Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1902-06-15
TIE ARKANSAS
CRY BABY

Speaking of coWardice. homesick-
ness and other frailties of the av-
erage soldier" said Capt. Mumford,
| knocking the ashes out Of his pipe,
"the funniest combination of all of
| them | ever saw was an Arkansas
'yap' named Hank Overlaw. He was
| in my troop, and the way the other
| fellows tantalized and despised him
six feet in his stockings any old time.
! If he'd stand up straight he would
have been at least two inches taller.
Every man in the troop tried to pick
| fight with him, but poor Hank, in
stead of getting back at the kidders
would either sulk away by himself or
set up a howl just like 7-year-old
chiu.
I'm afraid Finnegan, who was top
sergeant, rubbed it n a little on the
Arkansas trooper, and I've seen Hank S
eyes fill with tears and his lips pout
| into a blubber when Finnegan roared
particularly strong oath at him.
About half the troop was made up of
old-timers, fellows who had re enlisted
] half dozen times, loved the army
and would rather fight than eat. But
all the way over from Frisco to Ma
nllla they made game of Hank, the
ereenhorn. When they exhausted all
their devices, worked every kind OF
practicle Joke on him without getting
a flash of resentment from him. they
began to despise him. Huffman, q
-.ue rocky from Chicago, struck him
IN the eye one day, but when Finne-
gan heard about it he sent Hank to
the guardhouse. There the poor fel-
joW spent four days alternating be
tween weeping spells and chills.
guess he'd died of inconsistencies il
it hadn't been for the shakes. lney
stuck to him, though like the very
atmosphere of his dear old Arkansaw,
and 1t was standing joke in the troop
that hank would have deserted if he
naon had his daily quiver.
The men hated to get on the
same detail with him. because he was
'Ne slo"est lobster that ever handled
Shovel, eurlied a horse or loaded a
wagon. His uunkies had to kick
INN out of bed in the morning. and
'ne iazlest Cuban that ever rolled a
.!sa1leete could nave taught him tac-
''os ana the manual But Hank ex.
eeiled IN one particular. He could out
shoo' any man in the Sixteenth, or
any man in the army, for that mat.
w. 'housh he never got quite famili-
g. WIN what he called TIL curleycues
CHI ohnery krag-Jorge sens
Was ming their first campaign,
Up the Baddag. that the fellows OF
1loop came to despise Hank with
-, s,ie frank contempt that wyp gkqj
w. ne frank contempt of your genu-
~, nsh'lhg man for the weakling
suose stomach isn't strong enough
M tSa. real war. Finnegan always said
s.a. @ f1shk never fired his rifle the
wy ''lAe they met the Tagals. 1t
~ s'hli'ted on all siles that When
En;-. ARKANSAS cry-baby first saw the
.na p'ios pumping their lilies wildly
eaS., M shooting wide of anything on
~, ., ne Yelled out: Look Won ar tham
thai, sea T., monkeys a-peppelin ur
srs alf Then he sat down on = ,ic.
esm sme and laughed till the sergeant
ins 4'e along nd helped him into the fir.
afta,A Ae With feroclous kick. Bat
out Wa Hafd' when our fellows route .
los. ~ the niggers and Hank sew the
in b tho VI dead monkeys he sat down
bahr bre mud and howled like a spanked
spose St. :. After that the fellows seldom
was ruAe . TO him. They agreed that he
tho he ta,': coward, and he was denied even
and aslng sym. excltment of being the butt
just just Seapegoat OF his companions. ,s Thew hey;
tie haa h'snored him and, left to himself.
uno oaVhmlesickness hl' and the chills nreves
a!m until he was fit fer the ps1, hos. IS
d as about this time that co,