The National tribune., 1882-11-30
CHAPTER III,
AFTER THE CLoUDs-THE SUN.


Richmond had surrendered; the march to
the sea been made; prisons had been emptied
of their ghostly wrecks of humanity; the green
turf had closed over the burrows on the hill
side, and above the grave of the unknown
soldier flowers blossomed.
The beating of sword into ploughshare had
been accomplished with wonderful celebrity
The dsbanded armies had been re absorbed
by the industries Of the country as if by magic.
The blue coat, rendered holy by its baptism of
blood, and the muslet and sabre carefully hung
by the ireside, alone told Of tho part the owner
had played in the stirring drama. No, not
alone! There were empty sleeves and livid
scars to remind one that the war had been.
But the clouds had cleared away, and the sun
rose and set upon prosperous land. There was
no longer even the fgurativc clanking of shack
les to jar upon the ears and the words "bonds-
man " and human chattIes" had lost their
meaning forever. No other country on the face
OF the globe could so quickly have recovered
from the effects of civil war; so soon have
converted an immense army into industrious
citizens.
But Mars no longer ruling, another planet
dreamed of bright-eyed rosy-cheeked girl
who watched and waited for his return. lie
knew that she would greet him with smiles,
and repay him with womanly tenderness and
devotion for his sacrifices and suferings.
And such was the warm recompense which
Harry Hammond received when he came back,
a mere shadow of his former self, to be petted,
nursed, and charmed into health, though never
again to walk with a free, firm tread or have the
perfect use Of al arm. Lead and steel had left
more than scars and privation, and the lend-
ishness Of the prison-hou had sapped the
freshness Of the springs of life. But the girl he
loved was as brave and noble hearted as she
was fair to the eye. She took the crippled sol
dier in her arms as she had long ago taken him
to her heart. She welcomed him as a hero, and
faced the future with tranquil heart.
With maidenly coyness, with blushing cheeks.
but with her soul shining through the clear
azure Of her eyes, she frankly confessed the
love she bore him, and in flattering accents
told him that the old, tattered, faded blue uni
form he wore was dearer to her than kingly
robes, and the almost shapeless cap more pre-
cious than jeweled crown. Nay more, with
the self-reliance and patriotism of true Amer
lean girl she declared hor willingness to at
/ once take upon herself the care of cher sol
| der" and to celebrate his return with a
wedding.
Before the furious volleys of Mission Ridge.
when dashing down the mountain side with
the bullets whistling sharply about his ears
and in prison when the "dead-line" " became
more than imaginary by its marking of corpses
the soldier had not flinched. Yet he did then.
and though his arm did not relax its circling
of the slender waist, though he felt in all its
! bitterness that he was dashing the cup of
lifelong hope from his longing lips, he nerved
himself for the sacrifice He replied:
mo, my dear, you must not make the sacri-
fee. ana only poor cripple, now"
She looked up with innocent astonishment
into his pale face, and saw that his lips we're
trembling.