The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1898-04-27
FULL OF BULLETS
AN AMERICAN CITIZEN WHO HAD A
TOUGH TINE IN CUBA.
Saw the Horrors of Spanish Cruelty ON
the Island Before His Wounds I'm
htted Him for Further Service in
the Field-Eight Battles in the
Space of Twenty-Five Days-Deadly
Effect of the Mausser Bullet.

EneCt of the Mausser Bullet.
One OIL tne men of the Competitor subse
quently member Of Maceo's bodyguard.
is Lieut.. Andreas Fontinelli now in the
little band Of Cuban patriots with Buffalo
Bills wild West" He is small. gentle
looking young man, sadly crippled by
wounds. who was born in Florida, but
simply from sympathy with the Cuban as
pirations for Independence Joined the
patriots early in the present revolution,
says the New York News. His short but
thrilling story of experience is:
Il left Key Wesl with Col. Juan Mon
| IONS expedition on the Competitor, April
| TO- 1895. and on the 18th we reached Cuba.
| The vessel lay about quarter Of mile off
| shore. and sent the men ashore in boats.
The boats were small, arms and ammuni-
| ton had to be landed as we'll as the men,
| and the work wls slow. Suddenly a Spanish
| gun5oat appeared from behind cay that
! had sheltered her from our observation
| until she was about as near to us as we
| were to the shore. By the time we had 46
men landed. with the munitions. The gun
boat began firing at US. 1 was among those
| still aboard our vessel, and with several
| others jumped over to swim to shore. The
! Spaniards fired at us in the water and
| was the only one who reached the beach
| alive. The nine who remained on the VeS-
sci either because they could not swim or
| for fear of the sharks were all. with the
VeSSed, captured and sent to Moro Castle
I prison. Among them were the American
| Walton and La Borde, the captain Of the
vessel. 1t Is only few months ago, as
| everybody s aware. since Gen. Lee pro-
| cured their liberty.
I'VE Of the expedition who got ashore
wandered for five days without finding any
| OF the revolutionary forces, for they were
moving all the time, and we had no guide
ma TO 1no6 "a
| the town Of Vgnales, which was full Of
Spanish troops, but negro prevented it
and sent us on way that was at least safe.
At length we made our way to Gen. Maceo,
| joining him at Cascarajica, just as he was
| going into battle with the Spanish in a
| fight that lasted two days and one night,
| in which we killed over 500 Spanards. It
! was a good, lively Introduction into service
| for
Our next fight was short but sharp one
| at Vega Morales. 1t began at IL o'clock
| in the forenoon, and ended by 5 in the aft
| ernoon. when the Spaniards ran away,
| leaving IS of their dead on the field. Three
| more of Maceos bodyguard and myself,
| with four others, macheted eight of the
! Spaniards We camped near that last bat
| tlefield and next morning found ourselves
| attacked by an overwhelming Spanish force.
LAS we soon learned, three large Spanish
columns had been seeking to surround and
exterminate us. Two of them we had whip
ped, but they had effected a junction with
the third and low the whole force, num-
bering some 1900 men, were massed
against us. And we had few, if any, more
| than 100. All we could do was to elude their
clutch, keep in range long as possible
and stick while ammunition held out.
That commenced at in the morning, and
lasted all day, and at night, but in a de.
sultory way then, mainly consisting OF
dashes at them by our boys out Of the dark
| ness, when and where they least expected
| us. When daylight was coming again we
had to run. But we had lost only IA men
and the Spaniards very many more 1 am
sure: so that was all right.
I'm June we went to Tapia and had eight
successive battles with one day Of rest be-
| tween each two. and for three months more
we were engaged in an almost constant
succession Of skrmishes. I was scout
and every morning had to ride out three or
four miles from camp to look for the enemy
as others did, going in different directions
In those excursions l saw much Of the in
excusable and internal cruelty Of the Span
iards. Wherever they had been they left
only death behind them Women and little
children and old men were chopped with
machetes and thrust through with bayo-
nets. One old man saw-over 80 years Of
age he was-whom they had SO mangled with
their bayonets that he was full of holes
everywhere. Wherever they found girls
they did what they would to them and then
cut their threats or slashed them open with
machetes in the most brutal manner.
In the battle of Rosario,I received Maui
ser bullet through my right hand which has
enfeebled and halfparalyzed 1t. Then. in
an Immediately succeeding engagement,
where we attacked sugar plantation, an
other Mauser bullet pierced my right thigh
going straight through the bone. The fell
low who shot me I in the act of cut
ting down with my machete at the moment
I got him, but his shot did not even disable
me. The Mauser bullet bores a small hole
right through bone and does not shatter
it like big bullet does, and with band
age my leg 1 could sit on my horse all
right. The next day we attacked a sugar
plantation at Salakaim. where 1 was severe
ly wounded by another Mauser bullet in my
left leg. Then 1 had to go to hospital
camp in the woods, and when it was at
tackled by the Spanish a day or two after
ward. must needs get up and fight for my
life.
when Gen. Maceo crossed the trocha he
sent us back to Rosario under Col. Con-
zales and we remained in camp there a
good many days, fighting two battles and
holding our position against the Spanish.
before we learned that Maceo had been
killed. There l was wounded in the stom-
ach by another Mauser bullet, which, be-
fore reaching me, passed through a small
tree. Had 1t not done so, of course it would
have gone clear through me. AS 1t was, it
stopped somewhere inside me, and for
aught l knew to the contrary is there yet
It gave me terrible pain; more than all the
Otner WOUNDS tOgetner, ana by that time,
crippled in both legs and my hand and my
stomach. 1 was no longer fit for anything
in the field So they sent me to the secre-
tary Of the prefetura Of Chipe, and I was
there in the civil service four months
when l received orders from Col. Monzon to
go and serve as captain Of the prefetura Of
Santo Pablo. l was i'll at the time, but
started at once only to be laid up the first
night the road and sent to a hospital
where l was captured by the Spaniards.
They took me to sugar plantation Gala
boose in which they kept me IL days, then
to another prison Of like sort, where I was
detained until Gen. Blanco came in power
and gave orders for the liberation Of prison.
no longer able to be dangerous. I had
with me a diamond ring that cost $780, and
had to give 1t to the Spanish commander
at that last prison to get him to send me to
Havana, where l went to Gen. Lee and
made myself known to him as an Ameri-
can citizen. He sent me to Key West, and
that is all of my life a soldier, except
that l went in as private and Gen. Ma
Geo promoted me until l was a lieutenant"
AN ELEPHANTS REVENGE.