Samuel C. Tinney
S.C. Tinney
Co. C
39th U. S. Vol.
Photo Credit: Rosa G. Gonzales
- News item, 1900
FROM THE PHIILIPENES
Abstracts from letters written by Corpus Christi boys now in that far away country.
Under another date Sam'l Tinney write from San Pablo, P. I. , to a friend here as follows: I am doing nothing but fight, eat and sleep- a little more fighting than anything else. I have been in four battles already, and hot ones at that. The first fight I got into, nearly scared me to death. Those old Mouser and Remington bullets whistled so close to me that I thought I was gone several times. Once a bullet hit a rock that I was behind and pieces of it flew all in my face; I thought I was hit sure. I dropped my shooting irons and laid flat on my stomach for a long time, scared to sit up; but I did get up enough courage at last and the way I pumped lead into those black devils was a caution- I got my old gun so hot that I could hardly hold it. At last we got the enemy rattled and they soon began to run. In that fight we only lost three of our men killed and about 12 or 14 wounded. One Lieutenant was shot through both legs wit a Mouser, but he is all right now. One poor fellow was shot through the head with a Remington and it tore his head all to pieces. It sickened me to look at him. We killed about 25 insurgents and wounded over 40; besides we got a lot of guns and boloes, (the bolo is a long, sharp knife which they throw at a fellow). That night as we were going back to a small town we were shot at from the side of the road. Talk about getting down, why some of us just rooted the ground till we got orders to advance on the blacks, but we could not see them for the darkness. They only wounded two of our men slightly. At present we are stationed in a town that we captured after a short fight. We sleep in bamboo shacks and have all kinds of furniture that we captured for everything we get is ours, for all the natives run away from a town when it is captured and leave everything behind them. When we first got here we had all kinds of chickens to eat; we first went out and killed by the dozens, but they are all killed by now and we have to kill a cow once in a while- whenever we find one. We have horses that we captured, also wagons and everything that we want. One time we had about thirty horses in our company that we boys went out and caught, but he could not keep them on account of being on the march all the time over hills and mountains, so we just kept 10 for pack horses and for sick fellows to ride on. The horses here are smaller than the Mexican ponies.
Source: Corpus Christi Caller, June 1, 1900, p. 3, col. 1-2
Research by: Msgr. Michael A. Howell
Transcription by: Geraldine D. McGloin, Nueces County Historical Commission - Obituary
The remains of Private Samuel C. Tinney, of the Twenty-ninth Volunteers, who died on the 22nd inst. In the United Sates Military hospital at San Francisco, Cal., passed through the city Monday afternoon enroute to Corpus Christi for interment. Sam Tinney enlisted in the army during the late war and served until the company which he joined was mustered out, when he re enlisted and id service in the Philippines until he was stricken with the disease from which he died. He was a native of Corpus Christi and has many friends as well as relatives who mourn the loss of a gallant young soldier.
Source: The Beeville Picayune, November 29, 1900, p. 2, col. 1
Research by: Msgr. Michael A. Howell
Transcription by: Geraldine D. McGloin, Nueces County Historical Commission