CHAPTER IX.

CHAPTER IX.WHEREIN IS NARRATED OUR LANDING AT DAIQUIRI AND SOME THINGS WHICH SUBSEQUENTLY HAPPENED.IT was not until well along in the afternoon that the Knickerbocker's passengers started for the shore and as it was not all of them landed that day, the third battalion being left on board until the 23d. For many long hours the steamer backed and filled together with the other vessels and the men, loaded down as they were with their field equipment and waiting for the word to disembark, found plenty of time to enjoy the stirring scenes about them. There were the grim painted war ships, all ready for business and their hustling "Jackies" working like beavers to aid in landing us "doughboys." Between the big ships danced the saucy torpedo boats and destroyers and quick puffing launches having in tow strings of small boats, these being our means of transportation from the ship to the land. In front were the frowning hills which guarded the coast line and from which an enemy of any determination could have easily prevented our landing. On a plateau directly in front of us was the village of Daiquiri, abandoned that morning by the Spaniards after a brief bombardment by our fleet, while a force of Cubans got along in time to worry the retreating enemy. A portion of the village and the works were still smoldering, having been fired by the Spaniards before they left the place.Daiquiri was the seat of the Spanish-American Iron company and a narrowgaugerailroad connects it with Juguaracito or Siboney where the company had quite an extensive establishment. Jutting out into the water was a high iron pier and it was supposed we were to land there, but this was found to be impossible after one or two trials.Meanwhile after long waiting a dinky little steam launch from the battleship Massachusetts and followed by a string of small boats, came alongside the Knickerbocker and the youthful ensign in charge allowed that he was ordered to take headquarters and as many others of the regiment as possible on shore. This was agreeable and Col. Clark and his field and staff embarked in the launch without much trouble, although the job of climbing down a slippery rope ladder, then hanging on by both hands to the side ropes and waiting until the next high wave brought the launch up to within a couple of feet of you and then falling more or less, mostly less, gracefully into it, was not particularly pleasing. After headquarters, a platoon of G company embarked and this filled the boats.How to get on shore from the boats appeared to grow into a serious problem as we neared the landing place. This was an old wooden pier, which jutted out some little distance from the land. There was a heavy surf on and the little basin in which the pier stood was jammed with boats and launches, all apparently very much snarled up but which in reality were being ably managed. After much maneuvering our launch was jammed alongside the pier and the next problem was how to get upon it. The supporting piles rose high up from the water and their slimy surface offered no inducement to attempt climbing. One moment we would be down in the trough of a wave and then the launch would be lifted up almost to the top of the pier and the sailors would be hard put to it to keep the boats from being dashed against the huge piling of the pier. The method of our landing couldhardly be called dignified. As the boat would be raised almost to a level with the floor of the pier by a wave our rolls and equipment would be tossed up to some soldiers waiting to assist us. Then down the boat would go again and when the next wave raised it we would stand up on the thwarts of the boat, reach up our hands, two of the men on the pier would grasp them and we would scramble up the best we could. In this way the first lot was landed and the boats hustled back to the ship after another load of passengers. The pier was connected with the land by some loose planks and across these we walked gingerly, finally reaching terra firma. We were on Cuban soil at last.On shore there was as much bustle and confusion as in the landing. Many of the regulars and a part of "Ours" had already landed but there appeared to be no system, and officers and men were scattered about everywhere. A short distance from the pier was a typical Cuban "shack" as the regulars called it, a roughly built shed with a roof of palm leaf thatch and around this was a lot of Cuban soldiers who were making themselves "good fellows" by giving away cocoanuts, of which they had a couple of large bags. They, the soldiers, were of varying shades of blackness and their "uniforms" consisted mostly of nothing. Some had more clothing than the others, but few had anything like a complete outfit. They were barefooted and bareheaded but all had the inevitable machete and some kind of a firearm, from the latest model Spanish Mauser and the navy Lee to an old shotgun. They could talk English about as well as we could Spanish and the sign language was used with more or less success.Having filled up on cocoanuts, which tasted good, we became thirsty. A water pipe ran along the ground and we soon found a faucet, but the first man to take a drink spat out the water and said some sharp and emphatic things concerning it at which we mildly wondered until he calmeddown sufficiently to tell us that it was "hot enough to boil eggs in." Sure enough it was. The pipes ran along on the surface of the ground and the sun did the rest."Mucho caliente agua," commented a ragged "Cubana" as he noticed our disgusted looks and one or two who understood enough Spanish to know what he meant agreed with him. Then he grinned as only a Cuban can and pointing to the plateau where the main part of the village was located, said: "Agua fresca," which being interpreted meant "cold water." So off we started for the plateau and there found several barrels of fresh water which was fairly cool. Among the "shacks" which composed the town we found a "brigade" of the "brave" Cuban soldiers. They were having a good time recounting their exploits and staring at "los Americano soldados," whose rough and ready manners were not always to their liking. A few of their field officers were almost white in color and decently uniformed but the majority, like the men, were black and distinguished from their men by small silver stars worn on a strap across the breast, three being the insignia of a captain, two of a first lieutenant and one of a second lieutenant.A point of much interest to our men were the burning shops, which the Spaniards had fired before retreating. On the railway track was a locomotive and some cars which had been disabled and burnt. Additional interest was caused by the pursuit, capture and summary execution of an unwise pig by a mob of our men and Cubans.All our battalions having landed, we began our march into the interior just before 5 o'clock. The brigade commander, Col. Van Horn of the 22d was injured on the 22d and the command was temporarily assigned to our commander, Col. Clark. As Lieut. Col. Shumway was left on the boat, Major Southmayd took command of the two battalions on shore. We marched some five miles toward Santiago, across country, the march being along a narrow andrough trail and halted for the night by the side of the trail. On our way we had to ford a stream and began to experience some of the realities of war.That night we had to face our first real experience at going hungry. It had been understood that we were not to go inland that day and that rations would be sent us from the ships so no orders to take any with us had been issued. A few of the men had the foresight to stuff whatever food they could into their haversacks but the majority had nothing and went supperless to bed. The regulars bivouacked near us were in the same fix and there was much grumbling. However, officers and men were in the same box and there was nothing to do but make the best of it.At dawn the next morning we rolled up our outfits and started off again. Our method of packing up was expeditious. Each man carried one half of a shelter tent, better known to us as a "dog" tent and later "pup" tents because of their small size, they being just about large enough for two men to crawl into. The half shelter was laid on the ground and upon it was spread first the rubber blanket and then the woolen one. Our canvas blouses and whatever personal property we had were then placed on top, together with the tent sticks and pegs and the whole neatly rolled. The ends were secured with the tent rope and the roll thus formed was carried over the left shoulder, the ends hanging down on the right side of the body. Thus equipped, with our full canteens and empty haversacks, we took to the road again after our first night on Cuban soil. Details of men from each company were sent back to the ships after rations and we started for Siboney. An early morning march on an empty stomach is not conducive to an appreciation of scenery be it ever so grand, but some of us enjoyed it. All about us were hills and mountains, their peaks clear cut against the blue sky, while from the tops of two or three rose thin smoke columns which we supposed were from signalfires. Our trail led us through valleys and over hills until finally about 11 o'clock we struck upon something that looked like a road and on which we were enabled to march for a short time in columns of fours. Anyone who had ever seen the Second on a parade in Springfield or Worcester or at camp and seen us straggling along the Cuban trail in single file would have laughed outright at the contrast, as we were forced to ourselves. Later on we looked even worse.That day the "stripping" process, familiar to all armies in a campaign, was begun. Two companies of the second battalion, E and M had "toted" their knapsacks with them from their transports and about the second day out they were sorry for so doing. Hardly had we been an hour on the march that morning before the knapsacks began to disappear and the troops which followed us soon knew that the Second Massachusetts had passed by, meeting scores of Cubans with E and M company knapsacks on their backs and sweltering but happy in the closely buttoned cape overcoats discarded with the knapsacks. Fortunately our knapsacks and all our heavy baggage had been left on board ship but it was not long before we found our rolls becoming heavy and burdensome. Pretty soon a man would quietly drop out of the line, off would come his roll which was quickly opened, and some article he fancied he could do without, thrown into the bush. Then the roll would be fastened together, thrown over the owner's shoulder and he would hasten to rejoin his company. A few moments afterward a ragged Cubano might be seen poking around about the bushes and next the discarded articles would be in his possession.And it may as well be told here that it was not only the Second Massachusetts that strewed more or less valuable or necessary articles along the trails. The regulars were with us in that, and although, as a rule, they had brought lessbaggage ashore with them than we did, they soon found it convenient to get rid of much of it. They even discarded their blankets, some cutting them in half and retaining only one part, while we stuck to the blankets and sacrificed other things. We never were sorry either that we kept our blankets, for if the days were intensely warm, the nights were cool and coverings came in handy.That afternoon, soon after we had struck the short piece of good road referred to above, we left it and following a narrow trail debouched into some woods and after passing through them, found ourselves in a cocoanut grove. There were hundreds of the trees all laden with the fruit, and a halt was ordered, arms stacked and we were allowed to rest. About this time we were decidedly hungry, our breakfast having consisted of nothing and our dinner menu being the same. The cocoanuts looked inviting but they were far away at the tops of the branchless trees. But hunger is a spur and it was not long before some daring ones were "shinning up" the trees and down came the fruit. Alas! It was a disappointment to hopes of a satisfactory meal. After the hard, green outer husks had been chopped away it was found that the cocoanuts were green, and a copious flow of soldier language greeted this discovery. But it was not long before it was discovered that the milk of the green cocoanut makes a very palatable drink, and in a few moments we all became milkmen.The march resumed we struck into another piece of woods, forded a brook or two, (we had by this time gotten over minding our feet being wet,) and found ourselves once more on a narrow and rough trail. On our way through the woods we saw, stretched along a rough fence, the body of a huge snake of the constrictor variety, not long killed and looking decidedly fierce. The reptile was about eight feet long and as thick as a man's arm. A little further along we saw something which indicated that we were in a roughcountry. This was a human skull nailed on top of a post and grinning at us with empty eye sockets and toothless jaws, as we passed.A little further along and we struck another narrow stream which, of course, had to be forded, and up a hill, just beyond that we came to a railroad station and the track. Here were some of our advance guard, men of the Eighth regulars who informed us that Siboney was "just 'round the corner," as one of them put it, and sure enough after a few moments more of the "Weary Willie" act, we came to a collection of "shacks," and realized that we were in Siboney. Now that word "Siboney" means much to us because it reminds us that there we ate, a fact sufficiently momentous on that day to linger long in our memories.Now as to the methods of our eating. It was only a short time before our arrival that the Spaniards had evacuated Siboney after firing a few shots at our advance guard and the natives, who had "jumped the town" when the Spaniards told them there was going to be a big battle in which they were going to annihilate the "pigs of Yanquis," were just beginning to come back. We were ordered to camp on a low piece of ground on one side of the railroad embankment and after putting up our "pup" tents a few hungry ones went into the town to see what could be seen and incidentally to acquire what there was to acquire in the commissary line. They were successful in the latter. The natives were glad to see them and freely gave of what little they had. This wasn't much but there was some rice and some queer looking but good tasting messes of which our men were freely invited to partake. In one house in particular there were two aged women who busied themselves for hours cooking rice and other dishes for our men and who at first would not accept anything in payment. Finally it was forced upon them and before evening there was more silver money in that poor "shack" than had probably been the case for many a day.All through the village it was the same and the hospitality we received at Siboney did much to change for a time the unfavorable opinion we had formed of the Cubans.Not only was there food but drink. There was cool water in all the houses and there was also "bino," a sour Cuban wine like claret and some fiery "rou" or rum which brought tears to the eyes of more than one man who thought he was spirit proof. All that afternoon we mingled freely with the people, looked all through the town, examined with interest the Spanish block houses and some of us went in surf bathing on the pretty little beach in front of the town.Late that afternoon the third battalion came up and about the same time the details which had been sent back for rations, made their appearance with about enough provisions to whet our appetite, they having found the task of lugging supplies for a company, nearly ten miles, beyond their strength.

