The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1899-03-04
AN OLD CAMPAIGNER,S WAY,

Armed with glnny sacks, we slipped out
of camp and stripped the trees. On our
way back we encountered a volunteer
surgeon, one Of those who had started the
anti-mango campaign.
Men, said he cycling our loads, what
have you got in those sacks?'
'Mangoes, said the regular.
The surgeon looked panied. He gave
us long lecture and warned us that If
we ate thereof we would surely die.
Then, seeing that he had not made any
serious impression on us, he asked:
l. - DO: you know where there are any
more of those to be found?' 80
my companion grinned.
Why, captain he said, you wouldn't
eat 'cm II you had EN- y
Certainly not said the surgeon, but
I'd Nike some for my horse g sF
Do you mean that fine bay that saw
you riding. STRIP said the regular. Why,
just think. captain dear That animal
must be worth all of $40, Mexican 1t
would be profiigate to slay him, sir.
with that we ,saluted, shouldered our
sacks and marched on. '"'> 80 u -
If we were in Santiago argued the,
regular, and eating half-ripe or over-ripe,
stale mangoes, we might easily kill our
selves. But a few fresh, ripe mangoes,
picked from the trees and eaten before
sunup and after shutdown, are just the
medicine that bacon-eattng soldier
needs - &E3@%
And through the campaign ate them
by that prescription and felt NO ill-effec1s
'One day, on my way back to camp.
after bath in the river, came across a:
regular I knew. He was threshing:
cherry tree. We had all noticed the wild
cherries, but our doctors had pronounced,
them poisonous. The regular evidently
intended to poison whole regiment, for
he had gunny sack filled with the big
green cherries and was rapidly filing an:
other. In answer to my questions, he
said:
These are what the Cubans call mar
mosinas, or something that sounds like!
that They should be eaten raw before
breakfast, like an orange, and they'll
save you from taking calo1nel and filing
your bones with mercury: They are so
sour that many of them will quicker your
mouth and skin your tongue, and they'll
cut the bacon fat in your insides. Boil
them down to paste with water and SUI
gar, and you'll have the finest of apple
butter to spread on your hanback,
II took no more physic, and had wild
cherry butter during the balance of the
campaign. :,
Zone day I was on the water detail It
| was a two-mile walk to the river and
back. My bunkie and I got separated
from the rest of the detail. Just as we
were starting back, loaded down with
twenty full canteens apiece. my chum in
the regulars came along. He told us to
empty the canteens and he'd show us a
| trick. He had machete, and went into
| the thicket and cut down a big bamboo.
tie cut of section about six feet long.
plugged one end, filled it with water, and
! then plugged the other end Ny bunkie
and took opposite ends and shouldered
| It, The bamboo carried more water than
the canteens. and was light and easy to
carry The regular carried the empty can
teens into camp for U.s. A little later one
Of our men stole a pack nalle that was
| estray, and It was detailed as water car
rier, d
"W'hen we moved from San Juan Hill
around the San Juan Ridge to Misery Hill
the truce gave us an opportunity to try
and make ourselves comfortable My
bunkie and I put up our shelter tent,
f1oored it with planks and spread our
blankets ON them. We were felicitating
ourselves ON the fine job we'd made Of it,
when along came my friend of the regu-
lars. We showed him round the prem
ises and then waited for compliments.
Yes he said, "tis a fine Job. and
the planks will come handy to make your
collins, for won't see you buried in can
vas If they'll give me time to knock to-
gether boxes for you. The man who
wants to live in this climate must sleep
two or more feet off the ground. and the
ground under his bed must be shaved of
grass, and the sun must shine under it
every day.
'"Then he stopped talking and took hold.
He showed US how to make hammocks Of
our shelter halves. There was no rope.
He went out into the :hicket and cut
young saplings He stripped the bark in
| long, narrow slips and twisted the slips
into ropes. When these had hung in the
sun and dried they'd hold a ton. Then he
swung our hammocks and we swung our
ponchos over them to keep off the night
dews. There was but one night rain dur
ing the campaign.
| other incident. I was out with a regular
after dry wood for fires, and we found a
dismantled sugar mill. There was no
| roof to the mill and neither Of us had a
poncho. While we were busy gathering
the wood the afternoon shower came up.
There was no shelter at hand. so made
up my mind to endure soaking. Now.
the rain in Cuba usualy comes straight
down with no slant. Among the debris OF
the sugar mill there were couple OF
square planks about two feet each way in
size. The regular told me to stand at at
| tention, and then balanced one of thes>
square boards on my head. Then he fol-
! lowed suit with the other board. The
rain lasted half an hour and there we
stood throughout it. facing each other and
| chdnning as comfortably as you please
! When the sun blazed out again there
| wasn't wet garment on me, and at my
! feet there was square foot OF earth that
was powdery dry. J
1T was a short campaign, but 1t would
take me year to tell all the little labor
saving and ;ife-saving tricks l learned
/ rom the regulars" New York Sun.
i