Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1902-04-17
MUIR DE RER KLINE
Story From Manila of the Act of a
Traitor.
KILLING OF CAPTAIN HARTSHORNE
The Manila Times, Sent to the cour-
Ter by DR.. Harry J. Watson Gives an
Account of the Dastardly Work of a
Soldier.

The Courier is indebted to DR.. Harry
j. Watson, formerly of this city, and
now surgeon with the United States
army in the Philippines, for copy of
the Manila Times, paper published at
Manila, P. l., in which is an account
of the murder of Captain Benjamin M.
Hartshorne of Company M, Seventh
United States infantry, with which
fromer Private Kline, of the First in
fantry, who deserted the ranks and be.
came renegade, is charged by the
men of Hartshornes regiment. The
Times article is by, the we'll known
Roscoe Condin, and is as follows:
Kline, long execrated for the das-
tardly, renegade deserter that his con-
duct marks him, is now charged by
Company M, of the Seventh infantry,
stationed here, with the deliberate
murder of Captain Benjamin M. Hart
shorne, Jr.. at Hermann, January 2. A
graphic account of the deplorable trag-
edy is given by First Sergeant Peter
Lally and members of Company M,who
accompanied the expedition which was
to prove so fatal for Captain, then first
Lieutenant Hartshorne.
The Expedition Starts.
With some sixty men of Company
M, few scouts and los cargadores
Lieutenant Berry, of Company H, Sew
enth Infantry, second in command, the
expedition left here December %, for
an extended march to the south. This
by the way, was the same day that
the i'll fated column of marines march
IoI 1,f of tuN avc' IN
the south of here. Captain Hart
shorne's command arrived at Lanang
without incident, save the terrible af-
Fiction of sore feet without contract
ing which no column can march more
han two days in the terrible mud of
Samar. Finding the marines already
gone up the Lanang river, the column
pushed en- hurriedly 10 the south.
Wild and Hard March.
1t was wild, hard march for the
men, who in addition to the terrible
sores on their feet and legs, had to
march through nasty rain, and keep
in line the long rank of native carga.
dores carrying the rations. 1t is a
fierce task to set for detachment of
sixty men, this watching of long file
of native ration-carriers, while they
are at any moment expecting shower
of bullets from the jungle, or to be set
upon from an ambuscade of bolo rush.
ers." 80
Pushed on in Savage Mood.
So as they marched doggedly in the
rain, their feet aching with the painful
toll of the trail, their eyes on the carg
adores and their ears alert for the wild
yells of concealed boleros, the men
were in savage mood and almost
wanted to curse God and die"
They marched on and on.
Reach Ruins of Hermann.
After the hour of noon they rounded
huge mountain, from which the
beach trail extended straight away a
half mile to Hermann. Nothing was
left of the town but a few charred
stumps of the foundation timbers of
what had once been large collec
ton of roomy nipa houses.
But the men on the point were
cheered by the sight for they thought
that rest was near at hand.
Just at the base of the mountain
was an old shack This First Sergeant
Lally passed with caution, as the cap
tain had advised him to lead the point
carefully when in the vicinity of any
ruins.
There was nothing to show the pres
ence of the enemy, but the sergeant
marched on, carefully alert as the trail
led through dense clump of bamboo
A Fatal Shot.
II When considerably past the ole
shack the sergeant was startled by g
single shot, followed before one could
count three by another.
Instantly the well-trained column
fell upon its belly as a single man.
waiting for an on-rush.
} The cargadores dropped the hard