Evening journal., 1898-09-27
THE LOG PUNISHMENT
a Penalty That Used to Be Imposed
Upon Soldiers.
How a Captive Indian at Fort Leev,.
enwOrth Made Ills Escape
While "Hnmping"
Log About.

LOk AnOut
"I read the other day." said an old
,oldier of the regular army. that one
Of the districts lads in blue down in
Tampa was given bit of log-shoulder-
Ing 10 do as punishment. This is the
6rst time I've heard of that old-time
nrmy punishment being revived. 1t
used TO be a regular guardhouse pun
lshment when was in the regular out
ct. A man sentenced TO ten days in
the guardhouse would either be sent
out to work in the morning, policing
around the post, or he would be given
bis two hours on and-two-hours-off
tours of log-humping. He'd have to
carry his logs just as the men on guard
carried their rifles, in so far as.hours
of duty were concerned, except that he
was permitted TO sleep in at night.
The logs weighed from 80 to 100 pounds
when the punishment was first en-
ployed in the regular army, but. this
was finally considered too much of
good thing, and when log-humping
punishment was abandoned the
chunks of trees only weighed some
thing like so pounds. But it was no
soft snap to pack even a 50-pound log
up and down in front of guardhouse,
in the hot sun especially, for two hours
at stretch, as happen to know. In
truth. the punishment was CALLING, and
not so many men drank and fought
themselves into the summary court
martial when The log punishment was
IN vogue as is the case now, when polio
ing around posts is the guardhouse
punishment of military offenders on
minor scale.
"When I was stationed at Fort Leav-
enworth in IT, Chief Douglass, one of
the high muck-a-mucks of the frac-
tious Nez Perez tribe that had recent
ly been rounded up, was put in the
guardhouse for safekeeping. The
whole tribe of Nez Perces was cor
rallied and under a strong chain guard
back of the post, and at first Douglas
was permitted to remain with the
tribe. But he was an Indian Of the agi-
Eating kind, was Douglas. and he
caused so much mutiny among the
pent-up bucks that the commanding
officer thought it wiser to put him
away from the tribe. So he locked
him up in the gnardhouse. Douglas
was a magnificent big specimen of a
brave. and after he had been in his
guardhouse cell for n week or so the
officer of the dav recommended to the
companding officer that the Indian
be given some log exercise TO keep him
from pining away. The commanding
officer agreed and Douglas was led out
of his cell % tho porch running around
the second story Of the guardhouse
and shown the Jog he was 10 carry
Four or five soldiers. serving guard
house sentences. were humping theii
logs some distance away. under the
eye of sentry. Douglas looked at the
log with an expression of contempt
grunted as If to say: Not much,
won'tl' and the officer of the day, see
ing that the chief didn't want any ex-
ercise, had him taken back to his cell
"After thinking 1t over, however,
Douglas sent for the officer of the day
and told him that he was not only will
Ing to pack a log up and down the
porch. but that he was anxious to dc
It. SO he was given an s0-pound log
and began his march up and down
The sentry patrolling No. ] post, II
front of the guardhouse, was told tc
watch the Indian, but the sentry didn'i
anticipate any treachery. and so h,
didn't pay much attention to thu
strapping chief walking up and dowr
the porch above with the log on hii
shoulder. But about ten minute
after Douglas had begun his long pa
troll the sentry saw dusky figure fy
ing through the air from the porcl
above, and by the time he had got hi
wits and saw that the duslSy figure wa
Douglas the Indian had picked himsel
up and was off for the woods, only 10
yards or so away, like deer. Tn,
sentry gave whoop, and he yelleS
after the flying Indian to halt. Their
wasn't any halt in Douglas, however
and be kept right on like race horse
The sentry fred after him twice, bu
the Indian chief disappeared in tn
brush. Fort Leavenworth was bil
post at that time, for it was the ma ton
al school of application. and Their
were over 1000 troops there. The.
were all turned out within six minute
after Douglas made his leap. cavalr
and infantry, but It was no go, al
though the sun shone brightly for ST
hours after the chief made his escape
They got Douglas just four month
later In Oregon, good $500 mile
from Fort LeaTenworth."-Washine
ton Star.
Ingenious Woman.
No one Is more prolific Of cleve