The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1885-10-22

the bareback, but the result was wholly insult
cient to satisfy the longings Of his stomach. His
supper wasn't nything to speak Of Before 20
ing to bed he began to exercise his ingenuity
on various schemes to reduce the bareback 10
a condition in which it would be more graf fy-
ing to his taste and better suited to the meaas
with which Nature had provided him for dis
posing OF his rations. Naturally 81 thOuGht
that soaking in water would have a beneficial
effect. So he laid five six Of them in the lot
tom of a camp kettle, anchored them down with
stone, and covered them with water. lie
thought that with the aid of frying pan ;e
would get up breakfast that he could sat,
anyway.
81 felt little blue as he lay curled I'D unler
his blanket, with his head pillowed or his
knapsack. He thought some about his mother,
and sister Maria, and pretty Annabel, but he
thought good deal more about the beef aud
potatoes, the pies and the puddings. that were
so plentifully spread upon the table at home.
1t was long time before he got to sleep. A5
he lay there, thinking and thinking, there cane
to his mind some other uses to which il seemed
to him the bareback might be put, which w1nid
be much more consistent with its nature than
to palm it off on the soldiers as alleged fGod.
He thought he could now understand why,
when he enlisted, they examined his teeth so
carefully, as If they were going TO buy him
for mule. They said it was necessary 10 have
good teeth in order to bite cartridges" sue
eessfully, but now he knew it was with refer
ence to his ability to eat hanback,.
81 didn't want to be killed If he could help
it. While he was lying there lie determined
to line one of his shirts with hardtacks, and he
would put that on whenever there was going to
be fight. He didn't believe the bullets would
go through them. He wanted TO DO all he could
toward paral yzing the rebels, and with such
protection he could be very brave, while his
haiy a1
The idea of having such shirt struck ST 10
being brilliant one.
Then he thought bareback would he excel
lent for halfsoling his shoes He didn't think
they would ever wear out.
If he ran short of ammunition he could ram
pieces of bareback into his gun, and he hal no
doubt they would do terrible execution N the
ranks of the enemy.
Ali these things, and many more, 81 thought
of, until finally he was lost III sleep. Then he
dreamed that somebody was trying 20 cram
stones down his throat
The company was called out at daylight, and
Immediately after roll-calI 81 went to look after
the hardtacks he had put to soak the night be-
fore. He thought he had never felt so hungry
in his life. He fished out the bareback and
carefully inspected them, to note the result of
the submerging and to figure out the chances
on his much needed breakfast.
To any old soldier it would be unnecessary
those hardtacks, and the effect of the soaking.
For the information of any who never soaked
bareback it may be said that ST found them
transformed, to all appearances, into sole
leather. They were flexible, but tough as
the hide that was " found in the vat when the
tanner died"
ST tried to bite piece off one of them to see
what it was like, but he couldn't get his teeth
through it. In sheer desperation he laid it on
a log, seized Ratchet, and chopped OIL corner.
He put it in his mouth and cheYed on it awhile,
but found it as tasteless as cold Goldfish.
ST thought he would try the frying-pan. He
chopped the hardtacks into bits put IN equal
parts of water and grease. sifted over the mix
ture little salt and pepper, and then gave it a
thorough frying. Sis spirits rose during the
gradual development of this schyme, as it
seemed to offer good prospect for his morning
meal. And when it came to the eating, ST
found it really good comparatively speaking,
even though it was very much like dish COM
pounded of the SweepingS from around a shoe
makers bench. A good appetite was indispcn-
sable to real enjoyment of this-which the
soldiers called by name that cannot be given
here-but ST had the appetite, and he ate and
was thankful.
IL thought I'd get the bulge on them things
some way or other" said 81, as he drank the
last of his coffee and arose from his meal teel-
ing like giant refreshed with new wine.
For the next two or three months ST larc,e!y
devoted his surplus energies to further eXurri-
menting with the bareback. He applied every
conceivable process of cookery he could taiuk
of, that was possible with the meager QUIZ; Il
his command in the way of utensils and Isste-
rails. Nearly all of his patient and pe-s-vsr-
ing efforts resulted only in vexatiOn OF spirit.
He continued to eat bareback from day T. '!.y,
in these various forms, but it was only ber-..lsa
he had to doit. He didn't banker after t., ',at
it was military Observation-Disclosures OF ; ;,rYi.-
ton. 1t was hard choice. but Sis '"ve OF
life-and Annabel-iIduced him TO choo5s The
bareback.
But for long time Sis stomaca vas in
state of chronic rebellion, and on the Whole he
had hard time of it getting used to th:s sta
| pie article of army diet. He did not tacozno
recouciled to it until after his regimen Had
r;.tions of -four for a week, when the "cTarker-
| line" had been cut by the guerrillas, amt the
] supply of that substantial edible was exhaust
ed. Sis experience with the flour swept away
| all his objections to the bareback. Those s.ap-
| Jacks, so fearfully and wonderfully made, and
| those Jumps of dough, mixed with cold water
and dried ON fat stones before the fire, as hard
as cannon balls, played sad havoc with his ~
ternal arrangements. For the first tire ne
was obliged to fall into the cadaverouS squad
at sick-can and wabbie Up to the doctors seoP,