Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1899-04-13
CHAPTER XVIII.

ola soldier was oommandant of cadets
at West Point, and one day one of his
ASST stants, an energetic young officer,
came hastily in to say that he had just
happened upon a cadet duel at Fort
Clinton, had captured one of the par
Elephants and placed him under arrest,
but the principals, seconds and most of
those present had managed to escape
The veteran listened grimly o moment
and then said:
"Were they actually fighting when
You got wind of it?''
Yes, sir, was the earnest reply
Anybody could have heard them. -
"Uml' said the colonel ref1ectively.
"Then I think you erred in interfering.
Couldn't you have got there just lit
tie later?''
But the regulations prohibit fight
ing, sir" said the junior, aggrieved.
Certainly, and your course promotes
it. You see, they were already at it.
Five minutes more would have settled
the thing one way or another, and that
would have been the end of it. They
would have shaken hands and been good
friends Now neither Of them has had
enough. Each believes he can whip the
other, and those youngsters will neither
be able to sleep nor study till they We
fought it out. Always prevent quarrel
when you can, but once they get going
never stop square fight never see or
hear it-until you know it's over. -
In like manner wiser head than that
which dictated the telegraphio instruc.
lions to the department commander
that night would have seen that it was
far better for all parties in the mix at
San Francisco if Mr.. Loring had been
detained there long enough to have the
matter investigated from start to finish,
and SO to Elk the responsibility. 1t
was not of vital Importance that he
should sail by first steamer, but there
had been friction between this particu.
lar general and the engineers, between
him and the adjutant general, between
him and the secretary of war, between
him and the division commander, then
temporarily absent, and general who
differs with so many eminent and astute
authorities as these enumerated must
occasionally err in Judgment.
Had Loring staid and been accorded
a complete Investigation the chances are
that he and the general would have
shaken hands and parted friends, for
both mad sterling qualities But orders
given in compliance with orders from
superiors are sometimes given only
grudgingly The general had heard in
that brief interview with his late at
night callers enough to convince him
that the harshest charges laid at Lor-
ing s door belonged elsewhere Rut
there were things Loring had been too
proud to explain-there was his insub-
ordinate-so the general regarded it
appeal over his commanders head to
the bureau in Washington; there was
his defiance of his envoy and represent
alive, Captain Petty; there were lots
of little things that rutfled the dignity
OF the veteran autocrat, especially the
somewhat peremptory tone of the dis
patch from the war department, and the
general felt himself wronged by his SUI
periors
Strain. too. suffered in his own esti-
mate, and Petty was Tuning with pent
up wrath and hate against that cool,
supercilious, contemptuous upstart of
an engineer. Who in blazes was he, any
how? What was his family? What his
social status? demanded Petty to him
self, even though he knew that these
were matters whereof our democratic
military system took no thought what
ever. 1t is the proud boast of the Amer
hat ~,
nor ancestry can count in the long race
for the stars. In these glad days of
peace and national prosperity the officer
is speedily taught that promotion is the
result of only one of two things patient
waiting or political influence.
And SO it resulted that when Walter
Loring steamed away southwark on the
long run for the States he left behind
an unsettled fight, three or four ag.
grieved otficials-aggrieved because of
him or his affairs and their mismanage-
ment of both-and one inveterate enc
my. He had plenty of time to think it
all over after he was fairly at sea, but
none before. He and Dennis needed ev-
cry moment to get his belongings aboard
and his business closed. He called upon
the general as directed and stood in re-.
spectful silence while the choleric war
rior paced up and down the room and
explained his position. He wished Mr..
Loring to understand that while he
felt that the young officer had behaved
with disrespect, at least with disregard
of his commanding general, the latter
was too magnanimous to stand in his
way, and had therefore determined the
evening previous to release him from
arrest and from further duty that he
might lose no time in Joining his
new station, even went so far as to say
he had found much, very much, to CON-
mend in the young gentleman and his
performance of duty in Arizona, and,
but for the unfortunate acknowledgements
that had resulted, would have taken
pleasure in making public announce
ment of the fact
He could not but deprecate the con-
duct of Mr. Loring's friends in Wash
ington, and might find it necessary to
appeal to the president for justice.
Meantime however ha dac;rad nv