Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1899-11-23

n.
of Panay, where four companies got OIL
| The second battalion and the hrst bat
talon stayed in Manila, and we of the
third battalion are stationed at Cebu,
| on the island of Cebu. When we reached
Iloilo and our boys got off the first Ten
nessee boys who were there got on the
ship with us. They were all hearty
looking boys. They never lost man
until last night. They were on the is
land and the corporal was posting his
relief. and as he was little way off from
the sentry he was shot right through
the stomach and died Immediately. He
was walking his last turn at his post
They brought him aboard the ship that
| day and embalmed him, and are going
| to take him home with them. The Ten
! nessee boys when they came on the ship
each had monkey or parrot. There
are some of the prettiest parrots over
here | ever saw, and monkeys every
where.
We laid at Iloilo for three days, then
sailed for Cebu. We had quite storm
on the way. but we reached here in
safety, and had to drift around in the
bay until morning before we could anch-
or. We laid at the dock all day before
we could get off. We got off about five
O'Clock in the evening, and we lined up.
Company NJ was at the head and the
Others followed We marched up town
about three miles, and by this time it
was dark, and We commenced looking
for place to stay all night. We came
across large empty building, and our
| lieutenants pushed open the doors and
went in and we followed them. We
went inside and laid down our blanket
rolls, guns, haverSackS, canteen and our
belts with hundred cartridges. All
| this makes quite load, and we were
quite tired and hungry. The boys be-
gan to get wood and made a fire, and it
wasn't long before we had a supper Of
| coffee, canned salmon and hard tack,
| but we thought ii fine as anybody's sup
per. After it was all over we laid around
and talked a while and then got ready
| for bed, and we all enjoyed good night s
sleep. We did not dare go far from camp,
| for the coons were picking the sentrieS
off the post one at Il time. When fell
| low is walking his post on a dark night
and can see no farther than about ten
PAGES from him, and all around him is
| thick brush and woods and maybe a
sentry was Just killed before you, you We
| got to have a nerve, and that's no lie.
You've got to keep your eyes open.
The town are in is the third town
| in size on the islands, and 1t is the health
lest place OF all. There is no sickness
nor fever on the island. The first night
we were here we had four men on guard,
and about twelve o'clock shot was
fred. Well, we thought now we're in
for it, Every fellow jumped up with
| gun in hand ready for action TO put the
BoloS right out of business. All at once,
| and when we got down stairs, we found
out that one of the sentrieS had shot at
a pig that ran across his post, and he
swore it was native with white shirt
on. Well, you can imagine how we felt
| after being wakened up out of our sleep.
| We felt like putting him out of business,
but it all Quoted down and we went
back to sleep and slept till morning.
We laid in barracks for four days.
Everything was quiet. An order came
in for seventyfive men from each com
pany to 90 to the mountains TO take the
forts up there. The mountains were
back of the town, and are the highest
mountains in the archipelago. We start
| ed, leaving forty men behind to attend
TO the property, and we marched from
five o'clock in the morning until dinner
time. then we laid off for the balance Of
the day When night came on we be-
gan the march. People can talk of
marches in olden times, but there never
was such march as this. The forts
lay on the side Of the mountains, nearly
at the top. There were about dozen
of them, and we had to march up the
mountains in little paths. Only one
| could 90 at a time, and the natives
would roll big rocks down the hill on US.
| That night and all the next day we were
| climbing the mountains and firing on
| the forts The next night we went to
| sleep on the mountain side, for we were
tired and sleepy. We slept as sound as
| if we were in Il fcather-bed. The next
morning we woke up and began to look
around for some game. We got our guns
and struck out over the hills. Another
fellow and myself went together and in
about a-half hour after we went out we
returned to camp with goat and sever
al chickens. When we got TO camp the
| boys were coming in In every direction
with goats, chickens and hogs, and such
breakfast we did have! We ate that
meal and enjoyed it much better than if
we had been in some fine hotel You
| boys at home can talk, but you don't
know anything. This trip will be re-
membered for many day.
Well. we ate our breakfast and then
we got ready for the charge to put them
out of business, but when we reached
the first fort they had gone. We took
| that fort, and that day we took all the
| forts and killed good many of the in
surgents, and only lost one man and six
wounded. When the sun rose the next
morning old glory was floating in the
air where for many days the insurgents
flag had flown. Spain tried to take these
forts, but they were driven back and de-
| feated with the loss of two thousand
men. We went up there with a hand
full of men, not over five hundred in all.
and only lost one man. When we left
the people in the town bid us all good
| bye for they expected to see us all killed,
for the enemy had such a stronghold
and defeated the SpaniardS. SO that they
said we could never take them. But our
| boys went up there with blood in their
eyes, and with old glory flying over our
heads and the band playing the girl
| left behind me. They couldn't stand
| before our long range guns. | was two
hundred yards off when saw a fellow
jump behind a tree. | SAID to a boy be-
side me, Did you see that fellow get
behind that tree" He said Yes. 3"
well, said |, Watch me bring him
out So | brought my gun up to my
shoulder and cut loose at the tree.
couldn't see the man, but when my gun
cracked the Filipino fell from behind
| the tree and keeled over.
We had a good time, if it was hard
work climbing the hills. We laid in the
fort over night, and then our company
came back 10 town, and the next day
we sailed to another town called Maya
on the same island.
Well. will close for this time. We
are well and hearty and like it very
much. The place where we are is cool
| and nice all the time IL is right along