Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1867-01-08

had let daylight into me, and had pretty nigh
made up my mind to get transportation ticket
to kingdom come.
Young MiIdew paid much attention to the
stories Of Muckton; he thought him charac-
ter-uuite original and frequently limited that
he intended making him the hero of poem or
| a sensation drama.
''Muckton, . said he one day, addressing the
trooper, II wish | had your nerve"
"Wall boy-yer kin have it, if yer only make
| up your mind not to care chaw tobacco for
| anything or anybody" was the reply Of the
hardy uplander
''That, should say, might constitute indie
pendence. not courage. [ feel conscious that |
never was cut out for soldier [ have been
| in two actions aud behaved pretty WE'LL at least,
they told me SO, but it was not courage that i'm
PEELED me on, it was cowardice that drove me
| to desperation and pushed ahead with the
crowd for fear that some of the veterans would
| say [ was a coward. A rat is the veriest COW
ard in the world but, pen him in corner, and
| he will attack you with the courage of lion.-
| It is my opinion that very few Of our young
soldiers go into battle with a calm pulse
Il don't know about that, replied Ben,
'sbut am sartain sure that I never felt any
aguey fit when the word was given to charge.
Let her rip says If I'm kilt, do as much
damage as kin afore die
Eyes, no doubt rejoined the sentimental
hero, that's all well enough for you, who put
so little value On your own life that you con-
| slider that of the enemy much below par in the
| stock market of humanity. Now, feel some
compunctions of conscience when L am about
| splitting open the head of fellow creature,
| though he be an enemy. At the battle Of Ma
nassas | had fellow completely in my power,
he was PROSTATE and my pistol was at his fore
! head, but he begged so hard for his wife and
children that passed him by. | had no soon
er turned my back on him than he blazed away
at me with his musket, and came very near
hurting me. -
"Jist like en- said Ben, supplying his ca
pacious jaws with new quid, more fool you
known that he would ha took your life if he
could. It was his business to do it-he was
paid for it. You talk about conscience and all
that sort o thing upon the field o war; Why,
| boy, conscience has nothin' to do with war-it
will do very we'll when religion S concerned, but
as Jack Spear says-"Conscience avaunt ~
when man has got to defend himself. alters
vally my life equal to ten Of the enemy's, and
| do my best to kill ten men afore | gin in
| There's no back out in scrimmage 'twixt them
that is ightin for plunder and them that is
fghtin' for home. -
Mdew made no reply; he seemed to be
=
fearless Georgian. The question with him was
whether he could ever distinguish himself as a
| soldier while his nature was so much lmbued
| with the milk of human kindness. He would
turn aside from the humble worm, rather than
| crush it with his foot; and the softness of his
nature caused him to believe that every one felt
and thought precisely the same as he did. His
| gentleness-his horror for scenes Of blood and
| rapine, made him believe that he was brave In
| endeavoring to shelter himself from reproach
He was anything but ood-thirsty, yet, in Or
| der that he might preserve good name, he
did that which was opposite to his inclinations
| One day, while Mildew and myself were re-
| clining under the ample boughs of majestic
| oak, he remarked to me with a melancholy
smile, that he had q presentiment that he was
| not long for this world-that the next encoun-
| ter we had with the enemy would be his last eff
| fort in the cause Of his struggling State, Lou
isiana.
What have to live for?'' asked he, with
half smothered sigh ''AIy beautiful home
in Louisiana is in ruins, my parents are suffer
ing under the tight laws Of the usurpers, and
the girl love is worse, perhaps, than L dare
she; but, it is foolish for me to talk Of her-I
know you will laugh at me.
| l assured him that it was far from my incl
nation to turn his affiictions into ridicule; ON
the contrary, | felt a comrades sympathy for
| him, and would willingly share in his sorrows,
| were he but to reveal them to me-
After all, said he, lit is pleasant in this
monotonous camp-life, to know that there is
one to whom we can unbosom ourselves-one
| whom we can call by the tender name of friend.
! L am, | may say, soldier of fortune now. Pa
| triotism was not the only incentive thatinduced
me to volunteer in a profession which is so ut
| tppIu tn at1Ira | hou Oot
registered in my heart to avenge the wrongs in
f1icted On my family by the hirelings that were
let loose over my native State by the Northern
government. | was away from home when a
raiding party Of Hessian thieves visited our
| plantation. My eyes were spared the scene of
agony and despair that was enacted at the old
homestead the sacking and burning of the
house, the indignities offered my aged mother,
the violence to my fair cousin Viola, and the
blows given my infrm father because he would
not fall down and kiss the folds of the Stars and
| the United States. | returned to the scene of
desolation when the spoilers had gone. l saw
the place Of my birth heap Of blackened ruins,
the servants wandering away or stolen, the
fields laid waste, and my father and mother liv-
ing on the bounty of neighbor! Viola, my
first and only love had been borne away by the
ruthless foe. | Wept over the ruins OF my home
and happiness, and swore-though feeble my
arm, and faint nay heart, to seek ample ven
geance on the invaders Had [ the nerve of
Muckton, [ might, ere this, have cancelled
my oath--l might have written "retribution"
In characters OF blood upon the carcasses Of the
invaders; but | am weak and tender hearted.
God give me strength and a steeled heart,
that may carry out my determination u
Here he grit his teeth and clenched his fist
as If he were graphing with the enemy Be
coming more calm, he continued speaking as if
communing with himself. How [ love the
memory of that girl Lovely and pure as the
SHOWS of Zembla-trusting and unknown to de-
ceit; thing to be worshipped with all the fer
vor of a soul swelling up to idolitry Where
is she? Could ! but know that she was safe,
| would be comparatively happy. Here is her
likeness" continued he, taking Photographic
portrait from his bosom, and holding it up to
me to inspect. .'Look-you may judge for
yourself"
took long look at the miniature The
features were beautifully bland and the outlines
regular. Long tresses of jetty hair hung over
her finely moulded shoulders, contrasting strong
ly with the melancholy paleness Of her express
sive face.
''What do you think other features?" asked
he.
''Charming!' exclaimed [.
''Her personal beauty is nothing when COM
pared with her polished intellect and generous
heart Oh, if only knew that she was in
safety This livelong suspense is horrible.
Here he drew from his pocket solled and
edge-worn piece Of. folded paper, which he care
|