The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1914-06-03
Funston Starts for New.
Siege With Famous Chief

Gen. Garcia's force, having been
raised in the province OF Santiago,
had a much larger proportion of Ne
groes than the one that we had been
with. With him here were several
well-known Negro chieftains, among
them Rabi and Cebreco, the former
one OF the most striking looking men
| have ever seen.
The Cuban Negroes in the insurgent
army were 10 me a most interesting
study. They seemed much more
forceful and aggressive than our own
colored population as a rule, probably
the result of most OF the older ones
having served in the Ten Years war.
And then, too. they had lived a more
outdoor life than the majority OF the
Negroes of our northern states, being
plantation hands and small farmers,
and had not been weakened and de-
moralized by city life.
A surprising fact was that not a
few of the older Negroes of Cuba were
born in Africa. Although the foreign
slave trade was abolished by law
many years ago, IL is matter of com
mon knowledge that up TO as late as
1870 small cargoes OF slaves from the
west coast OF Africa were run into
Cuba. These African soldiers often
conversed among themselves in their
native dialect
After a few days in camp TO allow
the men and horses OF both forces
TO rest, the 5000 OF us marched to-
ward doomed Guaimaro, and drew our
lines about the town. The combined
forces were under the command of
Gen. Gomez, he being the insurgent
commander-in-chief Gen. Garcia had
with him two guns, Hotchkiss ~
FOUNDER and twopounder or the
same make, they being identical with
the two guns that Gomez had used at
Cascorra, and that we had brought
with us So we now had four pieces
OF artillery.
The Spanish garrison, about 300
men of the second battalion OF Tar
ragona, was commanded by a major
and was distributed among IL defen-
sive positions, mostly large two-story
block-houses. called fortunes, though
the strongest positions were the brick
church with stone tower and the bar
racks, the former in the south part
of the town and the latter at its south
west corner. All OF these had earth
banked up around them TO the lower
tier OF portfolios and were surround
ed by barb-wire entanglements. All
except the church were also sur
rounded by standing trenches.
The key to the situation was the
Forth Gonfu, an isolated blockhouse
on a low hill due north Of the center
OF the town and seven hundred yards
from the circle OF blockhouses sur
rounding It, The nearest support was
the Forth Isabella. Once established
in the Gonfu blockhouse, the Cubans
would completely dominate the town,
which lay in easy artillery range on
the level ground to the southwark.
On the night of Oct. 16, Gomez and
Garcia with their STATS and personal
escorts were encamped about a mile
to the north of the Gonfu position.
and we Americans with our four
guns were near them. | had been
commissioned captain Immediately
after the Cascorra campaign, but, Os-
good being a major, i was ranked by
him. and he was very properly placed
in command of all the artillery.
Gen Garcia's fine band struck up.
The Cubans were making no attempt
to conceal their presence from the
garrison, and. the wind being favor
able, the music must have been heard
in the town. IL no doubt gave the
Spaniards a creepy feeling when they
heard the Cuban national hymn, THE
Bayames." and listened TO the cheers
and the shouts of Cuba Libre!" that
followed it's playing Copyright by
Charles Scribner's Sons)
(Continued.)