Martinsburg gazette. [volume] (Martinsburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1833-1855, 1851-09-16
vol. Sc. NO. 40.
Il raaiE sToRx.

4
The followiag remarkable story has all the
interest Of romance yet II Is true. aud the
parties are still living
II was inthe memorable year Of 1914,
when the allied armies were concentrated
about Paris
A young lieutenant Of dragons was en-
gagged with .lfree or four Hungarians. who
after having received several smart strokes
from his sabre. managed to send ball into
lis shoulder, to pierce his chest with thrust
from lance, and to leave him for dead On the
bank Of tic river
On the opposite side Of tie stream, boat
man and lis daugtscr had been watching
this unequal aght With tears Of desperation
But what could m cid unarine1 man de. or
pretty child Of sixteen? However. the old
soldier for such the boatman was had no
sooner seen the officer fall from his horse
than he and his daughter rowcd most yigo-
r0psly for The other side
Then, when they had deposited the wouu-
ded man 10 their boat these worthy people
crossed the river aea;u but with faint hopes
Of reaching the military hospital in time.
"Yon have been very lady treated, my
boy. said the o:d gentleman to him "but
here am / who have gone further and como
home
The silence and The hxed attitude Of Lieu
tenant S.. showed the extreme agony
Of his pana, and the hardy boatman soon
discovered that The Hood which was gather
ing about the wound on lis LETT side would
shortly terminate his cxistabce lie turned
10 his Youthful daurltcr
Mary" he said. you have heard me tell
Of my brother; he died Of just such wound
as this here We'll now. had there only been
somebody by to snck tie hurt, Lis life would
have been saved
The boatmau then landed, and went TO
look for two or three soldiers to help him TO
carry the officer, leaving his daughter in
charge Of lin. The gill looked at the suf-
ferer for q second or two. What was her
emotion when she heard him sigh 50 deeply,
not that he was rcsigning lie in the first
flower Of his age, but that he should die
without mother kiss
MS mother my dear, dear mother said
he Il die without
Her woman's heart told her what hc
would have said, Her bosom heaved
with sympathy, and her eyes ran over.
T hen she rcmembercd what her father
said, she thought how her uncle life might
have been saved In an instant, quicker
than thought, she tore open the officers coat.
and tho generous girl recalled him to life with
her lips
Amid this holy occupation the sound Of
footsteps were heard, and the blnsbing hero
inc fed to the other end Of The boat. Judge
Of her fathers SURPRISE as he came up with
two soldiers when be saw Lieutenant S.
whom he expected to find dead, open his eyes
and ask for his delivcrer.
The boatman looked at the child and saw
it all, Tie poor girl came to him with Der
head bent down She was about to excuse
herself when the father, embracing her with
enthusiasm, raised her spirits and the officer
thanked her In these prophetic words
You have saved my life; ID belongs to
you"
After this she tended him, and became
his nurse; nothing would he take but from
her hand No wonder that with such nurse
he at length recovered. Mary was as pretty
as she was good,
Meanwhile Master Cupid. who is very 6u-
sy in such cases, gave him another wound.
and there was only one way to cure i.--so
very deep it was.
The boatman's daughter became Madame
Her husband is now. not simple Lieut.
but Lieutenant General aud tile boatmau's
daughter is as elegant and graceful lady
as any that you see at court