Meade County news., 1917-08-23
But Sheer Is Sheer of UnreaSon
and the German Officers
Know 1t.
CLARKE WIPES OUT GRIN
lieutenant, by Remarkable Feat Of
Horsemanship, Teaches Kaiser
and His Officers to Respect
U. S. Regulars.
BY EDWARD 3. CLARK.

llNun LliS ollNNA pNlitpo NONNi -
fear. The Germans know more about
our soldiers, our regular soldiers at
any rate, than they care to put into
print.
The other day there came to Wash
ington to join the Aviation corps of
his country, boy whose name is
Powhatan II. Clarke. The elders
among the army officers who met him
saw in him a virtual reproduction Of
his father, also Powhatan II. Clarke,
who graduated from the United States
military academy in 1884. 1t was the
senior POwhatan II. Clarke, who died
some years ago in the line Of duty,
who taught the German emperor, his
staff and the German people to have
respect for the regular officers Of the
United States army.
Within a year of the time that he
had graduated from the military acad-
emy Lieut.. Powhatan II. Clarke of
the cavalry was given medal Of hon
or by congress for conspicuous person
al gallNntry. He had carried wound
ed sergeant of his troop from the field
under a rain of Apache bullets fired
at point blank range. Today hanging
In the Army and Navy club in New
York city Is painting by Frederick
Remington, showing Lieutenant Clarke
carrying the negro trooper on his
shoulder along the pathway Of fire.
When Clarke graduated at the age
of twenty-one he looked no older than
a boy Of seventeen so far as his face
went. However, he was big and ath-
letic and was a pattern of the Amerl-
can soldier. His heroism on the Ari-
ZOna battlefield had won him recog-
milton and soon he was seat to Berlin
as American military attache.
Why They Sneered.
Lieutenant Clarke reached the Ger
man capital apd was introduced to the
officers attached to military headquar
ters and to the person of Emperor Will
liam. He found out instantly that
there was some joke on the American
army which was dwelling in the mem
Ories and showing itself in the laugh
ing faces and on the sneering lips of
the kaiser's officers.
1t did not take the American long
to discover where the trouble lay. A
former military attache accredited
from the American army had been
thrown from his horse in the presence
of Emperor William and his staff. 1t
may have been that any rider, no mat
ter how expert, might have been
thrown In like circumstances, but the
Germans held that the American cav
airy was composed of men likely to be
ditched Mt the first jump.
The German maneuvers came on.
The emperor's army was assembled
and the American lieutenant was with
the personal staff of William. When
the Germans saw the Yankee cavalry
man on his horse they were compelled
to admiration at his appearance, but
appearances did not necessarily imply
horsemanship.
In the field of the mHneuvers there
was huge ditch, partly natures work
and partly mans. 1t was considered
to be impossible Of crossing by cav
alrymen. 1t was fully half mile in
length, and no German horse had ever
been put to the test of covering its
breadth, for a fall into 1t doubtless
meant death, for, at any rate, the Sc
verest injury.
The emperor and his officers were
about half a mile from the ditch and
opposite point between its two ex-
tremeties. A general of the forces had
his headquarters about two miles from
the position Of the emperor and on the
other side Of the obstruction.
William called one of his aides,
man who had the reputation of being
one Of the finest horsemen in the Ger
man army. The emperor handed him
an order to be delivered to the subor-
dinate commander two miles away
over the field. The German aide took
the order, rode, put, and started In the
direction Of the flank of the ditch The
American cavalryn1an rode to the en-
peror's side, saluted and asked per-
mission to carry duplicate of the or
der. The emperor smiled n little and
acquiesced, handing a bit of paper to
Clarke.
Opens Kaiser's Eyes.
mi