The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1888-09-06

states rights? How could the per-
petuation or abolition of slavery af-
feet her? Her four boys were gone
marching away, marching away. Not
with plumes waving and victorious
banners floating in the breeze. No, not
triumphant and flushed with hope.
They had gone marching away into
the Jaws of grim death, to fill the
breach in the lines by the Potomacs
crimsoned flood. Marching away with
Hopping cloth hats and mixed gray
uniforms of homespun, and ill-foting
shoes of red leather, your boys had
gone, marching away, marching away.
Eben was killed in the wilderness,
Riley died in prison, Hamp died of ex-
haustion and the hardships of the
northern climate, while following Jeb.
| and valley.
All, you that are thrilled with stir
ring emotions when you read how
that knightly commander, bearded
| and booted, rode forward down into
battle with a song on his lips
when the dew is on the blossom"
Little think ye how many brave
boyish hearts swelled up into their
throats at the thought of widowed
| mothers among the barrens.
Mack came home. He was brought
| on the cars to the nearest station,
and then hauled in q cart to his home
in the piney woods. Only the poor
shattered wreck of a man came home,
| and she had watched four stout lads
60 marching away.
Il haint got but two now, an Mack,
| poor feller, Pm afeared he'll never see
| the blackberry blossoms ag'in. He
was ter bly, wounded at the start an
| them hospitle muses. thest in q man.
ner made it wuss. Then here's Little
Dick, God SEN they won't want my
baby boy"
But they did. They wanted the
baby boy. The hungry war dogs
must snap and snarl over the weakly
frame of Little Dick, too.
How we'll l remember the weakly
looking lad! Five feet, scant at that.
slender and boyish. Two great hol-
low eyes set in a pinched, pale face,
| the unattractiveness Of which was
heightened by thin, scattered head
of sun-scorched hair. A little whitish.
| fuzzy down on cheek and chin, where
the beard should have appeared had
+! the surroundings given more encour-
| agement. Colorless complexion, save
| the sallow cast OF sunburn, and q few
| blue veins up under the brim of his
| hopped hat. The ill-ftting clothes
hung about his person, and the boys
| said that he used to have to drag his
musket when out of breath on a long
march.
Poor Aunt Nina! She left the bed
side where the body of her emaciated
boy. lay in inert and Indifferent pros
tration between life and death, the
manly tones of voice dwindled down
to a aquerrelous treble. and the animate
ed look changed to the vacant nerve
less stare Of hopelessness. She left
this sorrowful scene to enfold in q
fond embrace the puny form of her
baby boy. Great tears chased one
another down the bosom of the ill-fit-
ting jacket, and kisses rained on the
sun-burned cheek until the lips, parch-
ed with griet, were no longer able to
| drop the holy dew of a mothers love
on the pale cheek of her baby boy.
Betty wept, and prayed, and hugged
Little Dick to her bosom-that bosom
on which his baby locks had oft been
pillowed.
Sheit was who first taught the baby
to walk, and then to talk. She had
said "Lony, now fur litter, Dick"
and Dick had tried his spindle legs,
and found out the secret of erect
say nanny, fur litter, Little Dick"
and Little Dick had croaked out a
sort of gurgle that was interpreted as
good English language by the fond
sister.
"Good-bye, Little Dick. May God
keep my darling baby boy from HARM"
"Good-bye Little Dick. Oh, my
precious little buddy! OH"
Dick was gone. Two big tears plow-
ed each furrow down the sunbrown-
ed cheek and hung trembling on the
fuzzy chin like rain drops on the
hairy calyx of a wild thistle. Dick
was gone. Marching in struggling
ranks with gray bearded men,
too old for service, and
other beardless boys too young to
bear arms, The Estate Troops"
What q satire on the pomp and glory
men, and these weak armed boys,
troops. But the hungry howl of the
fierce dogs OF war ONE sweeping across
the hills and valleys and echoes from
crag to crag in the mountains.
Times were hard in Georgia. They
were desperate in the piney woods.
Hungry, hollow-eyed women went
from house to house asking aid. A
few shareholders had corn and they
gave it out in small quantities to the
most needy. Sometimes bands of
desperate women attacked barn or
commissary and carried off the CON-
tents. Rob the most dociIe animal
of her young, slay her mate and then
starve her, and see if the numbed FAC,
ulties do not gradually, but surely,
concentrate into the one wild instinct
OF self-preservation.
Poor old Aunt Nina! She would
leave Betty at home and wall, nany
miles across the desolate pine woods
to secure the cracklings from the plan
tatlon fat gourd, or little dribble OF
molasses in the old brown jug where
Ebenezer used to keep the "sperits."
remember seeing the good woman
once with a handful Of cracklinga aud
q skirty piece of dried beet in her apron.
and that Jug under her arm, She had
walked FIVE miles, starting early, to Sc
cure these, and was now on her return.
and two miles yet from home. The
molasses had fermented under the |
heat of q July sun, and the corncob
stopper had been forced out, and the
foaming liquid was running out.
Do you suppose she let a drop 20 to |
waste? No, she caught it an her lean |
finger and licked the finger greedily, |
and talked Of Mack and Little Dick.
II hain't get time tswipe) to stop a |
mint tlick) but hits jes awastin'
(swipe) an it do look SO pitiful (lick( |
to see it 60 to waste lswipey an
them po' Children asuflerinr (lickt fur
sumkin, ye gimme q leetle speck |
(swipe) no taller grease to put in it |
(lick) to keep hit f'om aworkin'p"