The Utah Batteries: A History Part 5

Two days later when Hale's brigade made an advance upon the insurgents on the left, and the natives were hurried with great speed toward Mariquina and the San Mateo river, the "Laguna de Bay" again performed excellent service in flanking them and turning their left wing against our right.

Very early on the morning of March 13th the battle of Guadaloupe and Pasig opened, the attention of the guns on the boat being centered on Guadaloupe. Meanwhile Wheaton advanced his troops on the right to Patteros and along the Pasig. The advance to Guadaloupe began along the river with the gunboat in the vanguard. Two insurgents partially concealed in the bushes on the banks were taken prisoners and turned over to the Twenty-third Infantry. Sunken cascos, loaded with rock, were frequently encountered, but the boat avoided them with only a little delay. Generals Anderson and Wheaton moved up from the right and the gunboat started up the stream. Near the Mariquina river they met with a fierce fire from both sides of the stream but no one on the boat was injured. Two Filipino launches were noticed but they got away. A casco was found in which were the clothing of some Filipino officer and men.

The wearers had escaped.

On the day following there was a brisk engagement at Pasig in which the town was bombarded with good effect, some thirty of the enemy being killed, while the remainder were sent flying in all directions.

Nothing of interest occurred until Wednesday, March 15th, when a casco manned by natives was chased down the river. She was overhauled but not until her crew had jumped overboard and swam ash.o.r.e. The "Laguna de Bay"

raised a white flag for the purpose of investigating, but the insurgents instead of recognizing it pivoted a sharp small rim fire upon the boat which answered with a heavy rain of sh.e.l.l and shrapnel.

Two days later an expedition, led by the gunboats, headed for Morong on the opposite side of the lake. Lieutenant Webb with a Gatling and twenty-four men went ash.o.r.e to make a reconnoissance. This small detachment was followed by three infantrymen under Captain Pratt. Upon the advance of the Americans the enemy retreated quickly across the plain and disappeared in the shades of the mountains beyond. One thousand bushels of rice and three cascos were captured at this place and a letter from General Pilar directing a general advance on Pasig was also found. But few inhabitants remained in the town and upon questioning them it was learned that the Filipinos had several large launches on the Pagsanyan river.

Major Grant had long been working to interest General Lawton in favor of an expedition against Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz is situated on the eastern sh.o.r.es of the lake just behind the point of a mountain which juts out into the water. She is the agricultural center of all the rich land on the eastern side of the island of Luzon. All the smaller towns of the surrounding country look up to her. She is the emporium to which all the farmers and travelers and merchants resort and from which they reap a bounteous harvest.

The insurgents had long since seized upon this important place as it furnished an inexhaustible supply of food for their armies. Besides being far out of the way and difficult of approach, she became the military station to which the famished and fatigued insurgents looked for support and rest. Major Grant early noticed the importance of the town and thereafter he labored incessantly to bring about its capture by the Americans. Finally, on the 18th, he succeeded in getting a fleet of gunboats, launches and cascos headed that way. Captain Pratt and Lieutenant Franklin attempted to make a landing on the sh.o.r.e in front of the town, but they failed as the water was too shallow. Five miles farther up the beach they made a profitable landing at the mouth of the Pagsanyan river. However, as this was blocked with obstructions of bamboo and rock, no effort was made to sail up the stream until three days had elapsed. Then the impediment was removed.

During the time which intervened between the 21st and the 28th little was done with the exception of attending to some needed repairs on the boat. On the 28th the gunboat advanced to the south of the Balucan river, where another delay was caused by the obstructions placed there by the natives. The country skirting this place was thickly covered with brush and low trees, very much like bayou. When about a mile and a half up the stream the enemy opened fire at a range of about 500 yards, which was returned by the guns on the boat. The fire was heavy and the insurgents evidently concluded that they were too close for comfort, for their fire slackened materially in a very short time. The "Laguna de Bay" and the "Napindan" then came down the stream. As the latter started to follow the larger boat the pilot was. .h.i.t in the hand by a bullet and before he could recover himself the little craft had run aground. When the "Laguna de Bay" went to her a.s.sistance she also struck a bar and was held fast. The boats were compelled to remain here under fire until the tide came in and floated them off.

