davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
"Doc" Casey
Had Nerve
of His Own

nelp you out, SO 80
to it,"
was overjoyed. Just then Pinero
came aft. The horse doctor turned to
him and said: "Look here, Pinero, I've
seen lots of dirty work in my life, but
that exhibition Of yours on the dock is
about the filthiest I've seen in long
time. Now, just take tip from me.
That young fellow from now on is
working with me, and you lay your
hands of of him. If ! find you
meddling with him, I'll push that silly
grin of yours down your throat until it
chokes you. Now, that's all | got TO
say, lay off of him. Do you under
stand ?"
Pinero started to humble excuses,
but the doctor shut him up with, 81
don't want to hear any more. I'm off o
you for life, but remember what / tell
you. Steer clear from the two o. Us,
sabe >"
was installed as assistant yeterina-
rian at $50 for the trip.
Five days out we ran into a squall
and our work was cut out for US. We
even had horses on the decks in wooden
stalls. The ship was lurching and
pitching and huge seas would burst
bhti Ait lAllH aAtos
Several OF the wooden stalls gave
way, and the horses were loose on the
deck. With every lurch of the ship a
couple Of horses would fall, and, kick
ing and snorting would slide down the
inclined deck. hitting against winches
and the hatchway, scraping their hide
Off. IL was worth a mans life TO get
into that mess.
Then | had more or less respect for
the foreman and second foreman. Into
the midst OF that struggling and kick
ing bunch of horses they went, assisted
By "Doc" Casey. -Four Of the horses re
ceived broken legs, and Pinero, instead
Of shooting them, cut their throats
with d sharp dagger he carried.
One of the negroes from the lower
hold staggered TO the upper deck with
his face blanched almost white and his
eyes popping out of his head. Between
gasps he informed US that a whole sec
ton Of stalls, twenty-four in all. had
been carried away between decks and
that the horses were loose. He said
three negroes Of his gang were caught
in this stampede.
The foreman mustered most Of the
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
He Snapped
Out a Line
of Curses

was standing near the runway, holding
on TO "A horse. lie turned his horse
loose and rushed 10 The bloody mass
which was tw.tching with convulsive
shudders. The foreman, OF seeing this
accident snapped out 4 long string Of
curses which almost froze my heart:
"What did | tell you? Didn't | tell
vcu not 20 lock az him? | knew you
would get it, and a damned good Job,
too, blocking that run with your fool
tricks"
Then he noticed 'he pesty-faced
horseman stoCring over the bleeding
man.
Get i'm by the heels, you cross be-
tween a corpse and mummy, and drag
him out of the way. We've bloody well
got TO get this ship loaded to catch the
tide"
The pale-faced man kept on with his
examination without paying any atten-
tion 10 the foreman's instructions. The
foreman got blue in the face and bub-
bled over with rage.
"Do you hear what tell you? Get
i'm out of the way. This ship has
got TO be loaded or I'll go down there
and pound some obedience into you"
The man still paid no attention. The
foreman was speechless. In few sec
onds the STOPPING man Strengthened
up, and looking the foreman straight
in the eye calmly replied: Hes dead
This did not seem to Tease the fore
man in the least. and he beloved out:
"How do you know he is dead?' The
man answered simply: "Im doctor"
Then the foreman once again explod-
ed: "A doctor Blawst my headlights,
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
"Doc" Made
a Note of
the Brand

snaked TO the upper deck, Doc had TO
stoop over and make note of the
brand before the horse was thrown
overheard.
| was heartily sick and disgusted
with the rest of the trip because the
stencil was awful, there being about
twelve dead horses that we could not
get out.
Just outside of the entrance of the
river leading to Bordeaux, a small,
rakish boat, flying the tricolor of
France, came alongside. We hove to
and up the gangplank came three
French officers. They were closeted
with the captain of the ship and our
foreman, and after about twenty min
utes left, and we continued on our
course.
Going up the river in some places the
banks were only about twenty feet
away. We could see the French women
tilling the fields. AS we went by these
workers stopped and waved their
hands in the air TO us. and we waved
back. II was my first sight of France,
and / was not in any way disap-
pointed. II lived up to my expecta-
tlons
A little further up the river we came
20 large dock where ships were load
ing and unloading cargoes. and a thrill
passed through me as | saw my first
batch of German prisoners at work.
These were immense fellows, nearly
every one being six feet or over. They
were guarded by little French soldiers,
averaging about five feet five inches,
with a long rife. bayonet fixed. This
rife, in comparison with the French
man. looked like a telegraph pole. The
soldiers had on old blue oyercoats, the
tails butoned back, pattern OF 1871.
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02