IT was not until well along in the afternoon that the Knickerbocker's passengers started for the shore and as it was not all of them landed that day, the third battalion being left on board until the 23d. For many long hours the steamer backed and filled together with the other vessels and the men, loaded down as they were with their field equipment and waiting for the word to disembark, found plenty of time to enjoy the stirring scenes about them. There were the grim painted war ships, all ready for business and their hustling "Jackies" working like beavers to aid in landing us "doughboys." Between the big ships danced the saucy torpedo boats and destroyers and quick puffing launches having in tow strings of small boats, these being our means of transportation from the ship to the land. In front were the frowning hills which guarded the coast line and from which an enemy of any determination could have easily prevented our landing. On a plateau directly in front of us was the village of Daiquiri, abandoned that morning by the Spaniards after a brief bombardment by our fleet, while a force of Cubans got along in time to worry the retreating enemy. A portion of the village and the works were still smoldering, having been fired by the Spaniards before they left the place.

Daiquiri was the seat of the Spanish-American Iron company and a narrowgaugerailroad connects it with Juguaracito or Siboney where the company had quite an extensive establishment. Jutting out into the water was a high iron pier and it was supposed we were to land there, but this was found to be impossible after one or two trials.

Meanwhile after long waiting a dinky little steam launch from the battleship Massachusetts and followed by a string of small boats, came alongside the Knickerbocker and the youthful ensign in charge allowed that he was ordered to take headquarters and as many others of the regiment as possible on shore. This was agreeable and Col. Clark and his field and staff embarked in the launch without much trouble, although the job of climbing down a slippery rope ladder, then hanging on by both hands to the side ropes and waiting until the next high wave brought the launch up to within a couple of feet of you and then falling more or less, mostly less, gracefully into it, was not particularly pleasing. After headquarters, a platoon of G company embarked and this filled the boats.

How to get on shore from the boats appeared to grow into a serious problem as we neared the landing place. This was an old wooden pier, which jutted out some little distance from the land. There was a heavy surf on and the little basin in which the pier stood was jammed with boats and launches, all apparently very much snarled up but which in reality were being ably managed. After much maneuvering our launch was jammed alongside the pier and the next problem was how to get upon it. The supporting piles rose high up from the water and their slimy surface offered no inducement to attempt climbing. One moment we would be down in the trough of a wave and then the launch would be lifted up almost to the top of the pier and the sailors would be hard put to it to keep the boats from being dashed against the huge piling of the pier. The method of our landing couldhardly be called dignified. As the boat would be raised almost to a level with the floor of the pier by a wave our rolls and equipment would be tossed up to some soldiers waiting to assist us. Then down the boat would go again and when the next wave raised it we would stand up on the thwarts of the boat, reach up our hands, two of the men on the pier would grasp them and we would scramble up the best we could. In this way the first lot was landed and the boats hustled back to the ship after another load of passengers. The pier was connected with the land by some loose planks and across these we walked gingerly, finally reaching terra firma. We were on Cuban soil at last.

On shore there was as much bustle and confusion as in the landing. Many of the regulars and a part of "Ours" had already landed but there appeared to be no system, and officers and men were scattered about everywhere. A short distance from the pier was a typical Cuban "shack" as the regulars called it, a roughly built shed with a roof of palm leaf thatch and around this was a lot of Cuban soldiers who were making themselves "good fellows" by giving away cocoanuts, of which they had a couple of large bags. They, the soldiers, were of varying shades of blackness and their "uniforms" consisted mostly of nothing. Some had more clothing than the others, but few had anything like a complete outfit. They were barefooted and bareheaded but all had the inevitable machete and some kind of a firearm, from the latest model Spanish Mauser and the navy Lee to an old shotgun. They could talk English about as well as we could Spanish and the sign language was used with more or less success.

Having filled up on cocoanuts, which tasted good, we became thirsty. A water pipe ran along the ground and we soon found a faucet, but the first man to take a drink spat out the water and said some sharp and emphatic things concerning it at which we mildly wondered until he calmeddown sufficiently to tell us that it was "hot enough to boil eggs in." Sure enough it was. The pipes ran along on the surface of the ground and the sun did the rest.

"Mucho caliente agua," commented a ragged "Cubana" as he noticed our disgusted looks and one or two who understood enough Spanish to know what he meant agreed with him. Then he grinned as only a Cuban can and pointing to the plateau where the main part of the village was located, said: "Agua fresca," which being interpreted meant "cold water." So off we started for the plateau and there found several barrels of fresh water which was fairly cool. Among the "shacks" which composed the town we found a "brigade" of the "brave" Cuban soldiers. They were having a good time recounting their exploits and staring at "los Americano soldados," whose rough and ready manners were not always to their liking. A few of their field officers were almost white in color and decently uniformed but the majority, like the men, were black and distinguished from their men by small silver stars worn on a strap across the breast, three being the insignia of a captain, two of a first lieutenant and one of a second lieutenant.

A point of much interest to our men were the burning shops, which the Spaniards had fired before retreating. On the railway track was a locomotive and some cars which had been disabled and burnt. Additional interest was caused by the pursuit, capture and summary execution of an unwise pig by a mob of our men and Cubans.

All our battalions having landed, we began our march into the interior just before 5 o'clock. The brigade commander, Col. Van Horn of the 22d was injured on the 22d and the command was temporarily assigned to our commander, Col. Clark. As Lieut. Col. Shumway was left on the boat, Major Southmayd took command of the two battalions on shore. We marched some five miles toward Santiago, across country, the march being along a narrow andrough trail and halted for the night by the side of the trail. On our way we had to ford a stream and began to experience some of the realities of war.

That night we had to face our first real experience at going hungry. It had been understood that we were not to go inland that day and that rations would be sent us from the ships so no orders to take any with us had been issued. A few of the men had the foresight to stuff whatever food they could into their haversacks but the majority had nothing and went supperless to bed. The regulars bivouacked near us were in the same fix and there was much grumbling. However, officers and men were in the same box and there was nothing to do but make the best of it.

At dawn the next morning we rolled up our outfits and started off again. Our method of packing up was expeditious. Each man carried one half of a shelter tent, better known to us as a "dog" tent and later "pup" tents because of their small size, they being just about large enough for two men to crawl into. The half shelter was laid on the ground and upon it was spread first the rubber blanket and then the woolen one. Our canvas blouses and whatever personal property we had were then placed on top, together with the tent sticks and pegs and the whole neatly rolled. The ends were secured with the tent rope and the roll thus formed was carried over the left shoulder, the ends hanging down on the right side of the body. Thus equipped, with our full canteens and empty haversacks, we took to the road again after our first night on Cuban soil. Details of men from each company were sent back to the ships after rations and we started for Siboney. An early morning march on an empty stomach is not conducive to an appreciation of scenery be it ever so grand, but some of us enjoyed it. All about us were hills and mountains, their peaks clear cut against the blue sky, while from the tops of two or three rose thin smoke columns which we supposed were from signalfires. Our trail led us through valleys and over hills until finally about 11 o'clock we struck upon something that looked like a road and on which we were enabled to march for a short time in columns of fours. Anyone who had ever seen the Second on a parade in Springfield or Worcester or at camp and seen us straggling along the Cuban trail in single file would have laughed outright at the contrast, as we were forced to ourselves. Later on we looked even worse.

That day the "stripping" process, familiar to all armies in a campaign, was begun. Two companies of the second battalion, E and M had "toted" their knapsacks with them from their transports and about the second day out they were sorry for so doing. Hardly had we been an hour on the march that morning before the knapsacks began to disappear and the troops which followed us soon knew that the Second Massachusetts had passed by, meeting scores of Cubans with E and M company knapsacks on their backs and sweltering but happy in the closely buttoned cape overcoats discarded with the knapsacks. Fortunately our knapsacks and all our heavy baggage had been left on board ship but it was not long before we found our rolls becoming heavy and burdensome. Pretty soon a man would quietly drop out of the line, off would come his roll which was quickly opened, and some article he fancied he could do without, thrown into the bush. Then the roll would be fastened together, thrown over the owner's shoulder and he would hasten to rejoin his company. A few moments afterward a ragged Cubano might be seen poking around about the bushes and next the discarded articles would be in his possession.

And it may as well be told here that it was not only the Second Massachusetts that strewed more or less valuable or necessary articles along the trails. The regulars were with us in that, and although, as a rule, they had brought lessbaggage ashore with them than we did, they soon found it convenient to get rid of much of it. They even discarded their blankets, some cutting them in half and retaining only one part, while we stuck to the blankets and sacrificed other things. We never were sorry either that we kept our blankets, for if the days were intensely warm, the nights were cool and coverings came in handy.

That afternoon, soon after we had struck the short piece of good road referred to above, we left it and following a narrow trail debouched into some woods and after passing through them, found ourselves in a cocoanut grove. There were hundreds of the trees all laden with the fruit, and a halt was ordered, arms stacked and we were allowed to rest. About this time we were decidedly hungry, our breakfast having consisted of nothing and our dinner menu being the same. The cocoanuts looked inviting but they were far away at the tops of the branchless trees. But hunger is a spur and it was not long before some daring ones were "shinning up" the trees and down came the fruit. Alas! It was a disappointment to hopes of a satisfactory meal. After the hard, green outer husks had been chopped away it was found that the cocoanuts were green, and a copious flow of soldier language greeted this discovery. But it was not long before it was discovered that the milk of the green cocoanut makes a very palatable drink, and in a few moments we all became milkmen.

The march resumed we struck into another piece of woods, forded a brook or two, (we had by this time gotten over minding our feet being wet,) and found ourselves once more on a narrow and rough trail. On our way through the woods we saw, stretched along a rough fence, the body of a huge snake of the constrictor variety, not long killed and looking decidedly fierce. The reptile was about eight feet long and as thick as a man's arm. A little further along we saw something which indicated that we were in a roughcountry. This was a human skull nailed on top of a post and grinning at us with empty eye sockets and toothless jaws, as we passed.

A little further along and we struck another narrow stream which, of course, had to be forded, and up a hill, just beyond that we came to a railroad station and the track. Here were some of our advance guard, men of the Eighth regulars who informed us that Siboney was "just 'round the corner," as one of them put it, and sure enough after a few moments more of the "Weary Willie" act, we came to a collection of "shacks," and realized that we were in Siboney. Now that word "Siboney" means much to us because it reminds us that there we ate, a fact sufficiently momentous on that day to linger long in our memories.

Now as to the methods of our eating. It was only a short time before our arrival that the Spaniards had evacuated Siboney after firing a few shots at our advance guard and the natives, who had "jumped the town" when the Spaniards told them there was going to be a big battle in which they were going to annihilate the "pigs of Yanquis," were just beginning to come back. We were ordered to camp on a low piece of ground on one side of the railroad embankment and after putting up our "pup" tents a few hungry ones went into the town to see what could be seen and incidentally to acquire what there was to acquire in the commissary line. They were successful in the latter. The natives were glad to see them and freely gave of what little they had. This wasn't much but there was some rice and some queer looking but good tasting messes of which our men were freely invited to partake. In one house in particular there were two aged women who busied themselves for hours cooking rice and other dishes for our men and who at first would not accept anything in payment. Finally it was forced upon them and before evening there was more silver money in that poor "shack" than had probably been the case for many a day.All through the village it was the same and the hospitality we received at Siboney did much to change for a time the unfavorable opinion we had formed of the Cubans.

Not only was there food but drink. There was cool water in all the houses and there was also "bino," a sour Cuban wine like claret and some fiery "rou" or rum which brought tears to the eyes of more than one man who thought he was spirit proof. All that afternoon we mingled freely with the people, looked all through the town, examined with interest the Spanish block houses and some of us went in surf bathing on the pretty little beach in front of the town.

Late that afternoon the third battalion came up and about the same time the details which had been sent back for rations, made their appearance with about enough provisions to whet our appetite, they having found the task of lugging supplies for a company, nearly ten miles, beyond their strength.

