Lewiston evening teller. [volume] (Lewiston, Idaho) 1903-1911, 1904-01-13
THE
HONOR
Of the


In barracks, the officers WINS
ou 60 zach other, and as the colo
sot on the veranda of his bunga.
, ~ and admitted it to himself he laia
~" ~ the blame on his own shout
ders. =. India known IA
'ta had been busy around Aliwal'
va squads of British cavalry were De-
80 cont out every few days TO Destroy
ne, ne Your true dacoit is not only
snnr Int q fighter as well. He robs
,., race whenever opportunity or
sa.s and fights the British whenever
,,herever he meets them. He Is
a. shot brave foe, and there are
honor and promotion to be had III "lp-
mo him off the race of the earth'
yerng Danforth had lately Joined the
ronth He had family and political in
snnnce and a fortune behind him, and
10 had a personality which made
sr;onds There could be no greater
ar,vilege than to be sent out at the
besd Of a detachment to give the da-
colts a whirl When the time came
that the colonel could do young Dan
forth this favor he had long and
oniet talk with him. He posted him
90 70 the characteristics and tactics or
tho foe and warned him Of the pit
Polls that even veteran officers might
foIl into, He was to find the enemy
and destroy him, but he was cautioned
against impetuousity and useless sac
rifce of men. This expedition was to
he the young officers 'try out" He
had never been under fire, and he could
not claim full kinship with the regi-
ment until he had.
They gave young Danforth British
sergeant and corporal and thirty-eight
Sikh troopers. Under an officer In
whom he has confidence there is no
better soldier that the Sikh. His only
weak point is that he must have his
foe in front of him. Danforth had the
luck to strike a band of robbers within
twenty miles of the post. They had
captured village and were pillaging.
It was testified to by a dozen Sikhs
that he was as cool as an old veteran.
He sent scouts forward to ascertain the
strength of the enemy and the lay Of
the land, and. at the head Of his forty
men he charged into the village and
routed out the band Of $50. He lost
two men and killed dozen. and 1t was
a little affair to be proud Of He held
his men well in hand and was on the
watch for trickery. and had all the
troopers been Europeans all would have
gone well. AS the robbers retreated
over broken ground men were flung of
from either flank to create an ambush.
They were few in number and only
half hearted. but as they opened fire
the Sikhs bolted. There were confusion
and a rout and the pursuers became in
turn the pursued. When the flight end
ed, the sergeant and corporal were
missing.
young Danforth. No sooner had the
detachment returned than the remnant
Of the Sikhs began to whisper about
incompetency and cowardice. They
praised the officer for his fight at the
village but they declared that his COW
ardice when he found himself in a
tight place had brought about disaster
His defense was straightforward and
clear. There was not an officer who
doubted one of his statements, and he
was honorably acquitted of the charge
but stain had been left behind. II
was felt by men and officers that to be-
even suspected of cowardice was Q
lla nc Of hn
was agreed that the Sikhs had lied tC
excuse their own cowardice, and there
was the verdict of the court martial
yet the cloud was not dissipated.
Young Danforth could not fail to no
uce the change In the attitude of hi!
brother officers. They did not cut him
but they had to make an effort to b.
friendly. Pretty soon hints wer'
thrown out that it would be well TO
him to transfer or leave the service
Then he went to the colonel and said:
Il was charged with cowardice by tn
Sikhs. Had my sergeant and corpora
nved to come back with me ! coul'
have had witnesses to prove to the con
trary. The court martial took my word
however. and was honorably acquit
ted realize that l am tainted. Their
are hints that ought to transfer or re
sign. With your permission shall re
main right here and hope for something
to happen"
believe that the Sikhs perjure
themselves" quietly replied the colonel
and perhaps 1t will be the wisest thin
you can do to stay on"
The words were kind and fair, but n
grip OF the hand accompanied them. Il
aus heart Of hearts the colonel ha
hoped the subaltern would 60 away
tpough at the same time he realize
mat only an innocent man would hav
cared to remain. Young Danforth lie
10 more expeditions. and months role
away before anything happened to pu
is case In more favorable light. The
number Of dacoits were captures
among them were two Or three VIII
haa fought him that day. They boas
OF how they had driven his Sikh
toey praised the coura 20 he had exhil