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Show B ROMANCE OF THE WAR B HOW AN OPPICEn WAS COURT- HHRHE MAflTIALBD. BBHfl aenteaeed to He Shot Drnut It Wet HBHH Oateaerald by 1'owrrlal Aeaerl- BBHB aaa Coap oete Away Ills Mtdalt A BBHB 1-athella Many ot the tragedies' of the Spanish- HHBH American wsr will remain unwritten BBHB and many will probably nerer be told. BBHB lor the soldiers o Spain tbo borrori BBH of tht war did not altogether cease HHBH with tbe declaration of pear. The HBHH atory which I am about to relate provea BBH BHB I knew ot at least one gallant officer, BHBH who oad served hla country well for HHHB many yean, and Whoso reward was a HHBH aentence of Icnoinlnlous death at the HHBH bands of his own couutrymon. For BHBH aught I know the execution of the de- BBHB cree may already have taken place. HBHH At any rate I snw him sail for Spain BBHB a hopeless and broken old man. The HBHB death aentence had already been p"' BBBH ad upon blm and at bis own request he BBBH was iolDg home to die 1 was In HBHB Ban Juan, Porto Itlco, about a week BBBH before the evacuation The strceU HBHB and cafea were filled with Spanish of- HBHB fleers. I found them to be both cour- BBBH teoua and dignified Ytt thsro was HBHH much ot pathos In their bearing Llko BBHH the French who contemplate tho drap- BBHH d statue, representing Blrasburg, In BBBH the Place de la Concord, and think ot BBHH Alsace-Lorraine, so these men gsxed BBHB fondly at Cnaa Illanco, once- the rest- BBHH dsneo of I'once de Lean, and thought HBHH sadly of their four centuries ot pos- BBHH session. One of our officers volun- BHHHJ teered one day to take me on a visit BBHH to Col Ban Martin, who hnd command- HBHH e4 the Third battalion of tho Spanish BBHH troops, and who was then n prisoner BBHH In the barracks When I waa told BBHH that he was under sentence ot death BBHH for cowardice I was not predisposed o BBHH his faror. Hut when I saw the man BBHH and talked with blm my feeling of ro- BHHHJ rulilon changed to one of great pity. HHHHJ The atory of his disgrace Is soon BHHHJ told. He waa In command of the BBHHJ Spanish troops In soveral ot the Inte- HBBHJ rlor clttaa, and, being opposed by eTir BBHHJ Eleventh regulars, under command of BBHH Col. De ltussy, be retreated from place BBHHJ to place without as much resistance BBHHJ as tbe Spanish commander at the capU BHHHJ UI thought a brave man should bare BBHHJ BHHHJ As a matter of fact, his forcea wete HHHHJ entirely Inadequate to cope with ours, BHHHJ and the Spaniards were so out-general- BHHHJ ed by the United Slates troops that re- BBHH ilstance waa suicidal, Upon Col. Ban HHHHJ Martin's arrival at Ban Juan he waa BHHHJ court martlaled In a moat thoatrlcol HHHjH Banner, by order ot Oen. Maclaa, got- H COL,. SAN MATITIN. HBHHJ crnor-general ot l'orto lUco, and the BHHHJ outcome of It was that he 'was sen- BHHHJ fenced to be shot. BHHHJ The old colonel was too proud to HBHHj bow how keenly he felt tbe disgrace. HHHHJ He bowed to the Judgment ot the drum HBHH head court, and had only one request BHHHJ to make. It he must be shot, would HHHHJI the honor ot aheddlng his last blood BBHHJ on the mother eoll be refusedlilm? He HHHHJ should like to die In Spain, Cduld tho BHHHJ aentence nvt ti carried out there In- HHHHJ stead ot In . rto Itlco, which was vlr- BHHHJ tually In the handa ot the enemy! HHHHJ Tho court deliberated Yes, In view HHHHJ ot his many years ot ruerftQ(lo.ui set BHHHJ vice, his request would be granted, HBHH Then bo waa confined In the barracks HBHHJ to await the sailing of the transport HBBHL. for Spain. BBHBmV I could not help admiring the man'a HBHHBl fortitude He made a brare abow ot HBHHPa ' dignity, but I could see that, UJj heart HHHHJ wu breaking. He was a fine old man BHHHv of sixty, straight as an arrow, and full BHHHM of that restless energy which eren HHHHJj years ran not rob