Under The Star Spangled Banner Part 37

"I fancy that we are better as we are," Hal answered, with a.s.surance.

"You see, I know the country hereabouts; it is densely covered with bush, in which animals would be worse than useless, for they would stand clear against the green, and would show where we were lying. Without them we shall be more efficient scouts."

"Pa.s.s the word there for Trooper Marchant," the sergeant now shouted.

"What is it? Here I am," Hal answered, stepping forward.

"You are acquainted with these parts, I hear?" the sergeant answered.

"Yes, I have ridden through the bush more than once. What then?"

"The general'll be oblee-e-ged to yer ef you'll get ahead of the column and lead the way. We're kind er strangers here, yer see."

"I'll do what I can," Hal answered briskly, being overjoyed at the prospect. "I suppose my friend can come along too? He knows the country much better than I do."

"In course he can. Now, you'll be ready early, that's the order."

Hal nodded, and at once began to talk the matter over with Gerald. Next morning they left the camp with six other men, and marched some five hundred yards ahead of the main body. A Rough Rider, who had been a cowboy right away in the west of North America, was put in charge of the little party.

"Now what aer the partic'lar jokes of these fellers?" he asked Hal, as they pushed along the road. "Yer foller, ef it wur Injuns, or even bad men of the prairie, I'd be onter their games quicken'n a knife. But these here Dons most like has a way of acting out er the ordinary, that aint easy ter catch hold of."

"They have, certainly," Hal replied. "To begin with, from the experience we had at Guantanamo I fancy you will find that the enemy will make a stubborn fight of it. Then they will lie hidden in the bush, and, look as you will, you will never see more than ma.s.ses of moving green, for they cover themselves with leaves and fronds of ferns."

"Christopher! That aer the game? Wall, pards, whenever yer fall on a movin' bush pull yer trigger at it quicker than yer can wink," cried the cowboy. "Now we'll separate, so's to have about twenty yards between each man. Me and this here pard'll work the center, and t'others can fix onter the sides. When any of yer spots somethin' that's out of the ord'nary, send the warnin' along, and let every feller mark it. Then we'll bring a cross fire ter bear upon it that'll rip through the leaves, and clean the Dons off the face of the airth."

It was a good suggestion on the cowboy's part, and the scouts promptly carried it out, Hal and his new acquaintance taking the central place.

And now the road became almost impa.s.sable, for rain had fallen, saturating the ground and trees, so that after a few minutes' work in the bush all the scouts were drenched from head to foot.

"It aer moist," the cowboy, whose name was Harman, exclaimed. "But it's warm, so it don't matter no more'n nothing. Say, aer that Spanish fellers thur?"

He pointed to a prominent hill in front, along the face of which were rows of trenches, and, though the distance was great, it was not difficult to decide that this was the enemy's position.

"Yes, those are Spaniards," Hal answered. "But look out! If I am not mistaken, the bush to the left is filled with guerrillas."

Scarcely had he spoken when a volley burst from the scrub in front, the bullets whistling overhead.

"That aer partic'lar bad shootin'," said Harman. "They aer right off the mark."

"I don't think so," Hal answered quickly. "Look away behind; the Dons have spotted the Rough Riders, and other dismounted cavalry, and are firing long-ranging volleys."

This indeed was the case, and the bullets which whistled overhead were meant for their comrades in the distance. Meanwhile, the column, composed of regulars, who were marching on the right, had come in touch with the enemy, while the cavalry were closing up to them on the left.

Suddenly the quick-firing Hotchkiss guns opened from the bush, and commenced to sh.e.l.l the Spanish trenches, the reports being the signal for a general rifle engagement.

"This is warm," Hal shouted, as a stream of bullets swept overhead, lopping twigs and leaves from the cover.

"Say, Harman, let us work over there into the bush. It'll be a better place from which to fire."

