The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1892-11-22

49, ~ SSSHS NOA4AC ~ IA OAONN AAAC A$AAN
handed me this belt, with a little note
from my friend, which ran about thus
My Dear Friend, Lieut.. Polk:
l send you my belt, as a slight token
OF my appreciation Of your br 3therly
kindness g. me. Send it to your chill
dren and tell them how you got it.
Yours,
E. MURRAY, Lieut., Col, etc.
q did not send the belt home, as he
requested, for the simple reason that
our railroads had been cut and I was
afraid to risk it, SO 1 put it on and wore
1t as long as [ continued in service
But the story does not end here. l
attempted to send his little blank book
containing his address home to my
family, but it was captured by a raid
made upon n Of our railroads near
Richmond.
Some months after the war closed
1 began to write to officials and other
prominent gentlemen in New York
State to ascertain the fate of Col. Muir
ray, and this I codtinued to do at in
tervals for several years, but with ell
my efforts could hear nothi0g of him.
About the year 1874 l was publishing
a country paper at my home, where a
little village had sprung up, and IN this
paper [ was giving a sketch Of myregi-
ment from the date of it's organization
to the surrender, and which was con
tInUed for II months or more. Re
viewing these old war scenes intensi-
fed my desire and purpose to ascertain
the fate of Col. Murray, and I wrote a
lett r and address ed it to him at New
York City; but long months elapsed,
and still I could hear nothing. Finally,
in penning my sketches, I reached the
battle of Castleman's Ferry. This was
about II years after that battle was
fought. l sent a marked paper con
tanning that sketch to a number of
papers in New York State, and among
them one to the Newburg Journal. In
a week or two 1 received a copy Of that
paper, which had kindly copied my
article, with an editorial note appended,
informing me that the New York city
papers of the day before the Journals
publication announced the death in
that city of my long sought al q long
lost friend. Think Of it! Ihad searched
for him anxiously for II long years
and found him a corpse. About a
month thereafter his widow wrote me
answering my letter addressed to him
nearly 10 months before, and stating
that my letter did not reach him until
about a year after it was written, and
after he was confined to his bed. She
stated that my letter gave him great
joy and inspired a hope for his final
recovery; that he loved to dwell upon
it, and talked about the event, but that
he never regaiued sufficient strength
to answer it. 1 Immediately replied to
her letter, relating in detail the circum-
stances Of the event, and rendering to
| her this belt. This she declined, with
tenderest expressions of magnanimity
and generous thanks for my kindness
to her husband, and stating that she
knew she could best carry out his
wishes by allowing me to keep the belt.
With this letter she sent me this. :"
| Whereupon the Colonel opened the
drawer of his table and drew forth a
cabinet sized photograph of Col. Muir
ray. "Of course, continued Col. Polk,
u sent her mine III return. This
pleasant correspondence was kept up
for a long while between myself and a
young Mr.. Murray, who was a nephew
of Col. Murray.
In 1885 I went to New York City,
and walking into the Aston House, I
opened the City Directory to see if I
could find any trace of the family; I
had mislaid or lost the address. l was
perplexed to find that about a dozen
pages of the Directory were devoted to
the name Of Murray. In all this be-
wildering array Of Murrays'I suppoge
I was directed by what 0me people
would call luck, as l determined TO see
who would answer ID Murray Bros. -,
Real Estate who we're located away
up on Fourth avenue, neal Sixty sixth
street. Taking the Elevated Road I
was O at the door of their office, I
accosted two young men with an il
quiry, and one Of them approached me
quickly and very cordial and smiling
ly said, as he extended his hand, is
not this Mr.. Polk, of North Carolina2
Upon assuring him that it was he said
that he recognized me by my photo
graph.
81 spent some days in the city, and
of course visited the family-an event
which I shall always remember most
pleasantly. Occasional letters have