The sun., 1898-12-11
ERUIr-cAKE TIME At AN ARMY POST
The Annual Hunt for "InEredients In n
Deserted and Bnrren Region.

The Annual Hunt FOR "lngredients - HI
Deserted and Barren Region.
Christmas In the army doesn't always seem
exactly like Christmas. The post traders stock
OF bad beer. tho barrack soup and greaser
brawls don't plunge the regular far into the
heart of holiday cheer. Commissariat canned
plums. when they can be got. make up a trihe
in way OF dessert and maybe warm up the non
com. to a Merry Christmas" but IL the army"
is quartered in God-forsaken baked-up cor
raj OF prairie post where even bad beer can't
be had for fight or pay. then commissariat
canned plums may be hanged for all the Christ
mas they bring in the eating Sometimes the
officers had to be reminded by the mail when
1t hauled in a month overdue that a day called
Christmas had beenl If their wives happened
to remember 1t for them. they usually wanted
a fruit cake. or at any rate a trial at one. and
the women obediently joted out in leaky
Deadwood. under armed escort, to get what
they called ingredients"
They'd 60 to roken-wired Mexican ranch
for the butter and get under stampede OF
Texas cattle; they'd take a thirty mile round
for a dozen eggs and Just escape frontier
horse thief strnging they haul up unawares
on o cowboy knitting and grab brandy on the
fly, that is, their striker" would; and as for
the spice and citron and the rest. they'd be
Obliged to leave that to Providence. 80 scarcity
OF 1TulC Cuke, Wneu tile army "uo !" oOoti-
west Texas, "abounded in large quantities"
This was before the Southern Pacific had
crushed its ties over the prairie and December
carried but little fragrance OF Christmas. 1t
scarcely seemed December until sudden blast
of norther caught up the adobe walls. set the
coyotes to bowling and maybe let fall gasp or
two Of snowdakes which frosted the parade
ground, But before you could say Jack
Robinson Christmas is coming" away roared
the norther and the sun yellowed the parade
=, before noon
True. there was one glimpse OF Holy Land in
the coming in OF the Mexican burros loaded
with roots OF mesquite. which might recall how
the droves OF Palestine bore in the roots OF
oliyes-that is IL you happened to have 1t to re-
call-but much good that did the private or the
non-com. or his Captain either! Then there
was what the Mexicans term "siempre vive." a
kind of everlasting moss which scrawled dead
like over rocks. but would breathe green when
sprinkled with water. Some OF the ladies at
Fort Stockton used to decorate their windows
at Christmas with the NANCY stuff and say it
reminded them of the rose of Jerusalem. But
that didn't "cut much ice" with the non-com.
either. In fact. nothing around Christmas or
any other time cut any ice " with him except
here was big except-'a huntin' OF ingredi-
ents." 1t was better than chasing greasers or
bounding a rascal redskin. Sometimes. Just
one ingredient" took up the whole day. start
ing at break: that is. when it was eggs"
When the Captains striker" came down to
barracks with order for escort report" the
chosen men grinned. Camping bouts. scout
ing turns where rattlesnakes were the only
"dogs shot. the monotonous order OF the day
when in post-this. season after season. was
enough to petrify even woman's tongue. And
Stockton at best. before it was abandoned was
dry, measly nstfull. hunched down like ant
hills on snaky gama grass. crawling over
thumb spring OF famous water. and half
thousand miles by stage from town or,railroad
Sea ee sfy dark %s
moan OF the coyote-it was desolate! ..,,
Aad ads R Tf " ths h
Tenth Cavalry In barracks. no feather of hen
huttered within Ave mile radius: ,,.
leather straps, hap-iap over her, windows.
deTs nd Few the III Wves ON the
cushions inside the army ambulance GfE eE9cksd ;s
ss gry os Of G she made head through the
prairie sea. "a. .startin, To- ingredients,
oe eesa aakey Ss
ever snose Spanish He put 1t @ this Way va mo, oh
Ssnss Ss RanShesS Ia, does reEIiis'st 's fsaehssS @
E5sst Ike iossSEs yS% TsS sf
dy deos as fat a1 t Wins
IN on de az Rsa EGsasr aaG
In de e. lbrsts iarats; Then on to Rooneys,
which lay off mo- prosperous than de others. II
to rke dis we're rgh that
long about December. dey. was high ole times
to sso Dy hSd a last Peary arr
Esnckk ram /, Of 4 %sss mass dMsy2 M Yo' cot ss@eshie e
s from ~ es sya along outside de Tot an San Angela
an all de ranches fo' hundreds @ miles. De
yeR p de oh On eocs rsa
RULED , along g 90 de- de peftie6Gats; an, frowed red
burrmo m an Eaiiopy dey come. de brats along G o
burros benin them. An, de mems dey comes
az ge e @ @ III de sssss s kns LIS
yeE. In de hay cats drawed by oxes. il de wood
Now Rooney had a Big what yo' call plaza
with hitchi9 posts. an here de brats an dc an
red curtains to de windows. an nicturs, one
Tsq TH De hea ReS De mails %ass
WMuz de mos onrloyest spectacle yo' eber seed;
ob T inEfedients. we come In right along iusi to de
mass an seed de whole OBJ Pecos county an
SshwS. SoMs Sat Tnss Sas sshF % TO Ss Ss G ba Ee E
takin' me of from M huntin, We did act
some eggs an butter here. an then we got OUT
oher de hills ii was cactus an coyotes bones
an rock all obcr here an we only had break
oh II TO make de las ranch
What should we see but herd O. antelope
as big as de buffalo herds used 10 be. Wedidn'
look twice, but shot EN- down an strapped 'em
alongside o de ambulance: Dat wuzgreat game
In de huntin' oh ingredients But dat wuz
nothtn', We took bend an fust thing we
kpowed u hundr'd redskins was a circlin' us
We shot EN- down quick ez pop. Then We run
un az inst heap o. cowboys an a mess o Mex
leans hghtin' like devils / crack up my mules
an druy like liGhtnin'', past ,em, 70 de misEus
dey wuz skeered; well. all de ln'ian fights I
seen a. huntin' oh ingredients. We allus got 'em
tho Peio' we got back to do post Even down
30 Christmas time. after all. when 1t juts out
with such thrilling stories OF the making OF
fruit cake. becomes Transformed into q melo-