Huntington advertiser. [volume] (Huntington, W. Va.) 1874-1921, 1875-08-05
Miscellaneous.
And That's the Way he Felt.

And That's the way he Felt
He had a wooden leg, three fingers
were gone from the left hand, and he
had to use crutch. In the dusk of
evening he sat down on dry-goods
box on the street corner, and striking
the ground with his crutch, he ex-
claimed:
"Well old pard, the wars over
Gimme your hand-shake hardl
He shook the crutch with hearty
good will, and continued:
"There's no more reb-no more
Yank! We're all Americans, and
standing shoulder to shoulder-South
Carolina alongside Massachusetts,
we can lick the boots off'n ally nation
under the SUM-"
He waited awhile, and then went
on:
"No more skirmishcs-no more
fouts Uncle Robert is dead, Cen
eral Grant wants peace, and they're
melting up swords and bayonets to
make cotton-mill machinery! We're
about through camping out, old pard'
and we hain't sorry-@t a bit"
He leaned the crutch gainst the
box, lifted his wooden leg, and said
Lost leg up at Fredericksburg,
when | was under Barksdale, and
Burnside thought he could whip old
Uncle Robert and Stonewall jackson
togetherl Good Lord! but wasn't
it hot that day, when the Yanks laid
their pontoons and got up and got for
us! And when we got up and got
for them, wasn't tired hot!'
lie stopped to ponder for awhile,
aad his voice was softer as he SAID
But / forgive 'eml | took the
chances, and lost. I'm reaching out
now to shake hands with the Iank
who shot me, and III divide my to-
bacco haE-and-half with him 1t was
a big war. Yank and reb stood right
up and showed pluck, but its time
to forgive and forget"
He cut chew off his plug, took
.otf his battered hat and looked at 1t,
and continued.
Didn't We all come Of one blood
Hain't we the big American nation
Isn't this here United States the big
gest plantation on the river, and is
there nation in the world that dareS
knock the chip of our shoulder?
Maryland, my Maryland,
Michigan, my Michigan
He put down his leg, looked at his
crippled hand, and soliloquized:
Three fingers gone-hand used
up, but I'm satisfied. Folks who &C
70 war expect to feel bullets. We
stood up to the Ianks- they stood
up to us-it was fair fout, and We
got licked. Two fingers hain't a.
good as five, but they are good enough
to shake hands with! Come up here
you Yanks, and grip me- We raise
cotton down here you raise corn "
there-less trade y
He lifted his crutch, struck it dowr
hard, and went on;
''Durn family who'll fight eacl
other. We've got the biggest anC
best country that eyer laid outdoors
and if any foreign despot throws {
club at the American eagle vel
shoulder arms and shoot him into thC
middle of next week :,
He sat and pondered while the
shadows grew deeper, and by-and-b!!
he said
There's lots of graves down here
there's heaps o war-orphans "
North I'm crippled up and halt sick
but I'm going to git up and hit tht
onery cuss who dares to say a wore
agin either. We've got through fight
ing, we're shaking hands now, anc
durn the man who says a word to in
terrupt the harmony! Its one family
ole Uncle SANS boys, and gals
and babies and we're going to live
in the same house, eat at the same
table, and turn out bigger crops THAI
any other ranch on the globe!"
He rose up to 90, raped on tn
box with his crutch, and continued
"Resolred, That this glorious ole
family stick right together IN the ole
homestead for the next million year
to come. TieLsburg Herald.