Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1896-03-18
TROOPER BAPTISTE.

Frenchman, and his proper place In life
would have been the woods OF New
Brunswick or Nova Scotia; but, through
drink and the devil and women, or
a woman, he was a trooper In troop
of the Seventh United States Cavalry
Regiment, which company was station
ed at Fort Conejos. in Colorado. Now.
the meaning of conejos Is plainly COD
eys,'' which are not. again, to be Bibic-
ally rendered as rabbits, but as prairie
dogs; and Trooper Baptiste was. when
sober, Just as mild. and even milder.
than any prairie marmoset In the whole
sage brush country. For prairie dogs
will bark" or rather whistle. at one.
and Baptiste only looked at man with
great round. foolish black eyes. which
could be very fond OF friend and
show 1t most pathetically. But. In
spite Of this gentleness. there was
terror hanging about Linn. for he was
superhumanly strong. His very hand,
nay, his foreflnger, was something TO
beware Of; he could break clay-pipn
bowls between two fingers; he could
smash cocoanut with his fist; he
could shoulder n great brass howitzer
that commonly took five men to handle
without being 'faZed." He was Il
very devil of muscle. and when he was
drunk his mind went wrong-he got
mad. The whole troop was scared Dr
him. Yet, not all of them literally. .or
one, Jack Robertson, the Englishman II,
could even handle him like child-for
Jack didn't drink, himself.
But how II was that the whole troop
Cidn't take 20 liquor. and having got
drunk, didn't clt it's universal throut,
was . puzzle. For the fat plain WIS
snge brush and alkali and when it
didn't rain Il froze. and when the freez-
Ing was over 4 nOrther blew fit to per-
Ish whole squadron. man and horse.
and when the northers ''pe;ered" the
southerly winds came up from the low
lnndS, and across Texas il was Ike a
recreation ground IN he'll, with dirt ani
heat and flies. Some OF the meu got
ophthalmia and went blind or s;tw
double or blinkcd vaguely through a
ruined life hereafter. and some desert
ed and died OF alkali like the bullocks
OF q team on the White desert or the
great Mohaye, and others got inio diff
culties and were knifed by MeXicans,
or some border rutfian. even worse To
handle or reckon on; and some, like
Judas, went out and hanged theni-
selves. for they had sold their own souls
for an American eagle which struck
It's claws OF iron through their hearts.
Oh, its not good to be soldier IN peace
ted States outpost in a sage brush des-
ert, where the devil reigns in the Off
GERS hearts at being in such II hole, Is
worse than all. For there Is no chance
OF glory or Of fighting. AT the very
best n man rarely gets the chance OF
yeddening his hands If he spares his
own carotid and is delicate about his
own jugular. SO they drink and gamble
and die.-and the fools don't desert.
About three-Quarters of n mile from
conejos on the road to Chama there
was q Mexican shebang--a log shanty,
q grog shanty-and IN ii most people
got rid of their cash very promptly
some got rid Of their lives. too. 1t was
a favoritn haunt OF Baptiste's, though
they did not much like him there. For,
being a soldier they had natural ten
derness about finishing him IN the usual
way. They were afraid OF his COM
rades Bat one day word came to the
camp that trouble was brewing at Mex
lean Joe's. Baptiste was drinking. and
his rage was rising like n cyclone that
comes quickly and bursts all at once.
where's Robertsoni" said the Cor
poral of the guard, and they reused the
young fellow out. They knew he was
the only one who could handle the
Frenchman. They ran down the road,
five OF them, and the dirt rose in clouds.
They choked in ten yards and each
strove to be first. Then they spread
out Ike skirmlshers and left dirt be-
hind each, instead OF smoke.
What's this" said the Corporal as
they came within fifty yards Of the
shauty.
For out Of the door there came a
ranu's body. 1t rolled over and over.
and then IT appeared to be alive. just
as the owner OF thar apparent corpse dis
proved the inference Of his eternal limp
ness. another body dropped on him, and
then third came, and the three rolled
dustily, and rose up white and voluble
when they got their breath. Then Bap-
tIste came outside, roaring in French
and Spanish and good round United