CHAPTER X.IN WHICH IS TO BE FOUND THE TALE OF "CRAB HOLLOW" AND SOME OTHER THINGS.WHEN we retired to our luxurious couches that night of June 23d, most of us, excepting the guards, anticipated sleep, but we little recked what that night had in store for us. As told before, our camp was pitched on a low piece of ground and among a lot of sparse bushes. We did not know until the next day that the camping ground was an old burial place, and we were also not well enough up in the natural history of things Cuban to understand that if there is any one place the dainty land crab prefers for its habitat it is a cemetery and this preference rests upon a purely gastronomic basis. The land crab and the vulture are the great scavengers of Cuba and while the latter disposes of anything eatable left above ground the land crab looks after bodies or anything else placed under ground. In the afternoon we had noticed the holes of the land crabs but paid little attention to them, and only saw a few of the crustaceans, but at night we made their acquaintance at close quarters. We were pretty well fagged out with the heat and the marching, and this, with the strange sensation of having something to eat in our stomachs, tended to drowsiness. But hardly had we got settled in our tents before there were strange rustlings and noises and then the sensation of something crawling. There were some quickarisings and the sound of matches hastily struck and then exclamations and profanity. In some of the companies there was hardly a tent that had not been pitched over one or more land crab holes and theoccupantsof these had begun an investigation. Crawling over the sleepers usually resulted in awakening them and then came the exclamations, the illumination by the matches and the pursuit and slaughter of the visitors. The land crab is not an aggressive animal towards man and the greeting tendered him usually resulted in his scuttling for his hole. Not always did he reach there, for many fell victims to ramrods, clubs and other weapons. One able bodied crab was caught in the act of backing into his hole with a stocking in his claws, and yielded up his life for his rapacity. It may have been that he intended to eat the stocking, and had he done so his fate would have been the same anyway. The crabs had a pleasant trick that night of crawling half way up the outside of the tents and then losing their hold and dropping to the ground. That was bad enough as a deterrent to sleep, but it was not all. In the afternoon some I company men had repaired a locomotive disabled by the Spaniards, and kept running it up and down the tracks, to an accompaniment of bell and whistle, until a late hour.Bright and early the next morning we were up and as on the day before looking for grub. Rations were still "shy" and once more we had recourse to our friends the Siboneyians who gave us what they could, which was not much, as their own supplies were running low.Meanwhile the remainder of the transports had come to Siboney and were landing the rest of the expedition. They had a little different method of doing it than at Daiquiri. The boats would be filled with men and towed in as near shore as possible when the men would have to jump out and wade ashore. Some of them didn't like getting their feet wet but they had to just the same.It was some little time before noon when we heard firing from over the hills and learned that the cavalry brigade had gone on a reconnoisance in force in that direction. It was only a short time afterwards when we saw the first wounded begin to come down the trail and learned that they had found the enemy in force at Las Guasimas and had quite a go with him. The First and Tenth United States cavalry, our old neighbors at Lakeland, and the Rough Riders were engaged and from all accounts were having a warm time. Col. Clark of the Second was acting as commander of our brigade and receiving orders from Gen. Lawton to reinforce the cavalry, left for the scene with the Eighth and Twenty-second Infantry. They arrived there just as the Spaniards were running and finding nothing for them to do returned to Siboney.One of the largest buildings in the town had been converted into a temporary hospital and it was soon filled with the wounded. Our regimental surgeons, Drs. Bowen, Gates and Hitchcock were pressed into service and rendered valuable aid. That hospital was our first introduction to some of the grim realities of war but the boys stood it well and were anxious to get to the front as quickly as possible. One of the warships with the transports added to the excitement by shelling the woods on top of a point near us and we began to conclude it would be our turn next.But it was not long before our thoughts were turned from the vision of great deeds in battle to a more prosaic but necessary matter. A lot of rations had been landed and soon we were revelling in such delicacies as hardtack, "sowbelly" bacon, coffee, canned beef (?) and canned tomatoes. Orders were issued for each man to take four days' rations but our haversack capacity was not equal to this and we packed all we could into our rolls. Even then we could not take all the issue and what was left we gave to our friends, the people of Siboney, who gladly accepted what we didn't want. The issue was hardly begun before Col. Clark gave us orders tomove and off we started about 4.30 in the afternoon. We had not gone far in the direction of Las Guasimas before we came to the conclusion that the commissary department of the army had at least one genius who deserved a medal and some other things. About half the issue of tomatoes was in gallon cans and it was planned to have one man carry them a short distance and then let another sharer of the can relieve him. But our route lay up hill and we hit up a lively pace so that it was not long before there was a "kick" about the tomatoes. The ending of the kick in every case was a noise which indicated that the can had landed in the bushes and when tired out, we reached our bivouac place that night there were but few gallon cans of tomatoes left with the outfit.Meanwhile we kept steadily climbing up into the hills, finding rough footing and stumbling over rocks and everything else in the darkness until about 9 o'clockwe reached the scene of the battle and found the First and Tenth cavalry burying their dead. We passed on in silence but we did quite a bit of thinking. A short distance further up we halted on a level bit of ground by the side of the Rough Riders and after making our simple preparations for our night's bivouac heard their tale of the fight. Our cooking fires were soon going and we not only heard Roosevelt's men tell their experiences and gave them our sympathy, but what they wanted more at that particular time, we gave them food, sharing our rations with them. One New York paper, in its story of the Las Guasimas fight spoke of the Second Massachusetts as having "supported the Rough Riders," but so far as we knew our only support to them was that night when we certainly did support them with our rations.When we landed in Cuba a detail of men from each company was left on the boats to look after property and as we learned afterwards they heard all sorts of stories about what happened to us that day. But all the stories agreed that theSecond had been having a bad time of it and that our loss was heavy. One New York newspaper man had been given a circumstantial account of our regiment having been surrounded by the Spaniards and of our cutting our way out with a heavy loss in officers and men and was so impressed by it that he wrote a very pretty story which he was on the point of having cabled to his paper when a brother correspondent happened along and convinced him that as we were at Siboney until the action was all over we could hardly have been so badly cut up. So the story was not cabled but it was a narrow escape.When we left Siboney that afternoon G company was left behind to assist in unloading supplies for our brigade, one company from each regiment being detailed for that purpose. They left Siboney early the next morning and reached us just as we were preparing to resume the march again.Our next camping place was on a plateau near where had once been a sizeable plantation and which was only a short distance from Las Guasimas. Here we remained two days taking life easy before we again took up the march. On the 27th we reached Sevilla and there remained until latein the afternoonof June 30th. During our stay in Sevilla occurred another food shortage and also the great tobacco famine. Rations were hard to get and so were medicines. There was so much feeling over the delinquency in getting our supplies up to us that a meeting of the company commanders was held and a committee appointed to wait upon Col. Clark to see if something could not be done. The outcome of all the talk was the loan of some of the horses of the field and staff to a detail which, in charge of Lieut. Vesper of B, went back to the ships and obtained a small supply of provisions and tobacco. The cause of the failure to keep the troops supplied lay with the quartermaster's department which had apparently broken down utterly, for though there were tons upon tons of supplies already landedat Siboney there was not enough of pack trains or other means of transportation to get them up to us. We all fared alike at this time, officers and men, regulars and volunteers, and our brigade, the leading one in the army, had been hustled along so fast that it was difficult under any circumstances to get supplies to us owing to the distance and the condition of the roads.On the 28th the new commander of the brigade, Gen. Ludlow, reported and relieved Col. Clark who resumed command of the Second. Lieut. Harry Parkhurst of K who had been acting as aide-de-camp on the brigade staff was also relieved and rejoined his company.The tobacco famine was relieved somewhat by some of the weed brought from the ships by the various "relief expeditions" and also by the arrival of the details which had been left on the boats and the majority of the members of which had gained permission to rejoin us as soon as they heard the stories about our having been in action and losing heavily. The horse detail also came up and brought to Adjutant Hawkins the news that his horse had been drowned while being got ashore. As the chaplain's horse and one owned by Hospital Steward Fortier had been stolen while in Tampa by "Billy the Hostler" there was a shyness of horses around headquarters.While in Tampa Private T. C. Boone of K had been transferred to the signal corps with the rank of sergeant and afterwards became a member of the war balloon squad. On the afternoon of the 20th we saw the famous balloon for the first time and watched it with interest as it rose above the trees near our camp. We understood that Boone was one of the men in the car and for that reason the balloon had more than usual interest for us of the Springfield companies. The next afternoon another ascension was made and again we watched the "big gas bag" and speculated in a pessimisticvein upon its successful use. Our doubts as to its usefulness turned out to be correct.On the 28th the good news was announced that we could send mail home that afternoon and there was great scrambling for pens, pencils, paper and envelopes. It was our first opportunity since we had landed to send letters and that it was taken advantage of the big mail bags that left headquarters late that afternoon for division headquarters attested.Probably the condition in which about all our letters reached the folks at home was fully explained soon after our return, but it will bear retelling. When we landed most of us had paper, envelopes and stamps. But these were carried either in the haversacks or rolls and with the heat the envelope flaps became stuck together, likewise the stamps and paper became dirty. All were about in the same condition, so in order to get a letter into anenvelopeit was necessary to slit the latter at one end, insert the letter and then sew up the envelope. As most of the sewing was done with black thread and the envelopes were not especially clean the effect upon the good folks at home must have been rather startling, especially when the letters came without stamps, as they usually did. In place of stamps the government allowed the use of the words, "Soldier's Letter" in one corner of the envelope and when indorsed by an officer was allowed to go through.From our camp we could see a portion of the fortifications of Santiago and especially two large buildings which we were informed were barracks that had been transformed into hospitals and over which we could with field glasses see a number of Red Cross flags floating. We heard many weird tales as to what the Spaniards had done and would do and the stories, mainly of Cubans, as to how many troops were in the city, varied all the way from 10,000 to 40,000. On the 29th the much talked of "army" of Gen. Calixto Garcia arrived and it was a motley looking outfit, mostly black incolor and of great variety, principally of lack of quantity, as to uniforms but fairly well supplied with arms and ammunition. The knowledge of English of the component parts of Garcia's forces was about equal to out knowledge of Spanish, but considerable interchange of ideas was effected, principally by signs. One or two of the warriors would stroll into camp and after standing around a bit with the inevitable Cuban grin would exclaim, "Santiago, boum, boum?" at the same time pointing to the city. We could do no less than to assure them there would be plenty of "boum, boum" and that when it happened Santiago would be "on the bum." The ice thus broken, the Cuban's machete was examined and the wearer induced to give an exhibition of its use both as a weapon and a handy tool for many purposes. Generally before they left camp they would "borrow" some "tobac" and if they could obtain some hardtack or bacon they went away happy. Sometimes they brought us some mangoes or "monkey plums" and then would follow some great bartering. The surgeons in an excess of zeal had warned us against the mango but we pinned our faith to the Cubans' declaration that if one didn't eat mangoes and drink liquor on the same day no evil effects would result from the free and unlimited use of the fruit. The mango tastes nice but it is an acquired art to know how to eat it without getting three-quarters of it over one's face and clothing. Still it came in handy when our rations were short, which was about always and we were not over fastidious as to how we ate anything in those days.

