Sierra County advocate. [volume] (Kingston, N.M.) 1884-1960, 1898-09-02
LETTERS FROM. BOB REAY.

James heay, OF hingston, per
,mits US to publish the following
letters that he received from hi
brother Robert, ,trumpeter in Co
b. 18th Infantry, stationed a
Camp Dewey, IN the Philippine
Islands. These letters are dated
July 10th and 9th respectively
and are very interesting
DEAR JIM
In my last letter l promised Il
write often, but il will be hard fol
me to do 80. 1t costs SC for lette
from here to China, and either 5 Of
10 cents from here to the United
States. There is ship getting
ready to leave-a u. s. ship. We
can sent letters on it for 2 cents sc
l am taking advantage of it and
will also try to send you word by
every American ship that leaves
here. If the paper appears soiled
don't think it is tears or nythibg
of that kind.
1t is 80 hot here that man per-
spires all the time. 1t is continu-
ally running off of my face and
arms.
The China and Senator have al
ready landed their troops on shors
within three miles of Manila, just
outside the firing line. We land
this evening at Cavlte,
The Spaniards are strongly forti.
fed in the City of Manila. The
insurgents have intrenchments dug
about three hundred yards behind
Spanish fort.
IN the fight last Sunday the in
surgents lost about 100 men. They
don't know how to handle the guns
which Dewey took from the Span
ish prisoners aud gave to them.
They drop the guns whenever they
get close and run at the enemy
Wit knives. Last night they
chased the insurgents clear behind
where q. s. California com panies
were camped.
The soldiers were called out and
formed into line. The Spaniards
Immediately retreated to their fort.
As soon as the Monterey gets
here. | believe the war ships will
commence the lombard ment from
the bay side, while the troops and
insurgents attack from land.
Germans are pretty saucy. They
were signaling the other night
letting the Spaniards know how
many men they thought arrived
in our expedition. We are in plain
view Of all the other ships. Ger.
mans are big white warships, Eng.
llsh are black, and one grayish Jap.
an ese. That is all | can distln-
guish from here.
Night before last the Spaniards
tried to put up a gun not far from
shore. The Americans discovered
them and sent the Boston up to
stop it. Now the warship is along
close to shore between the fort and
our troops so that there is not
much danger of Spaniards making
any attack. We have search lights
on our ships that can show any
thing up very plainly within a
radius of Is miles and they are
kept flashed on the shore all night
long,
The more one sees OF Dewey's |
victory, the more you will wonder
at it.
The bay is about 80 miles long
and there are places along the bay
that are very narrow, where the
Spa niards could have had Gibral-
ter. They had mines laid, but
could not explode them at the
right time They managed to ex-
plode one Just infrout of one OF the
w4rships, but 1t did no damage
One place in the bay there are two
Spanish ships sunk and you can see
dead bodies hanging over the rail
ing of the ship. In another place
I here are seven ships sunk all close
together. These waters are full OF
tharks.
We are now 3J days aboard this
ship and maybe you think we are
not tired. / heard one soldier, who
was ..seasick, say that if his mother
EVER wanted 10 zee him again
she would have 10 build a railroad
across the Pacific ocean. OF
course we bad terrible trip. All
packed in the steerage like sheep
and so many Of the sick sleeping
alougside Of the we'll ones. slept
in the steerage one nIght-the rest
Df the time slept on deck.
! remain your brother,