Oregon union. [volume] (Corvallis, Benton County, Or.) 1897-1899, 1897-11-05

ss orable year 1861,
~~~~@ and / was caught
in the current, though at college, and
with nearly all my class enlisted among
the first volunteers. My health not be-
ing very robust, instead of receiving Or
ders for field service, l was commits
stoned to fill place in a disbursement
office.
One day / was summoned into the
presence of my commanding officer and
told l was to accompany Capt. Mickey
1--WE will call him) to a certain city for
money to pay the troops. The sum
was 100000. We were given particu-
lar directions as to our going and COM
ing. The distance was so great we
were obliged to stay over night on the
route A large city was selected and
we were advised as to the hotel.
When we reached our destination
Capt. Mckay produced an old black
bag for our precious burden. 1t was
not an ordinary old wornout bag-such
one as an officer might have used un-
til the gloss was gone and the edges
were white. There was no air of an
cient respectability about it. Since it
was new much time must have elapsed.
and heavy wear must have been it's
portion, judging from the patches
which were not of the same kind of
shiny black leather as the primitive
article.
The Captain carried the bag and l
watched the Captain. When the num-
bers travelling admitted of it, I took q
seat just behind him; otherwise we sat
together.
I rather enjoyed hearing the COM
ments of our fellow travellers on the
Captain and his bag. One young lady
said to her companion: "If that nice
looking captain has a wife she ought
to be ashamed of herself for allowing
her husband to carry such furious
looking old bagr'
A couple of lads returning from
school took the seat vacated by the Ia
dies, and after they were settled they
commenced to look about them, and
one said to the other: whats that
feller's rank?''
(Which one?" asked his companion.
''The one with the bag" After study
ing some time he replied, "Brevet col
onel, l believe"
"Brevet jack-a-napesw exclaimed the
first boy. 81 believe he's low-downer,
something like an orderly or an .ad-
jutant.' -
mo, STREE, sir; he's a 'brevet' of
some kind. Didn't we have the expla-
nation of 'brevet' the other day in class
as commission which entities an Off
Ger to rank above his pay? Now that
feller ranks above his pay, Which ac-
counts for his uniforms being first
class, for Uncle Sam settles the bills.
But his pay does not allow him to have
other nice things-like bags and
things"
Aside from remarks, we met with no
adventure, and reached the hotel where
we were to spend the night about in
the evening. We had determined to
avoid exciting remarks by making un-
necessary requirements about our
room, so simply asking for room in
the quiet part of the hotel where we
could sleep in the morning, we were
shown to one of a suite We realized
we had made mistake in this particr-
lar when we were alone, and COM
menced to make plans for barricading,
as sthe room had three doors to be
looked after
"Now what will we do to the win
dows" asked Capt. Mckay, as we
stood in our shirt sleeves, all heated
from our exertions of moving a heavy
mahogany bedstead without rollers in
front of one door, a marble-topped
| cIcta IN,
handicapped bureau (also without
casters) in front of the third
l considered myself something of a
genius about a house, so replied cheer
fully: 81 think can fix the windows
all right"
took the chairs and the towel rack.
some empty pasteboard boxes found in
the closet and bamboo whatnot and
erected a pyramid between the win
dows. My idea was to construct an
easily moved something so that any
one trying to enter by the window
would give premonitory symptoms by
a grand overthrow. The pyramid not
being high enough, bethought me of
the window shades. An unfortunate
thought, for 1 lamed my thumb and
skinned several fingers trying to get
the shades down. But at length we
1 stood in admiring silence before pyr-
amid that at it's base took in both will
dows and at its summit, by the aid of
the rolled UP shades placed like an "A''
to form an apex, reached nearly to the
top of the room. We felt safe and re-
tired for the night.
l was awakened by thinking de
tachment of artillery and an avalanche
from the Matterhorn were attempting
to enter our windows at the same time.
pave leap from the bed to ascertain