Show I DIED FOR A SCOOP How Old ColCollins Gave Up His Life to Get the News The struggles of newspaper correspondents corre-spondents in Cuba furnish some of the most heroic chapter of the war with Spain Frank Collins who died at Tampa two weeks ag gave up his lIfe for a scoop He was full of the American grit that never lets a man fall don on a story Collins worked for a Boston newspaper before the war Old Col as he was affectionately called was a hack reporter He Worked hard but he was ncer known to turn up news He could write beautiful stuff but he dldnt know news from ham ftndwiches He could write the cauliflowers for an account of a street parade and do It well I a hous had fallen on the grand marshal however I he wouldnt have known a thing about It Im going to the front boys Collins I Col-lins announced in the local room the day after war was declared I dont Intend that 30 1 years from now my I fokl have to sy Grandpa wrote police news on a Boston newspaper during the war Old Cols decision was greeted with rrs of laughter Goin to drive an ice wagon asked one No joshed another hes going to push a banana carLOld Old CoP was young for oil his nickname nick-name sacked or the decrepit and he was sensitive What was horse play for the rest cut him lke whip lashes I Im coming out of the fight a colonel colo-nel or n corpse boys sid Lieutenant Hunt of a Cincinnati regiment as he went in at San Juan He was killed I just a the battle ended Collins set his teeth and determined to come out of Cuba a success or a dead man He died at Tampa as he was coming back from the war covered with glory I Whets Collins sailed his paper had no idea 1 could depend upon him for big news Tat was to be secured by aNon a-Non York connection Old Col was to write I his stuff turned out firtrate I well and god If not he was to be I soaked He got on the ground justin just-in time for the rough riders fight and the big engagements that followed When other correspondents were afraid to leave the lInes and travel across country with dispatches Collins trudged every bit of the way on foot He dodged Spanish sharpshooters swam streams stared and faInted from exhaustion to reach the cable station There he found that his paper had had a quarrel with their New York ally and that he hal no cabling facilities He had no idea how new his stuff was To telegraph 150 worth or more of stuff might mea that Ills paper would refuse to sand for H and he would be discredited discred-Ited besIdes having to bear the whole expense He had been turned down so many time he doubted his own judgment judg-ment But he was such a good fellow had struggled so and borne such hardships ships that the correspondents of another an-other big news agency took his matter and put i on the wire for him Back went Collins into the thick or thing feeling that now he must be of considerable consid-erable use to hIs paper He did not know H but his stuff was Q great scoop The other Boston reporters had been afraid to leave the trenches and CoUhis account was the only one that appeared that day in a Boston paper Collins worked like mad never sparing himself and fairly laughing at danger He had no tent nothing to pat no place to sleep no helpmate and not even the knowledge that his matter i was beIng printed He somehow failed Ito I-to get connection at any time with his I paper He wrote stories pathetic humorous hu-morous grand columns and columns or them anti forwarded them pluckily by mail The more important matter went by cable One night he came sick rainsoaked hal stared into a tent in which a Cia cinnat and a New York newspaperman newspaper-man were t1ingto find shelter For Gods sake boys he said cant YOU take me in They were sleeping on a sQuare of canvass folding fold-ing part of i over for a cover Collins was welcomed and jollied and cheered as much as possible When great strong men get sick in Cuba thousands of miles away from home they were apt to do weak things they would leave for women and children in this country coun-try Collins cried like a baby During the night he told the Cincinnati reD re-D e about his sweetheart He had a half dozen pictures of her hidden away in the breast of his old duel jacket Shes n rich girl he said and her people are away UP you know But If I rfnke a success of this boys I shant be ashamed to ask her folks for her Collins took passage for Tampa on the ransas with a lot of other correspondents corre-spondents when the fighting was over When the time came for the health officers of-ficers to come aboard Collins was too fcers weak to stand u Brace UP Col they all entreated him Well all be kept here I the doctor finds you sick Collins was dressed with the help of the others brightened up and made to appear as dapper as possible The health officer came on and the boys aU flocked around Collins in a bunch and held him steady so that he wouldnt weave around in a weak way He passed muster As soon as the officer ler she boat te lay down again and declared that he was not equal to another other trIal Yes you are oul do it for us old boy they persuaded him At Tama they were told to walk past the doctor I singe fe EVer body knew that this would be impossible impos-sible for Collins When his turn came the newspaper people all began a joshing josh-ing performance laughing and crowd inl one another and trooped past the officer like a bunch of cols Collins was in the midst and slipped through again Then he learned what his paDer had been doing with his stuff for the first time They were printing it with his name at the top of the page in betters an inch long Collins was a success Hurrah boys he shouted feebly while tear of joy ran down his wasted cheeks Collins was taken to a hospital at TamDR He die thee a few days afterward In the pockets at his old brown blouse md stitched tightly in the front they found he pictures or the Boston nirlChicago Inter Ocean ANIARDS I CUBA Expected That Many Solders Will Remain Thee New 7or Pressj The statement in a recent Havana dispatch hat 50000 of the 150000 SpanIsh soldiers now In Cuba would remain as civilians after eac uaton may be little more than a guess But there are conditions which attest the probability of the Cuban republics obtaining a considerable and excellent sUb of its material for citizenship from this source The Spanish soldier Is n conscript peasant in most instances in-stances His land at home or his fathers fath-ers is not unlikely I to be worn out He has doubtless enough of aaiculturl knowiedue to mark the difference between be-tween I and the fertile savannahs over which he has fought and marched for the last three years Moreover he requires re-quires no great deree of intelligence idrieo fe W h to divine that taxes will l be lighter and the chances of reconscltUon fewer in the new home than the old That a livelihood in brief will come easier as we say on this side of the water he needs none of the perspicacity of education erslcact elu caton to recognize Those who desire the good of the Island will hope for a large accession to its population from this source I needs an Injection of Caucasian blood and it is not likely to get i tram here Amer leans will not settle In the tropics Lat Ins will Probably no better Latin material ma-terial for the settlement of this part of the tropics could be found than the members of the disbanded Spanish army I Is bodily sound havln passed some sort of physical examination I is acclimated It Is hardy I has the habits of discipline I the Cuban lead era are wise and wish real stability of government rather than part advantage advant-age they will welcome these young veterans to all the civic rights of their new state They arc not In the way of finding any better offset to the bandit and Jerla elements whose elimination elimina-tion wi be among the first of their problems when this country as It is bound to do withdraws its gUiding and protecting hand |