South Branch intelligencer. [volume] (Romney, Va. [W. Va.]) 1830-1896, 1866-05-25
The Ruined Church and
tho StI.nn.cr.

entered the great Valley Of Virginia
through Ashby'. Gap, on May morning
which rendered the scene inexpressibly love
Y. The Shenandoah g!iled away beneath
OH its banks, with murmur as soft and
sweet as the distant tinkling of silver bells ;
green fields extended on every side and in
the west rose the blue ramparts of the Mas.
snutton and Great North Mountains, as
beautiful and tranquil as some happy dream.
1t was hard to realize that war would ever
stamp his red hoof upon this Already, all
lovc'incss anlrcposc or that the day would
come when the threat of a Federal COM
mandcr would nearly be carried ent, that
"a crow flying over the region should be o.
blgcd to carry his own rations.'
And now as I enter upon new scenes Of
my memoirs, / beg leave to notify the kind
ly reader that shall cnlcavor hereafter to
entertain him with something more inter
csting than my private feelings. Why
should l infict upon that amablc parsonage
| a long and lachrymosc paragraph all about
the heavy heart which friend Of his bore
away from The Oaks"--or describe the
tragic ein otons of that unfortunate iniivil-
ual at the prospect of seeing his sweetheart
marry his rival? Alas. human life ia so
full Of these unlucky affairs, that think the
less we hear Of them the better.
am therefore obdu-atcly "rcsolvcd to
be gay and am rcsolutcly determined that,
if possible, not single wall Of anguish shall
be heard from the hero Of these memoirs
Is not life comedy, AMI the music lively :?
Reader mine [ who write have seen both
good and bad fortune in my time and it
has always seemed best to me ta bear the
first with modest, the latter with I cour-
agcous heart.
So VIC pass away now from those days
at "Thc Oaks" From the mast the long
strcamcrs wave farewell to the little bark
| that g'iJ&d scr"s, our Course, ""j has dis
appeared. Bon royngc' fair May Bcvcr-
ley, May the sea be smooth before you
You and 60 different ways.
Turing to the right at Bcrry's Ferry, |
passed 9'nansion pic,urcsqucly pcrchcd up
on a hiI with a background of woods, a
round To portico of which, remember.
some yong ladies were trailing a swcctLri-
or rose j full blossom. All this wis the
very oncste of war-and yet lived to
witncs4 hot fight upon that very lawn and
to sec tc spring grass dyed with blood.
My hrscs were fresh, and | expected to
reach &c ncighborhood of IIarpcrs Ferry
before hening, but, when in the vicinity
of Cbacstown, found the sky, which had
long b"n threatening, suddenly indicate
the aRoach of a storm. A huge bank Of
hlacl3loul, against which, from time to
> timcs vid flashes of lightning shonc, like
Il ctcrack in the dark mass, admonishcd
me qf,c wctting which awaited me unless
| fodi shelter; and very soon those hca-
yy DIS which arc the skirmishcrs thrown
out an advancing tempest, began to pat
ter ,cthc leaves.
}. Fkcd around for some shelter, but saw
.. no iisc anywhere. In clump Of trees,
hotcr, few hundred yards from the road,
ros he ruins of an old church and TO this
! Fcncd, dismouuting and taking refuge
wfn, just as the storm burst. The ruin
snlmost roohcss; but projection over
/. thItar-p'acc furnished some protection
the rain: and to this spot hurried.
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