New Iberia enterprise. (New Iberia, La.) 1885-1902, 1898-08-20

y
Moss of New Iberia, writing to hi
mother of his experiences at Santi
ago, quotes his notes from his diary
From these we make the followin!
interesting extract:
Friday, July About 5 80 a
IN. started for the Ducrot Mansion
an estate in ruins and about on,
mile from FL Caney, a small towl
of about 600 inhabitants. At
o'clock reached grove 600 yards
from the Mansion and stopped in
shade Of trees, waiting in reserve
Heavy, continuous fire near by
About noon we were ordered tC
strip for action, and leaving small
guard in charge Of our blanket rolls
and havre- sacks, we resumed the
march. Two hundred yards brought
us to the main Ell Caney-Santiago
road. Turning to the ri ght we fol-
lowed this road about q of a mile
and making another turn in the
same direction, the command en-
tered lane. Here we halted a
while-bullets began to fly over our
heads-the dead, wounded and dy-
ing were being taken past us to the
rear-the wounded and their at
tendants telling us, "Give them
HI, boys, they've been doing US
dirt all day A few minutes later
we started up the lane, and after an
advance of q few hundred yards,
the command halts and two compa-
MES (mine and anOther) at once
form the firing line, about 800 yards
from and facing a stone block house
on high, commanding hill almost
in the town of FL Caney. The
other two companies of our battalion
are in support and the rest of the
regiment in reserve. Our left con-
meets with the right of the 4th
Infantry. Lieut.. McCorkle, who
is in command of the company,
takes charge of the first platoon and
directs me to take charge Of the
second. We advance about $50
yards through a grass field, and
crossing lane with a barded wire
fence on either side, enter an open,
pineapple grove. The Spaniards
Immediately begin pouring most
murderOus fire into us-Our men be-
gin to drop-the enemy is using
smokeless powder and we cannot
therefore locate him-with rain of
bullets in our faces we continue to
advance, with helpless kind of a
feeling-this. won't do, something
must be done. Lieuts. McCorkle,
Kennison, Murdock and myself hold
a brief consultation-Lieut. Nc
Corkle is about yard to my left
and front and is kneeling on one
knee-unbuttOning his shirt he low
ers his head and behOlds under the
pit of his right arm q CHASTITY
and poor fellow, falls over
wounded. A man on my
right cries out "My Godn' and
his gun falls dead-an-
other slightly in front, exclaims,
Heavens, l am shot," It's rain
ming bullets We make two at
tempts to carry McCorkle's body
TO a place of shelter few yards
away, but the fire. s too hot-a third
effort is successful. McCOrkle is
1ead-I am in command of the
rush Of 500 yards takes {
rs to place of comparative shell (
;er. Here we rest awhile. Lieut..
MurdOck is wounded and | am di-
.ected to take command of his COM {
)any, too. Another rush forward {
,ver exposed ground and we find b,
shelter in a small stream. The air
8 filled with bullets. "Now men;
altogether, follow me!' and forty
,ards takes us to the crest of a I
'mall hill, $50 yards from the r
spanish block house. The Span
ards are now shaken and demoral-
zed, as they run from their in '
to the block house and
rom the block house to the in Q
our men shot them i
lown like so many dogs. A small v
,lock- house on our left flank is an
Toying us a little. Lieut.. KennisOn
S wounded and taken off the field. a
The rest of the support is now COM a
ng up: the brick and mortar are t
lying: the block-hou is getting t
90 hot for the Spaniards they n
resent to us the white flag; we are $
for a final charge; all il h
eady and we're off Men are still b
alling by the way-side: but on, on, o
p, up we go-and now the block r
louse is ours! Where only q few A
noments ago foated the Spanish r
ag now fiutters the Stars and
tripes! And thus it was that ON
be fields of FL Caney the day was a.
ron by the gallant 25th.
After the battle this battered Il
lock house presented scene Of Il
hastily horror that battles descrip- h
on-the walls were covered with Z
lood, the floor inside and the D
round outside were strewn with Il
he mangled bodies of the dead, the G.
ir was filed with the groans Of the Il
and dying! Indeed war t,
] terrible!! r,
One sight struck me as being z
articularly CHASTITY and horrible 81
J one of the rife-pits there was a t,
cad Spaniard in sitting position, v
is back against the end of the pit cl
nd his knees drawn up toward his p
ody; his head was slightly thrown "
ack, exposing the white of his il
yes, and his mouth was partially b
pen; by his side lay his fabby II
rms and in his knees rested his II
1t containing blood and brains Il
piece Of shell must have struck ei
le poor fellow on the head. D.
How did feel under fire! Well, b
went into the hattie with the same II