St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-08-30
SAVED BY A LAUGH.
A Veterans Story of Narrow Es-
cape from Death.
y Curious Remark Inspires New
Courage in n Company.

But speaking about snipe shooting
said an old military artist TO GLOBE man
the other afternoon, as he sat doubled up
IN an easy chair like an automatic swinging
machine, and watched the giddy fairies
fitting to and fro in the smoke of Ha-
vana cigar, Il often think what little
thing it sometimes takes to en-
tirely change the feelings of a
man or of lot of men.
l have seen number of examples of that
in my own military experience, and verify
believe that my own life was saved once bv
ridiculous thought. At the time l speak
OF had charge of a company OF men form
ing part of military organization sent out
to suppress the Indian outbreak of 1857.
we had come upon a nest of the tarnal
bruteS in ambush, and made an at
tack on them. By some means I had
become separated from my company and
right in the range of the reds. The bullets
were whizZing around like June bugs when
all at once came zip" 1t fairly shook the
horse. so much So that the animal stood
trembling with fright, while great beads of
perSpiTatiOu rolled of him. NV own hair
struck vertical position and thought sure
was gone sucker. While thus trans
fixed happened to place my hand behind
me for something, when l found that the
bullet had struck that part of the
saddle which curves up behind and
carried il completely away. All at once
the thought came into my head, where in
thunder would that bullet have gone if it
had not been for the curve on the back of
my saddle? The thought was so absurd
that rOared right out laughing. But it
changed me instantly. Every particle of
nervousness fed patted my horse on the
neck for an instant, which seemed to re-
nerve him, and in less than minute had
turned him around and ridden back to my
men.
ANOTHER ONE.
Il remember another instance in that same
campaign where an impromptu remark
changed the feelings of the company. We
had come to uncomfortable close quarters
with the dusky devils and were i'm a fair
way of being exterminated on the spot
They were scattered around US like urchins
around an organ grinder. Among my COM
pany was man named Rotterdam. He
was little in advance of me, when / saw
an Indian draw a bead on him. 1 did
not have time to speak his whole name, but
the minute L saw that Indians gun
leveled yelled. Dodge down. The fell
low dropped over the side of his horse as
lulOh d anu liiCll DtlCAl coCdpSt-
rs the bullet ripped up the back of his coat.
But it was the last gun that Indian raised to
his shoulder this side of the happy hunting
ground, because another one of the
company, named Rently, who is dead
now, poor fellow drew a bead on
him just as he fired at Rotterdam. The
bullet went home. As the Indian threw up
his hands and Topped over Rently raised
in his saddle and yelled, so that the whole
company heard him, BY -, captain,
cOtched him. The remark sounded so
comieal it set the whole company laughing,
and appeared to give the men as much in
spiration as would a number of reinforce
mentS have done. With the courage which
was inspired by that one remark 1 believe
we won that fight"