The work of the gunboats was without extraordinary interest until April 8th. On that day the fleet steamed up Pasig with twenty cascos and seven launches in tow. One thousand five hundred men, with two days' rations, two light artillery guns and necessary horses, composed the expedition, which was commanded by General Lawton. Among the troops were detachments from the Fourth United States Cavalry, the Fourteenth United States Infantry, the North Dakota, Idaho and Was.h.i.+ngton volunteers, the Sixth Artillery and the Signal Corps. This force reached Jalajala on the 9th and then awaited the arrival of the entire fleet. The place of advancement and attack--Santa Cruz--was mapped out and then the fleet steamed ahead. About five miles from Santa Cruz the "Napindan" ran into a point close to the sh.o.r.e and opened fire. Here the works were silenced, after which the troops landed. Under cover of the guns of the "Oeste" other men also disembarked. With Lawton aboard, the "Laguna de Bay" advanced toward the town approaching to within 300 yards of the sh.o.r.e. Some troops in cascos were put ash.o.r.e. After a survey of the situation the boats went out into deep water and advanced from the right, while the troops encamped to the west of the town.

The next day a general advance began at daylight. The American forces came up to the enemy's position and opened fire. This was a signal for action on the part of the boats and after moving in closer they opened a heavy fire on the insurgent works. The troops placed south and west under General Lawton drove the natives northward while those posted along the sh.o.r.e of the river, aided by the guns on the boats, did considerable damage. Large bodies of the natives broke for a place of safety and while attempting to escape through a marshy open field many of them were killed. Sh.e.l.ls actually mowed them down in heaps. By this time the lines of the infantry had been completely formed for an advance and the gunboats ceased their work. Shortly afterward our forces took possession of the town, and a message was received from Lawton saying he had established his headquarters in the church.

On the 11th the boats steamed up the lake and ran close to the sh.o.r.e near the mouth of the Pagsanyan river, where they opened fire on the town of Lumbaog, toward which the land forces were advancing. This fire was kept up until the infantry reached the place and took it. A message was received from General Lawton to the effect that he had captured the town of Pagsanyan; also that six launches had been captured there and were at the town. The "Cavadonga" at this time sailed up and relieved the "Oeste." The guns were on the hills north of Orani and after a time the infantry took possession, for a flag from the church tower called for a boat to be sent to that place. The "Laguna de Bay" responded, went up the river and sh.e.l.led Paite and Sinilaon until darkness ended her usefulness for that day. The troops had in the meantime checked the native advance and camped at Paite.

From this time until May 7th little was done by the boats. A greater part of the time was spent in making necessary repairs. On the last mentioned date a Macabebe named Soteros Gatdula reported for duty as pilot, and under his direction the fleet steamed across the bay to the mouth of the Rio Grande. Pa.s.sing up this stream the boats sh.e.l.led the towns of Guagua and s.e.xmoan. At the former place a fire had been started and a launch in the river was observed to be in flames. A party was sent out to try to save this craft, but she proved to be of little value and the attempt was abandoned. Two Spaniards claiming to have been held as prisoners by the natives, and a Filipino suspect were taken aboard.

It was decided early in May to make an effort to pierce the waters of the Rio Grande de Pampanga, which leads to Calumpit and beyond far into the heart of the enemy's country. The first efforts to search out the channel were made by the "Cavadonga" on May 9th. Soteros Gatdula, a Macabebe pilot, was directed by General Otis to undertake the task and the "Cavadonga" started on the cruise into the unknown waters early in the morning. Near the mouth of the river the boat suddenly went aground, and when the tide rose, and early in the day the boat was joined by the "Laguna de Bay." The channel was then located by the Macabebe and there was no further difficulty in forcing a pa.s.sage up the wide waters of the river, the largest on Luzon Island. For a long distance up the river the territory is occupied by the Macabebes, the ancient and traditional enemies of the Tagalan race. A large crowd of these friendly natives was on the sh.o.r.es of the river as the boats pa.s.sed up and they filled the air with cheers and cries of "Viva los Americanos," which the soldiers replied to in variegated and wonderfully woven Filipino phrases. One obstruction was met in the river consisting of cocoanut poles, but the Macabebes a.s.sisted in removing these from the path of the boats. Without having fired a shot, early in the afternoon the boats arrived at Calumpit, where troops of the infantry were stationed.

