Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1876-09-08

| "POre soldier u exclaimed a lOno ole
widow in East Tennessee, as a battered
veteran in blue appeared at.her door, ant
meekly asked for a cup of cold wafer
"Pore soldierl / know in reason that you
are tired and thirsty, and that you will be
powerful glad to get drink of wafer, moi
to speak of q little suthin to mix with H."
"Thank you, mum but belong TO the
Daughters of Temperance, and can't drink
unless its little in the way OF medicine
and do feel very weak, as have marched
more than forty miles to-day"
"Forty mile The laws have massey
How could you do it2 Why, IL would kill
my mule"
"It is very hard, but we get used 10 it.
1 wouldn't have minded it If had had
anything TO eat.'
"Sakes alivel Do come in and sit down.
Pore soldierr'
The good old lady brought out a black
bottle, from which the battered veteran
poured teaspoonful into a glass of water,
and took vigorous pull at the bottle when
her back was turned. Then she placed be-
fore him substantial supper of ham and
eggs and corn bread and coffee, upon
which he advanced in gallant style.
'tAnd you are mighty young TO be a
soldierin," she said, looking at him be-
ngnantly over her spectacles.
"Yes, mum I'm the only son of my
widowed mother but my country called
me, and my duty 10 my country is only
second 10 my duty to my Creator"
"Shol Why, you talk as peert as a min
ister."
~ was studying for the ministry when
the war broke out"
~ had notion that the soldiers was all
So wicked; but I'm glad TO find out that
they amt. You have seen a power of
fghtin', 1 reckonf'
"a great deal, mum. 1t is hard for a
Christian to take life; but the enemies of
our country must be punished"
''Jes so. Have you ever been wounded ?'
"Very onen. was once shot through
the heart"
Through the heart; lawful sakes! Did
MT it kill your"
mot quite. The intercostal muscle was
penetrated longitudinally and extravasated
with varicose veins; but the bullet ranged
across the left lobe of the arachnoid artery,
producing comminuted fracture of the
anterior process of tue cerebellun, and
causing lesion of the spinal viscera and
the hydrophosphates of the tibula, and that
delayed my recovery"
"You don't mean 10 say that you lived
through all that ~
81 was spared, mum, to be an humble
monument of the mercy of Providence"
"Should think so. What was that noise
1t sounded like somebody down cellar"
"Nothing but rats. Don't be alarmed,
madam. am here and will protect you.
J. once defended the house of widow
when ii was attacked Hy dozen guerillas.
was obliged TO kill seven of them, and
the rest ran away"
'Doo tell! Should think you ought to
be an officer"
"The President has tried TO persuade me
TO accept a commission as General, but
have believed that can serve my country
better in my present sphere. Thank you,
1 don't care If do take spoonful of that.
must be going now, with many thanks
our evening prayer meeting, and must
be there TO open 1t. Have you any such
thing as a pocket bible 10 spare? Mine
was destroyed in the last battle by being
struck by bullet in my coat pocket. 1t
was the last gilt of my beloved mother,
and it saved my life."
"Lawful sakes Which pocket?"
''The behind pocket, num-"
"What a blessed thing 1t is TO have BIZ
BILE There is one that belonged to my
Matilda Jane; but know that you will
mako good use Off will remember you
in my prayers, pore soldieri"
AS the last rays of the setting sun lighted
up the face of the battered veteran, they
shone upon two big tears that slowly
trickled down either cheek, making min
iature canals through the dust that coated
his epidermis. He walked up the road
until he was joined by several more bat
tered veterans, who came out from a cor
ner of the fence. Two OF them bore a keg,
others carried tin buckets, others had their
arms full of bottles.
"Have you got it, boysH' asked The vet
eran 10 whom the bible had been presented.
"All right, nay covey. Ten gallons OF
peach brandy, keg Of applejack, and ev-
er so many bottles of blackberry wine.
The old gal was well fixed."
"You made such a devil of noise that
she would have smoked you If hadn't
been there to throw her off the track. Let's
go and divide. ought to have the biggest
share, as I had the hardest part of the
work."
1t is thus that patriotism and virtue arc
rewarded.