Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1912-04-03

that the marines will believe anything
and there is also something of a sheer
in the saying This remark of re
proach'' is not nearly one, for the sail
ors who originated it only meant to
intimate that the marines did not
know anything about sailing ship.
No sailor has ever contended that the
marine is not good fighter and "all
for the colors''
The American marines had the first
fight with the SpaniaIds in Cuba.
They were sent into China at the time
that the embassies were beleaguered
in 1900 and at the Battle of Tientsin
the marines lost heavily. They have
been landed in Mexico before this and
in several Of the South American
countries and always have they done
good service. Years ago over in
fought and fought we'll. The record
of the marines is a long one and an
honorable one.
General George F. Elliott of the ma
rine corps years ago with 81 marines
and 20 sailors made hurry-up march
order to protect the American consul
late and the missionaries at that place
during the war between China and Ja-
pan. At that time Elliott was a lieu
tenant attached to the u. S. S. Balti-
more. News came to the ship that
the Koreans were raising the cry
Korea for the Koreans" and were
about to massacre all the foreigners
at the Korean capital. Admiral Nc
Nair ordered Elliott and his little COM
mand to take up a double time"
across country to save the mission
aries.
A Hazardous Trip.
1t is probable that few military bod.
les were ever asked to engage in such
trip as that turned out to be. 1t was
so hot that the marines turned the
tables and told the sailors that their
belt buckles melted in the sun. Near
ly the whole line of the march was
through submerged rice fields, the
men being up to their knees il water
half the time, with their footsteps
cIogged by the plant roots and stems.
Under these conditions they made
pace at the rate of five miles an hour.
and they reached their destination in
time to perform the service for which
the call for the march had been is
sued.
General Elliott has seen service in
all sorts of climatic conditions. He
was assigned to the Alliance for her
cruise to the Arctic years ago. and on
the voyage the ships crew reached a
northern point of so degrees and 10
minutes, the record up to that time.
1t was Immediately upon his return
from the Arctic that Elliott was order
e. to the tropics, and he saw fighting
in Panama, which was then in the
hands of the revolutionary forces.
During this Panama service the rev.
Olutionists made an attempt to blow
Elliott and his command off the face
of the isthmus with dynamite. Elliott
and a private Of marines caught the
man hired to explode the stuff just as
he was about to light the fuse. 1t was
perhaps a narrower escape than any
which the general ever had, and his
narrow escapes besprinkle plentifully
his record.
Many Claims in Congress.
Readers Of Mark Twain will
remember his story of the great
beef claim and the course of the
proceedings before the lawmakers
in Washington. When man does dig
ging after truth in the records of con
gress he can find some things which
are stranger than the romances of the
fiction writer's. There are claims to-
day before either congress or the court
of claims which have their origin back
in the Revolutionary days. The trac-
ing of the right to recoLhpense from
the government for sacrifices made by
ancestors of present day people is
one of the hardest tasks known to law
yers. The trail gets confused after
time, and so it is that some people who
may have legitimate claims against
Uncle Sam are unable to collect them.
Only the other day an adverse re-
port on a Revolutionary claim was
made by Senator Townsend of the sen
ate committee which has charge OF
such matters. The claim was for the
payment of 80 loan certificates alleged
to have been issued by Richard Ralph
Randall, May Is, 1879, which certifi-
Gates were for $500, continental
money, specie value, SAITH. Congress
was asked that these certificates
should be paid with interest to very
remote descendant of Randall, who
died in 1890 He left a son, William,
who, when he was an old man, adver-
tised for the lost certificates and me-
morialized congress for their payment.
The lawmakers refused to pay any at
tention to the matter. Others have
presented the claim but without sue
cess.
Claims growing out of the war be-
tween the states are, of course, more
numerous than those growing out of
the war of the Revolution, because the
one war is nearer to us than the 9TH
err, and many of the active claimants