On May 14th the "Cavadonga" was sent out on a reconnoitering expedition up the river. On the way up s.e.xmoan and Apilit were pa.s.sed, and it was observed that all the natives fled from the river as soon as the gunboat approached. The country is heavily timbered on both sides of the river, and there was no evidence of a hostile att.i.tude on the part of the natives until the boat swung round the curve leading to San Luiz. Almost through the entire distance the sh.o.r.es were lined with Filipino intrenchments, but it was discovered that these were unoccupied.

Lieutenant Webb was out on the bow capstan, entirely unsheltered by the meagre 3-16-inch armor with which the craft was encased. Just as a curve was rounded in front of San Luiz a long line of straw hats and the bores of fifty rifles were seen facing the boat from the port side, no more than fifty yards away. Lieutenant Webb was scanning the opposite sh.o.r.e with his gla.s.ses, when the lookout discovered the enemy on the port side. Sergeant Ford Fisher called out a sudden warning to the Lieutenant and reached out towards him. Just then the volley came. Fisher reeled backward with a bullet piercing his brain. Instantly the bow one-pounder and the Gatling gun on the port side tore the Filipino intrenchments.

Bullets pelted fast against the slight armor of the cruiser. Fred Mitch.e.l.l, one of the men at the Gatling gun, was wounded in the hand.

The "Cavadonga" turned round almost where it stood and slowly moved back, and during a wonderful skirmish in which the native and American frequently fired in each other's faces at a range of twenty yards, raked the Filipino works with the fast-firing machine guns. The fighting only lasted thirty minutes.

When it was over Ford Fisher, who was still breathing, was placed on board the "Oceania," which had remained about two hundred yards in the rear during the fighting, and almost at the moment he was laid on the craft he expired. The "Oceania" sped quickly down the river with the dead body of the Sergeant, but frequently the "Cavadonga" stopped to suppress the desultory fire from the natives who had fled during the early part of the action. It was learned afterwards from the "padre" at San Luiz that fifty insurgents had been killed during the engagement, and when the Utah men arrived there a few days later a long line of new graves in the walled cemetery told a tragic story of the ending of the fight.

On the evening of this day the Seventeenth Regular Infantry and a battalion of the Ninth Infantry advanced up the Rio Grande from Calumpit over the old Apilit road under the leaders.h.i.+p of Major Kobbe of the Third United States Artillery. Early the next morning the "Laguna de Bay" and "Cavadonga" started up the river and most of the way kept within view of the troops on the sh.o.r.e. Occasionally the gunboats moved ahead and daring scouts could be seen calmly looking into vacated Filipino intrenchments. The enemy was encountered several times along the sh.o.r.e as far as San Luiz and all intrenchments were bombarded by the "Laguna de Bay" some distance to prevent a repet.i.tion of the disastrous surprise of the day before. When San Luiz was neared white flags could be seen floating everywhere, and on arriving there it was discovered that the whole body of insurgents had disappeared into the interior. The boats remained at this position during the night, and early the next morning resumed the advance ahead of the infantry up the waters of the Pampanga. During this journey large numbers of Filipinos were met in cascos with their families and all their earthly possessions, making their way down the stream. About noon the boats reached Candaba without a hostile shot having been fired during the whole day. Here Major Grant was met by the Mayor of the city, who stated that he had forced the soldiers to evacuate in order to prevent the bombardment of the town and the subsequent loss of life among the people of whom he was guardian. An evidence of the hasty departure of the natives was found upon entering the town, for a guard list giving the names of the officers and enlisted men of the guard was found posted on the walls of the town hall.

This ended the fighting record of the gunboats under a Utah commander.

From this period until June 24th the boats were utilized in carrying supplies and towing soldiers, laden cascos and wounded men up and down the Pampanga. On May 24th the rebel commissioners, General Gregoria del Pilar and Colonel Actia, who had gone to Manila to negotiate peace with General Otis after the crus.h.i.+ng defeat of the insurgents at Calumpit, were taken on the gunboats and conveyed as far as Candaba. They had expressed a wish to go by way of the gunboats, as they had no desire to cross the insurgents' lines at San Fernando because General Luna was in command at that place and there was strife between the two Generals.

Pilar showed great interest in the armament of the "Laguna" and said he would give all his wealth for one of the three-inch guns. The "Oceania"

was sent ahead with instructions to all the commanding officers to make as large a display as possible. At San Luiz the instructions were not complied with and as the "Laguna" pa.s.sed one officer and four men were falling in for guard. General Gregoria smiled. Farther up the river the case was different. Where they were in the habit of posting but one guard there was an officer and twenty men. This was repeated at all the other stations until Candaba was reached. General Gregoria's smile had faded, and he remarked that the Americans kept the country better patrolled than he had imagined. The General and Colonel were landed at Candaba and under an escort of Americans disappeared in the distant green line of woods.

