False Rumors of Military Tragedy Debunked
A letter from Fort Snelling clarifies that reports of soldiers killed and injured during a drill were completely unfounded.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Several weeks ago, a report was received in Walla Walla that shortly after the Thirtieth battery reached Fort Snelling from Fort Walla Walla, two members of that organization had been killed and three seriously injured by the running away of the horses attached to one of the field guns during a drill. A letter received in this city yesterday from Corporal Beauchamp of the Tenth battery conveys the intelligence that there was absolutely no truth whatever in the statement.
“A letter received in this city yesterday... conveys the intelligence that there was absolutely no truth whatever in the statement.”
In the pre-digital era, news of potential military tragedies traveled slowly and unreliably, often leaving families in a state of high anxiety until a letter arrived. Today, such rumors circulate instantly via social media, often creating the same distress before official word can be verified.
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