The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-08-24
TOUCHED MRS. HARR1soN's HEART
How an army Deserter Secured q
Pardon From ths President.
Ea-,r. IA. Ir-.co.n.n Tlrib,,no

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Pardon From tbs President.
From the Chicago Tribune.
Sergt. James B. Horsey Of Company F
! at Fort Sheridan, wants TO go on a fur.
Tough. but he can't until he gets a new sui
of citizens clothes. The head of the de-
partment of the Missouri has sanctioned s
three months leave to the sergeant, and il
begins to-day, but unless the soldier goes IL
| Uncle Sans toys and without a goodly
portion Of the money that he had laid away
he will be forced to forego hls furlough and
| 90 with his command TO Newport, KY,
where it has been ordered to take ur
quarters this week.
Thereby hangs tale.
One chilly day last November fine-look-
ing fellow, giving the name Of Edward A.
! Major, walked up to the Fort Sheridan
| adjutant and reported himself as deserter
from Company B, Sixth Infantry. soying
that the date Of his desertiOn was 1892, aad
the place Fort Hall, Idaho. There was no
surprise expressed by the soldiers at Major S
action, for, at the approach Of cold
weather, such fellows are numerous. The
bows call them ''snOw birds" The guard
! houss is warm, and they live on soldier 5
fare and sleep between warm blankets.
Major was turned over to the guard, and
the record disclosed the fact that the deser-
ter had told a truthful tale A general
| court-martial' ensued, and half-dozen
officers decreed that major should put in
three years at Leavenworth prison. The
guard fell out, Christmas morning, with
several flies on either SHE of the prisoner.
whose Christmas present was the order of
the court relagating him to the Kansas
prison.
Now, Major was a shrewd fellow. After
| deserving he had obtained the position OF
general SCI vice clerk at Gen. SEerida 70
headquarters in Chicago. OF course his
| superlors did not know his record. His
experience in this position had given him
an insight into official affairs. The month
that he had spent in the guard house made
him long for trip outside unattended BY
q sentinel armed with a Springfield which
he had learned how to use in front of the
butte on the bluff by the lake. So Major
asked for pen, ink aud paper, and
was supplied by the kind hearted
sergeant of the guard. He
indted letters that Christmas day to sew
eral United States senators, but laid himself
out on one that he seat TO the wife of Presi-
dent Harrison. In it Convict Major told
of a change of heart. He confessed his
past misdeeds and PROPOSED a conversion of
several weeks stauding-a conversion that
| he confessed was shaken nearly to the
breaking point When, upon the natal day OF
the being that he had learned to love, the
sole recognition that he had received was in
| the shape of sentence to d convicts cell.
These letters went their way, and i'll a few
| days major went under guard to Leaven-
worth and was forgotten by the little com
| mand at the fort.
One day about three weeks after ard
| Lieut.. E. F. TaggGrd of Company K was
sitting in his snug bachelor quarters when
there came timid tap at tho door, which
| opened to admit Major The lieutenant
was bewildere I. Before him stood man
whom the officer but a month before had
voted a fit subject for Imprisonment.
Major was not a bit abaShed, however, and
| pulled from his pocket discharge duly
| signed by toe proper officials and bearing
on its face wordi to the effecJ that NJ OBJ
! jectiOns to the mans relnlistmelt were
| known 10 exist. Majors letter had gone
straight to the heart Of Mrs. Harrison.
Major asked permission to enlist in the
command at Fort Sheridan and to serve
under the officers who had sen enced him.
Maj. LISTER said "all right" and Capt.
Munson of Company f agreed to give the
man berth. He not only did this, but in O
few weeks made him a corporal, AID
the former convict bore the redundant title
of Corp. Major.
The new corporal did his duty well. the
officers liked him and the men swore by
| uliil-IOW lucy ui6 SN6tTIuE ~ ulUl.
Wednesday night Corpl. Major was il
charge of quarters. The first sergeant wa'
on leave aud the other "non-coms." were
visiting Lake county maidens and promis
ing to write to them from Newport. Major
was alone in the room sat aside for the
chevronod subord!nates. save for the es-
ence of little son of Sergt. McCreeiy
whom the CORPORAL drove out of the bar
racks He vas the last ore who saw tn
converted corporal. When Sc ct Horsey
returned to quarters his trunk that wa,
packed ready to check to the place where
he was to spend his furlough was miosi e
and 50 was his new civilian suit.
The trunk was found in the woods yes
terdav morning broken open, and $50, that
a nook Of is interior had contained wa;
gone.
Major was fugitive.
The man whose last exploit has just beer
chronicled served for awhile under tn,
name of Duval ut Columbus barracks
from which place he was "boh-tailed," That
is, was Summarily dismissed, with the
character portion of his discharge cut off by
the authorizes. He thea tried the cavalry
branch of the service and enlisted at Jeffer
son barracks. st. Louis, under the name OF
s.. Clair He was afraid of his hor 9 and
deserted. He has been in and out of the
army since 1886, aud is an older man than
his appearance indicates