The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-02-12

/ German had any special monopoly or response
bility in that great national foot race or that he
| had developed more speed than was absolutely
necessary to keep up with the procession is hard
| to understand, but so it was and several times
during this expedition, as l afserward learned,
when our steamers were sufficiently near, Sam
would electrify the General By bowling at him
! most derisvely:
'Hello, Old Bull RUM
| Once he made a mistake. Headquarters
| steamer was brought alongside Of ours and with
| in few feet. for consultation, and on the upper
| or hurricane deck stood the General himself.
| Sam was on the lower forward deck of our YES
sci, out near the bow, and. bracing himself, he
yelled ND into Germans very teeth:
| Hello. Old Bull RUM
The General was too quick for him; leaning
| over the side, he shouted down to the guard:
Throw that man on my boat here, quickr And
| sure enough they did. Sam, sprawling through
| the air like frog. was pitched headlong onto
| Germans boat, and during the remainder of the
day, at various distances, near and far, could
| see him, long, and lank, and lean, tied up like a
fiuttering scarecrow to the jack-staff OF the
| steamer 1t was a cold and gusty day-for Sam
| land no especial attention was paid to wafies
and quail for him ('pirooting" being temporarily
paralyzed with its chief apostle) and 80 when
along toward night the boats were brought to-
gether again, and he was chucked back to us
stiff as wooden Indian, it might reasonably be
| supposed that for once the great irrepressible
| was squelched
No, not the least in the world.
He gathered himself together and, chilled,
| blue and starved as he was. came creaking and
| grunting up stairs to me in the cabin
Colonel he groaned, II wish you'd please
| have my discharge made out right away"
| 'Your discharged Your funeral, you mean, if
you're not more carefuli'
mo, my discharge. Colonel. I've been put on
| Germans staff"
furnishing raid on little close corporation of
| the boys sitting on the floor around a frugal
| meal of coffee, bareback and s. b., loudly de-
claring the parade.
I'm goin to eat at the first table if have to
waltz
Failing to break the circle from any direction
he suddenly ceased trying, and affected to no.
tice in amazement what they were eating.
WELL" he said II don't believe mule tail
stuffed with soger buttons is good for my
freokles anyhow"
! When asked later how he felt when FIST
thrown on to Germans boat, he said, most
| solemnly:
Colonel, awful I give you my word I
thought he'd killed me- and, by lingo, you'd a
starved if he had. Well, sir, when they got
them ropes out my heart thumped like a potato
| in a wooden shoe! l thought old Bull Run was
/ goin' to hang me. surew
/ While we were stationed at Helena, Ark. on
| the bank of the Mississippi couple of new reg
| iments-the Twenty-second and Twentyfourth
| Iowa-came to us by steamer direct from home
They were gallant set of men, new, bright and
fresh, and possessed of camp outfits of stupen
dous elegance. They had not as yet expert
enced any of the miseries Ut that Fell destroyer
| Of luxury-lack of transportation-and 80 were
regarded as fine sport for piucking by old veter-
| ans of very little worldly fear and less con-
| science. and if a number Of us officers had not
combined to put stop to it, they would have
been looted as bare as q modern ballet troupe.
| My tent at that time was up on top Of the levee
| and one bright moonlight night about midnight
was aroused by mysterious shutting and
whispering near the back of the tent, towards
| town, where the new regiments were encamped
| EASY, boys" l could hear in stage whispers
| Easy! Thunder! Do you want to wake the
Colonell Steady now! All together! Easy!
Step light-sh h-h!" and knowing that something
| contraband would pass the door of my tent in a
moment, l stepped from bed and waited. Some
six or eight of our old soldiers came carefully
tip toeing past Juggling gigantic company mess
box, just stolen from one of the Iowa camps. the
whole enterprise under the management of its
| natural guide, counselor and friend, the re-
doubtable Sam.
Good evening, gentlemen" said affection
ately, much obliged! Set it right down here
| and go to bed; you look tired! Good night" and
away they .sneaked full of trouble and unrest
Next morning. after guard mounting sent for
| Sam and had him call up his fellow villains in
| front of headquarters, whore they stood in line
| silent and abashed, awaiting their doom. Sam
eyed me with eager interest as lsent for guard
| and the martial, or ''sheepskin" band, until at
last gimmer of the dreadful truth swept
through his guilty mind His face deepened and
| his eyes opened wider, until at last he burst
| forth In an agony of perspiring supplication:
| Say, Colonel! wot in thunder you goin' to do
| to meW
| The whole camp, out to see the fun, roared
| with delight as it was announced that they were
to march back to that Iowa camp with the mess
| box under guard and with the band at the head
| You'll probably have warm reception"
| added, encouragingly.
| "Oh, Lord!' he groaned as he turned white
| and gasped for breath at the awful prospect The
| picture of the great 'Pirooter" and his veteran
cronies marching into that jeering, jibing camp
/ of raw recruits to return stolen property in
broad daylight, to the tune of the ''Rogues
March, with the whole post laughing at them,
1 almost made him frantic.
| 'Oh, say, Colonel, Lord. You wouldn't do
| that to me! Would you--old pardan was wrung
| from the bottom of his heart
The recording angel, aghast at the endearing
phrase so breachy of military etiquette never
charitable mantle of ''extenuating circum-
| stances"
learned afterwards that it was a fortunate
| thing for Sam that the guard was along for no
sooner had the procession left our camp than
| the elastic rogue boldly pretended to be in com
| mand of the party, issued orders. scolded his
fellows for not marching to suit him, and when
in the Iowa camp formed himself into hollow
squared" as he proclaimed and made mock pre-
| sentation speech which gave both great amuse-
ment and offense to the astonshed recipients
He claimed that he and his coparceners had
raised the money by popular subscription to buy
the mess chest now presented and after ramb-
ling harangue, half malicious and altogether
| funny rs described to me at the time he wound
up with a remark that nearly provoked attack
on the whole party. 1t was to the effect that
whenever during our marches yet to come he
| should see sitting by the roadside tender footed
| and weary stragglers of this regiment, with the
'24' on their caps. it would always delight and
cheer him, for he would then know to dead
certainty that there wasn't an enemy or q parti
| Gle OF danger within ''24" miles!
| He tried to get as nearly even as possible with
| the regiment that had been the innocent cause
| of his disgrace by owning what he called
| sugar coated mess box, and the guard was glad
to get away with him and themselves undam-
| aged.
Colonel said Sam to me one day, may I
| ask you conundrumF