Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1896-10-21
SLATER'S = RAID.

N=-@
1t was q cosmopolitan group unat sss
around the campHres Of Slaters Horse.
The troop numbered twenty men all
glO-Saxon races Of the planet There
we're Americans. Englishmen. Cana
dians. Australians. and South Afri-
cans. and they had come from the ends
Of the earth to take part In such row
a. promised to follow when Cuba Lib
ra set up her dag against that of Spain.
Their leader was q virginian, there
was not q Cuban or q Spaniard In the
company. and the name Of Slater's
Troop was Q name Of terror to the
government forces from Pinar del Rio
20 Sagua la Grande.
To see them thus encamped NO one
would have supposed that they were
engaged In one Of the most daring raids
that had been adventured since the
war opened In '95. The ofncers-there
were but two-sat democratcally on
the ground among their men; there was
. tinkling Of banjos, and q mingled
sound Of confused talking aud Of jovial.
free-handed profanity. The shadows
Of the men loomed big ON the back
ground Of tropical vegetation. where
the red hre light flashed ftfully from
time to time. and now the form Of Q
tethered horse, and now the figure Of
sentry leaning against q smooth coated
palm.
1t was NO small affair that these men
we're engaged in--nothing less. In fact,
than Q raid ON the "trocha" itself. It
u not the policy Of the Cuban leaders
to risk q pitched battle, 90 to arouse
the enthusiasm Of the men, and At the
same time keep the enemy on the alert,
such expeditions are undertaken from
time to time.
They have encamped some afty miles
from the Spanish lines and the attack
was nxed for the next night A dash
across the country, stealthy advance
On the fertilization, another dash. sa-
bre and revolver. and a triumphal re-
treat-this was the program that Sla
ter's Horse proposed to itself.
Next morning they rode up and down
the rolling bills In the early dawn for
two hours, and then rested for the
heat of the day in q cool and very Sc
cluded grove, where they would be
screened from any wandering gueril.
las Late at night they saddleo again
and rode cautiously forward till they
were not more than forty rods from
the trocha itself. They could see the
watchAres on the further side Of the
great rsdoubt. shining between the
strands Of the barbed wire fence
stretched along the brink.
Between them and the trocha lay .
dangerous obstacle, an ingenious de-
Tense. composed of q number Of wires
dra wn six inches apart and foot above
tine ground. This formed Q network
over which 1t was impossible to ridA
and a. its width was uncertain, wai
dangerous TO leap. Slater knew Of taia
lmpsdiment, however. and had made
bis plans accordingly. Half . dozen
then dlsmounted in silence, and taking
sach . pair Of nippers from his saddle
bags, crept forward into the darkness.
The rest Of the troop sat silently on
horseback harkening to the sounds and
voices from the Spanish camp. and to
the occasional clicking noise right
ahead where their comrades were cut.
ting the hostile wires.
In the course Of half an hour the
men came back, and In whispers re-
ported the way clear. The wires had
been cut and dragged aside, SO ~ to
leave . road Of sufficient width for the
passage Of the troop, even In the hur.
Ried retreat which must follow. The
whole party than dlsmounted and led
the horses stealthily forward. till al.
most at the very brink Of the trocha.
The Spaniards on the other side were
clearly visible. while they themselves
were hidden in deep shadows, and the
rest scrambled into the ditch and up
the other side.
90 quietly was all this done that the
whole performance passed unobserved
till Slater sprang upon the parapet and
began slashing at the wires with his
n,achete. Then there was a shout
and shot from the nearest Spaniard,
followed by a miscellaneous rattle OF
rifles along the linea The troops
swarmed out. and saw a string Of men
hacking furiously at the wires with
one hand and plying q revolver with
the other. In the dim freight theil
numbers could not be ascertained.
At this amazing spectacle the soldiers
nred q volley-that Is, discharged their
rides In the general direction Of the
foe. When the smoke blew on, thia
operation seemed to have produced no
effect on the invaders, who had now
cut and torn the strands apart and
were actually within the inclosure.
They bore down in the line on the Span.
lards, revolver in one hand, blade in
the other. No soldier-marksmen were
they, but men whose lives had often
and often hung upon a pistol shot. and
now their enemies felt the effect. In
ten seconds thirty Of the gray uniforms.
were wr!thing on the sod, and the re
mainder beheld the machetes flashing
In their faces. The CastiIlians are not
without a proverb that teaches that dis
cretion Is the better part Of valor; they
drew back. Their shots seemed to
have no effect on these madmen, whose
pistols emitted a continuous stream OF
Ore. The withdrawal became retreat
the retreat a panic They crowded to
gether and ran for the tents-a hun
dred men routed by seventeen. Slater
did not pursue them further. The Ions
roll was sounding up ana down the
lines, and the firing would bring down
a dozen regiments in Ave minutes. he
had done all that was necessary, had
cut up the enemy's lines with q small
quarter Of a company, and without
.oss, SO that 1t was time to retreat a
swiftly as he had made the attack.
A torch was thrust into the nearest
cluster Of tents, the Maxim guns within
reach were tumbled into the ditsh, and
the little beAA YQas belk - ~ ~