The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-11-20

men had sworn to bring him every old
red rag in Cuba for him to identify or
reject.
Everybody except the boy, however,
forgot ali about the neckerchief as
soon as they landed. Troops were push
ing to the front, firing was already
going on. The regiment, with no rest,
was ordered at once to proceed with
its brigade. Jim was ordered TO stay
back 'out of harms way, but Jim had
no intention of doing anything of the
kind. Nothing like his quest was to be
seen about him, so he had to go on.
The regiment started at night, and Jim
followed. In the hurry few had time
to ask what he was doing there
Through tangled jungle and by forest
paths, perspiration pouring from him,
but with undaunted heart, the boy
followed the soldiers, and in the morn
ing his ears We're greeted with the
continuous crash of Spanish voiley fir
ing, and he found his friend OF the
transport under fire, together with
some other troops.
The thicket ceased and oDen land
reached down to a river. On the other
side of the river lay broad stretch of
uphill ground. without shelter. Jim
paused in the thicket and watched. a
continual tempest of lsad was tearing
up Tic QuSI VI lLlG OpeA LOLe anu loSLt-
ing the water of the shallow stream.
Loud, sharp, direct orders came here
and there from the officers Of the
troops. The line of brown uniforms
and broad campaign hats began to
stretch out, soldiers running left and
right, until some one cred: Forward.
march," and a number of bugles blew
shriu and clear one long, commanding
note. At that note meE began to yell
= ,I,o 81
river, through the storm of bullets,
without any hesitation whatever, al
though here and there d man fell head
lOng, or staggered back with cry or
pain. Down to the stream, into the
stream, they went. and from the ridges
above Spaniards behind earthwOrks
showered death into the charging in
vaders. These hardly halted to fire
back, but kept on. some grimly silent,
some wildly laughing, some yelling, but
every one obeying the magic bugle-
Forward"
They were in the water. and then
jim saw some seize logs and paddle
across, every man sticking TO his gu1,
and others dashed through, up 10
the waist. Jim noticed that many
tripped and rose. choking and torn and
bleeding from the barbed wire stretch
ed beneath the surface. but these got
reached the other side, leaving many a
poor fellow behind. never again to see
home. Once ashore, they paused a
second, and regained formation, and
again the bugles cried Forward" and
they went uD the slope at a dash. al
ways Forward heroes every one of
them.
But before the last of them was out
of the water the boy had left the
nd of ha %
yond doubt the firing frightened him,
and the mad cheering and the dead
bodies dropping in the grass and stain
ing the pink river. But he saw some
thing away on the right-something
that made him forget his fear-a sol
der of another regiment than his
adopted one-a soldier round whose
throat red handkerchief was tied, its
long, loose ends flying behind him.
After him went Jim, regardless of con-
sequences. The soldier plunged into
the river and struggled over; Jim fol-
lowed. His feet caught on Snags and
barbed wire. and twice he was nearly
drowned, but he staggered on. Bull
lets Zip-Zipped in the water. and one
knocked off his head the badged
forage cap the soldiers had made MIN
wear. but he went on. He gained the
dry land and dashed the water from
his eyes, and looked round. Far UP on
the right the Custer handkerchief
waved. as it had often waved in other
charges more than thirty years before.
Jim's feet flew in pursuit. He saw little
else; he heard tremendous cheering at
the top of the hill, and knew instinc-
lively that the SpaniardS had retreated
and the Americans had taken the ridge
and the breastworks. but his heart
sank, for the red neckerchief had dis
appeared.
The man who wore it had been
charging on the extreme right, through