Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1912-01-12

none OF your SURGEONS VINO are I'D in matters
of sentiment could probe and get out the bullet,
or perhaps I'd better SOW arrow for that's the
kind of ammunition the little chap who shot Jim
uses. You see Jim nigh onto fifty when he
got his sights fixed and held on to this pretty
creature with blonde hair, blue eyes and pink
cheeks. It's always the way with the old fellows
when they get stuck on something young 1t goes
hard with them. You see the girl has heard how
it was that Jim had always been steady had
never seen the inside of the milf except as a
member of the guard. and, moreover how he had
$4,000 drawing 4 per cent with the paymaster
and was sure of going out first sergeant in
five years with forty plunks month.
Jim always went into a fight to win, and he
got onto the track of that girl and hung to it
just as he did to the Kids trail down in the
Apache country when l Troop chasing thet
red devil through the Arizona hell The girl led
Jim on for a while coquettsh like, just to make
sure of him, l guess / don't suppose she ever
cared rap for him.
well finally we all thought that Jim had
corraled her all right. 1t was given out that the
Twelfth's chaplain going to have job tying
the two up. None of the boys congratulated Jim
too hearty, because most of them had sized the
affair up right and wouldn't have 1t that the girl
was good enough for Jim Benson. She might
be all right for rookie. but not for an old one
who had seen more campaigns than the girl had
years. I ought to have told you before that this
particular petticoat was visiting at the post She
came from down Iowa way somewhere.
"One night she gave 1t out that she was going
home and that Jim must go down there for the
splicing. She cleared out, and In a few days
after the old fellow gets furlough and clears
out, too, following the trail as we heard after,
way down to Iowa Now, you must just get
hold of this fact Jim kind of a pious chap,
but he loved the flag better than any Bible that
was ever printed, but for a short time that girl
above the flag, Jim was just crazy for her.
The story is that she wouldn't come back and
wouldn't marry him unless he quit the army then
and there Jim tried to quit through the regular
red tape channels but they wouldn't have it down
in Washington.
"Jim Benson, veteran, medal of honor man,
fighter in a hundred fights lover of his flag and
country, and good soldier ever quar-
termasters shoes, deserted, and deserted for a
petticoat. I forgot to say that Jim got his wad
of money from the paymaster before his leave
was up
There was another desertion inside of a month
after Jim quit the colors. This time a woman
did the deserving, though a fellow helped her to
do it. and along with the woman and the fellow
went Jim's money.
"Jim's heart was clean broke. He got In com.
munication with his old captain somehow, and
he tried to work the thing through the depart
ment for Jim, but thered been a heap of deser-
tons about that time, and despite Jim's medal
and his twenty-five years with nary blind nor
secretary of said that if Jim was caught
he must take his medicine.
Tt was rumored around old Fort Johnson that
Jim had been seen on the edge of the woods
looking at the old place and seeming kind Of wild
like. One night one of the old quartermaster
shacks got on fire. 1t was just before target
practice season and the building had a dozen big
boxes of ammunition in it. There was pretty
stiff wind blowing and # looked If the bar
racks and lot of other things would go If that
stuff had exploded the other buildings would
have gone sure. The fire was fairly eating around
those boxes and the fellows fought shy Of II
"AI at once while the crowd was bearing
back somebody Jumped clean through the line
and plump in+o the fire. He grabbed box and
threw it out clear of the blaze and then another
and another, though the flames were burning his
clothes and going up wreathlike about his head.
When he had done the business clean and
good the Jumped out Of the flames and ran
to the woods. Well I guess you know who it
was It was Jim Benson. We found him dead
the next day in the thcket but the curious part
of the mater was that Jim's body was wrapped
in an old garrison flag that had been pinned
about him by the last effort of those poor burned
hands Jim Thought, you see. that deserter
though he was. he did this that they might
bury him with the flag.
did they do #? Yes. and gave him the regu
Iatiou three ROUNDS over the grave and the hes
prayer that the old chaplain knew how to pray