Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1866-06-15
The skeleton in the Closet.
BY THOMAS DAnRAen HArE c. c.s.)

BY THOMAS DARRAGH (LATE {. C.S.)
I see that an old chum Of mine is publish
inc bits of confidential Confederate History
in Harper's Magazine. 1t would seem to be
time, then, TOR the pivots to be disclosed, on
which some of the wheelwork of the last six
wears has been moving. The science of his
tory. as 1 understand it, depends on the
timely disclosure of such pvots, which are
ant to be kept out of view, while things are
moving.
| was i'm the Civil Service at Richmond.
WHY | was there. or what did, is nobody's
affair. And do not in this feuilleton pro-
pose to tell how it happened, that was in
New York in October, 1864, on confidential
business. Enough that | was there, and
that it was honest business. That business
done. as far as it could be with the resources
entrusted to me- prepared to return home.
And hereby hangs this tale, and as it proved,
the fate of the Confederacy.
For, of course, | wanted to take presents
home to my family. Very little question
was there what these presents should be
for had no boys nor brothers. The wo-
men of the Confederacy had one want, which
overtopped all others. They could make
coffee out of beans pins they had from CO.
lumbus straw hats they braided quite well
with their own fair hands snuff we could
get better than you could in "thc old con-
Germ But we had no hoop-skirts-skele-
tons. we used to call them. No ingenuity
had made them No bOunties had forced
them. The Bat, the Greyhound, the Deer,
the Flora, the J. C. Cobb, the Varuna, and
the Fore-and-aft all took in cargoes of them
tor us in England. But the Bat and the
Deer and Flora were seized by the block
aders, the j. G. Cobb sunk at sea. the Fore
and-Aft and the Greyhound were set fire to
by their own crews, and the Varuna (our
Varuna) was never heard or linen the
State of Arkansas offered sixteen townships
of swamp land to the first manufacturer who
would exhibit five gross of Il home manniac-
tured article. But no one ever competed.
The first attempts indeed, were put to an
end, when Schotield crossed the Blue Lick,
and DESTROYED the dams on Yellow Branch.
The consequence was, that people s crinollne
collapsed faster than the Conlederacy did,
of which that brute of Il GriersOn said there
was never anything of it but the outside.
OF course, then put in the bottom of my
new large trunk in New York-not 'du-
pleX elliptic" for none were then made-but
"a 'Belmonte," of thirty springs, for my wife.
| bought it for her more common wear, a
good "Bclle-F -Fontane." For Sarah and Su-
sy each, I got two "Dumb-Belles.' For
Aunt Eunice and Aunt Clara, maiden sisters
of my wife's who lived with us after Win
chester fell the fourth time, got the "Scotch
IIare-bell," two of each. For my own moth
er got one Belle of the Prairies" and one
Invisible Combination Gossamer." l did
not forget good old Mamma Chloe and
Mamma Jane. For them got substantial
cages, without names. With these, tied in
the shapes of figure eights in the bottom OF
my trunk, as | said, | put in an assorted
cargo OF dry-goods above, and, favored by d
pass, and Major Mulford's courtesy on the
lag-ol-truce boat | arrived safely at Rich
mond before the Autumn closed
l was received at home with rapture. But
when, the next morning opened my stores
this became rapture doubly enraptured
Words cannot tell the silent delight witt
which old and young, black and white, sur
veyed these fairy-lke structures, yet un
broken and unmended
Perennial Summer reigned that Autumn
day in that reunited family. 1t reigned the
next day-and the next 1t would have
regned till now if the BclmOntes and tn,
other things would last as long us the ad
vertisements declare and, what is more
the Confederacy would have reigned til
now, President Davis and General Lee bu
for that great misery, which all families un
dcrstand, which eliminated in our grea
misfortune.
was up in the cedar closet one day, look
i ing for an old parade cap of mine, which
r thought, though it was my third best, nigh
look better than my second best, which
had worn ever since my best was lost ut tn
Seven Pines. l say | was standing on tn
lower shelf of the cedar closet, when, as
stepped along in the darkness, my right foo
d caught in bit of wire, my left did not Civ
way in time and | fell, with "A small woodel
hat-box in my hand, full on the floor. Th
corner of the hat-boX struck me just belo'
the second frontal sinus, aud / tainted away
When / came to myself was in the blu
ID chamber; had vinegar on brown pape
y on my forehead the room was dark, and
found mother sitting by me, glad enough ii
deed to hear my voice, and to know that
knew her 1t was some time before | full
" understood what had happened. Then sh
y brought me cup of tea and |, quite rC
freshed, said must go to the office.
"Onice, my child y said she. "Your lie
is broken above the ankle you will NJ
IN move these six weeks. Where do you SUI
pn pose you are 2"
n Till then / had no notion that it was fiN
minutes since l went into the closet. Whe
at she told me the time, five in the afternoon,
ne groaned IN the lowest depths For, in III
breast pocket in that innocent coat, which
could now see lying ON the window sea
'a were the duplicate dispatches to Mr., MasC
for which, late the night before, had g
the Secretary's signature. They were to 9
n. at ten that morning to Wilmington, by Il
Navy Departments special messenger.
had taken them to ensure care and certai
ty. | had worked on them till midnight ~
they had not been signed till near one o'clo,
in Heavens and earth, and here it was five
ltv clock The man must be half way to w
mington by this time. | sent the doctor
Lafarge, my clerk. Lafargc did his pret
est in rushing to the telegraph. Butno
freshet ON the Chowan River, or a raid
TT Foster, or something, or nothing, had smas
'" ed the telegraph wire for that night. A.