Southern standard. (McMinnville, Tenn.) 1879-current, 1884-04-05
A Romance Of the War.

Fetters Of friendship and ties of flowers,
And true lovers knots | ween;
The boys and girls are bound by kiss,
But there's never a bond, old friend, like
this:
ave have drank from the same canteen."
In the summer of 1862, a detach-
ment of the Thirty-seventh Indiana
Regiment was doing duty at stocks
ade, in guarding bridge near War
trace, Tenn, on the Nashville q Chat
tanooga railroad. 1t was there, the
second year Of the War of the Great
Rebellion, that Sergeant Jos. Weir, of
Madison, Ind, formed lasting friend
ship with the Hon. Henri Watterson,
the great Southern journalist. Al
though the two have never met since
that time, Mr.. Watterson has, on sew
eral occasions, expressed a desire,
through Others, to meet his old
friend, Weir, who, he claims, did him
a kindness at the time of his capture
that shall ever be remembered.
The detachment at the stockade
numbered less than twenty men, un>
der command OF Captain Hezekiah
Shook. 1t was Sergeant Wehr's duty
to provide milk, vegetables, etc., for
the command, and while out on his
mission, the day they arrived at the
stockade, he came up to large mans
sion with ornamental grounds about it,
the whole inclosed with a stone wall on
two sides and in the rear, with neat
iron fence in the front.
The sergeant entered the grounds
and approached the mansion, where he
was met at the door by fine looking,
motherly, old lady, who kindly insist.
ed on his coming in, which invitation
he accepted, and soon found himself
seated in a richly furnished parlor. He
stated his business, and the good lady
said she would be glad to furnish the
soldiers with such substantials and deli
cacies as they might want and without
charge. This announcement was quite
asurprise to the sergeant as he stated
he expected to pay the cash for every
thing furnished them.
Sergeant Weir soon learned why
the lady was so kind to the Yankee
soldiers, for she proved to be sister tC
the Hon. John Bell, of Tennessee, who
was at one time a candidate for Presi
dent of the United States, along with
the Hon. Edward Everett for Vice
President. Her name was Irving, the
wife of Andrew Irving, who was also
a prominet Union man of Tennessee
though owning large number O
slaves.
Several ladies were then visiting
Mrs. Irving, among them, if | remem
Der rightly, were two of John Bell
daughters and a Miss Webster, wh,
resided but two miles away. Of cours,
Sergeant Weir, being single man a
the time, was we'll entertained, and af
forwards often visited Mrs. Irving
place, acting as escort in their horse
back rides. He also accompanied tn,
ladies to church on the Sabbath day
and sang gospel hymns in the choi
with them, and he was regarded as ;
great friend and protector, as during
the war times, defenseless ladies wer
often annoyed by soldiers. In the Ian
guage of the youth of today, he wa
"solid" there.
The Sergeant also visited Mis-
Webster's home while out riding wit
the ladies, and learned from her moth
er that two of the Webster boys wer
in the Confederate service and wer
prisoners of war in Camp Morton, a
indianapolis. The good old lady ha
not been able to communicate with he
sons since their capture, and the Sci
geant volunteered to write to a soldie
in the Fifty.ffth Indiana Regiment
which was guarding the Confederat
prisoners at Camp Morton, and hav
him interview the boys and writ
him their wishes, when he would con
municate to their mother, which al
rangement proved satisfactorily, bring
ing glad tidings from her dear sons
This circumstance also made the Seal
geant "solid" at the Webster Mansion
where he passed many pleasant hour
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