Milford chronicle., 1885-04-24
A WAR PICNIC.
ENEMIES MEET, AND FOR THE TIME
BECOME FRIENDS.
A Neat Picture Of Life In TroubIous Times
By Ned BuntlIne.

While Longstreet was in front of Suf
folk pecking at us with Wright's batter.
les, instead of coming in and sswipinQ
US out, as he could have done before
we were reinforced, areport came in that
he was massing a heavy force to the
southeast OF our lines, our weakest point
OF defense. To learn the true state of
things at that point I was sent with a
small scouting party by the way of the
Shingle Oompany's canal into Lake
Drnmmond, to scout from thence south
OF the Dismal Swamp.
Going in skiAs we reached a land
ing on tolerably solid ground and
camped for the night on q little
knoll in a dense thicket Of scrub pine. a
half mile or thereabout from the point
OF Landing. OF course I had sentinels
well out from our bivouac, for we knew
by many sounds that the enemy were
not far from us. ALI went well through
the night and at dawn we made coffee
and cooked some Venison that I had got
from old Duke at the head of the canal
as we came by his place on the previous
afternoon. The sentineIs were called in
to breakfast, for there seemed to be no |
immediate danger. We had Just squat
ted co our coffee and grist when q sound
sDnek our ears which made every man
II silence spring up and grasp his Sharp's
oarbine. 1t was the heavy tread of
men. We had just got our arms in hand
when dozen men and in rebel gray, led
by lieutenant over six feet high and
lean as a nail, broke right through the
bush in front of us.
In a second, while both parties stood
at ready, the lieutenant cried out:
Hold on, Yanks III you'uns won't
IhOot, we'uns II hold fire. THAT coffee
imells mighty good-we'uns haven't
lad none for a year. We've lots of TO-
'acco though"
he and his men looked so gaunt and
iungry, and so little like enemies just 4
hen, that I cried out: :
IF you'll stack your arms out there
nd trust to us, you shall share in W
rub and coffee, and than be free to 90 a
ack and fight it out if you want to. ~ ~
Good as sweet corn We'uns are 81
ighty hungry, you bet Z" er
They at once stacked arms and we ht
d the same, and while our cook nut su
ore coffee and more stake on the lire IF
sat there on the ground, the Blue VI
d the Gray, and talked as if we were 30
friends. Not about the war or its
uses, but about camp life and other eli
Ings. ma
And the way our coffee went down. sta
ii hard tack and juicy venison steak san
uld have satisfied the proudest land
d that ever Dragged of his table. Or
liter we had filed up, the Vir0inians
ught out their tobacco and did their I
re of the treating. The ieutenant i39 ii7g
a huge canteen of old peach brandy
that went the rounds,
-tter we had got so friendly I asked DIS
lieutenant how he came to be on srI SII
point. He replied: mai mai
was sent to watch least you'uns
e this way in force to take us on @
flank. Oar main force is massed in UriI
t, where the batteries are ready to Ora
n If you'uns weaken, and the old IN
(Longstreet) was afeard you might trim
e through the swamp and tickle ms hors
e rear What were you'uns doin'
ust out on hunt for fresh meat. GOT bed
deer last night"
Veil, the best of luck to you. You I'll
feel like fghtin' now, do you % Eye
Tot If you boys don't. It would be pona
: to spoil this picnic that way" mar
we all shook hands, traded coffee Asl
'bacco, and separated, at least for Q1icI
as friends. The next day on the warts
we were all throwing lead and Pr
1t each other. noun