Arizona republican., 1922-04-09

have been entirely happy in land
which makes even the possession of a
! weapon of defense punishable, If the
owner is a decent and law abiding
| although a back alley bum can be
/ hung with six shooters and no one
I seems to care. 1t is likewise prob
able that if any one had ever at
| tackled General Agramonte, which has
| been recognized for some years as
an unwholesoIne exercise. that some
one would have been repelled by
/ means of the earlier and more for
NAL means. Somehow. it is difficult
to imagine this old soldier using his
fists
Decorated in crimean War
| He is 90 years old. with white hair
white goatee. straight, possessed of
a ceremonial courtesy and a daunt
| less courage. 1t was y years ago
/ when he was decorated with the Le-
gion of Honor in front of Sebastopol.
To our unimaginatiye. even duh. gem
Grafton the story Of his life seems
/ as Incredible as that of Chevalier
/ Bayard or the Admirable Criehton.
/ Yet Agramonte, son of an old Cuban
| family, had been a pupil in Paris
| when the Crimean war broke out.
| and secured a staff appointment with
/ the British army. On the way out he
/ killed a British colonel in duel
| by moonlight on the quarter deck
| Of his ship.
AT Sebastopol he visited the French
| headquarters just before the Rus
| slams made a sortie and cut off q
i portion of the French. lie was un-
able to return to his own troops. and
! when a Cossaci swordsman rode in
f,ssx 10 xxyf,
/ armies, whirling his sword high in
! the air. singing a song of defiance
| and insult, Akramonte obtained per-
| mission to meet him in single COM
bat like the knights Of old. The two
| armies stilled their guns to watch the
fight. The Cossack slashed the Gu
ban through the shoulder. but Agra
| monte, with a back cut as he stood
| in his stirrups dropped the Co.'S
| sacks head down on his breast It
| was a clean cut through the neck.
Those were heroic days.
In Charge of Light Brigade
Agramonte carried the dead mans
!, head back to headquarters and the
citation which accompanied his Le-
gion of Honor tells the story He
rode IN the charge Of the Light Bri-
gade and has the decoration and ci-
tation to show for IT, When Ger
many attacked in 1870 he managed
to get on the staff of General Nc
| Mahon. He fought in the Garibald-
ian wars Of independence and cane
| which Garibaldi gave him is car
ried on independence day by the ital-
ian societies here. He was an Off
4 Ger with Grant in the Union army
and spent eight years in Cuba fight
ing for independence.
! & ~. Az.
position to make life unpleasant for
1 Americans here. General Agramonte
organized a company for defense. The
then governor of the federal district
sent for him. AS Agramonte mount
ed the stairs he noticed an Indian
soldier on each step. When he went
into the governors office the latter
said:
so You are the bad Agramonte ?"
Not bad. | hope" said the gen-
eral.
suppose I were to order those In
dians outside to shoot you in the
back as you leave9''
Handling a Troublesome Governor
You are an honorable man, gov
ernor,n said Agramonte and would
not do that. Also, 1t is a beautiful
day ] would be happy if you would
| accompany me home"
He thrust the black nose of an au~
| tomato at the governor. The two
men walked down the stairs, arm in
arm and chatted pleasantly all the
| way to Agramonte's homo. The gov
ernor himself has told the story. No
| one knows what he may have
planned to do. Eight years ago the
bank in which Agramonte and many
| other Americans had all their money
! burst There was q meeting at the
American club at which some wild
things We're said. Agramonte calmed
! them
Don't be Children said he 1t
happened and that's an end of it.
Come. l have three dollars and a
! half in my pocket, which is all
have left in the world I'll buy a
drink for the crowd and Wen all so
home"
A gallant old soldier