The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1888-05-04

Grand Army men OF Kansas got to.
gether scraps Of his recollections
and published them in an article in an
obscure country newspaper under
the head:
'Lost-Henry Thompson"
Then another strange thing happen.
ed.
a Van Vert man sat down by the
window one morning while his wife
fused around to fry some pork and
potatoes for breakfast. 10 occupy
his time while he was waiting for
that important event he picked
up q fragment OF newspaper on
the tloor-the bit remaining after lie
had kindied the fire with the prin.
cipal part. Afterwards after trying
to account for the presence OF that
newspaper, he concluded that it must
have come in around pair OF cob.
bled shoes. In that fragment he read:
"Lost-Henry Thompson" and how
he dreamed he had been a member OF
some Ohio regiment. After breakfast
he drove over to Thompson's.
"say, Mr.. Thompson, what became
OF your boy Hugh9"
"lIugh, Hugh" said the old man,
c;.,why. my, boy Hugh was shot at
Chattanooga"
They compared notes. The old
mans hope was laid in the boys
grave, but 1t feebly came to life.
at is possible" he admitted. A
correspondence was opened with the
Grand Army OF the Republic in Kan
sas. which resulted in the lost soldier
being sent on to Van Vert, o.
In vain. He did not know the town.
He did not remember ever havin, seen
it before. He did not recognize his
surviving comrades of Company II,
nor they him, for q quarter OF a cen.
fury had passed. His father had gone
blind.
But there were two or three impor.
tant clews. He had kept tattered
testament and did not know how he
came by it. 1t contained an extra
fly leaf, bearing some patriotic dogger.
FL in Il faded female hand. There was
no name and nobody remembered it..
But the orderly sergeant OF his com.
pany was still living, and he said: 81
was with Hugh Thompson when he
was struck in the head with u bullet
slancing downward from limb. lex.
amlncd the wound and that one he
atterward got from bayonet in the
jaw and shell wound in the hip be-
fore he was left on the field" Wounds
were found to correspond.
and" said another solid citizen,
elf this IS Hugh he has n scar on the
right ankle, made by the accidental
clip of a broatiax when we were build
in. IL barn" The doctor who dressed
1t was summoned, and declared that
1t was the same as nearly as he could
Judge.
The sergeant took him in q buggy
and carried him about the vicinity,
and the first thing he recalled was an
old 10y cabin which he used to visit
when he was u boy. He also describ.
ed the interior OF the family barn be.
fore seeing it, and picked out some rel
atives from photographs. At last a
cousin OF his amehome and identified
the testament which she had given to
him before the war and the verses she
had sent to him in a letter. Inside OF
the testament was also found u tin
type Of him that must have been
taken some fifteen years ago.
An investigation was started to
trace him back through his wander
inss, ii possible, and to complete the
identification.
When had acquainted myself with
the wonderful story l returned to
Gen. Black and asked him what next.
"Next," he said. the papers will be
sent to the adjutant general OF the
United States to enable him to decide
upon the propriety of mastering Hugh
Thompson out OF the army. His
father long ago applied for pension
on account OF Hugh's being killed in
the service; now the young man who
has returned, or at any rate, gone to
Van Vert, has applied tor a
pension to Hugh's name and assert.
ing, or his friends for him, Hugh's
identity. He cannot have pension
till he is mustered out. Then We will
see.