The Van Buren press., 1898-10-08
From St Louis Republic.

and the victory was won the American
flag hoated from the Spanish block
houses and the fate of the Spaniards
was apparently sealed 50 far as Santiago
was concerned at the very moment
Shafter thought his army was with
drawing from the field,
General Joe Wheeler was in com
mand of the troops that went up San
Juan Hill and there were Bates. Kent,
Roosevelt and Young and other gallant
officers, who eagerly led the charge
when it was ordered. The fight had
been raging for hours. the American
soldiers were at an awful disadvantage,
but fighting with a desperation that
meant certain victory if given anything
like fair chance. There was but one
chance. To stay where they were
meant to be shot down like sheep.
The only avenue of possible escape was
up that open hillside, down which
rained merciless of fire of Spanish
bullets.
Shafter, the commanding general of
all the forces, several miles in the rear,
was watching the battle through his
couriers with the deepest anxiety.
Crushing as it might have been for him
to do SO, he finally concluded that the
only way to save his army to fight
another day was to withdraw it, get a
better position and recuperate for a
final struggle, which he evidently
thought. il made at that time, would
go against him.
1t was then that he sent his private
orderly. Williams, as told in The Re
public week ago, with the order to
Wheeler to withdraw his forces and re
treat to distance out of reach of the
Spanish guns.
The orderly reached General Wheeler
at a critical moment, and he held
hurried conference with subordinate
officers Immediately about him. 1t was
decided to disregard the order of the
commanding general. That in itself
took quite as much courage az it did
to fly in the face of Spanish bullets.
but it was one of those extreme oc-
casions when to hesitate was to be lost
Wheeler did not hesitate nor did his
men. The word could not be given
any too quick for those daring Ameri-
cans, many of whom were under fire
for the first time. The word was given
and the result will ever be glorious
memory to Americans.
After the battle was over General
Shafter made his official report OF how
he had killed the bear and never an
allusion was made as to how the vic
tory came to be won. But this did not
satisfy the popular mind, who still held
in memory the fact that General Shafter
ordered retreat only few hours
before the glorious victory. Inquiry
was made, yet the iron clad seal to ut
terance kept the secret down.
Speculations have been rife as to the
reports. but no solution of the whole
situation has been gained until after
the muster out of the forces and the
men We're allowed to tell the story for
themselves. 1t has already been known
that Shafter ordered retreat, and
there was no getting out of it, but why
did the army charge instead, or who
had the audacity to disobey the gen.
eral s command? Some said there was
a misunderstanding of orders, others
said the news never reached the firing
line, while still others had different
solutions to offer
The first revelation was made through
Orderly Williams, rs stated, and in
full support of the orderly's declar-
ations, but more in detail now comes
Captain McGinnis of Co. |, First
United States Volunteer Cavalry, who
passed through Union Station Friday
night Captain McGinnis lives in
Newkirk. Ok. , and was on his way
home when seen by reporter In re-
viewing the situation, he said.
Il have been discharged from the
army, and am no longer amenable to
the commands of the war department,
and suppose there is no reason why
the whole truth should not be known
Let credit go where credit is due would
he my policy, and have no hesitancy
in laying bare the facts as to the charge
up San Juan Hill which has caused so
much agitation the whole country
over.
From the beginning of the bloody
conflict to the end General Shafter re-
manned so far in the rear it was
hardly possible for him to be thoroughly
posted as to the demands of the hour.
Often his orders were so slow in coming
it was impractical to heed them, bat
he was apparently as alive to the situ-
alton as one could well be at his dis
tance from the actual conflict.
During the day, while we were
lying at the foot Of the hill. with the
Spaniards in their trenches at the top
of it, pouring their deadly FIRE into Us
like molten hail, General Shafter could
see from the distance that we were
getting the worst Of the deal Still he
stayed in the rear. and never an order
20 charge the enemy came. BY hun