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Show Water Cure For a Broncho Hon Major Pershing Subdued Bucking Steed That Had Been Given Up As Incorrigible American Cavalry Officers Can Ride. "Major John J. Pershing won fame when he captured the insurgent stronghold in Mindanao after a desperate des-perate engagement," said an army officer the other day. "Pershing is a remarkable fellow and a splendid officer, of-ficer, but I doubt if the best story on him has reached this country. He is a former cavalry officer and could give pointers to a Comanche on how to ride a horse. "The South African war nearly exhausted ex-hausted our stock of cavalry horses, and the British agents were paying such big-prices that we had to take what we could get in the Philippines. Consequently we received the scum of the Wyoming and Montana ranges, and a worse set of bronchos you never saw. j "One day Pershing's command got a drove of the beasts that had come j over on a transport, and it was discovered discov-ered that they had to be broken before be-fore the stock of mounts could be replenished. re-plenished. Our men were good riders, who had been put through the monkey drill until they could ride like Cossacks, Cos-sacks, but there was one flea-bitten roan that no one could 'stick' to for more than two minutes. He was pronounced pro-nounced an 'outlaw' or broncho that couldn't be ridden. The sergeant told Major Pershing that the animal was of no value and ought to be shot. " 'I don't believe you know how to ride him,' said Pershing. " 'Our best men have tried him for three days and he has thrown them all,' said the sergeant. He just dumped me.' " 'I think I'll try him,' said Pershing, as he walked out to where the roan stood with saddle and 'bridle till on, waiting for his next victim. "Then the men gathered to see the fan. - But the minute Pershing vaulted into the saddle the men began to feel sorry for that broncho. He was a "big beast. He jumped into the air and came down, stiff-legged, in regular broncho fashion. But Pershing kept his head up and gave him the spure until you could hear the brute squeal " between lunges. Then the ofllcer headed his mount for the river. When the horse struck the water up to his knees he didn't jump so much. He couldn't. He tried to He down, but Pershing was oft like a flash, and wae in the saddle again as soon as the horse got on his feet. This went on for fifteen minutes, and then the roan gave up. Pershing rode him back as meek as a street car horse. " 'I don't think you will have any more trouble with that horse he said as he went into get some dry clothes. " "And they didn't. The water cure was effective." |