Gilpin observer., 1906-12-27


| time, for they, with all their expert
encein such business. had never come
up against anything like it.
Struggle with Big Britisher.
ut was my i'll luck to get hold of a
big Britisher, who was Is or 20 pounds
the heavier, and stood a full head
taller; but while he was trying to run
me through with his bayonet, / had a
chance to get the hold | wanted, and
down we went. Again had fortune de
serted me, for while falling he so con
trived to twist his body that he fell on
| top, and for few moments had quite
as much as | could do to keep pumping
air into my lungs, owing to the grip
he had on my throat.
Now, 1t stands to reason that
didn't lay still SOS to give him good
chance to choke me to death, but wig
gled the best knew how, and, thanks
to some of the tricks | had learned
among the mountains, it was soon pos
sible to roll him over. There wasn't
enough strength left in my body to
keep an upper hold; but over and over
we went until we struck the swamp,
and that which thought would be- the
death of me proved my advantage.
/ I'VE had wallowed in the soft mud
and water until we must have looked
like clay images when let go my hold
to grip him by the head, and. putting
forth every ounce of muscle, managed
! to SO far turn it that his face was
pressed deep into the mud. That took
a good bit OF the fight out of him, for.
of course. he couldn't breathe, and was
trying to yell for quarter, when up
came some of our boys.
1T stands to reason that they
| couldn't make out which man cs me
from England, and grabbed at the first
that came handiest, which just then
happened to be me.
Come up here, you blasted Brit
isher!' the best friend l had in the
regiment shouted, as he pulled me back
by the collar of my coat, and 1 wasn't
much more than half drowned kitten
in his clutch.
Let go Of me. you idjut!' yelled
as soon as 1t was possible to get some
of the mud out of my mouth. Don't
you know your own comrade"
THE Britisher wasn't anybody's
fool. and, Of course. he understood Just
what mistake had been made He
came up on his feet like a steel spring,
and while my comrades were growing
over having captured one of the
enemy. as they supposed. he took 70
his heels, running like deer, with che
mud falling OF of him in flakes ustil
some one saw what kind Of a unifc rui
he wore.
I'm all that squad only a single man
had charge in his gun, and he fired
at the fellow. but it was the widest
kind OF snap shot and the bullet
went wide of course.
by the time l had cleared my face
of mud the Britisher was out OF range,
and perhaps l didn't talk the sweetest
| knew how to the laundering fellow
who had not only lost me a prisoner.
but came very near finishing the chok.
ing which the redcoat had begun.
Final Result Of Battle.
Then the battle was well nlgn
over" my grandfather always said at
this point in his story. and as to the
iScuas VI thc ch6aSSmCHI uc
give me a we'll worn slip of printed
paper from which l could read the fol-
lowing:
Toward noon the fire OF the British
visibly slackened. while that OF the
Americans was unceasing. The bat.
teries OF the foe were crushed and
broken. The sugar hogsheads had
been converted into splinters and their
contents, mingling with the soft earth,
soon lost their volume. The guns not
dismounted were careened and worked
with great difficulty.
"The invaders fed in inglorious
haste, helter-skelter. to the bitches, In
! search OF safety. and. under cover OF
the ensuing night, crawled sullenly
back to their camp, dragging with
them over the spongy ground a part
OF their cannon. leaving five Of them
spoil for the Americans"
In the fight that day the American
loss was II killed and 23 wounded,
while 20 OF the Britishers were found
dead on the field. the greater number
lying near the swamp where the at.
tack on our lines had been made, and
certain 1t is that no less than 30 had
been disabled.