Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1874-11-05

said: Perhaps you are mistaken you
are charged with the highest crime
known to military law and 1t is your
duty to make known the causes that IN
fiuenced your actions" For the nrst
time his manly form trembled ana ms
blue eyes swan in tears. Approaching
the President of the court he presented
a letter, saving, as he did so, " There,
General, is what did it," opened the
letter, and in a moment my eyes fllled
with tears. 1t vas passed from one 10
another of the court until all had seen 1t,
and those stern warriors who had passed
with Stonewall Jackson through nun
dred battles wept like little children
Soon as / sufficiently recovered my sell
possession | read the letter as the de-
Tense of the prisoner. 1t was in these
words:
NV DEAR EpwARD-I have always been proud
of YOU, and since your connection with the Con
| federate army have been prouder of you than
| ever before. | would not have you do anything
| wrong for the world: but, before God. Edward,
| unless Won come home must diel Last night
| | was aroused by little Eddie's crying. called
| and said: Whats the matter ,Eddles' and he
| said: oh. mamma, I'm so hungry. and Lucy,
| Edward, your darling Lucy she never complains,
| but she is growing thinner and thinner every
day. And before God, Edward, unless sou come
| home we must dle. JOUR MARY.
Turning to the prisoner, l asked
"What did you do when you received
| this letter." He replied: q made APP
plication for furlough and it was re-
jected; again | made application and it
was rejected, and that night as | wan
dered backward and forward IN the
camp, thinking of my home, with the
mild eyes of Lucy ooking up to me, and
the burning words of Mary sinking in
my brain, was no longer the Confederate
soldier, but | was the father of Lucy and
the husband of Mary, and | would have
passed those lines if every gun in the
battery had fired upon me. went to my
home. Mary ran out to meet me, her
| angel arms embraced me, and she whis-
pered 20! Edward, | am SO happy! |
am so glad you got your furlough! She
must have felt me shudder, for she
turned pale as death, and catching her
breath at every word she said: Have
you come without your furlough: o.
Edward, Edward, go back! go back! Let
| me and my children go down together
| to the grave, but 0! for heavens sake,
save the honor of our namer And here
| am, gentlemen, not brought here by
| military power, but in obedience to the
command of Mary, to abide the sentence
| of your court"
Every officer of that courtmartial felt
| the force of the prisoners words Be
| fore them stood, in beatific vision the
eloquent pleader for husbands and a
fathers wrongs; but they had been
trained by their great leader, Robert f..
| Lee, to tread the path of duty though
the lightning's flash scorched the ground
| beneath their feet, and each in his turn
pronounced the verdict-guilty. For
| tunately for humanity, fortunately for
the Confederacy, the proceedings OF the
court were reviewed by the commanding
General, and upon the record was writ
| ten:
| HEADQUARTERS, A. n. V.-The finding of the
| court is approved. The prisoner is pardoned and
| Il. Il. LEE, General.
During the second battle of Cold Tar
Dor, when shot and ball were falling like
torrents from the mountain cloud" my
attention was directed to the fact that
one of our batteries was being silenced
| by the concentrated fire of the enemy.
When | reached the battery every gun
but one had been dlsmantled, and by 1t
stood solitary Confederate soldier,
with the blood streaming from his side.
AS he recognized me he elevated his
voice above the roar of the battle and
said: General, | have one shell left.
Tell me, have saved the honor of Mary
and Lucy?" / raised my hat. Once more
a Confederate shell went crashing through
the ranks of the enemy, and the hero
sank by his gun to rise no more.
|