Omaha daily bee., 1917-02-21

interruption.
When Funston won his rank o
brigadier as a reward for his spec
tacular capture of Aguinaldo, the
Philippine rebel chief, his active serv.
ice in the regular United States arm,
began, He speedily reached the tor
oil the list OF brigadiers, but wher
there were vacancies i'll the list al
major generals. he was passed over
no less than six times by President
Roosevelt and Taft. At times Funs.
ton almost despaired of further pro.
motion, but with characteristic tena.
city he stuck to the army.
When Vera Cruz was occupied. Ma.
jor General Wood, chief OF staff, inn
mediately selected Funston as the
logical man for the field command
Every army officer expected there
would be fighting of the hard guerilla
kind. learned in the Philippines, and
everyone agreed that when Funston
landed in Vera Cruz, he would start
something"
But when Funston unloaded his
troops and relieved the navy of posses.
sion of the city, he learned that Presi-
dent Wilson's orders were that there
was to be no aggressive movements,
that the army was to watch and wait.
The pressure on the little commander
can only be realized by those who
were with him in Vera Cruz in those
critical hours. Thousands of Ameri-
cans thronged the city with the most
extreme stories of conditions in the
interior and urged that the army move
on; enthusiasm for finishing the job
was high among the young officers.
The outposts were insulted, even fred
upon. American troops were kid
mapped by the Mexicans, one soldier
was killed and burned; the camps were
raided by marauders. Every provoca-
ton to spur fighting mar to action
was given, but Funston never forgot
his orders whatever his own emotions
might have been. He held down the
situation and President Wilson made
him a major general.
His Career Remarkable.
Funston, a native of Ohio and
reared on a Kansas farm had a re-
markable career before he became
soldier. Few people knew that his
first work was as scientist with a
bent toward botany. As an agent of
the Department of Agriculture in 1891
he took part in the Death Valley cx-
petition; then he explored Alaska
and the British northwest and crossed
a 1ncLn 70 thA Arrttn IL
Travelled from Mckenzie river to
Boring Sea, journey of about $500
miles. He camped in the Klondike
during the, winter of 1893 and then
alone foated down the Yukon in
canoe, journey of hundreds of miles
through a wilderness without seeing
another living soul. Soon after that
he resigned from the Department of
Agriculture and Travelled in Mexico.
Helps the Cubans.
When the last Cuban instruction
broke out Funston applied to the revo-
lutonary junta in New York for serv-
ice with the rebel army, but the
Cubans suspected him OF being a spy
or an agent of the United States run
ming down violators of neutrality
laws. Finally he convinced them Of
his intentions and for many weeks in
rooms on an out OF the way street in
the lower East Side OF New York,
Funston instructed recruits in the
handling OF machine guns, of which |
the Cubans were ignorant. Soon
lfterward he was taken into the Cuban
lrrnv with "a comm c sion
Fighting Man in Cuba.
Not until 1896, when the Cuban
nsurrection was at its height, did
Frederick Funston become known
throughout the United States as a
fighting man, but his
friends in Kansas--where, he spent
lis early manhood-long Lad so class
fed him.
AS student at the University OF
Kansas, when he weighed less than
100 pounds, he conquered a ZOO
pound bad man." who threatened
lin with razor. To add to the
giants humiliation, Funston marched
lin through the streets of Lawrence,
Kan, at the point of revolver. to
police station.
A few years later, while city edi-
or of paper in Fort Smith, Ark,
'oung Funston stirred up intense feel
ng by attacking editorially the pub
ication's own political party leaders
Turing the absence of his editor-in
hicf. Many threats are said to have
'een made against Funston and the
newspaper property, but he remained
IN guard until his superior return
d and then turned over the plant I'M
ARMED incidentally, Funston also
Along the Santa Fe railroad they
till recall how Funston as a pas
enger train conductor. threw
runken cowboy off a train and later,
When he hurled rock through a
zach window. pursued him several
niles on foot while the train waited.
On Firing Line.
Funston's first experience on the
ring line came in Cuba, where he
General Corners artillery
18th remarkable results. After en-
aging in twenty-five battles and be-
,g wounded three time, he resigned
is command, because fifty guerrillas I
Tho had aided the Spaniards were
xecuted against his wishes. Captured
y Spaniards on his way to Havana,
e escaped death by swallowing
tier to the president Of Cuba, which
'ould have proved his identity. /
While a colonel of the famous
wentieth Kansas Volunteer infantry J
the Philippine war, Funston per- /.
,rmed feats of bravery that brought
i'm the title of brigadier general. His :
lpture Of Aguinaldo and his fording :
the Rio Grande river at Columpit |.
nder Ere featured hic ,rori. 8