South Branch intelligencer. [volume] (Romney, Va. [W. Va.]) 1830-1896, 1892-03-18

FRIDAY. MARCH is. 1891.


4
The sun was sinking over the
pretty little town Of Setubel, in the
vest Of Portugal, and its last RAYS
lighted up = very stirring and Pic
turesque scene. Along the banks Of
the stream that ran through the
great plain beyond tho town there
seemed to be . monster picnic GO
ing on, and, stranger still, picnic
made mp entirely Of soldiers. Camp
fires were sending mp their thin
blue smoke into the bright evening
sky. Muskets were stacked" on
every side sheaves Of corn, and men
In gay uniforms were bustling
around to and fro, carrying brsad
and ration beef, hunting for fuel,
or fetching water from the river.
But the strangest thing Of all was
that the men on one side of the
stream were all dressed in red, and
those on the other side in blue. In
fact, the French and English SOL
diers who had been fighting before
Setubel were making friends during
a short truce, and having their sup
per together. The French tried to
talk English, the English and Irish
to talk French, aud many a shout
of good humorcd laughter arose
over each others mistakes.
A tall, sinewy, bright-eyed clip
perary boy one of the famous
Irish brigade which acquired such
q terrible renown in this very war
was dipping his hot face in the
stream, when voice from the OPP
posite bank shouted
| "Hoi !! Monster Patrick, you
come here; give you some sup
pare"
"Who's that. anyway, Pat "
asked Patrlck's rear-rank man,
Dennis Moriarity,
~ hos that, is it? Sure he's
a broth Of a boy intirely, whoever
he is. Twas he that gov me this
little remimbrance Yesterday (point-
ing to fearful cash in the cheeky /;
sand, by the same token, ] wrote
my name on that arrum he's got
tied up there. Come an I'll intro
JUICE yez to him.
A very merry party the three
made. The French trooper wound
up the supper with q French song,
and Paddy gave him one in Irish,
and they parted the best of friends;
but Pat whispered in Moriarity's
ear: "It's an illigant supper we've
had, DineY: but thin same chaps
will be afther givin us hot break
fast in the mornin'."
| O'Callaghan's prophecy proved
true enough. At daybreak the
English ontposts were driven in by
a large body of French skirmishers,
and the battle soon became general,
along the whole line. The twenty
eighth were in the thickest of the
fight, as usual, and twice repulsed
the attack OF a French grenadier
regiment. As the enemy fell back
the second time, the hot Irish blood
could stand it no longer, and out
rushed the twenty-eighth men in
pursuit, although their officers, see-
ing the danger, called loudly to
them to halt.
But it is no easy matter to stop an
Irishman when in chase of an enc
my, aud the "boys of the ould bril-
gade'' followed the pursuit so far
that they got scattered, and fell
into disorder. At that moment the
French dragons came down upon
them like a whirl-wind, and Paddy
O'Callaghan, after fighting like a
hero, and knocking down men right
and left, as If he bad been at Dom
nybrook fair, found himself sepa-
rated from his comrades, and right
IN among the enemy.
Just then q riderless horse came
flying past, and Pat making a sud-
den spring, olutched the reins, and
was just going to scramble on its
back, when he heard bis name call.
Ell, and looking down, saw at his
feet the burly form Of Dennis Mo-
Rarity.
care ye hurt, Dinny?v asked
O'Callaghan, tenderly.
"They've bruk my arrum, the
vagabones ~ growled Nc Rarity, in
voice hoarse with pain. ''It's lit
tie use I'll be now, at all, at ALL"
"But can ye sit horse, me boy
It's wild yes legs ye do that, shure-
not wild yer arrums."
els it 'sit horse ye maneY re-
( joined Moriarity, dsdainfully.-
Faith thin, just git me wanst on
the baste's back, and av he's az
wild as Barney O'Toole's pig, I'll
stick on him"
Without another word, Pat lifted
his wounded comrade into the sad
die, and away went the horse and
Dennis, who, as be had said, stuck
to his seat as IL he had been glued.
But Paddy's generous self-devo-
ton seemed likely TO cost him dear,
for at that instant Eve Of the French
/ dragons, catching sight Of his red
jacket came charging down upon
him all at once.
Give to wan, 10 it p'' muttered
Paddy. "Och, it's sartin the
thieves have lsrned their arithme-
tic, and know that wan Irish boy Is
as good as FIVE Frenchmin amy day.
But We dorsk off mo an osor % frors