Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1890-07-24
CAMPFIRE STORIES.
CRAZY LITTLE DAVE.
A Sad Story Which Shows the Most Pitia-
ble side Of War.

i
'Crazy grown folks are common, but
its mighty seldom you hear of crazy chill
dren, said Plunkctt. as he turned to face
Brown and continued:
| Little Dave was er crazy child, and
the way he got to be crazy is one of the
unwritten stories of the war.
''He lived over the creek-beyond the
mill, there-and he had got usened to
see some mighty hard times and lone
some times, for the men folks were all
in the army and Little Dawes mamma
had to leave him all er lone many er
time to GO off to mill and to scuffle err
/ round in many ways that these since
| the-war women know nothing of.
HE had learned to set GROUND on the
grass in the yard and on the old gate
| posts and watch and wait for his NAM
mas return. Patience had got to be one
of his characteristics, for many had been
the time that his mother was belated
and he had cried himself to sleepon the
grass in the yard.
LAS the war went on the more lone
some Little Dawes waitings got to be,
for at first chickens crowed and cackled,
and the pigs grunted GROUND. and er
yearling calf played horse with the little
fellow, and Ponto, his little dog, was al
ways ready to cheer him as best he
could, but one by one, and one way and
another, the war had stripped the place
of every living thing but the boy and
his mother, and when she was away
there was not sound save the signing
of the wind and the rustling of the
leaves to keep him company-it was
lonesome, lonesome times.
ION the day I'm telling you OF the
mother left home early to procure some
meal kissing her little boy goodbye
she promised him to be back by the din
ner hour, and she brushed tear from
her eye as she turned at the bend of the
road and seed how lonesome he looked
as he sat straddle of the big gate-post
watching her departure.
For hours Little Dave sat, first on
one post and then on tho other, watch
ing the bend of the road for his mothers
return. At last the sun turned over to-
ward the west and Dave knew that his
mother should have been at hOme-it
patient-Set face the little fellow held UP,
but the tears were running down his
cheeks and dirt had striped his face
from the hands that had wiped 'em
away. Little Dave was restless now.
1t was two o'clock and his mamma was
still away. He was hungry and scared
now, and his eyes were hurting from his
watching. Every thing leaves the old
place, he thought, Little Dave and
mamma was all was left, and now NAM
ma is gone and there is nothing left but
poor Little Dave. Thus he waited and
watched, till at last, exhausted, he
threw himself on the grass and cried
himself to sleep.
Little Dave did not know that the
mother was crying and struggling and
was frantic because she could not get to
him. But so it was, the Yankees had
come, she was cut off from home and
from Little Dave, and the battle would
soon begin.
''Hardee's troops were double-quicll-
ing over the fields and Sherman was
anxious to make an attack, but Little
Dave slept on and knew nothing of what
was going on.
"At last the guns Opcned-thc cannon
and the muskcts-and he was awakened
by the din. Think of little six-ycar-
old boy being awakened in tho midst of
a great battle. So it was. lie awollc
dazed. lie ran here and there crying
mamma! mamma. mamma" The caval-
ry rushed past him. the artillery lum-
bered by, the yell of the troops mingled
with the rattle of the guns, and little
Dave lost his mind-hc was crazy-a
crazy child | hope there never will be
another.
THE battle was over, the armies were
gene, death and dcsolation were every
where Like err skeered rabbit, Little
Dave hid in the sedgo while the
mother moved along the battle line,
calling:
"'Dave! Dave! oh, my Little Daver
THE smoke of the battle had settled
in the low places and the mothers eye
could not see her little Dave as he dart
ed from stump to stump, and from log
to log, in hiding from his best friend
"Dave! Dave! oh, my little Daver
the mother cried, as she wrung her hands
and moved amongst the ruin of the bat
tle-feld.
ga crazy woman" said some soldiers,
who were on the hill burying the dead.
And so it was- A crazy mother and
a crazy child.
Wars err bad, bad thing. ''-Atlanta
Con Stitution