The Washington herald., 1913-10-05


most useful man. OF the best citizen, is
bnot to be boarded IL there be need to
spend IL. / felt, and feel this about
others; and of course also about myself.
/ this is one reason why have always felt
impatient contempt for the effort to abol-
ish the death penalty on account Of SYM
pathy with criminals.
] am willing to listen to arguments In
favor of abolishing the death penalty so
far as they are based purely on grounds
of public expediency, although these argu-
ments have never convinced me. But in
asmuch as, without hesitation. in the per-
formance Of duty, have again and again
sent good and gallant and upright men to
die, IL seems TO me the height of a folly
both mischievous and mawkish to contend
that criminals who have deserved death
! should nevertheless be allowed to shirk
it. No brave and good man can properly
shirk death; and no criminal who has
earned death should be allowed to shirk It.
One of the best men with our regiment
was the British military attache, Capt
Arthur Lee. an old friend. The other mill
tary attaches were herded together at
headquarters and saw little. Capt. Lee.
who had known me in Washington,
escaped and stayed with the regiment
We grew to feel that he was one Of US,
and made him an honorary member.
There were two other honorary members.
One was Richard Harding Davis, who
was with us continually and who per-
formed valuable service on the fighting
line. The other was a regular officer,
Lieut.. Parker. who had a battery OF gat-
lings. We were with this battery through
out the San Juan fighting, and We grew
to have the strongest admiration for
Parker as a soldier and the strongest
liking for him as a man. During our
brief campaign We were closely and init
mately thrown with various regular Of
ficers of the type OF Hills, Howe, and
Parker. We felt not merely fondness
for them as officers and gentlemen. but
pride in them as Americans. 1t is
fine thing TO feel that We have in the
army and in the navy modest, efficient,
gallant gentlemen OF this type. doing such
disinterested work for the honor of the
flag and of the nation. No American
can overpay the debt Of gratitude we all
Of us owe TO the officers and enlisted
men Of the army and Of the navy.
Discipline and Control.
or course, with regiment Of our type
there was much to learn both among the
officers and the men. There were all kinds
OF funny incidents. One OF my men.
an ex-cowpuncher and former roundup
cook, very good shot and rider, got
into trouble on the way down on the
transport. He understood entirely that
he had TO obey the officers of his own
regiment, but. like so many volunteers,
or at least like so many volunteers Of my
regiment, he did not understand that this
obligation extended to officers of other
regiments One OF the regular officers on
the TRANSPORT ordered him TO do some
thing which he declined to do. When
the officer told him to consider himself
under arrest, he responded by Offering 10
fight him for a trifing consideration He
was brought before court martial which
sentenced him to a years Imprisonment
at hard labor with dishonOrable dis
charge and the major general command
ing the division approved the sentence.
We were on the transport. There was
no hard labor to do; and the prison con-
sisted of another cowpuncher who kept
guard over him with his carbine, evil
IDENTIFY divided in his feelings as 10
whether he would like most to shoot him
or 10 let him go. When we landed. some
body told the prisoner that intended to
punish him by keeping him with the bag
gage He at once came to me in great
agitation. saying: Colonel they say
you're going TO leave me with the bag
gage when the fight is on Colonel. If
you do that will never show my face
in Arizona again. Colonel, IL you will
obey any one you say; any one you say,
Colonel" with the evident feeling that,
after this concession, ! could not, as
gentleman, refuse his request Accord
inglv l answered: Shields, there is no
one in this regiment more entitled to be
shot than you are, and you shall go to
the front" His gratitude was great,
and he kept repeating: I'll never forget
this, Colonel, never Nor did he. When
we got very hard up. he would now and
then manage to get hold of some -four
and sugar and would cook dOughnut
and bring it round to me, and watch me
with a delighted smile as ] ate it. He
behaved extremely well in both fights,
and after the second one / had him
formally before me and RENTED his SEN
tence-something which, OF course, had
not the slightest power to do, although
at the time it seemed natural and proper
to me.
When we came to be mustered out. the
regular officer who was doing the muster
ing, after all the men had been dis
charged. finally asked me where the
prisoner was. said: What prisoner"
He said: The prisoner. the man who
was sentenced to a years Imprisonment
with hard labor and dishoncrable dis
charge" / said: "Oh, pardoned him.
to which he responded: 81 beg your par
don: you did WHAT This made me
grasp the fact that I, had exceeded au-
thority, and l could only answer: Well,
did pardon him, anyhow, and he has
gone with the rest" whereupon the mus
tering-out officer sank back in his chair
and remarked: He was sentenced by a
court-msrtial and the sentence was ap-
proved by the major general commanding
the division. You were lieutenant col
Cnel, and you pardoned him. Well, it
was nervy, that's all I'll say"
The simple fact was that under the
circumstances 1t was necessary for me
to enforce discipline and control the regi-
ment, and, therefore. to reward and pun
ish individuals in whatever way the ext
sencies demanded. I often explained to
the men what the reasons for an order
were, the first time it was issued, If