The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-04-22

Men With the Bark On is the quaint
and characteristic title Of a new volume of
stories by Frederic Remington. There are
dozen Of them, all unpretentious some of
them hardly more than charcoal sketches.
none very finished. But as records of the
authors varied experience among the
rough specimens of mankind, they are in
teresting and valuable.
This book hardly compares with Sun
down Leflare," nor is 1t intended to. II
deals mainly with the private soldier.
though there are frontier tales, and one is
denominated Sorrows Of Don Thomas
Pidal, Reconcentrado." There is plenty of
variety, tragedy. cynical humor, adventure
and here and there a good, wholesome
laugh, which is not cynical. place where
the average reader will laugh is in the
latter part of ~ Sketch by MacNeil" This
by the way, has nothing to do with an art
list. MacNeil was an old scout and he was
telling an Indian story. He and some Crow
scouts were out after Piegan horse thieves
and this is what happened:
ave KEEP a-pushin' until late afternoon. when
we saw The Piegans, about seven miles ahead,
just strCakin' il over the hills Nv Iniuus rot
of their ponies. and. Injun fashion. they strippcd
on every rag they had on except the G-string and
moccaslns. This is where them Iniuns is light
minced. iur DO man has got call 10 FIRTH
with Montana weather at that time OF year in
his naked hide Old man Mac stands pat with
a full set Of jesns And then we got on them
ponies and We ran them Piegans hard as We
could lather till plumb dark, when we had to
quit because we couldn't see. We were in an
open sage brush country. Well, it got darker and
darker, and then it began to rain. sat on my
saddle and put my saddle blanket over my
head, and was pretty comfortable Then IL be.
gan 10 rain FOR fair Them lniuns stomped aud
sung and froze TO DEATH and under the
blanket laughing at them Long bout midnight
II began 10 snow, and them lniuns turned on the
steam. The way they sung and stomped round in
ring tickled me near 10 death. The snow set.
tied round my blanket and kept out the cold
in great shape. ] only had my out, and
when II began 10 get grey morning ] had TO Just
yell 10 see them Iniuns out there in five inches
OF snow without a rag on, hoppin' for all they
was worth. You talk about shootin' up a fellows
toes TO make him dance; II want a circumstance
Them lnjuns had TO dance or cash in I have
seen plenty OF Injun dances but that dance had
swing to it that they don't get every time.
We found old big-iaw steer which
some punchers had killed, and them Injuns eat
that all right; but / wasn't hungry enough yet
to eat big-law steer, SO | pulled along down to
The railroad. ! got piece Of bread from a
sheep man. and when got to Gray Cliffs, on the
y. p ] was most frozen. Ny feet aud knees
all swollen up
Whenever gets to thinkin' about them bucks,
lumpin' around out there in the snow all that
night, and me setting there under the blanket
] has TO laugh. She was sure funny old reyei
boys"
And We Listeners Joined him, but we were
laughing at MaeNeil, not with him.
Another bit of humor comes in the mid
die of the first chapter. on War Dreams"
Some of the men ordered on active ser
vice, foregathering at restaurant, told OF
the queer dreams they had had since or
ders came. This one was dreamed by an
artilleryman:
Ny instincts got tangled up with one Of those
Key West shrimp salads, reckon; but war mas
no terrors for who has been through my
last midnight battle. ! dreamed l was super
intending two big l2-inch guns which were fir
ing on enemy's feet. I do not know where
this was We got out OF shot, but We seemed
10 have plenty OF powder. The feet kept com
ing on, and had to do something. so put an
old supeannuated sergeant in the gun. He
pleaded, but | said he was old, the cause
urgent, il did not matter how one died for