The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1894-04-14
A WIDOWS BIG SURPRISE.
Her First Husband Returned Just In
Time to Prevent Her Marriage.

Her First Husband Returned Just In
Time to Prevent Her Marriage.
The pension department. OF Goor-
gia furnished combination Rip
Van Wrinkle and Enoch Arden story
when Gilbert Hanson made applica-
ton for u pension, says the Pittsburg
Dispatch. Gilbert disappeared thir-
ty years ago, being left for dead up
on the field at Petersburg, He has
been sleeping his thirty years. sleep
in Pittsburg and he returned to
Georgia just in time to prevent him
self from enacting the role of Enoch
Arden.
Last year one OF the Confederate
widows OF the state who drew 800
from the state fund was Mrs. Perme-
liza Hanson of Carroll county. A
short time ago the son-in-law OF Mrs.
Hanson walked into the Office Of
Judge Brown Of Carroll county and
said: "Well, jedge, l reckon we IL
lose the pension, now that the old
mans turned up" and on the Judge
questioning him the romantic story
OF Gilbert Hanson's disappearance
and temperance came out.
Hanson lived in Macon county,
Ala, when the war broke out and
was one Of the first to volunteer as
private in Company F, of the Thir-
teenth Alabama regiment He was q
good soldier and escaped injury un-
I'll the battle Of Petersburg. when he
received what was supposed to be
his death wound. The papers upon
which Mrs Hanson was granted a
pension last year were very full and
explicit. establishing beyond a rea-
sonable doubt the death OF her hus-
band on the field at Petersburg.
According to the attidavits Of the
captain and members of his company.
he fell in that battle and it was be-
lieved he died in the hospital. as he
was never heard of again. The other
day Hanson, whose home is in the
country, walked into the office of
the ordinary and explained his alb
sencc. AS the family would by his
return lose the 800 year pension,
he called to see if he could not him
self draw pension under the law.
1t seems that the loss CT pension was
the fact foremost in the minds OF
members OF the family and that on
account of it this modern Rip Van
Wrinkle had not received any too
cordial welcome. He found that
he could not get the pension, though
he bears the evidences OF hard usage
during his thirty years absence.
Where have you been during all
these years" asked the Judge.
Well" he said. Il was pretty
badly wounded at Petersburg. and it
took me good while to get over it,
and when / did | drifted to Pitts
burg, Pa, and have been there
ever since.
'Why didn't you come homo"
IL was too poor. l didn't have
any money"
"Whv didn't You write homer
ii didn't know where the post
office was. and | didn't have any body
to write for me"
Hanson has been working as q day
laborer in ana around Pittsburg for
these last thirty years. Finally he
saved enough money to get back to
the South, and, learning that his
wife had moved from her old home
20 that of her parents in Carroll
county. he made his way there. His
neighbors say that his return was
timely. as his widow had serious in
tentions OF marrying a neighboring
widower, and only the husbands re-
turn prevented second marriage az
soon as this years pension money
was secured.