Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1898-06-30
AN EXCITING ADVENTURE.
Capture and Release of Core
spondents Thrall and Jones,
SAVED FROM SPANISH DUNGEONS.

Caught Between Two Squads of spanisrds
and Fired Upon, but Surrendered Before
They We're Wounded-Jones, the Artist
Beguiles the Dons With His Sketches,
While His Nonchalant Courage Before
Mobs and on q Blood Stained Moat In
spires His Companion,
When we left the Triton on the morn.
ing of May 10 to meet the Cuban chief,
Colonel Pence Delgado, we struck along
the shore about quarter Of mile look
ing for path to break through the
thick underbrush that lined the shore,
says Charles H. TRIAL concerning the
capture and release by Spaniards Of
Hayden Jones and himself. After walk
ing about ten minutes we found slight
trail which led to we'll beaten track
running east and west parallel with the
coast.
Colonel Delgado had agreed to be in
this neighborhood, so we followed the
path east toward the deserted village Of
Baracoa. We had gone about half a
mile when we came to spot where the
brush was beaten down and the path
was strewn with empty Mauser car.
fridge shells, and there was evidence
that there had been fight there short
time before. Later we found that our
surmise was correct and that the day
before the Spaniards had had an engage
ment there with Colonel Delgado and
had driven him from his position.
Knowing the habits of the insurgents, I
believed that they might be ten miles
from there and that looking for them
blindly was foolishness. So I determin-
ed to strike for the sugar plantation
central Lucia, which 1 thought lay
about three miles to the west and about
two miles inland. knew that there
were Spanish troops quartered there,
but l hoped to meet some pacifco near
who could give US some information as
to the present whereabouts of the insur-
gents.
We started back over the same path
and followed it until we came to a path
that branched off in just the direction
that we wished to go. The trail that we
were following gave no evidences that
any one had passed over it recently. We
found an abandoned rebel camp that no
one had evidently been in for a long
time. Shortly after passing this camp
we came to an old ruin beside which
was we'll beaten track that showed
that it was used frequently by the Span
ish cavalry. South Of us about half q
mile was low ridge of hills that bor-
dered a wide valley. From this ridge 1
knew that we would be able to see Luz
cha. After taking photograph of the
ruin we followed the path, which was
almost wide enough to be called road.
On one side Of it was large open
field and on the other was field cover
ed with thick grass and weeds about
6 feet tall. We had almost reached the
ridge when the path took bend, and I
saw soldiers just coming over the crest
and only about 500 yards distant. I saw
them first through this tall grass and
did not think that they had seen u.s. I
was ahead little and told Jones to
drop and run back. He did not seem to
understand although he, being taller
than l, had seen the troops palmer than
had, but thought that they were Gu
bans. But when sprang past him,
bending as low as possible, he at once
followed. ran as far as I dared and
then broke into the thick grass to the
left for about 100 feet.
We lay down behind small clump
Of bushes, not daring to go any farther
on account of the noise. We were COM
pletely concealed and thought that we
were safe unless they had seen us, al
though Jones thought that we were
goners. We were armed with AZ Colt
revolvers and as we lay behind the
bushes we got them out and were ready
for the worst. Jones asked what chances
we would have if we gave ourselves up.
I told him that I did not believe we
would have any and refused to think of
it. He replied. "All right then; we will
die game. -
We had lain there about five minutes,
it seemed, when we could hear the SOL
diers talking as they came up We
could hear one of them coming through
the grass, and in minute I saw him
looking behind a bush not 40 feet away.
asked Jones if the revolvers were self
cooking I had never used one before,
and when saw the soldier leave the
other bushes and start toward us told
Jones to get ready to run and fired. l
ran and he after me, but before we had
got fairly started shots were whistling
around ms from 30 Mauser rifles The
grass was SO thick that it was impossi-
BILE to make fast progress, and the
ground was covered with strong vines,
and we were continually falling over
each other. We had got about 200 yards
away from the troops who were firing
when we ran right into the arms Of an
other squad that had been sent down a
parallel way to head US Off We imme-
diately held up our hands and threw
our revolyers away and then lay down
All the time they were firing at us. The
squad that caught us were now in line
of fire, and they also lay down and
swore because the others did not stop
firing and because there was no bugler
there to sound the recall. After much
shouting the other squad stopped firing,
after firing two rounds Of five shots
each. They fired between 200 and $50