The Republican journal., 1871-02-02

grounds. The ceremony over, the corporal
proceeded to post the ''first relief" and eacl
man, as he resigned his charge and "fell in
at the rear, asked eagerly for the news.
Nine-and-a-half o'clock-the bugle sound
ed ''boots and spurs.''
There were no more questions. From the
mere force Of habit, the men obeyed the sum
mons; and by ten o'clock the whole division
was in motion, Silently, sullenly, the troops
moved away from the camp, down the mair
road; and, one brigade after another, regi
ment by regiment, were formed in hollow
square around large vacant sugar field ad
joining the town. The general and staff
passed through the line, moved forward te
the centre OF the square, and, being drawn
up in line. awaited the appearance of the
solemn cortege:
Slowly down the road from the guard
house it came, entered the square and
marched along the inward facing lines OF
troops, entirely around the open space-the
guard, the firing party with arms reversed,
the wagon drawn by four large horses, with
their sad faced driver seated above; and in
the wagon, with their arms pinioned behind
them, each ON his coffin, facing the rear,
rode two men, and took their last leave OF
their comrades.
This second man was a private from the
fourth cavalry, and was tried and condemned
by the same court as the sergeant, for deser-
tion-the third or fourth offence He had
been vagabond and criminal before he
became soldier; and never having been a
patriot, he was q character from the first,
and was paying the Just penalty of his
crimes, without even the pity and commits
Grafton Of his own messmates.
The sunshine; the cloudless sky; the
songs of birds the graceful swaying of the
long festoons Of Spanish moss in the near
woods; the shallow, murkey river Fastening
away to the Gulf; the dreary old tumble
down village behind It's dilapidated levee
the long-haired, swarthy, iii clad remnants
OF the late confederate army gathered at the
street corners; the distrustful, impoverished
citizen moving about disconsolately the
debris OF two armies scattered in every di-
rcction; the outlying, devastated sugar
plantations covered with camps, and this one
the scene of an imposing military execution
these were the obvious details of never to-
be-forgotten picture. Down into the hearts
OF five thousand men it photographed
by the indelble and impalpable chemicals of
the mind, there to remain forever They
glng at all their heart-strings, as if they
strove to chain them with their sympathies,
and forever hold them back from the end of
that sorrowful journey.
At last the procession reached the place of
entering, filed out into the field, and halted
a short distance from the general and staff.
The men were assisted down from the wagon
and seated upon their cotfins at the foot of
their graves Eight men with pallid faces,
halted in line few PAGES before them, and
exchanged their carbines for those specially
loaded for the occasion by the provost mar
shall, who had charge of all the arrange
ments. He had loaded seven of them with
ball, but the eighth with blank cartridge.
leaving the men in merciful uncertainty, al
lowing each to think that perhaps his was the
shot.
There was no more delay. Everything
was done quickly, and with the utmost pre-
cision.
The provost marshal read his warrant for
the execution, drew the fatal caps over the
eyes OF the prisoners, stepped back a little,
and, in the midst of the most awful silence,
"Attention Ready ~
The clicking of those eight locks was hor-
rible. The victims stirred a little. as if it
were involuntarily. The air seemed sitting.
The calm monotonous regularity of the COM
mands was eXcruciating. The apparently
heartless and business-lke manner of the
marshal was maddening
Instantly he slipped to the side of the SER
geant, and lightly pulling his sleeve, led him
a few steps aside; then, before the action
could be fully realized, commanded:
''Aim-Fire!'' y
There was crashing blast-a cloud of
smoke-a dull, heavy ''thud," as the soldier
fell back dead on his coffin, and the sergeant
fell limp and motionless into the arms Of the
who stopped down upon one knee
to set him on the other, and pulling off the
black cap, nursed him back to life and con
sciousness.
There was murmur of grateful applause
along the whole line The general had not
been intimidated, and yet had granted the
prayer Of his men. He had punished the
sergeant severely and yet been merciful to
them both; he had spared the life of one,
though sentenced, and kept a knowledge of
it from the other, though shot.
We didn't know, then, that the second
cavalry went out to the execution with load
ed carbines, and forty rounds in their car
fridge boxes; if we had, we might not have
felt quite at easc-but it could have made
llO OuuCI QlIICrcnCC.
ANOTHER NEW TRICK-The New York
Commercial says: On Tuesday we'll dress
ed, elderly, and gentlemanly-appearing per-
son called at the .jewelry store of Mr.. Hen
trifling articles, for which he paid. He then
looked at several other articles of jewelry,
md made a pretty deliberate examination,
during which time he went frequently to the
door and cried ''Whoa ~ to a horse attached
to a buggy wagon in front of the store. AZ
ter great deal of bantering in regard to a
handsome set of jewelry and valuable dia-
mond ring, he closed the trade, and they
were put up in parcel. He drew from his
pocket handsome Turkey morocco wallet,
which he opened, and its appearance indlcat-
ed that it was well-filled with greenbacks.
He had placed the parcel of jewelry and the
ring in his pocket, and was a,out
to draw out the bills from his wallet when he
imagined he heard his horse moving, and
started for the door, crying, ''Whoa! whoa "
leaving his wallet on the showcase. Suppos-
ing as matter of course that he had gone to
look after his horse, no curiosity was excited
Finally it occurred to the clerk that his Gus
toner was a long time in returning. He
went to the door, and on looking up and
down the avenue could see nothing OF him.
Consoling himself that the well-filled pocket
book was there he opened it, and to his con-
sternation found the contents to be worthless
bills. The property stolen was valued at
1925.
Probably the highest rate of speed ever at
tanned in locomotion has been by iceboats,
before the wind with cloud of
canvass over smooth cxpanse Of ice. Up