Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1876-09-07

Maryland, and while lying there
soldier belonging to the Twenty -thir
Ohio was tried for desertion and cor
demned to be shot. Twas then tn
Chaplain of the Thirteenth Yves
Virginia Regiment, and the only on
in the brigade. This unfortunat
wanted to see a chaplain before h
was executed. / was sent for ant
had some conversation with him il
relation to the condition of his mind
&c. He then told me he had SOM
$400 in money and two watches
which he wanted to leave with me
He said he had no friends in tn
world that he knew of except a mo
ther, and that she was somewhere il
Virginia, but he knew cot where, ant
if / could find her out to send thu
money and watches to her, and i
not to keep it myself. The man wa:
shot, and Immediately after the thing
was over, General Hayes sent for me
to come to his headquarters. 1 re
ported. He inquired of me what the
man gave me. l told him. He ex
amined the watches and gave them
back to me, and the money he said
he had decided belonged to the Gov.
ernment, and 1 gave it to him. As
to what he did with it l am not pre-
pared to say, but the above are the
facts, and if the editor of the Regis
ter wishes to know the further his.
tory of the money he must interview
the Governor himself
GSigned "W. W. HARPER,
"Late Chaplain of the Thirteenth
West Virginia Volunteers"
On the 10th Of August in a letter
to my wife, from Harper's Ferry, l
wrote as follows:
"They shot deserter at Frederick
City, on the 5th of this month. Be
fore he was executed, he sent for me
to come and see him and talk with
him, and / did so, and prayed with
him at the place of execution. Poor
fellow, he felt very bad, but there was
no remedy. He was deserter, and
military law says he must die. He
gave me $400 and two watches, to be
sent to his mother, provided l could
find her, which will he very doubtful.
The money did not belong to him,
for he had fraudulently gotten it
from the Government. and Colonel
Hayes decided to keep the money,
and get another recruit with it. The
watches 1 still have. Oneis a forty
dollar watch, the other is not so good.
If I never hear from her, they will be
mine, so Colonel Hayes decided.
In the Point Pleasant Register, of
August IS. 1864, appears the follow
ing, which l wrote for that paper,
dating my communication at Har-
per's Ferry, August z: = = +
"The history of this man was this:
He was first q rebel soldier, and de-
serted and joined the Twenty third
Ohio. Deserted it and went back to
the enemy, and was captured at
Cloyd Mountain in May last. Made
his escape, after which he hired as
substitute, getting some $400 from
the man who hired him, and fortu-
nately for the Government, but un-
fortunately for the man, he, in COM
pany with ninety others was assign
ed to the very regiment from which
he had deserted"
/ do not know anything about
who called the Court Martial for the
trial of this rebel and deserter. My
understanding was that this man
went by several names. He gave me
his name as Isaac Whelton and his
mothers name as Nancy Whelton.
I have heard him called Whitlow and
Hall. In this connection let me say
that in the weekly Point Pleasant
Register, of August Is, 1864, 1 pub
lished the following:
eNotice-Isaac Whelton, who was
shot-at Frederick City on the 9Th of
1884, left some property in
my hands with instructions, If posi-
BILE, to get 1t to his mother, whom he
named as Nancy Whelton. It con-
sists of two watches). If Mrs.
Whelton will come forward and give
evidence that she is the
mother of the deceased she can have
the articles specified. Address the
at Hartford City, Mason
County, West Virginia.
'W. w. HARPER,
Chaplain Thirteenth w. Va, Infan-
try
"The man told me his father was
dead, but he supposed his mother
was somewhere in Virginia, but did
not know where.
81 was sent for after the trial and
of the man. The par
ties who came after me said a man
was to be shot, and wanted to see
Chaplain. My impression has been
all along that it was sometime in the
forenoon that / was sent for. The
court-martial, 1 think, convened
about 9 o'clock in the morning. l
went up and found the man under
guard. Men were around there thick
as bees, and all was excitement.
found the man in a very agitated
state of mind. had a conversation
with him about the condition of his
mind, and tried to reconcile him to
his fate. He told me that he had
two watches and some $40Q in money,
which be wanted me to take. He
said that he had no friends that he
knew of I asked him where his
parents were. He said his father
was dead, and that he had mother
living somewhere, but didn't know
where, but supposed she was some.
where in Virginia. He then gave me
the two watches and the $40O, with
instructions to send it to his mother.
il / could find her, and, if not, to
keep it myself. There were soldiers
present who heard this conversation.
whOse namea I cannot rooall now