Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1870-01-06
Faom Lippencot's Magaz
Murder Most Foul.

n
Forth from the smoke and carnage
and thunder of the tremendous third
day of Gettysburg, there staggered a
,bewildered fugitive, wounded, fe-
vered, and half blinded by pain and
blood. His faded, torn and tattered
clothing (once, perhaps, uniformly
was blood-stained here and there,
and his hatless forehead was marked
by bleeding cut. His left hand,
wrapped in bloody bandages, rested
in sling; and he limped as he went
with labored gait. He bore no
arms nor knapsack; these already
had been flung aside; and now, as
he pursued his way, he Invested
himself hurredly of all his accoutre-
ments, one after another, and cast
them impatiently to the ground. He
pushed on with unsteady yet rapid
strides, through bushes, over rocks
and fences, straight ahead, with his
lips compressed in silent agony. His
apparently wild and aimless fight
had carried him some miles from
the actual conflict (Which was not
yet decided), when his fast dimin-
ishing strength was shown in his
feebly-tottering steps and in the diff
ficulty with which he kept from
plunging headlong to the earth. AT
this moment he came in view of a
farmhouse and the sight stimulated
to renewed effort. Forward he
toiled, full Of fresh hope, when half
way between him and the goal OF
his exertions there arose a high,
broad stone wall. It seemed to him
insurmountable, and he groaned in
anguish. Nevertheless, he essayed
to Chamber over the obstacle. More
than once he fell back from the at.
tempt; but at length, as if with his
last expiring energies, he managed
to drag himself to the top of the
wall. Dizzily he looked about him,
as he thought to rest himself mo-
ment; but suddenly all grew blank,
and he became unconscious.
He fell fainting and insensible to
the inner side of the wall, with a
despairing cry for "Water!" He
had luckily fallen near spring.
house; and a startled girl, pail in
hand, heard his exclamation and
beheld his fall. She at once ap-
preached him, put water to his lips,
and washed the blood from his face.
She continued her ministrations until
animation began to return to the
seemingly lifeless form. He opened
his eyes and gazed at her. Smiling
family, he fondly murmured:
sIndiana!"
His fevered brain evidently mis-
took her for another. Closing his
eyes, he lapsed suddenly into deep
sleep. Taking advantage of this,
she hastily proceeded to the farm
house, whence she soon returned
with the old farmer and his wife.
Spreading blanket, they placed the
wounded soldier upon it and with
difficulty bore him to a bed.
"He is REBEL" said the old man.
"Buthc is fellow man," remarked
his wife. gr
Sand he is wounded-dying, per-
haps, far away from home and
friends" added the girl, who was
evidently the daughter of the aged
couple.
On the fourth day of July it was
known to all that Lee was beaten
and retreating. That General had
fallen back into Virginia when the
wounded soldier whose fortunes
we are following became aware that
he had been left behind in the ene-
my's country. He found himself
tenderly cared for in the house of
Mr.. Ordolf, plain but substantial
farmer, whose wife and daughter
were assiduous in their attentions to
the disabled Confederate. They
were mother and sister to him in his
forlorn conditions; and his grateful
affection for them grew day by day
as he experienced their disinterested
kindness. Towards Mary Ordolf,
the daughter, his feelings rapidly
grew to be Of a holier and more
tender character. What she was in
form and feature would have been
sufficient excuse for this; and then
her simple daily life, exhibited in
all its gentle purity before him and
in his behalf, was enough to subdue
the most obdurate of masculine
It did not take him long to
learn that his love was returned; and
before he became strong enough to
leave his room, he and his fair nurse
were engaged. Was it a baleful
conjunction, this Of the "loyal"
maiden and thef'rebel" lover? We
shall see. ~
AS soon as John Randall (which
was the young Confederate's name