The herald., 1898-06-05

Hayden Jones and Charles Thrall would
not have allowed their enthusiasm for their
chosen professions to land them in the
hands of the Spaniards and afterwards
into a Havana dungeon with the prospect
of speedy trial and quick death in the
morning. Thrall. Yale boy, Jones an eX-
man-of-war s-man, globe trotter and all
round good fellow. happened to be on hand
when an expedition of United States regu-
lars was about to start on an adventurous
attempt to land on Cuban soil.
The first impulse, obeyed without a Sec
ond's hesitation, was to get aboard and go
along. The newspaper Thral1 served and
the New York newspaper and syndicate
Jones represented was the first considera-
tion, and the fact that they had stumbled
on an expedition that promised to be dan
gerous one was regarded as a special favor
from Providence. So they went along. ana
all the world knows that the expedition
was failure. Not through any lack of in
trepidity on the part Of the attackers. but
simply because it was foolish 10 attempt
to force a landing against an overwhem-
ingly superior force of SpaniarH. The ex-
pedition came off in good ordes, except for
the fact that Jones and Thral allowed
iHtlr Ztdl 10 carry tnenl 700 lar. ana lel
into the hands of the spaniards the first
prisoners captured by the enemy SO far
during the war. They were taken to Ha-
Vana. ''jolying" their captors en- route in
the inimitable fashion Of newspaper men
who have been too long accustomed to
finding themselves among all sorts and
conditions of men and in all manner of
queer situations, to allow reverse of for
tune to dampen their spirits or make them
look at the dark side of a picture that had
unknown and therefore uncertain features
What would the capture result in? This
was a question that might reasonably be
supposed to occupy their thoughts. What
was the status of newspaper man cap
tured during war time while accompanying
IA raid on the enemy's territory? If the
Spaniards took il into their hard heads to
treat the prisoners as spies and shoot them
forthwith, what influence had their en-
ployers to bring to bear on the subject when
the captives were not army men and there
fore not subject to the rule, and amenities
of war?
Whatever was before them however,
Jones and Thrall kept their spirits up to
the concert pitch and their eyes open maxi
Ing mental note of everything of interest
seen on the way TO Havana and after their
arrival there. For hope springs eternal in
the journalistic breast. In Havana the
great captain general himself did the news
paper captives the honor to tell them that
they would be tried at once and would
know their fate by the morning. Blanco de-
clincd 10 specify what that fate would be,
but meanwhile he made the newspaper
men particularly comfortable and remem-
bering that the condemned man usually
lives royalty the day before the execution.
the two captves looked upon the kindly
treatment of the Spaniards as rather
crnii..,us of what was in store for them
Blu; th= newspaper of today is a powerful
institution. and electrical communication
flashes its wishes around the world in d
.winkling. From the office OF their en-
ployers to the Washington officials, from