The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1883-03-29
NY FRIEND Fanny.
A Leaf from the Notebook of a War
Correspondent.
rFrorn lhe Baltimore Americana

nOGsc, OF, 10 De SiflcIl. aCcuIdbc, Idiiiif was
mare. It was case of love at hrst saght--ai
least on ely parE It was at Harper's Ferry,
that historic SPOT consecrated forever by John
Brown, whose puuy but heroic revolt In be-
half Of four millions of human beings began
and ended here. and who calmly met his fate
within cannon shot of the little fort" now q
pig-stye froTa which. for brief space, he de-
ned the power ef great Nation-it was in this
little town, nesting by the Shenandoah and
clipging sloEg the verge Of tie ragged hillsides.
oversaaAowed by the lordly heights of L0ndoun
and Maryland, and nightly lulled 10 sleep by
the music of the waters of the Potomac and
Shenandoah, which here commiRgfe and so
rolling down % make broader the broad bosom
of the Chesapeake, that IN the memorable fall
Of 1854 ] first met Fanny. The HarPers Ferry
of 1854 WAS not the Uarpers Ferry OF 1888 by
O large majority. The clatter of horses hOofs,
the iingiing of spurs and clinl1ing Of sabres the
Fieam Of cold steel, the rumbllng OF army
wagons. the braying Of mules, the neighing of
stoeGs, the glitter of uniforms, the incoming
and outgoing Of troops, the thunder OF railroad
trains. and the sounds Of war-llSe music gave
an air Of animation 10 the little nook in 1864,
which. 1t Is unnecessary TO say, 1t does not now
exhibit. ] had been there two years before
when Aic6lellans battered army had forded
the Potomac after measuring strength with
Lees gallant army at AntietaTa, and stretched
itself out to rest along the Heights of Bolivar.
1t was but few days after the time made
memorable by Friend Whittier, when Lee
marched down,
Horse end foot, into Frederiektown-"
was WITH the boys, was one of them in fact
when, on the 10Th Of October 1862, the glorious
old Army Of the Potomac crossed the Shenan-
dOah aad wound up the mogntaia road which
leads 10 LoudoBn Heights ana the peaceful
hills and Gales of L0Rdoun county, one Of the
garden spots Of the world. ] have a vivid recol-
lection Of the march UP the mountain, for
two Toas0ns. ] have done some pretty good
marching N my time, but this march along
the mountain side that October afternoon was
one OF the toughest / ever maze, and a jolly
pot-beliil q German c0mEnissary named DingIe-
stadt Was responsible for it. On the moving
Of our departs zIIent he gave the boys at the
headquarters OF orr bgiga9e-and BY the way,
fhe-Elfth Maryland regiment, comHaflded b :
the gallant Colonel Wm. Louis Schley. OF this
city, On whose sts4 I had the honor Of serving,
Termed a portion OF it-a kind Of impromgtu
reception, or send of, as it we're. The unwrit-
ten list Of fHids included absintke, lager beer,
and c0inmiss.rv whisky. The officers of the
stat were al young men who had pretty fair
knowledge of the effects of the two latter bey-
erages, and had frequently wrestled with them,
with varying results but were as ignorant as
Maoris Ia regard to the peculiar properties of
the fTst-named abOminatiOn, and treated il
missaTy 1t Is needless TO say that the inter
mingiing Of beer whisky, and abSinthe pro-
dneed 2 state Of mental snG physical wretched-
ness painful 70 remember. even after the lapse
of twenty years. Hence the march up Lou
doun Heights was exceedingly toilsoIne, as well
as memorable. have had my opinion of Com
miSS&Fy DiRglestadt ever since. Another rea-
son Why remember this march was the gayety
and deyil-1aay-eare deneansr OF the saldiery,
as they tradgeG up the mountain side, waking
the echoes with their songs. I" John Browns
Body" ! remember, was the favorite air. and
the refrain was varied to suit the fancy of the
leading Singers. For instance, once it would
De sing as follows:
Nel hang JEFF Davis on a sour apple tree.
Vel hang JEFF Davis a sour apple tree
Wen hang yesf Davis d sour apple tree
As ~e go marching along.
The next version was likely 10 run:
Wen hang John Brown on a sour aY,,,le tree.
