The Spokane press. [volume] (Spokane, Wash.) 1902-1939, 1908-10-12


sued an order that Stewart be Ia
ken off the army active list. That
ends the old veterans fight and
robs him of promotion earned by
40 years service.
Colonel Stewart has been fight
ing man for AZ years. When Custer
avs raiding the Indians along the
Clearwater. in Idaho, Stewart, with
SO men, held off some 200 redskins
and did not finch.
He was born in Rhode Island in
June. 1S49, was appointed a second
lieutenant in the Fourth artillery
in '66, when he was but 17R years
old. He was too young to get into
the service before. but he got in
as soon as they let him.
Three years a second lieutenant
90 years first lieutenant, II years
a captain. That was his service
to 1900. When they increased the
army he got his majority. He was
made a lieutenant colonel in '02,
a colonel in the artillery corps a
year later, and for more than seven
years has worn the eargle in his
shoulder trap. All his life he saw
before him the star-the silver
star in the blue field-denoting the
rank of the brigadier general. He
is destined to quit the service with
out it, however, for the cabal has
already sentenced him to retire
ment, although he will not reach
the age limit for five years.
For AZ years Stewart has been
a duty soldier. Men who have
served know just what that means
"a soldier who devoted his life to
luty with troops rather than to soft
details, extra leaves of absence,
diplomatic service abroad as mill
iary attache, mollycoddling around
secretaries of war or dancing at
tendance at the presidents social
functions.
In all that time his service rec
ord is clear. He was never charged
with an offense, never accused of
violation of the army regulations,
never in trouble with his superiors.
It is only of late years, since pro
notion by emotion has come into
use, that they found fault with
him.
Its his unfortunate tempera-
ment" that is objected to. Just as
though his temperament had any
thing to do with the manner in
which another fellow performs his
auty. But that's what hurt. Colonel
Stewart saw to it that his officers
performed the duties enjoined upon
lhem-right down to the very let
ter-the way he had been taught
10 do it himself. Late hours and
post hops never yet went with a
strict performance of garrison
duty-and the old man knew no
excuses.
So the ladies got their oar in.
What an outrage to make their
husbands hustle into clothes at an
unseemly hour in the morning just
to supervise their battery roll
calls! Didn't the top sergeant do
quite as well? And this thing of
making them sign the book when
they left the post, and again when
they returned-why, it was per-
fectly absurd don't you know, just
as if they We're subject to dis
cipline, like the enlisted men. How
ridiculous!
And the post ambulances-why,
the ladies have used them for
pleasure riding since the year u
and nobody cared The regulations
forbid? Well, let EN-. The regu-
lations are made for some of the
people, but not for all of them.
And they're superannuated, any
way. None but an old fogy would
enforce them.
What? No soldiers for house
servants? Goodness gracious, Why.
we've used the soldiers for nurse
maids, and kitchen help, and house.
men, since we've been in the army
and we were born in the army
belong to IT, OF course, we know
the stupid regulations about EN-
ploying civilian help, but you're not
going to destroy all the customs
of the service just because you
read it in the book?
And so on, without end The
old duty soldier saw his duty just
as the regulations provided. He
might have been bit more elastic
but he was right, every time If
he was wrong, how easy it would
have been to check him with the
third article of war, which reads:
Supporters are forbidden to in
jure those under their authority by
tyrannical or capricious conduct
No, they hadn't thing on him
Nothing in the least But they
watched the promotion of a man
Colonel Stewards junior from '6e
IN 1Quk uhn had utinnnd ,,rJc. 81, =