The Springdale news., 1898-09-16

dDOut LllTee hours ana lC was raining hard all the time. Our regiment was standing in the mud and water knee deep until four o'clock when we were marched back to camp for breakfast and after breakfast We went out to relieve the boys in the intrenchments. Two battalions of our regiment was put in the. intrenchments and the other one was used as a small reserve and had to do the picket duty back and on both sides of the intrenchments to keep the enemy from flank
 Ing our forces as they had tried to do the night before and l was one that had to do picket duty. We were put on duty in reliefs, and each man serv ing two hours at a time. Ali day everything was quiet and we boys that were not on duty Were playing leap frog, singing and having a good time in gen
 eral, as we were back far enough from the range of the guns that we were not in much danger if the enemy did open fire. At nine o'clock it came my turn to go on duty and l was taken up to within three hundred yards of the firing line and in a road which ran direct to our forces and the enemy. Another young fellow was put at the same place with me and we were talking about the boy that was killed on that post the night before, when the enemy opened fire. As tine bullets went whistling past us on down the road my comrade and 1 was sitting on a board Ill the middle of the road behind about three feet of dirt that had been put there to afford us q lIttle protection. Al first I thought that was a pretty nice thing to sit there and watch that road but all at once the enemy turned their guns on the boys directly ahead of us and the way they throwed shells and bullets down that road was no trouble to them
 Bullets were tearing trees all around us and hitting our little three feet of mud and 1 didn't know that 1 had such a fond
 ness for dirt before but 1 think 1t was clearly demonstrated by ;he way we hugged the ground and mud. The enemy knew that if we tried to send rein forcements we would be likely to come up that road and they would get a few of us Ly shoot ing over our boys on the firing line. Tie rapid firing lasted about an hour when 1 was re
 lleved from my post every
 thing was as quiet as a grave yard. After got back to my company l rolled up Tn my rubber ponchos and had a good sleep although l was wet and muddy. Today we were re
 lieved and returned to camp, making nearly AS hours that we were in mud and water up to our necks but none of our ] boys feel the effects of 1t. We eat plenty and our cooks were with us all the time, There has been some fighting today. Don't think we will capture these Spaniards without kill
 ing them. We had 12 men killed and thirty wounded The English council reporte q today 375 Spanish killed and double that wounded. Don't know when we will get 10 take Manila, but we will take hei alright. The way our boys fought and enjoy this shows that we will make a bad army to go up against when they turn us all loose once. Many amusing things have happened d which 1 will tell you about when l get home.
 Aug. 6.--On Aug. 4 our regl- ment was put in the lntrench- ments again but the Spaniards did not try to drive us out and we were relieved yesterday by the 14th and 23rd regulars and last night they fought all night long and today are still fight
 ing. Last night we had four killed and several wounded
 Last night the SpaDiards were using their heavy guns on our boys and by the way it sounds I guess they are doing the same thing now. We are hay
 ing a little excitement right along now and we will have a whole lot more before we can capture Manila. The city is better fortified and in better shape than we had expected. By the way they handle the cannon we have begun to be- lieve that they have some good gunners or else Germans be- | |. l. nX