The weekly intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1891-1901, 1900-01-06
ACCIDENTS IN WAR TIME.
An Old CampaiEner Relate. some
Extraordinary Happenings In
Battle.

THE glorious uncertainty OF war has
passed into a proyerb, and truly there
is no knowing from moment to mo-
ment what may occur. The improbable
is always happening, and every cam
paign yields a fresh batch OF in
stances In support Of the statement"
said on old campaiRner at the Audi
forum the other night. Thus in the
recent Hispano-Ameriean war a trooper
In the famous Roosevelt rough riders.
who had passed unscathed through the
whole of the campaign Including the
treacherous ambush In which the rough
riders lost so many men). while clean
Ing out his carbine preparatory to leay-
Ing for his native land, came across
what he took TO be a spent cartridge.
This he threw into his camp fire. A
fearful explosion Immediately took
place and a burning brand from the
scattered fire struck the poor young
fellow in the face, binding him in both
eyes. To go unframed through an ar
duous and protracted campaign and
then TO be permanently disabled by a
cartridge from ones own carbine Is
surely one OF the hardest ironies for
which inscrutable fate is responsible.
During one of the half-hearted bat.
Ties fought between the Chinese and
the Japs an incident happened which
would be all but incredible were II mo-,
vouched for on the highest authority.
a Chinese foot soldier was kneeling in
the trenches taking aim at a Japanese
officer in the distance, when a bullet
from the enemy entered the muzzle of
his rifle passed down IT, exploded the
cartridge and blew the mans face off
When we take into consideration the
diameter OF a rifle barrel and reckon IN
the likelihood Of a stray bullet striking
IL exactly in the center II will be seen
that the odds against this extraor.
binary incident were as millions 10 one,
ana yet strange to say, a very similar
thing took place during the lombard
ment OF Alexandria by the British I'm
1882. The Res-el-Din fort offered a stub
born resistance to the warships and
several OF them had TO train their guns
on the place before its big guns were
hnally silenced. During the thick OF
the engagement, just as one of these
monsters was about to be fired, a huge
proJeetile from one Of the ships entered
n Tort and wedged itself firmly in the
muzzIe OF the gun. entirely ~precludine
lis further use, When the yictorious
oluelackets entered the fort they found
'he cannon, with Its strangely plugged
muzzle' and photographed It. Marvel.
GUS TO relate, the heavy charge in the
gun was not exploded by the shock.
During the last Zulu war a certain
ehief Of h%erculean build gave a great
zeal OF trouble to the British outposts
lie carried at his girdle a brightly Rild.
ed horseshoe, and superstitious Tommy
ATKINS said that as long as he carried
thls curious charm no bullet would be
Hole TO touch him. At last, however. a
young lieutenant picked him of as he
clam0ered over the rocks and n rusb
was made to secure the gilded horse.
shoe as a trophy. Then a curious dis.
coVery was made. The bullethad passed
clean through the brawny savage. and
striking against either his ribs or his
spine, had been lattened out roughly
INTO The shape Of a h~orseshoel Both
ouiiet n shoe are now in the posses.
zion OF The young officers mother, fer
he, poor lad, persisted in a night attack
not long after killing the chief."-Cbl.
caPo Chrnninle %