Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1894-12-20
CHAPTER I.

H. Inn - he got out again. Be
MTNNNNVgY ing only an adjutant,
NL4 however, he couldn't
WESN swear at it, and so keep
NNN on even terms with his
chief. He bottled his wrath, as he did
the co1onel's commentaries. and kept
them both for future emergencies. A
relic of the vaunted old dragon days
was the colonel; one of the fast vanish
ing lot of hard-riding, hard-fghting,
and sometimes hard-swearing cam
\ paigners who had learned their. trade
under masters of the art long years be-
fore the war. He had crossed the LlanO
iEstacado and camped on the Mlmbres
and chased the NavajOes when Nava-
ioes were monarchs of the southwest
ern plains, were bel1icose not bucOlic,
raised sheo1 instead of sheep-a state
ment otherwise expressed by Kit Car
son, a keen scout and a keener judge
of aboriginal nature, who said that
when they were not raising hell or ha'r
in equal proportions the Navajoes were
either dead or asleep. We were having
campaigns ten times more thrilling in
point of incident, ten time fercer in
point of fighting and casualties, ten
times tougher in point of hardship and
U1lC 1OOO VIC 11NSIA
. than those of the Navajo days, to be
e sure, but the colonel would have it the
service wasn't to be mentioned along
side that to which he had been ac-
customed when they secuted with
Kearney or Fauntleroy and rode races
with the Mounted Rifles at Albuquerque
and Santa Fe. ''They made cavalry
men in those days." said he. Then
70 Of
the summer just gone by: CHOW they
only kill 'em, and this set of summers
they are sending out to recruit US is
only fit to be killed. anyhow. Why
the devil did you send me such a
wooden-headed idiot for an orderly on
this day of all others?'' he demanded
of his staff officer. ''Why, he couldn't
speak English!'
Now, when the colonel began to ask
questions and invite explanations we
all knew that he had, measurably at
least, blown off his wrath; was begin
ming to regret anything sharp he had
said; was penitent, and wanted to be
Modified and forgiven and taken into
good fellowship again. Nobody knew
this better than the adjutant, or pre-
sumed on it more. At this stage of the
proceedings Bob became downright i'm
pudent. But his brown eyes twihkled
with fun as he stood facing the colonel
and waiting for an opportunity to
speak.
''No. sir; he couldn't speak word of
English" repeated the colonel.
"We-eI," said Bob, reflective1y, ''it
wasn't a civil service examination I was
running. he was the cleaneSt man on
guard, and your orders are"
'"Then send me the dirtieSt so long as
we are in the field, burst in the colonel,
impetuously. ''What / want in an
orderly is just what don't want in an
adiutant-a man who can repeat what
I say, and not think
''Wen, anybody ought to be able to
do that, SIR" began the adjutant, with
a twitch under the heavy thatch of his
moustache.
''Wait till I get through, young
man." interrupted the colonel again,
lmpressively; ''then you may be as
harmless as you know how. What
need in an adjutant is one who can
think and not say anything-except
when I tell him to. Now, you sent me
a Dutch doll that couldn't even squawlz
in English. He called me names in
some foreign lingo"
''Wen, you wouldn't want him to do
it in English, would you, colonel?''
Wouldn't? 1 didn't-d-n it! where
are your wits this morning. Gray? He
he-what was it he called me, Fallon?"
Sounded like O-burst; was all
heard, SIR" said the quarterrnaster,
uncomfortably. ''But Sergt. Stein says
that's only the double Dutch for
colonel"
Mr.. Gray's eyes were dancing now.
SCI never saw the man before in my
life, colonel said he. HE came with
that big batch of recruits the other
day. Mannings first sergeant marched
him on. He looked spick-span neat
and clean and intelligent long odds
the trimmest and most soldier-lilze fell
low on guard"
mot excepting the officer Of the day
and adjutant, I suppose" interposed
the colonel.
mo exceptions whatever, sir. In
deed, not excepting any man in the
whole command, from the colonel up
FL mean down. You were saying yes