They gradually edged through the scrub, till they reached a lower position, where they lay for a time, firing up at the ridge in front of them, and at the hill upon which the main body of the enemy was stationed. From there a machine gun was busily at work, scattering missiles through the foliage, and Hal found it a new and somewhat trying experience; for the distant rattle was accompanied by a rushing hail of long-nosed bullets, which flew low, and swept every corner of the bush.

Then the noise would pa.s.s away, to be replaced by the zip-zip of Mausers, and by the distant ping-ping of the reports. Soon the main body of the cavalry came up, and, creeping along the ground, the whole force advanced rapidly on the Spaniards, Colonel Roosevelt being some yards in front of his men.

"Reckon a rush'll do it, boys," sang out one of the sergeants. "Just keep yer blinkers on the boss, and look out for a lively time."

Indeed the moment had arrived for something besides firing, for, as the cavalry advanced, the Spaniards had retired slowly and doggedly, firing all the time. And now a wide clearing cut across the front of the Americans. Suddenly Colonel Theodore Roosevelt was seen standing in it, fearlessly exposing himself to the bullets, and holding a smoking rifle in his hand. He pointed eagerly to a tumble-down sugar factory away in front.

"Boys, we'll take it," he cried. "Forward, the Rough Riders!"

A shout rose from the troopers, and springing to their feet, they joined in a mad rush up the hill, firing as they ran. A few shots answered, and then the enemy was seen to be hastily retreating, and within five minutes the factory was captured. At the same moment, the Spaniards retired from the ridge and hill; and the Americans, after sending out scouts and pickets, sat down to rest and talk of their victory.

"It aer a reg'lar fine start off," said Harman, excitedly. "Right from the commencement we've shook them Dons up. That aer better than being pipped all over and getting forced to give back. It'll liven us all up, and, you bet, we'll take Santiago so quick yer'll scarcely believe. My aunt! Aint this fightin' the thing ter make yer blood warm, not ter say boilin'!"

"It aer all that, Harman boy," another trooper broke in. "It aer scorchin', I'll allow. I tell yer, comin' along through the bush, under a sun as hot--wall, as hot and hotter'n blazes, it fairly cooked yer.

Then, when the bullets came flickin' like so many flies--why, it kind er made yer queer."

"It did that," Gerald agreed. "My pal and I have compared notes. We were roasting, it was so hot; but when the bullets began to rush, we felt as if cold water had been poured down our backs. However, we got used to it, and mighty quickly felt the broiling heat of the sun again."

"Say, boys, did any of yer see them skunks of Cubans?" asked another Rough Rider.

"See 'em! Not much!" Harman exclaimed disdainfully. "They wur to have come along to-day, but when we marched past their camp, not a single one of the varmint moved. Jist fancy! We're here fightin' fur them critters, too!"

A murmur of indignation and disgust went round the circle, for already the Americans had taken a dislike to the natives. They had begun to discover that these dusky insurgents were very good at lying away at safe but impossible ranges, and firing an immoderate quant.i.ty of ammunition. And whenever there was a prospect of plunder with no blows to be feared, the Cubans were much to the fore, as they were also if there happened to be an opportunity of ill-treating Spanish soldiers.

"Ugh!" exclaimed Harman in disgust. "These black critters aren't a patch on the Dons, who aint bright specimens themselves, for they're fellers one can't kind er understand, and then they've picked hold of such a jabberin' lingo. But they can fight! Them aer little chaps aer tarnal good 'uns with a rifle, and I reckon that away here in the bush they'd take some beatin'; they'd knock spots off a Red Injun, and that's the truth."

A chorus of a.s.sent came from the men, who at once began to discuss the remarkable pluck shown by the enemy. Then inquiries were made for a list of casualties, but it was not known until later in the day that sixteen had been killed on the American side, and fifty-two wounded.

That evening the Rough Riders and other cavalry lined the ridge and hill of Las Guasimas, and, looking across a patch of open country, could see the hill and fort of San Juan, and, beyond that, Santiago with its harbor and ships. El Caney, a village of small importance, which was destined to become a point of attack, stood close to San Juan.

