Dallas herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1849-1873, 1869-11-06
An Enoeh Arden n-sinsuiars,or, /

~
or TIIE BATTLE or cnlcKAAAudA,
From the St, Louis Republican, Oct, 2iIh
A gentleman who witnessed III,
play Of Enoch Arden at DoBar'i
Opera House, relates u circumstance
very similar in its details 10 III,
story Of the east,away sailor. Va
give the statement in his own
words;
THAT play recalls TO my mind Il
circumstance happening in my own
experience. A sergeant in my regl-
mcnt was wounded ut Chickamau'
ca, aud reported dead, lic was seen
to fall in tho heat of tho engagement
and our lines pushed back, tho body
was not recovered until next day,
When tho poor fellow was found he
was so mutilatcd by being tramplcd
on by the cavalry that his face could
not DO recognized, Acomradc, how
ever, found in his breast pocket q
miniature of his wifc, and sent IL to
her, with an account of his death
1t turned out that tho body was not
that ofTom G, but scrgcan,
of another company. Tom, dcsper,
ately wounded, fell into tho hands
of the enemy, and was sent to An
dcrsonvillo, where the rebel surgeon
cut OF ono of his arms and ono OF
his legs, and, in spite Of bad fare, he
recovered in duo time. never
knew why they kept Tom so long
in prison, except it was for tho pur'
ofexchanging him for sound man
When poor Tom returned to his
home in Pennsylvania, he was n
nero wreck of his former self, and
nobody in the village knew him
His wife had removed to Illinois
moro than n year previously. With
out making himself known to any
of his old acquaintanccs in the vii
lago, Tom started to Illinois to hunt
his wife. When he arrived in tho
ncighborhood where sho was living,
he learned that sho was married.to
an old friend of his, who had follow,
cd her from Pennsylvania. His
first impulse was to mako himself
known to her, and claim her rs his
own; but when he saw the snug cab
in in which she was living, and
heard how kindly she was treated
by her husband, he changed his
mind. Suppose l 20 and claim
her, he said to himself, 'how can !
support her with only one arm and
ono leg, and a body weakened by
months of suffering at Anderson
vile? No; she is happy and con
tented, and thinks mo dead, and |
will not destroy her happiness and
become burden to her.
Tom acted upon resolution, and
worked his way to New York, where
he set up small business rs a curb
stono merchant, selling nuts, and
getting along prosperously. lie
soon mado money enough to buy
him an artificial leg, and after awhile
lie got n patent arm made, and to
soc him walking along the street,
you would not suppose that he vas
but littlo moro than half q man.--
He was good business man, and
in the course of year enlarged his
stock in trade and opened a regular
retail grocery. He made money
fast, and became prosperous mer-
chant, respected by all who knew
him.
In his prosperity, he never forgot
Ills wife, and always cherished a
hopo that shc world bo restored to
him. lie was regular subscriber
Of the village paper published ut th'e
town near which she lived, and read
it with great interest. One day he
saw in this paper the announcement
Of the death Of the man who had
his wife. IIo lost no time
in starting for Illinois. 1Io found
his vito in deep mourning for her
fate husband, and she had added an
other infantile link to the family
circle. Tom mado himsclfkno to
her, and was rcjoiced 10 find that she
still loved him AS fondIy as ever.
1t was some timo before he could
convince her that he was not q
ghost returned from the other world.
In order TO make things sure, the
parson was called in, and Tom and
his wife were married over again.
They went to New York, where
they are still. living, as you will
find in Gotham. They live in a
brown stone front, and tho family,
whom l saw them, wcrc preparing
TO add another little link to its cir
Gle. OF course, they do not tell
everybody about their family mat
lers, but you can rely on this story
us strictly truo. The ending is rath.
or better than that of Enoch Arden,
and l think Adams would do q good
thing if he would depart from the
version of Tennyson, and in the
last act get Philip Ray ground up
in his own Enthusiastically, of
course-make poor Enoch step in
and enjoy the wife and the fortune
left behind.
What about the picture of Toms
wife, found in the pocket of the dead
soldier?
Oh, / forgot about that. Tom
says when he was wounded and left
upon the field a straggler came
along, and he stopped him. Sup
posing he would bleed to death, he
gave the picture to the straggler,
with a message for his wife. The
rebel cavalry made a charge soon
nfter, and killed the straggler, with
The picture of Toms wife in his bo-
som, and carried Tom off 10 Ander-
That accounts for the pic
lure being foHad and causing every
body TO believe that Tom was kill
ID" g ~ slrg el 90 aa'rl1,