the born soldlor of. BHHHV Ills smooth-shaven faco was full ot HHHjHJ character. It was a rugged, strong MaMHP faea, rr.ml.lntm- I ho ,t.irl.ll . BHR ln8 ooldlor with tbe tenderness ot a HJBHj ' sympathetic nature, BmHH We had n long talk, ot a rambling BHHw character, and It was with some trepl- BjHH datlon that I broached tbe subject of qJuHH bis own misfortune Ills eyes became KSsE tnolst, and hla rcserro meltod away. Bfffflffl "e recounted to m hie many years of jfflBl military serrlce, ot how he hail fought HBBHJm 'or his country, an t Saw finally "Spain HaWBMIt bad cast blm away, .Ike a battered DMIf old hulk that bad outllred It usoful- Vmt ess,M "-Hpi. " & la 'u'l uniform, and fire srifi. medals hung from his breast, medals ?57v ta( bad been awarded him for brar- r2U "S ' I eommlttod the solecism of ad- 'ifSjf airing one of these which hung sep- 'r&Jmt arntely, the other four being attached A-"-" io or. bar. To express admiration for 1 anything In the possession ot a Spanish gentleman Is wrong, as I learned sub-stquenlly. sub-stquenlly. Vtlquette demands that the article which has been admired must be presentod to the person who baa admired It. Tbe next day I was somewhat surprised sur-prised to recetre at my hotel a smalt AaA1 package containing the medal, accompanied accom-panied by a note from Col. San Martin begging at to accept It aa a alight token to-ken of his esteem and expressing the hope that I should always remember the donor. I again tlilteObo barracks bar-racks to thank hint In person, and waa more than erer Impressed by the pathos ot the old man'a position. In the meantlnte I had met quite a number of our own ofRcers, and the case of CoL San Msrtt.n was a matter t frequent 'conrmitlon. 'Finally a scheme to aid him was broocheM, and I -wis permitted to aiilst In carrying It out. Letters were recelred from Oen. Drooke, Col Deltussy and other offlcers prominent In the l'orto lllcnn campaign, cam-paign, explaining In minute detail all the military manoeurres and showing the futility of any course other than that pursued by Col Ban Martin. Theso letters were gladly furnished, for the fate of the old Bpanlsb warrior war-rior had made a deep Impression upon our offlcers. On Oct. 22 Col Ban Martin sailed for Spain on the transport Monterldeo. COL. BAN MARTIN'S I'ltlSON. Despite tho fact that ho was armed with the letters from the American offlcers, I know he felt his case' to bo utterly hopeless, I could see It In his faco as ho bade, me farewell before going aboard tho rcsiel lhat was to benr him to Spain, I had further erl-dence erl-dence of It when I returned to my hotel ' Thero found ?tfundfe awaiting me, and on opening It I found tho old colenela gold-braided coat, with the four remaining medals still plnnod upon up-on Its breast. I bod been enabled to do him a serrlce and be hoped I would do hint .trie- hodor' to 'accept his coat and medals. This was' all. Hut It clearly showed that he felt ho waa going homo to die tbe death of a traitor. trait-or. The majority of tho medals worn by offlcers In the Spanish army are purchased pur-chased by UiemselrM. The gororn-ment gororn-ment has an economical system of simply firing for conspicuous bravery a certificate entitling the bearer to wear a medal ot k certain degree, and the otneer. If be Is wealthy enough, purchases It. This reteran ot Brain goes back to his natlro land to be mode a scare- goat ot by hla superior oOcsra at Bau Juan. Our own offlcera In l'orto Itlco are anxiously hoping to hear that their efforts In tils lehall hare borne good fruit, and that tho sentence of1 the court-martial may be arerted. Dut, In view ot what boa transpired, they fear their hopes will provo In rain. They hare their own way ot doing things In Bpatn, and eren now tbe bone of tbe old warrior may be I mouldering In a dishonored grate.. . 1'ATItIClC OOIIAN. I'once, l'orto Itlco. |