Arizona republican., 1916-03-23
THROUGH DESERTED TOWNS AND OVER
 SC0RCHNG DESERT AMERICAN TROOPS l. FORGED THEIR WAY DOWN INTO MEXICO
Republican A. p. Leased Wire]

 first story of the hardships suffered | by the American soldiers in their | now famous march across the Chi | huahua desert was told here tonight by Sergeant w. H. Harrison, of the 1 Thirteenth Cavalry Sergeant Harri- son told his story propped up in bed. 1 where he was taken on his arrival here suffering from dysentery.
 "We went in first" he said. There wasn't any cheering. That stuff is bunk. Everybody was serious and not much was said. We all started off at a brisk trot. and at once the dust began to rise. There wasn't a breath of air and the dust hung over the road like a curtain The alkali got into our eyes and down our threats; it sifted into our shoes and through our clothes The sun bored down into our skulls We put wet handkerchiefs into our hats but it did not help much. Most of the fel- lows rode along with their eyes shut ! to keep out the dust and glare. Many of the men were half blind by noon. 1 My eyes began to itch soon around | the edges, then they felt as big as camp kettles and everything got dark. You could feel the blood beating back of your eyeballs. Then the headache began.
 You should have seen the faces of the men after an hour or two. The dust settled on the sweat and then the sweat would run down. leaving little furrow Some of them looked like painted Indians.
 When we got to Las Palomas we went right through the streets. There wasn't soul in the whole town. It was weird. We heard some ducks quacking and saw some goats, but not a human being. At the next town, Boon Grandes, there were three peons, smiling in the sun. The rest of the place was like a grave. Only you expect grave to be silent, but when a town is silent that way it is funny Just south of Boca Grandes we found the body of a cowboy who had been killed by Villa on his way to Columbus. The body lay about twenty feet from the road. They had tortured him and his hands were burned to a crisp We did not have tilIe tV puIy tlc DooI ItIloN- Every body sWore under his breath when we passed. Later some of the Sixteenth tried to bury him. The ground was too hard, so they just piled rocks on the body
 During the marches the boys stopped ten minutes every hour for rest When the word was given they just dropped in their tracks in the road. No stop was made for dinner. It was just one steady hike from morning until we reached the camping place. The in- fantry was strung out so that the de- tachmentS were a days march apart That is the way they are going now.
 We got no water from Columbus to Boca Grandes, 31 miles The water in my canteen got so hot that I could hardly drink it. Most of it I poured on my head to stop the headache
 Do you know how much stuff a dough boy Gnfantryman) has to carry? Well, it's about fifty pounds Just as soon as they sat down off would come their shoes The gritty road cut their shoes to bits and the alkali made their feet swell and bIis- ter 1 saw some of them having a fine time getting their shoes back on theil feet
 We passed through Colonia Daz one of the Mormon settlements The houses were of red brick and were wei built, but there was not human being there. Cherry trees were blooming anC l. the alfalfa was knee deep The roofs of the houses were burned and the windows were all broken. We go , some water out of an irrigation ditch ' That is what fixed me. It gave me dysentery.
 We were fed pretty well. Hard tack and canned Willie that's cornet y beef. Sometimes a little bacon. Once l copped war baby-that's what wt , call soft bread.
 ' There are lot of the fellows wht ' are sick but they are afraid they vii
 be sent out so they hold on as long a. d possible"