The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1898-08-17
Cuba's Bold HOrsemen.

Cuba's historian, when he writes the
erty, rightfully will give prominence
Some of his most stirring pages will be
those on which are recorded the VIC
tories won by small bands Of mounted
patriots. Cuba's cavalry has never
been large force. To-day it is so re-
duced in numbers that the work it can
do is limited. Gen. Gomez has few
hundred mounted men in his command,
and there are small cavalry forces in
Camaguey, Sancti Spiritus, and the
province of Havana. They have main
taned vigorous guerrilla warfare.
1t has been lack of horses, not
men, that has kept the Cuban cavalry
force small. When mounted patriot
loses his horse in an engagement or by
sickness, or by the necessity of killing
him to furnish meat for the mess table
as has been the case at times in this
and in the ten years war-that cavalry
man becomes perforce an infantryman.
He has only one chance of securing al
other mOunt-by capturing the horse
of some Spaniard. But even that sup
ply is limited Horses are scarce in
Cuba to-day.
With plenty of horses the Cubans
could organize powerful cavalry.
They are fine horsemen. Cuban boys
are taught to ride as soon as they are
to walk or talk. Tomas Estrada Palma,
head of the Cuban delegation in this
country, learned to ride on a goat be-
fore he was old enough TO cling to the
saddle of horse. The native Cuban
horses are small and why, sound of
limb and deep of chest. And the ma
chete, that weapon of the Cubans, can
be welded with its full force in cav
airy charge.
1t is true that the Spanish cavalry on
the island has not been such as to re-
fleet credit on its government. The
Spanish peasantry, from whom the
men for SPANS Cuban army are draft
ed, are not good horsemen in time of
peace, and they have not been good
horsemen in war. When you mount a
naturally poor horseman and put a car
bine in one hand and sabre or ma
chete in the other you have made life
miserable for him. But the Spaniards
have always had the advantage of large
ly superior numbers, and so their poor
Workmanship does not take any credit
from the victories won by the smaller
Cuban forces.
The mettle of these men was shown
during the ten years. war, when the
Cuban cavalry was at it's best. The
history of that war when it is written,
will bristle with incidents of heroic
daring against superior numbers. In
conversation with Sun reporter fe W
days ago Col. Saneuily Of this city, who
with his brother, Gen. Julio Sanguily,
took prominent part in the ten years
war, outlined the history of the Cuban
cavalry and recalled some stirring in
cidents of that struggle.
When the revolution broke out in
1865 the patriots gathered a small force
of mounted men. Ramon Cantu, an
officer of the Mexican army, who had
joined the Cubans, was put in CON-
mand. The force did not do much un-
der him, and the next year Lieut. Col
Sanguily was put III charge. He
| brought the force up to two squadrons
Manuel SanguilY was in charge of one
and Antonio Serrano of the other
With these forces he fought number
of engagements. In November, 1869
the Cuban Junta of New York SEN
Col. Thomas Jordan of Virginia to Gu
ba with the rank of COMMANDMENT
, Chief to organize the Cuban army
!, Jordan had fought in the civil war
Among one of his changes was the sub
stitution of the Prussian sabre for tn,
machete as cavalry arm, aud will
these the Cubans fought just one bat
tie. That was at San Jose in Puert'
Principe province, and though the Gu
bans dispersed and defeated larg'
force Of Spanish infantry, they discard
: ed the sabre thereafter and have use'
= the machete ever since. During tn
, early part of 1870 Col. Sanguily resign
ed and Jordan appointed w. III. G
r Ryan, an American citizen to the com