Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1898-07-02
BEFORE SANTIAGO.
Preparations Incident to
Decisive Operations.
HOW AMERICANS PUSHED TO THE FRONT

Climb Tree-The Yale Brought
Reinforcements
Compiled From Most Authentic Cables.
The cable dispatches up to and in
Guiding Thursday morning, brought
no news of fighting in Cuba subsequent
to the battle of La Quasina, a full ac-
count of which has already been pub
lished in THE ENQUIRER. Instead,
they were devoted to descriptions of
the general situation in and around
Santiago, as far as could be ascertain
ed, and the preparations of the Ameri-
cans for decisive battle, which was
not looked for before Wednesday !;
but which was recognized as liable to
commence at any minute.
Though from day to day there were
reports to the effect that the Ameri-
can army had been landed, these re-
ports were, to a great extent, mislead-
ing. The landing was commenced on
Tuesday of last week, as stated, and
proceeded with most gratifying expe-
dition. During the first two days
some 5000 or 10000 troops were got
ten ashore; but it was not until last
Monday that the entire expedition had
been transferred from the transports
to land. At the time the battle of La
Ouasina was fought there were still
several thousand troops on the trans
ports.
Until the landing was completed,
General Shafter continued his head
quarters on the water with the trans
ports, leaving General Joe Wheeler in
command of the troops on shore. Cen
eral Wheeler, however, continued sub
ordinate to General Shafter. With
much energy he pushed his headquar-
tiers on in the direction of Santiago,
and when the battle of La Quasina
took place, he was only mile or two
distant.
Considering that the enemy was
thoroughly demoralized as the result
of the battle, General Wheeler, and
nearly all of the officers under him,
were very anxious to rush the attack
on Santiago. They made such repre-
sentations to General Shafter; but the
general would have nothing of the
kind. He made it clear that he did
not propose to take unnecessary risk,
and would permit no general forward
movement until after his heavy siege
guns had been landed and transported
to the positions most desirable for
shelling the enemy's trenches and
the city. But he is said to have
agreed with General Wheeler in the
view that the city could be carried at
once by assault. 1t was not fear OF
failure that inclined him to caution.
He reasoned that if reports were true,
the Spaniards were steadily growing
weaker from scarcity of provisions
and other causes, which the Americans
were growing stronger with the un-
loading of their supplies, and the
bringing up of all of their artillery.
The work of unloading the siege
guns from the transports was necessar-
ily slow and tedious. The landing
was made at Siboney and Baiquiri,
and from these places the heavy artll-
lery had to be dragged distance of
from I to 10 miles. Many ofthe roads
or trails were only four feet wide.
The siege guns required a width OF
not less than six feet, and the labor of
widening the trails was tremendous.
However, after considerable effort, the
guns were finally dragged over the
hills and through the swamps to the
previously selected places about the
city.
Although it is conceded that the
Cubans are brave fighters who under
stand their business, when it comes to
ANYTHING that looks like work, they
are not in il. While the Americans
were toiling in the hot sun widening
the trails and dragging the heavy guns
along, lazy natives occupied them
selves for the most part lolling in their
tents smoking cigarettes, playing
cards, and gorging themselves on the
supplies that had been so generously
furnished them by General Shafter.
There was still another complaint
against them. Owing to the heavy
sea, it had not been practicable to land
supplies from the ships as rapidly as
necessity required, and many of the
American regiments were short on
rations. Some were without any
whatever. The Cubans would not dl-
vide, evidently figuring that "a bird
in hand was worth two in the bush, "
and calculating also that there was no
telling when more supplies would be
gotten from the ships.
When General Garcia heard of this
conduct on the part Of his men, he
issued orders that were calculated to
prevent recurrence Of it. The Or
ders were to the effect that all Cubans
must obey all orders of the Am erican
soldiers; that no Cuban must take
pay in any form for service rendered
to an American, and that any Cuban
who should be convicted of disobedi-
ence, would be shot without a trial.
General Garcia wants the Americans
to understand that he appreciates their
aid in the achievement of Cuban indie
pendence, and that so far as he is con-
carned the island is theirs. He has