American fury in the Philippines. XXXIII / Finish off

In a letter to Mr. Herbert Welsh, of Philadelphia, an official of the
War Department says:
The aggregate killed and wounded [Filipinos] reported by commanding
officers is 14,643 killed and 3,297 wounded.... As to the number of
Filipinos whose deaths were due to the incidents of war, sickness,
burning of habitations, etc., we have no information.

The comparative figures of killed and wounded - nearly five killed to
one wounded if we take only the official returns - are absolutely
convincing. When we examine them in detail and find the returns quoted
of many killed and often no wounded, only one conclusion is possible.

In the fiercest battles of the Civil War the proportion was as
follows: at Antietam, where we attacked: killed, 2,o00; wounded,
9,416; at Fredericksburg, where we charged again and again under a
withering fire of rifles and cannon: killed, I, 180; wounded, 9,028;
at Gettysburg, where two veteran armies joined in desperate battle:
killed, 2,834; wounded, 13,709; at Cold Harbor, where the carnage was
frightful: killed, 1,905; wounded, 10, 570.

In the recent Boer War the proportion is the same. At Magersfontein:
killed, I71; wounded, 691; at Colenso: killed, 50; wounded, 847. In
all battles from October, i899, to June, 1900: killed, 2,518; wounded,
11,405.

In no war where the usages of civilized warfare have been respected
has the number of killed approached the number of wounded more nearly
than these figures. The rule is generally about five wounded to one
killed. What shall we say of a war where the proportions are reversed?

Title: Secretary Root's record. "Marked severities" in Philippine
warfare. An analysis of the law and facts bearing on the action and
utterances of President Roosevelt and Secretary Root.
Author: Storey, Moorfield, 1845-1929