WHEN we retired to our luxurious couches that night of June 23d, most of us, excepting the guards, anticipated sleep, but we little recked what that night had in store for us. As told before, our camp was pitched on a low piece of ground and among a lot of sparse bushes. We did not know until the next day that the camping ground was an old burial place, and we were also not well enough up in the natural history of things Cuban to understand that if there is any one place the dainty land crab prefers for its habitat it is a cemetery and this preference rests upon a purely gastronomic basis. The land crab and the vulture are the great scavengers of Cuba and while the latter disposes of anything eatable left above ground the land crab looks after bodies or anything else placed under ground. In the afternoon we had noticed the holes of the land crabs but paid little attention to them, and only saw a few of the crustaceans, but at night we made their acquaintance at close quarters. We were pretty well fagged out with the heat and the marching, and this, with the strange sensation of having something to eat in our stomachs, tended to drowsiness. But hardly had we got settled in our tents before there were strange rustlings and noises and then the sensation of something crawling. There were some quickarisings and the sound of matches hastily struck and then exclamations and profanity. In some of the companies there was hardly a tent that had not been pitched over one or more land crab holes and theoccupantsof these had begun an investigation. Crawling over the sleepers usually resulted in awakening them and then came the exclamations, the illumination by the matches and the pursuit and slaughter of the visitors. The land crab is not an aggressive animal towards man and the greeting tendered him usually resulted in his scuttling for his hole. Not always did he reach there, for many fell victims to ramrods, clubs and other weapons. One able bodied crab was caught in the act of backing into his hole with a stocking in his claws, and yielded up his life for his rapacity. It may have been that he intended to eat the stocking, and had he done so his fate would have been the same anyway. The crabs had a pleasant trick that night of crawling half way up the outside of the tents and then losing their hold and dropping to the ground. That was bad enough as a deterrent to sleep, but it was not all. In the afternoon some I company men had repaired a locomotive disabled by the Spaniards, and kept running it up and down the tracks, to an accompaniment of bell and whistle, until a late hour.

Bright and early the next morning we were up and as on the day before looking for grub. Rations were still "shy" and once more we had recourse to our friends the Siboneyians who gave us what they could, which was not much, as their own supplies were running low.

Meanwhile the remainder of the transports had come to Siboney and were landing the rest of the expedition. They had a little different method of doing it than at Daiquiri. The boats would be filled with men and towed in as near shore as possible when the men would have to jump out and wade ashore. Some of them didn't like getting their feet wet but they had to just the same.

It was some little time before noon when we heard firing from over the hills and learned that the cavalry brigade had gone on a reconnoisance in force in that direction. It was only a short time afterwards when we saw the first wounded begin to come down the trail and learned that they had found the enemy in force at Las Guasimas and had quite a go with him. The First and Tenth United States cavalry, our old neighbors at Lakeland, and the Rough Riders were engaged and from all accounts were having a warm time. Col. Clark of the Second was acting as commander of our brigade and receiving orders from Gen. Lawton to reinforce the cavalry, left for the scene with the Eighth and Twenty-second Infantry. They arrived there just as the Spaniards were running and finding nothing for them to do returned to Siboney.

One of the largest buildings in the town had been converted into a temporary hospital and it was soon filled with the wounded. Our regimental surgeons, Drs. Bowen, Gates and Hitchcock were pressed into service and rendered valuable aid. That hospital was our first introduction to some of the grim realities of war but the boys stood it well and were anxious to get to the front as quickly as possible. One of the warships with the transports added to the excitement by shelling the woods on top of a point near us and we began to conclude it would be our turn next.

But it was not long before our thoughts were turned from the vision of great deeds in battle to a more prosaic but necessary matter. A lot of rations had been landed and soon we were revelling in such delicacies as hardtack, "sowbelly" bacon, coffee, canned beef (?) and canned tomatoes. Orders were issued for each man to take four days' rations but our haversack capacity was not equal to this and we packed all we could into our rolls. Even then we could not take all the issue and what was left we gave to our friends, the people of Siboney, who gladly accepted what we didn't want. The issue was hardly begun before Col. Clark gave us orders tomove and off we started about 4.30 in the afternoon. We had not gone far in the direction of Las Guasimas before we came to the conclusion that the commissary department of the army had at least one genius who deserved a medal and some other things. About half the issue of tomatoes was in gallon cans and it was planned to have one man carry them a short distance and then let another sharer of the can relieve him. But our route lay up hill and we hit up a lively pace so that it was not long before there was a "kick" about the tomatoes. The ending of the kick in every case was a noise which indicated that the can had landed in the bushes and when tired out, we reached our bivouac place that night there were but few gallon cans of tomatoes left with the outfit.

Meanwhile we kept steadily climbing up into the hills, finding rough footing and stumbling over rocks and everything else in the darkness until about 9 o'clockwe reached the scene of the battle and found the First and Tenth cavalry burying their dead. We passed on in silence but we did quite a bit of thinking. A short distance further up we halted on a level bit of ground by the side of the Rough Riders and after making our simple preparations for our night's bivouac heard their tale of the fight. Our cooking fires were soon going and we not only heard Roosevelt's men tell their experiences and gave them our sympathy, but what they wanted more at that particular time, we gave them food, sharing our rations with them. One New York paper, in its story of the Las Guasimas fight spoke of the Second Massachusetts as having "supported the Rough Riders," but so far as we knew our only support to them was that night when we certainly did support them with our rations.

When we landed in Cuba a detail of men from each company was left on the boats to look after property and as we learned afterwards they heard all sorts of stories about what happened to us that day. But all the stories agreed that theSecond had been having a bad time of it and that our loss was heavy. One New York newspaper man had been given a circumstantial account of our regiment having been surrounded by the Spaniards and of our cutting our way out with a heavy loss in officers and men and was so impressed by it that he wrote a very pretty story which he was on the point of having cabled to his paper when a brother correspondent happened along and convinced him that as we were at Siboney until the action was all over we could hardly have been so badly cut up. So the story was not cabled but it was a narrow escape.

When we left Siboney that afternoon G company was left behind to assist in unloading supplies for our brigade, one company from each regiment being detailed for that purpose. They left Siboney early the next morning and reached us just as we were preparing to resume the march again.

Our next camping place was on a plateau near where had once been a sizeable plantation and which was only a short distance from Las Guasimas. Here we remained two days taking life easy before we again took up the march. On the 27th we reached Sevilla and there remained until latein the afternoonof June 30th. During our stay in Sevilla occurred another food shortage and also the great tobacco famine. Rations were hard to get and so were medicines. There was so much feeling over the delinquency in getting our supplies up to us that a meeting of the company commanders was held and a committee appointed to wait upon Col. Clark to see if something could not be done. The outcome of all the talk was the loan of some of the horses of the field and staff to a detail which, in charge of Lieut. Vesper of B, went back to the ships and obtained a small supply of provisions and tobacco. The cause of the failure to keep the troops supplied lay with the quartermaster's department which had apparently broken down utterly, for though there were tons upon tons of supplies already landedat Siboney there was not enough of pack trains or other means of transportation to get them up to us. We all fared alike at this time, officers and men, regulars and volunteers, and our brigade, the leading one in the army, had been hustled along so fast that it was difficult under any circumstances to get supplies to us owing to the distance and the condition of the roads.

On the 28th the new commander of the brigade, Gen. Ludlow, reported and relieved Col. Clark who resumed command of the Second. Lieut. Harry Parkhurst of K who had been acting as aide-de-camp on the brigade staff was also relieved and rejoined his company.

The tobacco famine was relieved somewhat by some of the weed brought from the ships by the various "relief expeditions" and also by the arrival of the details which had been left on the boats and the majority of the members of which had gained permission to rejoin us as soon as they heard the stories about our having been in action and losing heavily. The horse detail also came up and brought to Adjutant Hawkins the news that his horse had been drowned while being got ashore. As the chaplain's horse and one owned by Hospital Steward Fortier had been stolen while in Tampa by "Billy the Hostler" there was a shyness of horses around headquarters.

While in Tampa Private T. C. Boone of K had been transferred to the signal corps with the rank of sergeant and afterwards became a member of the war balloon squad. On the afternoon of the 20th we saw the famous balloon for the first time and watched it with interest as it rose above the trees near our camp. We understood that Boone was one of the men in the car and for that reason the balloon had more than usual interest for us of the Springfield companies. The next afternoon another ascension was made and again we watched the "big gas bag" and speculated in a pessimisticvein upon its successful use. Our doubts as to its usefulness turned out to be correct.

On the 28th the good news was announced that we could send mail home that afternoon and there was great scrambling for pens, pencils, paper and envelopes. It was our first opportunity since we had landed to send letters and that it was taken advantage of the big mail bags that left headquarters late that afternoon for division headquarters attested.

Probably the condition in which about all our letters reached the folks at home was fully explained soon after our return, but it will bear retelling. When we landed most of us had paper, envelopes and stamps. But these were carried either in the haversacks or rolls and with the heat the envelope flaps became stuck together, likewise the stamps and paper became dirty. All were about in the same condition, so in order to get a letter into anenvelopeit was necessary to slit the latter at one end, insert the letter and then sew up the envelope. As most of the sewing was done with black thread and the envelopes were not especially clean the effect upon the good folks at home must have been rather startling, especially when the letters came without stamps, as they usually did. In place of stamps the government allowed the use of the words, "Soldier's Letter" in one corner of the envelope and when indorsed by an officer was allowed to go through.

From our camp we could see a portion of the fortifications of Santiago and especially two large buildings which we were informed were barracks that had been transformed into hospitals and over which we could with field glasses see a number of Red Cross flags floating. We heard many weird tales as to what the Spaniards had done and would do and the stories, mainly of Cubans, as to how many troops were in the city, varied all the way from 10,000 to 40,000. On the 29th the much talked of "army" of Gen. Calixto Garcia arrived and it was a motley looking outfit, mostly black incolor and of great variety, principally of lack of quantity, as to uniforms but fairly well supplied with arms and ammunition. The knowledge of English of the component parts of Garcia's forces was about equal to out knowledge of Spanish, but considerable interchange of ideas was effected, principally by signs. One or two of the warriors would stroll into camp and after standing around a bit with the inevitable Cuban grin would exclaim, "Santiago, boum, boum?" at the same time pointing to the city. We could do no less than to assure them there would be plenty of "boum, boum" and that when it happened Santiago would be "on the bum." The ice thus broken, the Cuban's machete was examined and the wearer induced to give an exhibition of its use both as a weapon and a handy tool for many purposes. Generally before they left camp they would "borrow" some "tobac" and if they could obtain some hardtack or bacon they went away happy. Sometimes they brought us some mangoes or "monkey plums" and then would follow some great bartering. The surgeons in an excess of zeal had warned us against the mango but we pinned our faith to the Cubans' declaration that if one didn't eat mangoes and drink liquor on the same day no evil effects would result from the free and unlimited use of the fruit. The mango tastes nice but it is an acquired art to know how to eat it without getting three-quarters of it over one's face and clothing. Still it came in handy when our rations were short, which was about always and we were not over fastidious as to how we ate anything in those days.

