Cleveland daily leader. [volume] ([Cleveland, Ohio]) 1865-1873, 1865-12-16

H.
HYou never were detailed to shoot a de-
serter, were you?-7 NOT Well, 1 was,
once, and III tell you about it. Its q
strange story-and a sad one, some of it,
too but no matter. 1t kind of does me
good to tell IT, sometimes. Hand me the
canteen, Bill. Ali that's none. of. your
commissary whiskyF Nowforit."
r"Hold-on, sergeant here comes tho Lieus
t~enantIh
4.He's weIeome," said Sergeant JdRes,
pleasantly. There's a stiff horn or two
left in the
Lieutenant Beadk arrival created but a
~momentary diversion He took theoffered
horn" and it being a holiday, protested
himself DESTROYS of hearing his sergeant,s
story. ..
Jpkes, therefore, took up his "moTing
tale as follows, SO far, at least, as the sub
stance of the narrative is concerned, for
the writer transcribes from memory, and can
not pretend to give the sergeant peculiar
"styie of expression very accurately:
"One day" he began, 81 was corporal
in the Independents then, and you were
with the Sharpshooters, Lieutenant-welL,
one dav, when I was hawking round
among the pickets, a couple ofchaps came
sneaking over from the rebs, and said they
were deserters, and anxious to Join our
side, We were pretty shy of hat sort of
folks for between a desertsr and q spy
there often amt as big a step as the poet
says there is between the sublime and the
ridiculous, However, we marched them
to quarters and after going through the
usual examinations and aoaths, they were
listed into our squadron Of scouts. They
were two as unlike fellows as you could
scare up in the same family, for they were
brothers, at all events, they said they were
though from what pRssed-but thatll come
bym BY. Well, one of 'em-the Oldest
was a tall, big-boned, dark-faced chap, with
a wicked eye, and q scar across his nose
from a bowie-knife. I guess he was about
twenty-five. But the other wasn't more
than nineteen or twenty, and as pretty a /
youth as you'd care to see-pretty as a
young girl. He had long, dark hair,
smooth soft cheeks, clear large eyes, with
a kind Of shining water in enn, as if they
were foatng-like In his head. de WASN'T \
near as tall as his brother, and quite slen-
der, and he didn't seem to have any signs
of beard, axeept just q sort of shadow on
his upper lip, not half as much as I've
seen on a Spanish girl many q time. His
name was Ned Kenton, and his brothers |
was George, though the names are of on
consequences TO the story. George wasia
first rate trooper, 8 hard rider, and Is
brave as they make EN-, and he seemed to
hate his former friends, the rebs, like the
devil. Ned was a good rider too, and
brave enough but he he didn't seem TO
have much heart in his work, and would
hang back like, until his brother. spnrred
HIM on by some things he. would say to
him, though what they were 1 never could
hear. ~ q" sA ~t"A gel
HfWen 1 soon got to like Ned strangely.
I say strangely for the fellow didn't let
himself out to me nor to any n else, but
was a sort Of silent and melancholy sort of
q chap, and once 1 caught him crying like |
q baby. And yet in spite of all this, l
got 10 like him amazingly, and used often
TO choose him to go with me when I was
off on some special scouting ar
for he knew all the highways
and byways about that part of the coun-
try IS well IS if he had engineered EN-. I
too, l might pump something out
of him about himself and his big brother
what made 'em desert and so forth;
but for a long time l couldn't get a show. |
FINALLY, one day we were out, Ned and
with a squad, looking up some refugees
and lc~ontrabands, when we stopped at d
house to water and feed, The folks,
if there were any, had left in a hurry.
There was nobody hut an, old half-blind
md wholedeaf black woman left in the
.o-a.
"Come. in says Il to Ned, after the dis
-----,A - HHTH HH 4
"rd rather not, says he, unless you or
Ter it. .Gz1AS2 CHh Eh].
"ph, says I, it's not an order !; you can
stand at ease outside il you like, says [
angling, andI went into the house. But
couldn't help wondering to myself what
the reason Ned would MT come in, for Z
{ was cold as blazes outside, and drilling
boot I found the old darkey -eaddled
lp in the chimneY-place. 49, 4
" Wherels.your master? ssysI. s.-ll
De ole lwomanfs deaf, says she
Where's your master 2. says in aroar.
"Lori Msssa's dead, an Missus .dene,Fl
zone way wild de children las night. ..gi.r
a What's yeur mistress name Lyells. ID
dHBress your soul, honey, 1 amt, SO. done /.
dat 1 hear you widout such yellin.'
names Missus Kenton-dere.
"Hoi hef says I to myself seeing q
freak of light on Neds subject q
@Howmany children has shield asksr,t
HWeT, den, says the old woman crosby,
clare you sojers is mighty inquisitive, IS
US like de Tankees-TtyE4
"Come, old ladI,4 shouts, answer me
low msny children
"Well, den, eff you mus know, dere's
Hiss 'Tiida; but she's gone way long sgoyfl
DOR chile, poor chilel She shook her +.
head awhile, and than resumed:
"An' derefs Miss Grace an little missy
lfs Study, dey'm away Yldde missus land
Iatis all, Massa sojer. -V.,-~
- AM The girls. Now, how many 6oysE
HI thoneyr Aiss1s nebber had any
,oys, as I know'd on. What put de boys q
a your head Massa- Sojer7 :
"No boys 1 was all in the dark again i
ut an idea struck me. rs q TTTT9T I'd
Your master had brothers, then, i supe /
Iose; come, wake up and tell me about
I
= Sartin, massa, had brudders. Two, /
zee of 'em. But they m done gone to'dSfi
1ar long ago. We bainlt seed muffin ebf i
"a dis VaaF. I reckon. s