" He
sums up as follows: "And if it is to be ambushed when you receive the
enemy's fire perhaps a quarter of an hour before it was expected, and
when the troop was in a formation, and the only one in which, in view
of the nature of the ground it was possible to advance quickly, then
most certainly L Troop of the Rough Riders was ambushed by the
Spaniards on the morning of June 24th."
Mr. Bonsal also brings into clear view the part taken in this battle
by Lawton's Infantry. He shows by means of a simple map the trail by
which Miles' brigade, in which was the Twenty-fifth Infantry, moved in
order to flank the Spanish position, while Chaffee's brigade was
hurrying forward on the Royal Road to reinforce the line in front. A
letter from a soldier of the Twenty-fifth written soon after these
events fully confirms Mr. Bonsal in what he says concerning the
movement of Miles' brigade. The soldier says: "On the morning of the
24th the Rough Riders, Tenth and First Cavalry were to make an attack
on a little place where the Spanish were fortified. The Second Brigade
was to come on the right flank of these troops and a little in rear of
the fortifications; but by some misunderstanding, the former troops,
led by the Rough Riders, made an attack before we got our position,
and the result was a great many lives lost in the First Cavalry and
Rough Riders--only one in Tenth Cavalry, but many wounded.
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