In February 1895, Churchill was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the 4th Queen's Own Hussars regiment of the British Army, based at Aldershot. In July, he rushed to Crouch Hill, North London to sit with Mrs Everest as she lay dying, subsequently organising her funeral. Churchill was eager to witness military action and used his mother's influence to try to get himself posted to a war zone. In the autumn of 1895, he and Reginald Barnes traveled to Cuba to observe its war of independence; they joined Spanish troops attempting to suppress independence fighters and were caught up in several skirmishes. He also spent time in New York City, staying with the wealthy politician Bourke Cockran, who profoundly influenced the young Churchill. Churchill admired the United States, writing to his brother that it was "a very great country" and telling his mother "what an extraordinary people the Americans are!"