Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1885-08-17

l
sick. You see was pretty well used
upby the long marches, the uncer-
TAN rations, and the homesickness.
Tie hot sand clogged my steps and
burned my blistered feet; the rocks
seemed to radiate the heat they had
stored up during the day; the air
was dry and charged with dust.
kept up my beat awhile and then sat
down on boulder and cried: and
then | deliberately lay down and shut
my eyes to 60 to Sleep"
ssFine thing if one of the officers
had caught you,' observed one old
soldier dryly.
"Precisely what happened. ] was
sliding off into delicious slumber,
when heard movement near by.
I6pened my eyes and saw colonel
Lenoir. / thought the day of doom
had come for me, for there was hard
ly a week passed we didn't hear of
some poor fellow being shot for
sleeping at his post. was so stu
pid with fatigue and drowsiness that
I couldn't somehow make out where
1 was. Everything was jumbled up
in my mind. The cows coming home
from market, the mince pie on the
table, an open grave and a boy
standing up as target for line of
soldiers, my mother in tears
Brewster stopped abruptly, and
somebody asked eagerly what hap
pened next what the colonel said.
"Lenoir had not known a good
nights rest for weeks. He had been
twenty-four hours in the saddle"
said Brewster, slowly and impressive
ly. "He was worn out physically
and mentally. He had directed his
man to call him at daybreak the next
morning. But he took my musket
up from the rock where I had placed
it, ordered me to lie down again, and
did duty for me two hours while /
slept"
| There was no comment on Brews-
ter's story. The account of noble
deed sinks quietly into the heart with
out parade or flourish. After few
moments of silence, some one put in
a query in which lurked suggestion:
"Lenoir acted finely at Anderson
vile, too, didn't he Brewster ?"
| The lumberman gave short rejoin-
der, consulted his watch and rose to
go. Despite the self-depreciation of
his narrative, all were aware that he
had been one of those noble speci-
mems of American manhood who had
survived the horrors of that awful ex-
perience, and finally emerged an ema-
ciated wreck of humanity whose he
roic devotion to noble principle will
resound through the everlasting ages.
But he could never be betrayed into
any relation of his prison experience.
He pulled on his driving gloves, nod
ded cool adieux to the score or more
of loungers, and was soon driving at
quick pace up Market street and
out Sixth. For the first few blocks
the we'll paved street was lined with
handsome, comfortable residences,
and the pavement grew uneven. Half
mile further the street abandoned
all pretense at smartness, trailed
humbly between one-storied ware
houses, leaped railroad track, lost
itself in maze of switches, and re-
sumed existence in the guise of a
wagon road, terminating with mis-
erable wooden structure, standing in
desolate region and fanked on one
side by tall lumber piles. The clerks
and day laborers we're filing away,
and the night-watchman, quiet-man-
nered man with an unllt lantern in
his hand, stood on the steps.
ssWell, Martin, what success?"
81 gave them warning, sir, to clear
out, early this morning, and kicked
their houses over after they left, for
fear they would be back again to-
night, like rats-that is, all but one."
ssGreat guns, man! Don't you
know ones as bad as dozen? I can't
get dollar of insurance on the stock
without paying double rates until I
can satisfy the company that the
whole tribe is gone"
The tribe referred to by Brewster
consisted of floating population of
disreputable vagabonds, allied in
character to the hoodlums and crimi-
nails commonly known as sswharf rats"
and shay bunkers," who had squat
!. ted on the s'dumps," and utilized the
: tin cans scattered plentifully over the
ground in the construction of min
iature village. The members of this
; peculiar sub-stratum of society were
tabled to exc out their sustenance by
, diligent grumbling in the heaps by
! which they were surrounded. They
were looked on by the police and the
, public as dangerous class of citizens,
and the underwriters very wisely re-
: fused to insure property in their prox-
J unity at the ordinary rates. Martin,
meanwhile, advanced a lame self-de-
fense.
! s;It was early, and he hadn't shown
| himself, sir. / didn't quite like to
: knock his house down about his ears.
. You see, Mr.. Brewster, he's different
r like from the rest-quite carries him
] self above them, you know"
e This stammering communication
( | amused Brewster. A queer notion