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| CHAPTER XLII. STAMPEDE OF HORSES. AN EXCITING MIDNIGHT INCIDENT.—LONG MARCHES AND SHAM BATTLES. Another incident which happened about the time of the killing of Osterkamp came near being very disastrous. It was the stampede of about 200 horses and mules through the camp at dead of night. They were the animals belonging to the regulars who were encamped not far away. A newspaper correspondent writing from Tampa, gave the following account of the affair: "The Fifth Maryland had an exciting experience last night, which was almost equal to an encounter with the Spaniards. About half an hour after taps, as the men were falling asleep, a sound of distant firing, and repeated shouts of 'Turn out the guard!' were heard in the direction of the District of Columbia camp. In a moment confusion reigned throughout the regiment. "The lights flared from the darkened tents, and snatching their arms, the boys crowded in their company streets trying to discover the cause of the alarm. Shots continued and orders were given to the men to return to their tents. Shortly afterward a thundering.beat, like the advance of a cavalry troop, rapidly approached. The boys were then ordered to get their arms and form in line. The foe proved to be a herd of frightened horses and mules that had broken out from a neighboring corral and were stampeding to and fro through the camps of the Second New York and First District of Columbia, and were being driven across the line of the Fifth Maryland. "On they came pell mell, full gallop, followed by firing and shouts, passing along the open space between the companies' tents and those of the battalion staft. The stampede lasted for a moment, and then the thundering of hoofs died out in the distance. "That no one was injured seems like a special act of Providence, as the danger was great. As it was, there were a number of narrow escapes. The only damage done in the Fifth Maryland Camp was the destruction of the tents of Lieutenants Campbell and Danels. Two tents were similarly torn down in the Second New York, and a whole row were overthrown in the First North Carolina. TAMPA BAY HOTBL, 1898. |