Springfield globe-republic. (Springfield, Ohio) 1884-1887, 1886-03-18
CRIPPLED SOLDIERS.
BEARING THE MEMENTOES OF
HAfO-FOUGHT CONFLICTS.

Dancing with a Wooden Leg The Itch
ing of an Absent Toe -one-Lessed
Men on March 4 Change in the
Elevation.
"On- of the most remarkable things to me"
said IhN ~Iclan Of prominence. 1t that the
odd soldiers of the war bt'aI the m-mrmtoeS of
not conflicts the r,mrmhranCt> II DAYS OF
weeks or months of suffering and misery
with such cheerful un,nncern. Most men
who wear wrrdru l"E~ or cork legs do II IN
way to create the impression that the limbs
lost IN battle ar. still part Of themselves.
The other night at "A dance one Of the most
graceful walters on the floor a man who
had lost his lrg at New Hopr Church. and Vet
there was probably not lady IN tn" room
who thought for a moment that She danced
with Sueieu legged man
"Iherr an. other rrmrmhranCt~ Of various
conflicts that can not ,r~,alE otr-,.rN alton. 4
cl-H,d eve, an ugly >.Ttr. rhpled mnSA,
broken Jaw or a distorted chin not the
sort OF things to make any man cheerful and
Vet | never heard any soldier thus di>figurei
complain or grumhs IN public, and have
known CASES in which the bearer OF such dis
WIS ~ 'd wing MS ma
through some dISgrarrful braw!, rather than
as u mumcuto Of the struggle III which he
played the part Of the hero
THE ITCHING OF AN ABSENT TOE.
Their l. one man in the CITY who, in the
second wear of the war. hai the tip of hIS
nose and his middle r"e CARRIED away by one
shot lie, had thrown himself down for rest
on a side hill Just inside the >klrmish line,
when "A stray rebel bullet took him length
WIS.,. a. it were went through his zap hrim,
rlipT.d an eighth of an inch oil his shapely
nnSt.. and went through the end ut hIs shoe,
cutting off squarey his middle toe. His nose
Is all right now except Il Is'r>lNtentlvspale
sI,,k Oh the end. but the missing toe comes
back ike gh, St to MAKE, HIM nearly frantic
al times.
Il have seen him jump from his chair in
the office unbutton his shoe kick 1t as high
as the ceiling and dance round like a mad
man Peopl, vino did not know TIA" story of
the missing t.F arr very apt la jump to the
conclusion that my friend l. erraur well A.
eCcentIlr, and It i not very often that he
makes an explanation. He SAYS il is had
enough 10 have finger or to" It'h when y"J
can get al il, blr 10 have tn- take All Itch
ing spell and know that it isn't there and thu.
YOU can't get at II even if you could reach 40
miles, and to have It keep up that irritating,
tautaliNng. eXaSl-ratIug itching for ten Or
fifteen minutes ami I" have no "haucr nf get
ting at it l. too uu,h for human nature
oNE-LEGGED NEN ON MARCH.
"The funniest thing III the business said
one-armri stalwart. L. Ia see a lot Of one
legged fellows on "A march Not long ago at
II regimrnlal reunion a >Iuad OF veterans
Zach Of whom had lost = ir- or part Of a
lr- determined t. march III the procession
They had all sorts Of appliances, and each
one was proud Of his own substitute for the
leg that nature had gwen hIm. When the
hand struck up one of the old marching tunes
we were on level ground and all th,>. lamed
veterans moved off with a stately a step as If
they had never bt-.n wounded. | rejniced
greatly in the thought that they would dem
onStrate that cork legs and W"ndrE stubs an
swercd all the purposes Of soldering.
~But thrr. came a change IN the elevation
of the street ami my ou,. legged squad were in
disorder al once. In gong up the incline
more than half the w"rien or cork appliances
got out of order. and the spectacle of th,-Se
old fellows irving to keep time was ludicrouS
enough Ia make any man laugh and pitiful
enough To make most people cry, but they
iokel and laughed dropped out for minute,
adjusted their wooden lrgs, and We're again
in he ranks. They really heheN ed that they
cudld march as well a. anybody could and
not. that mnst Of the older boys, now gray
l.4aded and rheumatic, believe they can
march fifteen or twenty miles at stretch
without fatigue. At all events whenever oc-
casion offers they attempt an exploit OF the
',ind and make believe that the sickness that
follows Is caused by the weather. Inter
Osean "CurlgstOur CruYons'