The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1898-09-17
7HAPLAIN'S ORDEAL.
MIC STORY OF his EXPERT
INNS ,.rc IN SANTIAGO CAMPAIGN.

w h in that city. The more inter-
a ,Dn narts of the story are as follows:
"! ,eTbe = very first thing that I want to
- vou," said the chaplain, after
ny . ;u%tsSrcchsngS' Of greetings, lis about
- i n'Smbers of your own craft, The
nS , m men at the front deserve
,sp much credit as the soldiers. At all
lim r they we're willing and ready to
lu Jar eTery aid in their power and
, 'at Nd with every inconvenience. =,
P4 SON On June 80 was sunstruck while
.,;or the wounded, carrying water
a III iSood, and was ordered to the hos.
si.al At siboney by Lieutenant Colonel
R Eaa,s' commanding our regiment.
T T.' jsvs later, on July l, while still
L : .Ss hospital, I heard of the fighting
, = he front, and, thinking that it was
", n'I Jntv to be there, and feeling we'll
.,orpb to make the journey, I walked
~ sn' sigbt miles to the firing line. This
~ ~, in the morning, and all that day
/ rrorksd with the doctors, helping
4 ham with the wounded.
~ ~ had been at this all day, and at
,bout 4 o'clock in the afternoon l
made made nv way to small clump of trees,
,ssr which there were some wounded
nsn in the endeavor to cool off bit,
br I was still suffering slightly from
lSs aFscts of my sunstroke aud the
nm had been too much for me. At
his time I was about half q
nile behind our firing line, which
4 ~ about a thousand yards from the
,aemv. I was facing the firing line
md heard nothing coming, nor did 1
zee anything 1t is impossible for
ma 10 tell how I was hurt, but the
peut thing l knew I was regaining
Consciousness. l was lying on my
left side, and at first ] was sure that
nv right arm was broken I sat up
md began feeling myself all over in
4 aaaed sort Of way, trying to find out
vhersI was hurt. My first sensation
vas that Of loneliness. Oh, I thought,
/ c only had some one to talk to. 1t
vas terrible feeling that of thinking
That was going to die all alone there
With no one about. l tell you I was
nightly scared.
"Well, l looked down and found
Ihe front of my shirt all torn away
ndmy exposed chest mass of dirt
and blood. l was all shaken up and
pretty sore, but soon discovered that
Il Twas not badly wounded. All this
lime had been thinking Of the brew
l iBOf human life and of how uncer'
lain it all is. So, as 1 was saying,
concluded that I still had fighting
chance, and getting on myfeet, started
offOr Siboney.
Never, even should I live to be q
thousand years old, will l forget tina
sight-mileewalk," continued the chap
lain. 'There were some 700 or 80(
men on that road, wounded in every
possible manner, all with but the one
thought, to get back to the hospita
1t Siboney. Had they been uniniurec
They would have been in the from
tank, but now they we're actuated b.
that one thought, to get to the rear
There was but one ambulance, and
sat had to be dragged by men, as thu
mules we're transporting ammunition
10 the front. The consequence wa
that the wounded were compelled t.
,gOlt on their own hook, with sucl
assistance as they could give one an
other,
by the time I reached the ROAD
night had fallen. The moon was par
tally out, and by its half light tn
poor fellows could be seen dragging
themselves along as best they could
Here and there a man had dropped a
'ne side of the road and was feebly
calling for water. Some of the men
most OF them in fact, had been with
out water or, food for over thirty-si;
hours and their suffering was fearful
"As went along giving what as
distance I could here and there, th
a8ht made an impression on my mine
mat shall never forget. Words can
a0f describe it. Why, one poor fel
pS land here the tears came to th
aaPlain'S eyes, chad been struck b,
exploding shell; his right foot wa
gone, and his leg, from the knee down
vas nothing but o mass of pulp
ae mad gotten q comrade to cut
%anch from tree, and this he ha'
OOuad about the stump with wisps o
SsS' so thatthe leaves dragged alon
ae ground and protected the wound
ana 50 rugged up, that man dragge'
IaSef over those eight miles on al
'OTs de took twelve hours to do it
SIaWhen he reached the hospital too
" place at the end of the line o
aOut 600 wounded without murmu
y complaint. When the doctor
Sano him, as they did in going alon
~ lIpe looking for the worst case
1'Sas calmly chewing on the end @
pug OF tobacco. The doctors al
:au that he had no excuse to be liv
W. and that he ouoht tn have die