The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1888-06-22

He looked at me out of his melan-
choly, fcverish eyes.
mo, thank you. I'll ride back to
NJ and he turned his horses head
to ride away.
called to him to stop. He obeyed
me, and went out into the road and
took hold of his bride.
What do you mean by that?" he
asked, surprised.
g am going to press your horse.
| "What for?'
"To keep for the safe return Ct those
you've taken."i
He looked at me sort o. dazed. He
put his hand to his head, and didn't
seem to know what TO do. ] led his
horse up to the yeranda. He dis
mounted and walked feebly up the
steps and sat down on a bench, while
took his horse round to the barn.
Well, the Captain was put to bed.
He had typhoid fever, and very bad
case it was. Occasionally when troops
would come into the neighborhood /
| would mount my pony, and ride over
| to their camp and ask to have a Sur
geon come and see him. Between the
surgeons and my nursing. we got him
| through the crisis. / nursed him for
six weeks. Then he became conval-
escent, md it was very nice to have
him sitting up in an armchair on the
veranda looking so pale and handsome.
| | used to sit by him with my work, and
he seemed SO gentle and SO patient
not at all like he appeared to me when
! first saw him riding back to the barn
to press the horses-that l began to
| feel sorry he wasn't one of our men in
stead OF being nothing but a destestable
| Yankee.
One day while was sitting on the
veranda beside him, sewing, he said:
Miss Molly, are you still holding
my horse as a hostage?'
Eyes. Ours haven't come back YETI
Don't you think you could let me
take him when ] get well, if I should
promise to go and find your horses and
have them returned?''
"I'll see about that when you get
we'll"
He'd been talking already about 60
ing on to join the army, but didn't
think him well enough, and didn't mean
to let him go. Hecouldn' very well go
without his horse. so [ wouldn't let
him have it.
"What hostage do you require in
token of my appreciation of your
kindness since I've been sick?'s he
asked.
You haven't any thing to leave.
Besides, I've done very little, I'm sure"
He thoughta moment. Then he said,
somewhat sadly:
Eyes; there's one thing I can leave
only one. I'll leave that with YOU"
1 couldn't think of any thing he had
except his revolver, and was sure he
wouldn't leave that. 1t wasn't appro-
pirate. / waited for him to tell me,
but he said nothing about it then.
At last he was well enough to 60.
AT least he thought 81; l didn't. He
was still as weak as kitten.
but l saw how anxious he was,
and 1 didn't oppose him any
longer So one pleasant morning,
when the air was soft and the roads
were dry, told one OF the colored
boys to bring the Captains horse
around from the barn.
The Captain stood on the veranda
ready TO mount and ride away. His
blankeS and rubber poncho were
strapped behind the saddle, just as he
had left them, and his horse was so
anxious to be off that the boy could
hardly hold him. The Captain took
my hand in his to say goodbye, and
looked straight into my eyes. lowered
them to his spurs.
you're good girl, he said. "I'll
not forget your kindness
ooh, | would have done the same
for any one"
Amy one?"
"Any one."
"Then | asked myself: What did I
want to say that for?
81 leave you the hostage Ispoke Of"
he said, ''but it is a very poor return
for so much kindness-a mere baga-
telle."
| could have bitten my tongue off.
He was going to make a return-to pay
for what had done for him.
you'll find it," he added eff you
have the shrewdness to guess where it
isl
With that he gave my hand pres
s'lre, ard looked long and steadily into
my eyes. Then he mounted his horse
and rode away without once looking
back.
AS soon as he had gone commenced
to think what he could mean about
leaving a hostage. | was sure he
wouldn't offer any thing very valuable.
He must know | wouldn't like that; but
| thought he might leave some little
trlnket for me to remember him by. I
ransacked the room he had occupied,
looking into bureau drawers, into
closets, any place the ingenuity of man
could find to hide any thing. I even
looked behind the pictures hanging ons
the wall. Then | went all over the
house from attic to cellar Not thing
could | find. Then | recalled his words:
"lf you are shrewd enough to guess
where it is" and went all over nv
search again. At last gave it up
"a pretty way to treat me-" grum-
| bled latter taking care of him so
longm vowed that if ever I should
see him again he should tell me
whether he had really left any thing,
| and what it was.
News came of terrible fighting at
| the front Stra orlarc l,rol~, nv, 5or,,,,