t the comforts I
have seen since then on the U.S. Army transports plying
between San Francisco and Manila. The ships used were
hastily fitted up for the occasion, and it could not be
expected that they would be all that was required, but some
of the appointments could and should have been better. After
a tedious wait until June 14th, we sailed down Tampa Bay and
out on the Gulf of Mexico, still in ignorance of our
destination. The evening of the 15th the light at Dry
Tortugas was seen to our right. June 16th, 17th and 18th our
course was a little south of east, and part of the time the
north coast of Cuba was visible. The weather (except the
intense heat) was fine. On Sunday morning, June 18th, we
entered the Windward Passage, and it seemed certain, from
our course, that Santiago was our objective. Early the next
morning the high mountains of Santiago de Cuba were in plain
sight to our north. June 20th and 21st, remained off the
coast; the sea was rough and the vessel rolled considerably,
adding to the discomfort of every one, especially those
subject to seasickness. During the evening of the 21st,
orders were received to be ready to disembark the following
morning. About 8 A.M. on the 22d our warships began shelling
the coast, and two hours later the troops started in small
boats from the transports to the shore. By evening most of
the Second Division and part of the Cavalry Division were on
Cuban soil. There was no opposition to our landing; I
believe that a small force well handled could have made it
very difficult, if, indeed, it could not have prevented it.

As soon as the regiment had landed it was marched out about
four miles and bivouacked for the night. The country is
rugged and covered with a dense tropical vegetation. A few
"Cuban Patriots" had joined us and formed the extreme
advance, saving us some disagreeable outpost duty. This was
the only service that I know of them doing throughout the
campaign, though they were always on hand ration day. Later
developments showed that the service rendered was not so
important, as any Spanish force had retired to a safe place,
something our friends looked out for whenever there was any
danger.

June 23d, the regiment started shortly after daylight
towards the city of