Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1892-12-09
MY CORRESPONDENT.


There was a time when I neither wrote
s+or;es nor road +ban, That was when 7
800, 800 49, fo,,o-.- ;+,, sho,1da,r
-, -,
me ehose Iney eeli " ~ .ne oiu r1i's iiS''
ballad OF hoplh hooa' ohae measured d
cloth yard" from tip to tip. rather IAN
cied all that sort of thing was for women
and girls, and perhsps / might have
Thought so still if 7 had never been to the
army. and ;,ad never come back. to sit.
hour by hour for weary DAYS doing moth
ing. Then began to read works of fiction.
and to wonder as found the ones 7 liked
most were the truest. whether nv left
hand writing might NOT he Turned to some
account in iotting down nv memories.
and mixing them up with nv fancies. as
they say story writers by profession do.
and as think probable.
was as patriotic as most younp fellows.
I hope, but when marched away | did
think of riding hack General Raonet-
we'll saw Baynet: it's as good a name as
any other. | could see mothers ewes
sparkle and Sister Jean clap her hands for
iov but I didn't think as much Of that as
of what Miss Stockton would think of II
all To tell tho trntb sba had driven mo
AWAV from nome. 0eSDRrAteIV
love with her. That might have kept me.
Won saw. Rut Won see she was the belle Of
the Mace. and her peonle were very fash
ionable and lived in a great country seat.
with a host of servants to wait upon them
and we were ONLY farmers. and in busy
seasons mother and Jean did their own
housework. and 7 knew 7 was rouph and
unpolished and not fit for her and nnder.
she felt as mnch above me as Though we
were not call free and ennaIn So I said
this to myself. .T,ll never nine and whine
about it. Asian couldn,t win her. pll
90 away with the bows and fight as a sol
der should. and Pll make name even she
might he nroud of and come hack Cod
willing to try nv fate So Rachael stock.
ton did drive me from home vol, see and
make a soldier of me without knowing f.
never shall forget how mother took f.
She was in the kitchen peelino onions wben
7 went, in to tell her Said she.
aPaul what brings you home so earlv9
Yor1're NOT sick pr
"No. mother.n said I ..T,m well enouoh
Init Thought I'd spehd the last afternoon
with Won I'm off TOMORROW
CORP cried she. .Where Paul9n
ITO the army.n said l. "I'ye enlisted
She dropped the knife she held and sat
down. the great tears rolling down her
cheeks
.arhev saw we mothers shonld he Glad tn
send o1ir bovs from ns ), she said s.bnt it's
hard to bear. shan,t ever see Won again
Panl know that well ),
.sWhy motheru said |. ..wbat p fancvp,
But fancy or not. she stuck to it, and
kept sobbing softly to herself as though i
were dead. She got everything ready for
me. but she never once stonned crvino and
| went away leaving her in tears. | never
saw her smile auain for a month after
ward she died. A fever broke out in the
place. and she was the fourth who fell it's
victim When the news came ! wished
almost that had put away all nv dreams
of glory and fame and Rachel Stockton
and staid at home, but it was no use wish,
ing. none in the world, and l was growing
fond of a soldiers life-fond. although /
began to understand it better. and to know
thar every brave man did not become an
officer-although that fancy of being some
law rich and renowned enouob to make
even Miss Stockton nroud of me BEGAN to
seem no more substantial than the fancies
of a dream.
One day when was rather low snirited
for we were in camp and there was moth
ing to do but think. nv friend lack Am
mon came to me laughing.
500 Won want some fun suasked he
..Fnn ), said as there anv9n
eyes - said he s..Ioin the nostofsica
c,ph },
"Wbat,s that9,, asked
"A dozen of MS have formed a clnh -
said he "We,re going tn corresnond with
anv t.hnritaIle vonno ladies who will take
nitv on orr forlorn situation },
Nonsense ), said
sFact ), said he
.Well. y said / sin the first Mace Pm no
wr;tar In the paxt nlace don't believe
.nv GIRL 7 sbopId care tn correspond with
would write to men
ssNonsensa far Won - said ba .sTha owls
+b;nL . GOOD da.i If tho soldier boys I c.n
tell Won ;,
Tbav mt on advertisement in tho uav
u;u fo1rn,I md o.cb Of thew had lat
Tor I.ck showed me- ono read r. II
,,as sohool o;rl;sh tb;n, h,,t nlaas,nt
TOO certa;,lv there wac no harm in II
81 io;nsd tbe cl,,b and wrote a iatte,. to
wboever chose IN answer IT, The oirls
whose real names were hidden were told
- - ~ 80 Nv az, o,s,.,a, ,,.,,a r., w.
y. ~ 60 - go ~ - " >
siSneu Lean'
IL TOOK my 1ancy. Wrote again. fretty
soon | began to wish knew who my cor
respondent was. Some of the fellows had
their suspicious who wrote to them One
discovered, | remembered, that it was his