The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-06-22
FLAHERTY ON GUARD
STORY OF A YANKEE RECRUIT FRESH
FROM THE OLD SOD.

n scheme To Get by the Guard That Didn't
Tan Out-Pat Held Up Nearly All the
Officers of His Company and Even Then
Couldn't Get the Countersign.
City Messenger George l.. Warmer al
ways has good supply of war stories on
tap. In Mr. WARMERS regiment, which
was recruited at Worcester and went to
the front from there, was private who
might have been named Patrick Flaherty,
but wasn't, and who might have been
French, but was Irish. And he was an
Irishman not only In name and hair, but
In that national characteristic of witty re-
tort and peculiar denseness in some d.
rections
While the company was in the barracks
at Worcester IL was the fashion for the men
TO run the guard and get out of the lines
through hole in the high board fence,
made by removing the nail at the bottom
of wide board and swinging it to one
SIDE After the men had got through they
would let the board swing back and there
was no sign of exit. The officers finally
discovered this method of procedure and
determined to put stop to 1t. They Sc
lected as sentry at the crucial point Fla
herty. He had impressed them as man
who would do his duty at whatever cost,
even though it meant sticking bayonet
into some ones vitals or boring hole
through him with an ounce of lead. They
also elaborated u system Of countersigns
which they proposed to have strictly en-
forced.
1t CHANGED that one night several of the
men prepared to run the guard. The pass
word that night was "Ticonderoga. 1t
was guarded very carefully, but by some
means the men got hold of it and planned
to make use of it in getting outside the
lines. So u party of four or five started to-
ward the point in the line where Flaherty
was on picket. For safety's sake one OF
tho party started ahead to experiment on
Fiaherty with the password, while the rest
st2i1 behind to watch the outcome. If the
advance guard got through all right, tho
rest had pretty good assurance of going
through also. The soldier approached Fla
hcrty in the dark and the latter brought
his muskot to charge bayonets and shout
ed:
"Who be yez?"
"A friend.
"shure and ycz can't get out o. this
widout de oountersign." The soldier APP
preached the picket and whispered in his
yez say?" "Ticonderoga, repeated tho
guard runner in u louder whisper "That
amt the worrud, I" said Pat, and as the sol
der made motion TO withdraw, he added,
approaching the point of the bayonet lit
tie closer to his body, Don't yez move
wan step, or by the holy mither I'll stick
this inter yez" The soldier knew Pat well
enough to know that he would do it in u
second if he made u motion, and so he
stood there passively while Pat yelled
"Carpral of the guard!" In a moment or
two the corporal came running up TO see
what was the matter, but he was halted by
Pat who said, "Give the countersign."
"Ticonderoga, said tho corporal, and
started to approach nearer "Howld up, F"
interposed Pat, "yez haven't got it right
ayther, at all, ut all. In vain the corporal
protested that that was the word that had
been given out. Pat would not let him
move either way, but kept the corporal and
the pri vate standing there with his bayonet
vibrating between them while he shouted
for the sergeant of the guard. The word
was passed along and finally the sergeant
arrived on the scene. Meanwhile the guard
runners companions began to edge away
to await developments, remaining, how
ever, within earshot.
whats all this trouble?' Commanded the
sergeant, looking over the group.
"Givc the countorsign," said Patrick.
"Ticonderoga, " replied the sergeant.
"Faith and yoz haven't got it right,
ayther, said Pat, pointing his bayonet at
| tho sergeant
eyes, il is, you fool, ;" answered the ser
geant. "That's what all the pickets have "
at don't make wan bit of difference,
said Pat "If ycz don't give that counter
| sign and yez move wan step, I'll put hole
through yez."
Pat was getting angry by this time and
| the protestations and threats of the ser
geant and corporal did not move him a
I whit. Flaherty called this time for the lieu
| tenant of the guard. He was by this time
surrounded by pretty respectable sized
crowd of puzzled officers, all of whom he
was holding ut bay ut the point of his
musket. The hubbub soon reached the
ears of the lieutenant, and he came down
| in tearing hurry TO see what the trouble
was all about. Pat brought him up short
with his bayonet and demanded the coun'
tersign, although he knew well enough
| who the officer was.
| "Ticonderoga, said the Lieutenant.
! "Howly smoke" sighed Pat, she amt
got it right ayther." And he pondered MS
to who he should call out next.
"Aint got it right?" said tho lieutenant
angrily. "Why, you fool, gave it to you
myself.
"Sure, thin, yez forgotten it, said Pat
3" 'Ticonderoga' wasn't the worrud yea
gave.
| "What was it, then?' asked the lieuten
ant, beginning TO see the fun.
"Bedad, it was 'Wroang kind of rogu
cry, +" said Pat, and shout of laughter
went up from the group he had standing
around him. Flaherty, having recently
come over and not being well up in Amer
lean history, had not heard Of Ticonderoga
and had mistaken the word, although they
had drilled him carefully, trying to gel
him to pronounce it. Not long afterwart
the regiment moved to the south, ant
with it went Flaherty, now rechristene6
"wrong kind of roguery." 1t stuck t.
him all through the war, and he got Sc
used to it that he responded to 1t as hi