Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1901-12-06


man who listed with our detachment
at Denver last June, aboit the first
week. The name was Foster. He
disappeared somewhere between
Sacramento and Oakland, and never
saw him. again.
Questioned as to whether there.was
any mark by which the recruit could
be known, Connolly said that he was
present when Foster was physically
examined, and he never saw a man
with a whittier skin; there wasn't a
mark on him anywhere then that he
could remember. sBidden to tell what
he knew of Foster, the young art:l-
leryman; was given seat, and some
what feebly proceeded. Foster was
bound to enlist, he said, was of legal
age and looked.it; gave his full name,
mis- home: and business; Said he
owned a ranch down in New Mexico
near Fort Averill; didn't know
enough to go in for a commission
and was determined to enlist and
serve as private soldier in the cav
airy. He had good clothes. and things
that he put in trunk and expressed
back to sAverill, keeping only valise
full of underwear, etc., but that was
burned up on the car afterwards.
Two days later, before they started
for the west, man who said his
name was Murray came to the rem
devious and asked for Foster, who
was then being drilled. A detach-
ment was to start, the next day, and
anybody could see that Foster wasn't
glad to welcome Murray by any
means, but on that very evening Muir
ray said that he too wished to en-
list and go with his friend" He
squeezed through the physical exam
nation somehow, and they took him
along, though nobody liked his looks.
Then Connolly told what he could
of the fire and of Fosters subsequent
disappearance, also of Murray and
Murray's misconduct. They asked
Connelly about Lieut.. Stuyvesant, and
here Connolly waxed almost eloquent,
certainly enthusiastic, in Stuyvesant's
praise. Somebody went !soofar, how
ever, as to ask whether he had ever
seen any manifestation of ill-will be-
tween Stuyvesant and Recruit Fos-
ter, whereat Connolly looked aston
ished, seemed to forget his fever, and
to show something akin to indigna-
ton.
"No, indeefl!" said he. There was
nothing but goodwill of the heartiesr
kind everywhere throughout the de-
tachment except for that one black
guard, Murray. They all felt most
! grateful to the lieutenant, and so far
as he knew they'd all do most any
thing for him, all except Murray, but
he was a tough, he was bitter, and
here the sick man feebly uplifted his
hand and pointed to the bluish-pur-
pie marks at the base of the thumb.
Murray did that" said Connolly,
| simply HE was more like a beast
than man."
But the examiners did not seem in
terested in Murray. Gen. Vinton, who
| had again entered and was a close
listener, and was observed to he
studying the witness closely, present
ly beckoned to one of the doctors and
said a word in undertone to him.
The medico shook his head. There
was lull in the proceedings a mo-
ment. Connolly was too sick a man
to be kept there long, and his doc
tor plainly showed his anxiety to get
him away. The crowd too wanted
him to go. He had told nothing espe-
cially new except that Murray and
Foster were acquainted, and Murray
enlisted because Foster had.
Everybody" said by this time this
must be Fosters body. What "every.
body wanted was to get Connolly
out of the way now, then perhaps -