CHAPTER XI.WHICH TELLS HOW WE GOT READY TO TAKE THE TOWN OF EL CANEY.IT was shortly after noon on June 30th that the "JoJo" department began to circulate the news that we were to move on to Santiago that day or the next and for the first and only time during the campaign the "JoJo" happened to be right. Orders had arrived for a forward movement and although we had no idea of where we were to go or what we were to do there was a feeling of satisfaction that we were to go somewhere and do something.Of even more importance than the orders at this particular time was the arrival of a well laden pack train with rations. When the mules were first discerned coming "up the pike" it was supposed they were carrying ammunition as the last two or three pack trains had brought little excepting cartridges. But this time we were agreeably disappointed. There was a plentiful supply of "sowbelly," hardtack and coffee and it was not long before it was being distributed. The tobacco famine had temporarily been relieved and now we actually had food. So we were pretty well satisfied with life after all.How it rained that day! It came on in the forenoon and in less than ten minutes everybody and everything was saturated. It was a straight downpour of water and rubberblankets were of little use in keeping us or our belongings dry so we simply got wet and stayed in that condition until the sun came out and did his best to dry things up quickly.Early that afternoon we saw the war balloon again and watched it with much interest, everybody "rubbernecking" at the unwonted sight. In the car, although we did not know it at the time, was poor "Tom" Boone of "K" and those of us who knew him little recked what the next day would bring to him. For that matter there was considerable uncertainty as to what the future meant for any of us. We heard late in the day that we were sure to get into action on the next day but somehow the knowledge did not appear to worry but a few of the boys. The happenings of the campaign thus far had done much to produce a feeling of contempt for the fighting abilities of the Spaniards and some of us figured that all we would have to do was to make a demonstration in force and the enemy would then either retreat or surrender. How mistaken we were the next day was to tell us.It was late in the afternoon when the advance on El Caney by Lawton's division was begun and it was not until almost 6 o'clock that our brigade, which being one of the nearest to the city, was among the last to get away, made its start. Most of us will never forget that night march. The rain of the morning had resulted as usual in making whatever roads and trails there were into very fine specimens of mud puddles and unfortunately for us the greater part of our way led up hill. When the rations were issued in the afternoon the company commissaries had not time to complete their distribution and thinking that the march was to be a short and easy one those of G and B concluded that it would be better to have some of the provisions carried in bulk rather than to take time to divide and issue them. So a number of men from each company were detailed to carry a couple of slabs of "sowbelly" and others the remainingboxes of hardtack. This worked very nicely for a time until it became dark and the hill climbing act began. Then there was trouble. The trail up the hill was about as slippery as any we ever marched along in Cuba and it was moreover filled with rocks and boulders over which climbing was not the easiest matter in the world. Before they had gone very far the ration detail began to think that something was wrong and these thoughts developed into a certainty as we still kept climbing along up a pretty steep ascent and the boxes of hardtack and the sides of bacon (?) began to grow heavier and heavier and more difficult to handle. For convenience in packing them along with us both Sergeants Scully and Bearse had nailed long handles onto the hardtack boxes and had made a somewhat similar arrangement to carry the bacon but the carriers had not gone far before the handles worked off and after awhile it got to be a question of dropping the rations or killing the men trying to carry them. It was pitch dark, the trail was difficult and besides all the men had a pretty fair supply of "grub" in their haversacks, so a silent and informal vote was taken and the bulk of the extra rations were quietly left by the side of the trail. Meanwhile the rest of us were not having so much of a picnic even though we were not encumbered with extra baggage. The mud made marching difficult even along the road which led from the camp. Soon we left this and came to the San Juan creek, passing a company of soldiers who were actually bathing. Our surprise at this unwonted scene was not allowed to last long, for the trail lay on the other side of the creek and we were obliged to ford it. This was not by any means as easy as it looked. The banks were high and slippery with mud and the water was over our legging tops but in we plunged and scrambled across to the other side and into a thick piece of woods, shaking the water from ourselves dog fashion as we again took up the march. Hardlyhad we got across before low spoken orders came down the line for every man to keep silent and to march as quietly as possible. This made us realize that something was on and the orders were pretty well obeyed although all the orders in the world could not keep some of the men from saying things concerning the trail and night marches in general.In ragged fashion we stumbled along through the woods, the only military regulation we followed out being that of keeping well "closed up." We simply had to do this because it was so dark and the trail so narrow and rough that unless one kept very "close tabs" on his file leader it was a question of getting lost and going it alone and this none of us desired to do.We had not gone far before we came to another creek or it may have been another turn of the first one, we did not know or care which, but into it we plunged and again got our feet wet and muddy. Hardly had we gained the other side before we came across a forlorn looking figure in a bit of a clearing by the side of the trail and a voice with an unmistakeable western twang inquired if we were the Rough Riders. The owner of the voice was informed that we were the Second Massachusetts and he then remarked, "Well, you're a pretty good outfit and I guess I'll go along with you." He then announced himself as the chaplain of the Rough Riders and said he had left camp a little behind his regiment and had not only been unable to catch up with it but could obtain no trace of its whereabouts. We told him his regiment had probably gone over towards San Juan hill, it being inanotherdivision than ours and he then allowed that he would not bother looking further that night but would accompany us. We made no objection and he trudged along with us for the rest of the way.Soon after meeting the chaplain we forded creek number three but by this time we were used to getting our feet wet and did not mind it much. After fording this stream, anarrow but rather deep one, we began to get up in the world and soon discovered that we were on the up grade. For nearly two hours more we stumbled along, sometimes passing through thick woods and again along open country. The moon came out faintly after a bit, but her light did little towards revealing to us the difficulties of the route we were following. We had a couple of brief halts but it was not until a little after 10 o'clock that a whispered command to halt was given and we were informed that we were to go into bivouac by the road side.Following this order came a renewal of the previous ones against making any noise and we were also given strict orders not to make a fire or even strike a match. These precautions we assumed were to keep our presence unknown to the enemy and although most of us wanted the comfort of a pipe or cigarette after our fatiguing march yet we refrained. There was of course much speculation over the why and wherefore of the night march and the orders against noise or fire but the generally accepted assumption was that we had stolen a march upon the Spaniards, had penetrated their lines, and in the morning would march into Santiago before the astonished enemy had partaken of his morning coffee. This surmise was givencolorby the fact that from where we were we could look down into the city, its locality being indicated by the lights from the governor general's palace and other official buildings. We were on a plateau that overlooked the city, and so far as we could judge, our presence was absolutely undetected. Santiago appeared to be sleeping peacefully and looked for all the world like some small New England city which is locked up every night at 8.30 or 9 and whose residents then go to bed and stay there until morning.Lehigh Detail from Company HFor thinking such thoughts we were indeed what are known in the vernacular as "good things," for as it transpired afterwards the Spaniards knew all about where we were and where we were going. Had it not been for their traditionalpolicy of "manana" they might have sallied out and done several things to us, but they preferred to wait until the next day, which was a lucky thing for us.Sleep comes quickly to a soldier in bivouac and soon after our halt every one of us, with the exception of the guards, was asleep. No attempt was made to put up the shelter tents, but we contented ourselves with unrolling them, spreading them upon the grass and wrapping ourselves up in our blankets. A few of us lunched upon hardtack and raw bacon washed down with muddy water from the canteens but the majority of the boys were too tired to think even of eating.That night the premonition came to some of our boys that the morrow would be their last day on earth and although we tried to laugh it out of them they stuck to it that their fate was settled. One of these boys was Frank Moody of K and so strongly was he impressed with the feeling of coming disaster to himself that he made one of his comrades take his watch and promise to deliver his farewell message to the loved ones at home.Tired soldiers sleep soundly and it seemed as if we had only slumbered a few moments when we were awakened, not by the usual bugle call, but by low whispers from the officers and non-commissioned officers. It was hardly dawn and a thin mist concealed from view the city below us and the hills that surrounded us. Little by little the mist disappeared before the advance of the sun and when dawn came the scene was so impressive in its grandeur that even the most careless amongst us felt it. Just below us was Santiago still wrapped in the morning mist and apparently still unaroused from its slumbers. All about us were frowning hills and mountains and in the distance we could see the harbor outside of which sat the grim war ships of the United States waiting for their prey to come out and be eaten up. Not a sign from the enemy and we wondered.But we wondered even more when we turned our eyes a little to the right and there saw Capron's light battery, still unlimbered and apparently in plain view of the sentries of the enemy and our wonder increased as we saw the smoke from the cooking fires of the batterymen and watched them preparing their morning meal. For, be it understood, our brigade commander had sent word along that the orders of the night before as to noise and fires were still in force and we had breakfasted on hardtack and water. And there were the artillerymen with their fires lighted and frying their bacon and making their coffee as if there were no such orders and not a Spaniard within fifty miles. We could not understand it and for that matter we do not to this day. Maybe somebody does but if so we never heard of it.It was bad enough to almost smell the hot coffee, for the morning air was cool and raw, and to see the batterymen drinking it with relish, but it was far worse to see them nonchalantly light their pipes and cigarettes and enjoy them. Since the night before we had been deprived of the solace of tobacco and anyone who has ever soldiered knows what that means. But when we saw the red striped gunners enjoying the weed we made up our minds to follow suit. In a very short time our pipes were going and the officers sympathetically not only forebore to stop us but soon began to puff their pipes. Even a cold breakfast can be enjoyed with a tobacco dessert and that early morning smoke on the threshold of the battlefield was a much appreciated one.Meanwhile we had been getting ready and as packing up did not take us long it was but a short time after we were aroused from our slumbers before we had fallen in and were ready for what the day might bring forth. While waiting for orders to march we heard the noise of hoofs coming up the trail and Gen. Lawton and his staff clattered by us on their way to the front. A couple of Cuban officers were with them and they were evidently pleased with the workcut out for the Americans that day. Only a few moments after the general had passed came the orders to march and we were soon "hitting the trail" again, this time on the down grade.It was then about 4.30 in the morning. We moved along slowly, the trail being so narrow it was necessary to go in column of files and it was fully as bad walking as the route we had gone over the previous night. After a little we came to a brook and took advantage of the opportunity to fill our canteens. Just on the other side of the brook we passed Capron's battery posted on a low hill, the muzzles of the three inch rifles pointed toward El Caney and the cannoneers at their posts waiting for the ball to open. By that time we all realized that this was the day we were to go into business.

IT was shortly after noon on June 30th that the "JoJo" department began to circulate the news that we were to move on to Santiago that day or the next and for the first and only time during the campaign the "JoJo" happened to be right. Orders had arrived for a forward movement and although we had no idea of where we were to go or what we were to do there was a feeling of satisfaction that we were to go somewhere and do something.

Of even more importance than the orders at this particular time was the arrival of a well laden pack train with rations. When the mules were first discerned coming "up the pike" it was supposed they were carrying ammunition as the last two or three pack trains had brought little excepting cartridges. But this time we were agreeably disappointed. There was a plentiful supply of "sowbelly," hardtack and coffee and it was not long before it was being distributed. The tobacco famine had temporarily been relieved and now we actually had food. So we were pretty well satisfied with life after all.

How it rained that day! It came on in the forenoon and in less than ten minutes everybody and everything was saturated. It was a straight downpour of water and rubberblankets were of little use in keeping us or our belongings dry so we simply got wet and stayed in that condition until the sun came out and did his best to dry things up quickly.

Early that afternoon we saw the war balloon again and watched it with much interest, everybody "rubbernecking" at the unwonted sight. In the car, although we did not know it at the time, was poor "Tom" Boone of "K" and those of us who knew him little recked what the next day would bring to him. For that matter there was considerable uncertainty as to what the future meant for any of us. We heard late in the day that we were sure to get into action on the next day but somehow the knowledge did not appear to worry but a few of the boys. The happenings of the campaign thus far had done much to produce a feeling of contempt for the fighting abilities of the Spaniards and some of us figured that all we would have to do was to make a demonstration in force and the enemy would then either retreat or surrender. How mistaken we were the next day was to tell us.

It was late in the afternoon when the advance on El Caney by Lawton's division was begun and it was not until almost 6 o'clock that our brigade, which being one of the nearest to the city, was among the last to get away, made its start. Most of us will never forget that night march. The rain of the morning had resulted as usual in making whatever roads and trails there were into very fine specimens of mud puddles and unfortunately for us the greater part of our way led up hill. When the rations were issued in the afternoon the company commissaries had not time to complete their distribution and thinking that the march was to be a short and easy one those of G and B concluded that it would be better to have some of the provisions carried in bulk rather than to take time to divide and issue them. So a number of men from each company were detailed to carry a couple of slabs of "sowbelly" and others the remainingboxes of hardtack. This worked very nicely for a time until it became dark and the hill climbing act began. Then there was trouble. The trail up the hill was about as slippery as any we ever marched along in Cuba and it was moreover filled with rocks and boulders over which climbing was not the easiest matter in the world. Before they had gone very far the ration detail began to think that something was wrong and these thoughts developed into a certainty as we still kept climbing along up a pretty steep ascent and the boxes of hardtack and the sides of bacon (?) began to grow heavier and heavier and more difficult to handle. For convenience in packing them along with us both Sergeants Scully and Bearse had nailed long handles onto the hardtack boxes and had made a somewhat similar arrangement to carry the bacon but the carriers had not gone far before the handles worked off and after awhile it got to be a question of dropping the rations or killing the men trying to carry them. It was pitch dark, the trail was difficult and besides all the men had a pretty fair supply of "grub" in their haversacks, so a silent and informal vote was taken and the bulk of the extra rations were quietly left by the side of the trail. Meanwhile the rest of us were not having so much of a picnic even though we were not encumbered with extra baggage. The mud made marching difficult even along the road which led from the camp. Soon we left this and came to the San Juan creek, passing a company of soldiers who were actually bathing. Our surprise at this unwonted scene was not allowed to last long, for the trail lay on the other side of the creek and we were obliged to ford it. This was not by any means as easy as it looked. The banks were high and slippery with mud and the water was over our legging tops but in we plunged and scrambled across to the other side and into a thick piece of woods, shaking the water from ourselves dog fashion as we again took up the march. Hardlyhad we got across before low spoken orders came down the line for every man to keep silent and to march as quietly as possible. This made us realize that something was on and the orders were pretty well obeyed although all the orders in the world could not keep some of the men from saying things concerning the trail and night marches in general.

