The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-04-01
THE TAME SURRENDER
REGULAR ARMY PUT IN IT'S PROPER
LIGHT BEFORE THE PUBLIC.
Cant. Kings work in bringing to
Notice the Value of 0ur Army
and It's Disciplined Courage.

NO author whose W1lLiiiSS dlC u SUM
cient interest to attract attention ever es-
capes criticism. Capt. Charles King, OF the
regular army, now General King, Adjutant-
general of wisconsin, is no exception to the
rule But whatever minor criticisms his
excellent stories have provoked, these do
not lessen the Importance of the service
he has rendered, and is still rendering, to
the army by making it better known TO
civilians through the popularity OF his
works. Through them he conveys the
knowledge of army life, understanding
of the army and army methods ard an APP
probation of army standards to.-housands
of families who could be reached in no
other way so effectively as by an appeal to
their imagination and sentiment He is
an advocate for the service before the
great court of public opinion, which he can
reach when his comrades cannot. While
they can only endure the sharp rebuffs OF
unkind suspicion and hostility, General King
can show just how unjust these are and
how large claim the army makes to the
generous appreciation of honorable and dis
interested service. Into the story of the
March number of Lippincott's Magazine by
General King, entitled THE Tame Surren-
DER he weaves the story of the outbreak
at Chicago last year as it appeared from
the army point Of view. One of his char
dclCfS q cFuSIy fElSTdIs tAeiiy Sdy
There isn't man in the whole regiment
that wouldn't rather stand six months
H lndlan ngnting than SIX hours mo , IN
right to speak the truth about tit For
years its newspapers, with one exception,
hold up to public execration the officers
of the regular army. During the past four
been redoubled and it is like heaping Goals
of fire their heads that the very regi-
mos mi in q
had no picnics, but the Fifteenth simply
had hell and repeat-the meanest, most
last. These fellows were scattered in little
detachments all over Cook county. and
and carried oa her ordsrs and asood
all manner of foul abuse and never avenged
or o.. lieutenanrs commanding detachments had
lost his temper and let drive the, lightning
sleeping in those brown springhelds, thered
would have thinned the ranks of one poll
teal party in our blessed country, at least
Oh, we're glad enough to get away and see
the change of tone in the Chicago press;
'sBy heaven said the editor of a great
daily to old Kenyon at the close of the
week, II never dreamed Of such superb
discipline, and under such foul insult.
swear | don't see how you fellows could
".oh." said Kenyon, grimly, cit wasn't
half as hard to bear as what your columns
have been saying about US any time these
last five years.
In another place General King describes
his hero as devoting his energies to those
ceaseless, engrossing, yet somewhat harrow
ing duties that keep man of mature
years, capable of much better things, at
tending roll calls, drilling two sets OF tours
addressed by courtesy as company grill
ing on the rife range and consuming hours
of valuable time in work allotted in older
services to sergeants.
THE SOLDIER AT HIS BEST.
1t is when he describes the appearance
and talk of our soldiers in the streets of,
Chicago that he appears at his best. Wit
ness the following:
There, covering the space almost from
curb TO curb. squadron of regular cavalry
came sweeping down the avenue, the guidons
iuttering over the uniforms of dusty blue,
L the drab campaign hats shading the stern,
soldierly faces the grim cartridge belts
bullying with copper and lead, the ugly lit
p PEI from on ii their holsters Troop after
troop. they swung steadily By, the guns of
light battery following ft close d al r their
sympathizers among them, down the broad
s tramp, tramp Of marital feet, and. in solid
column of tours, in full marching order,
ges MaI N ed suray
into the grimy train shed, formed line,
facing the murmuring crowd, and then
One brief glance over the paper and the
commander turned /, t his right; Clear
touched his hat, an eager light shooting
across slis frank, soldieriy face and strobe
quickly hack to the line. A mere gesture
brought the four company commanders to
him. Not dozen words were spoken
but in an instant the swords of the officers
obeying some low-toned commands, the
right and left flank companies, simply lift
g ne der changed r pure front to right and left
respectively, thus bringing them facing the
outer end of the train sheds. About a
dozen men, led by a sergeant broke sud-
denly away from the eastward flank of
each of the two companies thus moved
and without SO much as an audible word
scattered away to the passenger cars, COW
ering a hundred yards of their length in a
dozen IS con at linen 1n undep tne cars dove
and away before them scattered the in
truders
MAGNIFICENT DISCIPLINE
They faced the throng, grimly peerng
from under their slouched hat brims grip
ping with their brown. sinewy hands, the
muzzles of the old trusty rifles, listening
with utter amaze, with tingling nerves,
to the furious yells of Down with the
government" "To hell with the United
Statesv' and wondering how long their
fathers would have stood such treason
thirty years ago. Calm, grim and silent,
conscious of their power, merciful in their
strength superb in their dsdain of insult,
their contempt of danger, their indifference
to absolute outrage-for maddened
showered the ranks with mud and gravel,
and foul-mouthed slatternly women-vile
unclean, harpies of the slums-dippdH their
brooms in the rocking cutters and slashed
their filth into the stern, soidierly faces
for hours, for days. they coolly held that
misguided, drink-crazed. demagogue-ex-
cited mob at bay, reopening railways, pro-
tecting trains, escorting federal officials
forcing passage after passage through the
turbulent district, until the fury of the
populace wore itself out against the rock
of their iron discipline, and one after an
other the last of the rioters skunk to their
holes, unframed by even one avenging shot.
Fire and flame had wrought their havoc,
miles of railway lines and cars had been
wrecked and ruined, but otherwise the mad
Drained effort had utterly failed of its pur-
pose, and for the third time had the regu-
lars stood almost the sole bulwark between
the great city and anarchy. True, the regi-
ments of the National Guard were at last
ordered into service, but not until after the
presence of the federal force had given as
surance that, whether the State officials
liked it or not, the general government
would tolerate such insurrection no longer.
True, the State troops stood ready, eager to
do their work, and some of them, at least
so capable. so drilled and disciplined that,
left to the orders of their own officers, they
could and would have suppressed the riots
But there was the difference. even when
called into action, the most reliable and ex-
perienced of the regfmental commanders
were practically deprived of their COM
mands; their regiments We're broken IN into