The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1895-10-12
American Soldier and German
Chemist Do U p Spaniards.
MADE USE OF ELECTRICITY
Seventy of the Troops Are Killed, While
the Wounded Foot Up One
Hundred and Thirteen.
Omaha. Oct. GA special to the Bee
Cidnnrr Nah

Omaha. Oct Ga special to the Bee
from Sidney, Neb.. says:
The following letter was received here
a few days ago by r. S. Oberfelder. 1t
is the first authentic and reliable in
formation received from Cuban soil in
this part of the country. Watson was
formerly a private in the Twenty-first
United States infantry stationed at
Fort Sidney and very reliable man:
In Camp, Santiago de Cuba, Sept. 16.
r.. S. Oberfelder. Sidney, Neb., u. S.
Any Dear Sir: 1 got my commits
sion at Tampa, Fla, on March /, 1895,
for a captaincy in the Cuban army at
800 per month, payable in gold (and
/ get it). The conditions were that 1
was to take charge of an independent
company and to have my pick of my
own men. 1 went to New Orleans and,
as luck would have it, got in five United
States cavalrymen and a very smart
German, who graduated at Leipsic,
Germany, in chemistry and is an ex-
pert in making all kinds of explosives.
We started from Tampa, Fla, on a
small steamer on March IL, 1895, and
landed without any trouble near San
tiago de Cuba. 1 will describe the sol
are a young lot of boys, who are not
acclimated and are dying like sheep
They have little bedding and a small
rubber cape to cover their shoulders
and all are armed with Mansur rifles
and machettes.
My commission gives n . the privilege
to forage on the enemy and destroy all
property belonging to s-.npathizers of
the government. Since my arrival here
my company has been in several en-
gagements. sent out scouting party
in charge of Lieutenant Hamilton, for
merly a private In the Seventh United
States cavalry. He returned in two
hours, reporting that he came across
% Spanish soldiers in camp, eating din
ner and with no guards out. He ap-
preached within 200 yards of their
camp. / took rs men at once and ar
rived at the camp at 2:20 p. m, sur
rounded them and in 10 minutes after
our arrival captured one officer, 10 men
and killed six, two getting away We
have daily encountered small bands of
Spanish troops, annihilating them like
you would grouse on a cold frosty
morning.
Our first defeat was on July 5. Ser
geant Wilson, formerly a private in the
Fourth United States cavalry, after two
days scouting, returned and reported
rs Spanish soldiers coming this way,
escorting three government officers.
We started with So men and instead of
finding rs Spanish troops. we ran into
a hornets nest of 1000. We retreated
the best we could, but lost u men,
among them Sergeant Jos. L. Rounds,
formerly of the First United States
cavalry, whose folks live at St. Louis,
Mo.
Our headquarters look like a large
junk shop. We have everything from
a pocket knife to a German repeating
cannon without any ammunition. On
August &c we moved our headquarters
80 miles further north and the following
day sent Lieutenant Hamilton with a
detachment of 20 men to scout the
country. He reported 1900 Spanish
troops encamped at a small town six
miles south of us and that they were
holding a fair or a festival and were
having horse races and bull fights.
They had erected a large grand stand
and the farmers and soldiers were in
daily attendance. We held a council
of war and our chemist, Herr Donzle-
mann. suggested that we dress as farm
ers 10 of our men and blow up the grand
stand with dynamite. They left camp
at 5 a. m. and arrived at the Spanish
camp at 1890. He and the men mingled
with the soldiers until p. m, when he
placed under the amphitheater 1.
pounds of dynamite at four different
locations and exploded it by electricity
Our men escaped. but the explosion
killed two of the Spanish officers, 6
men and wounded 11S. Your truly,
EDWIN c. WATSON.