In ragged fashion we stumbled along through the woods, the only military regulation we followed out being that of keeping well "closed up." We simply had to do this because it was so dark and the trail so narrow and rough that unless one kept very "close tabs" on his file leader it was a question of getting lost and going it alone and this none of us desired to do.

We had not gone far before we came to another creek or it may have been another turn of the first one, we did not know or care which, but into it we plunged and again got our feet wet and muddy. Hardly had we gained the other side before we came across a forlorn looking figure in a bit of a clearing by the side of the trail and a voice with an unmistakeable western twang inquired if we were the Rough Riders. The owner of the voice was informed that we were the Second Massachusetts and he then remarked, "Well, you're a pretty good outfit and I guess I'll go along with you." He then announced himself as the chaplain of the Rough Riders and said he had left camp a little behind his regiment and had not only been unable to catch up with it but could obtain no trace of its whereabouts. We told him his regiment had probably gone over towards San Juan hill, it being inanotherdivision than ours and he then allowed that he would not bother looking further that night but would accompany us. We made no objection and he trudged along with us for the rest of the way.

Soon after meeting the chaplain we forded creek number three but by this time we were used to getting our feet wet and did not mind it much. After fording this stream, anarrow but rather deep one, we began to get up in the world and soon discovered that we were on the up grade. For nearly two hours more we stumbled along, sometimes passing through thick woods and again along open country. The moon came out faintly after a bit, but her light did little towards revealing to us the difficulties of the route we were following. We had a couple of brief halts but it was not until a little after 10 o'clock that a whispered command to halt was given and we were informed that we were to go into bivouac by the road side.

Following this order came a renewal of the previous ones against making any noise and we were also given strict orders not to make a fire or even strike a match. These precautions we assumed were to keep our presence unknown to the enemy and although most of us wanted the comfort of a pipe or cigarette after our fatiguing march yet we refrained. There was of course much speculation over the why and wherefore of the night march and the orders against noise or fire but the generally accepted assumption was that we had stolen a march upon the Spaniards, had penetrated their lines, and in the morning would march into Santiago before the astonished enemy had partaken of his morning coffee. This surmise was givencolorby the fact that from where we were we could look down into the city, its locality being indicated by the lights from the governor general's palace and other official buildings. We were on a plateau that overlooked the city, and so far as we could judge, our presence was absolutely undetected. Santiago appeared to be sleeping peacefully and looked for all the world like some small New England city which is locked up every night at 8.30 or 9 and whose residents then go to bed and stay there until morning.

Lehigh Detail from Company H

Lehigh Detail from Company H

For thinking such thoughts we were indeed what are known in the vernacular as "good things," for as it transpired afterwards the Spaniards knew all about where we were and where we were going. Had it not been for their traditionalpolicy of "manana" they might have sallied out and done several things to us, but they preferred to wait until the next day, which was a lucky thing for us.

Sleep comes quickly to a soldier in bivouac and soon after our halt every one of us, with the exception of the guards, was asleep. No attempt was made to put up the shelter tents, but we contented ourselves with unrolling them, spreading them upon the grass and wrapping ourselves up in our blankets. A few of us lunched upon hardtack and raw bacon washed down with muddy water from the canteens but the majority of the boys were too tired to think even of eating.

That night the premonition came to some of our boys that the morrow would be their last day on earth and although we tried to laugh it out of them they stuck to it that their fate was settled. One of these boys was Frank Moody of K and so strongly was he impressed with the feeling of coming disaster to himself that he made one of his comrades take his watch and promise to deliver his farewell message to the loved ones at home.

Tired soldiers sleep soundly and it seemed as if we had only slumbered a few moments when we were awakened, not by the usual bugle call, but by low whispers from the officers and non-commissioned officers. It was hardly dawn and a thin mist concealed from view the city below us and the hills that surrounded us. Little by little the mist disappeared before the advance of the sun and when dawn came the scene was so impressive in its grandeur that even the most careless amongst us felt it. Just below us was Santiago still wrapped in the morning mist and apparently still unaroused from its slumbers. All about us were frowning hills and mountains and in the distance we could see the harbor outside of which sat the grim war ships of the United States waiting for their prey to come out and be eaten up. Not a sign from the enemy and we wondered.

But we wondered even more when we turned our eyes a little to the right and there saw Capron's light battery, still unlimbered and apparently in plain view of the sentries of the enemy and our wonder increased as we saw the smoke from the cooking fires of the batterymen and watched them preparing their morning meal. For, be it understood, our brigade commander had sent word along that the orders of the night before as to noise and fires were still in force and we had breakfasted on hardtack and water. And there were the artillerymen with their fires lighted and frying their bacon and making their coffee as if there were no such orders and not a Spaniard within fifty miles. We could not understand it and for that matter we do not to this day. Maybe somebody does but if so we never heard of it.

It was bad enough to almost smell the hot coffee, for the morning air was cool and raw, and to see the batterymen drinking it with relish, but it was far worse to see them nonchalantly light their pipes and cigarettes and enjoy them. Since the night before we had been deprived of the solace of tobacco and anyone who has ever soldiered knows what that means. But when we saw the red striped gunners enjoying the weed we made up our minds to follow suit. In a very short time our pipes were going and the officers sympathetically not only forebore to stop us but soon began to puff their pipes. Even a cold breakfast can be enjoyed with a tobacco dessert and that early morning smoke on the threshold of the battlefield was a much appreciated one.

Meanwhile we had been getting ready and as packing up did not take us long it was but a short time after we were aroused from our slumbers before we had fallen in and were ready for what the day might bring forth. While waiting for orders to march we heard the noise of hoofs coming up the trail and Gen. Lawton and his staff clattered by us on their way to the front. A couple of Cuban officers were with them and they were evidently pleased with the workcut out for the Americans that day. Only a few moments after the general had passed came the orders to march and we were soon "hitting the trail" again, this time on the down grade.

It was then about 4.30 in the morning. We moved along slowly, the trail being so narrow it was necessary to go in column of files and it was fully as bad walking as the route we had gone over the previous night. After a little we came to a brook and took advantage of the opportunity to fill our canteens. Just on the other side of the brook we passed Capron's battery posted on a low hill, the muzzles of the three inch rifles pointed toward El Caney and the cannoneers at their posts waiting for the ball to open. By that time we all realized that this was the day we were to go into business.

