The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-07-25
Loc-HuMPiNc IN THE ARMY.
How an Indian Utilized That Form of Pun
hme to Make His Escape.

II read the other day." said an old
soldier of the regular army. that one
of the districts lads in blue down in
Tampa was given a bit of l~og-shoulder-
ing to do as punishment. This is the
first time I've heard of that old army
punishment being revived. 1t used to
be a regular ~guardhouse punishment
when was in the regular outfit. A
man sentenced to 10 days in the guard
house would either be sent out to work
in the morning, policing around the
post. or he would be given his wo-
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS tours or
log-humping. He'd have to carry his
log lust as the men on guard carried
their rifles, in so far as hours OF duty
were concerned, except that he was per-
mitted to sleep in at night. The logs
weighed from so to 100 pounds when
the punishment was first employed in
the regular army, but this was fnally
considered too much of a good thing
and when the ~log-humping punishment
was abandoned the chunks of trees only
weighed something like so pounds. But
IL was no soft snap to pack even a DO
pound log up and down in front of the
guardhouse in the hot sun especially,
for two hours at a stretch, as l happen
to know. In truth, the punishment was
CALLING, and not so many men drank
and fought themselves into summary
courts-martial when the log punish
ment was in vogue as is the case now.
when policing around posts Is the
guardhouse punishment of military OF
tenders on a minor scale.
when | was stationed at Fort LeaN-
enworth in II, Chief Douglas, one of the
high muck-a-mucks of the fractious
Nez Perez tribe that had recently beeh
rounded I'D, was put in the ~guardhouse
for safe keeping. The whole tribe or
Neg Perces was corralled and under a
strong chain guard back of the post,
and at first Douglas was permitted 10
remain with the tribe. But he was an
Indian Of the ~agitating kind, was Doug
las. and he caused so much mutlny
among the pent-up bucks that the COM
handing officer thought it wiser to put
him away from the tribe. Sc he locked
him up in the guardhouse. Douglas was
a magnificent big specimen OF a brave
and after he had been in his guard
house cell for a week or so the orncer
of the day recommended to the COM
handing officer that the Indian be given
some log exercise to keep him from pm
ing away. The commanding ofncer
agreed, and Douglas was led out OF ms
cell to the porch running around the
second story of the guardhouse ana
shown the log he was to carry four
or five soldiers. serving ~aruno sen
fences, were humping their logs some
distance away, under the eye OF a SEN
try. Douglas looked at the log with
an expression Of contempt, grunted as
II to saw, Not much. ! won't! AND the
officer of the day. seeing that the chlet
didn't want any exercise, had MN taken
back to his cell.
After thinking il over, however
Douglas sent for the officer of the day
and told him thai he was not only Will
ing to pack a log up and down the
porch. but that he was anxious 10 10
so He was given an S0-pound log, and
began his march up and down. Inc
sentry patrolling No. / post, in front OF
the guardhouse, was told to watch the
indian. hut the sentry didn't anticipate
any treachery. and so he didnt pay
much attention to the s~crapping chlei
walking ND and down the porch above
with the log on his shoulder. But apou'
ten minutes after Douglas had begun
his long patrol the sentry saw a duskS
figure flying through the air from the
norch above. and by the time he mac
got his wits and saw tha the dusky
figure was Douglas. who had picked
himself up and was on Tor tns
woods only 100 yards or so away. Ike
a deer. The sentry gave a whoop, ane
he yelled after the flying Indian 10 halt
There wasn't any halt in Douglas. now
ever. and he kept right on like a race
horse. The sentry fired after him twice
hut the Indian chief disappeared in IN
brush. Fort Leavenworth was a DIS
most at that time. for 1t was the ma
tional school of application, ana ther'
were over :, 200 troops there. They wer
all turned out within six minutes ate
douglas made his leap. cavalry and IN
fantry, but IL was no go, although IN
sun shone brightly for six hours afte
the chief made his escape. They go
Douglas just four months later In orc
gon, a good $500 miles from Fort LeaV
enor,b"-Washington Evening Star.