it came from Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma and the Indian
Territory, but it had members from nearly every State. Many
Eastern college men were in it, including some famous foot-ball
players, polo-players, tennis champions and oarsmen. The regiment
trained at San Antonio, and landed in Cuba for the attack on
Santiago on June 22. The troopers had to leave their horses
behind, so they were to fight on foot after all. Roosevelt's Rough
Riders, somebody said, had become Wood's Weary Walkers. The
walking was not pleasant to some of the cow-boys, who never used
to walk a step when there was a horse to ride.

Within a day or two they were in a fight at Las Guasimas. It was a
confusing business, advancing through the jungle and fired at by
an enemy they could not see. The Rough Riders lost eight men
killed and thirty-four wounded. The Spaniards were using smokeless
powder, then rather a new thing in war. Two of our regiments at
Santiago were still using black powder rifles, and the artillery
used black powder, which by its smoke showed the enemy just where
they were. Our artillery was always silenced or driven off,
because this country had been so neglectful of its Army and its
men as to let poor, old backward Spain get better guns, and more
modern ammunition than ours. That never should happen with a rich,
progressive country like ours.

A few days later came the fight at San Juan. Colonel Wood had been
put in command of the brigade, so Roosevelt led the regiment of
Rough Riders. It was a fearfully hot day; many men dropped from
exhaustion. The regular regiments of cavalry, together with the
Rough Riders, all fighting on foot, moved forward against the low
hills on which were the Spaniards in block-houses or trenches. For