Beautiful creepers twisted their way up the wall and stole in at the extensive balcony to catch a taste of the pleasures within; the broadleafed banana palm surrounded the casa and broke the power of the blazing tropic sun. It was, indeed, the one spot in all the East which made the home-loving Utahns feel at home. When away all his secret longings were centered upon that place and its attractions, and his mouth yearned for a renewed acquaintance with the delicate omelets fashioned by the dainty fingers of Pania and the crab brought from the bay by the ubiquitous Peek-a-boo. His mind reverted with gratitude to the anxious solicitations of "Madre" when she learned that he was suffering from a headache and he acutely remembered the healing balm which she applied to his fevered brow. He knew, too, that should he be struck down in death by the bullet of the enemy, what tears of sympathy would be shed at the news of his misfortune.

A FAMILIAR SCENE.

The one source of worriment about the Isabella mansion was the fact that the thirsty soldiers were frequently given an over supply of the deadly vino. Such an occurrence was attended with dire results; but as the motherly "Madre" was blessed with an abundant store of remedies, under her care the victim was soon restored to his mental equilibrium. All soldiers seem gifted with special powers to spend money and as a consequence few of them could command the attention of a penny bootblack twenty-four hours after being paid, but this weakness had no weight with the kindly old dame who carried a large credit roll and could refuse nothing to a Utah soldado. So Isabella's mansion forms a part of the war history of the Utah batteries; and it must be remembered with other and more stirring scenes; for when the thoughts of the Utah soldier stray to the domicile of the Isabella family they are mingled with happy reminiscences and strange memories and tragic sights.

One hundred and four weary and footsore recruits arrived in the Cuartel on the 28th of August and deposited their blankets and all other portable property on the greensward. They had been waiting out in the bay four days and had finally reached the Cuartel after having made a complete circuit of the city. Sergeant Arthur W. Brown piloted the new batch of volunteers to their home, and ever since the redoubtable Sergeant has borne a reputation, as a file leader, which would make a Mexican burro grow green-eyed with envy.

Here it might be stated that after watching the fleet of transports, which conveyed the Utah batteries, sail out of the rugged Golden Gate into the broad Pacific, Lieutenant E.A. Wedgewood and Sergeants Arthur W. Brown and L.N. Fehr turned toward Utah bent on the mission of securing 104 recruits, which would give each battery its full quota of 173. Volunteers were numerous but the work of enlisting covered a period of nine days. Recruits were obtained from all points in the State but the majority came from Salt Lake City. On the 28th of June the full number had been enrolled and the following day the small body of men left for San Francisco, after being accorded a warm demonstration at the depot. At Oakland they remained all night of the 30th and the following morning they marched to Camp Merritt, from which place they were removed to the Presidio two days later.

Late in June Lieutenant Wedgewood was taken ill with typhoid fever but remained with the men until July 6th, when he was taken to the Lane hospital and Lieutenant Diss of the California Heavy Artillery was placed temporarily in charge of the recruits. Orders were for the Utah contingent to sail on the transport "Rio de Janeiro," and as the South Dakota Infantry was the only organization on the vessel Lieutenant Foster of that regiment was given command of the men.

The voyage was uneventful save that the soldiers were ill-treated by Lieutenant Foster, who succeeded in gaining for himself the eternal hatred of the men under his charge. As the recruits were then unacquainted with military practices, many expressions of disgust being made in an unguarded way, reached the ears of the worthy Lieutenant, who heaped still greater indignities upon the men by way of retaliation.

At Honolulu W.A. Kinney, the large plantation owner, entertained the Utahns during their brief stay in that city.

The "Rio de Janeiro" arrived in Manila Bay on the 24th of August, but it was four days later before the recruits set foot on the soil of Luzon and made their phenomenal march up the streets of Manila to Plaza de Felipe II, where they greeted their comrades.

Lieutenant Wedgewood, having recovered from his fever, arrived October 4th on the "Scandia," which left San Francisco on August 27th.

During the long dreary days following the arrival of the recruits their life was not entirely joyous. From sunrise to sunset they were forced to listen to the blood-curdling tales which their companions told of the late conflict with the "Dons." At first they hearkened to them with respectful attention. They never doubted the truth of these glowing fairy stories. They revered these self-lauding heroes as a species of immortal beings. In return for this tributary deference they were treated with contempt. The veteran called them "rookies," and whenever one of them attempted to soar he was promptly and sternly reminded of his inferiority and kindly invited to get off the pedestal upon which he had so unwittingly placed himself while one of his superiors proceeded to relate a harrowing tale of blood and thunder and rain down in the trenches. Every bit of rainy weather or glorious sunset reminded the Malate hero of something he had seen in the trenches and at once he began to dilate upon it with great attention to details and a lofty air of his own importance.

So it went on. The recruits vainly sought for relief. He tried to stem the tide of persecution by relating stories of his own. But as soon as he made such an attempt he was immediately "bawled out" and his tormentors proceeded with a fresh tirade. Finally one of the groaning victims hit upon a happy plan, and after it was carried out it effectually stopped the torture. When in the future the mendacious veteran essayed to array himself in a cloud of glory by narrating legends of personal prowess, he was unceremoniously suppressed by the rookies, who sang:

It may be so; I do not know,
But it sounds to me like a lie.

Instantly upon the starting of this little hymn it was taken up by every soldier in the barracks and the unlucky veteran, crestfallen and beaten, was only too glad to retire into seclusion.

During those five months in which the soldier was learning the peculiarities of Oriental life and sweltering under the rays of the Southern sun, he adopted any means of causing the speedy destruction of time. After the singularities of his new surroundings had ceased to be uncommon he began to look about himself in search of other amusement. Naturally a person who adapts himself easily to his environments, he took up with the games of the Filipinos, and, as a consequence, soon after the appearance of the American as a prominent figure on the streets of Manila, it was no unusual occurrence to behold the huge, good-natured Yankee engaged in friendly sport with the diminutive and fiery Tagalan.

As cock-fighting is the national game of the native the soldier seized upon this diversion with an enthusiasm that was truly remarkable. The slender and wiry game cock was in great demand. The feathered pugilist became the hero of the hour. The price of "pollos" jumped above