The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-05-31
Colonel Willard Young Returns to
Salt Lake.
COMMANDED ENGINEERS
RAISED FIRST AMERICAN FLAG
IN HAVANA PROVINCE.
viii Soon Leave For New Orleans to
Take Charge of Important Con-
struction Work-Says the Better
Glass of Cubans Favor Annexation
DIR. McKenna Coming.

With his well-known features bronZe6
by coat of tan, Colonel Willard
Young of the Second regiment of U. S
V. engineers returned to his home in
Zion yesterday forenoon. The colonel
is direct from Cuba, is in the best of
health, and, altogether, has immensely
enjoyed his term in the volunteer serv-
ice. I'VE were in good luck said he,
in being stationed at the choicest
places, and the men were delighted in
carrying on their work"
Colonel Young's commission is one
year old to the day, and that long he
though not in the south the whole of
this time. He was with the engineer
corps in Cuba five months, returning
to Augusta, Ga, in April, where the
regiment was mustered out one month
later.
The coloneTs return to Salt Lake is
not permanent, his intention being to
leave Monday for New Orleans to en-
gage with the National Contracting
company in some extensive construc-
ton work, Colonel Young being man
ager of construction.
Colonel Young, who is a graduate of
West Point, was a captain of engineers
in the regular service a number of
years ago, but resigned his commission
to engage in engineering at home. At
the outbreak of the war he assumed
command of the Second regiment,
which had companies representing nine
states of the union, one being from
Salt Lake.
Raised First Flag.
The Second regiment was the first
to raise the American flag in the prov
ince of Havana Colonel Young being in
command at the time. He naturally
esteems the circumstance as something
of an honor.
The city of Havana according to
Colonel Young, is the oldest of the odd.
1t cannot be compared with anything
in Europe or America, because OF its
peculiarities-
1.-The people of Cuba" said Colonel
Young, ARE in reality in favor OF an
nexation. Especially is this so among
the better classes-the merchants and
other men of business. Not many of
them will openly advocate the policy,
for they retain a sense of Spanish pride
and look earnestly toward freedom.
The lower classes, too, want free gov
eminent, because they have fought for
1t; but, so far as l could see, a great
majority realize that annexation would
be better for the island"
Colonel Young states that the cli-
mate during the stay of the regiment
in Cuba was most pleasant, and very
little trouble from sickness was en-
countered. The summer, spent at Mon
tauk Point was under conditions just
as favorable.
The work performed by the en-
gineers consisted chiefly of building
hospitals and railroads. laying out
camps and constructing water mains.
and as Colonel Young's regiment was
one of three recruited during the war;
an idea of the responsibility and vast
amount of work can readily be formed. |
underwent a much-needed cleaning at
the hands of the Second, and it was
no easy matter to do the thing thor
oughly. Next to Manila" said the !
colonel, II believe Havana was as filthy !
place as our soldiers entered"
Army Beef All Right.
and how about army beef, colonel?" |
ooh, that is all rot-that is, the talk |
about it," the colonel FASTENED to eX-
plain. Our men partoOk of it just the /
same as the others, and it was as good !
as could be expected l believe the |
whole trouble over army provisions
arose from the efforts of sensational
journals"
Colonel Young denied that there is
any foundation for the report that he
is to accept a commission in the regu-
Jar army.
DR.. McKenna returned from Cuba
with Colonel Young and is expected
home today. DR.. +. A. Mecham. who
also was with the engineers, viii re-
main in Havana as major and surgeon,
having had his commission renewed
when the regiment was mustered out.