The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1894-11-14


| cCstomed to go about the camp pretty
much as l pleased day or night. One
| night. unable to sleep, ] was rambling
about and heard voices in a clump of
| trees and thought / recognized that of
| Gen. Grant l crept nearer to hear what
! was going on and found that he was hav-
| ing some sort of controversy. l managed
/ TO get quite close to them. Grant was
talking in his quiet firm way, but the
! other seemed more excited, although he,
| too, was speaking low. Suddenly ne made
| a peculiar movement back of Grant, lifting
/ his hand, and involuntarily, scarcely
! knowing what caused me to do it,
/ sprang forward and struck the mans
hand. 1t had a revolver in it. He did
not run and disclaimed any intent to use
/ it. But six months afterward, when l
had forgotten all about the incident. or
4 thought of it only to be ashamed of it.
/ received n beautiful little gold watch from
/ the hand of Gen. Grant himself he tell
/ ing me al the same time that he believed
/ I had saved his life. | never knew any
thing more about the affair than that:
/ never learned who the man was or what
! became of him or why Grant suspected
! him more afterward than he did that night
if that is true.
! But the greatest personal loss I suf-
| fered in the army was my beautiful horse
| Starface. How 1 did love that horse. He
would DO anything I told him. He seemed
/ to have human intelligence. / had a
| whistle and he would come and go at
| it's signal, and kneel down before me,
1 lick my face, follow me like a dog or
/ stand and wait where / might tell him
to for hours and despite anybody elses
/ interference. He was shot down under
me at Antietam. l cried for weeks after
| ward for my poor Starface.
Was Taken to Libby Prison.
Eyes, was captured once and spent
few days in Libby jrison was trav-
| cling on foot and carrying some dispatch
es in my boot. when a Johnny laid his
/ hand on my shoulder and said 1 was his
prisoner. 1 protested, but he took me
along. He could see I was not a man,
| although I wore a mans clothes. He took
me long way and before some rebel
| headquarters. and I was sent along to
Libby. They searched me, of course. very
| carefully, but found nothing, as l had
taken an opportunity which even the
| first soldier accorded me because, sup
pose, of my sex, to get at and eat the
dispatches. But they treated me very well
| at Libby. and the arresting soldier got
small credit for his work They said
| they We're not looking for wOmen-they
| We're after men. They did not tell me
| TO go, but gave me to understand that
| they were not watching me very closely.
| So ] went and was not disturbed. | al
/
| a least, wherever l went. l do now, in
/ deed. But | had made a favorable i'm
! preston on some of the JOhnaieS and
! when ] wandered into Georgia as I did
| for a time after that, a colonel followed
! and made love TO me and wanted me TO
marry him. l knew l could talk freely
| % him and I lid. I told him that | had
! come down South to fight. nO5 20 marry,
! but that after TIE war was over. if he
was Of the same mind, I'd consider the
/ matter.
| His namc? On, 1t wouldn't be fair to
| give names il such a manner" laughed
/ this little old p3up5r woman.
| How did YOU fare r)uSlirg il in
! Campo" the question being printed in
| large letters for the benef. of her dim
/ eyes and because har ears were useless.
"Oh, everybody treated me kindly. and
| l really had lots OF fun, dancing and
| singing every night IL ,ae camp and out
| of it. After the war l sold Rudolph. my
| other horse. who had been kept in a sta
| BILE al the time in New York. getting for
him $1,000. l then set out for California,
round the Horn, in the Ocean Queen on
! the Atlantic and the Sacramento on this
side L arrived on the 26th Of June and
put up at Stelnman's hotel, whiCh was on
PiAe-St.. l think. [ made friends, who
took me to live over at North Beach. and
there l became acquainted with William
Horton, man as handsome as a picture,
f1ne-y educated and W5E-to-do. H had
studied to be a doctor and travelled in
Europe, studying IN the colleges there.
he was also a fine engraver. He did not
IKE the doctors profession because il
Was too cruel, and he turned his talent
for engraving TO account in making
counte rfeit coin
'Of course 1 did not learn this until af-
ter we were married which took place
soon after we became acquainted, bu- '
Often watched him at this trade He had
some sort of composition of just the right
weight, did the milling perfectly, and the
coin passed current right along. He was
| never discovered. He had faro game,
where he worked off the coin every night.
As L say, he was We. to do and we
| travelled. We went 10 Europe and visited
| my parents relatives in Ireland and
thence to the cus1tinent. We came back
and went up to Portland and il was while
there that my trunk was broken into and,
with many other things, the watch was,
sto.en that | valued so much as coming
| from Gen. Grant.
my husband was injured in a railroad
accident and died from its effects. Some
! years afterward | Was married TO Edwin
| Holt Bryan, who was attached TO the
Busiest. tneater. Everybody knew Eddy
! Bryan in his lifetime. He was Always
kind To me, but nothing could keep him
! from drink and gambling. and he squan-
| dered all the money had saved. 1 had
| plenty of money in bank when | married
! him, but the last | had was spent upon
| his funeral. He broke his leg While drunk
on one occasion and they gave him a
benefit az the theater. When he got wei
| he spent al. the money they gave him
| treating the boys who had performed at
| the benefit. When / took to my bed to
| give birth 10 our daughter | gave him a
| check for $500 for the expenses and he
| never came back till the money was spent.
| But he was always kind to me. He died
| as the result of his habits at the city and
county hospital, and his funeral was
| long one, with a wagon full of flowers.
II am a worker and had no trouble in
taking care of myself and my child, and
would not even now if l could hear. l
caught cold travelling with my child from
Virginia City, keeping my head close to
the window TO protect her. l have tire L
| ed with all kinds of DOCTORS but without
| avail. / am deaf as a post these later
years. How could / tell tliat all this was
TO come upon me in my age-sickness,
deafness and poverty? L Travelled, mar
! ried and was careless, and as a. result
| 1 lost my papers. 1 have nothing to prove
| anything. Otherwise might have pen
| sion.
Going in Sorrow to the Grave.
MY daughter has been a good daugh-
ter. Like me, she early learned TO dance,
and in helping out kindergarten enter
tainment a theatrical manager saw and
pronounced her born for the stage. She
married a song and dance man named
Milton Valentine Peek. Her original
stage name was Mamie Woods, bus she