Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-09-05
THE sERGEANT's PROMISE,
A Sequel to the Story Of "Premonltion OF
Death"

| To the Editor of The Evening Star:
Reading over the little incident, "A Tale OF
Battlefield" as stated by DR.. VIM Tindall in
the ever welcome Saturdays STAR OF Angus,
20, on the premonition Of death of Lieut..
ment, send You a line to complete that which
was not aware any one knew but myself
Yes. Darlington and we're tent mates. bosom
friends and lieutenants in that old veteran regi-
ment, and on the eve of Fredericksburg
bloody slaughter we promised each other to
| mark the grave of ''Harry's dream, VICTIM by
| the survivor. l was startled to find the INCL
| dent III print and exactly correct except we
| filed to the right after leaving the cut, out of
| the old depot, along the canal moved by the
left flank. deployed as skirmishers to open the
onslaught on Marye's Heights. We had gone
scarcely twenty yards when . spherical Shell
| came rolling down the hill. gave il ample
room and it burst right in front Of that little
| company Of twenty-three men. killing and
wounding eleven. including Lieut.. Darlington.
! The sergeants started to carry him back. but
were stopped by the canal, where finding him
] dead. they laid him down. On nv return from
the heights after dark learned from Sergt. T.
where they had left the body.
Early next morning / called for volunteers 10
| try and recover 1t. Selecting five from those
| offered we started out of the town toward the
rebel lines On reaching the open common
| and swamp bordering the canal we were met
| by a brisk fire from the rebel shareholders.
| who had moved down into the valley after we
| left the heights the night before. Upon con.
| suitation We decided to make q rush across the
hundred or more yards to the canal, believing
| they would cease firing when we left cover So
| marking the spot as near as possible where
Lieut.. Darliugton's body was supposed to have
been left away we went, but that fire grew hot
! ter, and only four of us reached the friendly
cover OF the canal bank. l have often won
| dered il that rebel line thought we six were
| going to storm those hills where 49, 600 had
failed the day before. 1t was a cowardly act
| However. we were in o fix. and visions of Lib
boy prison doomed up handsomely to those four
Yanks covering under the canal bank
On looking in the stagnant water one OF the
| men saw an overcoat and exclaimed There a
| n New Yorker hiding under water" I had
/ given Lieut.. d. couple of New York state
| buttons for his overcoat few days before. and
/ 1t struck me at once it was Harry. NV surmise
| was correct. We got him out and found
another she'll had struck the other leg and
| knocked the body into the water after Sergt.
| I. had left to join us in the fight.
How to get back was q problem. I dared
not sacrifice more of the boys as we had
scarcely dozen left for duty and a court of
! inquiry might not accept the promise made
/ NV dead friend sufficient for such fool hardy
| with the body and if they again opened on US
] one OF the boys volunteered to go to them
with a white rag on his gun for a flag of truce
| while we went into town with the body and
| If. they would not allow him to come back after
hearing his story he would remain prisoner.
| 1t was brave offer. They did not fire and
| Harry buried in a church yard in Fred.
ericksburg with board and name cut on il
! ut his head; and alone a hero sleeps, unless his
relatives, to whom l wrote describing the sit
uation and offering to accompany them at any
time in the future, removed him to his dear
Pennsylvania home. l have never heard.
| LIEUT.. T.