Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1864-07-15

a 0O1eAAOB 4SOOOOSs
Dear Madam. In r. soldier, and my speech y
I'm ncs Saeh iassti 70 writing. and 1hAte to give
Rut promis'd- that I'd do 1.-THE thought 1t
II it Sa@e rom Ss one who lovd him, perhaps
BY this time you must surely guess the truth
And youli pardon q rough sol dler's words, while
| tell You how he died. @sA
Twas the night before the battle. and in our
More than one brave boy was sobbing, and
many knee was bent, 80
For we Knew notlwhen the morrow, with its
many Sas seated there should its
Twas not 50 much for self they cared, for the
And It's always worse to think of than to hear
the lannon's BOOM f
| Twas then we left the crowded tent your SOL
dter boy and l.
And we both breathed freer standing under
I g-as more than ten years Older, but he seemed
And oftener than the younger ones he sought
He seemed to want to talk Of home, and those
he held most dear,
And though I'd none to talk of, yet always
30 then he told me on that night OF the time he
And how YOU sofely grieved for him, but would
And how his own fond hope had been that when
this war was through,
He might 20 back with honor, to his friends at
home and you;
He named his sisters, one by enc. and then a
While he told me OF another, but be did not
speak her name
AMI then he said, "Dear Robert, 1t may be that
shall fall
And viii YOU write to them at home how low
ed and spoke Of all?
So Ipromis'd. but / did not think the time would
The fight was just three days ago-he died to-
It seems so hard that one SO lov'd as he was
should be gone,
While should still be living here, VINO had 10
ItSwas in the morrow's battle, fast raind the
shot and shell,
He was fighting close beside me. and saw him
when he fell; -
so then took him in my srms and laid him on
Twas going against orders, but think they'll
Twas q minie ball that struck him, it entered
And they did not think it fatal till the morning
thai he died.
So when he found that he must go, he call'd me
And said. Yoaall not forget to write when you
And you'll tell them how I lov'd them, and bid
them all goodbye!
Say l tried to do the best could, and did not
fear TO die;
And underneath my pillow there. curl of
There's a name upon the paper-send it to my
mothers care.
" Last night wanted so to live. seemed 80
young to 60
Last week passed my birthday, was nine
When thought OF all I'd planned to do, 1t
seem'd so hard to die,
But then Prayd to to God for grace and my cares
And here his voice grew weaker, and he partly
And Whispered, "Good-bye, mother !,
your boy was dead!
I wrap'd his cloak around him, and we bore him
out tonight,
And laid him by a clump Of trees, where the
And we carved him out a head-board as skill
full as we could
II you should wisht to find it can tell you where
1t stood.
1 send you back his hymn book, and the cap he
used to wear;
And lock cut the night before. OF his bright.
curling hair.
1 send you back his Bible; the night before he
We turn'd its leaves together, as read it by his
I've kept the belt he always WORE he told me so
TODD;
1t has hole upon the side, tits where the ball
went through.
80 now I've done his bidding, there is nothing
more to tell,
But shall always mourn with You the boy we
invi so we'll