The National tribune., 1906-05-17


of his upset me. To think that this In
spector should find the Colonels tent
apparently a general convenience for
the raw recruits was not only humili
ating, but very nearly infuriating, and
L mentally marked the obtrusive Sam
for early discipline. / presumed that
he would Immediately withdraw on ac
count of lack of room, if for no other
reason; and so, with fine diplomacy,
affected to be very busy taking off my
things. chatting feverishly the while
with the Inspector, and hoping he would
suppose it was my clerk so busily en-
gagged.
But 1 had not yet learned to fore
cast Sans probabilities correctly, and
he didn't bulge.
Seeing that exposure was inevitable,
tapped him on the shoulder. and
asked him what he was doing there.
I'm awritin'," he answered pleasantly,
looking around, but making no effort
to move.
Go out." 1 said, pointing the way
for him.
There's room here if you want to-
write he argued, as he hitched along
and began to concentrate his traps.
will you get out?"
Capt Kemper said l could write
here he insisted. and still with no at
tempt at removal.
will you get out of here before
hurt you?" 1 asked with such emphasis
that slowly and sadly he picked up his
things, walked to the door of the tent,
turned, and with one hand grasping the
center-pole began:
Capt Kemper''-but 1 started for
him and he fed.
For some time after this l lost sight
of him, but it was soon apparent that
We had a character among us. He
passed through his evolution" from a
green recruit into a soldier and in
this old familiar and somewhat painful
process his peculiarities assumed all the
progressive importance that he did
himself. 1t began to be known that
he was constitutionally opposed to all
army rules and regulations inconsistent
with his comfort and ideas of personal
liberty; and his fame as a ''pirooter''-
which meant in his vernacular "a feller
that could forage in IL languages and
nary one of 'em dead"-commence tt
spread abroad throughout the land.
He undoubtedly could, and most cheer
fully would, have robbed those old
masters, 'Sherman's bummers," of the
very horses they sat upon; and his
mania for stealing was only checked
by articles too big, or hot or wet to
carry. Anything and everything was
his, from an eight-day clock to a Pres
byterian pulpit.
of course, such magnificent talent
could not long be wasted in the obscur-
ity of vague and general effort and so
he was soon detailed to steal in more
systematic and official manner for his
company officers mess. 1t is almost
needless to state that they forthwith
lived like fighting cocks, while compar-
ative desolation overspread the balance
of the camp. Here he developed the
important fact in his composition that
it was a solemn point of honor with
him never to steal from those with
whom he was engaged, while against
all the rest of the world the black flag
of 'pirooting" was up.
1t follows naturally that in a little
while, in pure self-defense, 1 detailed
him as 'Pirooter-in-Chief' of regi-
mental headquarters mess, and then
began a struggle for supremacy be-
tween Sam and his Colonel, lasting
with varying results during the re-
mainder of the war, sometimes one
ahead, and sometimes the other leading
by q neck.
A few of many incidents may serve
to illustrate his character:
Finding him on guard duty one day
(extra duty, of course), 1 stopped and
asked him what were his instructions
Hating, facing, and saluting, he grave
ly Informed me they were to let no one
cross his beat but "niggers, hogs, and
officers
I looked him long and searchingly
in the face, but he returned the gaze
with such innocent composure that I
walked on and said no more. And real
ly, as I thought 1t over, he was not so
far wrong after all. Our colored hew-
ers of wood and drawers of water were
necessarily under less restriction than
our soldiers, and were permitted by the
nature of their duties to cross camp
lines wherever most convenient +
never heard of sentinel who wouldn't
let hog cross his line, at least into
camp. and, of course, officers were priv
ileged, as he said. 1t was his manner
of expressing it, and the invidious order
of classification that startled me at
first
once while writing in my tent, big,
muscular soldier came up and asked:
oh, Colonel, If a man called You So
and-so, what would you do?"
1 was quite busy, and merely raised
my head to answer briefly:
I'D knock him down." and contin-
ued my writing. 1t wasn't long before
Sam came to me, and a most woeful-
looking object he was. Battered, bruised
and bloody, muddy and scratched, and
with every appearance of having passed
i through a great crisis too suddenly. he
blubbered out his bitter complaint of
the man who had SO effectually
thrashed him; but more bitter and
grievous was his censure of me for hay
ing given him-as the fellow swore TO
Sam-permission to do It.
II kin stand the lickin', Colonel" he
sobbed, but to think you'd put it up on
me SO is what breaks my hearth
Forgetting the brief but pointed con-
sultation of a few moments before. r
Indignantly denied the charge: but ex
plantations followed, and Sam became
in time reconciled, not only to the
Colonel, but to the whipping also.
He had figured up the exact number
OF days he had to serve, and early every
morning would mount some stump or
box and yell out to the whole camp
the record:
only 427 days more to serve," Or
Whatever the number happened to he
AT one time, when we. were under a
rather severe musketry fire Sam was
heard 10 whine out most piteouslv.
"Oh, Lord, don't 1 wish 1 was in my
fathers old barn,"
Why he should wish to be in that
pecuhar place just then aroused curl
oslty, and some one asked him "Why?"
10 see how blamed quick I'd get
| into the housei" he chuckled
Some old copies of a comic paner
called the Budget OF Fun, were much
read IN camp in those days. and 1 quiet
ly enjoyed Sans quaint use of its name
as we marched along one afternoon.
AS we passed a wagon train he sang
I n -