The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1889-11-18

ground, and Cool he was stretched out on his
back, fast asleep. | lay about twenty feet
off, and We had fire goin', SOS could see
him layin' there like big log, mouth wide
open and big feet turned toes up jest though
the want nothin' goin' on.
Pretty soon heard "zip zip!' and min
ME bullet just took off the toe of one these
great army shoes, and then buried itself In
the stump close TO his ear; just shaved IT!
He riz up little.
What's goin' on!" says he.
Why" says /, there's some bullets a.
flynn round here and one nigh about snot OH
your ear. You'll find it in that stump. He
looked round as quick as Sunday,
swell, I'll get lettle out O. their way"
says lie, and with that rolled over about a
foot to the left, shut his eyes and was snorin
inside of three minutes.
After the battle was over we had to stay
on the field pretty much all night. When we
begun to fall back next morning there wasn't
any way to get to camp but through ravine
that the enemy's gun lakeland they kept
rakin' of us into another world pretty spry
as we went through the gully.
We couldn't take along the wounded, so
could, and there they had 10 lie all day be-
fore we could 60 after'em and fetch'em out.
1t was hard, but that's war.
!, But we couldn't let 'em lie there all
through that hot day, with no water and
nothin' to staunch their wounds, so about
togo over to 'em.
Now betwixt us and that ravine there was
about forty rod of old field, as bare as brick,
right In the enemy,s range. 1t was pretty
smart risk to run to cross that field with
water and cotton, and we all knew it; but
the word for volunteer wasn't out of the
the cap'en's mouth before old Cool jumped
up; .r
membranes to home" and he grinned. So
he started out with ten canteens full of
water slung onto him and a bundle of cotton
under his arm.
Cool. says I, tryin' to act as though I
Dlieyed ne was cert'in to get there, you be
real economical about distributin' that water
because it's got to last 'em all day.
GU go 'longl" says he, showing his white
teeth. and off he went
Then the balls began to sing. We dursn't
60 up the rise of ground for to watch him,
Dut after nall an hour one man did venture
there wasn't anybody lynn there, SO we
knew he'd got TO the ravine-like place where
the men was. After he'd been away couple
OF hours he came back, Cool did, as cool as
ever.
didn't hit We, did they ?" says Chaplin.
You bet they did, thought" says Cool
They put two ventilatin holes through the
legs o. my boots g0in' over and tore hole
|. In my trousers and one in my jacket sleeve
acoming back; but maybe you don't call that
hittin, me, an dono as twas" says he,
iaughin. For true. not one O. them bullets
had SO much as drawed a drop of blood!
,Twasn't very long after that we was sent
into the rifle pits, some ot us, with rations
for twenty-four hours. How'd you like that
boys, spendin' day and night into a hole
and in the ground, with chunks of salt beef
-"old boss" we called it-and tough dry
hard tack to chaw on?
Twas ruther unpleasant; no way to sleep
exception up, and finally nothin' to eat I
n IfNx,ff hi Ian
little riled myself. But Cool was as cool as
cucumber. He joked and laughed and
sang, and held up on his broad shoulders
more'n one sleepy tired-out head.
When some Of EN- would make disparaging
remarks he'd boiler out; Come boys. stop
hooray y and SO he'd kind of heart us up.
He was always doin' that; he was as clever
as Dobolink. Nobody was sick or wounded
but he was the first to help. I've seen him
give up his blanket many time to some
poor fellow shakin' with chill. an let an
other burned up with wound fever drain the
last drop out of his canteen when nobody
knew if we should get any more water for
hull day. And he always made as though
he hadn't done Dothin >
Well, when this cruel war was over" as
the song says, and the regiment mustered
out, 1t come about that Cool and took the
same train to go home, though | lived way
up In Vermont, ana he was Connecticut
boy; ana we sat together, l next to the
window.
He'd been as composed as chaplain at a
funeral all those years, but he seemed now
as though he was on tender hooks all the
way. He wrastled about. and got up and
sot down more'n forty times, and never said
two words all the way; but when we Stacked
up, and brakeman hollered out, "Silver-
bridget! he gave me grip, froze onto his
knapsack and give rush. VIZ 'sf
looked out of the window, for thinks /,
there's girl waitin' for him, and he hasn't
never let on about her."
Sure enough; there he was, his face all
broke up, as you may say, red as beet,
h0ldin' out his arms to--a gray, old woman,
tears rnnnin' down her face like freshet.
Twas his mother!
That was the last see of Old Cool.