Baton-Rouge gazette. [volume] (Baton-Rouge, La.) 1819-1856, 1844-01-20

tt3E fttff fHtfifF ifENtH tEtI univ ' ~ DffFt +HNs
neheedl wore leaving the battery, she refuse
10 20,
Next morning. says an eye witness, '6t
ammunition being nearly expended, We epht
cd firing. and the Ere nBh seeing The dflHpidf
ted state nl the fort, sent down i stFohg fore
to take pc essibh Of the place, Our me
were mustered Tor their reception, and Mr.
ReHtah was Al her post wifh The others. de
tefmined to Bbafs In the danger, 1t was
critical n]ottsat, for, had they got under rbbg
Of our guns, our efbfls would have been una
vhilinal Three guns, al that we could bfi1l
10 bear Oh them, were eranfhed with grape
ballae#ftfidge, &c, 10 The m1ssle, ready for
f8r4wail shbt, and when they came within
twU or three hundred yards Of The fort, W
poured their contents into tho very heart o
The column, Hid laid half If them bfUstFate Il
Tho earth Those WIN survived took todight
Their batteries again opened nh ts, ami
fresh supply Of atniniHiti0h having arrived ht
He, we returned their Halntt, The pltfh
however, hatng found unfehablea the surviving
part Of the garrison were Withdrawn by tho
boAis Of the feet Mrs. Restoh bad exhibited
tho same tndauhted Hpifltz She made three
different Journeys across the battery for itet
husbands neteHHafieH and her own, The lpst
was for her child, who was lying In The bomb
proof think | see her yet, wb,le the slot
and shell were flying thick around her, bond.
Ing her body over TO shield II from danger by
the exposure " her own person, Luckily
she Bseaphj, and sltll lives, and Ia At present
residing ut alasgaw, but, viii It be selieVs
cd that she never Received the smallest token
Of appr0batfon ior her heroic conduct and The
service which ahn rendered on the Hteaainril'
This Il, Wa believe, tie trsl public Beeount
which wae gwen of Mrs. RestGh's hef0isti,
and was furnished by n comrade Of her hua.
band, the late Sergeant Dt1allspn 0fihs g4tb.
The circumstance which oeefsiened the nBra
fAtivc afiitfdH another Instance Of her Hbdauu-
ted disposition, A few years aftet the seige
NJ MAtaguraa, Sergeant DonaIds6h's regiment
WINS auattered At Kilkenny, IN lfeland. A
musician from q militia regiment had been
engaged by the officers 10 teach the band,
Though al excellent performer, lta WIS Of an
overbeafina temper A con Of Mrs, Rest0h
was unfortunately for himself, q member ef
The band; aud his application 10, and talents
ftr, music waa 40 great, that he appeared like
" th6aIdo hiR teacher, This reused the band,
masters jealousy; and rs tho discipline Of the
army demands the ~Htflftgat obedience TO i su4
perion so IT is tn the power Of a superior, II
he be- an uiamiable person, to tnfliGt theea.
aAnt torments upon those under hlBS eefnblain,
against which seldom produces redress.
|thislnanner young Reatnn's iio WIS rendered
scarcely endurable, and finally be deserted,
taking HE passage from Dublin ia Glasgow,
lila father had by this ttne retired on Il we'll.
earned pension, upon which he lived with he
wife IN the latter cay. The old sergeant, who
knew the necessity Of implicit obedience TO
military diaeiptiney could not pal late hia sons
dehertion; and the wife. NJ much a soldier IN
henri M her husband, urged the young mar.
as the only means of ]afoning fo' his fault, to
reioin bia regiment, To this The deserfer
consented. and he returned with hB mother
TO Kilkenny, ahs actually giving him uptohig
commanding officer. Young Reston wac, At
her earnaat intcrceesion, pardoned. and recon.
menced duty; 'but, " 10 use DnuaIdHou's own
words, 'the spirit ofthe oppre .sor wse In no
way altered--he took every opportunity OF
provoking him. Reaton'a feelings were keen
In 1.-The extremes but he suffered patiently fpF
length Of time, until 0ne morning, when the
regiment was going out 10 drill, provoked be.
yvnd measure by taunts and %lDeulta, he replied
IN terms that were construed into e0fnetiitg
resembling mutiny. This was immediately
reported by the fellow who had exaaperated
him the consequence was, that lie was tried
by a eourt. martial an the field, and punished.
He did not receive more Than twenty. five bash
az, when he tainted, and was taken down; biz
back was little hurt, but the sCourge had en-.
tered his soul-he never recovered ii.' He
earnestly e,rtreated his parents to procure bis
discharge, and they made The necessary APP
p]lIcation at head quarters; but on BENZ refer
red, il was resisted by the commander Of The
regiment. Seeing this, MIRA. Reeton-wtth
that energy Of chara cter which. when occa'
sion required she had always evinced-trav-
elled 10 London, and petittonad the Duke Of
York, at that time commander. in .chiei,- for
her sons discharge; urging her own services
Az a claim uponthe indulgence Of Il authori.
ties. The usual routine, however, could not
be departed from, the second petition was in
due course forwarded fof the consideration of
the. young mans colonel. was again resisted,
and finally refused At head.e 1arters, THUS
poor Mrs. Reston, having taken her hong Jour
ney 10 no purpose, returned to Glasgow with
her mission unfulfIled, What. is worse, her
snn--driyen to despair, and seeing no hope
of relief from the oppression To which he was
still subiected-agajl deserted, and has never
since been heard OF.
Upon the death Of her husband, Mrs. Res.
ton was le entirely destitute, bur hoped The
small pension he bad enjoyed lis. Tod. day
would have been continued to her, She .
piled to the Duke of York f " that purpose;
but again official forrnaIity stood in her way.
His ROYAL highness took an interest IN her
application. but was at len h Obliged to fe-
turn for answer that there was no fund out o.
which the desired pension could he paid Al
ter this, the poor. house would have been her
only resource for subsistence, had she not OBJ
tanned the situation which she now fills, and
for which her long and untewarded services
MS a military nurse SO well fitted her. In
spite. too, of Sergeant Donaldson's narrative
(which is corroborated and quoted in Colo
mel Napier's "~iIisrory ofthe Peninsular War"
Mrs. Restnn's claims TO sone reward for
her heroic services would not in all probabiIi-
~ have been revived, but feF the e~veF-watch-
fni y~in;iance Of the public press. An intelli-
on. earresnondent ofthe "(flasgow Citizen"
E some Of his occasional Wis : to the towns
hospital. accidentally had i'rs. Reston r,oin.
sod IN, 10 aim, and obtained fronr, ner own
Inns a narrative of her exploits at Matagoraa.
which he published r. tina, paperf for August
IL, aud winch Comedies exactly with Donald
sons account. An equally interesting notice
was put forth in the Times of September
5ti1. from d correspondent signing himself
aCivilis:-sNot very long since" he says,
"tbe writer of these lines happened. entering
| GLASGOW as a visitor, to be abruptly consigned
TO the doctors hands in a most serious illness
"a fever. Being a stranger at his hotel, a.
| mid strangers, o nurse was sent by has medl-