Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1906-03-03
SOLDIERS STORIES.
ENTERTAINING "REMINISCENCES
OF THE WAR.
Graphic Account of Stirring Scenes
Witnessed ON the Battlefield and in
Csmp-Veterans of the Rebellion Re
cite Experiences of Thrilling Nature.


cite Experiences of Thrilling Nature.
Nothing seems TO operate 10 reduce
the number of lovers of the horse. He
may not be In as common use as he
was before they introduced. multiplied
over and over again and brought elec-
trio railroads TO their very high rate
or perfection, and since the coming of
the automobile and It's widespread pop
ularity among those who possess them,
and their marvellous increase In mum.
Der, but he still holds his place. and Il
warm one II Is, too, In the affections
of his admirers But this is not TO be
an essay on the horse and his lovers
The object is to present interesting sto.
ries about horses.
In 1900, when President Mckinley
selected Gen, Adna r. Chaffee, then Il
colonel OF regulars and volunteer
brigadler, now lieutenant general, TO
join the powers In the expedition 20
Pek,a for the purpose of resculng the
imprisoned and endangered foreign cf-
ticials on duty there when the Boxer
troubles broke out, he asked the gen
eral what regiment he would like to
have accompany him. He promptly re
piled that he would prefer his old regl-
ment, the Sixth cavalry, which, when a
boy Of is, he Joined MS a private, and
remained with ii for thirty years or
more. In the shortest possible length
of time that regiment with its full
equipment and its carefully selected
and finely cared for horses was assem-
bled at San Francisco. Two large
transports had been fitted up to take
the horses to China, while Gen, Chaffee
and the regiment, then commanded by
! Lieut-Col. Theodore j. Whit now brig
| adler general and commander of the
! department OF the Missouri. embarked
on the transport Grant Horses and
men parted at the Preside the last
week in June of that year, and did not
meet again until the first week in Au-
| gust, ut Taku. China. Indeed all but
two troops OF the regiment had gone
TO Tien Tsin before the h1rses were
! landed.
No one, who had never before wit.
messed such scenes. will forget what
happened ms those horses that for a
standing still, unsteadily walked from
the point of landing to where the two
troops of men were stationed. Thos,
who know what close friends the gooC
cavalryman and his horse are can wei
understand that these Yankee troopers
who had parted from their four footed
friends six weeks before. scrutinlzet
each horse as It passed along in from
OF them. On the other hand, the horse
looked as earnestly at the soldiers a
there was Hello, Charlie, old boy
A quick response with a whinny. anC
soldier and horse met the former,
head and the latter's shoulder with {
pair OF soldier arms about the animal :,
neck. could not say that there wer,
tears I'm the eyes OF the horse. but
can say that there were tears in the
eyes OF the American cavalryman
Probably the soldier boy was thinking
OF the far-away home country ana his
dear ones when his arms twiued about
the neck OF this good American friend
When the horses that belonged to the
two troops came along there was appa
rently as Joyous a reunion as soldiers
] Az Al
talked to as though they were long ab
sent friends. just returned. aud ! guess
every horse belonging Ia the two troops
was given n genuine soldier hug Sol
dIers aud horses looked their happi
ness at the glad meeting.
Societies for the prevention OF cru
city to animals need waste no sympa
thy on cavalry horses, for the average
cavalryman thinks OF bis horse before
he thinks Of himself and Is as gentle
with him as II he were brother In.
stead Of his horse.
recently met my former comrade
OF the old days, Capt Lloyd G. Harris,
a private in 81 and II captain In '65.
| now prominent NJ. Louis business
man. He told me story which he
had been called upon to repeat several
times by his little girl II was about
n horse In the First New Hampshire
battery. Just before the campaign
which ended with the second battle Of
Bull Run and the retreat 10 Washing
ton began, an order was issued TO con
denim such OF the horses as were dis
| abled or too old To do full duty In the
coming contests The battery had one
very old horse that WAS great fay
! orlte with all OF the men. A board
decided that old Billy'-th that was his
name-- should be condemned and left
when the brigade moved The night
before the troops were TO move. every
man in the battery patted odd BIily's"
| neck talked to him and babe him a