a doctorl Well, if you're doctor
what in hell are you doing on a
horse ship? You ought to be rolling
pills for the high-brows."
The doctor never took his piercing
look from the eye of the foreman:
The foreman was now like an enraged
bull. Splitting all over himself, he
clustered out: "Weil. if he's dead,
there is no doctor that can do him
any good A couple O. you black
skunks over there addressing two
negroes who were almost banched TO
blush white and who were trem-
bling nearby. get hold of him and
drag i'm out of the way" One Of the
negroes, with a leering grin, replied:
81 shipped on this here ship to handle
hosses, and | don't allow nohow that
it's my work to tote corpses around
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
| Saw My
Authority
Waning

alone. Upon hearing this he squirted
through his front teeth. which landed
on my shoe. ! inwardly admired and
respected his accuracy. l saw my au-
thority waning and knew that | would
have to answer this insult quickly. |
took two or three quick steps forward
and swung on his jaw with my fist.
His head went up against the iron
bunk with sickening sound and he
crumpled up and fell on the deck, the
blood pouring from the cut in his head.
| felt sick and faint, thinking that he
had been killed, but it would not do TO
show these signs Of weakness on my
part, so without even moving toward
him | ordered one of the men to look
him over and see if he was all right.
He soon cam around. From that time
on he was the most faithful man in the
section and greatly respected me. The
rest of the men growled and mumbled
and ] thought was in for a terrible
beating. Lying close at hand was an
iron spike about eighteen inches long.
Grasping this. turned TO the rest. try
ing 70 be as tough as ! possibly could.
III any of the rest Of you buns
think they are boss around here, STAT
something, and | will sink this into
their head" Although was quailing
underneath. still got away with T.
and from that time on was boss Of
my section.
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
He Was
Like a
Gorilla

gangplank. Then our real examination
took place. At the foot OF the gang
plank were a group Of men around a
long table. They certainly put us
through a third degree TO find out II
thero was any German blood in US.
Several men were turned down. Luckily,
! got through and signed for the voy-
ae. and went on board.
At the head Of the gangplank stood
the toughest specimen Of humanity I
have ever seen. lie looked like huge
gorilla. and had a big, orcseent-shaped.
livid scar running from his left ear
under his chin up 70 his right eye.
Every time ne spoke the edges Of the
scar seemed 20 grow white. His nose
Vas broken and he had huge. shaggy
eyebrows. His hand was resting on
the rail Of the ship. II looked like q
ham. and inwsrdlY figured out what
would happen 70 me II that ham-like
hst ever came In contact with the
point Of my Jaw. As we passed him
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
The Horses
Had 3 Days
to Live

on the dock, and the army inspectors
examined il. Very few were rejected.
From this ring of chalk they were led
into a portable stall and branded. gu
could hear the sing-song voice or the
brander shouting out what sounded
like "Battry Loo" AS he yelled TINS,
a French private would come over, get
the horse which had been branded, and
lead il away. | got in conversation
with an interpreter and he informed me
that the average life of these horses IN
the French army was three days, so
these poor horses had only left that
He'll Ship TO go into worse nell OF
bursting shells and cracking bullets.
I, after passing a rigid examination
as to my nationality, and being ISSUED
cattlemans passport, inquired my
way to the prefecture of police. de-
liyered TO him a sealed envelope which
| had received in New York. Upon
opening il, he was very gracious 10
me, and went into a rear room, where
an Interpreter put me through grill
ing examination. From there | was
taken to a hotel, and the next morn,
ing, in the company of sergeant ana
a private, got into a little matcnooN
compartment on the funniest looking
train | ever saw. The track seemed
TO be about three feet wide; the wheels
of the cars looked like huge cogwneels
on an engine minus the cogs. Aiter
humping, stopping and sometimes slid
inc backward. in twenty-six hours we
reached little town; Supplies q, were we're
piled up as high as houses. omeets rs
and enlisted men were hurrylng 10
and fro. and could see long trains Oh
supply wagons and artillery limbers
always moving in the same direction.
was ushered into the presence Of
a French officer, who, I later found out
was brigadier general Of the ,;ltant guar,
booming. and upon inquiring found out
tbst il was the guns of France, strlv-
ing ing to hold back the German invaders erJ
trembled all over with ;ha excitement, rI.beS aad
oyer me | was listening TO my hrst
sound of the guns on the Western
front. n,
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
Sergeant En1pey's Story of His Life
Article II
Taking Horses to France
Article II

