The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1880-04-22
MALEDICTION FULFILLED.
0AAAA@1SOA0 &A0AN
A True and Romantic Incident of the Late
Civil War.

| Verlncd maledlctlOn Is tavOrlte artifcC
OF dramatic effect. Upon the stage, that
scene of simulated passion, We find il
!! used with impressive influence In--the
realm of the real, history recalls no we'll
authenticated instance ofa realized curse
The following Is literal case that oc.
cured during the war, under the personal
knowledge of tho writer, and has been the
theme of much speculation. Whether it
was mere coincidence, happening with
out real connection, or whether it was
one of those mysterious matters Of incx-
plicable romance that break the current
of staid prosaic facts, must ever remain
an unsolved problem. I Will vouch
for the details alone. The reader must
exercise his own judgement upon them
| OLD AUNT RACHEL STONE.
The incident began in the early part
Of 1868. The writer commanded a
regiment OF Georgia cavalry. Most of
the members Of this regiment came from
Whitfield and the adjoining counties in
the northern part OF the State of Georgia
Among the soldiers was youth named
Stone, who enlisted in the company
raised in Murray county by Capt. Reu-
ben Keith. The mother of young Stone
was very notable character. She was
called Old Aunt Rachel Stone. Her bus.
band was dead and she was still widow
supporting her family on a small farm.
She was woman OF marked and pccu-
liar appearance, a very large, erect, mas
culine creature, with the frame. muscles
and stride OF a man. She was over six
feet high. broad -shouldcred, massive,
sincwy, of immense physical vigor and
strength, performing manual labor on
her farm with the power and readiness
OF a man, ploughing, splitting rails and
such other work requiring force and en-
DURANGO. AShe had face, clear, open, de-
clded, OF remarkably positive cxpressi sion,
large, bright blue eye, Of piercing pcne-
tration, nose OF character, broad thin
Tipped mouth, firm set, con;orma-
ton of jaw full Of will aud power.
a broad high brow, and unkcmpt
blonde hair that was often hanging loosely
on her shoulders and which, when so
t1uttcring around her expressive counte-
nance and heavy frame, gave an effective
individuality to her appearance. The
most impressive thing at least about her
was her manner Of talking. She had a
deep, clear voice, and an oracular wav OF
| uttering her words that were singularly
fcrciblc. She spoke with dcl,berat1on
a precision, measured emphasis and a
ringing earncstness that always held the
| attention. She was naturally oratorical
IN her manner and utteranccs. A public
speaker might have learned something
from her. She expressed herself with un.
usual directncss and. Il sort of dramatic
flavor that lost nothing from the fact
that it was couchcd in rude words and
uncultured idiom. There was always,
also, an originality in her opinions and
expressions that interested hearcr. Her
mind was bold and independent, though
uneducated, and her intelligence strong
and picturesque, though unframed.
She took her toddy at times, and even
exceeded prudent ration OF spirits on
extra occasions. But there was never
anything against her chastity, and
she prided herself very much upon her
unblemishcd character. Said she once to
the writer in her peculiar manner, with
an added ring to her earnest voice, and
dwelling with her oracula, emphasis upon
eacn dlStlncC syllable.
"Mebbe you think l am a drab. But
I amt! am one of jeff Davis daurh
tcrs.'
She pridcd herself very much UPON
being good, worthy subject of the con.
federacy, which she habitually cpitomiz-
ed under the name of s'Jeff Dav1s.' Take
her all IN all, with her strong sense, her
original intelligence, her decisive meth
ods, her keen penetration, her impress
slve expressions, her shrcwd observation
OF public matters and her rough, but
picturesque individuality, and she was
a very remarkable character, and to me
study of considerable interest.
CAPT. REUBEN KEITH.
The other leading character in this un-
common and tragical affair was Capt.
| Reuben Keith, one of the bcst officers in
my regiment. He was a well-to-do, we'll
| educated farmer of Murray county, aged
somewhere between thlrty-fvc and forty,
a man of high character and standing
He was conservative, straightforward,
practical citizen and soldier, universally
respected, his just, deliberate, decided
methods carrying great weight and
influence. His appearance was
an index of the man. Hc was a
stout, we'll proportioned, sturdy looking
gentleman, erect and solid, with fine
open face, full of intelligence and will,
and good temper. He looked the Anglo
Saxon all over, with his fair skin, ruddy
color, light hair and fine blue eyes, so
clear and direct in their gaze. He had
an unusually clear judgment, and was
noted for his truth and integrity. lie
had the quality of reliability to an
uncommon degree. He was brave and
skillful officer and an excellent discip1n.
arian. His command was thoroughly
within his grasp. His final destiny was
puzzling and illogical sequence Of his
character and career. It violated every
antecedent and experience Of the man,
and, connected as it was and interviewer,
with the little incident I shall narratc, in
which old Rachel Stone figured so d,a
matically, it has bat}1ed philosophical con-
sideration.
THE WRONG.
chester, Tennessee. Mrs. Stone came
from Georgia to Tennessee to endeavor to
get her young son discharged from SER
vice. He was not of age, and while she
had given her consent to his cnlisting,
her maternal solicitude had gotten the
better of her patriotism, and she wished
to regain him home away from the perils
of the battlefield. She spent nearly a
week in the vicinity of the camp plead
ing with Capt. Keith and myself to ia
vor the discharge of her son. I frankly
told the old lady that I could not ap-
prove it. I promised to forward her