CHAPTER XII.WHEREIN IS RELATED SOME EVENTS WHICH HAPPENED TO US ON JULY FIRST.HARDLY had we passed the battery before we heard the boom of one of its guns, followed by another and another and we knew then the trouble had begun. We kept on the trail for a while longer, the men keeping well closed up now and keeping eyes and ears alert. El Caney was now replying to Capron and we could hear for the first time the squeal of the Mauser bullets as they began to go over us with a sound like that of a vicious cat at bay. We were under fire but hardly realized it as yet.It was a splendid morning. Our trail led along the side of what had once been well cultivated fields, the only indication of that now being the inevitable barbed wire fencing. The skies were cloudless and birds sang as we went along to battle. There were other birds too but they did not sing. Hardly had the first of Capron's cannon sent its "good morning" salute to El Caney before a speck was visible in the sky. Larger and larger it grew until we saw it was a buzzard scenting the battle and before long it was joined by hundreds of its kind, all circling about in the air only a short distance from the earth and waiting for the rich feast about to be spread for them. But we recked not of buzzards or what their presence presaged.A short distance further along the trail, a quick order and we changed direction to the right, leaving the trail and going across the field directly toward El Caney. Barbed wire fencing was in our way but the two wire cutters attached to each company soon made a gate for us. Our battalion swung through and into the field while the second battalion kept to the trail and took the field further along. The third battalion and I of the second, as we afterwards found, were halted by Capron's battery and were not given front seats to the performance. The field soon changed to scrub and bush through which way was made as best we could without much regard to alignment. Then came a bit of forest and then we debouched out upon the Santiago road, one of the few thoroughfares in Cuba that looked like a road. A halt and then we stripped for action. Rolls and haversacks were taken off and piled by the road side. The belts and the pockets of the brown canvas coats were filled with cartridges and we were ready for trouble.Meanwhile it was evident that there was trouble ahead of the Second. From El Caney's forts and trenches came a hail of bullets, while on our right and left there were the Krags of our regulars popping away with machine like regularity, their whip like sentences being punctuated at intervals by the 3-inch rifles of Capron's men. Over our heads went the Mausers in a steady stream and there wasn't a man of the Second marching up that road that morning who failed to bow his head, (most of us called it "ducking") in response to their salutation. The 8th and 22d of our brigade had gone on ahead of us, had deployed to the left and we could hear their Krags answering the Mausers. It was our first experience under fire and it is no wonder that nearly all of us wished ourselves, for just a few moments, somewhere else and remembered certain pressing engagements we had at Springfield that Friday morning. But this feeling was like going into a cold bath. The first plunge is the worst andwithin half an hour after getting into the action these same men that were "ducking" their heads to the bullets were up on the firing line and acting like veterans instead of men who up to that morning had never faced an armed foe. Our education had progressed rapidly.And here a word as to El Caney where Gen. Vara Del Ray and 620 Spanish troops held Lawton's division at bay from 6.30 in the morning until 4.30 in the afternoon. In the general plan for the day's work of July 1st Lawton's division was to sweep over to Caney, devote an hour or so to capturing it and then swing over to the San Juan forts and aid Kent's division to take them. Trustworthy (?) Cuban advices were that there were only a couple of hundred Spanish troops in El Caney and the taking of that outpost of Santiago was to be but an incident of our march to San Juan. But Gen. Del Ray had not been consulted as to this program and the result was our time schedule went to pieces. An entire division against 620 men looks like heavy odds in favor of the division but it must be remembered that the enemy were strongly entrenched with all the advantage of position and knew the ground thoroughly, while we were in the open with little or no shelter and with only a four-gun light battery against stone forts, strong blockhouses and well made intrenchments, so that ouradvantagein numbers was more than made up by the superior position of the enemy.El Caney lay almost directly in front of us, a small town backed up against a steep hill as if at bay and with forts, intrenchments and houses bristling with rifles. To our right on a small elevation was the famous stone fort over which floated the red and yellow flag of Spain. A little to the left was the village church, of stone and converted into a fortress while on either sides of both fort and church were the familiar Spanish blockhouses. And in front of all were the trenches, well built and covering all the front and sides of the town, a covered way connecting some of them with the fortand with their fronts guarded by fences and entanglements of barbed wire, a protection found of value against the Cubans, but which proved to be of less efficiency against the valor of American soldiers. This was what El Caney presented to us on that bright July morning.Our brigade's work had been mapped out and appeared to be comparatively easy. It was to take position on the left of the American line and cut off the retreat of the enemy towards Santiago when he was driven from Caney which, as already scheduled, was to be within an hour or so after the initial shot. But the program for Ludlow's brigade was changed by force of circumstances, for hardly had the 8th and 22d of our brigade got into position before they were attacked and replied in kind and within a few moments the hottest part of the action was taking place on the left instead of being confined to the right and center, as originally planned.And while this was happening we were down the "pike" getting ready to add our contribution to the din of battle. We were not long in getting ready and leaving one man from each company to guard the rolls left by the roadside the seven companies of the Second marched to the firing line. The first battalion, G, B, K and D companies, was by this time some distance ahead of the second, while the third was still held up by the battery. Col. Clark, Lieut. Col. Shumway and Adjutant Hawkins were standing beneath a huge tree at the intersection of the "sunken" road with the Santiago road and hardly had the companies come up before an order came from Gen. Ludlow to send four companies to strengthen the line of the 22d on our left. B and K companies of the first battalion and L and E of the second battalion, which had by this time come up, were detailed and B and K, under command of Major Southmayd started for the 22d. L and E followed but through some misunderstanding got into a "hot box" and after a time returned to the sunkenroad and took position there.B and K marched down the sunken road and then across an open space, across which the bullets were flying in a steady stream. It was necessary to "duck" here and it was done without any loss of dignity. This space cleared, the companies came to a bit of bush and then into a gully facing El Caney on the left. Here was the 22d, lying down and answering the fire of the Spaniards in good style.Hardly had B and K reached the gully and taken position when the hail of bullets began to fall among them and men began to drop. Private Frank E. Moody of K was one of the first hit and died almost instantly, the bullet having pierced his heart. On the march of the night before he had felt a presentiment of his fate and so strong was this feeling of his fate that he gave his watch to Private Fuller to take home to his parents. Before long Private John J. Malone of B got a fatal wound just below the heart and then men began to fall thick and fast. As soon as the two companies had taken their positions they were ordered to fire, but the enemy's return for the first few volleys was payment with compound interest. The smoke from the Springfield rifles showed the position of our men and lifting slowly, made just the target which the enemy needed. At this time the line was about 900 yards from the advanced Spanish trenches and it must have been just like rifle practice for the enemy. Within a moment after the first volley from the Springfields crashed out a hail of bullets was poured into the two companies from the trenches and men fell like sheep. Capt. Warriner, raising on one shoulder to give an order, sank back with a Mauser through his body. Corporal Ward Lathrop got one through his head, Corporal Hoadley got his "in the neck," the bullet going through the right side, WagonerBoulehad one through his left hand, Private Ashley of B was hit in the left forearm, Private James F. Ferrier was shot through the right shoulder and also had abullet traverse the right side of his head, making an ugly wound, Howard Meyrick had a double one, one bullet striking his right leg, while another went through his left shoulder and the upper part of his left arm. Private C. J. Riordan got a bullet through his left hand while Private A. E. Rose got the thumb and one finger of his right hand nipped, Private W. B. Riopel was hard hit, the bullet entering his left shoulder and entering the lungs.Barkmanof K got a Mauser through his left elbow and was also hit in the left leg below the knee.Lieut. H. S. Crossman. (J.G.) H. Co.Lieut. J. K. Dexter. H. Co.Lieut. W. O. Cohn. (J.G.) H. Co.As quickly as possible the wounded were picked up by their comrades and taken to the rear, a temporary dressing station being established beneath a huge tree on the Santiago road. The first aid bandages came in handily on the field and were used to advantage. Lieut. Powers took command of K and Capt. McDonald, as cool as if battles were everyday occurrences, kept a watchful eye on his men.The heavy fire which the powder smoke had drawn upon the two companies was also being felt by the 22d and its choleric commander, Major Van Horn, came rushing over with, "For God's sake, Second Massachusetts, stop firing! You're making us a regular target for the enemy." This was not all he said, either, but it was stronger language than politeness required. The firing did stop, that is, the volley firing did, but the company commanders gave their men orders to fire at will. Soon Major Van Horn came over with another protest and the two companies moved along a little further to the right but on the same line as the 22d and leaving quite a little gap between them. As the 22d advanced so did B and K, taking advantage of what cover there was and keeping up their fire for some time. It was perhaps that protest of Major Van Horn that gave the impression that the entire Second regiment was ordered off the firing line, an impression that is a very much mistaken one. From the time the two companies took position on the right ofthe 22d they fired at intervals and at will until the Spaniards were driven from the last trench and El Caney was taken.While these things were happening on our left G company was having troubles of its own on the extreme right of the line. Sending B and K to the 22d left Col. Clark with only G and D companies of the first battalion with him, the three companies of the second battalion having been placed in the sunken road, whose banks gave them some protection from the incessant fire from El Caney. G and D were sent further along up the Santiago road and G was halted directly in front of a cultivated field which was directly in front of the trenches and the town and was flanked by the stone fort. Halting here the second platoon of the company under Lieut. Edward J. Leyden deployed as skirmishers and advanced across the field, taking every possible advantage of cover, of which there was little, and halting at intervals to kneel and fire. The light brown uniforms advancing slowly across the field soon attracted the notice of the enemy, even before the first volley from the Springfields gave the Spaniards a target, and men began to drop. Still the line advanced until it was within 500 yards of the fort and then a halt was ordered and the men threw themselves flat on the ground and began firing at will. Now the bullets from both fort and trenches were hailing about them but they kept crawling along until within a range of 400 yards. Then Lieut. Leyden looked around and saw that his 14 men were isolated from the rest of the company and he at once realized that it was suicidal to go further without reinforcements. Arthur Packard, beloved of all his comrades, had fallen dead on the field with a Spanish bullet through his head and George Richmond, one of the "old timers" of the company, had fallen fatally wounded. "Goldie" Bresnan had been ordered to the rear with the blood dripping from a shattered hand and Ernest Marble, wounded in the head, lay on the field. Others had in the meantime joined the little force, men from other companies,but not enough to make a further advance successful. Among the reinforcements was Lieut. D. J. Moynihan of I company, who had left his position with the second battalion and walked across the field to join Leyden's men. He essayed his luck as a sharpshooter, borrowing a rifle from one of the men, and fired three shots before he himself sank to the ground with a bullet through his body. Before this happened, however, and when he first joined Lieut. Leyden, Lieut. Moynihan advised that the advance should continue and suggested a charge. But Lieut. Leyden pointed to the few men he had and asked what the result would be. There was no answer to this. Less than 20 men charging against a stone fort under a heavy fire from it and flanked by the trenches would have been heroic, no doubt, but it would have been deliberately throwing away men's lives and to no good result. So Lieut. Leyden refused to order a charge but sent Lieut. Moynihan back to Col. Clark for orders. These were for him to remain where he was and there the platoon stayed until the town was taken, although some of the men advanced even closer to the fort, taking advantage of some small piles of stones, which had evidently been heaped up as shelter for Spanish outposts. All the long afternoon the little squad lay under the pitiless sun, firing whenever there was a chance until they heard the cheers of the charging regulars and saw the red and yellow flag of Spain go down from the fort and the Stars and Stripes replace it. Then they sprang to their feet and cheered. But it was not all over then. The fort had been taken but from trench and blockhouse and church and every building in El Caney still came the hail of Mausers. The dead and wounded of the Second were being attended to as best could be done, but their comrades still fought on. Two guns of Capron's battery had been moved up to a position in the rear of D company and the balance of G and were knocking things about in the old town. Gen. Vara Del Ray was wounded unto death and the Americantroops were drawing their lines closer and closer around Caney, but still the Spaniards fought on with the courage of desperation. At the fork of the roads was Col. Clark, sending his staff officers, or rather officer, Lieut. Paul R. Hawkins, hither and thither and giving messages to his orderlies. Lieut. Hawkins, cool under fire, won a high place in the regard of the men who saw him that day and the orderlies, including Private Ross of B, showed coolness and courage. Two other Springfield men, Sergeant Scully and Corporal Ross of G were pressed into service as orderlies for a time and did their duty well. Two cool and collected men were Col. Clark and Lieut. Col. Shumway and both exposed themselves, at times against the wish of the brigade commander, along the line. Gen. Ludlow was for some time at the fork of the roads with Col. Clark, his dead horse, shot under him, almost at the outset of the action, lying near by, but once he was gone he did not return and neither he nor anyone else in authority gave the orders to withdraw the Second from the firing line, as has been stated by some. If any such orders were issued which is doubtful, they were never received by Col. Clark, and the companies of the Second stayed throughout the day where he placed them.Meanwhile the big tree a bit down the road was the scene of some grewsome work. Soon after the opening of the action Lieut. Hawkins had been ordered by Col. Clark to bring up the surgeons and the ground under the big tree was then transformed into a temporary hospital or rather a dressing station. Here Surgeon Bowen and his assistants, Lieuts. Gates and Hitchcock, aided by Hospital Stewards Fortier, Greenberg and Howes and the members of the hospital corps, labored until the enemy's sharpshooters, discerning the group under the tree, made it an object of attention and the bullet-torn leaves began to flutter down upon the wounded. Then the hospital was moved farther down the road and the dead and dying and wounded conveyed there as tenderly as possibleunder the circumstances. It was here the heroic Father Edwin Fitzgerald, the beloved chaplain of the 22d, labored from morning until far into the night, caring as tenderly as a mother for the wounded of all the regiments, making their places as easy as possible for them, bringing them water from the distant brook, giving the consolations of religion to all, whether of his creed or not. More than once he visited the firing line and aided in bringing some poor fellow down to the hospital. Danger he cared not for and he went on with his work apparently oblivious to his bullet-torn coat, two holes in which bore eloquent witness to narrow escapes. On that day Father Fitzgerald earned the lifelong affection of the officers and men of the Second.And so time wore on until between 4.30 and 5 in the afternoon, when ringing cheers announced that the last trench had been won and El Caney was ours. Then followed the reunion of the regiment. Lieut. Leyden marched his gallant platoon back and the men fell into their old places in G company. B and K came back from the left with the 22d and the regiment gathered once more on the Santiago road, soldiers now, stained with powder and battle smoke and grim with the thoughts of the day and its events. Further down the road in the improvised hospital lay the forms, cold in death, of five brave men and with them were 40 more or less seriously wounded, three of them mortally.The Second had received its baptism of blood.

HARDLY had we passed the battery before we heard the boom of one of its guns, followed by another and another and we knew then the trouble had begun. We kept on the trail for a while longer, the men keeping well closed up now and keeping eyes and ears alert. El Caney was now replying to Capron and we could hear for the first time the squeal of the Mauser bullets as they began to go over us with a sound like that of a vicious cat at bay. We were under fire but hardly realized it as yet.

It was a splendid morning. Our trail led along the side of what had once been well cultivated fields, the only indication of that now being the inevitable barbed wire fencing. The skies were cloudless and birds sang as we went along to battle. There were other birds too but they did not sing. Hardly had the first of Capron's cannon sent its "good morning" salute to El Caney before a speck was visible in the sky. Larger and larger it grew until we saw it was a buzzard scenting the battle and before long it was joined by hundreds of its kind, all circling about in the air only a short distance from the earth and waiting for the rich feast about to be spread for them. But we recked not of buzzards or what their presence presaged.

A short distance further along the trail, a quick order and we changed direction to the right, leaving the trail and going across the field directly toward El Caney. Barbed wire fencing was in our way but the two wire cutters attached to each company soon made a gate for us. Our battalion swung through and into the field while the second battalion kept to the trail and took the field further along. The third battalion and I of the second, as we afterwards found, were halted by Capron's battery and were not given front seats to the performance. The field soon changed to scrub and bush through which way was made as best we could without much regard to alignment. Then came a bit of forest and then we debouched out upon the Santiago road, one of the few thoroughfares in Cuba that looked like a road. A halt and then we stripped for action. Rolls and haversacks were taken off and piled by the road side. The belts and the pockets of the brown canvas coats were filled with cartridges and we were ready for trouble.

Meanwhile it was evident that there was trouble ahead of the Second. From El Caney's forts and trenches came a hail of bullets, while on our right and left there were the Krags of our regulars popping away with machine like regularity, their whip like sentences being punctuated at intervals by the 3-inch rifles of Capron's men. Over our heads went the Mausers in a steady stream and there wasn't a man of the Second marching up that road that morning who failed to bow his head, (most of us called it "ducking") in response to their salutation. The 8th and 22d of our brigade had gone on ahead of us, had deployed to the left and we could hear their Krags answering the Mausers. It was our first experience under fire and it is no wonder that nearly all of us wished ourselves, for just a few moments, somewhere else and remembered certain pressing engagements we had at Springfield that Friday morning. But this feeling was like going into a cold bath. The first plunge is the worst andwithin half an hour after getting into the action these same men that were "ducking" their heads to the bullets were up on the firing line and acting like veterans instead of men who up to that morning had never faced an armed foe. Our education had progressed rapidly.