Wei hang John Brown en- apple tree,
Vel bang john Brown q sour apple tree
A. we 10 marching along.
Tie taird time il woald be varied as follows:
Wei hang Horace Greeley ON a sour apple tree.
NeF ilang Horace Greeley on a sour ai,i,le tree
Wen k4,lg Horace 6Fyesey q sour apple tree
As NNe go marching along.
But If I doa't have a care III follow tbe
grani old army down through the Loadoun
Valley r. RaTrenton. where the soldiSrs took a
tezFiEl t.z-sWeii OF Little Mac their beloved
commander Having got toe army over the
mountain WALL 1 VIII return to the Ferry.
Fanny Was a Mambrino. / dent knox much
ahoEt E2Iahrln0s- In 1sct, my ideas concern
ing This partieilar breed Of horses were prob
nlsy derived fFEa close ard repeated studies of
MsEaasilo horses IS represented On posters u.l-
Ger coartsr horse sasds- If the impression
evolved sas correct. Penny was a Ma-abriao.
she h@- iae VIDE, oezUlifal y-curvsl neck
c0aaicea e. t.iat strain. was dark chestiirt IN
color, s-ood sixteen hands high If al inch. was
gracefully prs.FssFsie,se1-in fact gszs hin5 Of
equine Laiy L7ngtry. Eannv was essesst;,FIy
way horse She had tr8ttei. gai to,,ed. and
en45led ap and down TIE Shenand0ah VALLEY
for tFrc years, a1B8 knew every lyrifIIe-Yata,-
and, more than thst, she knew 4 s-rssv-coatea
rebel tlso sa5lneut she cizp3ed her eyes on him.
and, In her owa horse f4shion. was sure 10
give her rlder warning. She had smell r,ovr3ar
many q tine and oft, and with tie sound Of a
ziPplng ninie ball or a bzrsJing shell she was
Dos eptireiy unfamiliar.
Did ang u my readers ever 20 guaniur for
indians in the 44r West? &os Well it's
fact wei knowT 10 army men that horse wiz
detect the near proximity OF a redskin sooner
than ais rider the erect ears. the d;iatei eyes
and the Tspidly expanding and closing posfrils
betraysls the sane terror which he exhibits In
the pnrsenoe of wild beasts. The senses of
sDei atsa sisht, Of course, account for this.
The Valley ID the fall Of 1864 was rerita-
bic DARK and bloody ground Ii was game Of
batt4eaore ana shuttleoock. 1t was first up
tine Valley and then down aeain, bat fortu-
nately Tar the Union arms the Confeierafcs nm
der tiener2l Jubal 3 Early didfi't have. Cen
ersl Banks or General Sieel TO deal with. but
thai peerless soldier who is soon 20 have su
pTesne Command Of Tie armies of the United
otates--tseGeTal Philip H Sheridan Sheridan
hsa heard OF the little trick the Cenfeas had
of Banking the Onion forces by way OF Front
ROYAL. and then, while tire blue coats were
scurrylng down the Valley towards Harpcr's
Ferry, OF cutting them IN two and sob5ling
iheAa up al leisure, and never get caught in the
trap once Later on. when he sent Early
whlrllng up the Valley with Casters troopers
laundering at his heels, the country became
1uily sztlssed that General Grant knew his
man when be sent him to take command of the
Union forces ln tse Shenandoah Valley.
IL is useless at this late date 10 reyamn the
question who began IT, Custer or Nssbv. but
early ID the fail Of - the herrOrs Of rrgular
and honorable warfare were enhanced by rr+aI
latsry measures which Involved the deliberate
butehery OF prisoners of war IN many e.ses
Custer WAS young, brave and fiery. and eyerv
outTage csm1ittes by the busliwhaekers of
b1ossy was promptly avenged. Il viii give
ysu SAFEGUARD, as you request. i" the writer
once heard the young General say 10 a farrner
residing Lear BerryVilie who doubtless re-
manned at the house aarin. the day cb4yinp
nlggerhe2d and cussiBg the Yankees. and hush
wharzed Union soldiers O. nights hat II he
as disturbed or harmed by Mesbz fo-nioiht I
Will burn yonr house down sd hang,v veu. y