Dave Darrin at Vera Cruz Part 31

"Two of our men," Trent replied. "And nine Mexicans."

When it came their turn to have their wounds washed and bandaged with sterilized coverings, the Mexicans looked bewildered. Such treatment at the hands of an enemy was beyond their comprehension.

A room below was turned over for hospital use, and there the wounded of both sides were treated.

Still the firing continued heavily throughout the city. Trent, with his field gla.s.s constantly to his eyes, picked out the nearest roof-tops from which the Mexicans were firing. Then he a.s.signed sharpshooters to take care of the enemy on these roofs.

"We can do some excellent work from this position," the lieutenant remarked to his two younger officers.

It was peculiar of this fight that no regular volleys of shots were exchanged. The Mexicans, from roof-tops, from windows and other places of hiding, fired at an American uniform wherever they could see it.

The very style of combat adopted by the enemy made it necessary for the Americans, avoiding needless losses, to fight back in the same sniping way. Slowly, indeed, were these numerous detachments of Mexicans, numbering some eight hundred men in all, driven back.

Boom! boom! boom! The Mexican artillery now started into life, driving its sh.e.l.ls toward the invaders.

"The real fight is going to begin now," uttered Dave, peering eagerly for a first glimpse of the artillery smoke.

"I hope the s.h.i.+ps tumble down whole squares of houses!" was Danny Grin's fervent wish.

"If they start that, we're in a hot place," smiled Trent, coolly.

From the harbor came the sound of firing.

"Why, there's only one of our s.h.i.+ps firing!" exclaimed Darrin.

"The '_Prairie_' is using some of our guns!"

Presently the heavier detonations died out. So splendidly had the "_Prairie's_" gunners served their pieces that the Mexican artillerymen had been driven from their positions.

"These Mexicans will have to wait until they get out of range of the Navy's guns before they can hope to do much with their artillery," laughed Lieutenant Trent, then turned again to see what his sailormen were doing in the way of "getting" Mexican snipers from other roofs.

Every minute a few bullets, at least, hissed over the roof on which the detachment was posted.

Trent, believing that he was exposing more men than were needed, ordered twenty seamen to the floor below.

By one o'clock the firing died slowly away. Though the Mexicans had made a brave resistance, and had done some damage, they had been so utterly outcla.s.sed by better fighting men that they wearied of the unequal struggle.

"But when the enemy get heavy reinforcements from the rear," Trent predicted, as he stood looking over the city, "they'll put up a fight here in Vera Cruz that will be worth seeing!"

"I can't help wondering," mused Dave Darrin aloud, "what the rest of the day will bring forth."

"It will be the night that may bring us our real ordeal," hinted Lieutenant Trent.

CHAPTER XVIII

IN THE HOUSE OF SURPRISES

"Dalzell, I wish you would take four men and find the commanding officer ash.o.r.e," requested Lieutenant Trent.

"Report to him our present position, as well as what we have done, and get his instructions."

Saluting, Dan signed to four sailormen to accompany him. Within an hour he had returned.

"We are going to hold what we have taken of the city, and probably shall push our lines further into the town. It is believed that after dark we shall have trouble with Mexican snipers."

"We have had some already," said the lieutenant grimly.

"We believe, sir," Dan reported, "that, after dark, there will be even more vicious sniping. The Mexicans are in an ugly mood, and will spare no effort to make us miserable for our audacity in landing armed men on their soil."

"And our orders?"

"You are directed, Lieutenant, to hold this roof until you have silenced all sniping within easy range, and then you are to fall back to the Post-office and report to the senior officer there.

In the meantime you will send in a petty officer and sufficient force to accompany any of your wounded men who are badly enough hurt to require a surgeon's attention."

The squad that had accompanied Ensign Dalzell was immediately ordered to return with the wounded, after which Trent and his officers gave their whole attention to locating every Mexican sniper on every roof-top within six hundred yards of their position.

So well was this done that at least a dozen Mexican sharpshooters were killed within the next hour.

For half an hour after that Trent surveyed every roof-top with his field gla.s.s. As no more shots crossed the roof on which the detachment was posted, Lieutenant Trent then concluded that his commission had been executed, and gave the order to return.

The Mexican dead and wounded were left in the building, a notice being posted on the door in order that the sanitary corps men might know where to find them. The four uninjured prisoners were now placed in the center of the detachment, and Trent marched his command back to the post-office. There the prisoners were turned over to the custody of the provost officer.

"Step inside, men, and you'll find something to eat," was the welcome news Trent gave his detachment of men.

Darrin and Dalzell were sent to a restaurant near by, where the officers were eating a welcome meal.

"Hadn't you better go first, sir?" Darrin asked.

"Simply because I am the ranking officer with this detachment?"

smiled the lieutenant. "You two are younger, and therefore are probably hungrier than I am."

Dave was the first to finish his meal in the restaurant, and hurried to relieve Lieutenant Trent of the command of the detachment.

Altogether there were now some two hundred men at the post-office station; these were being held in readiness to reinforce the American fighters in any part of the city where they might be needed.

Until after dark the "_Long Island's_" detachment remained there, enviously watching other detachments that marched briskly away.

As soon as dark had come down, the popping of rifles was almost continuous.

"I wish we had orders to clear the whole town of snipers," muttered Danny Grin impatiently.

"Undoubtedly that would take more men than we have ash.o.r.e," Trent replied. "There would be no sense in occupying the whole city until we have driven out every hostile Mexican ahead of us. We might drive the Mexican soldiers much further, but the trouble is that hundreds of them have joined in the sport of sniping at the hated _Americanos_. If we pushed our way through the town, at once we would then have Mexican firing ahead of us and also at the rear. No fighting men behave well under such circ.u.mstances."

An hour later it became plain that Trent's detachment had some new work cut out for it, for a commissary officer now directed that the men be marched down the street to receive rations.

"We're going to have night work all right, then, and perhaps plenty of it," Darrin declared to his chum. "If we were going to remain here rations wouldn't be furnished us."

Trent was inside, personally seeing to matters, when a sentry halted a man in civilian clothes.