The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-05-16
THE AMERICAN SOLDIER.
REVELATIONS OF CHARACTER on
THE BATTLEFIELD.

Wounded ana the Non-COmbn
ants. as We'll as the Fighters-in-
stances seen by an Eyewitness nj
Malabon.
From the New York Eevning Post.
La Iona. p l., March Sl.-The Ameri-
can soldier is many-sided in his charao-
teristics, bu, il is in battle and in the hos
pital afterward when The strength Of his
character is the best in evidence. He
growls at has food. even when better than
he was accustomed to at home. He grows
when il comes time TO go TO bed at night
and again az reveille. On the march he
growls when ordered to put on his accou-
trements and get ready to move, and /
have even heard him growl when
ordered to take them off again.
All his dOwnsittings and uprisings
are accompanied by comments upon the
reason why. In al my observation Of him
/ am free to say that the only time when
I have seen him move with alacrity and
In apparent mental accord with the au-
thority directing the movement is on the
firing line when the order comes to adj
vance. That seems to be the one partic-
ular thing that best suits everybody. All
complaints and criticisms are hushed
when there is chance to get at the enc
my, and the greatest difficulty the army
has is 10 keep men away from the front
who do not belong there
AT all other times, wherever O group of
men Is found, there also Is found a debat-
ing society, and the very air is impreg-
mated with military wisdom There is not
a soldier in the ranks who is not pre-
pared at any time to give the commanding
general advice, and if one wants to learn
all about what never happened. all he
needs TO do is to walk about the camp and
near the gossip and the hops" that go
from man to man and group to group
But II is about the courage. The forij-
tude', the self-sacrifice, and the tenderness
OF feehng one to another displayed on the
battlefield and in the field hospitals that
l want to write, and / wish | could write
II IN letters OF gold Incidents of the hat
lie of Malabon bring these characteristics
Out with the brilliancy of an e.eetric light.
Rumors and camp stories l will not re-
peat though they are many, and most of
them doubtless founded on actual occur
FENCES, but I viii write only of what 7
saw and know. The names of some of
tnese heroes | know. but because of the
many heroic deeds of others whose names
are unknown and who are entitled TO as
iuh NEED OF praise as those whose acts
come under my own observation | will
give no names, and let the credit go TO the
American soldier as a whole, for in an
army OF heroes no one should be singled
out for special praise.
As the. troops jumped over their braas+-
works and charged against the magnificent
defenses of Malabon. a sergeant who had
become famous in his regiment as a chran-
&c sroWler received a severe wound Two
or MS comrades stopped to help him. and
bound up his wound with first-aid pack
age Inc sergeant grieved at being hit
so soon, and begged the men TO hold him
up long enough TO give him Just one shot
at the enemy and as they were in the
rear OF our own line this could not be
done So telling him to lie still until The
hospital corps reached him to take him TO
the rear, they FASTENED on to overtake the
advancing line Fifteen minutes later the
hospital mencame upon him, and found him
crawling slowly towards the front, drag
ging his gun with him, determined 70 Get
that one shot before his strength gave ont
They put him on a litter, in spite of his
protests, and carried him back 10 the field
hospital, and in a few hours he died. still
mourning his failure to do the work he had
been on special duty until that day. and
this was his first fight.
Not far from him a man of another com
pany was shot through the breast When
those beside him stopped to give him at
tention he objected and said he was all
right aud for them to go on and keep up
the fight. In spite of this they bandaged
his wound and helped him a little 10 the
rear bur he protested that he could go
alone, and finally they left him and has
tened back to the firing line. He was only
boy of twenty, and had been ioked bv
his comrades many times about cod
feet" but now they knew better lie strug-
gled along little farther and came upon
a man wounded in the leg and when
found by the hospital corps, he was do
ing the best he could to bind up the OH
er mans wound. Don't mind ue.n he
said to those who found him. "but take
my gun and belt and help lick those cow
ards behind the trenches in front" But
they did mind him. They placed him ten
Derry on stretcher and carried him to the
rear, but before they reached the field
hospital the young hero was dead.
On the extreme geft an officer with
twenty men advanced up a road covered
by heavy intrenchments from which a
Hank fire was being poured upon The line
storming the breastworks in front This
hre was answered by this little band until
three of them We're killed and five wound
ed. For half an hour they STAYED there
drawing this IRE away from the main
line. until, with the floss of those hurt and
those who had taken the wounded TO The
rear, the platoon was reduced 10 eight
men, two of them wounded. The lnsurrec-
tos saw they were cut off and began aS-
Nancing on them, screened by the brusb
on both sides of the road and the officer
saw that he must withdraw or lose an If
his men. The road was a pike five feel
high aud tlanked on both sides by a bavou
too deep to be crossed. One OF the wound
ed men was shot through the thigh but
could walk a little, but the other. shot In
the arm and neck had lost so much blood
he could not stand up The first one. pull-
ed in front by one man and pushed from
behind by another worked his wav slow
Iy along the edge of the pike up 10 his
knees in mud, the officer bringing IN the
rear and encouraging him at every stem
as Tor the other man, two of his com
rades stood him on his feet and with ono
supporting him on each side. they wall, al
Slowly and deliberately down the road
tu!ly exposed TO the hail of bullets show.
cred upon them, for a distance of 9of