Show it STUDENT LIFE had to walk from the station to our home— a distance of thirteen miles AVe finally made the distance however and felt glad that we were back from Oklahoma probably forever I for one was not sorry when I learned that my chance was about the seventy-nin- e rain and steadily increased until there was a heavy downpour The wind began to blowr and rapidly increased in force but the tired soldiers slept on Suddenly the sharp crack of a rille rang out above the storm It was quickly followed by another and yet another until the thousandth cracking of rifles and the patter of bijllets was E T K like the patter of hail on an iron roof Then a volley came whizzing over the heads of the sleeping American soldiers In a few minutes A Midnight Surprise the entire American outpost was under arms On July 22nd 159$ the American army landand sending deadly volleys into the ranks of ed on the island of Luzon a few miles south of the advancing foe The artillery was waitthe city of Manila A series of outposts were ing for permission to fire To the dazed artil“thrown out’ forming a complete circle lerymen the wind seemed to increase in its around Camp Dewey to prevent surprise by fury and the rain to fall faster and faster Rut the Spanish armj At the outpost facing Fort suddenly the quick sharp tone of the bugle Malate the most important Spanish position rang out the order “Commence fil ing!” the event herein described occurred Fort Almost simultaneously with the order the Malate was held by a Spanish force of three four American cannon rang out their deadly thousand men infantrjT and artillery comdefiance to the Spanish army The Spanish bined while in the city of Manila there was an cannon’s reply added to the awful din and roar additional force of about four thousand solof the battle The shells came shrieking over diers Camp Dewey was three miles from the heads of the Americans and burst with a Fort Malate and there were all told only dull sickening thud among our soldiers in the about three thousand five hundred American rear The bursting of those shells struck tersoldiers The American outpost was only a ror to the souls of the bravest and hearts that mile from the Spanish position and two miles had not known fear before were stilled with from Camp Dewey so that the outpost was in awe Rut as each scanned the face of his comconstant danger of an attack rade he saw' only one thing written there and The morning of July 31st 189$ dawned that was to stand by the stars and stripes which hung dripping above the trenches or to bright and clear in the Philippine Islands Smiling nature seemed trying to infuse a little jgive up his life in the attempt k disAs the battle increased in its fury the storm brightness into the lives of the couraged American soldiers who having lived raged as only a turbulent typhoon in the on Alg?r’s “Fine Canned Roast Reef” for ten Southern Seas can The thunderbolts seemed weeks were not feeling as though life was “one to rend the sky in twain the lurid flashes of grand fweet song” Slowly the hot tropical lightning and the buisting shells made the The groans of the day came to a close The sun sank to rest in place as light as day all the brightness and glory of a tropical sunwounded and dying rose above the noise of the set A few minutes later the sky became overconflict cast with dark threatening clouds The solThe battle raged on and the flashes of the diers on duty at the outpost near Fort Malate opposing rifles seemed almost together At tired out with the day’s work lay down on the this critical moment word was passed along wet muddy ground and were soon asleep the American line that the ammunition was dreaming of their native land far across the running low in fact only a few rounds remainPacific Ocean ed Then the order was given to reserve these As time passed the sky became darker and rounds for the foe as they came over the more overcast with clouds Soon it began to trenches Despair had seized the hearts of the sea-sic- |