Saturday news. (Watertown, S.D.) 19??-19??, 1913-06-05
The Hopkins Letters
From the Philippines

Note-This is an extract from a let
ter written BY me shortly after the
arrival Of our regiment, 1st South Da-
kota. at MaloIos.
\ cannot do a very good job of writ
ing for ! grow nervous and the same
choking sensation comes to me now
that came to me every morning at the
time when the bullets first commenced
TO whistle and send up little spurts
Of dust around us, 1t is not exactly
fear, but a sort Of indescribable feel
ing which is gone otter the first shot,
and then comes the battle joy and the
lust for carnage which is the savage
element of man. In these moments
one does not care who is struck down
around him. His dearest friend may
fall and still&h he will push on and will
tramp over the bodies of the dead
and dying enemy with no more thot
or feeling than as though he stepped
OF a lizard. | have talked with q
5OSN RAJ NJ lAC bOJ6a anu iilu that
their experience was similar to mine.
/ happened to look around once Or
twice during one OF the charges, and
while / did not notice it then | re-
member it now-the expression on the
faces of the men in the presence of
death! Some had their teeth shut as
tight as a spring trap; some had their
couths open an dtheir tongues lolling
out; some were flushed and every one
had the look OF a demon in his eyes.
Dore's "Dante's Inferno" is the place
to look for their picture.
In the evening Of the Gath of March
we were Informed that on the next
day we would make an advance on the
enemy, and that we were to leave our
shelter tents and blankets behind.
1 Our blankets, we were told, would fol
! low us on pack trains, and that we
a would have them again. / have not
seen my blanket yet and l guess it
/ has ~'vamoosed" for good. The next
\ morning we Were rudely aroused from
4 our slumbers and ordered to eat and
fall in, which we did. There was no
1 blare of trumpets, no bugle call, no
roll of drums, merely a silent prepare
tion for the day which was to come.
The First and Third battalions adj
& yanced on the works in front of the
4 San Francisco del Monte church. The
natives did not put up the fight here
d that we expected, being taken by sur
& prise and We're soon put to fight.
u Then followed a running fight which
lasted until about noon. Nebraska
i had a warm time on our right and
s. lost a number of e In the after.
q noon our way lead us through all
kinds of country, and was nothing but
marching. AT shutdown we halted
and thought our days work was over,
: made up our beds, that is, shook some
7 rice straw down on the ground and
: laid down, booted and beited and all
You can imagine how pleasant we felt
: when we We're ordered to get up and
: had to march several miles over TIC
our left. In this movement we pass
ed through a lot of volcanic forma
tons which in the moonlight assumed
many wierd and fantastic shapes
Some looked like giants, some like
ruined castles and others took or
III ~ Et ...a
: many impossible shapes. II I had moi
been SO weary / would have enjoyed
I the experience. This day we marched
: fifteen miles.
I Sunday, March &c.
\ Our advance was across country
over rice fields and the various strips
Of jungle. About ten o'clock we raj
g into a wagon road which we followed
Y for a long way. We became prett.
le thirsty this day because there were
few wells along the line. About 8 p
q IA. we emerged into an open plair
n about eight thousand acres in extern
via should judge, and here the fines
y military sight I V saw was opened
Out SSGS. 5oiHG 6l6uI VI IT'LL
le regiments We're maneuvering iii ope,
% and close order, Our brigade was jus
x coming out OF the woods in column o
tours, then failing into a single rank
our regiment In the lead, requirin,
but a right OF left facesto throw u
into battle array: Our battalion 9TH,
2nd9 for some reason unknown tlsl
to me was taken from the firing lin
and placed III reserve. Our regimen
had no sooner gotten into the wood
! than the music opened up, and ! CUES
! they had a pretty warm time. w,
monkeyed around out there en- tn
mesa for some time going first on
way and then the other like a lot D
fools, After a while a small force q
natives fired on us. Our left WA
swung around and We handed then
back d dose. saw several Of then
fall, III this engagement Captain Bin
glesbg was slightly wounded on TIL
shoulder This day march and iigh
compelled many to fan by the way
side from heat and exhaustion
Battle of MariIao River.
Monday. March asAt four osclocl
II nj WI had reveilIe and broke camI
n dve, marched about four miles &