Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1899-07-28
Was at His Side When Pierced by
a Filipino Bullet,
DIED LIKE BRAVE SOLDIER.


The details " the manner lu which
Sergeant Ford Fisher, OF Battery %.
Utah volunteers. lost Bile ufa have not
yet been fully published Tho follow
ing excerpt from IL private letter from
one of the boys" who was with him
in the nght Ia which Dc was killed,
furnishes some interesting particulars.
The letter. which bcars the date u May
a2nd. appears to have been delayed In
transmission:
~ have passed. believe, throueh
the most vivid experience ot my NE.
ON tho night VI tho olehth yolun-
terrod. Win tive other mUu, Co join
the crew OF the Cuyailnf1, o. moager-
iy armor river craft which was
under orders 60 attempt au uutiel
route into the cnomy.H country up Tho
BIO GrIulo dU IumpbuHH rlNvr
''rhn CoNudunru o. under thn come
Wuul VI Lieut. webb. 10 Boz u craft that
draws three and half feet of water.
tho urmlr that ia supposed t1 stand
between the lives OF the gTrW and th'
vuoWy's bullets ~ 3-lb ri an iuch
thick. 10 De- equipped with two Calling
guns. and barrel revolving liutch-
kiss which iurchcH explosive One
Founders on the first day out. near
tho mouth of the pumpanga, We stood
Tor eight hours, on large plat Of the
highest terra huun In Manila bay.
When the tide went down We were %
far from land that We had TO use
microscopes to discover water and Tho
men rallied on the Tugula pilot until
hlH face blcachcd. We We're able TO jar
loose when the waters rose.
Accompanied by the t.agunn dc Bay
an NFH until
reached The town bridge. which crosses
tho river ut Calumplt. The troops were
ALREADY IN possession here. aud We
had ACCOMPLISHED the first object N
our misslou-thc discovery Of new
route for the transportation Of sup
Fighting followcd-higher up the
river hahunE Of the variety where
mon hru point blank m each others
fuCHH=whoro the enemy Is 20 close
that you can sec the glrlm N dcnpcr-
ate terror or resolve IN his eyes. Tho
CovndJnga FIRST lufchcd into tho
enemy We were sent on rccunuln-
torlng tour 90 put out "a fcclcr Tor tho
lurking Insurgents The order was not
90 nro unless fired upon, About uvn
miles above Calumplt near San
Louis. We could see occasionally the
stoalthy form Of a Tngula warrior. An
along tho left bank was "a line NJ the
wonderful Filipino entertainments. Tho
UntchkisH gun, % which I was assigned
ns feeder. Dr. az the bow of the boat.
fronted by armor plate four feet hirh.
high.
Sergeant Ford Fisher was In charge
Of the guns. Lieut.. webb sat In the
bow pcorluE along the shore through
his glasses, Sergeant Fisher Corporal
MarEetta and myself leaned over tho
forward arnor watching the shore.
suddenly as we turned curve In
the river We saw long Ia, ~ yellow
hats and a hundred rifles pointed az
the boat. They were hardly thirty
yards away. 1 saw Fisher make a Hid
den gesture aud call out "a quick
warning 10 the lieutenant As he ala
20 There. was "a Titanic noise and the
vollcy came. Fisher rcclcd barq
pierced through the brain with bull
let Then the bow gun spoke and the
Gntlings oluttcr and bullets hailed
against the nrmur The "cuvn'
wheeled around and, with an guns ana
Gftoen rifles bclching IN unison ripped
the Filipino cutrcnchmcnt In fifteen
minutes tho last of the torn and
terrified Flllnlnos had disappeared.
Fisher died Just aH the battle
ended. / cannot remember "a Hlddvr
moment In my life than when We saw
the giant sergeant taken from ua.
/ Hig-hcnrted and hig-souled was
Fisher. ana IN battle ho was dauntless
~ "a Scottish chief. lie was the bold
est among brave men, the "hghtinE
rorFeanr-the giant sycamore ot the
battalion. besides that he was one Of
my dearest friends"