The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1895-12-26

report made every man who had mule
eager to Jump onto it's back and hasten out
to capture the merciess guerrillas. We cut
the tent ropes, made ropes of bark, and every
thing we could twist into rope with which
to tie blanket on The back of a mule, pre-
pared ourselves with. rations and ammuni-
ton, tied our blankets on the mules back,
and were ready to mount
Each company took mules to company
quarters, the company officers stationed
themselves at the head of the company, and
the bugle was sounded to mount. But the
mules had not been consulted, and no mount
occurred at that command. Another ready
was sounded by the Bugler, the command
to mount given, but the mules either did not
understand the order or suddenly changed
their minds, for no soldier could be seen on
a mules back.
Time was flying fast horrible reports of
the butchering of our comrades came into
camp thick and fast, and no time could be
lost. Every fourth man was detailed to
hold the mules until the other three could
mount at will but, then, the mule had not
yet understood the order, or was not ready
or willing to be mounted, and but few were
mounted in this way. Several hours had
been consumed in these efforts to get the
out success. and some other plan must be
adopted. Three out of every four mules
were tied, and the three soldiers whose
mules were tied were detailed to put the
fourth soldier on the back of his mule. In
this manner, after time, a little over half
of the regiment were mounted in a halliday
and started on scout after the rebels.
This scout was the event of the soldier
life of the 9th Inf. boys never to be for
gotten.
"Them mules are peculiar critters could
be heard from every line when we returned to
camp. One comrade was mounted on
mule full 16 hands high, which, when it got
into a mudhole. where the mud was three
feet deep dropped as though shot, rolled
over on it's side, and buried completely
out of sight its rider.
Another very small one, where the holly
and thorn-brush were the thckest, took
shoot into the brush and hung it's rider Ia
Absal0m in the brambles. Another, whose
rider had done all in his power to induce it
to take a drink when crossing Coldwater
River, refused to touch the water, hut soon
after plunged over n steep bank into deep
water, and stood there aud took big drink,
and nothing could induce 1t 10 move until
its rider was soaking wet.
An army mule sometimes fears everything
in sight, then again it does not fear whole
regiment of soldiers.
They are better than horse in a retreat,
for they cannot be stopped rs long as they
can hear the roar Of a cannon or the crack of
a rife. They get out of danger in good
shape. But an army mule in camp is the
meanest creature on earth. He cannot be
kept tied; he will destroy everything he can
get at, and no soldier could tell what damage
he would do or mischief he would be in if
left alone an hour.
Our mount on mules was a success. No
Johnnies ever stopped long enough in our
path to see what they looked like, after we
made our first scout on mules An Iowa
soldier soon leaned many tricks, and we
soon learned the trick of transforming an
army mule into fleet Southern horse
AUSTIN p. LowERY, Co. l, 9th Iowa, Des
Moines, Iowa. @ita