp with instructions to scout on the location of the enemy troops. He was caught and held prisoner. Sgt. De las Alas saw the approaching Japanese advance guards and immediately fired at them which served as warning shots to the men in the camp. This enabled Pvt. Caro to escape his captors.

Japanese soldiers approaching from the eastern flank suddenly appeared near the kitchen area. A few bursts of woodpecker machine gun fire instantly killed Mess Sgt. Eulogio Fernandez who was busy serving linugaw to the men lined up for breakfast. Everyone on the chow line scrambled for cover under the mess tables and slowly crawled towards the nearest coconut trunks. This writer recalls that only ten men had received their rations when the machine gun firing started.

Unfazed by the first rounds of heavy fire, the defenders returned their fire, shooting at close range, positioned behind coconut trunks. Their bullets accurately hit their marks, rarely missing their human targets. They had to be sure that every bullet spent would count due to inadequate supply of ammunitions. The first wave of assault brought severe losses to the enemy to the delight of the defending guerrillas. Then there followed a lull of almost an hour.

The delight of the defending guerrillas was short-lived when suddenly the second wave of enemy soldiers began to advance. They came from all directions which obviously showed that they were trying to encircle the camp. Amidst machine gun fire and grenade explosions, the beleaguered unit managed to fight back although outnumbered. Japanese snipers trying to climb trees to get vantage positions were gunned down one by one. Col. San Pedro was there, shouting orders on top of his voice boosting the morale of his men while the enemy was steadily closing in every minute. Everyone became tense and apprehensive but the human urge to survive gave them the fighting spirit needed at the moment.

The enemy forces were able to infiltrate and surround the camp completely thereby making escape and retreat practically impossible. Wave after wave the Japanese attempted to advance but the guerrillas stood their ground. Every attempt of the enemy was repulsed by guerrilla automatic and Springfield rifle firing. After three hours of fierce fighting the Japanese decided to retreat about 300 yards and started to use their trench mortars aimed directly at the guerrilla camp. In once instance a mortar shell directly hit a coconut trunk completely severing the upper portion.

Since the Japanese had cordoned the camp, Col San Pedro had no alternative but to decide a “BREAKTHROUGH”. He ordered the main body to concentrate firing at the eastern defense so that withdrawal was maneuvered with such smooth efficiency that the unit was able to breakthrough with the least casualty.

During this battle the mettle of the defending guerrillas was tested to the highest degree. Among those who deserve to be cited for exemplary conduct in the field of battle are the following: Mrs. Conchita Zeta was the Head Nurse and In Charge of the First Aiders. Amidst mortar explosions and machine gun firing, she managed to care for all the wounded, although almost all of them died of gunshot wounds later on. In one instance she was nearly shot at by Elpidio Briñas when she was mistaken for a Japanese sniper while slowly crawling towards one of the wounded guerrillas.

Mrs. Rosita Briñas San Pedro, wife of Col. Gertrudo San Pedro, was fatally hit while attending to a wounded guerrilla. Ironically, she was not recognized as a guerrilla due to her name’s omission from the constructed guerrilla roster.

Sgt. Dominador de las Alas was in charge of Outpost No. 1. After firing warning shots to alert the men in camp, he engaged the advancing enemy soldiers before withdrawing into the main defense line. His name was also omitted in the reconstructed guerrilla roster and therefore not recognized.

Pvt. Perfecto Billosa was the only one wounded in action who survived.

The Marking’s Fil-American Troops listed a casualty of fifteen men and women killed in action and one wounded. On the other hand, the enemy suffered no less than one hundred men killed or wounded. Reliable civilian eyewitnesses recount that they saw many trucks loaded with dead and wounded enemy soldiers passing the provincial road towards the city proper after that encounter.

In retaliation, the set fire to all the houses they could find in Barangay Sta. Isabel and the neighboring barangays of San Diego, Sto. Angel and San Jose (Malamig). Seventy-eight civilians were also massacred by the Japanese in Barangay San Jose. At Barangay Sta. Isabel and other barangays, the Japanese rounded up more than two hundred civilians. They were brought to the Japanese garrison at the Banahaw Compound in San Pablo City, tortured and then killed. Only a few were able to escape that garrison.

After that battle, the headquarters of Col. San Pedro was transferred to Tayak Hills, Mount San Cristobal where a landing field was temporarily constructed to affect the pick up of Maj. Charles Howe, Maj. Thompkins and Sgt. Bretain, AC’s, 5th Attack Group, U.S. Air Squadron. These three American pilots were rescued by the Marking’s Fil-American Troops at Victoria, Laguna on January 24, 1945 when their plane made an emergency landing thereat. This writer also recalls that it was at this same landing field that Mrs. Virginia Llamas Romulo, wife of Gen. Carlos P. Romulo boarded her plane for Australia to join her husband there.