The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1898-02-09
SOLDIERS BUDGET.
Soldiers with a Grievance.

| Soldiers have Methods OF making lie
unpleasant for officers who manifest
disposition to "put in on them," as
they phrase it. OF course, all these
methods involve their acting in q body,
as is the case in the navy. Individual
acts of rebellion only get the individual
soldier into trouble, and do not help
the dissatisfied outfit. The means q
company, troop, or battery of regular
army soldiers usually adopt in order to
get rid of disliked captain or lieute-
nant is to simply go TO pieces as mil
itary body. The men, from the first
sergeant down to the last buck private
in the rear rank, becomes the merest
dogans of soldiers. Companies that
have been known to be practically per-
feet under good officers have frequently
undergone this degeneration for no
other purpose than to force an unpop-
ular commander to take his leave or at
least to modify what the men regard
as unmerited severeties. When this
scheme has failed, whole companies
have often been known to drink them
selves into the guard house in body.
When the commanding officer of
post observes one of his good outfits
acting in this wise, he generally finds
some means of rectifying the griev-
ances of the men.
A few years ago there was an ex-
tremely unpopular first lieutenant in
command of an infantry company at
Fort Logan, Colo, in absence of the
captain, who was on sick leave. This
first lieutenant tried some of his pet nc
tions on the subject of discipline on the
company from the go-off. They didn't
work. One morning, after he had been
in command of the company for nearly
month, during which time the talk in
company's quarters had been growing
more and more savage day by day, he
appeared at reveille before the bar
racks to report his company present to
the officer of the day. When he
clanked up in the darkness, instead of
finding his company drawn up and
ready to answer the roll call, he saw
only the grizzled old first sergeant
standing alone.
"What's the meaning of this2" in
quired the lieutenant. "Where the
devil are the men?"
&c Company absent and unaccounted
for" said the first sergeant saluting.
There wasn't a single man of the
company present at reveille, except the
first sergeant. The men, non.commis
stoned officers and all, had slipped out
of the quarters and gone over 10 Den
yer during the night. They were all
gathered in, drunk and riotous, and
they got ten days each in the guard
house. On the day they were released
from the guardhouse an Assistant Sec
rotary of War visited the post on an
annual tour of inspe ction, and G Com
pany, which is not the correct initial,
got into full dress like the rest of the
companies to parade before the civilian
official. Z Company made an exhibit
ton of itself, although nearly every
man in the outfit had put in two enlist
ments. The way g Company turned
as it passed in review before the As
short of buresque.
"Rather badly handled that com.
pany, is it not?" inquired the Assistant
Secretary of War of the commanding
officer.
The next morning every man of
G Company was again absent from
reveille, and again the men had to be
hauled back from Denver, riotOus and
drunk. When they were sobered up
in the guardhouse, the commanding Of
ficer drew them up and addressed
them.
upon repetition of this" said be,
I'll give every one of you a general
court-martial."
That same night G Company looted
the canteen in body and engaged in
riot until the bayonets of the guard
put stop to it. The next day G Com
pany had new commander, and the
company Immediately resumed its
standing as one of the best in the in
fantry arm.
An infantry regiment that was sent
to the Pine Ridge fare.up among the
Sioux had 30 intense hatred for the
Colonel in command that many of the
men secretly expressed their determi-
nation to kill him "from the rear" in
case the regiment came to an engage
ment with the Indians. A number Of
soldiers who made this threat were
found out, general court. martialed, and
sentenced to terms at the military pris-
on on Alactrez Island. But the infan-
try Colonel against whom the threat
was directed-he is now a Brigadier-
General in command of department
became changed man from the day
he first became aware of the DISPOSE
ton of his men before starting for the
Pine Ridge troubles. From a swear
ing, storming, extraordinarily severe
officer, he became one of the mildest-
hammered and most lenient men in the
service, and the soldiers could kick o
football through the parlor windows of
! his quarters without his emitting q
: roar.-New York Sun.