recision,
but "it seemingly had no effect upon reducing the Spanish fire
delivered in our (their) front." The Seventh did not fire to any
extent. The Twelfth Infantry lay in its refuge "free from the enemy's
fire" and may have kept up an irregular fire.

About this time Bates' brigade entered the field and one battalion of
the Twentieth Infantry is reported to have joined the left of the
firing line of the Twenty-fifth. General Ludlow says there was a lull
from 12 to 1 p.m., "when the action again became violent, and at 3
p.m. the Third Brigade captured the stone fort with a rush and hoisted
the American flag." From Ludlow's brigade, Captain Van Horne,
commanding the Twenty-second Infantry, after the wounding of
Lieutenant-Colonel Patterson, says that the First Battalion of his
regiment took a position about 800 yards from the town and kept up
firing until the place surrendered. He does not say positively that
the firing was upon the town, but he had said just before that the
Second Battalion slowly moved forward, firing into the town from the
left, so that we may readily conclude from the context as well as from
the position that the First Battalion fired into the town also. Hence
it seems fair to exclude from the fort all of Ludlow's brigade, and it
is observable that Ludlow himself claims no part in the capture of
that stronghold.

General Bates says his brigade took position to the right of Colonel
Miles' brigade and pushed rapidly to the front. He then says that
after remaining sometime in the crossroad to the right of Miles'
brigade, under a heavy fire from the enemy, the brigade moved farther
"to the right to the assault of a small hill, occupied upon the top by
a stone fort and well protected by rifle pits. General Chaffee's
brigade charged them from the right, and the two brigades joining upon
the crest, opened fire from this point of vantage, lately occupied by
the Spanish, upon the village of El Caney." General Chaffee says it
was in consequence of the fire of General Bates' troops upon the fort
that the assault by the Twelfth Infantry was postponed.

In General Chaffee's report this statement occurs: "The action lasted
nearly throughout the day, terminating at about 4.30 p.m., at which
time the stone blockhouse was assaulted by Captain Haskell's battalion
of the Twelfth Infantry, under the personal direction of
Lieutenant-Colonel Comba, commanding the regiment. The resistance at
this point had been great