On May 24th it was known among all the Utah men that their days of fighting were over, and on this date Major Grant was relieved of his command of the river boat fleet. And so ended, for Utah, the career of these wonderful ironclad river machines.

CHAPTER V.

THE HOME COMING.

While the fighting Utah batterymen were still living in the nipa huts at San Fernando and Baliaug and repelling the attacks of the dusky Tagalan braves at Candaba and Morong from General Otis an order came to the Cuartel. It had an unpretentious look--that slip of paper; but it carried a message of great importance to the belligerent Utahn than any he had received since the thunders of war shook the earth on the night of February 4th. It told the artilleryman to gather all his portable utensils and board the United States transport "Hanc.o.c.k," which lay idly in the bay waiting orders to weigh anchor and steam for America.

Almost a week pa.s.sed before the scattered batteries were a.s.sembled within the familiar walls of the Cuartel. The main body at San Fernando turned over its guns to the famous Third Artillery and arrived safely at the quarters over the Manila and Dagupan railroad; Lieutenant Seaman's detachment at Baliaug dropped its war machinery and made all possible speed to Manila; Lieutenant Webb's detail on the "Cavadonga" for the first time turned its back on the enemy and fled for the protecting walls of the barracks. When these battle-begrimed veterans reached the quarters there was such a demonstration as the old walls had never seen before. The old scenes of order disappeared, the rigors of discipline were relaxed, and chaos reigned. Everything was made subservient to the one all-absorbing topic, "Home." The st.u.r.dy soldier doffed his war attire and donned his peaceful garb. The renowned Utah band paraded the streets in holiday dress and, with the blare of bra.s.s, proclaimed the happy news to the nut-brown maid. The stalwart warriors danced and sang to the music of that soul-lifting song, "A Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight." The jubilant battle hero collected his ordnance and other war trappings and handed them over to the ordnance officer while he exchanged looks of mutual doubt and suspicion with that important personage. The weary and worn Utahn bade adieu to the dreamy-eyed damsel of the East with many expressions of fond attachment and love; then mustered his heterogeneous troop of relics and curiosities and joined the Nebraska regiment on the "Hanc.o.c.k." Two days later the officers steamed over from the gay apartments of the "Baltimore" in a brightly decorated launch and walked aboard the big boat. Finally a goodly supply of canned beef and antiquated swine were hoisted on the vessel and the Captain gave orders for the sailing flag to be put to the breeze. This was on July 1st.

When the official contingent was safely housed in s.p.a.cious staterooms it was learned that quite a change had taken place in the roster of that worthy body. The shoulders of Captain Grant were adorned with the gold leaf of a Major; Lieutenant Critchlow had been elevated to a Captaincy; Lieutenant Naylor wore the single bar of a First Lieutenant, and First Sergeant John A. Anderson of Battery B shone in the glowing uniform of a Second Lieutenant. Major Young sent a letter bidding farewell to the Utahns and expressing his disappointment at not being able to accompany the batteries home.

The batteryman entertained no high opinion of the Government transport.

He had become acquainted with the luxuries which Uncle Sam provides the defenders of his broad acres. He had already learned how elaborately the American Government furnishes apartments for its soldiers and food for its larder. So, after he had landed safely on the main deck and deposited his knapsack and monkeys, he was not surprised when the order came for him to take his goods and chattels and repair to the forward hold. He entered the gangway and descended four flights of stairs without any misgiving or hesitation. He threaded his way through the labyrinthian pa.s.sage of his subaqueous home with a skill equal to that displayed by the blind fish of the Mammoth Cave. He beheld the wonderfully constructed bunks which glowed specter-like in the semi-darkness without evincing the least disappointment. Later when one of these had been a.s.signed as his sole property during the voyage he accepted it and its diminutive proportions without a murmur and philosophically concluded that the Government either thought he had diminished in stature while on the islands or intended to reduce his dimensions on the way home. Thus the Utah warrior was quartered. The celerity with which he adapted himself to his environments clearly exhibited his excellent training. He quickly disposed of the problem of how to shorten his linear measurements to four feet eight inches by placing himself diagonally across his bed. The posture thus a.s.sumed was not unlike that of a "Skeleton in Armor." When his joints became cramped he straightened himself out by throwing his soles against the head of his neighbor, who instantly developed a remarkable vocabulary of explosives anent Hades, Paradise, Satan, etc.

