Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-10-05
HONEY AND SOFT SOAP.
The Captain Stood by the Boys and Got
Tuem Out of a Bad Scrape.

Tho Captain Stood by the Boys and Got
TAem Out of a Bad scrape.
During the summer of 1852, while tho
One Hundred and Ninth New York
regiment, commanded by Colonel Ben
iamin F. Tracy, was guarding the Balti-
more and Washington railroad. with
headquarters at Laurel, Nd, the men, or
rather boys, would skirmish over the
country and would frequently return to
camp with fruit, chickens and young pigs.
The pigs were nicely skinned and went for
rabbits Soon complaint from the in
habitants reach headquarters and Colonel
Tracy issued an order forbidding the
boys foraging We knew the order must
be obeyed or else we would suffer the con-
sequences. We mustered 1000, and the
majority were constantly bent IN mischief,
and it seemed quite impossible TO prevent
stuff getting into camp.
One night soon after the order was issued,
q squad Of Company A went out and con-
iscated two skips of bees. After killing
the bees the skips were smuggled into
camp and taken to the squads quarters,
which consisted of a log pen covered with
canvas and large enough TO hold ten men.
There the honey was squeezed out and
strained into the companys iron camp
kettles, the hives burned, and every par
ticle of evidence wiped out. The kettles OF
honey were not SO easily taken care of,
however; they were hidden away under the
hunks
Early next morning the regiment was
ordered into line and Colonel Tracy and
staff appeared with side arms. The colonel
made u short speech and intimated that
somebody had stolen two skipS of bees.
These few remarks caused several mem
bers of Company A to squirm like towards
lodging bullets. do not recall much Of
that speech myself, but my mind wandered
away toward the honey. There seemed to
be no doubt in the colonel's mind but that
those skips could be found, and, after or
dering the regiment to remain in line, he
proceeded to search quarters, as no one
volunteered to produce the skips When
Colonel Tracy reached our company and
requested Captain B. r. McAllaster,
brave man, good soldier and who always
stood by the boys, to lead in the search of
his company, l assure you the patriotism
of those members who were in it oozed
out
They finally reached the disobedient
squads quarters, and were not long in
finding the kettles, which were brought
out Colonel Tracy asked Captain Meal
laster, who, up to that moment, had be-
lieved his company innocent what those
kettles contained. The captain took in
the situation and saw that something must
be done to save his company from disgrace,
poked his finger into kettle and tasted
the contents, and, instead Of answering
Colonel Tracy, rushed to the door and ex-
citedly told his orderly sergeant that he
had told the men in that squad for the last
time to take that sinking soft soap out of
those camp kettles, and ordered them to
the guardhouse. The colonel seemed to
be perfectly satisfied and smiled at Cap
tain McAllaster's wry face, and proceeded
on his tour OF inspection. The honey was
not found, consequently the theft was laid
to some other regiment. Suffice it to say
that Captain McAllaster was presented
with portion ofthat honey.-Ithaca Jour
nal.