The times., 1898-10-17
RESCUED FROM OBLIVION
A District Regiment Soldiers
Labor of Love.
MARKED HEROES GRAVES
With a Bowie Knife Private MahO-
ney Carved the Names of the
ValOrous Dead on Pieces of Terra
Gotta Pipe Tint the Identity of
Their Graves Might lie Preserved.

A thickset, broad-shouldered. swarthy-
faced man, something above the average
height but so compactly built as to hide
that fact, with twinkling blue eyes and n
CHEEKY smile, is Jack Mahoney, private
in Company A, of the First District of
Columbia Volunteers, stonecutter by
trade; genial, companionable fellow by in
clination, and thoughtful of others by
disposition.
But neither these most commendable
traits nor 1.-The fiercest mustache in the
army of invasion will serve to distin-
guish Private Mahoney above his fellows
or cause him TO be remembered long after
many of the central figures of that cam
paign shall have been forgotten.
John Mahoney viii be borne in
mind as the man who sacrificed
whatever of comfort he might have OBJ
tanned between the manifold duties of a
campaign in order to rescue from obliv-
ion and the plowshare of some future
Cuban farmer the bones of about thirty
five of the heroes who gave up their lives
on the southern slopes of Cuba in behalf
of the cause of liberty.
The story is a simple one-to hear him
tell it-but when told by his bunkie and
comrade Private Kid" Eckdan (himself
in face and form reminiscent of the
campaign and subsequent horror ship 1t
is as full of sentiment as 1t is of interest.
THE history of the war said Private
Eckdall, will soon be written, but many
brilliant sidelight or somber shadow Will
be omitted from its pages which would
embellish and make more readable the
story of Santiago Take the case of Jack,
here. and the manner in which he started
to mark the graves the writing on the
headboards OF which was fast being OBJ
liberated. 1t was an inspiration.
"A day or two after our arrival at the
front, and while-pending the truce
everybody was on edge. in company with
Mahoney ] took a stroll between show
ers. We came upon group of newly
made graves, each marked with pine
board, upon which had been written the
soldiers name, company and regiment, in
lead pencil. One board had fallen back
ward to an angle of about IS degrees,
presenting a surface to the rain which
promised soon TO be bare of inscription.
"Mahoney stopped to readjust the board.
II
ter of soil, and when he rose he said:
Carl this writing will not last until taps;
let's get something TO mark the poor duff
fer's grave so that his parents or friends
may have a chance TO give him a decent
burial at home If they wish. We nosed
about bit in search of something and
presently Jack came back with a segment
of terra Gotta pipe about II by % inches.
How'll we mark it?' he asked. was for
writing the name on the conCave surface
and placing II against the headstone. But
this would not suit Mahoney, who de-
clared he would fix 1t so the 'tolliest rain
that falls in this rainspout of a country
won't wash it out
with that he took out a vicious-look
ing bowie knife, sat down in the dryest
spot Misunderstanding short of a mud
puddle was dry spot in those days-and
carved the first of series of headstones,
at least two of which will command the
gaze and attention of succeeding genera
tions in a Boston cemetery. The inscrip-
ton on il was: