Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-06-25
AN EFfEeTNe PUNISHMENT

u
IT read thes othefa day." said an old sol
der of the reEularArmy. "that one of the
Districts lads in blue. down in Tampa,
was given bit Of tog-shouldering to do as
q punishments This is the first time I've
heard Of that oldaime army punishment
being revived. 1t used to be q regular
guard house punishment when I was In
the regular oxtfit. "A man sentenced to ten
days In tho guard house you'd either be
sent out to work iH the morning. policing
around the POST, or he would be given his
Recommendations tours OF
log-humping. He'd have to carry his log
just as the linen '8n guard carried their
rifles. in so far as hours of duty were con-
cerned. except that. he was permitted to
sleep In at night. THE logs weighed from
80 to 100 pounds when the punishment was
first employed in the regular army, but
good thing, and when the log humping
punishment was abandoned the chunks OF
trees only weighed something like hfty
pounds. But it was no soft snap to pack
even fifty-pound log UP and down In
front of guard house, in the hot sun es-
pecfally. for two hours at. a stretch. as
happen to know. In truth. the punish
ment was Calling. and not SO many mar. men men
mary courts-martial when the log punish
ment was in vogue as Is the case now:
when policing around posts is the guard
house punishment of military Offenders on
q minor scale.
when 1 was stationed at Fort Leaven-
worth in H. Chief Douglas. one OF the
high mucka-muclss of the fractions Neg
Perce tribe that had recently been rounded
keeping. The whole tribe of Nee Perces
was corralled and under a strong chain
guard back OF the post, and at first Doug
las was permitted to remain with the
tribe. But he was an Indian of the agftat-
ing kind, was Douglas. and he caused SO
much mutfny among the pent-up DUCKS
that the commanding officer thought 1t
wiser to put him away from the tribe. So
he locked him UP In the guard house.
Douglas was magnificent big specimen OF
q brave, and after he had been In his
guard house cell for week or so the off,
Ger OF the day recommended to the COM
handing officer that the Indian be given
some long exercise, to keep him from pin
ing away. The commanding officer agreed.
and Douglas was led out Of his cell to the
porch running around the second story OF
the guard house, and shown the log he
was to carry. Four or, five soldiers. serv-
Ing guard house sentences, were humping
their logs some distance away, under the
eye OF q sentry. Douglas looked at the
log with an expression of contempt, grunt-
ed as II to say. Not much, I won't! and
the officer of the day seeing that the chief
didn't want any. exercise 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
willing to pack a log up and down the
porch. but that he was anxious to do 1t.
So he was given an eighty-pound log, and
began his march up and down. The sentry
patrohing No. post, in front Of the guard
house, was told to watch the Indian, but
the sentry didn't anticipate any treachery,
and so he didn't pay much attention to the
stamping chief walking up and down the
porch above with the log on his shoulder.
But about ten minutes after Douglas had
begun his log patrol the sentry saw
dusky figure flying through the air from
the porch above. md by the time he had
got his wits and saw that the dusky figure
was Douglas the Indian had picked him
self up. and was oflJfor the woods only 100
yards or so away like a deer. The sentry
gave whoopa and he yelled after the fly
ing Indian to halt. HThere wasn't any halt
III Douglas, however, and he kept right on
like race horse. THE sentry fired after
him twice, but tho Indian chief disap-
peared in thee brush. Fort Leavenworth
was big post atldthat time, for 1t was
the national school OF application, and there
were over 2,OObtroOps there. They were all
turned out within ixtminutes after Douglas
made his leap!tcavafry and infantry, but it
was no go. although the sun shone bright
ly for six hours after the chief made his
escape. They got" Douglas just four
months later II OREGON, good $500 miles
from Fort Leafenw6fth.