Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1899-02-16

Nevins. That officers conduct was 8
puzzle. Six months before he was ths
personification of all that was lavish
hospitabie, good natured, extravaganza
Everybody was apparently welcome tt
the best he had. Then came the col
lapse, his arrest, his flight, his capture
and confinement. his laughing defiance
OF his accusers, until he found how
much more they knew than he supposed,
his metaphorical prostration at the feet
of his judges, his humility, repentance,
suffering and sacrifice. his pledge OF
future atonement, his protestations OF
love for his long suffering wife, his sur
render of his valuables for her benefit,
his meekness>o of mien until the court
had concluded his case and gone; then
his Sudden resumption of bold, trucu.
lent, defiant manner, his midnight
breach OF arrest. which had leaked out
through the guard that was promptly
sent forth to fetch him in; then his de-
manu for the return Of his property and
his furious outburst on learning that
Loring bad taken him at his word and
sent it without delay by the safest nos.
| sible hands
mat proved an exciting day. The ad
/ Jutant's message had temporarily awed
and Quoted the man. but toward ), ..
M. the mail carrier arrived from the
CHA with his sack of letters and papers
He reported having been stopped only
five miles ont from Sancho's BY masked
men, who quickly examined his big
leather bag, silently pointed to a curious
mark-a dab of paint that must have got
on it while he was there at the ranch
and sent him ahead without word
being spoken. He saw other men, but
they passed him by in wide circuit. He
met Lieutenant Blake and the troop,
and the lieutenant babe him hurry. So
the letters we're delivered nearly two
hours earlier than usual In the mail
were dozen missives for Captain New
ins-two i'll dainty feminine superscrip-
ton postmarked San Francisco, several
that might be bills, others that were
local, one postmarked Tucson, and one
slipped in at Sanchos.
The major himself looked these en-
velopes over as though he thought their
contents ought to be examined, but even
convicted man had his rights, and the
letters were sent to him In less than
three minutes thereafter the hot, breath
less air of the long afternoon was sud.
denly burdened with another eruption
OF oaths and rawlings One or two won.
en- sitting in the shade of their canvas
shelters across the parade clapped their
hands to their ears and ran indoors and
the majors orderly dashed full tilt for
the guard. Half an hour later Captain
Nevins was escorted to new abode, a
tent pitched just outside, not within,
the corral, and there he was left to
swear at will with the sentry on No. 4
warned to call the corporal of the guard
II the gentleman for one moment quit
the seclusion of his solitary quarters
And this was the status of affairs
when the sun went down at the close of
the third day after adjournment.
When it rose upon the fourth, all was
quiet about the impetuous captain s
canvas home-too quiet, thought the
officer of the day after his visit to the
guard at reveille, and therefore did he
unite the cords that fastened the flaps
in front and peer within Five minutes
later two new prisoners were placed in
charge of the guard, Of which they had
been members during the night-Pri-
Yates Poague and Pritzlaff of the first
and second reliefs respectively But the
aggregate gain in the column of "in ar
rest or confinement" was only one. for
Captain Nevins had disappeared.
OF course there was rush to the out
lying ranch whose few remaining occu.
pants grinned exasperatingly and
shrugged their shoulders, but gave no
information Of course courier was
sent scurrying away on the trail Of the
cavalry, but he came back sore footed
at night, relieved Of his horse, arms and
equipments and thanking God for his
life OF course another courier was
started by night to make the perilous
ride to the Salado and order the instant
return of at least platoon, but nothing
more was heard of him for week, and
it was nearly five days before these
desert bound exiles of Camp Cooke got
another atom of reliable news from
Sancho's, and meantime wondrous 9th
er things had happened
1t did not take long to determine the
means by which Nevins had succeeded in
getting away There was little indeed
to prevent his doing so if he saw fit to
Co. for unless sentries were posted ON
all four sides of his tent he might
crawl off in the darkness unobserved
The sentry on No. had received orders
merely to summon the corporal and re
port to him if the officer ventured to
leave his tent. and as No was post
over hundred yards in length and the
sentry responsible for all of it there
was no,right or reason in demanding of
him that he should give his undivided
attention to what might be going on
close to the corral
In fact, by removing Nevins from the
inner quadrangle of the camp and Mac.
ing him outside the walls Major Starke
had made it all the easier for him to
skip a second time if he saw fit to do so,
but Starke reasoned that Nevins still
had some hope that congressional infiu
ence would save him from dismissal,
and thprpfnra