The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1907-12-11
ARMY RIDING TEST,


PresC. sd by President.
g. >'ioWlMG T..
Only trips Were
Fai;5 sliding Breeehes.
Work For the Ambutance-A He.
weight Causes Some Delay.
Whoever told President Roosevelt
that army field officers were too big.
unwieldy and inexperienced to ride
horseback for any reasonable distance
let his fancy run away with his. In
the recent craftsmanship tests ordered
by the president the officers showed
themselves to be quite at home In the
saddle and went the route without any
mishaps to speak Of. In the first test
twcnty-nine army officers, mostly fat
ones, who have been doing desk work
in the war department for years. par
ticipated. They started from Fort
Myer one afternoon ut 2 p. m.. and two
and a half hours later the party was
back at the fort, having %traversed
something over fifteen miles of good
and bad Virginia roads.
Early that morning n Of the old
coloncls who had been a little timor-
GUS as to the outcome In his case look
ed out of his window at the wild swirl
Of rain driving over Washington anl
thought with a comfortable sensation
that the test would have to be post
poned. He turned back to bed for an
other nap.b but was instantly routed out
by this terrifying suggestion:
IF Roosevelt hears that the TIL
was called off on account Of rain he
will get out of the canebrnkeS and be
here to take us out himself"
1t was a beautiful afternoon for Il
drive, and the road was in fairly good
condition despite the heavy rain Of
the night. Just beyond Ballston the
first rest call sounded, and everybody
~dismounted in a field beside the road.
The column had been followed by four
troopers with led horses and by a big
automobile ambulance from the Wash
ington barracks hospital. The ambu-
lance furnished a lot of fun to the
crowd during this rest period.
The oldest man in the party and one
Of the wiriest was Colonel George
Ruhlen Of the quartermaster's depart
ment, who takes perhaps 100 pounds
to carry around his sixty years with
and is the hottest rival Of Colonel Nc
Cain for the thin championship. Nc
Cain called solicitously to Ruhlen:
what you going to do with that
wagon?'
Put you in It," replied Ruhlen as
promptly.
While the men rested the officers
Keep away from those medical
stores!' you needn't be shying up to
that ambulance!" and others Of simila,
vein. The second round was tho rca
test, as by that time sOlne of the mcE
were beginning to feel the effects OF
the jolts, and it was no easy matter t.
reach the stirrup when it came time tc
remount. However, all negotiated it
and Major Galbraith. inspector general
Al ~ W 49, tS III ~
nothing to score against any Of them
On the last round the pace got too
hot for the ambulance horses, and os
the wagon dropped back N on,
shouted. "Nobody knocked out but tn
sponge holder"
During the journey the only casual
ties We're two pairs of split ridin;
breechcs and the detection Of tw'
newspaper men. one Of whom gav'
up the job right after the start. ant
the other had to quit when his hOrs
was kicked by a restless army animal.
The second test, made on the follow
ing day. was covered In good time n
without a mishap. Some little della,
was OccasiOned at the outset of til
jaunt by difficulty in finding an ade
quate mount for one Of the field Off
GERS. who has a professional recor
second to none in his branch of til
service. He was said to weigh g.
n pounds, and his appearance certainl
" gave corroborative evidence to that as
sertion. The first horse mounted b.
him gave way under the heavy bul
, den, literally fell to his knees an
: seemed unable to rise. Two Othe
4 horses We're produced, but each in tur
n was declared to be unsuitable. TIL
n fourth horse. however, vas a hi
4 strong fellow. who looked as If h
could carry a ton. and he was chosen
Throughout this testing Of the mount
the big field officer was in the best {
humor and never showed signs Of irr
tation V the jokes made at his e,
!, pense. He made the ride In excelle1
" shape.