So the long-eared steed was mounted and the ford of the
Aguadores reconnoitered. The bullets were zipping through the rank
tropical jungle. Two or three men were hit. Those who moved forward
were going single file, crouching low, at a dog trot. There was no
evidence of hesitation or fear here. Some of the "Brunettes" passed,
their blue shirts unbuttoned, corded veins protruding as they slightly
raised their heads to look forward, great drops of perspiration
rolling down their sleek, shiny, black skins. There was a level spot,
slightly open, beyond the ford of the Aguadores, which offered a place
for going into battery; from this place the enemy's works on San Juan
were visible, a faint streak along the crest of the hill illumined
from time to time by the flash of Mausers.
On return to the battery, there were no signs of being able to enter
the action with the gallant 71st, and, acting under the second clause
of the instructions, the Gatling battery was moved forward at a
gallop. Major Sharpe, a mounted member of Gen. Shafter's staff, helped
to open a way through this regiment to enable the guns to pass. The
reception of the battery by these valiant men was very different from
that so recently given by the 13th Regulars.
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