According To The Statement Of The Enemy, Who Had Every Reason Not To
Exaggerate The Size Of His Own Force, 4,000 Spaniards Were Engaged In
This Action.
The Rough Riders numbered 534, and General Young's
force numbered 464.
The American troops accordingly attacked a force
over four times their own number intrenched behind rifle-pits and
bushes in a mountain pass. In spite of the smokeless powder used by
the Spaniards, which hid their position, the Rough Riders routed them
out of it, and drove them back from three different barricades until
they made their last stand in the ruined distillery, whence they
finally drove them by assault. The eager spirit in which this was
accomplished is best described in the Spanish soldier's answer to the
inquiring civilian, "They tried to catch us with their hands." The
Rough Riders should adopt it as their motto.
II - THE BATTLE OF SAN JUAN HILL
After the Guasimas fight on June 24, the army was advanced along the
single trail which leads from Siboney on the coast to Santiago. Two
streams of excellent water run parallel with this trail for short
distances, and some eight miles from the coast crossed it in two
places. Our outposts were stationed at the first of these fords, the
Cuban outposts a mile and a half farther on at the ford nearer
Santiago, where the stream made a sharp turn at a place called El
Poso. Another mile and a half of trail extended from El Poso to the
trenches of San Juan.
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