The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1898-10-12
ROUGH RIDERS STORY.
How He Brought Down Spanish
Sharpshooter Who Killed Eight.

One spot there was IN the rough RI
ders' camp where you could always find
@ curious group, visitors and troopers;
this was about Josie's cage. Josie be-
ing a mountain lion. one of the regi-
mental pets. TO watch Josie snarl and
show her white fangs, to admire the
daring OF her tanner, the one rough RI
der whose touch she would permit, as
he rolled her, splitting and clawing, on
her back. and cuffed her piayfully, and
otherwise displayed his mastery: 10 see
her welcome little frowey Cuba, the re-
gimental yellow dog. and pat him with
her paws, and show that she loved him
these were sights that never grew
tame for the followers of Col. Roose-
welt. 1t was i'm this group one morn
ing that | met Happy jack and for
an hour or so thereafter ] enjoyed the
picturesqueness of his talk. Happy
Jack" is a product of Arizona: in times
of peace he delves the ground for pre-
cious metal, and breaks the monotony
OF things by playing faro, tackling bad
men, and painting the evidence OF his
presence over the visage OF frontier
towns. He does all things. good OF
bad, with delight, and il is not OH reo-
ord that he ever was afraid He is a
sharp featured. clean-shaven young
man of about thirty. He speaks Eng
lish like anybody else. dialect writer's
to the contrary Notwithstanding.
Tell him about how you got the
Spanish sharpshooter. Happy said
one OF the group.
Yes" said l. tell ne -abnut-lhe
Spanish sharpshooter.
Without further urging Happy Jack"
took the centre OF the stage and prc-
ceeded thus: 1T was on the great day
when pretty much everything happen
"a down there--the first of July-and i
had just gone back from the firing line
a few hundred yards TO carry wound
ed comrade out Of danger. But II looked
as if Id done the wrong thing, for just
as 1 came up to where some doctors
and orderlies were, zip came a bullet
under my hat, and went into gentle
man behind me. l was just thinking
what a lot OF fife there was in that
spent ball. when zip came another bull
let on the other side of my head and
landed in tree.
"'Thats no spent, ball. said L;
there's lad getting a range on me-
It's Spanish sharpshooter some
where about said an orderly; he's
killed eight or nine men in the last half
hour. See I'M there He pointed TO a
lot of dead bodies.
"'Well.' said l. If that's the case /
L
Spanish sharpshooter.' So / goes down
on the ground and gets under cover
and waits and | watches to make out
where the fellow is You see. he had
smokeless powder and it was a job 20
fix him.
Il guess It took me fifteen minutes
before | found him; he was high UP in
cocoanut-palm, close To the trunk;
just made a dark spot there like a
crows nest. So | throws up my slight
to six hundred yards, gets good and
steady. and then L says, Almighty God.
put justice and Christianity In this
shot and then / pulls the trigger.
said that because / was shooting with
a Krag-Jorgensen. and / amt so well
used to them. III I'd had a Winchester
| wouldn't have needed 10 pray;
Winchester is Happy Jacks graft ev-
cry time. Well. sir, ii worked all right
Justice and Christianity prevailed, and
my friend, the Spanish sharpshooter.
came tumbling out Of that cocoanut
tree SO fast he never knew what hit
him. He fell forty feet and was dead
before he struck the ground. ."-Cleye-
land Moffett in Hesfie's Weekly.