The Norfolk weekly news-journal., 1908-01-17
TOO MUCH HELL IN ARMY
TOO MUCH HORSE AND TOO MUCH
OF SEVERAL OTHER THINGS.
DoLEFuL PLANT OF oEsERTER


Held In the Norfolk City Jail
Thought BY Officers to be a Little
on In His Head.
Too much hell In the army; too
d---n much horse. might have
starred In the infantry but never
swore to ride bareback horse"-thls
was the doleful plant OF r. II. Meac.
ham, deserter from Troop X, Eighth
calvary, at Fort Robinson, held In the
Norfolk city jail.
Il enlisted to fight for my country.
| was kicked by corporals and sworn
at by sargeants and made to ride
horses bareback. The meanness of the
army Is surprising belief. am q
young man of good family In Terra
Haute, Ind, twenty-one years of age.
love the army-see me Willing away
the hours In this narrow Jail drilling
with broomstick. Port armsl'
Right shoulder, arms!' But do not love
to be treated like a dog and | do not
love to fall off of horses"
Meacham has been thirty days in the
the army. He enlisted at st. Louis and
was one of the boys in blue who pass-
ca through Norfolk recently over the
Northwestern. He came to Norfolk.
clad In an army overcoat and a blue
uniform. He was arrested by Officer
Livingston and placed in the city jail.
Chief Flynn wired the officers at Fort
Robinson, who wired that $50 reward
would be paid on the mans conviction.
Meacham puzzled the officers. He
Is a peculiar case. "a little twisted"
remarked the chief, Maybe too much
army hazing," Meacham spent Mon
day in the city Jail going through the
manual of arms. He Is slender.
nervous youth.
Il should not be in JAIL" said Mea-
cham, "for | am not q desterter. /
was bound for Washington, d. c., to
lay my troubles before Roosevelt and
the rest | left the army Thursday.
| went to Crawford. A passenger came
along and | got to Chadron. Then
made my way to Norfolk. | was going
to st. Louis, then to Terra Haute.
where | would get money enough to
get to Washington.
Il went back to that fort four times
before / left. Each time said that IL
l heard no horse l would stay, but 1t
was horse, horse, horse. / love my
country, but l joined an army not a
circus. We had to ride bareback, side
ways and standing up. Men fell off. |
They laughed as they fell but they
eulped and lay still afterwards. fell
and my horse came and licked my
face.
The life in the cavalry is a dogs |
life. The officers aren't so bad but
the non-coms are terrible. If man
doesn't drink, treat and blow his |
money, he gets hard life.
"A brother of mine enlisted too, but
luckey dog, he got the infantry. I |
would rather walk, walk, walk and
tramp, tramp, tramp, than ride bare
back horse, which isn't riding at all
but hell.
II love the army. See my uniform,
If | was desterter | would have got
rid of my outfit but am still in the
oiuC anu lhC ploWuJ dlSO Ill
Jail, which is no place for an innocent
man. l can get good recommendations
in Terra Haute.
so here l am with a broom stick
Right shoulder, arms!' Port armsr
Order arms!' Present arms!"
If there's anything in this lads
story tis not strange that its hard
to fill the army" said man who heard
the story.
Tuesday morning Chief Flynn left
for Omaha with his soldier prisoner,
taking the young deserter to Fort
Crook in response to directions from
the army authorities.
Chief Flynn did not expect to re-
turn direct to Norfolk from Omaha but
intended to go by way of Lincoln at
tending the big dinner in Bryan's
honor Wednesday night.