The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1900-09-22


two volunteer battalio ions, we're sprawl
ed about II the dusty moonlit plaza Of
Alphonso that nigh a small group
OF tagged and famished war scribes
were among them, and these men com
4m "a, seriously upon the ugly and
thankless proposition 81 which life Is.
Now and then commissioner officer
swore loudly at his men, alternately
4 calling them blood thirst devils and
rve-shattered young ladies The en-
listed men cursed back ia half audibl
growls. In the air was that queer muir
muring undertone, which can always
be heard in the midst Of American
troops, just after III brush with the
"niggers. And straight above. the
foul and ancient town a hot white mid
night moon stared down tauntingly.
Never-to- be- forgot ten lis that last Jan
uary hight at Alphonso, way down in
one Of the lower provinces of Luzon. ;
dark for 10 rainless days; feed it at
rare and irregular intervals upon
bacon and bareback; charge it upon
live, smoking rebel trenches once or
twice every 48 hours, and on the tenth
day keep up the program, except for
the bacon and hardtack-then look at
the battalion if you are interested at
all in devilish moods or the causes OF
crime. You will understand then the
necessity of perdition hereafter, and
the likelihood of its being crowded. 70
The service in Luzon teaches that it
is place Of fathomless mud during
the rains, and of terrorizing heat when
the rains are not. It also teaches a,
man to truly sweat and to look at
tragedy without squirting. But more
and most of all in Luzon a man learns,
too, what a gaunt, helpless animal he
:fs-learns it from the hitting lesson
which craving stomach teaches. And
this is a lesson which kills pride, pure
thoughts and dreams of home. -
The men in the plaza of dirty Alphon-
80 learned this lesson that day, and
that night it was impressed upon them.
Suddenly the sentry on, duty at the
north end of the town shouted. The
men in the plaza jumped to their feet
and listened. Then faint and far off
could be heard the tinkle of pack
trains ,bell-mare. The rations, were
coming! Never in profane history of
the world did such q yell ascend as
from The plaza Of Alphonso. The near
est thing to me was a vicious sun cur
ed pony which had jolted me shabbily
for ten hours that day. SI Rugged the
pony and the ugly beast bereft Of all
fine entiments, kicked in the front of
a bamboo shack, to- which had teth-
cred him. The ldiers slapped each!
other facetiously and were men with
human hearts once more. Feed a dog
If you would have him follow you, for
there is something ofathe man in him.
! Not long after that there pounded In
to the plaza a train Of the hardest toll
-ers, man and beast, in Uncle Sans
pay. They we're marvellous to look at
---gaunt, shaggy, unkillable + mules,
each standing up under 200 odd pounds
~of government straights "a dozen tan
med. haggard and just J. as unki liable
packers, handling the big train with,
an intense but whispered profanity,
for the day and the trail and the miles
had killed the voices in their threats.
The mules pushed the soldiers out Of
the plaza, swung into line and smelled
the necks Of their neighbors, at the
same time wiping clear the foam from
their mouths. They seemed to be pass
ing through the herd now, a general
inquiry as to how each other had Jared
through the prolonged hellishness Of
the hyke. Meanwhile the packers as
sisted by spirit-willing, but neverthe-
less gutteral profanity, unloaded and
.lncinched; and the pile Of provisions
grew high in the plaza. The soldiers
crowded near, and one otherwise one
spoiled the whole system by getting
into the boss packers way. -.
Get back, you d. infants. You've
grubbed twice since we have The
voice Of the pack trains chief would
have been a roar. naturally, but it's
strength, had gone from him that
night. With towering irony he finish
ed. @Mamma1l have dinney i for
babies in a little while. s. -. ...g.*
Honestly the love bonds which exist
between packers and u infantrymen
would be easily severed. And this is
strange, too, for few are the packers
who have not "asoldiered''' at one time
in Uncle SAINTS service. AS a matter
of fact what have these strong, strange
rough men not done at one time in
Z their lives? Old Dad will tell you Of
the days in Uncle SANS cavalry when
it was the Drawn # Of arm and the
granite Of ones fists which beat it way
into the superiority OF non com's
:stripes-the days when troopers rode
in the homewest, hunted Geronimo
and the Apache Kid ode long, lived
Z hard and shot true Scar Face, the
greaser, will tell you how he Struggled
gallons Of Mexican mescal across the
Rio Grande, when nobody was watch
ing but the man in the moon, and
about the wads Of money he made out
of the white soldiers on pay 81 days.
Dirty Ike, the cook Of the train, went
with Reno, hen the sqiiad rons OF the
unlucky Seventh horse separated to
corral Sitting Bull inf the, 70's. Dirty
i Ike will tell ydu how he helped to bury,
the dead of Clusters command il the
Scircling shadows Of Yulture Wings, and