"What will be the next move?" asked Gerald, as he and Hal sat down side by side that night, and waited for their turn of sentry-go.

"That is difficult to say," Hal answered thoughtfully, "but I fancy that the first thing will be to feed the troops. It is a question which seems to have been entirely forgotten. Then we must remember that the stores are still aboard the transports, and if they have been packed as carelessly as reported, days must pa.s.s before we get guns and sufficient ammunition and food. In any case, before we advance on Santiago, there should be a reconnaissance, and the approaches should be thoroughly explored."

That the latter was a necessary precaution the least experienced in military matters will say, and yet, strangely enough, the necessity for a careful survey did not seem to have struck the leaders of the American troops. And this, no doubt, was one of the evil results of a hastily organized army. Soldiering cannot be learned in a day, and amateurs cannot maneuver troops when they have had no practice. From first to last the Americans had suffered from the inexperience of their various leaders. Troops had been concentrated in the southern camps of America, where the heat was very trying, and had been kept there for a long time inactive, and exposed to disease. As a result, many had died, while other young fellows had returned home with health shattered--and this without having fired a shot.

Then, too, the commissariat arrangements had been indifferent, and quite insufficient. Troops were indeed conveyed safely to Cuba, but after they had had a taste of war, they were left in the heart of the unhealthy bush, with nothing better to eat than salt pork and hard biscuit; coffee, tea, sugar, and such necessaries were unheard of.

And on the beach at Daiquiri and Siboney a growing pile of useless articles collected, while cases of food were searched for--articles which the wisdom of some inexperienced person had placed first of all in the ship, when they should have gone in last. No wonder that the heat and moisture soon found victims, for men cannot stand hardship and exposure if they are ill fed. Indeed, the week's delay before fighting recommenced laid the seeds of disease in many men. And then the fatal moment arrived when lack of precautions on the part of those in authority was to cost many a poor fellow his life in the attack upon San Juan.

Beyond Las Guasimas was an open stretch of country to which troops must march by one of two roads that led through the bush and forest, and upon the openings of these the Spaniards had naturally concentrated their guns, with a certainty of shooting accurately, for the ranges were known. On the American side, no attempt was made to open up other tracks, and this proved disastrous to the men; for on the 1st of July, when another forward move was made, many unfortunate troopers were struck dead at the first volley. This was, indeed, a memorable day for both attackers and attacked. Marching northwest from Las Guasimas, the divisions separated, Lawton's, accompanied by four guns, making for El Caney, a village of small proportions, and situated on an elevation.

General Kent's division, marching with the cavalry and Rough Riders, made the fort and hill of San Juan their objective. In both cases open country had to be traversed; but in the latter the troops had first to make their way through a dense belt of forest which gave place to the open quite suddenly, and only two tracks existed.

To describe each phase of the big engagement would be to puzzle the reader; for it was like a game of chess, the pieces being in this case the various units going to complete the divisions, and the board an area covering square miles.

On the right, after nine hours' stubborn fighting with a force less than a tenth of his own, Lawton's division captured El Caney, and some hundred prisoners.

In the center, Kent's men, with the dismounted cavalry, and our two heroes, lay at the edge of the forest, suffering heavy loss for some hours; for the Spaniards sent long-ranging volleys into the trees, which did much execution. Then, too, their quick-firing guns had the range to a nicety, and sent showers of shrapnel sweeping through the ranks. At length, unable to bear this loss without retaliating, the Americans burst into the open, and stormed the hill and fort, every man fighting desperately. Indeed, when the day was done, victors and vanquished admitted that both sides had shown undaunted courage. Undoubtedly the Spaniards had fought a brilliant rearguard action, and their stubbornness, and the fact that half their small numbers were killed or wounded, showed the spirit which possessed them.

As for the Americans, though many of them had been soldiers for only a few weeks, they attacked with a courage and a sternness of purpose that were truly admirable, and did credit to the stock from which they came.