Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1911-05-11
A Deserter
By EDWARD B. TAPPAN
Copyright by American Press Asso-
citation, 1911.

One morning in 1868. when the Con
federate and Federal forces were fight
| ing in Virginia, rawboned man in
| butterlut entered the camp of req.
| ment of Tenncsseeans and said to an
| officer he met
Cap. when you uns goin' to fight
the yankeeSt"
The officer was passing on when the
man IN butternut called TO him.
SAY, cap. | want to enlist"
who are you, and where do you
| come from;" asked the officer, molli-
fed at the prospect OF a recruit.
I'm Ben Riggs, and | hail from
Tennessee"
Tennessee This regiment is from
Tennessee"
WAL, thar's whar | hail from Some
| Union men driv' me out. come over the
mountings TO to jine this yere army"
Riggs was enlisted and turned over
| 10 drilimaster. After three days
hard drilling the sergeant went to the
captain and reported that 1t was sim
ply impossible TO teach the Tennessee
an the manual of arms. When he had
| Taught him movement the recruit
would forget 1t while he was teaching
| second one. He seemed to be anxious
| TO become soldier, but had no ca
| pacity to learn anything. The sergeant
was told to do the best he could with
| him and turn him into the ranks for
| service
| The first night Riggs was sent out on
| picket he fired his gun and came run
ming in full tilt, alarming the whole
| picket line. Surprising him to be
coward as well as stupid, ut the next,
brush he was put in the front rank.
but he stood up wei, proving conclu-
sively that he was simply stupid.
Riggs stupidity was of the kind to
! cause trouble. He went one day TO the
| brigade commander and asked him If
! he had any tobacco. The general sent
him with a note TO his captain, order
| ing the officer in future to keep this
fool away from these headquarters
This mortified the captain. and he put
Riggs in the guardhouse The colonel,
hearing Of the episode. directed the
captain to release Riggs since there
could be no crmnality attached to
| the act of "blamed fool"
After this the captain spent most of
his time thinking how he could get rid
! of Riggs He tried surTeptitously TO
have him transfer ed to another com
pany. but the plot was discovered and
! failed No other company would have
him. Then one day Riggs met the di-
vision commander and told him he
| thought he would like a position on his
staff. He was sent back with a repri-
mand for his captain for not better
instructing his men in the proper rela.
| ton of soldier 10 his commander
The captain now vowed he would
get rid of Riggs if he had 80 shoot
! him Whenever there was . Gght he
put Riggs right in the middle of it,
but somehow the stupid fellow es
capped, while the best men were being
shot down. After weeks exposure
of Riggs the lighting suddenly ceased
Then no sooner had Riggs got him
self furnished up than there was to
be a grand review, at which he placed
his captain again in trouble. Passing
the reviewing officer, he swung his
gun in the air and sang out
| Three cheers for General CT
Riggs captain was desperate. He
formed a malicious resolve He would
| put the fool In the position Of de
serter and get him shot He told Riggs
one morning that the Yankees were
Offering bounties as high as a thousand
dollars to any one who would enlist
1t might be a good move for Riggs to
desert. go over to the Yankees, enlist
and bring back the bounty
by jung" exclaimed the Ounce that
'ud be a good idee | could set the
| hull company up with that"
The captain offered to connive at his
desertion He took Riggs out on the
picket line and told him to run for it,
The captain had arranged that the de-
serter must pass through a narrow de-
| file between two low hills, at the far
| Their end Of which were posted two
men who had been instructed to arrest
Riggs and bring him back to camp.
| His trial and execution would speedily
| follow
Riggs riaugulated his long legs so
rapidly that when ne nv, the men who
were to arrest him somehow ne couldn't
stop They attempted go head him of.
hut be had got by rson before they
reached his path Thav fired at him.
vhereupon he turned, shot one with
his musket and the other with his re.
volvcr and sred on II he was suud
he wns certainly quick but quick for
the first time in his life
JtWcIl" said his captain, I'm rid Of
him though ] fear he's really fool
enough 20 come back However. If he
does he'll be shot for desertion."
But Riggs never returned On reach
ing the Federal pickcts De asked TO be
taken at once TO the headquarters of n
certain general
"Hello, Baker," exclaimed the gen
eral "You back! thought you'd
got yourself hanged bv thiz time
Hope you've got a Tot 81 information
~ have, general enlisted I'm the
rebel army as a Tennessee ean-t dfdn+ !
say from east Tennessee proved /