The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1902-04-30
peter DOUGLASS

"In garrison life Peter Douglass means
a dead man-that is. officially. not really
dead" observed an army Officer. "It had
It's origin at Fort Monroe quarter OF a
century or more ago. though there are a
number of officers who knew the original
Pete and quite a number more who knew
the facts In regard TO his ease.
zone OF the leading officers OF the ar
tillery service today, then lieutenant.
was sent from Governors island. in New
York harbor. to Fort Monroe with de-
taohment OF nineteen soldiers. They
came down by sea, and the first night out
the soldiers got on TO a barrel OF whisky
which was i'm the hold, and by the aid of
a gimlet and some straws the most OF the
nineteen men were in a very hilarious
condition before midnight on the Sec
ond night out some OF them tackled the
barrel again. and in a short time they
were again intoxicated. Among the num-
ber was Peter Douglass. When the time
came for them TO land at Fort Monroe
Peter Douglass could not he found. IL
was generally thought he had fallen over
board Anyhow. the lieutenant turned
over but eighteen men. lie reported Pc
ter Douglass as having been drowned and
days afterward. when the ship that
brought the party down was unloading
some freight az Charlestown, >. C., Peter
Douglass crawled out OF the hold looking
some what the worse for his experience,
After bracing up he managed TO work his
way up 10 Fort Monroe, where he suppos-
ed he would join his company, but on pre-
senting himself 10 the officer In command
there he was told that as the record there
had shown that Peter Douglass Ahad been
drowned they were required 10 consider
him dead even IL he was not dead.
Douglass admitted that he was pret-
~ nearly dead. but that he had managed
TO pull through. Anyway. he was not
admitted TO the quarters at the garrison,
and was told that he had better move
along. that he was out OF the army as
surely as he had ever been In II.
But Peter did not so far away. That
evening he met some OF. his comrades
three in number. from Governors Island.
and they celebrated his coming 20 life
in true soldierly manner. The celebra-
tion wound up, in the susrdhouse there,
the guardhouse showed that. though
Peter Douglass had been reported dead
a few days before. he was very much
alive. Two days afterward the names
OF the four were sent TO the officer in
command as a preliminary TO having
them court-martialed and punished for
disorderly conduct and other violations OF
the laws Of the garrison. The officer
who was a strong advocate OF the power
OF record ruled that as Peter Douglass
had never entered the gdrrlSOn. ne Cpulu
not be court-martialed. and that. in fact
Peter Douglass was dead beyond resur-
rection. He was. therefore, turned out
and again told 10 move on. but as he did
not realize that he was dead. he did not
do so.
He hung around the garrison for some
time. but hnlly wandered away and got
back 10 New York Officially he has re-
mained dead ever since. for the record
has never been changed. The officers
preferred 20 let him remain dead and get
him out OF the armv IN that wav than TO
try and reform him bv court-martial
for ne seemed TO be beyond reform
Star"