The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1886-01-27
WHOLE NO. 2592

the prison weighing SO pounds, and now
tips the scales at 352l
In the corner of the room to the left
Of the entrance are two brass guns, un-
. mounted. One was captured from the
, Mexicans at the battle of Cerro Gorde
! by the Fourth Illinois, under Col Ned
Baker, afterwards Senator from Oregon,
and who was killed at the battle of Balls
Buff. Two years ago it was loaned to
parties at Bloomington to be used at a
Fourth Of July celebration, when it ex-
ploded near the breech, killing two
men.
The other gun is OF rare make. The
exterior Of the barrel is octagon, and it
shoots a cartridge from a shell about the
size of mans fist. 1t was not mounted
on wheels, and was designed to pick off
artillery menat long range There were
four Of them in possession of the Con-
federates-the only ones ever made, and
their inventor, an Englishman, was with
the army trying to perfect them, when
| it became necessary to either destroy
them or let them fall into the hands of
the Unionists. In their dilemma the
rebels buried them in graves at Macon.
and on the headboard inscribed, died
of smallpox" The Unionists suspected
a trick, and an investigation resulted in
their being resurrected. This was done
by troops from Illinois, Indiana and
Ohio, and each of these States were
given one of the guns and the other was
sent to Washington.
Lyingupon the floor in one end of one
Of the hag-cases are a rusted bayonet
and sword-bayonet. Two soldiers Of the
contending armies ran each other
through simultaneously at Shiloh, with
these weapons and died together. Ire
membered as I looked at these that
sweet old poem in my old Fourth Read
er, confirming the lines:
"What matters now?
Fate only made us foes
almost forgot to mention flag cap
tured at Stone River. It is of blue, and
was presented by the wife of John Nor
gan, Of guerrilla fame, to the Eighteenth
Tennessee (Confederate) Infantry, at
Murfreesboro.
Around on the side containing the
cavalry flags we see among others that
Of the Sixteenth Regiment, which, 29G
strong, was captured by Longstreet and
sent to Andersonville, where they re-
mained over a year. And when they
again breathed the air of freedom the
bones Of l89 of them were left in the
trenches there.
The flag of the Ninth Infantry was the
finest carried by Illinois troops. It was
Of silk, and cost $780, Even time has
not ehaced the evidences Of its richness
and beauty.
In the room OF the Geological Museum
may be seen two rough iron blades,
which were made with a number OF
others for
OLD JOHN BROWN,
Who intended them for lance heads with
which he intended to arm his followers.
The rusty weapons never saw blood, but
unstained as they were, grand old John
Brown accomplished his purpose, did his
work, and died not in vain.
In the Memorial Hall are many other
LITTLE RELICS
Taken from the pockets OF dead soldiers
and picked up on battle fields. There is
hard-tack over twenty years old. There
are rusty buttons, fnger-rings and to-
baccO boxes, old clay pipes, and one old
fashioned case in which a miniature
once smiled. But it has almost crum-
bled away. We can on,y wonder if it
once held the picture of a mother or
sister, or perhaps a sweetheart, and we
can imagine that when it was bright and
new it looked back smiles to smiles, and
perhaps later the smiling face was seen
through many tears, for
" Go search the foremost ranks in dangers
wild career
You'll find the hand most daring there has
wiped away tear
And then, alas we must imagine the
sorrow OF some one when the word
came that he who carried the picture
was among the slain, and we wonder if
she still lives, and if she remembers the
old case, or would recognize it should
she see it now. But the old picture
case guards its sad secrets well.
An hour in the flag room amid such
hallOwed memories and inspiring relics
/ 1 know was not misspent, and only in
|creases our love and respect for the men
who saved the Nation Let us young
fellows see that our generation does not
prove unworthy that preceded MS.
We can never forget.
We would not if we could. but we can forgive
TRAMP PRINTER
! Nashville, Tenn, Jan. IG, 1856.
Like an Old Creaky Window Shutter.
That is the way mans rheumatic Joints