THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 370 own hands. To remain longer inactive under the enemy's fire was to incur loss uselessly. It was better to risk a rush for the blockhouse, and so without any superior orders the rush came. On the right of the road the 10th Cavalry pressed on, accompanied by the Rough Riders, led by Roosevelt, almost the only mountedofficer in the advance. To theleft of the road a white-haired general, Hawkins, led to the attack the 6th and 16th Infantry, all that wasavailable of Kent's ist brigade. The other regiment, the 71st New York Volunteers, after losing several officers and men,had been withdrawn from the fighting line because it was found that the smoke of their old-fashioned Springfield rifles drew a heavy fire from the Spanish lines, and caused unnecessary loss to the battalion, and all who were nearit.

for everywhere along the bush-tracks, for fully a mileto the rear,the Mauser bullets wereripping through the trees. At the crossing of the San Juan river so manyfell that the soldiers called the place the " bloody ford." Where the trail left the woodin front of San Juan,the dead and wounded encumbered the ground and blocked the way. The men were ordered to lie down on the edge of the woods and not return the Spanish fire. It was more than human nature could endure to literallyobey such anorder,and there was a dropping fusillade from the bushes, but it was not very effective. This waitingattitude was the result ofGeneral Shaffer's elaborate plan. Nothingwasto be riskedagainst SanJuan until El Caney was taken.

The balloon had gone up to the west of Sevilla, and it was dragged up the track tillit got to near the point where the San Juan road opened from the woods. Thereit was anchored about a hundred feet above the trees in easy range of the Spanish guns and rifles. A mileto the rear and at a greater height it might have done good service. Here it only drew a heavy fire from the Spaniards, and everything that missed theballoon did deadly execution among the infantry packed beneath and behind it on the track. There was general rejoicing among theAmericans when a Spanish shrapnel tore a great gap in the balloon and it came slowdy down, the upperpart of it gathering in the net on the top of it and forming a parachute. ColonelDerby of theEngineers, whowasin the car of the balloon, escaped unhurt. He brought down one useful item of information. He had seen another trail through the wood a littleto the left, which might be used for some of the troops.

The menpressedon, firing at first,then breaking into a run for the slopein front. Allregular order had been abandoned, and it was in detached groupsand knots of menthat theinfantry and cavalry charged the enemy's lines. The slope was so steep in places that the menhad to climb moreslowly. To the onlookersit seemed that they weretoofew, and that they must fail.

Till they topped the crest the Spaniards fired amongthem, and dead and woundeddotted the hillside. But at last the Americans went in over the trench with a cheer, and what wereleft of the Spaniards fled. The garrison of theblockhouse, which had been a good dealdamaged by the artillery, made no attempt to defendit, and the Stars and Stripes were hoistedon itsbroken roof.

The hill of San Juan had been held by onlythree companies of Spanish infantry. One belonged to the regiment of Talavera, one and a half to the PuertoRico regiment,and the other half company was made up of volunteers. The whole were under the command of Colonel Baquero. On the flank of the hill,thrown back towardsthe town, a couple of quick-firing guns were in position, under the personal command of Colonel Ordonez, a scientific artillerymanof European reputation. It was these guns that made such good practice against Grimes's battery. In reserve betweenSan Juan and the entrance to Santiago werethreemorecompanies of the Talavera regiment under the personal commandof General Linares himself. One of these watchedthe right side of the hill;the two others were in the fork between the San Juan and El Caney roads. Thus the actual defence of San Juan wasentrusted to 300 rifles and two One brigade was massed on this new road. The two others used the old trail. To their right the dismounted cavalryregiments worked to the front, the Rough Riders dragging with them a dynamite field gun, which, however, jammed almostat once, and proved useless. A battery of machine guns came into action near El Pozo,and did better work than the artillery.

The men were now crowdedalongthe edge of the woods, suffering heavy loss, returning the Spanish fire, and waiting impatiently for the order to advance across the five hundred yards of open ground that separated them from the trenches around the San Juan blockhouse. No orders came. According to the plan, they had to wait for Lawton's division, but at last the officers at the front took the matter into their