The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1871-09-19

bling, young wife nestled with her babe
in the corner. The newspaper was read
aloud-Great battle-list of killed and
wounded. Col. C.'s name headed the
list. The shriek-the appalling shrek
that followed the announcement was heard
above the shrill whistle Of the engine.
And passengers, some in idle curiosity
and some with fearful plying eyes looked
back But the poor young widow and
babe too young to know its loss we're ta-
ken to their desolate home And the cars
rolled on and time rolled on. Burrows
were added to my mothers pale brow, and
grey hairs were plentifully sprinkled in
her locks. A few months of sorrow had
removed all traces of spirit and youthful
ness. She was now broken hearted wo-
man. A Rachel weeping for her chill
dren The bloody battle of Gettysburg
was fought. 10 that awful carnival Of
human blood my brother, Lieut.. s., was
killed. Events were now crowding so
rapidly that mon had ceased to be sur.
prised. Death was common thing. None
regarded it but the mourner. We felt
the privations of war, the lack of sugar,
tea and coffee, but not much, l mean my
family, We were wealthy and could buy
even when calico had reached the fabu.
lous price of one hundred dollars yard,
and sugar fifty dollars pound. Every
substitute imaginable was found for cof-
fee. That was deemed an article that
could be dispensed with, SO we had the
sugar. Meal was parched and boiled in
the coffee pot and the decoction then call
ed coffee. Wheat was parched and ground
and went through the like process and
then dignifed by the name of coffee But
the best substitute ever knew was sweet
potatoes, cut and dried, and then parched
and ground. l could write you if l had
space many interesting things of this sort.
The greatest ladies in the land were
clothed in homespun, and some of them
we're really pretty. Hats were made of
wheat straw for gentlemen and ladies,
dyed with the common bark from our
woods, and grotesque sight they would
now be, l imagine, a church full of hats
made and dressed according to the taste
and fancy Of each individual. We drew
our monthly rations of salt for three years
Every head Of a household was sworn be.
fore r magistrate before this precious ar
ticle was delivered to him. Sworn as
to tho number of his family, and woe be
unto you if you were wasteful oft. You
were then forcibly reminded of passage
in the Bible, "If salt hath lost its SAVIOUR
wherewith will ye season."
Salt was not to be had for money, it be-
came priceless article. Many dug up
the smoke house floors and boiled tho dirt
down, obtaining by this process dirty
substance, nauseating now to think Of
Early in the spring of ga Clusters raid
came on through this immediate neigh.
borhood, and up the Richmond and Dan.
vile Railroad ; it carried off every horse
and destroyed everything generally, grain
of every description was taken, whole
families were left in a state of utter de-
destitution. 1t was now first become in
itated in the sickening details of poverty.
Everything was taken from me,my house
was spared mo and that was all. In the
interval though, between this and the SUR
render We partially recovered, had bought
some old broken down army horses aud
fattened them up, and though poor, very
poor, living and every body working.
The negroes during all this dreadful and
indescribable war, desolation and confus-
ion, remained, with few exceptions, true
and faithful. In the fall of GA my bro.
ther, Capt. S. was brought homo wound.
ed, and remained in my mothers house,
his leg in wooden box, fat on his back,
in bed for two years. We were now a
very poor people, the winter Of "a was
unusually severe, the frequent raids had
destroyed all crops. Virginia was indeed
land of mourning and sorrow. she was
being prepared for the final desolation
which overlook her. On the fourth day of
April 1865, Richmond was burnt and
evacuated, the telegraphic lines were cut,
the railroads were torn up, and We were
thrown into the enemies line; oh! then
came the grand climax Of ruin and desol-
ation No one stirred from their houses
The nearest neighbors knew not if you
were dead or alive.
Occasionally bright fame and heavy
smoke would bring you the sad news that
some one was houseless. My mothers
house was taken for hospital, none but
her wounded son and his wife with her
had been compelled to return home to
protect, by my feeble presence, my pro.
perty. Her other sons, now reduced to
the number of three sound men,were with
our Gen. Lee, all around her was fight.
ing, slowl y she saw the wounded and dy-
ing brought in; in some portions of her
house there were dead aud dying, and in
other portions some of the low, rude, sol.
diers, such as are to be found in every
} army, were pifering and riAing. My
wounded brother was prisoner in the
hands of the enemy. He had fought them
many q day. and faced them strong and
able, now he was wounded and helpless
and in their hands. A fortunate cir
: cumstance though, saved him, from all
harm. He asked his wife to seek some of
ficer and beg guard His wife was q
, feeble, delicate. woman and she timidly ap.
preached an officer and was about to ask
for guard but words failed her, sheiainted
and the officer caught her in his arms and
bore her into the first open room he saw,
which happened to be my poor brothers
room. He was so wounded that he could
only lift his head from the bed. He
looked up as the officer paused and said,
, This lady has tainted" "She is my
, wife," said my brother. "bring her here. "
Tenderly the officer obeyed him. That of.
} fcer was Sheridan himself, and he gave
my brother guard, and promised him he
should not be moved, which in his case
, would have been certain death. At last
: the bloody drama was over. Gen. Lee
surrendered; my living brothers returned