The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1900-02-20
ENGLISH CAPTAINS TRIBUTE 10
AMERICAN GRIT.
rs CREW BEING AFRAID, STAYED ABOVE
While the American Troops Went Into the To-
ferno of the Hold and Half Submerg-
ed in Scalding Water Work
ed Like Fiends.
Greensboro Telegram,

plry i, Tnirty-frSt Ieglilitnt GUN
tae1s. was with Lieut.. Col. WEBB hayes
battalion Of the Thirty-frst, which was
corried 70 Manila on the transport
NonrenSe. and which had such d mar
ROW ESCAPE from being lost III a typhoon.
Walcutt had written to Il lfleil4 III
Washington. describing tie t errible
voyage. dated Manila, November IS, Is
as follows:
..Guess YOU think it a long time be-
,veen lef1ers. but when you hear how
ne,r came TO never writing another.
Won will forgive me. We got III this
morning. four days over time, with a
battalion Of the most thankful, tired
ont. bruised and burnt men that ever
entered the harboy. We have certainly
had the narowest escape on record ana
= VOYAGE that will never be forgotten.
We were given up for lost, consequent
IL we met Will, a grand reception, ana
| when the commanding general was told
of our trip and What we did. be ordered
Il salute fired IN hOn0r OF the heroes
of the ManuenSe.'
'.AIy God, it seems like a horrible
nightmare to look back upon our eXpe-
| rience Of the past week, and think Of
the deeds of daring and self-sacrlhce
we witnessed. 1t seems incredible that
men did dare to do such things. Ihe
boat we came on is an inferior vessel.
and is known as the 'ROlllnS Moses
Of the Pacific. but is a good sea boat
as you may imagine.
Eve arrived in Honolulu December
3. and stayed until the 9th.
''The first night from Honolulu our
troubles commenced. The electric light
plant broke down. and could not be Tx
ed. We had no light except lard OIL
lamps. that only seemed to intensity
the darkness. We had good water. 50
we bore this small trouble without kick
ing. Next. bang. went the ice ma
chine. 50 overheard went the meat, spoil
ed. Ice water was a thing of the past.
We condensed our drinking water from
the salt wafer. and had to drink 1t hoI
from the condensers: my. 1T was horrl-
bic stuff. but that's another small mat
ter.
..Finally, one of the condensers broke.
and that cut our water supply in two.
so we got about a half a pint of water
a day, but these triiling inconvenience
were borne With complacence.
Then a few days later 1t was found
that the vessel had left Honolulu With
a short crew. The captain Of the YES
sci employed about twenty soldiers to
assist in fixing the boilers, etc. From
day to day the engine broke down. and
would delay Us for 4 few hours until
fixed. and now begins, what in my life
shall always be known as a chapter Of
horrors
The boat sprung d leak, and it was
necessary to detail a compan each
day to bail the water out of the boat;
this old death trap had not even a sue
ton pump on board. and the water had
to be hoisted in buckets, but as the
weather continued good and we held
the water down. We felt but little IN
easinesS.
lon the night of the ODD we hit a
typhoon. or rather it hit us. and it was
something terribly. terribly awful.
Waves mountain high we rode in safety.
hut the boat seemed to be standing on
/ its head and upside down, all the time.
At midnight a new leak sprung, and a
2 hundred men We're called up and put
to work to keep the ship atloat. Our
company was to so on at I O'Clock the
| next morning. SO we did not go on tina,
night. The next morning at 8 O'Clock
D the engine broke completely down. and
I we were at the mercy of the waves; Nc
S way Oh earth to steer the boat, we were
helpless.
G TT fremen deserted their posts Il!
I the water was up to their waists am
gaining. Only a few of the soldier:
q remained by the boilers. At { o'clocl
Captain e. l.. Gilmer came down, strip
ped to the waist. and told us how thing:
were: He said:
boys, it looks like it is all NJ
with us, but there may be a fightin:
chance. The firelncn have deserted tn
fires, ard say it is death TO 60 dow
in the hold, but l am going. and l wan
all of YOU to come With me-.
To a man they responded. "
TO clawled along the deck, holding TO tn
Is ropes, railing and down into the hold
of The water was fonr feet deep and :
10 hot we We're bijstercd all over. ]
10 dashed from. side 70 side, knocking Il
aI over and over. aEI through all Of
I'd we handed coal in water buckets up I
Il the boilers. While others with ropes an
to buckets hauled up water. Dante's Infel
al no could hardly surpass the scene. .5rea
he Kissing boilers. the red glare Of the fire:
wet and shining bodies of the boys. a
to they struggled to hold on TO a piece c
:. lrope and pass 2 bucket Of water aion
an the line.
es Now and then a loose board woul
nd strike a man, or one would he owe
come with heat. All we could do wOul
re- be to drag the injured back to the co;
~ bunkers. We had no time to take thel
IRE back upstairs, for that would stop IL
is. line of buckets. The wind in the ri,
be ging aloof moaned a requiem. and 20
eel could see by the tisht-drawn faces
ith the men that in spite of their workir
est like demons, they were thinking of HON
,ed sweet home, and tears were standing
or their eyes.
Il cannot depict the scene in any W.
that would give YOU any idea of
ln- For six long hours our company worke
then We We're relieved by others. On