"Orer the Top has has
~ as one Of the picturesque ters Of the Great bdr
IN ,bis series Of or4s published exclusively IN Ne0 YORK me
~ J tells Of his rn experiences and thrilling adventures
1. b,,o Iona before the ,car this article he tells these
~ ~ Ncgi Sunday he his acquaintance ei the
J,,g;y;er Giants Under Fire,
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
Running
a Barrage
Of Insults

right near me took great glee in jump
ing up and down on the hatchway and
running his finger across his throat.
This seemed TO enrage the prisoners,
and they yelled something in German.
The Irishman must have understood il,
because he let out volley of curses
in return. The French sentries seemed
to enjoy this barrage of insults and
did not in any way attempt TO curtail
the prisoners remarks. This. at the
time. struck me as depicting a re-
markable sense of fairness, and later
on, during my service on the Western
front. found out that the Frenehman
in all his dealings is fair and just.
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02

Pretty soon the prisoners faded out
of sight and we came alongside the
dock at Bordeaux. | was all eagerness
and strained my eyes so as not to miss
the least thing. The dock was full OF
French cavalrymen, hurrylng TO ano
fro. Huge Turcos, black as the ace OF
spades, with white turbans on their
heads, were majestically stridlng about:
After we warped into the dock and
made fast, our work was over. We had
nothing to do with the unloading OF the
horses. The French cavalrymen came
aboard with a bunch of cavalry halters
hanging over their arms. 1t was mar
vel TO see with what ease and efficiency
that ship was unloaded. The condition
of the horses was pitiful. They could
hardly bend their legs from stiffness
They would hobble down the gangpiank
and stand trembling on the dock. In
about a minute or so they would stretch
their necks way up into the air and
seem to be taking long breaths of the
pure air. Then they started TO whinny.
They were calling backward and Tor,
ward to each other Even though
did not understand horse language,
knew exactly what they were saying
They were thanking their horse goa
for their deliverance from that he'll
Shin. and were looking forward to
green pastures and a good roll IN the
dirt. Pretty soon you could seen them
bend their forelegs and lie down on
the dock; then try to roll over; II was
pitiful; some of them did not have the
strength to turn over and they feeoly
kicked. Pretty soon the whole dock
was a mass of rolling horses, the
Frenchmen jumping around, gestlcuIat-
ing and jsbbering.
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
All Right,
You're a
Straw Boss

or who have seen service in the cavalry
step out in front" Four others besides
myself stepped out. The first man he
came TO he informed: You're a straw
boss. Do you know what a straw boss
is ?" This man meekly answered. "No,
sir" With another oath, the second
foreman said: "All right; you're not a
straw boss; fall back" l got the cue
Immediately. My turn came next.
'Do you know what a straw boss is ?"
l said: "Sure."
He said: "All right; you're straw
boss"
In about an hour and a hslf's time
Pinero had selected his straw bosses
and divided the men into gangs, and
assigned US TO our quarters on the ship.
These quarters were between decks
and very much crowded; the stencil
was awful. Iron hunks, three deep,
with filthy and lousy mattresses on
them, were set into the sides Of the
ship. The atmosphere in that dirty
hole turned my stomach and ] was
longing for the fresh air of the deck.
A dirty bum, with tobacco juice run
ming out of the corner of his mouth,
turned to me and asked: "Do the gray
backs bother you much, matey?" A
shudder ran through me as ! answered.:
"Not much" But figured out that as
soon as got them. which knew in a
very short time would occur, they GER
tainly would bother me. but had to
keep stiff upper lip if wanted TO
retain their respect and my authority
as straw boss.
One old fellow in my gang was a
trouble maker. He must have been
about forty years old and looked as
hard as nails. He was having an argu-
ment with pasty-faced looking speci-
men of humanity, about twenty six
years old. To me this man appeared
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
He Had
to Shoot
Seventeen

