remarkable fortitude.

In return for this, Theodore Roosevelt did all he could to make life
less hard for those under him. The game that was brought to him he sent
to the hospital, that the wounded might have proper nourishment; and he
either went himself or sent somebody to the seacoast, to purchase food
which the commissary department possessed, but which, through lack of
organization, it was slow in distributing. When no shelter was to be
had, he slept on the ground with his men, and when they had to work on
the trenches at night, he was up and around superintending the labor.

"He was one of us, and he let us know it," was said by one of the Rough
Riders. "He ate the same food we did, and he was mighty good to the
sick and the wounded. He paid for lots of things out of his own pocket,
and I don't believe he has ever asked Uncle Sam to pay him back."

There was no telling how soon the truce would come to an end and
fighting would begin again, and night after night the Rough Riders were
kept on guard. There was a standing order that each fourth man should
keep awake while the others slept, and no matter how dark or rainy the
night, Theodore Roosevelt tramped around from one trench to another,
seeing to it that this order was obeyed. He also visited the
intrenchments of other commands, to compare them and make certain that
the grade of service was equally high among the Rough Riders. This shows
distinctly that he was a natural-born military commander.

The truce lasted a week, and while all operations were supposed to have
come to an end, both the Americans and the Spaniards spent the time in
strengthening their positions. At one time the Americans constructed a
fairly good defence, in which they placed two Gatling guns and two
automatic Colt guns, and this was named Fort Roosevelt, in honor of the
Rough Rider commander.

On the tenth of July the fighting began once more, and again the
batteries on both sides sent shot and shell into the camps of the enemy.
It was largely fighting at long range, and the only Rough Riders who
took part were those who manned the Colt's guns, and a small body of
sharpshooters stationed in a trench well to the front.

On the next day the Rough Riders were ordered northward, to guard the
road running from Santiago to El Caney. Here some fighting was in
progress, and the troopers expected to get into battle once more. But
the skirmish came to an end before they arrived, very much to th