St. Paul daily globe., 1891-04-27
PINNED TO THE GROUND.
The Matter Made Less Serious by
the Fact That She Wore Arm,


the Fact That She Wore Army
Shoes.
Philadelphia Press.
u Richard n. Sommers, the foreman of
the roller department in the mint, was
recently chatting with some of the men
who had seen service in the late war,
and, after relating an interesting ad-
venture that had occurred in 1862, said:
1 ''But never was so frightened in my
life as was the day | pinned fair
young rebel to the ground with my bay
onet. | thought had killed her.
90 1.-The circumstances were these: In
August, 1868. when the Philadelphia
brigade was moving toward Mine Run,
VA, was detailed from my command,
the Seventy-firSt Pennsylvania vol
unteers, known as Bakers California
regiment, to watch farmer who was
believed to be rebel spy.
''ln order to throw him off his guard,
and also to enable me to learn the bet
ter whether he was a spy or not, was
instructed to report at his house, on the
Mountain View farm, in Fauquier
county, and state that l had come there
by command of Col. W. Penn in order
to protect his home from any Struggling
soldiers that might treSpasS with a
view to foraging on the premises.
81 was we'll received in the family,
who, living in that out-of-the-way coun-
try, was quite timid and in constant
fear of the passing troops. | was housed
there, and fed at their expense, and
soon realized that the hospitality of
Virginia's first families was all that it
was reported to be. The pretty girls,
sisters, one a blonde and the other a
brunette, were at first little shy of the
wild Yankee as they called me; but
we soon became friends, however, al
though they would persist in telling me
the Confederate cause was just, and
that the Union troops were invaders,
and all that sort of thing.
The Mountain View farm covered a
good many acres of ground, but the
owner was poor at that time, and sweet
SIXTEEN as | called the pretty blonde,
had no shoes with which to cover her
pretty little feet. Now | had a brand
new pair of army shoes IN my knapsack,
and fairly good pair OH my feet.
| asked her if she would wear my new
pair if | would make her present of
them. She seemed little 10th to ac-
cept them at first, not because of pride,
but because she thought it unfair to
| take them from a soldier who might
soon stand in need of them himself
| But at last she did accept them, and
| was real well pleased TO do SO. OF
course, they were mile too big for
| her, but that didn't matter. She soon
| got used to them.
''It used to be her custom to watch for
| foreign soldiers. and then to send me
| after them TO drive them away One
| morning she said: 'OhI Yank, there is
a forager out there. Don't you see
him? There he goes, under the trees
| over there
Il started out after the intruder. but
| L ran all over the part of the farm indi-
Gated without seeing any one. 1t was
| very warm, and | was very warm and
tired when | returned. On seeing her
| told her that 1 could find no one, when
| she laughed right in my face and said
81 Just fooled the wild Yank for
fun 1t was fun for her, but not for
me. However, l laughed with her.
Just then | put my gun down on the
| ground, as was my habit. bayonei
| downward, intending 20 stick it into the
ground, and thus let the piece stal d
reversed. But instead of that, | stuck
it through her shoe and pinned the
beautiful girl fast.
Il was never so frightened in my life
as was then. | would not have harmed
| the young woman for the world; she
| had become to me like sister.
MAYBE l wasn't glad when 1 saw q
twinkle in her bright. blue eyes, and
! heard her sweet voice ringing in
laughter as she said:
"Well, Yank, you did not hurt me a
bit. You know those shoes we're a
trifle large for me and your bayonet
! just went through the upper and sole
| without grazing nv toe"
Il was rejoiced TO hear her talk that
way, assure you. / was taken away
from there in few days after that, il
| having been found that her father was
| not what he was suspected to be. But
| often thought about that family, es-
| pecially one member of it, in my
marches and in later years. but / never
met again with any member of it. Not
even with my ''sweet sixteen" friend.
for was engaged in a great deal OF
active service in the army. and when !
was mustered out OF it l returned t.
Philadelphia, and never went back to
| Virginia"