Morale was high among the 51st as conditions were relatively luxurious as they were able to sleep in tents with rubber blankets on bottom, wool on top, good rations, and even got to participate in football games with other units.

The Philippine–American War formally began on February 4 when Private William Walter Grayson of the First Nebraska Volunteer Infantry fired at men carrying rifles, igniting the Second Battle of Manila.

The now 16 year old Holmdahl then joined with the forces of mercenary "General" Edmund F. English, who was recruiting a foreign legion of experienced soldiers to help modernize the army of Qing Dynasty, with the backing of the Chinese Empire Reform Association, a group of western-oriented China men and San Francisco businessmen.

Holmdahl was eventually able to get to his duty station at Monterey, where he was immediately sent back to the front lines of the moldering remains of the city to rescue residents and maintain order, mainly from looters.

[18] Lee Christmas was a Louisiana native and railroad man who eventually traveled to Honduras and later became a mercenary, enthusiastically supporting the revolutionary and future president, Manuel Bonilla.

Holmdahl listed his military experience and was invited to attend many midnight interviews in the shady side of town, after which he received an envelope containing a $100 bill and brought to meet several Mexican revolutionaries who were plotting against the Díaz regime.

[26] Holmdahl was given “plenty of money” and a revolver by the revolutionary junta and traveled to Nogales, Arizona, where he crossed the border and boarded a train for 500 hundred-miles south to the city of Culiacán, the capital of Sinaloa.

After the 100 miles trek across the plain, Holmdahl arrived at the west coastal port city of Mazatlán where he made contacts and spent his spare time improving his Spanish, before finally traveling to the revolutionary objective of Tepic, the capital of Nayarit.

[31] Upon returning back from the mountains, Holmdahl had somehow managed to receive a commission as a captain in the Sonoran Rural Police by the infamous "Iron fist of Porfirio Díaz", Colonel Emilio Kosterlitzky.

She in turn forwarded them to the Adjutant General of the United States Army in Washington, D.C., George Andrews; they had been written on stationery hand of the Hotel St. Francis and were dated March 4, 1912.

With false papers identifying him as a correspondent for the Monterrey Daily Mexican-American newspaper, Holmdahl boarded a train bound for the headquarters of his friend, General Aureliano Blanquet, located a few miles south of Torreón.

When Blanquet heard news of the mission he refused to let Holmdahl cross into enemy territory controlled by General Emilio Campa, who had recently trumped up charges against Sam Dreben and Tracy Richardson, and planned to shoot them to "rid Mexico of all gringos", forcing to pair to escape from jail.

[60] Holmdahl continue his role in the Mexican Secret Service with absence of conflict, reentering the shadowy underworld of El Paso, which was hub for gunrunners, smugglers, war correspondents, and spys.

[61] On December 28, Holmdahl wrote a long report which states that one Jesus Cesneros [sic], the proprietor of a barber shop in the 500 block of South El Paso Street, had a secret back room.

[68] The fleeing federals abandoned almost 1,000 dead as well as losing more than fifty artillery pieces, 400 Mauser rifles, 20,000 rounds of ammunition and seven railroad trains loaded with food, medical supplies, and uniforms.

Throughout the day, hundreds of terrified Mexicans in Juárez fled across the international bridge to El Paso, as the booming of artillery shook window panes in the border cities.

A drive from the rebels left flank didn't net the elusive Orozco, but, to Holmdahl's great delight, isolated 2,000 troops under General Salazar that were pinned against the Rio Grande.

The Aftermath of the battle was a bonanza for Villa as his forces captured four trains loaded with supplies, several artillery batteries, a dozen machine guns, hundreds of rifles, and 400,000 rounds of ammunition.

[76] A few days after the battle, Holmdahl led a patrol of forty mounted men through the desert southeast of Juárez, searching for a band of Huerta troops who were raiding Villa's supply lines.

[68] Holmdahl established himself at the Sheldon Hotel in El Paso, where he made contacts with U.S businessmen who, in exchange for cattle, cotton, copper, and silver appropriated by Villa, delivered guns and ammunition to the border.

of Artillery, with Gen. Pancho Villa's Rebel Forces in Chihuahua, my reasons for doing such; were on account of ill feelings and petty jealousies shown me by my superior officers"The letter also stated, "Can speak the Spanish language fluently.

Three previous expeditions have failed.Little is known about Holmdahl's campaign, but he was able to complete his objective and capturing the state for Villa and Carranza, and would leave shortly afterwards to fight in the Battle of Zacatecas, which saw Huerta resign and flee the country, and would die two years later.

During the buildup to conflict and Villa's year of triumph, Holmdahl was secretly taking orders from General Benjamín G. Hill, Carranza's chief officer stationed along the Texas border.

It didn't matter who there previous allegiance were, as they and other volunteers, along with a boxcar loaded with military supplies, were to go by railway from El Paso, sixty-five miles to the west, and unload at the small cattle town of Columbus in New Mexico.

Victor Ochoa, the aforementioned Carranza agent casually strolled among them passing out tickets for the El Paso and South Western train en route to Columbus, New Mexico, and Douglas, Arizona.

While out on bail, Holmdahl with his usual boldness, continued his gun-running operations, as evidenced in a series of telegrams received from an arms dealer on December 12, 1914: Major E.L Holmdahl Can offer you salvage millimeters at thirty five per thousand under terms suggested by Brennan we have just turned down a cash offer of this amount giving Constitutionist (i.e. Carranza forces) preference can you use heavy pieces Gatling guns thirty forty Kraig [sic.]

cartridges etc wire at our expense if you want us to write fully at Naco [a railroad deport on the Arizona-Sonora border] shortly will have best stock of war munitions in the south and it would be of mutual interest to keep in touch with us you ought to be able to use some of our army aeroplanes with some experienced airmen furnished by us.

A letter written by a Carranza brigadier general named Hernandez who on February 23, wrote to El Paso mayor, Tom Lea: Dear Friend and Brother.

Very Respectfully J.H Hernandez Brigadier General Interestingly, if Mayor Lea was an ally in February, he had changed sides by December and was backing the junta of Pascual Orozco, Victoriano Huerta, and Inez Salazar, all former enemies.

Fate, however, intervened when Holmdahl's old boss, Pancho Villa, galloped into Columbus, New Mexico, on March 9 with a band of 400 men, shot up an army encampment, burned the town, and killed sixteen Americans.