and the three ne
groes piled up in one corner of the
compartment, and then, with a lurch
O.. the ship, they would slide into the
other. Nothing could be done by us.
It was madness to attempt anything
The three negroes were dead.
That night and the following day
was perfect hell on the ship for men
and horses. The ship rode through
the squall, and when it became calm we
all got busy. Out of the twenty-four
horses between decks We had to shoot
seventeen on account of injuries. Be
sides the seventeen, three had died from
broken necks. The four remaining
horses were still alive, but hardly had
a square foot Of hide left. They were
L pitiful sight.
The next day the three negroes were
buried at sea without a word of prayer.
For the next couple of days nothing
of Importance happened.
About four days out Of Bordeaux
one of the large steam pipes in the
lower hold burst. In this hold there
were sixty-four horses. The engineer
of the ship tried 20 repair the break,
but it was almost worth a mans life
to 20 down there in that kissing and
scalding steam. The cries of the
horses went straight to my heart. All
we could do was TO turn streams of
cold salt water from three pair OF hose
into the hold, thus trying 10 keep the
heat down and save as many horses
as possible.
Why the en- ;neer did not shut off
the steam | do u know. | noted this
fact in my report. After about four
hours the steam was shut off and the
two foremen, Doc Casey and myself,
followed by twelve other men, went
into the hold. | will never forget the
sight as long as | live. Nearly every
one of the horses was dead, and those
which still remained alive had to be
shot. Some of them were practically
boiled alive. The weather was hot,
and it was not long before the rotting
bodies of the horses made the stencil
on board unbearable. We had to get
these bodies out. Long tackles were
rugged up, a chain was put around the
neck Of dead horse, and | worked the
winch. The bodies were snaked along the
passageways in the hold and up to the
hatch. Some of the bodies would not
hold together, and it was a common
sight TO see dead horse suspended
in the air by his mind leg drop sud-
denly into the hold below, leaving his
leg hanging to the tackle.
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02

As We passed the
German prisoners
they scowled at us,
and we, feeling
quite safe on the
deck. yelled back
insults at them.
One big Irishman
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02

~ was 1914. and THE Great Worlds
Wa was on, and here was IN
4 the Uaited States and neutral. For
thirteen years ! had been soldier
inc buf had never been under hre'
In nv imagination I could hear the
,rns booming on the western front
admit uzs triAe afraid; neverthe-
less had great desire to get INTO
the mix-up. How could get over !
] planned out many ways, but none o.
them werc practical.
One day while walking down Green
WITCH Street. New York, passed an
employment agency. Staring me IN
the face was great far'ng sign
AHorses for France" Under this
sMen Wanted" Here was my chance
Upon returning TO my Office / imme-
distely got in touch over the telephone
with two prominent men in New YORK
whom I knew 20 be distinctly pro-
Allv. After outlining my desire, an
sppointment was made for me TO meet
= certain gentleman at the hotel
Astor a. Z o'clock that afternoon l
met him. He introduced me 70
Frcnchman. AZ that time in my eyes
= F-encbman was a hero, man TO De
looked UP TO, a man fighting IN tne
Great Cause. But now 70 me a French
-, = moro than hero. After being
introduced I went up into the French
mans room and talked over the matter
90 horses for France for about twenty
minutes.
No instructions received from him
are confidential, so l will not 60 INTO
them. Anyway. he handed me an en-
vcIope and told me 20 follow out care
fully all details contained therein.
Immediately went back 20 my OIL
6ee. opened the envelope. and On
t,,cwriten sheet l read: Report at
GoIdsmith's Employment Agency, No.
.- Greenwich Street. Ship as an or
d;narv horseman. and during voyage
carefully follow verbal instructions re-
eeived by you during our interview
making careful note of all details I'M
mediately after happening. BE eau
tious in doing this. Upon landing IN
France report TO the Prefecture oil 70
lice bordeaux, and to the letter obey
his instructions. Good luck
When came to the agency there was
q long line Of buns, two and three
deem. trying to ship as horsemen for
France.
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
That Was
Too Much
for Me

lew. To describe his manner OF nan
ding the men as being impolite wouid
be a great exaggeration. The way ne
handled that line Of human cattle
would do the Kaiser's heart good.
Il came my turn. and this conversa-
ton ensued:
what do you know about horses
answered.: "Six years in the United
States cavalry"
The agent: "What regiments :"
Eleventh and Twelfth"
you're a liar. You never saw the
cavalry"
felt like punching him on the nose
but did not do so. l wanted TO ship as
a horseman. showed him my dis
charges. He said: "They're faxed
What did you do, desert or were you
kicked QUIT"
was getting sore, and answered:
deserted the 18th; kicked out Of the
11th."
whats your name 2!
arthur Guy Empey."
You're a German"
This was too much even for me- and
answered: you're a damned liar"
I saw my chances of shipping vanish
ing in smoke. -.
The Jew grinned and rubbed MS
hands and said: you're all right. 10
into that room and get a card MADE
out. and come back at 2 o'clock"
received a card and went to beam
cry across the street and had won
derful meal Of corned beef hash, muddy
coffee and huge slices of bread, minus
butter. This cost me IS cents.
At . o'clock reported back, and with
seventy-two others was herded like
cattle, and in a long, struggling line'
hanked By three OF the employees of
the agency, we marched TO the ferry
and landed somewhere in New Jer-
sey."
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
! Was
Sick With
Disgust