Mess time on the "Hanc.o.c.k" was not an occasion of the greatest felicity to the returning volunteers. Their epicurean tastes could not totally harmonize with bogus coffee and cows that had a flavor strangely akin to that of horse flesh. When the bugle shrilly proclaimed the dinner hour the men formed in a long serpentine line and displayed their skill in keeping their equilibrium and at the same time holding their place in the procession. The rattle of Government tinware, upon which the soldier had inscribed many strange hieroglyphics descriptive of his adventures, served as a musical entertainment in lieu of the melody furnished at all other times by the combined efforts of the Utah and Nebraska bands. They facetiously derided the commissary sergeant who had long since become calloused to all sneering remarks made by the ordinary defender of the flag; for in case of any exceedingly hostile demonstration he was armed with a long cleaver and several carefully concealed bolos. They made comments, too, not at all flattering to the bill of fare, about "gold fish" and "slum-gullion" and ancient swine, but they "wasted their venom on a file." The cooks, also, came in for a share of the complimentary criticisms, for they were not blessed with a superabundance of skill in the culinary art. Occasionally the voice of a volunteer was raised in loud-mouthed protest over the meagerness of his own supply of food and the apparent excessiveness which adorned the plate of his a.s.sociate.

This always ended in a peculiar panegyric on the merits of a person who had a "stand in" or a "pull" with the officers. When the ravenous Utahn was handed his cheer the bestower very kindly warned him not to taste or smell the victuals, as such an act would be attendant with serious injury to his appet.i.te; so he merely devoured the contents of his plate with his eyes and pa.s.sed them on to his gastronomical organs with no further ceremony.

A small portion of the forward deck was allotted to the batteries to be used as a messhall, lounging apartment, etc. It was here the battle-scarred veterans collected at meal times and dispatched their slender store. As the Pacific is not always so peaceful as its name, this pleasing task was not at all times accomplished with ease. When on a boat tipped to an angle of 60 degrees, a j.a.panese juggler would find some difficulty in conjuring his body to remain in an upright position and simultaneously inducing a seething plate of soup to abide in a placid state; yet the uninitiated volunteers contrived to perform this daring feat three times a day. The many strange figures which they described in their endeavors to execute these occult tricks would have done justice to the most skillful acrobat. Frequently, as the vessel gave an extra lurch, the insecure warrior proceeded with all possible speed to the side of the boat and deposited his food and eating utensils on the surface of the sad sea waves amid the execrations of those whom he had the good fortune to come in contact with on his hasty trip and the jibes of his appreciative audience. At this same place the mendacious batterymen gathered in the warm afternoons to tell sea serpent legends and fairy stories about some great event which had never happened in the trenches. When this supply had been exhausted they began forthwith to dilate upon the virtues of the most famous officers until those worthies would have been unable to recognize their own characters had they been confronted with them in their garnished garb. Once in a very great while an officer strolled down from the aristocratic atmosphere of the saloon dining hall and watched the feeding of the enlisted drove with a superior grace. To convince the famished soldiers that they were getting a redundant quant.i.ty of food, he sometimes called for a [text missing in original.] There was always a good heap of hash left to show the astonished men that they were merely chronic kickers.

Then the well-fed comedian adjourned to his s.p.a.cious saloon and offered an apology to his offended stomach by supplying it with an abundance of all that the steamer carried.

The one great comfort to the f.a.gging spirits of the Utahn was the battery fund. Through the darkest days of war his dying hopes were revived by visions of what the future held in store for him by the aid of this phantom. It was to the despairing volunteer what mirage is to the thirsty traveler of the desert. The fund represented the combined contributions of the soldiers, benevolent persons and charitable inst.i.tutions. Besides this a fabulous sum was added by the artillery canteen which exchanged beer for the Utes' money and, in addition to what it contributed towards the battery fund, provided turkeys and succotash for the Thanksgiving and Christmas banquets. When it was announced that this enormous sum was to be expended for dainties on the way home the joy of the batteryman knew no limits. Spectre dinners of mutton, cakes and pies arose in his mind with a suddenness that would have startled the most ardent disbeliever in ghosts. Without the aid of Pluto he called up all the spirits of meals long dead and fed on them till the marvelous distribution should take place. And it was not long in coming. One morning, accompanied by the stentorian voice of the bugle Judge Williams, heavily laden with a huge cargo of jam, hove in sight.

