The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1899-08-09
TIM AND THEAP
A VICIOUS BATTLE IN WHICH THE
INDIAN WAS WHIPPED.

my Life which Was Brought About
by Permitting . Sleep Walker to
Remain In Camp.
"In our command at Fort Apache-this
was when 'Pache was perilous post,
with the hostiles sneaking up to the very
doors of the quarters under cover of
might've had soldier who walked in
his Sleep" said a former cavalry officer
who is now attached to the staff. He
was quiet man and first rate soldier,
and he would have had the stripes and
chevrons Of sergeant very soon after he
Joined our outfit il he had not immediate
ly exhibited his unfortunate somnambu-
istic tendency. 1t was considered that
noncommissiOned officer.
1.-The man felt very bad over his Attic
ton, but of course he couldn't help it.
Unfailingly, two or three times week,
be would rise from his bunk at the grave
yard yawning hour, wrap himself In a
blanket and sally out into the night,
knowing not whittier he was bound and
as sound asleep as his troops oyerfed
watchdog. He would. always be halted
and brought to by one Of the sentries.
The men on guard didn't like these expe'
riences. There were too many prowling
PEACHES within hitting distance Of the
post to make it comfortable for sentry
stationed on q somewhat remote 0utpost
to meet up with blanketed figure in the
dim light of the stars. The men got used
to the apparition after time, however,
and 1t got to be quite common thing for
them to snap the sleep walker awake and
to quietly order him back to his bunk.
The man always showed how cheap he
felt when one of the sentries would awak-
en- him, and he would glide back to his
bunk without awakening any of the men
in the nearby hunks.
"You might ask me why the doors OF
the quarters weren't locked, SO that the
somnambulist couldn't get out, md that
would be an easy one, for barrack doors
are never locked at night in our army.
They are accessible to the officer of the
day or the noncommissioned officers OF
the guard at any hour of the night with
out the use of keys. The somnambulist's
cnse became so rggravating, however,
when the time came that the post seemed
t. be completely surrounded by the
'Pache fiends. and when we were pre-
pairing to go after 'em and get 'em to-
gether in bunch the commanding officer
decided to have him mustered out for
physical disability. Correspondence with
the war department to that end was in
progress when the thing that started
to tell about happened
ut began and ended with Tim Keat-
ing's getting the corral in the choice Of
guard posts. The corral was ticRlish
old place to guard at 'Pache. 1t was
long distance from the guardhouse, and
the lonesomeness of it in the middle Of
the night made even the old timers
in the service who bumped their post
there tribe nervous. Heating took
the corral post at 2 o'clock one clear,
starry morning. He had been cavalry
man for Is years and was crackerjack
soldier He had had couple of expe-
ricnces with the somnambulist on pre-
yious guard tours, and so he was not
surprised or alarmed when he saw
gray blanketed figure slowly approach
ing him from around the corner of the
stables. Tim gave the figure the COM
n,and to halt, and the figure disregarded
the command as usual. Tim rested his
carbine against the fence and walked up
tu the figure. 1t was the somnambulist.
Tim shook the man awake.
at isn't in every command where
you'd have such luck in your sleep prowl-
ing said Heating good naturally to the
abashed somnambulist. You'd get ball
in YOU
"The sleep walker nodded gloomily
and hustled back to the quarters.
"Ten nights later Tim Heating was on
guard at the corral at the same hour,
and again the blanketed figure approach
ed him from the shadow of the stables.
This time Keating didn't halt the figure,
hut, again resting his carbine against the
fence he walked up to the gray blanket.
ed prowler. The figure suddenly changed
its course as Heating approached and
took up faster gait.
"'IIey. none O. thatH called out the
sentry. It's bad enough to have to wake
you up without running after you
''The figure had meanwhile started at
swift walk directly for the part Of the
fence against which the sentry's gun rest
cd, closely pressed by Keating When
within ten feet of the fence the blanketed
figure made sudden leap for the car
binc and in another instant Heating
caught on the shoulder a blow from the
stock Of it that was meant for his head.
1t was tall, iron musclcd 'Pache war
rior swinging the carbne.
"'Welh cOnfound this sleep walking
business anyhow! exclaimed Heating ont
of the depths of his surprise when he
saw the natural mistake he had made