Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1898-06-30
In a DEATH IRAP.
ione More Details Of the Battle Oh -"
Qua-inn

/ IL
md the troopers OF the First ana lciIt"
-ngular cavalry will be known IN MS
tory as the battle OF La Quasi''a'
rha+ Il did not end in the complete
slaughter of the Americans was not que
20 any miscalculation in the plans
# tho Standards. for as perfect an am
5uscade as was ever formed IN the
,rain of an Apache Indian was pre-
,,red and Lieutenant-ColOnel Roosc-
Welt and his men walked squarely INTO
il For an hour and a half they held
their ground under perfect storm Oh
bullets from front and sides, and then
Colonel Wood at the right, and Lieu
tenant Colonel Roosevelt, at the lett,
led charge which turned the tide OF
battle and sent the enemy flying over
he hills toward Santiago.
1t is now definitely known that l6
men on the American side were killed,
while 60 were wounded or are reported
to be missing. 1t is impossible to cal
,ulate the Spanish losses, but 1t Is
known they were far heavier than those
oi the Americans, at least as regards
actual loss of lie. Already 81 dead
Spanish soldiers have been found and
buried, and many others are undoubt-
adiy lying in the thick underbrush.
The wounded were all removed.
That the Spaniarls were thoroughly
posted as to the route to be taken Nv
the Americans IN their advance toward
Sevilla was evident as shown by the
careful preparations they had madc.
The main body of the Spaniards was
posted on a hill in the heavily wooded
slopes on which had been erected two
blockhouses, hankol by irregular en-
trenchments Of stone ami fallen trees
At the bottoIn of these hills run two
roads, along which Colonel Roosevelt
and eight troops OF the First and Tenth
cavalry, with battery Of four howtz-
ers, advanced These roads are little
more than gullics. and at places almost
impossible. In these trails the fight
occurred.
About two and hal! miles out
from Siboncy, some Cubans, breathless
and excited, ushel into the camp with
the announcement that the Span
iards were but little way in front,
and strongly entrenched. Quickly the
Hotchkiss guns out in the front were
brought to the rear, while strong
scouting line was thrown out. Then,
cautiously and in silence, the troops
moved forward until bend in road
disclosed the hill where the Spaniarda
were located. The guns were again
brought to the front and placed in po-
stion, while the men crOuched in the
road waiting impatiently to give Roose-
velt's men, who were toiiing over the
little trail along the crest OF the ridge,
time to get up.
At 1880 A. NJ, General Young gave
the command to the men at the lIotch-
kiss guns to open fire. The command
was the beginning of fight that for
stubbornness has seldom been equaled.
The instant the IIotchkiss guns we've
fired, the hillsidcs commanding the
road gave forth volley after volley from
the Mausers OF the Spaniards.
Don't shoot until you see some
thing to shoot at" yelled General
Young, and the men, with set jaws
and cleaning eyes, obeyed the order.
Crawling along the edge OF the road
and protecting themselves as much as
possible from the fearful fire OF the
SpaniaIds. the troops. some OF them
stripped to the waist, watched the
base of the Hill, and when any part of a
Spaniard became visible, they fired.
Never for an instant did they ialter.
One dusky warrior Of the Tenth, with
ragged wound in his thigh, coollv
knelt behind a rock, loading and firing,
and when told by one of his comrades
that he was wounded, laughed and
said:
"Oh, that's all right; that's been
there for some time"
in the meantime, away off to the
left, was heard the crack OF the rifles
of Colonel Woods men, and then the
deeper toned volley firing OF the Span
isl. Over there the American losses
were the greatest.
Colonel Woods men, with an adj.
vance guard we'll out in front and two
Cuban guides before them but appar-
emily with no Hangers. went squarelv
into the trap set for them by the Span
iarls. and only the unfaltering courage
Of he men in the face OF a fire that
would make even a veteran quail, pre-
verified what might easily have been Il
disaster. AS it was, tropp l., the ad-
vance guard, under the unfortunate
Capron, was we'll surrounded, and but
for the reinforcements hurriedlv sent
forward, every man would probably
/ have been killed or wounded.
There must have been nearly |, 500
Spaliards in front and to the sides OF
us, said Lieutenant Colonel Roose-
veil today, when discussing the fight.
They held the ridges with rhe-pits
and guns, and had a body of men in
ambush in the thick jungle at the
sidh OF the road over which we were
advancing. Our advance forward struck
the men in ambush and drove them
out but we lost Captain Capron, Lieu
tenant Thomas and about Is men
killed or wounded.
want to say a word for our own
MEL" continued Lieutenant-t, colonel
4