The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1884-05-01
A PaymasteIss Hard Lot.

nad eziDuu win nm IN u little iron safe.
lie got TO the camp Ut night, He took
his safe TO the tent he was TO share with
brother officer that night, He was
very tired and slept heavily, even
though q storm ragged outside, In the
morning ho found an impression on his
mind that during moment Of wakeiul-
ness In the night he had seen his COM
panion bending over the safe, candle In
hand, lle dismissed Ii rs dream and
prepared 10 pay the troops, When no
opened his safe II was empty, High
spirited, sensitive, the very soul Of
honor, Broadhead was crushed by the
discovery, He thought the man who
slept In his tent had taken the money,
but he could not prove Ii, and 30 he had 10
assume the loss himself. lie paid Il all
back In two years out of small salary.
lle worried all the time about the mat
ter, AZ he feared another loss. Ho
travelled with every precaution, and
even then he trembled. Eight or nine
years past, and he was beginning 10 bo
himself again. One day no had 10 pay
out $4,000 at Fort Sill. He sealed
up the money In an iron safe al
Fort Lcayenworth, and turned IL over
TO the Express Company 10 be carried
TO Wichita, the railway station nearest
Fort Sill. At Lawrence he had TO change
cars. II was an hour before tho train
left for Wichita, At Wichita Paymastef
BroRdhoad noticed that the wax seal
over tho keyh0le Of tho safe had been
disturbed He told the express agent
before he surrendered his receipt thai
the seal had been removed and then 70.
placed. The express agent thought ho
was mistaken thought tho seal had
been partially removed by rough
handling which the safe had received.
Finally, Paymaster Broadhead sur.
rendered his receipt. calling attention
OF witnesses TO the condition of the seal.
Then he put the safe In n wagon and
slowly jolted more than one hundred
miles 10 Fort Sill, Arrived at the fort,
he opened his safe and found II filled
with brown paper Every dollar OF his
money had been taken, The shock was
terrible to man Of his experience then
sixty years old. For time he was
prostrated. Then he rallied and at
once returned 10 Wichita. OF course,
he found no trace OF his money. He ut
once sued tho express company. After
several years OF litigation of the most
yeXalious character he won his suit In
The highest courts, and the express
company paid the money 10 the Govern
ment' But Brordhcad's success did moi
bring him peace, He was too old, He
had become mOrose, nervous, suspicious
suspicious of himself and OF everybody
else, A word, a kindly word, from tho
Secretary Of War or tho Paymastor
General would have soothed aud com.
forted him. But the iron ulco OF
olllcialsm forbade the expression Of
the sympathy which they felt with the
unfortunate Paymaster And now his
brain has yielded TO the inccssant wor.
ry and hO Is on his way East 10 die Ia
M asylum, "l refused Paymaster.
ship In the army said an old army
ircnd 81 would not carry the burden
involved for ten times the salary. 70
start with, you have 20 give an iron.
clad lorty-thousand-dollor bond Your
bondsmon are, of course, responsible
for all your accidents and mistakes.
You urc always carrying largo amounts
0Imoncy anywhere from one thousand
to three hundred thousand dollars
under tho most dlsagrecabe and
hazardous circumstances on the most
Ialiguing journeys, Most of our post
g0rrlSons are so small that when Pay.
master starts ont on the plains they can
only spare him two, three, or, NJ the
most four or five soldiers ~ an escort.
In order that the chances of robbery
may be lessenod he must travel with
the utmost secrecy He must got out of
the little frontier towns without being
known, and must travel as rapidly rs
possible, llO has two ambulanccs one
for himself aud the money, and ono for
the escort, OF course, he has 10 travel
In the beaten track and stop at the usual
watering places, There are no others.
! remember several wears ago u Pay
master OF my acquaintance stopped for
the night by u stream, A quarter of
luuo farther up was another camp fire.
Ththcr two Of his four soldiers rodo
after supper There they sat down with
some plninsmon 10 cards. They drank,
they quarrelod. Finally ono of tho
soldiers was shot dead. Tho other was
too quick for his enemies, Ho shot two
pf them before either could pull his
weapon out, Then he gallopcd back TO
the Paymaster's camp, The Paymaster
hearing the shots, feared the worst, and
was prepared, with his little force, TO
give his life for tho $4,000 ho had In
his sOfo, But the planmcn made no
pursuit The Paymastcr always DO.
loved u wus all part Of q scheme to raid
his camp aud capture his safe, and that
II was defeated only by the prompness
Of the second soldcrl No, / mover
wanted 10 DO Paymastor. Except
once he added reilectivcly. THAT
was during the carly days Of the war,
when the Federal troops were OCCUPYING
Arkansas, The General In command
-ont TO New York and bought fora sona
or Two several million dollars In couns
lcrIclt Confederate money He had his
Poymostors and his Quaricrmasters and
his CommssOrics instructed, They
were 10 take nothing from the people
except for consideration, They were
10 be offered, first, quartcrmaster's no
'cpts; second, greeubacks; third, tho
counterfeit Confederate money. Now,
rs u general rule, the people knew
nothing about QuartermasicrS receipts.
They knew that the grccnbacks would
render them suspicious TO the Confode.
rocy, under which they expected TO
Iivc' but they were entirely willing 10
Oke the Confederate money, which was
~ much brighter aud cleaner than any
hey had ever seen They gave receipts
.or money received They were per.
'octly willing 10 give receipts for any.
hing, because they got three or four
prices for their things s-but Il was all In
Confederate money. don't
yppose the Federal Government was
he gamer by II. Washington Cor.