Weekly journal-miner., 1916-03-22
FUNSTON, TAMER OF BAD
 MEN, HAS MEXICAN JOB

The fighting man who is in direct charge of the United States forces which have been sent into the desert and mountain strongholds of Mex ico to 'get Villa dead or alive" is the same Fred Funston who was or 1 1ered just fifteen years ago this month to "get Aguinaldo" The long arm of coincidence has reached out to push the little general from Kan sas to the forefront as the depend able man, when nerve, combined with guile. is required by Uncle Sam
 Gen. Funston has been getting what he went after, whether 1t was bad men or imperative results, ever since he was graduated into long trousers. He is 5l years of age now and his career has been crammed with adventurous episodes. He was 1o when his father. Foghorn Fun ston, moved from Carlisle. Ohio, to southwestern Kansas. In 1885 young Fred entered the State university of Kansas. where ne had for a class mate William Allen White There was negro in the college town who started for Funston one day with a gleaming razor The negro weighed | 200 pounds Funston barely 100. The negro was 6 feet tall, Funston 5 feet } inches. In fifteen minutes Funston had the half crazy black man in the lookup and hadn't even mussed his own clothing.
 When he left college Gen. Funston | ,4L : ,-, Fort Smith. It was Democratic of course. The day before an election the editor-in-chief left town and he was temporarily the boss. Next day the paper appeared as red hot Re publican sheet, reviling all things Democratic. As a crowd gathered at | the front door young Funston retired by the back and from journalism. He explained later that he was weary of newspaper work, tired of a rotten ! town. rotten sheet and its rotten politics and l thought I would wake things up bit before l left, just to show them 1 was alive"
 Railroad Man Next.
 His next job was as a conductor o1 the Santa Fe. A cowpuncher pas senger. fired by wniskey, shot holes in a car ceiling. General Funston took his gun away and threw him off the train, then stopped the train, ran back along the track and thrashcd the gunman. His rowing. adventurous spirit then took him to Mexico, where he sought options ol coffee planta- tions, but he never was keen about business. He was locking for action. { just as he had looked for 1t in 1891. when ne nearly died of thirst fin Death valley as a member of Unit ed States botanical expedition, and as he sought for it in 1893. during 9 hard Klondike Winter. whel he made his escape after spending weeks with band of Indians.
 General Funston was in New York in 1896 when the late General Sickles made rousing speech at Madison | Square Garden in behalf of the opp pressed Cubans. Moved by the ap- peal for Cuba Libre, General Funston | offered his services 10 the Cuban Junta, although he knew nothing about military affairs.
 The Cubans were glad to have this vigorous youth and General Funston set himself to study the intricacies of l2 pounder Hotchkiss rifles and other things that a soldier should know. General Gomez made him second in command to Winchester Dana Os- good, the Cornell football player. who | had charge of the insurgent artillery. ] General Funston distinguished him i self for bravery at Guimaro in Octo- Der. lSo6, when Osgood was killed. He took command and with dyna- mite bomb in his hand led charge i that broke the Spanisn front and end ed the fight At Bayamo he was wounded three times and had his horse killed under him. He was in | the thick of the f9nting at Las Tu- mas. After this battle the Cubans in sisted on shooting 50 prisoners. Fun ston protested, was waved aside and promptly resigned his commission. | General Garcia gave him an order for | transportation and safe conduct. He fell in with a Spanish patrol and ate | the documents. On reaching the | United States in 1898 he was suffer | ing from stomach trouble. malaria and wounds and his weight was just 95 pounds.
 Didn't Want Easy Job.
 When the United States went to war with Spain General Funston was ready to fight again. He declined an easy job on General Miles staff and | finally got what he was after, com mission as Colonel oi the Twentieth Kansas regiment of volunteers. The 1 regiment was ordered to the Philip pines and while waiting for sailing orders General Funston married Miss Eda Blankart. Q music teacher. Six i hours later the transport sailed and when Mrs. Funston rejoined her hus- band a month later in Manila 1t was just before a battle His regiment held an important place in the fight : ing around Manila when the Filipino | instruction began. in 1899. During the fighting at Malolos the regiment was punished by a wicked fire from insurrectos intrenched on the far bank of the Marilao river. Calling 1 for volunteers. General Funston swam the river with revolver gripped i1 his teeth and 20 men at his back. charged the Filipino trenches and put