Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1866-07-19


spun. But know her deep poverty and her pa
thence and her honest pride and her industry. /
know that last week she was from Thursday to Sat
urday without morsel of food for herself or her
does me to put this ten dollar bill in her hand, and
say '' Mrs B, the ladies of Baltimore send
you this !" .ss 80
Our next visit is nearer the village, to another
log-cabin OF more comfortable appearance, Tor IL
has an Enclosure of half around it, and
there is promising little corn crop and some veg
etables The path to the door is shaded with
large lilac bushes and there is bordering of some
old fashioned flowers which were young, think, in
our erandmothers' day-bachelors' buttons, maid
in-the-mist, red and white pinks and sweet-wil-
liam, and here is promising jack-bean running
up by the door, Every square foot of this little
lot is carefully worked by the two widows who live
here-a mother and her daughter The old man
died during the war His only son and his son-in-
law had been killed in battle beforehand these
two women have struggled on together since as
they best could. This chubby, black-eyed little
boy is the soldiers orphan. The mother and
daughter come in from the corn patch, and well
come you with self-respecting manner which is
the best guarantee know for responsibility among
poor people. The soldiers widow is pale faced,
sad-looking young woman That settled heavy
cloud has never left her face for four years. AS
long as that black-eyed boy shall live he will have
something to be proud of in the story they tell of
of his fathers gallantry. 1t at the time of the
battle of Hanover Court House-the first of the
series of great battles round Richmond-the Cap
tain of his company was ordered to join flank
ing expedition with some twenty of his men,
When the other side of the Pamunkey they
found themselves surrounded and about to be ia
ken. The Captain and two of his men-one of
them this boys father-threw themselves into the
river and swan over and we're safe. But looking
back he saw his little command still standing
where he had left them-unable to- swim-and
helpless. He resolved to 60 back to them and
share their fate, and the two men who had accom-
>;oI b.. II, L
swan over the river again, and presently were Ia
ken prisoners. Eight ten months close con-
fnement broke the constitution of this young Off
Ger, and he returned home from Johnson's Island
with disease fastened on him which soon laid
him In the grave, and thither his fair young wife
and child have since followed him. Of the two pri-
Yates who preferred captivity to what they consid
cred desertion of their Captain and comrades, one
survived to fall at Gettysburg the other, this
boys father became very deaf in consequence of
his hasty plunge in the river after heated march,
But he rejoined his company upon his release from
prison and at the next great battle was reported
missing nor have any certain hdings of his fate
ever been received at home.
We will sit down and tell them about the Balti-
more Fair, and how the ladies started it, and
about the great cake, and the baby house, and
such wonders as they will appreciate. As we con.
clude, hand her share to the young widow, whose
eyes sufuse with tears she takes it and says in
her quiet, crushed manner "I'm very thankful,
tell them"
We must cross the village to our next call. and
in neat cabin fitted up with some attention to
convenience-for the husband was cabinet-ma-
ker in small wayne will find pretty, delicate,
bluo-eyed woman, who has just risen from long
illness. Her two oldest living children are twins
The baby is a stout fellow of eighteen months,
too stout for her to be carrying in her feeble
arms. Her mother is on low bed, sitting I'D at
her sewing For fifteen years she has not walked
atap But she is Industrious and cheerful and
mas is sensible, reliable countenance as one Of
ten Sees The father of these three little boys was
taken prisoner at Petersburgh and kept in Point
Lookout prison nearly year, and when the war
over and his wife was looking daily to see him
the news came by comrade that after long suffer
ing he had died in prison just at the time of our
surrender She takes her allotted share and says
quietly This will he great help" She lost a
husband, brother, and brather-in-law in the war.
We Will go down to her brothers widow whose
cabin is further in the woods few hundred yards
hence Here too are three children whose sole in
hertance is that their father did his duty by his
native State, and was blown to pieces by shell in
the second year of the great war. This widow has
a face which, when 1 knew her blooming girl
would have been called handsome anywhere, and
which still, though sun Drowned and toi-worn and
haggard for want of food, is prepossessing and in
terestlng. A bright, dark eye and frank, cheer
full address as properly belongs to all brunettes
and pair of hands which she says L" can turn to
almost any thing" She has not tasted meat for
more than month, and she says Of this ten dol
and I'll
full it is fortune to me-
1t is one characteristic of all QuT Southern poor
that no matter how humble their circumstances
you will always their beds neatly made up and
decent-looking. Here you see the inevitable va
lance IS made up of woven net work, and very
pretty too little piece of fringed netting covers
the top of the old bandbox and of the little pine
table [ like to see these slender adornments.
You very seldom see any attempt to raise flowers
They change. their homes too frequently to feel
any interest IN outdoor aesthetics. Very seldom
any of them remain in the same cabin two suc.
cessiye years. Tempted by the offer of dollar
OF two lower rent, OF as is often the case with a
soldiers widow, Of rent at ALL they are contin-
ual!y moving from one poor place to another,
Wh!ch Is surely great mistake for them and for
their landlords. The second house we entered in |
our round this morning is almost the only instance
L know in this neighborhood where the tenant has
for several years. And the result is an
parent in the shrubbery round the door and the
LOOK OF snugness and comfort that accompanies it.
in one respect suppose the cottages of our poor
differ now greatly from those of the correspondents
class at the North. There are no trophies of the
Warr-na portfaits-AQ plcturas The poor Con
Federacy sent forth no pictorias, no illustrations
no medals There was never any thing to paste
up on our bare walls that could give us an idea of
what was doing in our army, or how our Generals
looked, and there are no outside traces or memen-
toes TO be seen now among the common people of |
the great Government and Inc Aeree struggle of |
their bold leaders. The Southern Coincidence
came and went, leaving nothing but a. name Rnt
rev comparatively OF our bereaved mothers and
widows even possess lkenesses of those who died
tor there were no means for procuring them no
tauguerrean or photograph establishments in ex-
silence after the first year.
Here and there you may find Dixie primer
whose dingy nappr ana worn out-type and BRO
lnelal phrases would convince the outside world
hat the South took leap fifty years backward in
when she set up for herself, Then az