The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1898-06-18
GIFT BATTERY.
The Famous Organization Passes
Through St. Louis En- Route
to the Philippines.
ITS PERSONNEL IS SOMEWHAT UNIQUE.
Lawyers, College Men, Athletes, Newsps-
per Men, and Some Soldiers OF For
tune In Its Ranks, But They Are All
Fine Fellows, Many of Them With
Good Long Purses.

ST. LOUIS, June 16. John Jacob AS
tors famous noun tain battery, h on
ly one of it's kind in the service OF the
United States, passed through st. Lou
Wednesday morning en- route to Ma
Mia. 1t numbers 90 men and three Of
ficerS.
The battery looks like the work of a
millionaire, contrasting all to its adj
vantage with many other troops
that have passed through st.
Louis since war began. 1t also
looks like a lot of college athletes
logged up in soldier clothes and out for
a lark. The members do a lot of lark
ing, too, but they are ready for serious
work. whether it be fisticuffs or real,
bloody battle, whenever the opportuni-
ty presents itself.
The battery came in at 7:15 a. m.
from New York. Its train consisted
of a chair car, three rather old
and dilapidated sleepers and
three baggage cars, one loaded
with commissary stores, another
with the six guns, and the third with
uclu pIOklSlOHS. III ldSI W hClLACo
cars were kept securely locked, and
nobody got a glimpse of the wonderful
Hotchkiss 12-pound mountain guns
that came all the way from England,
and are the only ones in use in this
country.
Before the train came to a full stop
the artillerymen filed out and made a
rush up the platform as is they were
chasing a football instead of q break
fast.
Mr.. Astor's name and millions at
tracted a fine lot of men to his battery.
Most of them are ~six-footers, 20 per
cent. of them are trained college ath-
letes, many of them are sons of rich
men, and probably all of them have
had some sort of military experience,
in the militia mostly.
But according to First Lieutenant
Clarence c. Williams, who is a West
Pointer, and therefore disdainful of
the militia, this sort of experience
doesn't count. There are seasoned
fighters from Asia and Africa in the
battery, regular army men and fighters
from the southwest. This hetero-
geneous company of men is expected 10
prove a problem that Uncle Sam has
been puzzling over for some time.
They form the pioneer mountain bat
terry of the United States. If it stands
the test, a permanent branch of the
will be established. Mountain
artillery has long been a valuable part
of Queen Victoria's army in India, and
other European countries have used
them effectively. 1t remained for John
Jacob Astor to introduce it in America.
He offered to equip a battery through
out, and Uncle Sam accepted the offer.
One of the artillerymen is Lieut.. Gar
dan, a Canadian, who belonged to a
company at Montreal. He resigned
there to get into Astor's battery. He
is married, and a special order from
the wal department was necessary be-
he could be enlisted. There are
or three fellows in the battery
who could tell marvellous stories if they
could be induced to talk about them
They are Englishmen who
have served the queen in India. Her
majesty didn't tell them they might
leave her service, so their names are
closely guarded from publication. They
are supposed to be younger sons Of
B~ritishers, and are game ones.
The battery is commanded by Capt.
c. Marsh, formerly a lieutenant
in the Fifth artillery. The ~lieutenants
are Clarence C. Williams and benjamin
NJ. Koehler, formerly of the Sixth ar
DIR. Williamson is the surgeon
DIR. Watterson the veterinarian.
With the battery are several news
paper men, regularly enlisted. Among
them are Frank Seymour, who is en-
gagged to marry the daughter of a rich
.hion, and Otto Koenig, who repre-
scnts the Westliche Post, of st. Louis.
SUCCESS OF THE WAR LOAN.