And here a word as to El Caney where Gen. Vara Del Ray and 620 Spanish troops held Lawton's division at bay from 6.30 in the morning until 4.30 in the afternoon. In the general plan for the day's work of July 1st Lawton's division was to sweep over to Caney, devote an hour or so to capturing it and then swing over to the San Juan forts and aid Kent's division to take them. Trustworthy (?) Cuban advices were that there were only a couple of hundred Spanish troops in El Caney and the taking of that outpost of Santiago was to be but an incident of our march to San Juan. But Gen. Del Ray had not been consulted as to this program and the result was our time schedule went to pieces. An entire division against 620 men looks like heavy odds in favor of the division but it must be remembered that the enemy were strongly entrenched with all the advantage of position and knew the ground thoroughly, while we were in the open with little or no shelter and with only a four-gun light battery against stone forts, strong blockhouses and well made intrenchments, so that ouradvantagein numbers was more than made up by the superior position of the enemy.

El Caney lay almost directly in front of us, a small town backed up against a steep hill as if at bay and with forts, intrenchments and houses bristling with rifles. To our right on a small elevation was the famous stone fort over which floated the red and yellow flag of Spain. A little to the left was the village church, of stone and converted into a fortress while on either sides of both fort and church were the familiar Spanish blockhouses. And in front of all were the trenches, well built and covering all the front and sides of the town, a covered way connecting some of them with the fortand with their fronts guarded by fences and entanglements of barbed wire, a protection found of value against the Cubans, but which proved to be of less efficiency against the valor of American soldiers. This was what El Caney presented to us on that bright July morning.

Our brigade's work had been mapped out and appeared to be comparatively easy. It was to take position on the left of the American line and cut off the retreat of the enemy towards Santiago when he was driven from Caney which, as already scheduled, was to be within an hour or so after the initial shot. But the program for Ludlow's brigade was changed by force of circumstances, for hardly had the 8th and 22d of our brigade got into position before they were attacked and replied in kind and within a few moments the hottest part of the action was taking place on the left instead of being confined to the right and center, as originally planned.

And while this was happening we were down the "pike" getting ready to add our contribution to the din of battle. We were not long in getting ready and leaving one man from each company to guard the rolls left by the roadside the seven companies of the Second marched to the firing line. The first battalion, G, B, K and D companies, was by this time some distance ahead of the second, while the third was still held up by the battery. Col. Clark, Lieut. Col. Shumway and Adjutant Hawkins were standing beneath a huge tree at the intersection of the "sunken" road with the Santiago road and hardly had the companies come up before an order came from Gen. Ludlow to send four companies to strengthen the line of the 22d on our left. B and K companies of the first battalion and L and E of the second battalion, which had by this time come up, were detailed and B and K, under command of Major Southmayd started for the 22d. L and E followed but through some misunderstanding got into a "hot box" and after a time returned to the sunkenroad and took position there.

B and K marched down the sunken road and then across an open space, across which the bullets were flying in a steady stream. It was necessary to "duck" here and it was done without any loss of dignity. This space cleared, the companies came to a bit of bush and then into a gully facing El Caney on the left. Here was the 22d, lying down and answering the fire of the Spaniards in good style.

Hardly had B and K reached the gully and taken position when the hail of bullets began to fall among them and men began to drop. Private Frank E. Moody of K was one of the first hit and died almost instantly, the bullet having pierced his heart. On the march of the night before he had felt a presentiment of his fate and so strong was this feeling of his fate that he gave his watch to Private Fuller to take home to his parents. Before long Private John J. Malone of B got a fatal wound just below the heart and then men began to fall thick and fast. As soon as the two companies had taken their positions they were ordered to fire, but the enemy's return for the first few volleys was payment with compound interest. The smoke from the Springfield rifles showed the position of our men and lifting slowly, made just the target which the enemy needed. At this time the line was about 900 yards from the advanced Spanish trenches and it must have been just like rifle practice for the enemy. Within a moment after the first volley from the Springfields crashed out a hail of bullets was poured into the two companies from the trenches and men fell like sheep. Capt. Warriner, raising on one shoulder to give an order, sank back with a Mauser through his body. Corporal Ward Lathrop got one through his head, Corporal Hoadley got his "in the neck," the bullet going through the right side, WagonerBoulehad one through his left hand, Private Ashley of B was hit in the left forearm, Private James F. Ferrier was shot through the right shoulder and also had abullet traverse the right side of his head, making an ugly wound, Howard Meyrick had a double one, one bullet striking his right leg, while another went through his left shoulder and the upper part of his left arm. Private C. J. Riordan got a bullet through his left hand while Private A. E. Rose got the thumb and one finger of his right hand nipped, Private W. B. Riopel was hard hit, the bullet entering his left shoulder and entering the lungs.Barkmanof K got a Mauser through his left elbow and was also hit in the left leg below the knee.

Lieut. H. S. Crossman. (J.G.) H. Co.Lieut. J. K. Dexter. H. Co.Lieut. W. O. Cohn. (J.G.) H. Co.

Lieut. H. S. Crossman. (J.G.) H. Co.Lieut. J. K. Dexter. H. Co.Lieut. W. O. Cohn. (J.G.) H. Co.

As quickly as possible the wounded were picked up by their comrades and taken to the rear, a temporary dressing station being established beneath a huge tree on the Santiago road. The first aid bandages came in handily on the field and were used to advantage. Lieut. Powers took command of K and Capt. McDonald, as cool as if battles were everyday occurrences, kept a watchful eye on his men.

The heavy fire which the powder smoke had drawn upon the two companies was also being felt by the 22d and its choleric commander, Major Van Horn, came rushing over with, "For God's sake, Second Massachusetts, stop firing! You're making us a regular target for the enemy." This was not all he said, either, but it was stronger language than politeness required. The firing did stop, that is, the volley firing did, but the company commanders gave their men orders to fire at will. Soon Major Van Horn came over with another protest and the two companies moved along a little further to the right but on the same line as the 22d and leaving quite a little gap between them. As the 22d advanced so did B and K, taking advantage of what cover there was and keeping up their fire for some time. It was perhaps that protest of Major Van Horn that gave the impression that the entire Second regiment was ordered off the firing line, an impression that is a very much mistaken one. From the time the two companies took position on the right ofthe 22d they fired at intervals and at will until the Spaniards were driven from the last trench and El Caney was taken.

While these things were happening on our left G company was having troubles of its own on the extreme right of the line. Sending B and K to the 22d left Col. Clark with only G and D companies of the first battalion with him, the three companies of the second battalion having been placed in the sunken road, whose banks gave them some protection from the incessant fire from El Caney. G and D were sent further along up the Santiago road and G was halted directly in front of a cultivated field which was directly in front of the trenches and the town and was flanked by the stone fort. Halting here the second platoon of the company under Lieut. Edward J. Leyden deployed as skirmishers and advanced across the field, taking every possible advantage of cover, of which there was little, and halting at intervals to kneel and fire. The light brown uniforms advancing slowly across the field soon attracted the notice of the enemy, even before the first volley from the Springfields gave the Spaniards a target, and men began to drop. Still the line advanced until it was within 500 yards of the fort and then a halt was ordered and the men threw themselves flat on the ground and began firing at will. Now the bullets from both fort and trenches were hailing about them but they kept crawling along until within a range of 400 yards. Then Lieut. Leyden looked around and saw that his 14 men were isolated from the rest of the company and he at once realized that it was suicidal to go further without reinforcements. Arthur Packard, beloved of all his comrades, had fallen dead on the field with a Spanish bullet through his head and George Richmond, one of the "old timers" of the company, had fallen fatally wounded. "Goldie" Bresnan had been ordered to the rear with the blood dripping from a shattered hand and Ernest Marble, wounded in the head, lay on the field. Others had in the meantime joined the little force, men from other companies,but not enough to make a further advance successful. Among the reinforcements was Lieut. D. J. Moynihan of I company, who had left his position with the second battalion and walked across the field to join Leyden's men. He essayed his luck as a sharpshooter, borrowing a rifle from one of the men, and fired three shots before he himself sank to the ground with a bullet through his body. Before this happened, however, and when he first joined Lieut. Leyden, Lieut. Moynihan advised that the advance should continue and suggested a charge. But Lieut. Leyden pointed to the few men he had and asked what the result would be. There was no answer to this. Less than 20 men charging against a stone fort under a heavy fire from it and flanked by the trenches would have been heroic, no doubt, but it would have been deliberately throwing away men's lives and to no good result. So Lieut. Leyden refused to order a charge but sent Lieut. Moynihan back to Col. Clark for orders. These were for him to remain where he was and there the platoon stayed until the town was taken, although some of the men advanced even closer to the fort, taking advantage of some small piles of stones, which had evidently been heaped up as shelter for Spanish outposts. All the long afternoon the little squad lay under the pitiless sun, firing whenever there was a chance until they heard the cheers of the charging regulars and saw the red and yellow flag of Spain go down from the fort and the Stars and Stripes replace it. Then they sprang to their feet and cheered. But it was not all over then. The fort had been taken but from trench and blockhouse and church and every building in El Caney still came the hail of Mausers. The dead and wounded of the Second were being attended to as best could be done, but their comrades still fought on. Two guns of Capron's battery had been moved up to a position in the rear of D company and the balance of G and were knocking things about in the old town. Gen. Vara Del Ray was wounded unto death and the Americantroops were drawing their lines closer and closer around Caney, but still the Spaniards fought on with the courage of desperation. At the fork of the roads was Col. Clark, sending his staff officers, or rather officer, Lieut. Paul R. Hawkins, hither and thither and giving messages to his orderlies. Lieut. Hawkins, cool under fire, won a high place in the regard of the men who saw him that day and the orderlies, including Private Ross of B, showed coolness and courage. Two other Springfield men, Sergeant Scully and Corporal Ross of G were pressed into service as orderlies for a time and did their duty well. Two cool and collected men were Col. Clark and Lieut. Col. Shumway and both exposed themselves, at times against the wish of the brigade commander, along the line. Gen. Ludlow was for some time at the fork of the roads with Col. Clark, his dead horse, shot under him, almost at the outset of the action, lying near by, but once he was gone he did not return and neither he nor anyone else in authority gave the orders to withdraw the Second from the firing line, as has been stated by some. If any such orders were issued which is doubtful, they were never received by Col. Clark, and the companies of the Second stayed throughout the day where he placed them.

Meanwhile the big tree a bit down the road was the scene of some grewsome work. Soon after the opening of the action Lieut. Hawkins had been ordered by Col. Clark to bring up the surgeons and the ground under the big tree was then transformed into a temporary hospital or rather a dressing station. Here Surgeon Bowen and his assistants, Lieuts. Gates and Hitchcock, aided by Hospital Stewards Fortier, Greenberg and Howes and the members of the hospital corps, labored until the enemy's sharpshooters, discerning the group under the tree, made it an object of attention and the bullet-torn leaves began to flutter down upon the wounded. Then the hospital was moved farther down the road and the dead and dying and wounded conveyed there as tenderly as possibleunder the circumstances. It was here the heroic Father Edwin Fitzgerald, the beloved chaplain of the 22d, labored from morning until far into the night, caring as tenderly as a mother for the wounded of all the regiments, making their places as easy as possible for them, bringing them water from the distant brook, giving the consolations of religion to all, whether of his creed or not. More than once he visited the firing line and aided in bringing some poor fellow down to the hospital. Danger he cared not for and he went on with his work apparently oblivious to his bullet-torn coat, two holes in which bore eloquent witness to narrow escapes. On that day Father Fitzgerald earned the lifelong affection of the officers and men of the Second.

And so time wore on until between 4.30 and 5 in the afternoon, when ringing cheers announced that the last trench had been won and El Caney was ours. Then followed the reunion of the regiment. Lieut. Leyden marched his gallant platoon back and the men fell into their old places in G company. B and K came back from the left with the 22d and the regiment gathered once more on the Santiago road, soldiers now, stained with powder and battle smoke and grim with the thoughts of the day and its events. Further down the road in the improvised hospital lay the forms, cold in death, of five brave men and with them were 40 more or less seriously wounded, three of them mortally.

The Second had received its baptism of blood.

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