The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-03-26
NOTES FROM SANTIAGO.
-ro MARKSHEN WHO SILENCED 4
SPANISH GTN.

,.r,shooters and Its Terrible Reward.
rio Second Infantry. stationed In THE
.,,0 " werr mach bothered 10y an old muzzle-
''.Ior which the Sraniards had been firing
w., the nearest corner Uf Santiago. Every
Nv" and then a hot shot would he dropped
NV" 10 tbe trenches of the Second. and the
n, mad to dodge didn't like it. Through
A.. glas.es they could easily SEQ the Span
~ wv. och, were standing around and evidently
',trr, over their work. So they sent to the
, H - m. rpgimcntal line with n request that
,.,. Nrjr and Gun Sling Jack" be sent to
'r N tho SyaniardS from the gun that was
yo-r,iue tir"nL
"Tla Angle was a sharp bend in the
,ror,br.. Nh" nearest uoint in tho lines Of the
,e,noI ,,rlr big black gun across the pain.
,to,, Nt,fraul Jack came up. Just as they
..,nel the corner Il solid shot buried itself
T., tho nil slope ten feet back Of the line. The
,mn,,rgrt regarded obviously the hole made
hy the spanish haiL
81 WAS thinking OF wing right about there
.., -iyhtiug shot or tive, However. lightning
,,,or strikes twice in the same place come on.
Jack. " he said.
Iieut. Muir holds army records for shooting.
g., does Gun Sling Jack: the latter. OF course.
under hi, right name, What that name may
/, few Of Us could say without n look at the
ii,., sergeant rnllhook. For one man that
l,,v Jacks real name there were n dozen at
S,,,i,a. who Know him onlv 10y his popular
nrLuamn. Tho nnlrer and the enlisted man
he town together flat on their backs. Then
securing tho Ertg~ letwcen their crossed
Ia, ,bny thr"w The loft hand under and across
no lack or rleir heads. in this way holding
their riNr> Nrm,y in rla,e. This is called the
T,,as crp .Il : invariably used in long-dis-
,.pre shooting. After SON" preliminary squint-
IT,, and two or three tentative shots the
Lieutenant asked,
"Wh,' - you make it, jack
"r.eyru hun irri yards. sir"
'rhal> about 1t. Let il go at that"
one shot which cam" while they were sight
t,r and threw dirt over the pair almost dis
tnrbed their cquauimity. but they soon paid
the enemy well for that. As Il Spanish soldier
wa getting ready t. roll another big ball in at
the black muz2,e pointing their way. the Amer
lean marksnen cut loose. The Spaniard over
tha way waVcrcl for a moment. let slip the
shot, as il reluctant 10 part with it. and then
TOPPED over.
Dead. / guess. I don't know which OF us got
him. but he's landed all right said the Lieut.
enant,
Quickly another mar lifted the shot to roll it
home. He WAS Just as quickly dropped. Six
others tried In load that gun from time to time.
They were picked Of as fast as they stepped
up. To the men behind the American guns it
was Ike target shooting.
Eleven hundred yards. a Texas grin and a
fixed target-this is easy" observed the officer.
pleasantly.
Its a cinch-yust like Sea Grit" grunted
the private. while he waited for the next man
to court death.
But the next man never came. Eight good
men lost. and the certainty that more would go
the same way completely discouraged that
Spanish outfit That night. after a long. lone
deliheration. the Spanish Captain OF the big
gun retired to Il side room in a cafe in Santiago
and blew a hole in his head. He could see no
other way out of it. The Lieutenant and Jack
lowered around the Angle all the next day to
see that the Zig muzzle-loader was not again
brought into the game. Then. getting no &C.
ton from across the way, the pair marched
back TO the left OF the regimental line and
went about their usual duties.
That gun was never again used by the Span
iarts. 1t is now in possession OF the United
htates, among those which are to be made into
hronze medals. they say, for the Santiago vet
Grams. While they are stamping them out they
might mill out a couple Of good-sized ones for
Lieut., Muir and Gun Sling Jack. This would
be approved by the men of the Second. at least.
Whenever any Of the American soldiers went
into Santiago after the surrender there was
always one thing they reported on their return.
That was that Just before you came to the city,
Oh the big oad-the Kings H~ighway-there
was a place where you could get cold beer In
bottles. There was a sign. Ice Cold American
Ip0r in hir lnftnrH n fnAt hirh ~, thN lnFE
hand side going in. Just where the houses be-
Gan to sat close together. and before you got TO
the Spanish hospital. and the price was all
right p cents a bottle. This place. which no
man passed without a halt unless he had not
The price OF a bottle or was q tetotaller. was
run 10y a shrcwd American who had previously
been q mule driver under the Commissary De-
parInent.
he was really an enlisted cavalryman. but
Inc casualties Of war having thinned out the
mui" drivers at a time when bacon, bareback
aha cartridges were prime necessaries at the
'front.' he volunteered to drive mules. His SER
wee expired luSt after he had been wounded
minis commlssary work. Sitting astride his
wheeler one day Il Spanish sharpshooter tum-
oed him OF his perch. leaving his team 10 go
Nnkity-spIlt toward the line in their own err
rh'lr' pulling eiX-ways-at-Once fashion. He
iau been getting $3.50 q month in the cav
AIRY lie might have gone on in the commits
safy service as a civilian mule driver at $50
= Hoh'h is long as they needed him. But
'he steering OF six obstinate. whalebacked
mules over that superlatively rough Siboney
.oa' was not exactly q fascinating out
''N' The novelty had worn off. And this
suing IN a saddle and being popped at by un-
sen parties with close-shooting Mausers and
smoSeIeas powder did not appeal to his cooler
Judgment. 1t was too one-sided for the money.
an" no chance for even a ray OF glory. Only
,He Ooss OF a train knew a drivers worth, and
nv haa no hand in writing dispatches for the
'uo''c orthe DEPARTMENT. Even when he came
ou' Oh the hospital with the Spaniards on the
p,Al OF surrender he saw no sense in his old
.oo' There ought to be. he thought. moro
~'neY IN less trying pursuits. and more es-
ptr'a',y he saw this when he found he had one
s"o"!1er Joint that swung only half way
around.
beioF" coming to Cuba he had been a shipper
:" " rochester brewery. As soon as he got
mo santiago he noted the dearth Of beer in
'""''''y. II" described the situation conciscly
81" d collect cable despatch to his old firm:
y" Deer: ship An answer told him that a
s"'"'"t han been on the way for n week con-
oRutu 10 a Cuban with - E.,,,b ,.n,, ls;o-