The Monitor. [volume] (Woodstown, N.J.) 1884-1892, 1885-06-05

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''Then | galloped on, though some of
the men called to me to come back, saying
they'd fill my canteen. didn't stop till |
reached a house, a mile or two further ON,
where a little black boy watered both me
and my horse, and filled my c%anteen, with
a smile tina the handful of new pennies |
gave him couldn't begin to pay for. When
| compared the conduct of this poor little
chip of ebony. who said he never had no
father, nor mother, nor no name but Pete
with the treatment / had received from a
white fellow-soldier, | found that that
drink of cold water hadn't cooled down
my anger much. And for months and
months after, whenever / thought of that
affair, the old, mad feeling would come
boiling up. The fellow face always came
out as clear before me as my own broth
er's, only it seemed to be more sharply cut
into my memory. | don't know why | re-
scented thiso offence so bitterly. | nave let
bigger things of the sort pass, and soon
forgotten them; but this stuck by me. |
am not a ~revengeful fellow naturally, but
| never gave up the hope of seeing that
man again, and somehow paying him back
for his brutal insolence. There wasn't a
camp or review | was in for the next two
years but | looked for him right and left.
| never went over a field, after a battle,
~dying-God forgive me! AT last my OPP
portunity Tine
Il had been wounded, and was in one of
the Washington hospitals almost well,
yet still not quite fit for duty in the saddle.
| hate, above all things, to be idle; so |
begged for light employment as a hospital
nurse, and they gave it to me, and said |
did my duty well.
81 never felt for our poor, brave fellows
as | did there. | had been very fortunate.
and until that summer had never been in
hospital. Now | saw such suffering and
such heroism as | had never seen OH the
battle field. Companionship helped to
keep up the spirits Of those we could not
save, to the last. Then it seemed hard that
each brave boy must make his march down
the dark valley alone. But they all went
off gallantly. | would rather have gal
loped forward on a forlorn charge, any
day, than have followed any one of them
over to the Soldiers Rest though it is a
pretty place to camp down. In fact, my
heart grew SO soft here, SO Christianized,
as it were, that I forgot to look for my old
enemy; for SO, you see, | still regarded the
surly straggler who refused me water at
the roadside spring.
"After the battles of the Wilderness, a
great multitude of the wounded were
poured in upon us; all our wards were
filed to overlooking. 1t was hot, close
weather; most of the patients were fevered
by their wounds and exposure to the sun
and up and down the long. CHASTITY lines of
white beds the great cry was for water.
| took a large pitcher of ice-water and a
tumbler, and started on the round of my
ward, as eager to give as the poor fellows
were to receive. The ice ratified and rung
in the pitcher in a most inviting way, and
many heavy eyes opened at the sound, and
many a hot hand was stretched out, when,
all at once. on one of the farthest beds of
the ward. | saw a man start up. with his
ing, as he almost screamed out: Water!
give me water, for Gods sake.'
Then. madam, | could see no other face
in all the ward, for it was he!
sImade a few steps towards him, and saw
he knew Inc as well as | knew him, for he
fell back on his pillow, and Just turned his
face toward the wall. Then the devil
frightened his grip IN me, till it seemed he
had me fast and sure, and he seemed to
whisper into my ear: Rattle the ice in
the pitcher, and aggravate him Go up
and down, giving water to all the others,
and not a drop to him.
nearer, though not in such "A sharp, hiss
ing way-conscience, | suppose it was;
good Methodists might call it the Holy
Spirit; other religious people might say it
was the spirit of my mother; and perhaps
we would all mean the same thing-any-
how, it seemed to say: Now. my boy, is
your chance to return good for evil. Go
to him, give him to drink first Of all :
And that something walked me right up to
his bedside, made me slide my hand under
his shoulder and raise him up, and put the
tumbler to his lips. How he drank
never can forget-in long, deep draughts,
almost a tumblerful at Il swallow. looking
at me so w~istfully all the time. When he
was satisfied, he fell back, and again
turned his face to the wall, without a
word. But somehow | knew that fellows
heart was touched, as no chaplain's
sermon or tract had ever touched it.
Il asked the surgeon to let me have the
sole care of this patient, and he consented,
though he said the man had a bad gun
shot wound in the knee and would have to
submit to an amputation, if he could stand
it; and if not, would probably make me a
great deal of trouble while he lasted.
s'Well, | took charge of him | lad to
do it, somehow-but he kept up the same
silence with me for several days: then, one
morning, just as | was leaving his bedside,
he caught hold of my coat and pulled me
back. bent down to ask him what he