The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1901-02-17

oeen. We nad lor olnnefs lFled sweet
potatoes. bacon, rice, coffee, bareback
and canned tomatoes.
I'VE were in a country now different
from that which we had come from IN
stead of bamboo houses, they were made
of boards roughly sawed from pine trees.
the natives were different; they wore
hardly any clothes. their hair was long.
and they were large and well built; sweet
potatoes, rice and roots were what they
chiefly lived on. There were plenty Of
wild hogs IN the hills. After dinner we
started on, went about 800 yards and had
to cross river, then took trail around
the side Of a big mountain. This was
sure a bad trail We Travelled for about
three hours through a jungle which was
so thick with bamboo, vines and other
vegetation that you could hardly see the
trail in front Of You. and I had about
come to the conclusion that we were
never going to get out when we came to
an opening on the top OF a email hill. I
could look down one way for three or
four hundred feet and see the creek as
II would jump over the rocks and at last
run over a water fall about twenty feet
from the bottom. We could see the bario
in which we were going to stay all night,
about three-quarters of a mile away, so
we hurried on and came into a larger
clearing as we got further down the
mountain; here were three large orange
trees loaded down with the finest oranges
ever saw-some of them were six inches
/ through. It was all three men could do
to eat one. AS we were in front Of the
column that day we got all we wanted.
At last we got into town, and four ether
boys and I got US house in which to
sleep and cook. We got two chickens
and a lot of potatoes and had fairly a
good supper Next morning. the 10Th. We
were up early. and on our way. We had
by this time four men on a stretcher who
had got overheated. The 10Th was a day
of wading the river. The first time we
crossed it was at about 7:3O o'clock and
the weather was chilly. We waded it up
to our neeks. The next time we waded
it We had to put a rope across SO we
couldn't wash away. We crossed the
river this way four or five times and it
got so swift and broad that we had 70
take to the hills once more. At Y O'Clock
we came to a large bario The people
here had never seen white man before
and they didn't know what to think Of
US. Their weapons are long handled
spears and tomahawks or battleaxes.
They met us as we came in town and
welcomed US. We ate dinner here and
started over a large mountain, here we
had to take an axe and cut the brush
away TO make trail 1t was up, up, up,
for about 1000 feet and hard climb We
lost eight or ten horses on this hill It
was raining and the trail was wet and
slippery. About eight o'clock some Of us
got into the town, but all corrigidors. the
sick men, and most of the column had
to stay on top ali night in the rain and
cold as it was so wet and the air so
heavy that they couldn't get a pine torch
to burn. and if they had tried to come
down in the dark some Of them would
have run off bluff and never have been
heard Of again. was lucky enough to
get into a good warm house by a pine
fire. After supper I laid down on NY
blankets as close to the FIRE as 1 could
get and slept good all night Next morn
ing 1t was raining and everything outside
was wet. We had a pretty good break
fast, but we didn't have any coffee About
s o'clock the rest of the column, and the
sick men came in. After they all had
breakfast the lieutenant, who was In
charge Of US. got orders from the colonel
that we thirty who were mounted were
to come back and bring the sick men
with US. and he was going to take the
other 100 men and push on further into
the mountains, so, in about one hour, we
started back over the trail over which
we had Just come. We had harder
time going back over the trail than we
cid coming. The sick men were getting
worse. We reached Ba1boloson Mt. for
dinner on the oath The night before I
had shot hog and boiled ham, so we
had cold ham for dinner. While we were
eating one Of the sick men died.
after dinner we started down. Here
we took a different trail than the one
we had come I'D. It was a hard trail.
but one day shorter. Christmas eve,
about p M, we reached a bsrio at the
foot of the mountain, twenty-seven miles
from Bangued We had for supper
chicken and rice. and the same for break
fast. Christmas morning, at daylight. we
once more started. as we wanted to get
into Banquet that night. All forenoon
we Travelled down a river. crossing II
thirty-fve times, and at noon stopped
in very small bario. The lieutenant
said, Boys. we will only stop about
twenty-five minutes. so you won't have
time to cook anything But my partner
and I put on pot Of rice. which vas
ali we had. and let it cook about ten min
utes. then took It off It was not done.
but soft enough TO eat-this was our
Christmas dinner. We marched fast that
afternoon, and at dark were at a town
within three miles of Rang7Ted. The 3sth
L. s Y. were doing garrison duty there.
There were seven Of Us played out when
we got there so we were left. We went
to one Of the companies for rations and
the captain went with us. He told the
quartermaster-sargea to give Us all we
could eat. They opened canned peaches.
and gave Us mashed potatoes. salad. bis
cult cooked canned peas. cake. canned
beef. coffee. and we sure ate all we could.
7 have never been treated 50 nice since
7 left home as was by those boys. The
next morning we came 70 Banquet.
have been on sick report ever since snd
I don't think I viii be able 70 DO duty
for some time
The boy We brought in dead. was brr-
led yesterday. and there IS &c be another
buried today.
Il Rad a harp on the trip that NJ J.
J. Fegtly sent me: played il Up IN that
country. and the niggers would all sathe~
around to hear it; they don't know what
70 think q t. All the chiefs wanted K
end some tried 20 trade ne out q Il
We were gone eleven days. and yau can't
think how nice Il was 70 get back ana