Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1873-08-01
out Hilda HYDE

mother did not scold him for it, but Hllda
was one of those who had smile for every.
body, and nobody could tell whether
she preferred young Mr.. Gordon or Marti q
Great, the young man who was learning
the carpenter trade, and had been building
himself a little home by the bridge.
Chistie Gordon had left suddenly the day
before the fire. that terrible fire that Oldville
remembers to this day-burned down the
Gordon manson, and the little house belong
I ing to Hilda Hyde's mother, and the doctors
house, and indeed, half the village. It
was fire that is not forgotten now, be-
cause there was loss of life as well as
loss Of property. IF only Mrs. Gordon's
son had been at home. all might have been
saved for Mrs. Gordon and the servants
were SO bewildered ct the beginning that
they took no means to put out the fire, and
by the time help could get to them it was
too late It spread to the out-houses, then
to Mrs. Hyde's house she was i'll at the
time and the shock made her worse, and
they took her straight to the almshouse for
the night. But Hilda staid round to see
what she could do to help the Gordons -
There was Martin Great working harder
than any one. First he had helped the
Hydes, doing all be could then he tried to
make Hilda go to one Of the neighbors to
rest for this was in the middle of the
night
So when be found she was not leaving
the fire while he was working there, he set
her down on the broad stone fence little
way opposite, in full sight, and gave her a
bundle to hold, done up in bright-colored
handkerchief. This grandmother saw and
she remembers it SO plainly as one Of the
things that happened that terrible night,
and how Hilda's yellow hair was streaming
down her shoulder. But just then there
was crash and a scream, and some one
said Mrs. Gordon bad gone back into the
house to save an old picture she had thought
of, aud her daughters were for rushing
back into the flames after her But Mar
tin called to them not TO 60 He took
ladder and mounted it to one of the windows
in the room to which Madame Gordon was
going. And there wss Stiffness for a
while. and he vas seen to come to the win
dow, and then a burst of flames aud the
roof fell. and all was in blaze, and that
was the terrible end, for these two were
burned in the flames
Nobody paid any attention to Hide =
Martins mother was the first to be thought
Of. and Mrs. Gordon's poor daughters
But they vent away from the town direct
! ly; they could not stay in place so fall Of
sadness to them they joined their brother,
who was to sail, it seemed, for Europe, SO
they went with him.
But the pext Sunday Hilda was seen
coming up to the meeting. house, walking
slowly, with bundle in her hand, looking,
so grandmother says, like an old woman,
changed all at once from young girl
| And just at that moment some of the loun
gers on the publishing board said that Mar.
tin Great and Hilda Hyde proposed mar
rage And Hilda looked neither one way
or the other, but went to her old seat in the
Gordon's pew. and placed her bundle by
her side, and that she did every Sunday af-
forwards that she could get out. And so
everybody understood why it was that
Christie Gordon had goue away so sudden
ly, because Hilda had settled to marry her
poor lover rather than her rich one.
Iasked my grandmother many questions
about this Christie Gordon, whether he ev-
er came back, and what became Of him.
She thought be did return. but that he did
not stay. Hilda did not recognize him. or
no one knew whom she did recognize, or
what she was seeing through her large,
wide.open eyes
And there was Hilda Hyde still sitting
on Sunday in the Gordous' pew, when re-
turned after three years absence in the
war. for Reuben and L., Of course, Joined
the army. What day that was when our
on our way to camp. We could not find
Annette to say good.by to us when we
went over to her aunfs house. 'She says
bidding good-by is too sad" said her auot,
who had tears in her eyes.
But at the corner, just where we turned
to the station, there she was. with her
hands full Of yellow and white crocuses
II thought I would bring you some
thing" she said, and a bit Of sunlight
strayed over her yellow curls. and she tried
to give us sunny smile for the very last
I knew Reuben had been with her all the
evening before, but there was nothing DIFF
ferent in her parting with US two now.
We kept together in camp and out. Reu.
ben and and I tried to make him let
me take bis place on guard and on picket
duty I begged him, for Annette's sake.
He was hers. he was going to be hers
and he must take care of himself on her ae-
count. Ooce I did prevail with him and
[ got leave to take bis post as a night pick
O.. But | had shot in my arm, and after
that be would never let me serve fer him
But in the field [ could sometimes try to
shield him. Oh, how wish I had been
made taller He was so much taller than [
that he was fairer mark [ tried to expose
myself to be shot at, for thought the chan
ces were we would not both be killed, and |
could not bear that be should be the one.
I tried. to be where the bullet were, and get
by bis side, and I did get another wound
only slight one.
Then came those september days and
Antietam could not keep in front Of
Reuben, then. but we fell together I was
at bis side when the shot struck him, and
then too fell
But lived to come home-not he ]
have not seen her yet. They say she sits at
the window, looking for Reuben still.
And they told me the other day thai
Hilda Hyde was dead. So she has done
waiting for her lover. I was sorry they
opened the bundle. They might have bu
ried it with her. The key of the house he
had been building was in it, which, after
his death, his mother had always occupied
for Hlda had stayed at the aims house ever
since her mother had been taken there Her
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