The Arkansaw traveler., 1884-01-05
THE EDITORS CONSCIENCE
fPeck,s Sun ]

tPeek's Sun.l
 To-day letter came from the bus -ess office to the editorial desk, and when ,-e editor opened it, and saw the date-l;r. !" Troy. Alabama. his heart smo,e h.-- and he reached for his eheck-book .a- stinctiveiy. Then he stopped and read the letter. and breathed freer wher ae found that it was only letter from a sov who wanted the editors autograab What could have caused the edi,ors heart to Jump up into his mouth, wren he opened that letter from Troy? Naa made him reach for his check-boo. Reader, young reader particularly. ne editor once stole horse at Troy. A.a Do not held up your hands in horror. at the deed, and say you have always mistrusted that the bald-headed r,ar. with the pleasant face, was a horse ,aief Tn disguise, for you never thought any such thing. Besides, a man was not con. sidered horse thief in those days. .ho took another mans horse. IL was in 1; $. and a cavalry regiment 10 which the cd itor belonged. made raid through ia: portion of Alabama, and one afternoon stopped at the beautiful little village oi Troy. There was thin. pale, nervous. red-headed soldier in the regimen, wao had been riding hard hearted, de eo- tive, diabolical, disgusting mule foT week, mule that didn't care whetne, school kept or not, mule ,ha, would 70. keep up with the procession. and i..e hard 10 lag behind so the rebels wo-. capture the redheaded soldier. To kee- up with the regiment |, was necessary - wear out pair of spurs. clapboaFd .~o fence rails, and the rider. every bleSse! day. on the mule. and much of the ha.sec oi mules which the present editor als was born of that experience That eYe-- ing the soldier gave of his ra,ions to | .i.- tie coiored boy who looked smart lad told him 10 always be q good boy. ara learn to read, and be kind to his sd master. and he would be all right. w:.en the colored boy told where there was < hne horse in a pasture, few miles av av. ." turrer bred" he said There is 20 person except one who has rode r.4,e a week. who can appreciate story aa94t a hne horse belonging 10 the ene,ay The mule was saddled and soon se soldier aad the colored boy. and ano:aer soldier and another colored boy were trying to catch that horse Q, he was beauty. As he galloped across the pa=- ture and neighed and snor,ed. and , on seallops, he looked like picture IL was not leng before the red-heaaei soldiers saddle was on the fine horse and the procession rode up by the p,.a- ter's house. Ah. there was the rub. -fae old mother and father of the boy vao owned the flne horse. who was in the con iederate army, sat on the veranda. They had seen :he soldiers go through ;ae i,ranay. the smoke house. and eve-y- thing where they cosld get anything Q eat, and the old people had not n-.r- mured. They sat there smoking corn cob pipes. acting as though in war times they must submit 10 war measures. B. when the red-headed soldier rode by ca the beautiful horse, his canteen auc sabre rat,ling, and the horse looking so prfud. as though he had been left ou. of the war so far. and was now going - fresh to put stop to it. the old folks sau the animal, the old lady said. 70. pa. the ! yankees have found l}uo's horse," and then they both burst out crying. "Bci.' the brave young confederate. was away with his regiment, and poor old pa ar ma had 10 slt there and see the horse ro on with ahe Yankees. The slim soldier had a heart concealed about his person even then, and he thought of his oG father and mother in Wisconsin. and ,e had half mind 10 take the horse bacE. the fact that anothe, soldier would take him in a holy minute. bu, just then the bugle sounded for .ae assembly," the soldiers yelled ar: spurred their horses toward camp. ara ,he new horse began to pranee aac wanted 10 go along so bad that the sir, soldier ." let him went" and a beau,.ia race II was. For nearly two years af,e- hat horse was the constant companion ot the slim soldier. who rode him abo.. en thousand miles more or less, tu. here was hardly day of all those lorg marches that be did not think of the poe 'ld father and mother of the soldier bov sho owned he horse. and of their tears when they saw the noble animal go dow. he lane carrying Yankee, when they would have been so delighted to haze cen their own gray coated soldier on h. ,ack And so II was. when we opened he letter from the boy who wanted o.t autograph, who was probably unborn Then the horse was taken. we came s, ear putting the autograph on checs nd sending it to the old people who moked the cob-pipes nineteen years aga nd wep, over the horse.