The Portland daily press., 1898-12-23

to Procure Proper Food--Its ReSt'
ment First to Break Through Span
ish Lines OF Capture Fortified Posi-
ton.
Washington, December 22.-The war
department this afternoon made pubic
two reports of Col. Roosevelt. ON the
fights of the first U. S. volunteer cavalry,
Rough Riders in front of Santiago.
The first report says:
Trenches, Outside of Santiago, July 4,
1898.
Col. Leonard Wood, Commanding Second
Sir:-On July 1st the regiment, with
myself in command, was moved out by
your orders directly following the fSst
brigade. Before leaving the camp ground
several of our men were WOUNDED Dy
shrapnei After crossing the river at the
ford we were moved along and up the
right bank under fire and were held in
reserve at a sunk road. Here we lost a
good many men, including Captain
O'Neill, killed and Lieut. Haskell.
wounded. We then received your order
to advance and support the regular caval-
ry In the attack on the entertainments
and blockhouses ON the hills to the left.
The regiment was deployed on both sides
of the road and moved forward until we
came to the rearmost lines of the regulars.
We continued to move forward until or.
dered charge and the men rushed the
blockhouses and rifle pits on the hill to
the right of our advance. They did the
work In fine shape, although suffering
severely; the guidons of troops and y
were planted on thS summit, though the
first men up were some OF A and B troop.
ers who were with me. We then opened
fire on the entertainments on hill to our
left, which some of ths other regiments
were assailing and which they carried q
few minutes later. Meanwhile we were
under a heavy fire from the entrench-
ments along the hills to our front. from
whence they were also shelled with q
piece of field artillery until some OF the
marksmen silenced 1t. When the men
got their wind, we charged again and
with rush. Swinging to the left, we
then drove the Spaniards over the brow OF
the chain Of hills fronting on Santiago.
BY this time the regiments were much
mixed and were under very heavy fire,
both of shTapnel and from rifles, from the
batteries, ,entrenchments and forts immed1-
ately in front of the city. On the extreme
front I now found myself In command
with fragments of the six cavalry regi-
ynents and the two batteries under me.
The Spaniards made one or two efforts to
retake the lins, but We're promptly driven
pack.
Both General Summer and you sent me
word to hold the line at all hazards and
that night we dug line OF entrench.
ments across our 'front.' using the captured
Spanish entrenchment tools. We had
nothing to eat except what we captured
from tho Spaniards, but their dinners had
fortunately been cooked and we ate them
with relish, having been fighting all day,
We had no blankets or coats and lay by
the trenches all night. The Span1ards at
tackled once In the night and at dawn
they opened a heavy artillery and r1tle
fire. At the end of the first day, the eight
troops were commanded. two by Captains.
three by Lieuenants; two by Second
Lieutenants and one by the Sergeant
whom you made acting lieutenant.
We went into the fight about 400 strong,
SO were killed or wounded and there are
half dozen missing. The great heat
pro strated nearly forty men, some OF
them among the best IN tine regiment.
Haskell, Lieutenants Leahy, D,vereax
and Case were wounded. all behaved with
great eallantry. AS for Captain O'Nei1,
his loss Is one of the severest that could
have befallen the regiment. He was a
man of cool head. great executive ability
and literally dauntless courage.
The guerillas in trees not only 1lred ut
our troops, but seemed to devote them
selves especially to shooting at the
surgeons, the hospital assistants with Red
Cross bandages on their arms, the
wounded who were being carried on
Iitters and the burying parties. Many OF
the guerillas were dressed in green uni
forms. We sent out detail OF sharp
shooters among those in our rear. along
the line where they had been snoouing tne
wounued and killed thirteen.
To attempt to give list of the men
who showed signal yalor would necessitate
sending In an almost complete roster OF
the regiment. Many of the cases wnlcn L
mention, stand merely as examples OF the
rest not as exceptions.
Captain jenkins acted as major and
showed such conspicuous galiantry ana
efficiency that earnestly nope ne may oe
promoted to major as soon as q vacancy
occurs. Captains Lewellsn. Muller ana
Luna led their troops througnou5 'ne
charges, handling them admirably. AU
the end of the battle Lieutenants Aane,
Greenwood and Goodrich were IN charge
of their troops, Immediately under my
eye and / wish PAL aIticularly to commenu
their conduct throughout.
Corp0rals Waller and Fortascue AND
Trooper Mckinley Of troop e, Corporal
Rhoades of troop d, Trooper Albertson,
Winter McGregor and Ray Clark. troop
B; Troopers Bugbee, jackson and Waller
of troop A; Trumpeter McDonald, troop
L, Sergeant Hughes troop B, and Trooper
Geieren, troop @. all continued to light
after being wounded, some very severely.
Most of them fought until the end of the
day. Trooper Oliver B. Norton of B,
who with his brother, was by my side all
throughout the charging, was killed
while fighting marked gallantry. Ser
geant Ferguson, Corporal Lee aid Trooper
Bell and Carroll, of troop K, Sergeant
Dame, of troop e, Troopers Goodwin,
Campbell and Dudley Dean, Trumpeter
Foster of B, and Troopers Greenwood and
Bradchan Of A are all worthy of special
mention for ooolness and gallantry.
They all merit promotion when the time
comes. But the most conspicuous gal
lantry was shown by Trooper Rowland.
He was wounded in the side in our first
fight. but kept In the firing line; ne was
sent to the hospital the next day but left
4