The Challis messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1912-current, 1919-01-29
CHAPTER l.

Lieutenant Mark Wallace Of the
Seventieth New York regiment came
TO an abrupt standstill. He was alone
In the jungle, upon the blazing hillside
before Santiago, in the month Of June,
1885,
Through the branches Of the trees
the Mauser bullets still whipped and
whistled, and the prolonged screech of
shells and distant shouting indicated
that the battle, which had ragged all
day, had not yet reached it's end. But
within the short radius of Wallace's
vision nothing stirred, not even the
palmetto boughs that rustled with the
least breeze like the sound of the sea.
Wallace had only the most confused
and incoherent knowledge of what was
happening on that historic day. There
had been an advance in the cool of the
morning, if brief respite from the OPP
pressive heat could be called GOODNESS
in contrast Then came the deploy-
ment along the base of the hills as the
first shells began to fall, the advance
in open order, in which the nicely in
culcated teachings Of the parade
ground fell to pieces, the tumble of
men, of companies, and, later, of regi-
ments, pressing forward past the dead
and stricken, the shouts, the rattle of
machine guns and rifles. Batteries
came galloping where they had no
theoretical business to be, upsetting
the junior officers desperate attempts
to preserve alignment; Red Cross
men invaded the battle line to succor
the wounded; commissariat mules,
shaking off the lethargy which no
amount of belaboring had ever over
come, ran away with supplies and
strewed embalmed beef over the hill
SIDE. In the midst of 1t all Wallace
mad rallied some men Of his own troop
ana led them forward; he plunged into
the patch Of scrub-covered jungle, and
found that he was alone.
IN front Of him was small clearing,
made by some Cuban squatter in the
preceding year and abandoned after
the reaping. 1t contained the ruin of
PAIN shack, and the burrows scraped
w primitive pillow were only just dis.
eerhlDle amid the rank growth that
nau sprung up. The lieutenant stop
pea and shouted. expecting to see his
Men come running through the trees.
but none appeared, and it was at
.lllS moment that the bullet that had
oeen stamped with his name, accord
lug 10 the soldiers superstition, found
nlm. He felt a smart blow on the
shoulder, which knocked him back
"ara' He stumbled, fell down. sat up
"sain and discovered that his elbow
was shattered. The arm hung help
'essly at his side.
ne managed to bind up the wound
WIN MS hand and teeth. There was
Nv hiuch pain, but sort of physical
'ansuor, which made him reel giddily
"nen ne arose. There was burning
'nitst' too. 1t was extraordinary that
n'tle thing like that should take the
ell' out of man. A little blood was
.unillhg down his sleeve, but the
wound seemed trivial.
| -. "aliace leaned against the wall Of
We snack and waited for his men.
ne shouted once or twice more, but
nooody answered him, and the battle
. seemed to be drifting in another direc-
uon' Wallace imagined that his troop
"au advanced around the patch of
.eruo' In which case he was not likely
:" establish touch with them again till
n.sittall. He cursed his luck and
started forward, but the trees began to
,, eer around him; he clutched at the
vel vi the shack, missed it, and fell.
A., linen he realized that he was out of
' ule night. Yet, in spite of his intense
msuppolntment, he knew that worse
fsh' nave befallen him. He had
.ousht through hours of the day-that
,0"s ii,ach; he was probably spared to
,sau MS men again-and that was
hi. lie had found and proved
mar Se.t; and at twenty-one young
ai'' Tor all his self-cOnfidence, is COM
s ss. OF fears and doubts as well. In
spite s of his soldier ancestors, Mark
wallace had not been sure that his
>"pa''ty for leadership extended be-