Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1862-01-17
dNurtester 9ailp Spp.
A Sad Story.


The following touching relation we extract
from private letter OF Lieut.. Col IIawIey.
dated Tybee Island, Dec. 29tb
Poor DOlph DO you know the Dolphs
that live near you! Well, their son, who be-
longs 10 Go ID got news that his wife, two
children, aud sister had all died OF diptheria.
How he cried. Poor fellow We con,forted
him all we could. spoke pI asantly to him
when we met, and hoped he was getting along
well. believe he heard the other day that
his mother was sick, 100. Somebody came to
the supper table last night aud called Tor tile
doctor to see crazy man, and soon after a
man said that Dulph wanted to see me.
Went to his tent. There were halt dozen of
is comrades there. One dim candle stuck
in a bottle, showed me the rifles stacked
arounl the center pole, the cartridge boxes,
bayOnets, and knapsacks. The ground was
covered with the splendid long moss they had
pulled from the live oaks. Doiph sat SQUAT
upon the ground, his face and hands very
duty, his fingers constantly picking some
thing, his body moving his head turning wild
ly from one side 10 the other his eyes
dreadfully swticd with weeping. "Eailo,
Doph, how are yout" And lie pcered up
wards my face. Colonel Hawle;," said
somebody. Yes" said lie, 'tllat is Colonel
HawIey," and he took my hand with tight
grip Colonel lla rey, look at my baby-my
poor sick baby" lie had "a little pile OF moss,
and on 1t lay his cdrfidge boz, carefully Gov
cred, and all but one edge OF it, with his blan-
ket. That was his BABY Aud he turned
the blanket down as tenderly as if the
cartridge box were delicate little baby. He
spoke Dr0keny and at Intervals, aud with a
quick but m0urnlul voice :-"Poor baby
both babies slck-sister sick land he pointed
to where he supposed they lay, poor baby
very sick. Give baby some water" Aud he
leaned on one elbow and affecti0nately held
leaf up to the cartridge box, as if the baby
would dink lie seemed TO consider INN
sell in his own home, and the family sick, but
living, and then he would say, Won't let me
go h0me-no-no- waiting a few sec.
ondsl no-no-won't let me go home his
hands constantly fdgetting over something.
Then he would consider them all dead, and
himself standing by their graves. Sister"
and lie laid his hand down on one side
"baby," hands down again TO mark each
grave; baby wiie--mother. Oh, yes, mother
as dead-won't lei me 90 home" | kept his
hand ten minutes and sat down by him. and
put my hand on his shoulder, and tried to
compel him TO listen. l told him his babies
We're happy and his mother was not d, atl-Gs
she y and if he would he good boy: and
sleep and get well, lie should go home
Mothers here and says she didn't get that
money. You didn't send it to her." 20, yes,
did, Dolph; here 5 the receipt Of the express
company. Shes got it now. You told me
to send it to my wife, right there at Colonel
F-'s, you know. She has got it bef re this
time" "Well-poor baby"-and he put
trees over their. graves, &c, &c. had to
work some time to get him to take some med.
icine-an opiate-buI ii had liIle Il feet. "Ive
built six forts" said he, "and mounted six
M upipU fn fuka dawn flat
to-moTow-thai one over thcre-Puaski,
mean." Four men Were going 10 watch with
hlm---( tile tears came into ali our eyes some.
times, think and told them TO move out
the lities aud bayOnets. lie caught them at
it, and shoued, "Let my rifle alone Give
me my rifle" And l let lin take it, seeing
it was not loaded, and lie went furiously to
work cleaning it. Finally he passed it 10 me
to "inspect." and l slipped it away.
think it is the most affecting case Of insan-
ity ever saw. couldn't make him believe
that we should send him home, but we shall
l don't know whether to have you tell his
folks or not. The men take us good care of
him as they eau. lie has sept but an hour
out OF the last twenty four, and is as ceaseless-
ly active as II canary bird hopping about in his
cage. lie sent for me agaih 10 day but he
could not c,ufne his attention to any thing
''Poor baby y is his principal remark, and he
still tends his cartridge box. "a soldiers lite
is always gay" the song says A sad story,
isn'l itt Call again on DnIph's mother Tell
her he will be well treated. We hope his in
sanity is caused partly by fever, and il we can
get him quietly sick with that, perhaps he will
come out all right. Ii not III see that he
goes straight to the insane Retreat at Hart
ford, aud with him money enough to keep him
a while.
1t was his comrades and friends who con
tributed the thirty two dollars he sent Lis
mother to pay The funeral expenses Of his whole
family.