The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-10-05
Daily Eagle
NJ M. MURDOCH, Editor.
The American Soldier.

The American Soldier.
The Philippine war; when we have concluded it, will
show from end to end more of soldier to Us
than any other portion OF the with Spain
No one was particularly surprised the spaniards
were at the conduct Of soldier at San Juan
before Santiago The made voun
tary and largely individual advance fortified positions
and took them The attack made in this
unproessiona individually the Aer1-
can soldiers Spanards contenptuousy and
reflection Americans TO stand back IN
fear of The Spanards met the attack eonsd-
erlng plight wonderful stubbornness with
bravery thrice which any American expected The
spaniards Cubans had been harrass
ing years leading them purposess chases They
were the same spanards told were afraid to
give the Cubans open battle But they US bravely The
soldier rushed them and captured them be-
cause he believed should that it beneath his
dignity employ ordinary sraegical methods
before so poor object spaniard It the holiness
of the thing audacy the Il can't be beaten feeling
that made the victory 50 sweeping before Santiago.
But all understood this American soldier and
pected it OF him
In the Philippines it has entirely different There
have been hndrances which prevented this display of deter
mining dashes and conclusive throtng The
Filipino has turned against soldier the dis
quieting nerve-shang weakening instruments of evasion
ambush dodge night attack The trails have
been poor faint oblterated Victory promised
tcuar decoration of glory to the The only real
sensation possible Philippine Islands would be
american defeat However crushing Filipino defeat might
be- no great glory would descend upon heads of the boys
ba ovillin eX
change their feet slippery enemy with uniform
a command battlefield There has never
been in tn Philippines that there
was against spaniards Cuba The soldiers have had TO
hammer away through the and boys and under
brush after an enemy stand The gratifying
feature of 1T all is that proved military worth
present generation Of nation fully much if not
more than the Cuban campaign soldier who stands
and waits and get enemy to stand
against is greater danger of becoming incompetent
military gets chance to fight and
lights But the soldier of present day. under
stress delay detention holds the fine edge of his
nerve as evidenced Philippines
Recently Aguinaldo called on the Americans holds
prisoners lie shook hands with three of these
Americans The three refused They with
a full knowledge they DEATH the
Fipnos had it in his execute them
refusal took wonderful degree of to
they could easily to their
of honor courtesy handshake But,
the other hand they thought it would crnge
before the rebel they refused They felt above him. superior
him, when he held their lives in his hands and
little diplomacy might be the thing the world.
However they only evnced the American military feeling
that we bow to one; that whip the world.
This may be all 1t be bumptousness. 1t
be chauvanism But it is the American military feel
ng always been-the of invincibil
y. 1t is the thing which whole army simply
is held conviction independently by
individual soldier bring disastrous defeat
day. 1t has brought nothing victory
field Of victory the Russian soldier thinks
won;" the English soldier won;" American
soldier, II