The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1899-08-02
sTORY OF THE FIRST SLOT
It Is Told by the Soldier That Fired It
at Manila.

at Manila.
San Francisco, Cal, Aug 2-William
w. Grayson, who enlisted with a Ne
braska regiment, but whose home is in
st. Louis-the man who fired the shot
which started the war with the Fill
pinos-landed from the transport Han
cock. Grayson's shot brought death to
a Filipino lieutenant, who had been
looking for trouble for two weeks. The
shot was fired at Santa, Mesa, a suburb
OF Manila.
Private Grayson tells the story as
follOws: Il had been doing outpost
duty for some time, and was getting
rather used to the strained situation.
There were four of US on duty at the
post in daytime, and the guard was
doubled at night. We knew it was COM
ing, and we all wondered who would be
the man to fire the first shot. That
night my companion on outpost was
Orville Miller During the day I had
a talk with a Filipino lieutenant. He
told me that would have to keep back
farther. You see, they were encroach-
ing on our territory every day, and be-
cause we seemed to stand for it, they
got brave and impudent.
Il told the lieutenant did not 'savvy.'
Miller and I walked down to the end of
the lane, so that our retreat would be
covered in case we had to fall back.
We were half sitting, half kneeling at
the end of the lane when we heard the
soft whistle of the Filipino 1t was an
swered by several other whistles, and
Then from the Filipinos' block house,
No. Z, we saw a. red light waving in
some kind of signal. We turned our
gaze back to where the whistle came
from, when up rose a Filipino as if he
had come out of the ground. 1 chal-
lenged him and he challenged my chal-
lenge. That meant fight. I heard the
click, click of rifles, and without a mo-
ment's hesitation 1 let fly, and my i'm
pertinent Filipino tumbled over
Miller and took to our heels up the
lane. Two shots rang out as we ran,
and when we had got back about TWEEN
ty-five yards two Filipinos blocked our
path.
They were inside of our lines, but
they challenged US.
-" 'Shoot!' I cried to Miller and a sec
ond later there was a dead Filipino. In
another second had brought down my
second Filipino My first, I think, was
the lieutenant who had given me lip
in daytime. I think I killed him. I do
not know, but I think he got it right.
I'VE retreated until we reached pipe
line. That was the water main, and it
made a fine breastwOTk, and we needed
it. The Filipinos kept firing at US all the
time. The entire outpost-there were
thirty of us-cane into Pipe line and
we all peppered away at the enemy.
Then the action spread from right
to left, and in fifteen minutes the en-
gagement was general from CalOocan
to the bay. The boys on the outpost
had it in for those fellows. They had
shot Colonel Stotsenburg two weeks be-
fore and we were laying for them. We
did not have a high opinion of Colonel
StOtsenburg when we started out. We
thought that he was needlessly strict,
but there was mighty gloom over the
regiment when he was shot.
1.-The whole army was waiting for that
shot that fired, and when it came they
were ready for it. The FiIipinos were
just little short of being prepared.
Another night and they would have
been nicely fixed for US Everybody
seemed to be satisfied with the shot,