The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1888-08-04
GENERAL HARNEY'S SWIM.
New York Mercury.

ante-bellum days San Antonio
Texas, was then, as now, arm,
headquarters. Among the army
officers stationed at that post at on,
time or another, were Longstreet
Gordon, Granger, Whiting and sew
eral others, who afterwards distin
guished themselves on one side o.
the other during the great fratricida
struggle. General Robert E. lie.
was also lieutenant and stationed
at the Alamo City. Among these
officers was also General Harvey
who is still living.
The army officers, and among
them General Harvey, were fire.
quent guests at the residence of Mr.
Stith, near the head of the San An
tonic river, several miles from the
city. One morning General Har.
ney went to the river to take
bath. On his way to the bathing
place he passed a black boy named
Pete, who was the property Of his
host. Pete was half-witted. He
was not an absolute lunatic and not
at all dangerous. On this occasion
Pete was sitting on a stump singing
a negro melody.
"Well, Pete. what are you doing
for yourself ?" asked General Har-
ney in bantering mood.
Muffin, gineral, 'ceptin' watchin'
dem goats. Dey says OATS all Use
ftten for, bekase | amt got no
sense. Whar's yer gwine yerse'f ?"
I'm going to take a bath. Don't
you want to 60 along?"
"Whaffor?"
"You might sit on the bank, and
in case get drowned you could
point where to look for my body"
Now Pete had never had an OPP
portunity of seeing anybody drown,
and the temptation to be present at
such an occurrence was more than
he could resist. He drove his goats
into the corral and arrived at the
bathing place just in time to see
Harvey disappear beneath the pei
lucid waters of the river, but he was
much disguised at his appearance
Finally Pete growled:
Hit don't seem ter me as eff yer
was gwineter drown yerse'f."
General Harvey raised his arms
above his head and disappeared.
His intention was to remain long
enough under the water to make
Pete believe that he was drowned,
and he succeeded beyond his fondest
anticipations, for when he came 10
the surface Pete was scooting across
the country with the Generals
clothes under his arm, yelling at
the top of his voice:
Ode gineral has done drown his
sell"
General Harvey started in pur-
suit, but the appearance of a large
picnic party caused him to hurried
ly retrace his steps and seek the
concealment afforded by the water.
1t was not long before Mr.. Stith,
accompanied by the then Lieuten-
ant Longstreet and several other
appeared on the scene.
They were provided with ropes,
rakes and other implements useful
in rescuing drowned persons. Pete
was there, too, but when he saw
Harvey alive he said:
"Foah God, he hasn't done drown
hisse'f yitr'
TO say that General Harvey was
angry is to use absurdly inadequate
language. If he could have laid
hands on Pete there would have
been tragedy. As for the would-be
rescue they gave way to Homeric
laughter, in which General Harvey
Joined as soon as the absurdity of
the situation dawned on him.
A few days afterward he reproach-
ed Pete for having deserted him in
The hour Of his emergency, where
upon Pete, protruding low lip
hat looked like a dropsical saus-
age, replied sulkily:
Huh ! eff | had knowed dat yer
wasn't gwineter drown yerse'f |
wouldn't hab gone along wild yer in
le f,1st n1aoan A,rv C,,cDr