The National tribune., 1888-12-13

CRATE ruler of all things, only knows whether
! shell ever have the sweet privilege of ritini
| few you agin, or whether we will ever meet
! agin in this world Be that as it may or the
| Father wills. l am goih' to stand with my
! face tew the foe If am killed, you will have
the consolation of noing that l dide for my
| kentry. If / am wounded, they will be onor-
able wounds" Oh the terrible suspense that
| followed.
After few days the Captin rote home that
| they had cum thro the fiery fray all SAFE Not
one of the boys of Co. L was injured, but he
rote in confidence to his dauter who was my
bosom friend, that when they got in line of
battle he looked round and saw Tom that he
was as white as a cloth, and his teeth were set
in firm determination, but when he got fairly
! at work, wO be few the Johnny that cum in
range Of his gun. / was sorry, for wuz in hopes
that Tom wood git along without KILN any
body, but sich is war.
Wall, after a while l got letter from Tom,
and he sed he had cum thro' that awful fray
all rite but he was not feelin' we'll / new by
the tone of that letter that he wuz tryin' tew
ware off a sickness. After that thar was days
and days that | never got word, and l Won
dered what wood be in the next letter, and |
grew nervous and melancholy. One day / went
tew the offs, but no letter l went home feeln'
sad, indeed. l was tryin' tew do my work
round the house. and | looked out and seen
! Toms sister comm, and she was cryin', and l
ran to meet her. She put her arms round me, and
seq, Peggy, did you get a letter from Tom?'
/ SEE, No, DEAR" thinking all the while that
her man wus sick At that she cried harder
than ever. / kissed her. and sez, Tell me
what it is, dear" but she laid her letter
in my hand and seq, "Rede that" l did
rede it, and God only nose how | got into
the house. Oh my gentle sister reders,
thar is many a one of you liyin' to-day
that nose what ! suffered. / got intew the
house and on the bed, and Toms sister wuz
tryin' TO soothe me; but Tom wuz sick-sick
unto death. The doctors had given him up
few die. My hart wuz broken. By-and-by the
Captin's dauter cum in and told me all her pa
had rote and tried tew cheer me up. But thar
wuz no BAN for my wounded hart, and finally
they left me alone, and / neeled down and
prayed tew God tew spare Toms life, and tho
1t wuz nothin' but poor, ignorant prayer, yet
God answered it.
One day the Captin's dauter cum flynn in,
and seq: Peggy, Tom is better. Pa rote that
the doctor said Tom can have the letters that
is Waitin' him tomorrow. Oh Peggy" SEE
she, =" am so glad for you" ! simply SEE:
Thank you, dear" l was almost sure Tom
would get well. There cum day at last that
/ got letter Not from Tom, for he wuz tew
week for that, but he dictated it, and then he
got better so fast; but, ON, SIGH a reck. That
awful disease, tyfoid fever and scurvy, had
uohe lts work, anu ION Wuz an iuNallu LOT
life. But thank God that his life wuz spared.
We have passed many happy years since then
sum bitter among the sweet-but what of that?
Life can't be all sunshine. Tom cum home at
last, so poor / hardly new him. But it wuz
Tom aud l lated and cried all in the same
breath. Poor, deer Tom"
No one nose but me how much he suffers, but
he is so patient, and at times l look in his pale,
white face and can only exclaim with the poet:
God grant that both may enter in,
Deer hart, and never more grow old"