Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1888-12-21

NE-Ld44ALG4 VIII EO41ALELEDLG energy.
adding, "Why are you not with your
comrades ?" / at once ordered him to
advance, and when he stepped into the
feeble freight, saw at q glance
that his lower garments were gray, and
at once jumped to the conclusion that
my former suspicious were we'll ground
/ ed, for he was q Confederate. and an
officer
- est drop your weapon, stranger.
/ Although not q friend, I come as a
friend, and I put these things on"
( (pOinting to his coat and cap) ain order
/ that I might get through the lines and
reach yer. Pm no traitor, nor ghost,
nor goblin damned, nor about to be
I damned" Dropping all idiOm, he said:
81 beard you IN your den; 1 have no
/ fear; I am no hireling, nor am I
/ traitor to my country or her cause, and.
what Is more, am not spy upon you
or yours. / come in peace, If YOU viii.
/ but can defend myself If I must.
You're a spy" I angrily exclaimed,
and 1 arrest you as such; and, further
more, i viii see that you are shot some
/ fine morning at sunrise.
A sarcastic smile curled his lips as I
/ spoke, and he boldly answered: ITO die
! for ones country Is sweet; but there is
/ one dying over yOnder who is not of
/ US, nor OF you uns,' as the soldiers
! say. Put up your weapons, comrade,
/ and hear me; after hearing my tale.
/ slay me If you viii, 1 shall beresigned.
/ I've been over yOnder, amid the smol-
! dering broom and needles and falling
/ branches; have walked along the rag
| ged edge of battle, where Death stalked
! boldly. 1 was searching for a comrade,
/ but found him not The 'heartIess
! JOhnnies, as you uns' call us, removed
/ them all to q place of safety, at least
/ ali that could be found and reached.
/ But there was one left, and as I was
/ crossing branch near spring / saw
! him, a soldier in blue. The fire had
nearly reached him, In fact it was
/ actually leaping from branch to branch
/ above him; but he was unconscious
he knew not of his approaching fate.
! One beautiful white hand Law in the
/ tiny stream, and the left hand, gIoved.
/ held a lOcket tightly clasped. L saw
/ at glance that he was sOrely wounded,
! perhaps dying, but the closed eyes
/ gave hope of life. 1 stopped, and,
! placing my hand on his heart, saw that
/ he was not dead, only exhausted, per
/ haps from loss Of blood, perhaps from
! OvereXertlOn IN attempting to reach
/ the stream. Why a soldier in the teeth
/ Of battle should wear gloves was a
/ mystery, but this question 1 laid aside
for future solution, resolving at pres
! ent to do all in my power for the poor
/ unfortunate at my feet.
"AsI pressed my hand on his heart he
! opened his eyes, and such eyes-I have
/ seen them only once IN q lifetime-they
/ were the eyes of a woman; the soft
] O-aVnI In-tIL~a nE q
! borrowed to do battle for his country.
/ for such eyes would wound more men
| than musket balls. When I hurriedly
/ put my canteen to his lips he smiled,
/ then L lifted him carefully and carried
him to q place of safety and laid him
| down as tenderly as though he were
my sweetheart.
! CAS- he felt the pressure of the earth
! he grOaned, and almost Immediately
/ tainted. Then his glOved hands relaxed
| and the lOcket fell to- earth, opening as
| it fell. L paid no attention to this at
] the time, as L was very anxious to bring
/ him back to life and learn his name,
! his regiment and his corps, if possible.
| 1 was somewhat selfish in this, to be
! sure, because L would that under like
! circumstances, the blue should treat
/ the gray in the same manner.
81 administered such restOratives as I
/ had on my person, and in q few mo-
ments was rewarded by seeing him
! slowly revive. but he was very feeble.
1 saw that life with him was short, and
/ if 1 would learn anything of his history
! 1 must be active as we'll as discreet.
"On becoming stronger his glOved
hand began cropping, as for a lost treas
ure, and viii own that, by the light
! of my feeble torch, I watched him curl
! Ously. Presently his hand closed on
! the lOcket, and 1 saw the miniature.
! Let me whisper in your ear, my friend,
| that it was not the face of q ICOnld9I
/ that looked out upon me, but the we'll
! known features of a soldier. The truth
| dawned upon me at once. She had
followed some unworthy lOver-fOr no
man is, or ever can be, worthy sab a
-preferring death, even court
\ ing death, rather than to suffer the
! pangs Of disappointment.
Young man, I have little more to tell.
/ What passed between US none will ever
know. L have but another word for
! you, then send a bullet through my
heart if you can. The sun picture in
/ the lOcket was the picture of a veteran,
OF a true soldier; the face was yours.
/ Follow mel"
So saying he plunged into the wood,
and 1, in desperation. followed, my
mind narrowed the while with all sorts
Of misgivings and imaginings A
thought, like a ghost, few into my
mind, asking If this was not a plot, the
plan being to work upon my feelings
with this weird tale until L was so
wrought upon that I would, like bird
fly directly into the cage of the serpent
and become an easy prey?
L could scarcely believe this of a sG5-
der, even if he was a Confederate, and
L felt that would sooner question my
sanity than question the honor of a true
soldier As followed his rapidly re-