Hutchinson gazette. [volume] (Hutchinson, Kan.) 1895-1902, 1897-10-07
A QUEER ADJUTANT.
AN ARMY INCIDENT RELATED BY 4
RETIRED OFFICER.

tory Was Solved Two Years Later.
"It has never been in the newspa.
pers," remarked the retired army Off
Ger, referring to something he had been
saying as the reporter joined tho group.
1T must have happened 1000 miles
from a printing press or a postof1ce
then, ventured the reporter, who has
an idea that everything worth knowing
is to be found in the newspapers.
II was just ON the point Of telling a
story" said the officer, "of peculiar
happening which occurred some twenty
odd years ago in Montana. To make it
a bit clearer, l may say for the benefit
Of those not posted on military matters
that the country is divided for military
purposes into departments and districts,
having a major general, let us say, in
command of department and some
subordinate in command of the district.
In the department are several districts,
and in the district are several posts, the
post commanders being of still lower
rank. In this instance a colonel had
been given the district of Montana, and,
as was customary, he had appointed the
adjutant of his regiment, West Point
er, by the way, as his acting assistant
adjutant general, whose chief duty it
was to promulgate the orders of his
chief, said orders always being signed,
Colonel Blank, district commander;
Lieutenant Blank, acting assistant ad-
jutant general, and it was obligatory,
Of course, upon any one in the jurisdic-
tion of Colonel Blank to obey these Or
ders without question.
"As time moved on under the new
commander and his A. A. A. G. we be-
gan to notice that the adjutant had
queer spells and acted strangely, but it
was not quite enough to cause alarm,
and we gave it no great amount Of
thought until one day he left the post
with detail Of men, four mule team
hauling their stuff and driving along
with them lot of government horses
and mules The colonel commanding
had left the day before for st. Paul to
attend a court martial, and the officer in
command during his absence had moth
ing to say, because the adjutant showed
him the orders of the district command
er to the effect that he take such a de-
tail and the stock and go on an expodi-
ton to the south to deliver them at an
other post. That's all any Of us at the
post knew, and, whatever we may have
thought of it, it was none of our bust
ness to question orders which were as
plain and regular as apparently were
those the adjutant was acting ON.
Nearly three weeks after the adju.
tant's departure the detail Of men and
their four mule team returned to the
post in command of the sergeant, who
reported that he had been ordered by
the adjutant to return to the post with
the men and team and he would report
later. This was the extent of the official
report, but some of us concluded we
would make some further inquiry,
which developed the rather startling
fact that the adjutant had proceeded
south for two weeks at very leisurely
pace, selling as he went along to any
one who would purchase at any price
he could get the horses and mules he
had with him i'll his train, and he had
kept going as long as his stock lasted.
As soon as the supply was exhausted the
detail was ordered back to the post.
ION this information the colonel, ON
his return few days later, made an in
vestigation of the adjutant's books and
papers and of those officers who had |
furnished him with all he took away
with him, and it was discovered that
every man who had anything in charge |
that the adjutant wanted to complete
his expedition could show proper Or
der for the same duly signed by the dis
trict commander and by the acting as
Distant adjutant general. Everything
was done regularly, and of course every
subordinate who had received any orders
from the adjutant had hastened to obey,
until all he needed had been turned |
over to him and the whole had been
duly authenticated. Nor was it forgery
exactly, for the adjutant was very near
ly acting within his powers as far as
signing his chief name was concerned,
anyhow.
"Then the colonel and everybody else
made an effort to find the adiutant,
who had disappeared as completely as
if the earth had swallowed him. Moth
ing came Of it, however, and his army
and home friends had given the case up
in despair, when one day at a post in
nearly two years afterward,
the lieutenant who had just arrived at
the post met an enlisted man some
where about the place who seemed like
some one he knew. He watched the |
man for few minutes and then went |
after him. He at once called the soldier !
by the name Of the adjutant, who had |
been his classnate at the academy, and |
the adjutant respon led, but could only
vaguely explain why he had disappeared !
and, stranger still, why he had gone
back into the army as a private soldier.
OF course the lieutenant at once had an
set ON foot, which result
ed in a private hearing. which further
resulted in the squelching of the case
on the ground Of mental alteration and
the return Of the demented man to his
home
"At last accounts. which WA kwo