The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1898-07-31
HEROES OF TWO WARS

At loafing place in Wichita this week
veteran of the civil war and a veteran
or the Spanish war became the center of
group of idlers. One veteran was under
thirty, the other over sixty years of age
The crowd had been intently listening
TO the younger mans narration Of his
work before Santiago.
The bullets" he said made III
sort of a sound. Did we dodge? We
wanted to dodge but I guess we didn't.
Did hit anybody? Well I couldn't say.
In all Likelihood 1 did"
A sneer came stealthfully creeping into
the older mans wrinkled face.
I'VE fought ferociously,'' the young man
went on. until we got within 800 yards
of the Spaniards and then We charged"
you charged at 500 yards?" queried the
old veteran sOurly.
YES, sir. think it was about five hun
dred yards
Fifteen hundred feet?"
Eyes. sir
Boys play" snapped the old veteran.
at was pretty hot work" said the
younger veteran, showing color.
Charging at five hundred yards. Why
you must have run yourself TO death be-
fore you got sight of the top of the enc
my over the horizon. Why didn't you take
bicycles?"
I'VE thought 1t was considerable Of a
highland a charge" said the younger
man.
Boys play" said the old man, did
you fix your bayonets?"
NO sir we had no bayonets.''
And you call that a charger
"Our officers did"
Your officers? Did your officers carry
swords?"
Yes, sir"
Did they do anything with their
swords
Why-yes-they-wel they encouraged
the boys on with their swords"
Encouraged the boys on. did they?'
Knocked the older man; Encouraged EN-
on to what?"
ITO the charge" said the young man
meekly.
" On. the charge. You stick to it that
that was a charger"
Yes. sir"
We'll You are mistaken. Il was
foot race. You didn't see-any of the Off
GERS jump in and whale Spaniard across
ed the entertainments, did you?"
NO. sir. When we got there the Span
iards were all dead"
'oh, they were all dead. And you were
charging dead men?"
{" No, sir. The live Spaniards had run
away"
Had run away. It must have been a
fearful fight"
1T was"
1T must have been an awful fight. Ny,
but your uniforms must have been sweaty
and uncomfortable running that way
1T was a hot fight" said the younger
man with a jerk. The Mauser is a long
range gun. il is deadly a long distance.
We went through perfect hell of sizzling
lead. The poor fellows dropped all about
Us. We were in the open and the Span
iards intrenched. We charged-charged I
say-and took the bitches and we fought
Ike devils 10 do it,
Hold up said the old veteran, Don't
get huffy. You're nothing but a boy
knew you when you was a baby and IL
don't seem like ten years ago You father
showed me you three days after your
birth. You're a kid and your war talk
IS ridiculous. If you had been In the Viii
derness you could ralk II you had been
at Gettysburg you could talk. Bayonets!
bayonets. Forest Of them. Swords, swords
bloody and reeking. Charges. Why.
charges face 10 face with your hands at
the throat of the enemy. Five hundred
yards. Bah. I say bah. You're a boy"
The younger man did not lose his tenn
per. He eyed the old man calmly and
said:
Where did you go after the civil warp
Back home TO La Sale. Illinois,"
Did you wear your uniform?"
- did" said the older man.
And did you tell your war experience"
Il guess / did"
what did people think about it?"
The old man did not answer He gazed
al the floor long time and then said:
Lord. How "A man grows old. There
was an old veteran of the Mexican war
n La Sale. and when I told him of my
fights, he said I hadn't fought a, all, just
as I've been whacking into you. Lord.
how a man grows old"
The crowd laughed. and the two. the
hero Of one war and the hero Of another,
went down the street together.