El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-05-21

told to illustrate how Fate. being
feminine, delights In battling the mel
. engaged in her little dramas, maklni
them fight their way through tie sew
ersl aets. Il Is the fate of my FRIEND
the captain.
Says be, looking at me with q world
of patient resignation in his homes
gray eyes:
Pm q peaceful man; I've alwsy'
loved peace and hunted for 1t-bu
somehow, no matter where L go
there's always some sort OF trouol'
springing up. It's my luck, sup
pose" =.
The captains ancestry alone was
warranty of peaceful disposition
There was an Irlsh ancestor, and the
Irish are VIGOROUSLY peaceful; another
who was Scotch, ana the Scotchmer
are q meek, submissive race as a rule
q third, who was Scotch-Ir1sh Orange
man, and every body knows how al
OranReman will strive to avoid trouble
even up to the point of fighting against
it: q fourth, who was Pennsylvania
Dutch and therefore likely OF type
easily persuaded and ever longing for
stronger nature to lean upon; ana
finally there was any number OF good
old Eoglisn ancestors who probably
used to cut across lots on occasion to
dodge people who bore malice, just Is
Establishment do even to this day. AL
together q true American blend and
one which should have insured taste
for balmy peace-as II did.
Fate however began to complicate
matters for him early. He vas only
school boy up in Wisconsin when the
civil war broke out but he felt compel
led to enlist. And so did all his male
kith and kin. Being Americans and
blessed with the usual acute American
conscience, have no doubt they first
sat down and argued with themselves
that it was only sense of duty to flag
and country which actuated them; not
love of fighting. Because, you see,
belligerency is not one of the recogniz
ed Christian virtues and they had been
brought up on such cOmpendia OF
everything q man should be as McGuf-
fy's Reader-we:ve all of US read Nc
Guffy-besides being carefully trained
in theoretical end applied morality at
the Sunday school. Having arrived at
a due state of conviction they went
ahead. Their arguments were perfect
ly satisfactory to them and would be to
you, dou btless, If you had had them
carefully presented to you. Know
ing the captain and his conscientious
mind, I'm quite sure they would have
been convincing to me.
They served through the four years
of such war es the picturesq ne aud
corseted soldiers OF Europeneverdream-
ed of, and the CO plain came out as color
sergeant of his regiment. AS that re-
Riment happened to be one of the tight
ing ones, the First Wisconsin, this
meant something. But then the cap
tain hadn't enlisted for fun: he was out
for business and that oublesome con-
science of his carried him wherever
anything WAS doing. A good deal was
doing those four war years.
When the war ended some of the
captains people-and his brother for
one-still impelled by their strong
sense of duty, stayed with the colOrs
Louisiana and Mississippi. But the
captain himself yearned for peace and
plenty of it. Wherefore he went to
Nebraska and settled down into bust
ness. It happened by coincidence
that Nebraska, being still On the from
tier, had more Indians per square inch
than were necessary, strictly speaking.
When he went into business he went
into it all over after the time honored
fashion. Naturally he be-
came a leading citizen-any organiza-
ton, civic or military, in which the
good captain CHANGED to bring up the
wrong end, would probably turn
around and march the other wsy. Be-
ing q leading citizen, it was merely his
chronic sense of duty and not any
tendency towards militancy which led
him to organize Grand Army posts and
drill the local militia within an inch of
it's life. And nybody in Nebraska
those days was likely to find it neces- |
sary to 60 Sioux hunting occasionally. |
He did.
However, on the whole, Nebraska |
afforded him bis peace and quiet (even |
If they we're bit spotty) and the cap
tain throve ahead enjoying life aa1
politics. Then one day, for some res-
Spanish smashed the NJ aine and re-
ri button began to cook.
III
The captain, as became leading
,itizen possessed with straight
merican conscience, of course lament
ID the fact that his country was about
20 plunge into war. And he said so.
ALSO be expressed grave doubts about
he millennium's coming on schedule
lime. Then he regretfully went to
york to organize company of rough
iders. His sOns-and there were four
# them by this time-with an odd un-
considering the family, con-
luded that their stricken country
eeded them too. Whereupon they all
oined the company, bag and baggage.
The youngest, being quite young, went
q as bugler. The captains brother, {
ut In San Francisco, noticed an APP
aren't omission and wired asking why
he wife and daughters were not en-
sted also. Which is an unsolved ,
1ystery to this day. II
But it proved that the captain and ,
is rough riders were not the only sol
iers on the beach in the summer OF |