The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1878-02-28

groeuas lnto a regular lake Of mad,
thfoRgh which Il was terrible Job d
drag our cannon. Many time In AltsE
days, when I've heard spraoo yoang g.
diets ai home, who bad never amsh pow
der In theif lives, taking shout gi0sloua
war and all thst, I've said to myself,
Abs, my Cue fellowsi IL you bad been
where 7 have, maFuhing for days aud
Nays over ankles ia mud, with nOtAihs
20 eat BAT stale black bread, 20 hard thni
yoa ls@d 10 soat " befere you could Esl
Il down; aud ifyou'd bad TO dHuk wassr
through which hundreds Of horses bad
jasl been trSmpling; aud to scramble up
aud down steep bills under . roasting
sun, with your feet so swollen and sore
thst every step was like knife going
into you; and TO lie all night in the rain
longing for the suu to rise that You may
dry youppeh bit, perhaps Q'en you
wouldn't talk quite 50 loud about glori.
Gus war;
However, we drove the Turks across
the Balkans at last, aud got down "a
Namboii, a little town at the foot Of the
which commands the high
road to Adrianople Aud there the un,
belisyers made stand, and fought right
well. ! piR say that for 'em; for they
knew that If Adrianople we're lost, eli
was over But God fought for US, and
we beat them; though, Indeed, with hall
our men sick, and our clothes all in rags,
aud our arms rusted, and our powder
mixed with sand by those rogues Of army
il was wonder that We
could fight at all.
Toward afternoon, just as the enemy
were beginning TO give way, | saw Pavel
Peroyitch (who was a general by this
time) looking very hard at mortar bat
terry about a hundred yards 10 on. right
and all at once be struck bis knee 6ercely
with bis hand, and shouted;
What do those fellows mean by firing
like that? They might as well pelt the
Turks with potatoes III soon settle
lheml Here, Vanya (Ivan)l
Away he went, | after him; aud be
bnrst into the battery like storm, and
roared out:
Where's the blockhead that commands
this battery2
A young officer stepped forward and
aud who should this be but the
light haired lad with the blue eyes, whom
| had noticed that night at Varna.
Well, you won't command 1t to-mor.
row, my fine fellow, for I'll have you
turned out this very day. Do you know
that not single shell that you've thrown
since lye been watching you has explod-
ed at all?
With your excellency's leave, said the
young fellow, respectfully, but pretty
firmly too, the fault is none Of mine.
These fuses are ill-made, and will not
burn down to the powder.
Fusesl roared the general. Don't talk
to me of fuses; Pm too old for that rub.
bishl Isn't it enough for you to bungle
your work, but you must tell me lie in.
TO the bargain?
At the word lie, the young officers
face seemed to turn red-hot all In Q mo.
ment, and saw bis hand clench as II be
would drive bis fingers through the fesh.
He made one stride to the heap of bomb
shells, and, taking one up 10 his arms,
struck match on it. &b5#k
Now, said he, quietly, your exceIIency
can judge for yourself. Pm going to
light this fuse; If your exccllency will
please TO stand by and watch II burn,
you will see whether have lied or not.
The general started, as we'll be might
Not that he was afraid-you may be sure
Of hat but TO hear this quiet, bashfnl
lad, wio looked as II ho had nothing in
him, coolly propose TO hold a lighted
she'll in bis arms to see If 1t would go off,
aud ask him TO stand by aud watch It,
was enough 10 startle anybody. How.
ever, he wasn't one to think twice sbont
8 challenge; SO he folded bis
arms and stood tLere like statue. The
young officer lighted The fuse, and II be.
gan to burn
As for me aud the other men, you may
fancy what re felt like. OF course, we
couldn't run while our officers were
standing their ground; but we knew
that il lbe she'll did 60 of, IL would blow
every man Of us 10 bits, and il WASN'T
pleasant to have 10 stand and walt for Il.
| saw the men set their teeth bard as the
Game caught the fuse; and rs for me,
wished with al my heart aud soul that
u there soere any good fuses In The heap,
this might furn ont to be one Of the bad
ones
But not burned away merrily
and came down, and down, and
down, nearer aud nearer TO the powder
The young officer never moved muscle,
but stood looking steadily at the general,
aud the general at him. AT last, the red
spark got close to the metal Of the shell !;
and then shat my eyes, and prayed God
TO receive my soul.
just st that moment, heard the man
next me give qnick gasp, As II be bad
Just come up from plange under water
aud ] opened my eyes again just In time
to see the fuse out, and the young officer
letting drop the she'll at the generals feet,
without word.
For moment, the general stood stock
s,iil, looking as II be didn't quite know
whether TO knock The young fellow down
Or TO hng him 10 bis arms like son but
at last. he heid ou; his baud TO him, cay
Ing.
Etfs