Then were many whispered comments made about the quant.i.ty which each man was to receive. The Judge soon stopped this and shortly after there was a hum of satisfaction all along the deck as the men made way with this delicacy. Now the gastronomy of the warrior lived and flourished under the rigors of army hardtack and navy beans, but it collapsed at once when introduced to Jamesson's jam. There was a sudden epidemic of cramps throughout the entire organization, but the ever victorious commissary sergeant soon stamped this out by the judicious application of some French mustard, which had been purchased by the battery fund. And thus the men of Utah were fed.

Meanwhile the swift "Hanc.o.c.k" steamed out of Manila bay and speeded toward j.a.pan. Two days out she pa.s.sed the beautiful Island of Formosa, and in three days more the vessel came in sight of Nagasaki, the leading coaling station of the Flowery Kingdom. Just at dusk the pilot boarded the vessel and directed her safely through the narrow channel into the land-locked harbor. Next morning all the soldiers were given sh.o.r.e leave for the day and San-pans--the native craft--were provided to take the men ash.o.r.e. Here the Utahn explored the country in the jin-rickisha--a two-wheeled vehicle which is drawn by the cabby himself, who as soon as he has settled to his satisfaction the price to be paid, ambles off at a gentle speed. If the Island of Kiusiu appeared beautiful as the boat approached it in the waning twilight it seemed doubly so in the glory of the morning sun. It is a land where poetry breathes as freely as the gentle zephyrs blow from the summit of Mount Olympus; it is a land where women are as fair as the daughters of Niobe. The pretty terraced hills adorned with Pagan temples are rich in the odor of the spice and pine; the pellucid lakes and bays gather a silver purity from the very crest of the mountain; and as one gazes upon this beauty and simple grandeur he imagines that it was just such influences as these that stirred the soul of h.e.l.las when she pictured Aphrodite springing out of the sea or Neptune riding in his chariot of sh.e.l.ls with a gay company of Tritons and Nymphs. Three days, owing to a raging typhoon, the vessel was delayed in coaling, but after the storm had spent its force the coaling was resumed and the transport put to sea. On the 11th the s.h.i.+ps arrived at Muji, the key to the southern end of the inland sea. Here j.a.pan's military power is fully shown. Huge guns bristle from every hill, dark wars.h.i.+ps stud the clear waters of the ocean and soldiers deck the peaks.

The sharp green cliffs in the inland sea chop off into the water and from every one of these of any importance a cannon menacingly points.

Both entrances to the place are controlled by powerful fortresses which command the open sea for a distance of twelve miles. In such a way has the Mikado prepared for any war emergency. Two days after sighting Muji the "Hanc.o.c.k" dropped anchor in the harbor of Yokahama. The visit here lasted three days, during which the Utahns took a trip to Tokio and saw of what the outside wall of the Emperor's palace is composed. At Yokahama the batterymen spent the time in visiting the European portion of the town and learning all they could about the flavor of the j.a.panese foods. On the 16th the vessel lifted her ponderous anchor and pointed her prow eastward.

The only exciting incident during the entire voyage happened at Nagasaki, when the first officer attempted to use corporal punishment on the s.h.i.+p's quartermaster who had been ash.o.r.e and in addition to getting drunk had succeeded in breaking his kneepan. While he was getting his wound attended to in the s.h.i.+p's hospital the big burly mate descended the gangway and struck him a violent blow in the face. Not content with this brutal treatment the monster had the poor wretch placed in irons and dragged up the s.h.i.+p's ladder. Just as this procession landed on the upper deck the soldiers rose unto a man and stopped the performance amid cries of "throw him overboard." Surprised and astounded at this interference the worthy officer demanded of the mob if they knew they were mutinying. To which several of the leaders answered they knew not under what legal nomenclature such a demonstration could be cla.s.sed but that they would carry out their threat to the letter if the castigation should proceed. At this the cowed dignitary retreated in haste to the security of his cabin.

