The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1896-03-07
PLUCK AND POWER OF A HORSE.
sadured the Agony of q Fatal Bullet I'm
til the Battle Ended.

sadured the Agony of q Fatal Bullet I'm
til the Battle Ended.
Here is a story by j. A. Watrous
III the Chicago Times-Herald
I'VE had in our company-the
First cavalry "a young German
named Schultz. His horse was his
especial pride. Sometimes Schultz
went to sleep without rations, but
his horse never. No matter how
scarce or how hard it was to get for
age the young Germans horse al
ways had an evening feed, a thor
ough rubbing down, a loving pat
and a Good night. Frank in two
languages-broken English and Ger
man. Many a time have l g
Schultz skirmish for a lunch for his
horse when we halted to make oof-
fee instead of preparing his own
lunch. When the Atlanta campaign
opened, III May, 1864, there was not
a prouder soldier or a prettier horse
than Schultz and Frank in the First.
Our first fight of note in TINT
campaign was at Varpell's Station,
May o, acknowledgements mind who
made a mess of it. Our little bri-
gade, the Second of the FIRST cavalry
division, consisting of the Second
and Fourth Indiana and the First
Wisconsin, commanded by Colonel
=. II. La Grange, was thrown against
General Joe Wheeler's entire COM
mand, and we fought it all day. We
started to charge, but were halted
IN ii piece of woods and were order
ed to fight on foot. We were already
under fire and in considerable con-
fusion, and only a portion of the
command heard the order. so it han.
pened that some of us fought as
cavalry and some as infantry.
Schultz remained mounted and did
heroic service. Early in tho fight
his pet was shot. AS the animal
made but little fuss over it and
steadied down quickly, his rider
thought it was only a slight wound
and remained in the battle all dav,
having travelled many miles in the
performance of important and dan.
gerous tasks, the wonderful animal
seeming to enter into the spirit of
tho work rs completely as his mas
ter. That night at 8 O'Clock the bri-
gade encamped.
The moment Frank was unsad-
died he lay down. Schultz thought
1T was because the horse, like him
self, was tired, and after patting
him and telling him in both Ian
Suages what a splendid fellow he
had been that day and thanking
him for carrying him safely through
one of tho hottest battles he busted
himself supper getting. In the for
age bag were several extra ears of
corn. After his own repast of black
coffee, crackers and uncO0kel white
pork-such II banquet as many a
soldier has been moro than kful for
than he was for the feast of Thanks.
giving, Schultz shelled the corn and
took it to Frank. The horse did not
welcome him as usual; did not rest
his head on the masters shoulder
and look, if he did not speak, thanks
for such a master. He didn't hear
Schultz announce in German that he
was coming with a double ration.
Frank was dead and %stiffening, show
ing that soon after lying down life
had departed.
when Schultz realized that Lis
pet was dead, he threw the corn
down, dropped by tho side of the
animal, tenderly laid one hand on
his neck and with the other gently
rubbed his head, as he had done
many times before, and sobbed like
IA child. In talking about his loss
the next day he said: My poor
Frank couldn't tell me he was badly
hurt and ask to go to the hospital,
as l would have done had | been
shot, He carried me all day as if he
thought it was his duty, and that
things would go wrong if he didn't,
and when the battle was over and |
was getting supper he laid down and
died. That horse was a better sol
dier than / am-than any man in
the regiment. Not one of us would
have foughtall day with such a hurt
that. No II would have expect
it of us, yet I expected it of
Frank, and he did not fail me. !
shall never think as much of any
thing again as long as l live With
outburst the poor fellow broke
down again, and none Of his COM
rades made light of the young Ger
mans sorrow. They knew it was
Her Measure.