Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-06-07

Instructor an swordSnanShip for the
Mexican RuraIcS, Maj. School as he
looked whcn he was one Of Madcro's
officers bclorc the Rio GrGndc.
OR the last so yeals 1 have spent my time
in a professional search for what men
- call adventure.
1 have found it in widely-separated
parts Of the world; in South Africa, in
the American West in the days when
it was truly the wild West" in Mexico. in
Northwest Canada. Today as the Oldest active
member of the Canadian Provincial Mounted
Police, l still finding it.
But adventure tastes the sweetest when one is
young. 1t did with me. at any rate.
was born Ga years ago in Schleswig- Holstein.
AS I entered my teens l in poor health,
ing from lung affection, and my life was
despared of. Furthermore, l knew that If I
lived would be forced to serve in the Prussian
army, and since our province had only recently
been annexed l had no desire for such a fate.
So, at the age of IA, ran away. Slipping
from home one night made my way to the
sea coast, and induced ships captain to hide
me in his cargo-he was carrying load of live
ducks and geese, by the way-and take me to
America.
reached America a short time later, know
ing a dozen words of English and having no
friends nearer than Germany 1 got a job as
hired man. for a farmer, lost it when acci-
dentally hoed out a Of prize pumpkin
plants instead of the weeds had been ordered
to hoe out, and decided to go to the wild West.
rode cattle train to Nebraska and found
job on a real old time ranch.
THE West really wild In those days. Cow
J boys wore guns then, and wore them because
f1r ~kA1
was less the butt Of their jokes They
delegated me- for instance, to ride a sleepy
looking and decrepit old horse which was the
picture of innocence, but which became
raging bucking tornado Of savage energy as
soon as had got into the saddle.
My final graduation from this schooling came
when a tipsy cowboy put tin bucket on my
head, walked off some 20 PAGES and blazed
away at it with his "A. Fortunately, drunk or
sober, he was good shot The bucket jumped
three feet in the air. jumped l0-but was
able to grin back at the laughing spectators
and from then on they accepted me as one OF
them.
spent year with the cowboys, and my once
weak constitution became strong. I learned
English from them-hah of it swear words
and learned how to ride and how to handle
weapons
From Nebraska I moved into the Dakotas
where / met the Sioux Indians. For some reason
I got with them and am glad to say that
numbered among my friends such Indians as
Sitting Bull, Rain-in-the Face, Crazy Horse and
others, all before I was 81.
Naturally. being friendly with them, heard
much about the Custer massacre-although to
call it massacre is something of misnomer.
as both sides in that famous battle were armed
bodies; Custer simply defeated and killed.
1t was Ran-in-the-Face who cut out and ate
the heart of Gen. Clusters brother, Col Tom
Custer, after that battle.
1t was re-enacting of the Battle Of the
Little Big Horn that brought my first big
thrill
THE Sioux, having how the white men
celebrated the Fourth of July, decided one
year to celebrate the holiday themselves To
celebrate it they planned to stage replica of
the Battle of the Little Big Horn. The Indian
agent gave them permission and the delighted
Indians complete in war paint and ca: 1ying
guns, tomahawks, scalping knives and bows and
arrows, came from miles around
Most of these Indians were veterans who had
actually taken part in the original fight. Big,
grinning and full of spirits they were raTAnk TO
hght-but since they couldn't fight tlS@ GUae
Just as anxious to play at lighting.