Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1886-09-01

ness to Get Out OF the Army.
A Surgeons Account Of an Attempt That
was Not Successful
A "SurGeon of the Tenth" says in the
Detroit Free Press; 1t was supposed that
now and then volunteer would become
SO disGusted with army life, and so home
SICK to see his friends, that he would take
all RISKS of peril and degradation and
desert his colors, but few people hive
been nude aware Of the great amount of
ma.ingering in the service from 1862 to
the close of the w,r. There were IN n
who were too proud or too cowarlly to
desert, and yet who were determined to
get out of tn army. The only way op m
to them was to affect some ailmcnt an |
Of course | was sooner or later brought in
! to close contact with them. The first five
men DISCHARGED from my regiment for Iii =
ability recovered so speedily after sccu,-
| ing their discharges that became butt
Of ridjcuc. Indeed, two Of them re-
mancd about cmp and piled their pro-
fessions as gamblers, and made no secret
that they had foo ed me.
One of my toughest cases was that Of q
private soldier named French lie Ind
served from June, 1861, to April, 1862
and was well SPOKEN Of by his officers.
He was tidy man, enthusiastic in the
line of duty, and hail been selected for
promotion. Olc day !.c attended sick
call, explaining that he hal not been
feeling well for three or four days past
lie had the general look Of man un Ter
sight fever, | gave him some med =
cine and tod hlm he would be all right
in day or two, but next morning word
came TO me that he was i'll in his tent.
went over to SEC him and found his fever
increased and his appetite gonc, l was
surprised that the powders had not
checked the fever, but prescribed others
and decided not t. have him removed to
the hospital iora day or two. lie had
no complaint to make, and this was
grcatl in his favor Next day the fever
was little worse than before, and the
man began to look pretty haggard. l
orlcrcd his removal to the regimcntal
hospital, and set myself about in Il vigor-
Gus manner to break the fever, which
was clearly intermittent. A week from
the day he was taken sick | had made no
progress, and was about to order his re-
moval to the hospital at Alexandria when
received a pointer. One of the
nurses reported tc me that she had acci-
dentaly observed French slyly wasting
his medicines. Icoul hardly credit it in
mn like him, but decided to set q
watch on his movements. II "a hours
was assured OF several things. lie was,
in the first place, eating only enough to
barely sustain himself, although | could
find no reason why he should not be hun
CRY when his fever was or. He was
deliberately wasting my medicines in
stead of swallowing them, and about once
in six hoars he was forcing himself to
swallow something which was terribly
diSagrecablc to him. During my next
call he asked to be mt to ArXan lria,
and | said nothing to lea him to suspect
that had any doubs of hi, being fit
pa lent for the hospital. | wanted to
watch him little longer. ! left new
supply Of medicine, VIII ca was so fixed
that he coul take it himself While he
Gained to be very weak. he WAS still able
to move about and dress AMI undrcss
himself. D ring the day he made 4 pre-
tense of taking tie m ,dicnr, and dur n :
the night he poured most Of The contents
Of the tumblcro on the round.
The next moning gave orders to
have h IN thoroughly searched, and the
result justified our su'p;cions. The man
was manguring. He had made himself
up 10. of pills composed of government
soap and rancid fat from government
pork, and was taking one about every
four hours. 1Iorc than that, he was
swa lowing the juc of plug tobacco in
sufficient Qu nifty to sicken horse, and
not one drop of nv medicine was passing
his lips. We had such a pl in case on
him that he could not deny it, nor did he
attempt to. left new medicine with
him and gave him three DAYS to get well,
AMI before the time was up he had re-
tuned to duty. made 10 report of his
case to his captain, not wishing to de-
grade or disgrace him, bat in the course
of a couple Of weeks he fired a bullet in-
to my tent one night, knocking the cap
of my head, anl then made break to
run the guard and desert. lie was fired
up'n by two M, AMI both their bullets
inf .cted mortal wounds.
A Rtlc Of Jefferson.
The flat little stucco bui ding at G and
Ennrtnnnih strnnts wh .ch /, hmm mi lrl