The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1900-04-06
Interesting Letter from a Soldier.


the core. ! am situated where / can
hear most Of the regimental affairs. In
one instance telegram was sent to Col.
Bullard which said: 81 will be COM
PEELED TO court-martial you if you don't
obey orders. You must take fewer
towns and kill less niggers." The old
39th Bull replies: "When these niggers
carry fewer Mausers and more white
flags will think about what you have
said" One Of the colonels said TO Bull
lard, "Don't you understand we have a
good thing here? What do you want to
spoil it for?" Old Bull replies: when
my men are moved into decent quarters
and out of these swamps | will quit
burning towns and killing niggers, but
not till then il have to kill every niger
on this end Of the island"
Some days ago, Quartermaster Ser
geant Votree, Corporal Evans and three
privates from Co. X had been out scout
ing, mile or so from camp, when they
we're suddenly surrounded by about fifty
niggers who seemed intent on taking
them alive. Knowing what their fate
would be they began to fight. The ne
groes saw they were going to have hard
time to take them alive, so they poured
several yolleys into the boys and sew
eral shots took effect At last they
charged and completely hemmed them
in. The rife was only good for club
then and the boys used them to good
account. Votree, from numerous bullet
and gun butt wounds and bruises, sank
to the ground. Another man, few
moments later, dropped. Evans saw it
was useless to carry on the battle, so
made furious break for liberty and
succeeded. Meanwhile at camp they
were wondering why the boys did not
return, At last Sergeant Kelso report
ed to Capt. Green, and the colonel is
sued orders for 70 many men to start
out, and II they gave out others would
take their places At last they found
the bodies OF Votree and one private
nothing more. These brave men were
hacked and butchered almost beyond
recognition. 1t was all too plain they
were cruelty butchered with those hor-
rible knives. Then why should we
show these hellish devils mercy2 What
do we get in return? Our men are
butchered like so many dogs after they
nave SlOOu 81 WI bulOs AOu Ntlh
imagine with what grief their bodies
were taken back to town and buried.
The graves were well marked and map
taken of the place. They had no cof-
fins but were buried in their ponchos,
which was just as good, Next day one
Of the other privates reported and said
he believed they were all killed but him.
Nevertheless, Capt. Green would not
give up and called for volunteers to con-
tinue the search for Evans and the other
man, or at least to avenge their death,
which he amply did Five days and
four nights pass away and still the search
continues. Capt. Green said he would
never give up until he found Corporal
Evans, SO the men continued the search,
and on the morning of the sixth day
they ran across several dead niggers
Somebody yelled, That's Kentuck's
work !" and going little farther they
found some fifty more but they were all
alive and a volley scattered them. There
was sure signs that Evans was around
somewhere, After killing some thirty
niggers the men started in hot pursuit,
when, with yell, some one ran up to
Capt. Green and pointed toward the
mountain. There, on the tip OF gun
barrel, they saw an old hat. They
charged up the hill, drove the niggers
away and entered passage with just
room for one at q time to pass through
and there they found the brave boy, so
weak that he could not stand Capt,
Green had wondered where all the dead
negroes came from, and now he knew.
KnAk.,nl had challc IN hta hnlt
and two niggers for every three shots he
had fired In the five days and four
nights he had laid in that cave he had
two rotten oranges but not drop OF
water. The brave lad of 10 had stood
off 400 niggers and shot two for every
three shots he fired. He will probably
get the second lieutenancy of Co, K, and
glad will every one of us be to see him
with shoulder straps, for he is brave
and wise boy. He outgeneraled them.
They tried to get him out by throwing
rocks from above, but out Of these he
made fort, They tried to burn him
out, but he only put out their fires, then
strengthened his notifications, and when
they tried to fight him out he killed
over fifty of their force. In no way
could they outwit this brave boy from
Kentucky When we made litter and
carried the poor, starved and wounded
boy into camp, everything was deafen-
ing with yells and cheers, and when
they had heard his story the cheers that
went up were tremendous. One of the
| first questions he asked was. "Did any
of the boys escape2" There is yet one
private unaceounted for,
The second battalion of our regiment,
E, F, G and II companies, wirh one
platoon of the 37th and one battery OF
the 9th artillery, marched from Colum-
bia to the east side of the island around
the coast and down to Manila and then
to Columbia, trip of some SO days.
When the boys got back some of them
didn't have on any shoes, hats or pants,
and none OF them whole shirts. A ter
rihle looking set they were. They went
through fearful hardships, 1t is COM
mon for the seth TO be called the North
American Indians, One of the funny
occurrences that often happens is what
the boys call pow wow, The colonel,
the three majors and captains will meet,
and then the boys begin to get ready for
hike or fight; they don't know which
until the officers come out, Ii it is a
fight the boys can always tell by the
dress the colonel has on, If he has an
old ragged pair Of pantaloons, an old
shirt, and his formidable old dieer or
hat, il is tight;if he has on old leather
boots, leather pants, an old leather
hunting coat and hundred rounds of
ammunition around his waist, with =
Krag across his shoulder, it means that
we are going TO be gone several days,
We boys fairly worship our colonel,
He is one OF us, never asks us to do any,
thing he would be afraid to do himself,
A brsver man never lived than Colonel
Bullard, commonly called by us Old
Bull Our captain is another man We
love. A Drawer, wiser or more kind
man was never put over company OF