heels of the dead man, pulled him away
from the run. | turned away, sick
enedwith disgust. The foreman then
took an empty oat sack and spread it
over the bloody head.
The pasty-faced doctor was holding
onto the rail Of the runway and cough
ing. ! thought each gasp would be his
last. The second foreman was talking
TO him. The doctor paid no attention.
Going up behind the doctor, the fore
man coolly measured his distance and
swung on the point Of his jaw. The
doctor crumpled up and fell on the
dock. At this cowardly and dastardly
act | saw red and made leap at the
foreman. When | came to | was lying
in my bunk in the hold.
| went up on deck. The moon and
stars were out and the trinkling lights
of New York Harbor were gradually
fading into the distance. Leaning over
the rail were the foreman and the
veterinarian, "Doc" Casey by name.
The foreman was talking. Snatches
Of his conversation reached my ears:
LOAD horses? Why, that bunch OF
scum they wished on me couldn't load
lump sugar, one lump at time. How
Brown expects me to deliver 1900
horses into Bordeaux with this scurvy
outfit don't know. We're lucky, I'm
thinkin'. if five hundred o. them don't
die. Why, there's not one O. the
blighters knows which end Of horse
eats hay. tell you, doc, your work is
cut out for you. II, in few days, you
don't have a couple Of hundred cases
of collie on your hands, then Pm a
bloomin' liar"
doc" Casey answered:
well, III tell you, Mr.. Goorty, this
is my third trip over and | have seen
some tough punches, but this one Is
the limit, and / sure have job on
my hands. It's too bad that Pinero let
out on that young fellow, because, in
nv mind, that was a pretty cowardly
blow. He seemed to know how to
handle horses. What do you say If |
give him the job of assistant veter-
marian? He's had six years cavalry
experience"
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02

% DC III NTIN EW = =
stages of con-
sumption. ! told
the old fellow to
cut out his argu-
ment and leave
the other fellow
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02
By Arthur Guy Empey

he showered US with a few compliment
tary remarks, such as "Of all the lousy
scum I have seen, this bunch Of lub-
bers is the worst, and this is what they
give men TO take thirteen hundred
horses over TO Bordeaux" Later on ]
found this individual was foreman Of
the horse gang.
We we're ordered aft and sat on the
after hatch. The fellow on my right
was a huge, blue-gummed negro. lie
WAS continually scratching himself. ]
unconsciously eased away from him
and bumped into the fellow sitting on
my left. After a good look at him ]
eased back again in the direction Of
the negro. don't think that he had
taken a bath since escaping from the
cradle. Right then my uppermost
thought was how ! could duck this trip
TO France. The general conversation
among the horse gang was: "When do
We eat?"
We must have sat there about TWEEN
" minutes, when the second foreman
came aft. l took fifteen guesscs at
his nationality, and at last came TO the
conclusion that he was a cross between
a Chinaman and a Mexican. He was
thin, about six feet tall, and wore a
huge sombrero. His skin was tanned
the color Of leather. Every time he
smiled / had the impression that the
next minute he would plant a stiletto
in my back. His name was Pinero. His
introduction to US was very brief: "Get
up off that blankety blank hatch and line
up against the rail-" We did as or
dered. Then he commanded: "All the
niggers line up alongside Of the port
rail-" ! guess a lot of them did not
know what he meant by the port rail"
because they looked very much bewil-
dered. With an oath he snapped out:
'You blankety blank idiots, the port
rail is that rail over there! Come on.
Move, or I'll soon move you" He
looked we'll able TO do this, and the mig
gers promptly shuflled over to the
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02

Every horse sent
to France is brand
ed with a different
brand. They have
a system of index
ing them. AS each
oaad horca uyog
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02

The ship, a huge
three stacker, was
alongside.
We were showed
into single file.
ready 70 90 IN the
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02

Two days after
ward ! again
reached Bordeaux,
and shipped on the
French liner Roch-
ambeau. Upon ar
New-York tribune., 1917-12-02

The pasty-faced
horseman, whom !
had helped out a
little while before
in the argument
about his bunk,