In the Trenches 189 



did not have much heart in it. The American field 

 artillery was now under the command of General 

 Randolph, and he fought it effectively. A mortar 

 battery had also been established, though with an 

 utterly inadequate supply of ammunition, and this 

 rendered some service. Almost the only Rough 

 Riders who had a chance to do much firing were 

 the men with the Colt automatic guns, and the 

 twenty picked sharp-shooters, who were placed in 

 the newly dug little fort out at the extreme front. 

 Parker had a splendid time with the Catlings and the 

 Colts. With these machine guns he completely sil- 

 enced the battery in front of us. This battery had 

 caused us a good deal of trouble at first, as we could 

 not place it. It was immediately in front of the 

 hospital, from which many Red Cross flags were 

 flying, one of them floating just above this battery, 

 from where we looked at it. In consequence, for 

 some time, we did not know it was a hostile battery 

 at all, as, like all the other Spanish batteries, it was 

 using smokeless powder. It was only by the aid of 

 powerful glasses that we finally discovered its real 

 nature. The Catlings and Colts then actually put 

 it out of action, silencing the big guns and the two 

 field-pieces. Futhermore, the machine guns and our 

 sharp-shooters together did good work in supple- 

 menting the effects of the dynamite gun; for when 

 a shell from the latter struck near a Spanish trench, 



