Wichita eagle., 1890-02-11
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ga1ly 20 EaGe
A BABY In THE BATTLE.
AN INCIDENT IN THE CAREER OF
HEROIC LORD CHARLES HAY.

Arms, Carried It Up TO the Enemy
Front and Delivered 1t to the Mother.
"Hello! What's Young Salamanca,
up to now"
"Mad, / fancy, or elss he wants to ge
killed"
'.And so he viii, whether he wants i
OF not, if he goes running ia among tn
bullets like that!"
In truth Young Salamander" (other
wise Lord Charles Hay of the First Life
Guards) did seem TO be running fearful
risk without any reason whatever. Ont
of the'hardest battles ever fought be
tween the French and English in Bel
GUM was at its hottest The French
army was much the stronger of the two
and although the English held tbei1
ground as stubbornly as bulldogs il
seemed very doubtful which way the
fight would 60. Just then, in the thick
of the uproar and confusion, the rolling
smoke-and the flying shot, young Hay
twhoSe bravery under fire had long since
earned him the nickname Of ''Salaman-
der" from his adoring soidiers) was seen
ID step forth from the English line and
advance straight toward the enemy.
DESPERATE VENTURE.
4 more desperate venture could hardly
DO imagined, for so thickly were the bull
lets flying between the two opposing
lines that the little jets of dust which
they knocked up from the dry earth
formed cloud almost as dense as the
smoke itself Nothing mortal surely
could live in such storm OF shot: and
what could he possibly be going to do
there?
Come back, my lord; come back, for
heavens sakei" shouted dozen deep
voices at once.
The young FOOLS mad-stark mad,"
roared the English colonel, recovering
from his stupor of amazement. "Come
back this minute, you young idiot! Do
you want to be kiIied?'
I;ut Lord Charles stih went forward
Wi hout moments pause, as if he had
not heard them. Then the English
cea 5ed firing in sheer astonishment; but
Jus5 at that moment the flash and crackle
of "a fresh volley burst forth like storm
along the glittering line of French bayo-
nets, and all was hidden in smoke. When
the smoke cleared again every one expect
ed 20 see the brave lad lying dead. But
no-IIay was still on his feet His cap
had been struck off, and some said that
they could see blood on his face, but he
was still marching onward as steadily as
ever.
md now the French grenadiers, begin
ming TO descry him through the rolling
SIC Ike, stopped firing IN their turn, sup
posing that this single man who was
coming toward them SO boldly from the
English line must be the bearer of some
mes sage from the British general, and
the attention of the two contending hosts
was bent upon the solitary figure be-
tween them. Just then sudden gust of
wind whirled aside for moment the
cioUd of smoke and dust. and every one
saw for the first time what Lord Charles
Hay was about.
i little to the left of the English line
Of ,rattIe stood 4 cluster of miserable
hoy sls, and the Flemish peasants who in
hat ted them. instead OF running away
VIII the battle began, as one might
have expected, had stayed where they
wers, seeing that the fight seemed to be
rolling away from them, and not liking
the Gea OF abandoning their huts, which,
poor and wretched as they were, were
the only home that they had. But they
soon found that they were mistaken, for
a sudden change in the position of the
two armies brought these unlucky cot
tags right into the line of fire, and the
terr fled peasants, finding the cannon
balls falling thickly on every side of
thea, took to their heels at once, drag
GIN with them their children and what
few goods they could manage to carry.
Ia the hurry Of this panic flight tiny
girl, hardly old enough to walk alone,
h2d fallen or been left behind. and was
now lying on the ground midway be-
tween the French and English lines, cry
ing bitterly, while her mother could be
seen IN the distance shrieking wildly and
tossing her arms in the air and strug-
Cling to break loose from her hus band,
who was holding her firmly, for, count
ing his child already lost, he had no wish
10 lose his wife as well
APPLAUDED BY THE ENEMY.
Coolly as if on parade the brave young
gu;rdsman strobe onward to the spot
where the helpless child lay, his fair hair
and bright young face showing through
the billowy smoke like those of an angel
IN some old Italian painting. He raised
1t tenderly in his arms. and some who |
saw 1t said afterward that the poor little |
trt mbier ceased crying at once, as if |
soahed and comforted by his gentle |
voice and kindly smile. Then, keeping
his own body as much as possible be- |
tvs cen the child and the leveled r1uskets !
of the French, he went straight on. as |
calmly rs ever, toward the dark mass of /
his enemies.
Don't fire, comrades-don't ffrer' /
shouted a tall stern looking French |
soldier. whose grim face was black with |
dust and gunpowder. IF he were |
twenty times an Englishman, he's as
good asa saint from heaven, for all that.' |
AT that moment a mighty shout, which
W as heard high above the roar of cannon
and musketry from the other side of the
burst from the English ranks
as they saw their young hero bearing
tlte child unharned across that deadly
SPACE, and scarcely had the cheer died
R way when ii was echoed by an answer
ing cheer from the French, which rolled
kong the vast plain like peel of dis
lant thunder. Meanwhile the young
otiicer, passing close to the cruel points
# the French bayonets as cooliy as if