Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1875-08-06
From the Viekshurg Herald.
That's the Way He Felt.

were gone from the left hand, and he
had TO use a crutch. In the dusk Of the
evening he sat down on dry goods
box on the street corner, and striking
the ground with his crutch, exclaimed:
"Well, old pard, the wars over ?
Gimme your hand shake hard
He shook the crutch with hearty good
will and continued
There's no more Reb-no more
Yank We're all Americans, and stand
ing shoulder to shoulder South Caro-
lima alongside Massachusetts-we can
lick the boots off'n any nation under the
sun
He waited awhile and then went on
No more skirmishes-no more fouts.
Uucle Robert is dead, Gen. Grant wants
peace, and they're melting up swords
and bayonets to make cotton mill ma
chinery We're about through camping
out old pard, and we hain't sorry-not
bit
He leaned tho crutch against the box,
lifted his wooden leg, and said
"Lost good leg up at Fredericksburg
when / was under Barksdale, and Burn
side thought he could whip old Uncle
Robert and Stonewall jackson together
| Good Lord but wasn't it hot that
day, when the Yanks laid their pontoons
and got up and got for them, wasn't it
red hot F."
He stopped to ponder for awhile, and
his voice was softer as he said
"But / forgive 'em l took the
chances and lost I'm reaching out
now to shake hands with the Yank who
shot me, and I'll divide my tobacco half
and half with him 1t was big war.
Yank and Reb stood right up and show
ed pluck, but it's time to forgive and
forget
He cut chew off his plug, took off
his battered hat and looked at it, and
continued:
"Didn't we all come of one blood
Hain't we the big American nation Z
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 off 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 go to war
expect to feel bullets. We stood up to
the Yank, they stood up to us, it was a
fair fout, and we got licked. Two fin
gers hain't as good as five, but they are
good enough to shake hands with Come
up here, you Tanks and grip mel We
raise cotton down here-you raise corn
up there-less trade
He lifted his crutch and struck it down
hard, and went on
"Durn a family who'll fight each
other We're got the biggest aud best
country that ever laid out doors, and if
any foreign despot throws club at the
American eagle, we'll shoulder arms
and shoot him into the middle of next
week I"
He sat and pondered while the shad-
ows grew deeper and by and by he said
There's lots of graves down here
there's heaps o war orphans up North
I'm crippled and half sick, but I'm go
ing to get up and hit the onery cuss who
dares say word ag'in either. We've
got through fighting, we're shaking
hands now and durn the man who says
a word to interrupt the harmony It's
one family ole Uncle Sans boys and
girls and babies, and we're going to live
in the same house eat at the same table,
and turn out bigger crops than any
other rancho ON the globe"
He rose to 60 raped on the box with
his crutch, and continued
Resotued, That this glorious old fam
| lily stick right together in the old home
, stead for the next million years TO
come