The Washington herald., 1913-09-28

guns; the two not getting together for
several days after one of them had been
landed. Soldiers went here. provisions
there; and who got ashore first largely
depended upon individual activity.
Fortunately for us, my former naval
aid. when had been Assistant Secretary
of the Navy, Lieut.. Commander Sharp, a
| first-class fellow. was there in command
of little ship to which had succeeded
in getting him appointed before left the
Navy Department. HeSgave us a black
pilot, who took our transport right in
shore, the others following like a flock
of sheep; and We disembarked with our
rifles, ammunition belts, and not much
else. In theory it was out of our turn,
but IL We had not disembarked then,
heaven only knows when our turn would
have come. and We did not intend to be
out OF the fighting IL We could help 1t.
1 carried some food in my pockets, and
light waterproof coat. which was my
sole camp equipment for the next two
or three days. Twenty-four hours after
getting ashore we marched from Dali
quiri, where we had landed, to Siboney,
a on the coast. reaching 1t during a
terrific downpOur of rain. When this
was over. we built a fire. dried our
clothes. and ate whatever we had brought
with US.
ounE and Chnnee.
We were brigaded with the First and
Tenth Regular Cavalry, under Brig. Gen.
Sam Young. He was a fine type OF the
American regular. Like Gen. Chaffee.
another of the same type. he had en-
| tered the army in the civil war as a
private. Later. when l was President.
it was my good fortune to make each of
them in succession Lieutenant General
of the army of the United States. When
Gen. Young retired and Gen. Chaffee was
to take his place, the former sent to the
latter his three stars to wear on his first
official presentation, with a note that
they were from Private Young to Pri-
Yate Chaffee'
The two fine old fellows had served in
the ranks, one in the cavalry, one in the
infantry, in their golden youth. in the
days OF the great war nearly half CEN
tury before; each had grown gray in a
lifetime of honorable service under the
flag, and each closed his active career
in command of the army. Gen. Young
was one OF the few men who had given
and taken wounds with the saber. He
was an old friend OF mine. and when in
Washington before starting for the front
he told me that if We got in his brigade
he would put us into the fighting all
AAbAA. AAS hNBb hAo "NAAa
Getting Into the Fight.
Gen. Young had actively superintended
getting his two regular regiments. or at
least a squadron of each. off the trans
ports and late that night he sent us
word that he had received permission to
move at dawn and strike the Spanish
advance position. He directed US to move
a
rons Zone squadron having been left at
Tampa). while with the two squadrons
Of regulars, one of the First and one of
the Tenth, under his personal super
vision. he marched UP the valley trail
Accordingly, Wood took us along the hill
trail early next morning. till we struck
the SpaPiards, and began our fight just
as the regulars began the fight in the
valley trail.
II was a mountainous country covered
with thick jungle, a most confusing
country, and had an awful time trying
to get into the fight and trying TO do
what was right when in Il: and all the
while l was thinking that l was the only
man who did not know what was about
and that all the others did-hereas, as
found out later, pretty much everybody
else was as much in the dark as ] was.
There was no surprise; we struck the
Spaniards exactly where We had expect
ed then Wood halted us and put us
into the fight deliberately and in order.
He ordered us to deploy alternately by
troops to the right and left Of the trail.
giving our senior major. Brodie, d West
Pointer, and As good soldier as ever
wore 4 uniform. the left wing. while
took the right wing. ! was told II pos
Sible to connect with the regulars who
We're on the right
In theory this was excellent, but as
the jungle was very dense the first troop
that deployed to the right vanished
forthwith, and l never saw il again until
the fight was Over-having a frightful
feeling meanwhile that / might be court
martialed for losing IL The next troop
deploved TO the left under BrOdie. Then
the third came along. and | started TO
deplCy il to the right as before.
BY the time the first platoon had got
ten into the jungle l realized that II like
wise would disappear unless l kept hold
of ii. / managed to keep possession of
the last platoon. One learns fast in a
fight and l marched this platoon and