The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1899-01-19
GREEDY BA NDM AST i
How He Was Taken Down a Peg q
Two by Gen. Lawton.
Compelled to Play Classic Music for
y" the DelectatiOn Of the kcgime nta1
Mules In Frontier Post
Corral.
Especial WASHINGTON Letter.

Especial Washington letter.
AT the army and navy club in thi.
city one may meet with the leading Of
tecrs of both branches of our war
power, and the stories they tell of
camp, held and sea would daily fill VOL
umes.
One of the officers on the staff of Gen.
Mics told number of anecdotes of life
ON the frontier this afternoon, and one
OF the best was about Gen. Lawton, the
soldier whose prompt advance with the
regulars ut San Juan last July saved
the rough riders and other volunteers
who had been ambushed by the Span
iards.
Gen. Lawton's Indian-fghting ex-
perlences have often been told about
since the beginning of the war with
Spain, but these variations present the
man simply from the point of view of
care-weighted, stern; hard-campaign-
Ing officer. They do not reveal much of
his human, everyday nature, and it is
from this viewpoint that enlisted men
Whose estimate of an officer is, after
all, perhaps the most to be relied upon
figure out the merits or dement's of
their superiors.
The passing generation of regular
army soldiers still tell of how Lawton
once had his regimental band spend
day playing high grade music for the
dedication of the regimental mules in
the corral.
Lawton was in command of one of
the far western regimental posts. 1t
was post that was much visited by the
society people of an adjoining city, and
post hops were given on two or three
nights week. The regimental band
furnished the music for these hops. The
band was under the direction of for
eign-born bandmaster, who possessed
considerable contempt for enlisted
men, although his knuckling affection
for the men with the shoulder straps
was notorious. In the army a man pos
sessed of these characteristics is called
dog robber." Gen. Lawton had
detestation for dog robber He en-
dured his bandmaster, but he never
gave him any the best of it over any of
the members of the band. The band
ance upon the musical demands of the
posts officers.
One day the enlisted men of the post
decided to give a hop themselves. A
committee of the soldiers approached
the bandmaster to ascertain if he would
be willing to furnish the music. The
bandmaster at first declined to listen
to any sort of a proposition, but finally
consented to give the services of the
band for a nights dancing for the sum
Of $40.
That's whole lot O. money, my
wind-jamming FRIEND" said the soldier
who was at the head of the musical
committee. Il am free to say that l
think you could take heap of a reef in
that figure. What's your idea, anyhow,
in soaking it to us fellows so hard, when
you play all night for the officers a
couple O. times a week for nothing?"
But you ain'd office rs, alretty," re-
piled the bandmaster. You are not
ting but buck privates, ain'd it? Veil,
I sharges you What please. Fordy toll
lars"
"All right, bunkie," replied the SOL
der, IF you think you can make a hit
in this layout by putting it onto US this
way, it's up to you to make it stick.
Well pay you the $40, because we've
got to, SEEM that there's no juniper
(civilian) band around this camp. But
I think you're making bad break all
the same"
"Fordy tollars," answered the band
master, and that was the end of it. He
had the bulge, and he worked it.
The soldier who had done the inter-
viewing with the bandmaster was an
oldtime noncommissoned officer who