The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1896-11-21
THE FIELD OF ADVENTURE.
THRILLING INCIDENTS AND OAR
ING DEEDS ON LAND AND SEA.

The Perilous. Feat of Soldier Amid
Popping Cartridges - A Brave
Printer-Earned Promotion.
~ ONE instances of serviceable
~ exposure to danger in cold
y blood, undertaken vithoutany
incentive beyond the impulse
to avert calamity, are in my memory,
and one of them l may relate. The
scene was General Tchernsieff's head
quarter camp in Deligrad, in Upper
Servia, in the summer of 1876.
The huts of the camp surrounded a
square area, through one corner OF
which passed small stream. 1t was
near dusk, and the staff, having fin
ished dinner in the school room which
smoking on the rear veranda. Sud-
denly there came loud cry of "FireP'
and men were seen running away in all
directions.
We all hurried through to the front,
the rush led by couple of English
men. In the centre of the open space
stood wattled hut, rooied in with a
fiat covering of wattled hurdles.
Would it be believed that this struc-
ture was the powder magazine of the
Deligrad force2
Yes; during the day I had seen men
at work filling the powder bags to be
used as charges for the cannon-fill
ing them from open powder barrels,
which, when the work was done, were
simply covered loosely with canvas.
Besides the powder in the barrels
and in the charge bags, there was a
quantity of Remington cartridges,
partly in cases, partly in loose heaps.
There was not even sentry on the hut.
I remembered thinking it the most
dangerous place had ever seen.
And now sparks, carried by the wind
from some cooking fire, or swept from
one of the innumerable cigar cites con-
stantly being smoked, had fallen on
the roofing hurdles, aud they, as dry
as finder, were kindling into isolated
blazing tongues!
Two Epglishmen we're running
toward the hut at top speed. Then
they diverged. One headed for the
water the other held straight for the
hut, clambered up its wattled side,
reached the roof, and set about beat
ing out and throwing down, as far
away as possible, the blazing hurdles.
His comrade had filed bucket and
was swiftly carrying it to the man on
the roof of the hut
The Russian officers of Tchernaieff' s
headquarters caught mp the idea, ran
toward the stream, and formed a chain,
but the long link next the hui was
allowed to be constituted by the COM
rade of the mau on the root. His dan
ger, spite of the bucketsful of water
which reached him frc IN time to time,
seemed imminent.
With every hurdle thrown down, his
footing became more precsriouc.
Sparks dropping from the waiting had
ignited the cartridges, which were
popping off with the noise and smoke
of a respectable skirmish. 1t seemed
impossible but that the bags and bar
rels should catch q spark, and then
well, there could be but one ending.
The trouser legs of the man on the
roof were smoldering, but still he
worked on. A few moments more,
and half of him disappeared; his
ether limbs had gone through the
thinned roof; but he held on to the
top of the wattled wall. and poured
down bucket after bucket,
Atlength he succeeded in quenching
the fire and stopping the explosions
of the cartridges. The door was
opened and more water poured IN.
| Then the man on the roof came down
therefrom, barelegged to the thigh,
his hands, arms and lower limbs good
deal burned and studded with blue
powder marks.
The comrades declined the Takooa
cross rendered By Tchernaieff, and
asked me not to write about the cpl
sode. am sure they would not like
that / should now mention their names
Archibald Forbes, in Truths Com
panion.