Hutchinson gazette. [volume] (Hutchinson, Kan.) 1895-1902, 1898-06-16
The F|Ry1LAND BATTLE.
Four Americans Killed and the Loss
Of the Enemy Not Known.
IT LASTED THIRTEEN HOURS,


MOLE ST., NICHOLAS, Haytl, June 10,
Lieutenant Colonel Il. w. Hunting
toms battalion of marines, which
landed from the transport Panther on
Friday and encamped on the hill guard
Ing the abandoned cable station at the
entrance to the outer harbor OF Guam
tanamo, has been engaged In heading
of rush attack by Spanish guerrillas
and regulars, The fighting was almost
continuous for thirteen hours, until 0
o'clock Sunday morning, when rein
forccments were landed from the Mar
blehead -Four OF our men were killed
and one wounded. The advance pick
cts under Lieutenants Neville and
Shaw are unaccountcd for.
Among the killed Is Assistant Sur
geon John Blair Gibbs, son Of Major
Gibbs OF the regular army, who fell in
the Custer massacre. His home was at
Richmond, Va, but he has been prac-
ticing in New York and no entered the
service since the war began. He was
a very popular officer.
The others killed are Sergeant Chas
II. Smith OF Smallwood, Private Will
lam Dunphy Of Gloucester, Mass, and
Private james McColgan Of Stoneham,
Mass. Corporal Glass was accidentally
wounded in the head,
The Spanish loss is unknown, but 1t
was probably considerable. The
splashes Of blood found at daylight
at the positions the Spaniards oc-
cupied indicate fatalities, but their
comrades carried Off the killed and
wounded.
The engagement began with desul-
tory firing at the pickets, thousand
yards inland from the camp. Captain
Spicer's company was doing guard
duty, and was driven in, finally rally
ing on the camp and rcpulsing the en-
envy Mt o'clock. The bodies of pri-
Yates McColgan and Dunphy were
found, both shot in the head, The
large cavities made by the bullets,
which, inside n range OF 500 yards,
have rotary motion, indicate that the
victims were killed ut close range.
The bodies were stripped OF shoes,
hats and cartridge belts and horribly
mutilatcd with machctes. When they
were brought in, the whole battalion
formed three sides Of hollow square
about the camp on tho hilltop.
Below, in the bay were tho warships
| nt IpIunA fpn,, ihn hill IN nav,
is u deep ravinc and beyond this arc
high hills. The adjacent country is
heavy with thiclict growth The sky
was blanketed with clouds, and when
the sun set gale was blowing sea-
ward, Night fell, thick and in,pen-
etrnblc. The Spanish squads concealed
in the chapparel cover, had the advan-
tage, tho men furnishing fine target
against the sky Tho Spaniards fought
from cover till midnight, discoverablo
only by flashes at which the marines
fired volleys. The repeaters sounded
like flrecracsers in barrel.
The Marblehcad launch, with colt
machine gun in her bow, pushed up
the bay, en6lading the Spaniards, and
it is thought some were killed. The
marines trailed much blood to the
waters edge and there lost it. Sharks
are numerous in the vicinity,
The ships threw their searchlights
ashore, the powerful eyes sweeping
the deep tropic foliage and disclosing
occasionally skulking parties of Span
iards, 1t all represented transform
alton scene at the harbor.
Each discovery of the enemy was
greeted by the cracks of carbine fire
along the edge Of the camp ridge or by
the long roll of the launch machine
gun, searching the thickets with a
leaden stream.
Shortly after midnight came the
main attack. The Spaniards made a
gallant charge up the southwest slope,
but were met by repeated volleys from
the main body, and broke before they
were one-third of the way up the hill;
but they came so close that, at points,
there was almost hand to hand strug-
gle. The officers used their revolvers.
Three Spaniards got through the open
formation to the edge of the camp.
Colonel Jose Campina, the Cuban guide,
discharged his revolver, and they, turn
ing and finding themselves without
support, ran helter-skelter down the
reverse side Of the hill.
1t was during this assault that AS
sistant Surgeon Gibbs was killed. He
was shot in the head in front of his
own tent, the tarthcst point Of attack
He fell into the arms Of Private Sulli-
van, and both dropped. A second bull
let threw dust in their faces. Surgeon
Gibbs lived ten minutes, but did not
regain consciousness.
Toward morning the fire slackened
Three new two-pound field guns
which could not be used during the
night for fear of hitting our own men,
shelled several squads of Spaniards
after daylight, They dove into the
bushes like prairie dogs into burrows
as the shells broke over them in the
gray dawn.
Estimates vary as to the attacking
force; some say 200, and the figures
run as high as 1000.