Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1883-06-07
New Series-Vol. 23. No. %

said file fright and. you're going left" !"
ave are filing right" said some OF the
company. You're turned round that's
what's the matter with you.' - eel,
So it was. He had forgotten that
when standing facing his men, he must
give them orders In reverse from wha.
the movement appeared to him This
increased his confusion, until all bis
drill knowledge seemed to be gone from
him. The sight of his young lady friends,
clad in masses Of primary cOlors, stimu %
lated him to strong effort To recover
his audacity, and bracing himself up, he
began calling out the guide and step
with noisy confidence that made him
heard all over the parade ground.
Left! leftl left Hep! hepi hepl
Cast them head and eyes to the righil',
Trouble doomed up nountainously as
he approached the line. Putting COM
pany into its place, on parade is one of
the crucial tests of tactical proficiency.
To march company exactly to. the
right spot, with every man keeping bis
proper distance from his hle leader
"twenty-eight inches from back to
breast" clear down the column, so that
when the order front" is given every
one turns, as if on a pivot. and touches
elbows with those on each side Of him
in straight, firm wall of men, without
any shambling CLOSING up" or "side
stepping" to right or left-to do all this
at word of command looks very simple
and easy to the non-military spectator,
as many other difficult things look sim
pie and easy to the inexperienced; but
really it is only possible TO thoroughly
drilled compuny, held well in hand by
competent commander, 1t it is some
thing that, if done well, is simply done
well, but if not done we'll is very bad.
1t is like an egg that is either good or
utterly worthless.
Alspaugh seemed fated to exhaust the
category Of possible mistakes Coming
on the ground late he found that a gap
had been left in theTline for his comps
ny, which was only barely sufficient to
receive 1t when it WAS aligned and com-
pactly dressed.
Ia his nervousness he halted the com
pany before it had reached the right gap
by ten places, and so left about one
quarter of the company tapping over on
the one to the left. Even this was done
with an unsightly jumble. His confes-
sion as to the reversal of right and left
still abode 10y him. He commanded right
face instead of 'front.' and was amazed
to see the whole one hundred Well-drill-
ed men whirl their backs around to the
regiment and the commanding officer
a laugh rippled down the ranks of the
companies; even the spectators smiled,
and something sounded like swearing by
the Adjutant and Sergeant-Major.
Alspaugh lifted his plumed hat, and
wiped the beaded perspiratiOn from bis
brow with the back of one of his yellow
gauntlets.
"Order an about face" whispered the
Orderly Sergeant, whose face WAS burn
ing with shame at the awkward posi-
tion in which the company found itself.
'AboaG-F acer gasped Alspaugh.
The men turned on their heels.
'Side-step to the right whispered the
Orderly.
'Side-step to the right repeated Ais
paugh, mechanically.
The men took short side steps, and
following the orders which Alspaugh
repeated from the whispered sugges-
tions of the Orderly, the company came
clumsily forward into its place, dressed
and opened ranks to the rear When at
the command Of parade rest Alspaugh
dropped his saber's point to the ground,
he did it with the crushed feeling of
strutting cock which has been flung into
the pond and emerge. with dripping
feathers.
He raised his heart in sincere thanks
giving that he was at last Through, for
fAr him m In
during the parade, except to stand still,
and at its conclusion the Orderly would
have to march the company back to its
quarters.
But his woes had still another chap
ter. The InspectorGeneral had come to
camp to inspect the regiment, and he
was on the ground.
Forty years of service in the regular
army, with promotion averaging one
grade in every ten years, making him an
old man and a grandfather before he
was a Lieutenant Colonel, had 80 sur
charged Colonel Murbank's nature with
bitterness as to make even the very air
in his vicinity seem roughly astringent.
The wicked young Lieutenrnts who
served with him on the Plains used 30
say that his bark was worse than his
bite, because no reasonable bite could
ever be so bad as his bark. They even
suggested calling him Peruvian Bark
because visit T., his quarters was
worse than strong dose of quinia.
'Yeth that'th goud,' said the lisping
wit of the crowd. 'Evely bite ith Il bit,
amt it? And the worth mutht be Bit
ter, ath be ith.'
The Colonel believed that the whole
duty of man consisted i'll loving the
army regulations, and keeping their
commandments. The best part of all
virtue Was to observe them to the letter;
thu mn-; -abhorrent form of vice, to vIo-
late ur disregard even their minor pre-
cepts.
His feelings were continually lacer-
ated by contact with volunteers, who
cared next to nothing for the form of
War making, but everything for its spir
it, and the martinez heart within him
was bruised and sore when he came
upon the ground to inspect the regi-
ment.
Alspaugh's laundering in bringing the
company into line awakened this ire
from passiyity to activity.
III have the dunderheads shoulder
straps off inside of fortnight lie nut
tered between his teeth.
The unhappy Lieutenant's inability to
even stand properly during the parade,
or repeat an order, intensified his rage
When the parade was dismissed the Off
GERS, as usual, sheathed their swords, |
and forming a line with the Adjutant in
the center, marched forward to the !
commanding and inspecting officers, and |
saluted. Tnen ths wrath of the old In
spector became vecabls.
What in Gods Hame,' he rOared, fix
ing his glance upon Alspaugh so unmis-
takably that even the latter's rainbow
clad girls, who had crowded up closely,
could not make a mistake as to the vic
tim of the expletives. What in Gods
name, sir repeated the old fellow with