The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1898-06-26
WHEELER AS A LEADER
OLD MEN OF THE ARMY PROVE
GOOD TIMBER 4.
ONE LIGHTER WAS LOST
The Landing Of Siege Guns Seriously
Delayed-Government Rushin...
Aid to Shafter-Troops Go


Associated Press Special Wire
Q WASHINGTON, June 25.-The first .
Q dispatch from General Shafter con- .
. corning the engagement between the .
. Spaniards and the American forces .
. reached the War Department at noon
. today and was as follows: .
playa del Este, June 25.-Adjutant .
. General u. S. A, Washington. Bal
. quiri, June 24.-Further news from
. General Wheeler places our loss in the .
. mornings firing at about ten killed and
. forty wounded. Captain Capron, First
U. S. Volunteer Cavalry, was killed. .
Q Wounded--Major Brodie, Captain Nc
. Clintock and Lieutenant Thomas Gre
. ceived here Thos. and supposed to be .
. abbreviaton), First U. S. Volunteer
. Cavalry; Major Bell, Captain Knox .
. and Lieutenant Byram, First U. s. .
Q Cavalry; Captain Knox seriously.
. Captain Wainwright formerly report .
. ed wounded, is uninjured. The names .
. of others killed and wounded are not .
Q yet known. The Spanards occupied a
. very strong and entrenched position
. on a high hill, The firing lasted about .
. an hour and the enemy was driven .
. from his position, which is now occu- .
. pied by our troops, about mile and a
. half from Sevila. The enemy has re-
. tired towards Santiago de Cuba. .
"SHAFTER." .
Calls It Skirmish
WASHINGTON, June 25.-The War De-
partment has received the following dis
patch from Gen. Shafter, received after
though apparently written before, his dis
patch given out earlier in the day:
playa del Este, June 25.-Adjutant-Gen-
eral, Washington. Baiquiri, June 24-1n
pushing out to occupy good position near
Sevilla to wait and entrench until supplies
and artillery could be landed the Four
teenth and Twentieth Cavalry Fourteenth
apparently is mistake) and Woods regi-
ment had skirmsh. The enemy was driv
en- from his position and Gen. Wheeler re-
ports that he now occupies their ground
Wounded, Major Bell Capt. Knox, Capt
Wainwright, Lieut.. Bryan, First Cavalry,
and a number of men. Above names only
given. Lighters and steam tugs asked for
this morning should be sent at once.
"SHAFTER."
Cannot Understand It
WASHINGTON, June 25.-Gen. Shafter S
report was received about noon and gave
the officials the first official data of the en-
gagement yesterday. The generals refer
ence to further news and to former re-
port could not be explained, as this was
the first dispatch of any kind received from
him. There was the possibility THAT an early
report has been delayed en- route. but the
accepted belief was that Gen. Shafter's ref
erences were to the early press reports
which he doubtless knew were being for
warded. The only other dispatch received
was that from Col Allen as to the telegraph
lines, which incidentally mentioned the
press reports of our casualties. Captain
Wainwright's name appears in the official
dispatches for the first time. AS Gen. Shat
ter reports him injured all concern about
him is removed.
Gen. Skaters dispatch throws considera-
BILE new light on the general situation of the
advance forces 1t makes it evident that
Maj. Gen. Wheeler, commander of the cav
airy division, is with the advance force, the
rough riders and the cavalry forces which
participated yesterday being part of Gen.
Wheeler's command
Wheeler Leader
1t Is felt to be characteristic of the dash
and impetuosity of Wheeler that he should
be leading the advance and it is taken as
answering some of the comments made
upon the age of some of the volunteer lead
ers.
Gen. Skaters report that our troops are
now about mile and half from Sevilla
shows how rapidly the American soldiers
pushed forward. They have already passed
Juragua, leaving it three miles in the rear.
Sevilla is the point where the Spaniards
claim they will make desperate stand and
with our forces only a mile and half off 1t
is apparent that a decisive fight is near al
hand. 1t is five miles from Sevilla to Aqua
dores (the interior town, not the port), and
two miles farther to Santiago. This shows
our troops to be about eight and one-half
miles from Santiago, according to Gen.
Skaters report.
Must Be Mccormick
Army officials say the name of McClin-
took. contained in Gen. Skaters, as well
as in the Associated Press, dispatches is
undoubtedly wrong, due, no doubt, to mis-
takes in telegraphing. They say the name
should be Capt. l.. s. Mccormick who be-
longs temporarily to the First cavalry, to
which he was assigned at his own request
from the seventh cavalry, recently sta
TONED in the southwest. There is no officer
in the regular or volunteer army by the
name of McClintock. Capt. Mccormick is
from Ohio and was graduated from the
military academy in 1876.
The Captain Wainwright referred to in
Gen. Skaters dispatches as being injured
belongs to the First cavalry. His full name
is Robert F. p Wainwright. He was born
In Pennsylvania and appointed to the mill
tary academy from New York. Secretary
Alger and Gen. Miles look for desperate
fighting very soon. The main attention is
given to hurryng forward reinforcements
and stores to Gen. Shafter.
A Lighter Lost
In this connection a serious loss came
to the knowledge of the war department to-
day when 1t was learned that one Fighter
sent with the Shafter expedition for the
purpose of unloading the heavy guns had
been lost. 1t leaves the invading army
without proper means of getting the heavy
siege guns and ordnance from the trans
ports to the shore. There is one small tug
boat with the transport fleet, but it is not
believed this one can be made available for
getting the big guns ashore. Besides the
guns there are heavy mounts, trucks. ETC..