Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1874-04-15

ing so. This would never do Evi-
dence of some sort must be taken and
recorded on the proceedings, and a
memorandum to that effect was sent to
the president of the board Under this
pressure, the board obtained volumi-
nous mass of evidence, which, though
it threw no light whatever on the dis
appearance of the brass cock, still made
very good show on half-margin fools
cap Then, after the trio composing
the board had made three copies of
this mighty effort Of their combined
genius, and affixed their signatures
thereto, the proceedings were sent
to the commandment, who waded through
them and sent them on, through the
prescribed channel, to the general.
From this last parsonage they were re-
turned as worthless not because they
consisted of mass of irrelevant mat
ter, but because a mere captain and
two subalterns were considered made
quate to investigate SO important sub
ject. A field officer as president, and
two captains and two subalterns, as
members, were to constitute the board.
So ran the awful mandate. .-..
Under these Instructions, new
board was Immediately directed to as
semble, colonel of the royal engineers,
to the best of my recollection, presid-
ing Notes were taken, clouds Of wit
nesses examined, quires of foolscap ex
pended, orderlies exhausted, ETC., and
although not a. spark of evidence was
elected which shed the tiniest ray of
light on the disappearance OF the brass
cock, the new board succeeded, after
many adjournments and many days Of
research, in producing a goodly pile of
closely written foolscap, which much
delighted the eyes of the staff, and with
it's concomitants of red tape and seal
ing wax, was triumphantly dispatched
found favor in the eyes of the mighty
officials, as they expressed themselves
resigned to the fate of the brass cock,
and the awful sentence fell on the
"public" that it was to "bear the
loss" The military mind at Hong
Kong had hardly been Gained down by
this soothing assurance, when Lieut..
| Thorner arrived on q short leave of alb
sence from Choofow.
"Well, Thorner, have you heard of
the Internal shindy we've been having
all about a COMPOUNDED old brass cock,
that any fellow in the garrison would
have paid for five times over sooner
than have had all the bother it's
given ?" asked one of his brother Off
GERS, as number of them sat in the
veranda, slipping sherry and bitters in
the cool of the evening before mess.
81 wish to goodness, said a young
ensign, Il had all the money that had
been chucked away on the blessed
thing, in the way of chair hire for men,
bers of boards, native witnesses, pos
tage, paper, etc I'd have jolly lark,
and present the government with a
gross of brass cocks into the bargain. y
GIVE heard nothing of it" said
Thorner whats it all about?'
"Oh, only brass cock was lost
stolen, suppose, from the hospital !;
and there's been the devil to pay in the
shape of correspondence and boards,
until every one in the garrison was
heartily sick of the subject.
"When did it all first begin ?" asked
Thorner, as if following up a train of
thought. a. .e.r....# '..
about few days after you left, /
should think, was the reply. D.. .-
ooh, by Jove, see it all It's as
good as playp' said Thorner, as he
threw himself back in his cane chair
and INDUCED in laughter, loud and
long. cts as good as a play, and I
and Private Denis Magrath have been
two of the principal actors
Chow % was asked on all sides.
Then Thorner related in a few words
his share of the trasaction. A general
laugh followed, but every one agreed
to let the thing "slide,' and say moth
ing about it, as there was no knowledge
what difficulties this announcements of the
brass cock mystery might have led to,
and none of them relished the idea of
more boards. ...fF-L g4uE-y.s.a.
In conclusion, I can only trust that
these revelation will not resuscitate the
subject, and that the brass cock will be
allowed to rest in peace. Should the
war Office authorities, however, be once
more put on the scent, the brass cock
will be able to say to them, in the
words of the old song, "You may go,
you may go, you may go to Hong
Kong for me p for when we last heard
of it it had returned to that quarter of
the British possessions. #-..A.,
English Frauds in WinaS