The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1906-08-10
4 Chance For Ills Lie

fcopyrfeht, 1905. BY Homer spraguel
In the three gun battery at Fort Eut
yer was a horse named Eureka.
Eureka had been with the battery for
over two years and had made two sue.
eessfuI indian campaigns when a trRg
tdyecame nto his life. One of his hind
legs began to swen. and In three or
four days he was disabled fro duty.
The veterinary took him In hand ut
once, but made nc progress. The limb
swelied to three times its normal size.
aud no remedy was found 70 be Of
avail. More than a dozen v-cterinarteS,
colder and ctCtzen, bud a look at tie
aorse before a dnal verdict was pro
bounced, and all knew what the end
would be, and MI pItied him. At the
end OF three months the leg was no
better, and the fat went forth TINT he
was to be shot.
Corporal Brixton and guard WIN
take the horse out ON b prairie and
shoot him." read the order. and the
colonel added verbally, and do 1t as
decently ms you would shoot a man"
When Eureka vas ready to be led
forth to execution 300 men insisted on
gathering TO bid him goodby. He was
everybOdy's horse Il admire and praise
but 1t was only the battery men who
bad the privilege of rubbing his nrched
neck IND smoothing his velvet nose
and telling him that he should never be
forgotten, though replaced Strangely
enough, the aIlment had moi Affected
the horses general health. HIS eye
was just as bright and his spirits just
as high as when able to move With the
Bwiftness Of an antelope. He-rubbed
his muzzle against the checks OF the
men and whimpered for sugar, n
when he went limpIng away caps cana
Of and men felt a lump gathering In
their throats.
The cortege wound over the hill a
quarter of a mile away and then de-
scended Into the valley, and the pace
was hat of a funeral procession. When
1t was out of sight of the fort Private
Daily asked of Corporal Brixton:
Corp, arc ye a man or a scoundrel?"
I'm q man, I'd have ye know, and
rye proved it fifty times over" was
the answer.
"And have We got a heart in yer
bosom2"
"As big as a beer keg."
And would re murder q helpless
"Cuss me II I would! I know what
you IRE driving at and you leave 1t to
me-"
Half a mile across the valley they
came to the fringe Of bushes and en
tered them. Eureka bad but the slight
est use OF his leg. but he hobbled on
after a fashion and made no complaint
On the contrary, he snorted and sought
to dance around as in the days OF his
strength. By and by a CLASSY glade
was reached. Here was food and wa.
ter for a hundred horses, and the COZ
poral called a halt.
DAILY and Henderson, listen to me"
he said. 1.-THE orders are to shoot Eu-
reka. Iwon't."
Bully for you, old mnnP' they shout
sd.
at shall have to report him dead, but
It viii be a lie, and If either of o
ever betray me I'll have n bullet ready
Tor you in the first skirmish TINT cakes
place. II I vas cold blooded enough to
Shoot down a horse like this I'd want
Uncle Sam to kick me out OF Ii army
and me own mother to go back on me.
Make ready now-aIm-fre"
The carbine shot rang out. The
noise did not startle the horse in the
least, but it might have been heard
at the fort by any n listening. The
men had aimed above the horse, n
their bullets went singing through the
treetops.
els he fnished?" asked h corporal
as he turned his back on the feeding
horse.
"He is, sir" answered Daily.
"Then heaven rest his soul for a good
horse, and forward march,"
Tor -four or five days thereafter the
men of the entire garrison looked
askance at the three men and drew
away from them. They had acted
under orders, but they a shot down
Eureka. They knew what allied their
comrades, but they kept their W
counsel. The report Of the corporal
was accepted without question, and
the incident passed into history.
Hnd Eureka been well In limb he
would have made his way back to b
fort before dark. AS 1t was, he fed
and drank and slept. They had given
him his discharge from the service
had made an outlaw Of him, and he
had no further right on the lines or in
the stables. He did not move ont Of
the glade that day or night. About
midnight a big timber wolf came out
Of the foothills and circled around him
and glared and growlod, ana the horse
rose up with painful effort M made
ready to defend himself with teeth and
hoof. The wolf did not attack, how
ever, and when daylight came the Grip
pie hobbled up the valley In search OF
$4,000 FL FNhaA w0a IN