The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1885-12-10
u. S. Brisbin's Fort Niobrar. letter.


every day in the army? Lots of things; and
if you think it is dull and idle to be at a
frontier post, just come out and let me put
you on duty for day or two. Take q pri-
vats soldier in the army, subject to all the
rules AMI regulations OF q military pSst
just at day break and when he wants most
to sleep the earth seems to be split open by
a mighty boom from the great gun on tie
parade-grounl, and the bugles call out mer-
rily, sect up, soldier; get mp soIdier;" and
get up he must, and be lively about it, too,
or the sergeant will help him out of bai.
1t is not yet 6 o'clock and to give him a
good a. petite for his breakfast the sergeant
will drill him for an hour At G:3J comes
the regular assembly, when you fall il and
answer to your name at roll call AT G:35
sick call will 60, and Il you feel very bad
and wish yourself at home with your mother
you can go up to the hospital and the doc
tor will give you a pill After that you can
get some breakfast. At 7:45 fatigue-call
win be sounded, and you will be turned out
to work. AT $50 there is guard mount
ing. If you are not for guard you can keep
working until 11:45, when recall viii
sound and you can then come in to dinner
One hour and fifteen minutes is allowed for
dinner and rest. At l p. m. fatigue call
will be sounded again, and you win go out
for an afternoons work, if you are not for
drills. At recall will go, and if you are
cavalry man you must go down TO the sta
bles and feed and groom your horse for an
hour. At you will get your supper.
At sunset you viii fall in for retreat and
nswer roll-call again. You viii probably
be drilled for half an hour at tho manual of
arms, or attend q dress parade and be run
about to try your wind After that you can
attend school for hale an hour to an hour
and then reflect on home and its pleasures
until o. when tattoo win sound and you
will be turned out for another roll-calL at
800 taps will sound, and you must then be
in bed whether you are sleepy or not. Not
light is allowed in CHARTERS after taps, and
no talking or moving about If you are not
sleepy you can count over in your mind
1000 two or three times until you fall
asleep, or you may reflect silently on the
greatness OF your government Next morn
ing you will again be awakened suddenly
out of your sleep by the great gun, to go
through tho same thing As the day before.
DIsAGREEABLE VARIATIONS.
The variations III your life viii be when
you arc detailed in the quartermaster's de-
Lartment to drive Il team of six unruly
mules all day long and take care of them
after night. No matter if you do not know
anything about driving team; you must
learn it. By-and-by you will be detailed as
company cook and made to cook for fifty or
sixty men; then you will be put in the bake
house and made to learn bread-makng IL
you are handy 18th an ak you Will be sent
out to cut saw-logs wood, attend at
the saw mill. Should you have an aptness
for tools, the quartermaster viii have you
detailed as a carpenter, and you must build
houses. stables, lay sidewalks. mend wagons,
aud do whatever you are set to do.
II you do not do it well, or grumble, they
viii arrest you, put you i'll the guard-house
prefer charges against you for conduct to
the pref ldice of good order and military
di cipIine, and q court martial viii sit on
on you, stop your pay for month, and or
der you to be worked under guard for
month or two. If you are very efficient,
in year or two you may get to be q cor
poral, and the last year OF your five years
enlistment sergeant, but this will not help
you much, for you will have all tie more
TO do and the captain will be- after you con
stantly.
THE OvERWORKED OFFICERS.
But the ofIicers-I hear you say-they
haye a good, easy time of it, with nothing
60 DO but draw their pay. An officer is con-
stantlv on duty with mis- men. and that is
sufficient answer. l have officers who go
out as soon as they get their breakfasts and
are on the go ell day long They have
hardly time to eat their meals. Take, for
example, the target-range officer. Shooting
begins as soon as it is light enough to see q
huirs-eye at 100 yards, and continues until
night shuts out the bulPs-eye from sight.
The range officer i on duty all day, and
company officer for each company. As
there are generally only two Of
ficers, and often only one. for
duty with the company, you can readily
see they have no sinecura. They must at.
tend all drills stables, roll-calls, ana pa
rades Add to this boards of survey, courts.
martial, officer Of the day, and other duties,
aud they kept constantly on the go.
Al! lay, wood, oats, and stores are received
at tosts by boards OF officers.
/ lave been a sChool-teacher farmer,
lawyer, editor. and various other things in
Any time, and l can say sincerely | never
worked hard as / have had to in the
army. When one gets up to be field
officer it is not so hard but even then there
is great deal to do, AMI for the captains,
NcEtenant, aud privateS the work of q
settlers life is simply pr0digious. Promo
ton IS very slow, AMI OF all the young men
who enter the army as officers only about
one in ten ever becomes a field officer. OF
the enlisted men only one in seven or eight
becomes corporal or sergeant.
OFF DAYS AND HOURS.
When the days work is done and the
evening comes on, the men can gather on
the broad porches of their quarters and
laugh or chat or play games They can go,
too t. the post-trader's and drink beer and
play pool or billiard. They have also their
lays OF duty when they can 90 on pass to
the neghborng village and have good
time. They can get hunting passes and go
out hunting AMI fishing for whole week if
they choose. They have base ball clubs and
are allowed to play bail Sunday. Saturday
aftaro ON Is given t. the soldiers to clean
up for Sunday morning inspection, and as
the cleaning necessary only takes an hour or
SO, they have most OF the afternoon to
Themselves, They have theatrical troupes,
ball, AMI parties, and are allowed to be out
% quarters until Il at night evenings when
there are plays, dances, etc, at the post.
TIE cliicers have their weekly hops ct the
larger poSts dinner parties social games az
cards, ricac7, aud private theatricals.