Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1908-02-14
THE END
OF 1T ALL.

Jim dandy of recruit. He's a swell"
HE isn't the sort we want"
But he says he's bound to enlist
either in the army or navy"
Bring him in"
The captain had seen Thomas Dal-
tons kind before. 1t always began
with false name-the first name that
came into their heads-and it almost
always ended in desertion or tragedy
He sized the young man up as he
stood at the desk and he made mental
memoranda as follows:
Hasn't got through college yet. Got
into some scrape. Old man has given
him dressing down. Young fellow is
proud and won't stand it. Hasn't the
money to go abroad or take a tour out
west and is going to enlist in spite of
the governor Old man will buy him
out of the service in six months The
mothers tears will make him do it.
He's bound to take the army or navy.
Six months of discipline will take
some of the frolic out OF him, and I'll
give him show to settle down"
The usual questions We're asked and
answered. the young man was sent to
the surgeon. and before sundown he
belonged to Uncle Sam. The sergeant.
being now his superior officer, started
out to patrOniEe the fresh fish
1t didn't work. Ee wanted to talk
confidentially. The recruit was mum.
Nothing further was learned about
him. and after three or four days he.
was sent off to Jefferson Barracks tc
go west to Fort Thomas They want
ed recruits out there. The Sioux were
threatening to go on the warpath again.
There are men among army officers
who should never have been commits
stoned. Their temperaments unfit them
to preserve discipline and rule as they
should. Such a man was Captain Cole
man of Company G. He was quick
tempered. irascihle. peevish and Il mar
tinet. and of the ten captains in the
regiment he WAS OftencSt il trouble
with his men and was obliged to re-
port the most desertions. James Dal-
within two days and for no reason that
he or his comrades could argue out the
captain was down on him and showed
it in various ways 1t wasn't two
weeks before he was in the guard
house for some dereliction that would
have been passed over in another. The
colonel was a fatherly man, and in his
desire to be fatherly toward the young
recruit he made matters worse.
Dalton asked for no ones sympathy.
He gave no one his confidence. He
tried his best to obey all regulations
and fit himself for a soldier, He would
have had praise from the right sort
of officer Indeed. he did have it in Il
way from the lieutenants of the com
pany, but there was nothing but
growing and fault finding from the
captain. His conduct almost created n
scandal at the post. One day on COM
pany drill he was singled out and
needlessly rebuked and sneeringly crit
icised and ordered off to the guard
house under arrest. There was a NUT
llLS up anu NiOhh llG ldhhS, Dul llllo
only provoked Captain Coleman to add
other charges That night in the
guardhouse gray haired corporal said
to Dalton through the Stats of the
door:
What it's about dunno, but the
captain isn't giving you square
deal"
And it will grow worse instead of
better" replied the prisoner
you can bank on that. He's hound
ed a dozen men out of the company
since | got these stripes. It'll be court
martial and five years for you if he
can bring it about"
"And what shall do?"
1--WE got to go out to post No. 5.
shall be gone fifteen minutes. The
heavy iron poker has got in with you
somehow. If | was inside there, | be-
lieve could pry off these Stats with
it."
"ThanH-you."
When the sergeant returned, Dalton
was gone; also one OF tie ntlskets and
belt of fifty cartridges. Over on oil
GERS row private soldier with mus
ket in his hands stood for three or four
minutes looking up at certain win
dow as if thinking to send a bullet
into the opening. Then he lowered the
musket and turned away and crept
from the fort between posts Nos. and
s. 1t was a summer evening. with the
crlckets singing, and the sentinels
drowsed as they walked. Daylight
brought excitement and a hustle. a
member of Company G had deserted.
Three mules had been run off from the
corral. Indian signal smoke had been
seen at daylight. and by sunup set
tiers came pouring In with the news
thnt Rnl Phil Lnl hr.nl.nn lnncn md