The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-10-07
SIN CAMP, SANTIAGO DE CUBA
TsSant 16 (

SIN CAMP, SANTIAGO DE CUBA,
Sept. 16.>
"My Dear Sir: You will be surprised to
receive a letter from me at this point.
got my commission at Tampa, Fla, on
March l. 1895, for a captaincy in the Cuban
army at $100 per month, payable in gold
(and 1 get it); but the conditions were that
was 10 take charge of an Independent
company and to have the pick of my own
men. I went to new Orleans and, as luck
would have it. got five ex-United States
cavalrymen and very smart German who
graduated at Leipsic, Germany, in chem
istry, and is an expert in making all kinds
of explosives. 1 also picked up young
graduate of Rush Medical College and got
him a commission at SIS per month.
"We started from Tampa, Ella, on a
small steamer on March IL, 1895, and
land ed without any trouble near Santiago
de Cuba. l reported in person to General
Maceo, and he, gave me carte blanche to
pick out my men. selected AZ whites and
so colored, and have the best-drilled and
disciplined men in the Cuban army. / Sc
lected from the armory 100 44.caliber rifles,
10000 rounds of ammunition and a COM
plete reloading outfit.
"My camp equipage is not of the best.
l established my headquarters near a small
town where we had plenty of sympathizers.
My commission gives me the privilege to
forage on the enemy and destroy all prop
erty belonging to the sympathizers of the
Government.
"Since my arrival here nay company
has been in several engagements. | sent
out scouting party in charge of Lieu
tenant Hamilton, a former private in the
Seventh United States Cavalry. He re-
turned in two hours, reporting that he came
across twenty-five Spanish soldiers in
camp, eating dinner, with no guards out.
He approached within 200 yards of
their camp. l took seventy-five men at
once and arrived at their camp at 2 20 AM,
surrounding them, and in ten minutes
after our arrival captured one officer and
thirteen men and killed six, two getting
away. I was well rewarded in my first
engagement with the Spanish. We also
took twenty-one Mansur rifles 1000 rounds
of ammunition, ten boxes of hardteck,
five cases of canned meat, as well as camp
equipage and 1915 in gold. I returned to
headquarters and turned the prisoners over
to General Maceo.
'Our first defeat was on July 5. Sergeant
Wilson, formerly a. private in the Fourth
United States Cavalry. after two days
scout, returned and reported seventy-five
Spanish soldiers coming this way, escort
ing three Government officers. We started
with eighty-fve men, and instead OF find
ing seventy-five Spanish soldiers, ran into
a hornets nest of 1000. We retreated the
best we could, but lost twelve good men,
among them Sergeant Joseph L. Rounds,
formerly of the First United States Cav
airy. whose folks live at st. Louis, Mo.
'On August 26 we moved our headquar-
ters thirty miles further north, and the
following day sent Lieutenant Hamilton.
with a detachment of twenty men, to
scout the country. He reported 1900 Span
ish troops encamped at small town
twenty-six miles south of us, and that
they were holding fair or festival. and
were having horse races and bull fights.
"They had erected a large grand stand
ana the farmers and soldiers were in daily
attendance. We held council of war and
our chemist, Herr Donzlemann, suggested