Pomeroy weekly telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy, Meigs County, Ohio) 1860-1866, 1861-10-11
"Nellie, what troubles you?"

to live without Horace. Remember
dear, that he is man who must, es
pecially in a soldier life, be away from
home continually. You cannot follow
him from camp to camp"
I'D like to, auntie."
"No doubt, but
"Auntie, let's go to West Point
We can .oard somewhere near the
Academy. l never thought of it til
you mentioned following my brother" "
The color was flushing her cheek
the light dancing in her eyes, as they
had not done since the last convulsive
embrace she had given that brother.
"We can go. Say yes, auntie. Oh
it is like tearing the heart from the
bosom to part Horace and l.
For an hour she pleaded with me, and
then-for truly, [ pined for the boy.
too consented to go, and for the term
of Horace's studies at the military
school boarded at West Point. To say
that he was delighted to have his sister
near him would but feebly express his
Ipleasure. Every hour that could be
spared from his duties was spent al
home. Stories of the cadets, eagerly
listened to by both Nellie and myself
laughing drills of his sister filled many
an evening. Itwas pretty sight to see
that fair girl, tossing the curls from her
bright face, and donning Horaces cap
60 through the maneuvers with the
musket her little white hands could just
grasp She attended all the drills
where lady was admitted; she read all
Horaces books, and was the toast and
admiration of half the cadets and newly
made officers At the balls, where one
half the company laughingly called her
Corporal Curtis, her bright face, spark
ling wit, and animation both in dancing
and conversation, made her the belle OF
the room.
Five years glided away, and the law
yer wrote to resign his guardianship of
she young twins property. They were
man and woman now, yet, to me, child
ren, true, loving Children still. We
were at home, in the dear country
place, Lieutenant Horace Curtis, Cor
poral Nellie and I, when the war of
| Mexico was declared.
[ am not writing a history of the war,
so [ say nothing here Of the many re-
ports which Kept US in an anxious state
of suspense for several weeks. Finally
the blow fell; Horace was ordered to
join his regiment to sail for Mezico-
For months we bore the tortrre of the
home watching, and then We resolved to
! MoDion OF fau anl
far between; and, to speak, without ex-
aggeration, l feared that Nellie would
loose her reasen or die. All the cour-
ageous independence which character
lied her when near her brother deserted
her when he left US upon his mission Of
Danger. She became pale, listless, or
restless, as the news from the seat of war
excited or depressed her spirits. When
the account of battle reached US, the az
ony of suspense which she suffered uu-
til the list of wounded and dead followed
it, threatened to unthrone her reason.
1t was difficult to obtain permission to
embark, but we did at last, and arrived
in the month of February, 1917, at the
little village Of Buena Vista. Our jour
ney, from the time of our embarkation,
was full OF peril, though we were under
the escort of U. S. troops Gin fact we
Travelled as baggage,) but Nellie never
comp planned, never seemed frightened or
fatigued the one fact that every hour
brought them nearer to infuse new
spirit into every step. The old light
came into her eye, the bloom to her
cheek, the smile to her lip. One day a
friend in the regiment to which we Gas
baggage belonged, suggested to us that
we might find Horace wounded or dead.
''He is safe; safe and we'll, said Nell
lie, drawing her tall figure erect. "I
feel it; l should know if he suffered
He has been suffering that we We're apart,
but now he is we'll
We were lodged, on our arrival at
Buena Vista, in small house in the
village, and found that we were still with
the baggage of the army, of which a
great quantity was stationed here. We
knew that Horace was near US, with
Taylor's division, but we were in the
village nearly two weeks before he was
allowed to visit US. He came one day
with Lieutenant Boardman, and [ can
not forbear mentioning what this yonng
man told me.
"There has been" said he, "thc great
est change in Curtis within the last few
weeks. Brave as young lion, he has
been, since we have left home, silent. re-
served, and melancholy. His courage
was too we'll known, and since we have
been here too severely tested for any
one to attribute the change to cowardice;
but he, who was the life of the company,
seemed to have become perfectly mis-
anthropie in his sad reserve. The
change back to his old manner began
some weeks ago. His song was again
the merriest round the camp fire, his
Joke the wittiest, and from that day to
this he has been the Horace Curtis OF
West Point. Did he know you were
lcomipg"'
ono; we did not write"
t'But knew it, said Horace, looking
from Nellie to us. 81 knew Nellie must
come to me, and felthe drawing nearer
every day"
[ believed him. The twain love,
strengthened by their orphanhood, was
the one intense, concentrated passion OF
their lives.
"If you could stay tonight, only to-
night!' whispered Nellie, as she grasped
his hand for the farewell
II cannot; it is late now. At sun
down l am to relieve the guard at the
San Luis road; and the post is import
ant, and SO dangerous that it will be
eternal dishonor if l shirk it. My men
wait now. Good-by, darling, darling!
Never had his pet name for hel
sounded more swectly than on that af