Abbeville progress. (Abbeville, Vermilion Parish, La.) 1913-1944, 1914-01-31
Famine !
Citizens !
Soldiers

.
f------a-, u was that blazing hot lret
ET div of July I.9> Shaft
- nrs little army was t,.E
4 l5 ! ing ue way through DHy
- r.r.c Jungle and up the
s3ho5 8 heights toward aHar. lay
y& -, .Hr Suau'b rjl.w.u de-.
EY1T i f.udfu. Santiago de Cuba.
~ 5. uuet since cam. to
U. known ass 'uYn+"
Nnd. u tDr path of taa tr...t.
advance Ibcrr VA. % 1r.at u the
foliage. Ulr...I. DID tE. Iu. off the
Spanish fire. u .av. And 500 tr.cs wa.
tae wuas. that the ad.u. ug troops
had tu cross jhia ogru sna.a
Unframed fu warfare. many nm.
trained even ii. what T.. n... REGARDED
as ygimlr. principle. OF combat. bray,
bu, maushl and urprDrgr.t q.
American. over have been u tHr
cartier stages of their wars. Iu. rDa
enlisted wu from Sow York and
MICHIGAN and Oklahoma and Arizona
and aG fb. union met here tno 80
prgWe test
Scores fell before thr enemy fire.
What was needed most was intelligent
. leadership. and skilled leaders were
Vucfully few The sacrifice of life
went on. for tack of knowledge to
cope with am unexpected military Sit
uation
There came ON the scene First
Lieut. Abort L. Mills. First United
States cavalry. holding rank as cap
tin and assistant adjutaut general Of
volunteers. and attached 10 fbr STAFF
of General Shaftor. -Four years qt
West Point and 10 years as d sua3t
tern officer of cavalry -orviu- Ut the
far west hard. studious. working
years united with natural capacity
ana fitness. had made him a cool re-
sourceml akiIlfuI. trained military
leader He knew the business ct war.
Al once ne began 10 bring order ont
of chaos lie showed the men how
To- take cover lie directed return
ed was resumed
Then q Spanish bullet crashed
through his head II tore away one
eye and temporarily blinded the other.
But me- refused to leave the spot where
he was SO urgently needed sight
less. a bloody bandagc wound about
his brow. he remained and continued
his work of directing the troops as
they came aloug
The scene has been perpetuatcd I'm
picture and I'm written description II
stands cut as one of the most vivid
and splendid incidents Of the war Of
1898.
For distinguished caIlantrv IN ac-
ton near SANTIAGO de Cuba. July I.
1898. lin enc0ura.ing those near him
by his bravery and co0Iuess after be
ing shot through the head and entire
~ without sight" That is the uota-
ton on the record ira the war depart
meut I'm explanation of fhc award of
the congressional medal of honor TO
this officer.
Was no. any more brave than scores
and hundreds OF others who partici-
pated i'm the operations m Santiago
Probably not. but he. better than so
many others. knew Row To do the iob
which The American forces had set
ont to aceornnliet, IN th,+ day II
was his KNOWLEDGE his military skill.
quite as much as his GOODNESS and his
disregard of his own sufferincs that
brought him distinction.
The government at WASHINGTON
these lessons fresh in its mind com
cluded that the man who had done
what Mills had done n Ptoodv Rond
was the sort Of man needed to train
future army officers. So. advancing
him tn the rank of colonel tbo ,yor
department in the autumn of 1905
when his one remaining owe had
healed, sent him To West point ,s
suporiBtendept Of the fnos, muitsrv
academy in the world There he ,o.
NAMED for eight wears
III i3Vt ne Was advanced TO the