The weekly Thibodaux sentinel and journal of the 8th Senatorial District. [volume] (Thibodaux, Lna. [i.e. La.]) 1875-1898, 1897-08-21
4 QUEER ADJUTANT.
AN Af..IY INCIDENT RELATED BY a
RETIRED OFFICER.
The Peculiar Conduct of an Adjutant at

q Montana Pest While the Command
ing Coio"el Was Absent-Eow the Mys-
terry Was solved Two Hears Later.
"It hiss never been in the newspa-
pers," remarked the retired army Off
Ger, referring to something lie had been
saying as the reporter joined the group.
"It nlust have happened 1000 miles
from a printing press or Il rostof1ice
then yentured tie reporter, who has
an idea that everything worth knowing
is to be found i'll the newspapers.
Il was just Oh the point of telling q
story" said the officer, "of d peculiar
happening which occurred some twenty
odd years ago III Montana. 70 make it
a bit clearer, | may say for the benefit
Of those not posted on military matters
that the country is divided for military
purposes Into departments ard districts,
having a major general, let US say, III
command Of a department and some
subordinate in command of the district.
In the department are several districts,
and III 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, a West Point
er, by the way, as his acting assistant
adjutant general, whose chief duty it
was to ~premulgate 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 iurisdic-
ton 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 a detail OF men, q four mule team
hauling their stuff and driving along
with them a 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 be take such a de-
tail and the stock and so on an expedi-
tion to the south to deliver them at an
other pest. That's all any of us at the
post knew, and, whatever we NAV 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 adiutant was acting on.
NEARLY three weeks after the adiu-
tant's departure The detail Of men and
their four mule team returned to the
post III command Of the sergeant, who
reported that he had been ordered by
the ad3utant to return to the post with
the men aud team ami he would report
later. This was the eEseht OF the official
report, hut eoene OF us concluded we
would make some further inquiry.
which developed the rather startling
fact that the adjutaat had proceeded
south Tor two weeks at a very ~leisurely
pace, selling as he went along to any
one WIG would purchase at my price
he could get the horses and mules he
had with him ii his train, and he had
kept gong as long as his stock lasted.
As soon rs the supply was exhausted the
detail was ordered back to the post.
ION this information the colonel, on
his return a few days later, made an in
vestigation of the ad5utant'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 mar who had anything in charge
that the adjutant wanted to complete
his expedition could show a proper or
der for the same duly signed by the dis
trict commander and by the acting as
sistant adjutant general. Everything
was done regularly, and Of course every
subordinate who had received any orders
from the adjutant had fastened to obey,
until all be needed had been turned
aver TO him and the whole had been