The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-07-25
IS A DISMAL TALE
Told by a Wichita Boy in the
Philippines.
HARDSHlPS IN PLENTY
But Nevertheless He Wants
No Featherbed.

Another Wichita boy has turned up in
the Philippines. This is A. e Hendryx.
son of Chancellor Hendryx of the former
Garfield university. Young Hendryx has
many friends in wichita Yesterday a
letter was received from him at Catholic
gan, Samar, P. L, dated May s. last.
which tells of the sufferings during a
campaign and the illness of a comrade.
His letter reads:
The steam launch came in a little
while ago and brought two letters from
letters do not reach home. 1 cannot &C
count for it. Your letters drift in occa-
sionally. We, as a company. are station
ed at Catbologan. Just little while ago
the company was divided up into two or
three attachments garrisoning as many
different towns. Yoa perhaps do not
know, not only yourself as we'll as others
in the United States, what a little hand
full of soldiers are doing here. On this
island there is perhaps 1900 inhabitants,
nearly all Of which are in a state of up
rising. At Catbologan the Second battery
is stationed; they have had 80 men killed
and IA disabled. besides the sick in hos
pital, so you see their forces are terribly
cut down. Our company has been the
most fortunate one in the regiment. AS
yet not a man killed, one hopelessly in
sane, three badly wounded ones. One boy
was short clear through the body and
had fourteen bolo cuts on his body. One
other one had the Music Of the left arm
cut in such manner that he will never
use three fingers again. Still another was
struck on top of the head as nearly in
the middle as it could be, besides the
many other cuts For over two months
not well man in this battalion has had
over two nights in bed. Are we working
Have We time 70 write letters? oh. yes,
plenty. AS 1 sit here doing nothing but
writing the sweat pours off my face in a
stream. On the floor lies T. C. deiirious
and out of his head with dangue fever.
Four or five minutes ago in his wander
ings he lead charge on the niggers'
trenches. The water that We drink you
would hesitate about washing your dishes
in. On the march our rations are pork
and bareback. If We stop long enough
We cook the pork, otherwise we eat it
raw. We sleep In the mud. The dawn
of the next day finds US well on our way
The trails are perilous, beseiged by am
bushing niggers, set with footballs and
man-traps. Fights. when they do take
place, are as a general thing hand-to-
hand ones, lasting but a few minutes at
time, but in that time plenty of dam
age is done. So thick in places is the I'M
derbrush over these trails that the light
of Heaven has never rested upon it. One
march L was on 1t took two days Of
climbing to ascend one side of a noun
tain. You march all day and then half
the forces do guard one-half the night, the
other until morning. Many times in the
stiIl hours of the night call to arms"
has sounded, and men half asleep, with
nothing but their underclothes on. cart
ridge belt and gun, have lined up to meet
an attack of oncoming niggers.
Twenty-one men on sick report this
One sergeant, two corporals
and eleven men mounted guard, two men
on kitchen detail. four on special duty,
four absent sick, sent from here a few
days ago on hospital relief boat, making
in all forty-four men on duty or sick IN
one day. So you see our berth is not
bed of roses nor would any of US have II
such. We don't want any feather bed
soldering. When we are ready for a rest
we want to feel that we have earned it.
1t is only fourteen months at the most
and then We can come home and work
in some factory for 81 a week. We took
7. c. TO the hospital. 7 must go up and
see him l have been promoted TO ser
geant, and now that the top IS sick the
duty falls upon me. We can't tell wheth-
er we viii serve our full time here or
not. The probabilities are that we Will
Not very long ago I wrote three letters
describing everything up until after the
Gandera march. You should have gotten
them long go. Now 1 cannot write more
Just now. I want this to go out on this
boat. I Will put in every spare moment
writing. For the present goodbye. With
love and best wishes. Son and brother,
SERGT. 4. Z. HENDRIX.
Forty-Third Inf L. 5. V.