Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1905-04-14

has long nourished a secret grudge
against Maj. Montgomery McComb
his fellow attache, or "voyena arg
nent," which is the American version
of the term war agent" or military
attache. Capt Judson is in the habit
/ Of spending long days sitting on Err
digo hill studying out military prob
lens. The Russians cannot un
derstand why a man should get up al
a. m. and post of in zero weather
to sit all day in the snow on a cold
| bill where the wind whistles and the
Japanese chuck shells at him. The
major kindly explained that the cap
| tain had never acted just right ever
| since the Spanish-American war, when
he was wounded in the head by a
shell. This is not true, but the ex-
PLANTATION was certainly very ingenius
The major added insult to injury by
clubbing the captain Erdigo Bill So
the captain waited an opportunity TO
get even.
Now new regiments coming to the
front from Russia are filled with COM
mendable zeal and they yearn to dis
tinguish themselves at once. Denied
the opportunity of being turned loose
Immediately upon the hapless enemy
they turn to the stern duty of arrest
ing supposed spies. Everything is fish
that comes into their nets. and they
arrest more spies in a day than a vet
eran army corps will in a week.
Their special victims are, of course.
military attaches and war correspond
ents, whose duties take them contin-
ually up and down the position. The
new troops not having yet learned the
divinity that doth hedge a military
agent or the lesser providence that
guards a war correspondent, invari-
ably become alarmed at the strange
garb of these gentlemen and arrest
them at sight and bear them in tri-
umph to headquarters in the firm con-
viction that they have caught Marshal
Oyama in disguise. A new division
fresh from Europe was suddenly put
in position near the Shaho and the
crafty Capt. Judson laid his plans. He
knew that Maj. McComb had forgot
ten his passes and identification pa
pers the last time he had left Mukden
for his quarters in position at Suji-
atun. So the captain, finding the new
troops were encamped between ErdigO
hill and Sujiatun, sent a message to
the major to come and see him at
once.
Taken As n Japanese Spy.
In an hour or two he mounted his
horse and rode slowly toward Sujia-
tun The thing worked out as he had
Half way to Sujiatun he
came TO a troop of cavalry. closely
guarding the major, who was riding in
the center and was shorn of his sword
The captain modestly says he won't
repeat all the major said, as he knows
the major has friends in America.
But" he says. excluding a large
part of what the major said as irrev
Giant and conflicting, l will say that
he finally said:
Don't speak to me, JudsOn; don't
come near me; don't know me; don't
even guess who l am. l am a Japa-
nese spy. that's what l am. I've been
taken only after a thrilling capture.
I'm Togo, Kuroki, Oku and all the rest
of 'em all in a bunch. I'm a spy, but
I've eaten up the fatal documents and
swallowed them. Oh, if | could talk
Russian for about two minutes. Tell
them who | am, Judson. You've got
your papers. | don't want to be TAX
en- back to the general. I'll never hear
the end of it. "
Didn't Relish the Joke.
Capt. Judson showed his own papers
and was treated with the greatest de
by the soldiers. but when the
major appealed to him his face grew
stern and hard.
I'm sorry. major, he said. How
long have you been engaged in this
disgracefuI work? A spy! A Japa-
nese spy! Tut. tut. tut, major, this
is horrible. Why didn't you think of
your friends. why didn't you think of
me?"
Capt. Judson," said the major in
icy tones, "you should be comic edi-
tor. Permit me to wish you good day, |
sir. while proceed with my escort"
With that he rode away conclud-
ed the captain, and do you know !
believe he was a little vexed with me. |
| don't understand it at all
RICHARD H. LITTLE.