San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1897-07-25
GRAND SHAM BATTLE YESTER-
DAY AFTERNOON CLOSES
ACTIVE WORK.
Exhibition Drills This Afternoon
Will Be Pretty And The Grand
Farewell Review A Real Pic
ture For Which Admission
Has Been Reduced.
AT CAMP CULBERSON.
Light Staff Headquarters.

Camp CulbersoI
Texas Day yesterday at Camp Gull
berson closed more auspiciously than
any other in the history of the camp,
the feature being the exhibition sham
battle which was a complete success
from start to finish and amply pleasing
the multitudes attending.
The crowd in attendance was equally
as large as that on San Antonio day,
at least ten or eleven thousand people
being in attendance. The afternoon,
until the appointed time for the bat
tie was occupied in various exhibition
drills by the different contesting COM
panies in the camp and the mammoth
crowd of spectators was well pleased
and cheered heartily especially when
the regular U. S. troops put up their
calisthenic drill and when the San An
tonic Zouaves came on with their ex-
hibition drill.
The sham battle began at Gas and
continued for exactly fifteen minutes.
1t was commenced by a skirmish line,
sent out lTDIll Tie lulpIONlScO 1Ol anu
one from the advancing troops doing
some hot skirmish firing which con-
tinued for about five minutes, when
the advancing skirmishers suddenly
began a retreat. They were then rein
forced by the reserve force in their
rear coming up, rallied and made an
other attack on the fort skirmishers,
who this time began to gradually fall
back under cover of the fort guns and
the batteries, when the latter also sud-
denly opened fire.
From that time on it was a steady
advance of the attacking party until
the fort was finally taken, the men
advancing and firing and then laying
low on the ground to load. At the
time the attacking party on the right
flank scales the walls of the fort, the
party on the left attacked the battery
simultaneously. The Dallas Zou-
ayes, being on the extreme right, I'M
der command of Lieut.. Brooks, were
the first to reach the fort and soon
scaled the walls. Capt. Hernandez
and men of the San Antonio ZOuaves
was also the first to reach and aid in
silencing the batteries.
In all the generalship of the affair
was excellent and a better exhibition
could not have been given, had the
fort commander not made a blunder,
which was noticed by all in the grand
stand, in ordering his entrenched men
and batteries to begin firing on the ad-
Yancing enemy when his own skirmish-
ers were yet in the field thus placing
them between two steady fires. Had
the battle been real and he have made
the same error he would have been as
instrumental in destroying his own
skirmishers as the enemy would have
been.
Mr.. D. ]. Murphy, of the Eighteenth
infantry, U. S. A, is in camp with
the Washington Guards, Of Galveston
and has met many old friends, having
once been stationed here himself. Lit.
Beall, of the regulars, of Col. Whit
sides command, called on him he
having once been in a sergeant in the
lieutenant's command.
Second Lieutenant Bottoms, also of
the regular army, is in camp and is
stopping as a guest of thu Gainesville
cavalry troop. He will return home
today and will proceed to join his reg
iment, which is the First infantry, his
leave having almost expired.