Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1892-01-21

the strength of her weird nature.
One of these was Mrs. Tubbs the
other was Hannibal Caesar. Mrs.
loved her and scolded her. Hanni-
bal-C@sar loved her, but never
scolded her. He never seemed to
notice her torn apron or frouzy
hair-or, if he noticed them, per-
haps, not being very handsome him
self, he liked her all the better for
those things which caused Mrs.
/ Tubbs to call her "a trial. and 'sich
a piece
| Hannibal Caesar was a horse. -
l AT least he was part of a horse.
His left ear had been shot of close
to his head the right, badly lacer-
ated, tapped about his eye. His
fore leg was too short, his left hind
leg was too long. His tail had been
partially carried away by piece Of
shell. and the remnant, suspended
by contracted muscle, hung akin
bo to the left. So that, try as he
would, Hannibal Caesar could never
prick his ear or switch his tail.
This was inconvenient, especially
when he tried to brush away the
flies. The familiar letters, G. s. A.
seemed to have been branded on his
body wherever a place large enough
to hold them could be found; and
underneath them the equally we'll
known l. G.. The G.. s. A. and
Hannibal Caesars mutilated anato-
my witnessed that he had not skulk-
ed from his country's service, while
the l. G. gave him, if not an hon
orable, at least legal discharge.
They all called him 'Julianner's
Critter.'
One night when all the other
children were asleep, Juliana, who
had habit of lying awake and
thinking all manner of odd things
about the stars, which shone through
a bomb-like hole in the wall, heard
q low whinny, and then a muffled
moan. Fearless, and keenly sensi-
tive to all suffering, she rose up
softly and made her way to the gate
from whence the noise came. There
stood the most forlorn, tattered
remnant of horse that Juliana
ever beheld. She opened the gate
and he hobbledin. Realizing that he
had, at last, found friend, the
weary, battered brute sank down
upon the grass with an almost hu-
man sigh.
'Oh, you pore, mizzerble creetur,'
yer jest bodaceously shot ter pieces;
an 1 b'lieve you're starvin' too
said Jullana.
Noiselessly stealing down to the
little pile of corn hidden away in
the cellar, she gathered up an arm
full, and was soon watching the
poor starving animal appease his
hunger.
|
That was the beginning of their
friendship. The next morning
everybody wondered how the wretch
ed thing got into the yard, and
everybody wanted 'to turn him out
to die Everybody but Juliana;
and, finally, Mrs. Tubbs said:
'Ef Julianner's tux a likin' to
the beast, ies' let 'er have him.
It's little enough she's got to
hearth her up, with her NAV dead,
and her paw kilt in the war. And
it's good fur sore eyes to see sun
thin around that's fit fur its c0un-
try, ef it amt nothin' but mizzer-
BILE hoss. He is monument to some
as thinks theresalves his betters, l
will say
This settled the matter, and Han
nibal-Casar was added to the circle.
Juliana faithfully doctored him
until his wounds were healed.
When, in time, he began to show
so many amiable traits, and prove
useful in so many ways, even Mr..
Tubbs reluctantly admitted that he
was "a likely nag
Juliana never trusted him in the
stable; but every night, and when
ever the soldiers were around, she
locked him in little brick out
house which was the masters Of
fice,' and carried the key, suspend
ed by cotton string, around her
neck. Here she took him such
provender as she could procure by
fair means or foul, and often divid-
; ed her own scanty dinner of corn
bread with Hannibal Caesar, who
seemed to understand the sacrifices
! his little mistress made. He fol-