The "Hanc.o.c.k" was generally regarded as a fast boat. This may have been true twenty years before the Nebraskans and Utahns boarded her, but there were those who doubted the truth of such an a.s.sertion. During her infancy on the Atlantic the boat had struck an iceberg and succeeded in breaking forty feet off her bow. Since then she has been subject to periodical disturbances in her interior, consequently her owners patiently awaited the advent of war, knowing that the United States Government would purchase her for the transport service at an early opportunity. It is needless to say she eventually found her way into the Pacific. On leaving Manila it was the intention of the "Hanc.o.c.k" to break her own record of eighteen days between San Francisco and that port. Her new record of thirty days had not yet been announced in the newspapers. As a matter of fact she did happen to break her machinery and delay the expedition six hours, causing a break in the fond hopes which the soldiers had built up.

There was one death during the trip over, Richard Ralph of Battery B, who died at Nagasaki of typhoid fever on the 15th of July. Corporal George Williams of the same organization was also left at the same point owing to a severe attack of the dysentery. Both men were Englishmen and had enlisted at Eureka. Otherwise the health of the batteries was good.

The big prow of the "Hanc.o.c.k" loomed up darkly on the night of the 29th in San Francisco harbor and rested at anchor. The long sea journey was over. Until very late that night, long after taps had sounded sharply over the waters of the harbor, the soldiers cl.u.s.tered around the deck of the s.h.i.+p, heard the megaphone dialogues between the newspaper tugs and the transport, and looked with longing eyes and hearts that beat with joy at the gleaming lights of San Francisco.

Many friends from Utah arrived on tugs during the next day, when the transport was still in quarantine, and there was a generous greeting when the transport moved up to the dock on the morning of the 30th. The whole of this day was spent by the soldiers in exchanging greeting with friends and in preparing their property for transportation to the Presidio.

It was on the morning of the 31st that the soldiers were permitted for the first time to descend from the transport and walk again, after sixteen months of absence in the Orient, upon the sh.o.r.es of the United States.

The battalions marched up the streets of San Francis...o...b..hind the veterans of the Nebraska regiment, the center of a tremendous demonstration. At the Presidio they were given quarters on the slopes to the left of the Presidio road. The patriotic sentiments and generous feelings of the citizens had been further shown, as the slopes of the hills were lined with large Sibley tents, each equipped with a stove as protection from the chilly mists that creep up by night from the bay.

There were also frame buildings for use as offices and a large kitchen and mess room, commodiously and thoroughly equipped for comfort and convenience.

The citizens of Utah in the meantime had been active in preparations for receiving the native warriors. On August 8th, Adjutant-General Charles S. Burton and Colonel Bruback, members of the Governor's staff, and representing the citizens' committee, arrived at the Presidio and used every effort in providing for the further comfort of the men and arranging for their early departure to their homes in Utah. It was learned that a special train had been chartered by the citizens to convey the volunteers to Utah, and to the fund necessary for this purpose Collis P. Huntington of the Southern Pacific had contributed $2500.

The date for the muster out of the Utah troops was fixed by the headquarters of the Department of California as August 16th, and notwithstanding the efforts of General Burton and Major Grant to have this time extended, General Shafter was unable to give an extension of time. This left but a short period for the immense labor of closing the affairs of the battery and the intricate details of the muster out. The Captains of the batteries and a large clerical force were kept working almost continuously from the day of the arrival at the Presidio, and late on the night of the 15th they had the gratification, after toilsome days and sleepless nights, of putting the final touch to the muster out rolls. The next morning the rolls went to the paymaster. The labors of the Utah volunteers in the army of the Republic were over.

Some time before this, on August 5th, the men pa.s.sed the final physical examination, and the general condition of the command was found to be extraordinarily good. Then the men were ready for the last function of muster out.

The next day the paymaster's wagon rattled up the Presidio slope. Then the soldiers performed the last act of their soldier career. One by one they marched into the small official frame building where the paymaster fingered his gold. As the veterans came out, each hand laden with gold, there was upon each face an iridescent smile, not only because of the augmented wealth, but for the reason that each one knew that for him the last bugle call had sounded, that his breast would no longer swell under the blue of the United States uniform. In two hours the soldiers had all left the Presidio, officers were shaking hands with the men over the bridged chasm of official dignity, and up on the slope of the Presidio the Sibley tents were ransacked and deserted.

That night the men of Utah slept in the hotels of San Francisco and dreamed of the morrow.

On the night of the 16th the transport "Warren" arrived, bearing among its pa.s.sengers Major Richard W. Young, late chieftain of the batteries, who had come, much to the satisfaction of the men, in time to join his old war comrades in the homegoing.