The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1885-08-22
the grave beneath, With feccy veil u

]
color Of q dawn-cloud.
The grave itself, now that tho sum
MGR winds had borne away Its 1eecy
veil, was green ard soft as velvet. Tho
children, With broken case-knlves, had
cut turf frop, the fields and covered It
With care, and watered It, till the brok-
en- grRss-roots had fastened themselves
into the earth, and covered 1t with thick,
glossy blades, amid which late butter
cup or two shone like stars,
At the head Of the grave was bit Of
white pine that had once been pinah'a
moulding board, but now, split In two,
served to tell who slept beneath, Upon
1t was scorched with g bot iron:
Henry Lee, Co. A, 18th Reg. Penn.
Vols, Aged "a years"
While the summer sunshine was
shiinmering through the tremulous
leaves upon the quiet grave where slept
one for whom strife and tutpult were
hushed forever, great battle was rag
ing not very many miles to the north.
From dawn 10 sunset the fair day
grew sick with the smell Of powder, the
groans Of the dying, tic booming Of
cannon, the horror Of brother killing
brother The smoke and dust shut the
valley, where the frightful carnage
ragged, from the sight Of those on the
hilltops, who watched to see IT friend or
foe prevailed.
That night over the battlefield Ian
terms wayered to and fro, as friend
sought friend that the overcrowded am
bulancc had not yet carried to the hos
pitals in the rear.
In the very centre of the valley, where
the front of the battle had ragged, and
where the soaked earth was calpeted
with gray and blue mixed ineXtricably
together, two officers searched for q
friend who wore the blue with a silver
bar,
AS they sought, q glimmer of the dim
lantern fell upon white young face up.
turned to the s.arless sky, Lieut., WIN
Law uttered a cry.
"Arihur Lascop he exclaimed. "Poor
boy, you here.-and wearing the grey,
toor' he added, half angrily, even in
that moment.
Only I moan answered him.
"What can I do9' demanded vii!
Law, ezcitedly, Of lis fellow-oiloera, a:
he bent over the wounded boy lean
not leave him here to die. He was my
friend and school-fcllow cnce."
Later two men knocked at 4 farm
house on q neishborlng hill They bore
between them burden wrapped in :
United States army cloak, but with IL
uniform beneath.
"Lieut. Law sent lis here with thi:
boy and this note they said to Tho
lady who admitted them. The sad
faced woman read:
"DEAR MADAM: This man was ,
school friend of mine whom | loved
viii you care for him as YOU would fol
me, and not ask whether he is with o.
against usP" WM. Law,
For days and nights in that modes
farmhouse the wounded rebel wa
nurscd and tended as if he had beer
the son Of the woman who dwelt there
II have given one brave boy-m,
only one--to this dreadful war;" sh,
, said to him, as she gently nursed him
land every sorrowing mothers son i
my own for his sake. Only how coull
you raise your hand against the dear ol,
hag?"
One day an orderly knocked at tn
farmhouse door. The invalid boy, no
yet nineteen, slowly recovering, was sit
ting wrapped in woman's peignoi
(for nothing in the world, not evei
gratitude to his nurse, could entrap hin
into wearing the bluel in large arm
chair, where through the open windoy
he could see the ''boyin blue" as he ap
preached.
He turned oven palcr than usual, ant
his blue eyes were troubled, for thr
thought came into his mind that th
truth of his being q rebel, had somehow
been discovered, and that his guardian
angel, as he called her who had nurset
him back to life, might in some wa,
suffer for her loyalty to her heart, not
withstanding her answering loyalty tt
her country.
But the orderly only brought letter
ut came from headquarters," he said
"and has been some months in getting
through the lines"
How the poor mother walled as shj
read that letter!
The sympathizing rebel held he
hands in his. and sought with tendo
words words to soften the bitterness o
a grief he did not yet understand.
ut is the last letter from my boy,
she sobbed-"my poor boy, dead in III,
South, and buried by rebel hands! Coz
bless and protect the son of the mothei
who wrote itp and she gave the lettel
into the boys thin hand.
As his eye ran over it, be uttered az
exclamation.
80 Mrs. Lee" he cried, as he, too
wept over the letter. my mother bprie.
your boy with tears under the peach
trees in our garden. You brought my
mothers boy out from the jaws o.
death" and they mingled theif tear.
together.
And vet these Two sons OF these twe
mothers would have retoiced 10 Kill
each other n bs..tle, had wars f2.al
chance brought them face to face in the
fuzzy Oi the hght.
And alas Ike to these sons Of these
two gentle, brayo-hehrted mothers, were
thousanas and tens OF thousands OF