Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-05-25
sir. than would myself1 My men are 100
thoroughly gentlemen ID steal bee gums

thoroughly gentlemen ID steal bee gums
sir.
This sounded all right, but recalled
how these same gentlemen had won my
mems sabers and six-shooters and then
hid them in the swamp. q Bfwasn't so sure
about their uprightness touching bee gums.
At any rate, l made Ypf,my mind that
when my battery was punished it would be
after they had been convicted on evidence
not to be denied. So l turned to. Herbert
again.
i've no doubt, majors IEsaid, but what
you believe all you say Of your men. But
I'm just as sure on my part that none Of
my battery would steal a bee gum. Still,
III tell you what I would suggest. I'll
parade my men; you parade yours. If six
bee gums have been stolen it's among The
certainties that the maIeTaetors got we'll
stung in the enterprise They'll show it.
too; and if we order out our men we won
have any trouble picking out the bee
hunters
Major Herbert scoffed at the idea that
any of his men could possibly be guilty,
but consented in the perfection of his fair
ness to make the test 1 suggested. Five
minutes after. my bugles and Herbert s
drums were sounding and rolling, and our
men were falling into line AS it turned cut
every one of my fellows answered to his
naIpe and there wasn't a mark on one Of
them. Herbert, on the other hand. was shy
| eleven men. and when finally they Were
hunted up and. dragged out, their hands
and faces were all puffed and swollen from
bee stings. The larceny Of the bee gums
was solved
1.-THE hardest campaign 1 was in," con-
tinued Major Sayers, was through New
Mexico after Gen. Candy. 1t didn't work.
What from battle and disease and privation
we lost three-quarters of our men in nine
months, and got back into Texas with only
a handful. I recoilect how We intercepted
a dispatch from Candy, who was then at
Fort Craig on the Rio Grande. II was sent
to the officer in command at Fort Union.
After referring to our presence in New
Mexico he said:
"'But let them alone for the present; we
will dig our potatoes when they are ripe
Il didn't understand until afterward
that we were the potatoes Candy was
talking about. 1t was a lack of water and
general supplies which worsted US, rather
than any fighting we got into. Still Candy
had terrible set of people with him; they
would fight like tigers l remember what
sergeant of my battery said to me after
brush we had with 'em in the valley Of
Rio Grande.
days after the battle, 'whar did you say
these Ianks came from we've been against
the last three days? r.1
Colorado l replied. I understand
Candy enlisted them in Colorado Why?
''Oh, nothing particular rejoined the
sergeant, only l half way allowed from the
way they fit, they'd been recruited in HI
My most exciting adventure and the ere
which cost me the most was an occa-
sion when my whole battery ran away. NY
mules and horses hal been Ii one Of those
New Mexico deserts and away from water
for almost two days. The men had a little
in their canteers. but the horses and mules
had not seen drop. At the last of the sec
ond day We We're closing up toward a lake.
where we expected to camp that night
About four miles from the pond or lake
the mules and horses got a smell of the
water, and the next moment the whole bat
terry was on the dead run. Bride reins
were broken, bits We're yanked AMI sawed
until the blood ran out of the animals
R;lt n of 1a,+ I, ;,
their tracks could stop them. They were
starved for water The crazy animals
rushed out into the lake taking guns, cais-
sons, wagons. everyth thing, that was hitched
to them. And then they began to sink. 1t
was quickSand lake, and we had a
fiounderins time of it. I lost one of my
guns, and had two score or horses and
mules drowned before I'VE stood on firm
ground again. n
The saddest page in that New Mexico
campaign was the death Oh one of our
officers. He was only atboy,, and had COM
1nand of company of faEcers There
were about thirty men in the company,
and their main arm was d bowie knife
dashed to a lance shaft. L don't believe
there were fifteen guns in the outfit. One
morning we we're getting ready for fight
with Candy. The Yankees-tlfese same Col
orado fellows-were falling dnto line: and
we We're going through some preliminary
steps ourselves Suddenly, / saw this COM
pany or lancers headed by their boy, Off
Ger, come surging out Of "a little valley
close to where the Yankees were in line
ard charge them. 4
THE lancers were all alone, and whether
they had been ordered TO the, duty or were
on their own hook 1 never found out. As
they charged through the Yankees l don't
think a gun was fired. The blue line seem
ed to open in places and gaps and let them
charge through. But the moment they
We're through to the rear of the Yankees
the shooting began. Not one man OF them
ever got back. Our whole command charg-
a iFnn a ,JnI 1,.;.,
ing the enemy a. half a mile. We recovered
our boy officer, wounded to death, shot in
three places He couldn't live, so the doc
tor told him. That night he was lying in
one Of the dolby Mexican houses we had
made a hospital of. The moon was shin
ing, and he asked to be placed close to the
open door where he could see across the
sandy desert toward Texas. At last he
asked one of the boys about his horse It
was a splendid animal which he had
brought from his own home.
" Did they get my horse? he asked.
when he was told that we had his
horse all safe. he had one of the men lead
the animal up to the door where he could
lock at him. There he lay with his one
sound arm caressing his horses muZzle.
The animal seemed to know him. too and
rubbed his nose in his face, as if delighted
to find his master again.
All at once a pistol went off, and the
flash shone In the interior of the DOLBY like
lightning. The horse sprang back and then
stood trembling and snorting. The boy
soldier had taken his pistol, which was
lying near, and shot himself through the
brain. He was dead when we got to hin"