The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1885-08-27
THE COLONEL.
"wLa! has become OF LenoirY
-yes. where is Lenoirf"


U-yes. where is Lenoirf"
The pbalanr OF solid business men,
oomprsing the bulk Of the membership
lpk<iAfLold Post. Ne. 3. q. A. Il, had re-
I'D as downright grievance call 10
attend a meeting for the Transaction Of
special business. appointed at the very
ineoaysuien, hour OF two 10 the afternoon.
They had responded to The order under
protest. taken part 10 tho proceedings
With an absirActed air. fumed Of the break
IN their daily routine, ostentahously con-
suited their watches with the anxiety OF
men who are peglecting important engage.
menis, and when the meeting at length
adjourned. gathered into csxy knots here
and there. and settled down for somfort.
able chat and the resivsl Of old army rem
iniscenees. " @A "a sA
The first speaker. Jim Brewster. was >
lumber merchant who had acquired eK-
tensive tracts Of land covered with .
forest growth second only to the big trees
Of the Cslveras and Mariposs groves.
He had so prospered in business ventures
that bis name had become identified with
/ the natural product he ruled in the COM
mercial world, and he had gained the sob
.iquet OF the prince Of Redwood. He
| ad purchased large piece Of land At
| |, ot of Sixth street. including within its
bc,1nd aries that unsavory but classical
region on the banks Of Mission creek,
known rs the dumps" where the Italian
scavesger had from time memorial depos-
tied the ,atents OF their carts, and raked
the putrid ssd decsying masses OF paper.
scraps of cid iron and other articles OF
commerce. as veil as the pieces of plate
benevolently dropped into the ash barrel
by careless seryaats. Mission creek, at
high tide, is for a.oonsiderable distance q
navigablc stream, aad 1t was generally
conceded that Brewster's branch yard was
shrewd venture, and soon turned the
tide OF traffic from the crowded thorough
iare Of Steuart street. The prince Of Red
wood himself had felt an the glow OF
prudent mans sagacity, but stormy in
terview in the underwater Office that noon
had distured the serenity with which he
had hitherto viewed his new acquisition.
Meeting some old comrades, men OF his
own regiment, who had fought side by
side with him through the four years OF
| civil war, he cast aside the perplexities OF
the day and plunged with eager zest into
an animated discussion OF past campaigns
| in the course Of which he ms8e the inaui-
ry which heads this chapter. The ques-
tion was repeated with an echoing chorus
'Lenoir1" The speaker -ho volunteer.
ed . reply was 4 member OF that very
agreeable and highly entertaining O. 20 o.
'sdividuals who are commonly accredit u
v ith the possession Of universal knowl-I
cd, - and whose information is about as
diff we and inexact as the average encyclo.
padia OF biography. "Lenoirs wife died
Just b efore he was mustered out in '65. |
Broke b i'm all up for awhile, but he rallied
and went down to Florida, invested in an
orange grove and lives on the fat of the
land"
"He was an odd fslow-Lenoir, re-
marked gray bearded veteran who en-.
deayored to reconcile his prediction for
powder and cold steel by keeping a gun
shop In Bush street
"Odd! there wasn't nobler fellow in
the service. He was hero, il ever one
existed. Brewster spoke with such un.
wontsd energy that the others looked at
him 10 surprise. for he was generally re-
garded as phlegnatio in society and cold
blooded in his business relations. He
cooled down q little as he observed the
sausation his remark had created, and ex-
changsd his enthusiasm for dry, argu.
mentative tone. {
"You kno* was mere boy when III
enlisted. Some OF our folks knew Lenoir;
my mother spoke to him the day we I
and-well, could tell you .
thing or two about the colonel that none !
of you ever knew. I'm not going to gush !
over the man, but you may be interested a
10 hear vi little incident thht happeaed 7
IN eastern Tennessee. You remember
July, 1856. when we marched through the
and camped in narrow deiile l
hey called rattlesnake pass' By Georgel b
shall never forget the place to the day s.
u my death; shut in by steep, rocky walls; v
DOSE sand underfoet, not a green leaf or "
'lade OF grass to be seen, outside OF u
cant green fringe bordering the starving Ia
,rook that irickled along one side. / no
iced such things aud cared more about "
hem than the older men When / Joined RI
be army was Just turned eighteen, and b
buck full Of patriotic fire, raying over d
be justice OF our cause, ambitious to earn h,
istinction, greedy for carnage and blood. T
he'd. One year had cooled me down in n,
way, and the cause might have "
one to thunder for all that cared that lu
light. ! would have relinquished the pl
oriest battle that ever was fought TO be
ack again on our meadow land knee deep al
, the long, cool grass, driving the cows re
ome from pasture. l was ravenous for ~
lste OF home cooking. aud would have
'rfsited all the epaulettes in the country 81
" one oi ny mothers mince pies. They to
ut me on duty that night; posted sentries nc
the entrance to keep = sharp lookout re
" the saeey: for IL they had come on le
} unawares they would have caught Us
ks Exts 10 trap. Ny heart sank when In
y name Was called, and, II it hadnt been On
II the ridicule, I'd have tried to get of av
! pleading sick. You see was pretty py
aI