The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1892-10-28
THE CoRPORAuS STORY.

How Buckskin Fired the Gun and Became
the Hero of the Day.
! When the Old Soldier Club had been
called to order by the veteran, he an
bounced that Corporal Buckskin, whose
real name was Boosgene, would narrato
one of his experiences-that experience,
IN fact, that had made him a cor
poral.
The corporal blushingly pulled the
soap box he was sitting on, out in the
middle of the floor. says the Free Press,
and began:
1T happened down there on the Po.
tomac," he said, zone day when there
wasn't much going on-a sort of be-
tween-meals affair, but not pleasant
while it lasted. The enemy had punched
over in some woods, and about forty of
US hauled up a twenty pound smooth
bore gun, and thought we would have
some fun dislodging them. There was
a small frame house not more than two
hundred yards away, and we tried to
get behind it, but we couldn't reach it,
and they couldn't.
I'VE got the gun in position in some
bushes, with low heavy tree over it,
and blazed away once, without much
damage, and while we were loading the
second time, thinking we had it all our
own way, they made rush, about fifty
of them, and got into the house. Then
they opened on us, and though we had
the gun so it covered the house, and
Gad it all ready to touch off, I'll be
blamed if they didn't make it so hot for
rs we had to skedaddle. That is to
say, everybody did but me, and went
up the big tree and hid in the leaves.
| didn't want to be there bit, / can
tell you, but there was no help for it; I
was freed, and nothing short of Provi.
dence was going to save me.
Il hugged the tree close, and was
scared half to death, until they let up
shooting, and then got cooler, and be-
gan to look around and figure on get
ting away. The cannon was right un-
der me, almost within reach, setting in
the sun as harmless as a baby on q
fence, and likely to remain so as long
as the other fellows were in the house.
and our fellows were hid in the bushes
out of sight, waiting for night to come
on, OF for something to turn up to
change the situation.
SIN the meantime L was doing a deal
of thinking up that tree. 1 was hug
ging limb so tight that after a while
something in my pocket began to hurt
me i'll the ribs, and [ reached in to see
what it was, and found sun glass some
Of the boys had picked up and traded
me for jackknife. had the uncom-
Portable thing out in half minute, and
was going to throw it away, when all of
sudden [ noticed the cannon down
there in the sun all ready to be fired, if
only anybody could set match to it.
Thinks | to myself, what's the good
Of sun-glass So 1 crept out ON the
limb as quiet as [ could, and got close
enough to the gun to get a focus on the
touch-hole. 1t was most too far away,
but [ held her on the best I could for
about five minutes, when bang went
the cannon, and as I'm sitting here,
tell you it blowed that house clean over
and full of holes, and didn't leave
man that could run. Nary man, and
before anybody had time to move on
;he other side, our fellows jumped out
Of the bushes and yanAed that cannon
under cover and kept it there. The
ar of the shot knocked me off the limb,
and broke my arm in the fall, but the
strips they put on it cured it pretty
quick, and l didn't complain"
Corporal Buckskin's story excited
some doubt in the minds of few of his
listeners, but when he pulled big sun
glass from his pocket and showed it as
the identical glass, the testimony was
considered competent, and everybody
came forward and congratulated him.