The San Francisco call., 1898-09-23

special correspondence of The Call
 MANILA, Aug. 26.-The cry Is still they come. A couple of days ago the fourth expedition came into port, and now one meets on every corner some familiar face from home that brings back to him the life of San Francisco The recruits are heart-broken at hay ing arrived too late for the fun, and every veteran who cares to recount his experiences in tent and trench can be sure of an appreciative audience, who will pay for the drinks as long as the man of bullets and battles cares to hold forth. And there is some mighty tall talking indulged in. No one but who belongs to the company that car ried off all the honors of the day can be found; while the fellow who has not some thrilling personal adventure to recount or some deed of exceptional heroism to boast of is as rare as a white blackbird. The town is also rapidly filling up with another species of animal which was not to be found around the soldiers when they were in camp and when the dawning of every new day brought the report of the casualties of the night and the pros pect of a new scrap. I mean this place is now infested by a horde of we'll dressed, clean, stylish-looking young fellows who have sprung up from God knows where and Who should we have more trouble, imagine would melt into ohscurisy with the same n1ys- ter1ous promptitude with which they came into evidence. They are for the most part young fellows of some wealth, whose families have a pull at home in one direction or another and who have come down here in the capa- city of clerks, attaches to various de- partments, or who do nothing at all and cover their idleness with large bunch of copy paper, which they flash on the slightest provocation, while they inform their awe-struck listener of the influence they wield as special journal istic war commissioners. These drones spend the greater portion of their time in loafing around the beer gardens, where they sit and discuss life at the front. They are heartily despised by the regular soldier.
 Another humorous product of the ex- isting conditions down here is the civilian who manages to scrape up an association with the officers and who tries to impress on the casual passerby and the inebriated enlisted man that he is entitled to the honors that are only paid to shoulder straps. Many of these fellows are officers connected with the transports and have heretofore never in their lives had any respect of any sort shown them save that grudging respect forced from the brow beaten cowed sailors under their command. They strut about the streets in a uniform as nearly ap preaching the regulation affair as they dare to make it, and the self-satisfac- fioY1 nd S1InarpilioncnPSS Of their de- pertinent would make a member of the Legislature turn green with envy.
 There are also a number of other paraSiteS of various sorts and condi- tions who are rapidly arriving and who are all classified by the boys under the general title of "1ubdubs."
 There has been considerable illness In the various regiments, some companies having as many as twenty men on their sick reports in a single day. Fortu- nately, these cases are, with a very few exceptions, not of a serious nature. consisting for the most part of slight bowel complaints, sores and boils. Speaking of this matter of boils and sores, l think that if some one will take the trouble to carefully search through the files of prehistoric archives he will ascertain that Manila was the stamp ing ground of the only and original Job for since we have arrived in this accursed island there is hardly an enlisted man in the whole regiment who, at one time or another, has not suffered from an irruptiOn Of painful and disgusting sores which spread over the patients entire body and make him for the time being a misery to himself and an object of repulsive sympathy to his comrades. And here l wish to call attention to the heroism of Private William Osborne who, while In camp, 1d rV~t4 |. 4I.41 rn10 Tn most Vlrulent form. He was covered with sores and boils from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet: yet he was the first to turn out at every alarm or battle and insisted on stand ing his guard every time his company was ordered to the trenches. He would take off his bandages, don his uniform and accoutrements and do his duty with the rest, though when he returned to camp his body and shoulders would be little more than a mass of raw. bleeding flesh. This is courage of the highest type, but, unfortunately. is a kind that rarely obtains the mention 1t deserves. Naturally, those who read this will be somewhat. interested in knowing what are the facilities and accommodations afforded the represent- atives of the Red Cross Society and what the care and attention paid to the volunteer really amounts to. I'm fortunately, I must remain silent when it comes to speaking of our hospital corps. You see, I am an enlisted man and 1t is not seemly for me to criti- cize my superiors. However, there will be an afttrrnath to all this and then things will be portrayed as they really were in the Philippines. There are four men here, however, of whom I can speak, whose names are in the mouths of all and who have obtained f.- ofe~ fAo< f,afS