Waterbury evening Democrat., 1895-01-18
CHICKAMAUGA.
By Captain F. A. MITCHELL.
[Copyright, 1891, by American Press Asso:ia.
 tion.l
CHAPTER VII.
OLD FRIENDS MEET.

It was the middle of August before the different columns of the Army of the Cumberland began to cross the mountains hctwcen it and Chattanooga in pursuit of the Confederates who had withdrawn to that place and there in trenched themselves. Meanwhile the Slack family had arrived at their home near Jasper, in the Sequatchie valley. Much to SOuri's surprise, everything about the place looked uncouth. When she left it a year before, 1t was all she had ever known. A ten months resi- dence in the north, surrounded by every comfort, associating with the daughters of refined people, had made great ! change in her. Now the furniture ap- peared dilapidated, the rag carpets i rough. Indeed there was disappoint- ment about sweet home" that she had not expected. Nevertheless she did not 1 sit down and repine over it. She had no means of procuring anything better, i but she found that she could do great 1 deal of patching With considerable fore | thought she had brought some cheap ma 1 terial of different kinds with her from the north, and this she used to the best 1 advantage. She madC neat YalanceS for l the beds. cushions for her mothers rock l ing chair, Scarfs for the bureaus-in fact, with very little she made quite a i revolution ill the house.
 Her great anxiety was her brother. i Iakey had attended well to his studies | while at school, but his teachers had , found it impossible to change his meth f odS of expressing himself As soon as 1 he reached Tennessee he began to re- l lapse into the state of semibarbarism in which he had lived before the coming of his advantages. Souri knew that | there was no hope for improvement in | her father and mother Instead of trou- 1 bling them when their ways of acting 1 and speaking shocked her, she refrained from comment, but when Jakey dropped l into his old ways she tried hard to check 1 him. Resides she felt that it was neces- 1 sary to keep a strict guard over herself, for she hal noticed that when under any excitement or when ,her feelings were deeply touched she was apt to for l get herself and be once more the poor white" girl of former days. 1 There was another cause of solicitude as To .Jakry. IL must he admitted, not withStanding ,Iakcy'S good points and a | certain original shrcwdncSS there was about him. that he never was the same boy after his few hours of service on Colonel Maynard's staff. It was con stantly "When Iwar Colonel Maynard $ aid der camp. or when the colonel n Inc rode inter Tullyhomy, " or ''when I carried the news of the rcvacuation. " Then he would strut about with his | hands ill his pockets, much to his ia thrr's amusement and Souri's dread that he would run away and join the Union army But one day when he threatened to do SO Suuri took him to task for it and made him promise that he would not. This ended her anxiety, for Jakry would as soon have forgotten his milituv EunorS aS break a pledge to his sister.
 The Army uf the Cumberland was now advancing by every possible route toward Chattanooga. One of the routes taken bv tine Union army lay through the Spquatchic valley and directly past the Stacks little farm. One evening Souri Was leaning over the gate i thouShtfully when she saw several mounted men in blue, with yellow fac ingS, truttinS down the road. They were the first bluccuats to appear oi the host that was coming. There is a certain jaunty air. devil may care ap pearanCr, about trooper who becomes used to la'iug always on horseback. Each lnan and horse seemed the same animal. Their Sabcrs clanked in uni son, and they were chatting and laugh ing as If they had como to the soutl with only the most peaceful intentions When they reached the gate where Sou ri stood. one of them, lifting his ha politely, asked.
 'Would yc mind mo goin to th' well for little watvr:'
 In the brilliant display that was re vcalcd hy the lifting of the mans Ina Souri recognized head she could neve forgct-the head of Corporal Ratigan.
 "Why," she said, ''ain't you Cor poral Ratigan:'
 II am, nc young lady, and if Oi'n not mistaken we're one of tho party th:l was goin through the lines one day . few weeks ago.
 Jakcy at this moment came arount the house i'll a fashion at which he ha, become expert at school. This was turn ing handsprings sideways like a car wheel. Seeing the soldiers, he suddenl remembered his dignity as former vol untecr aid-dr-camp, and straigbtenin
 up pulled his hat down over the bac
 of his head and tried to look military True his hair wuS in his eyes, but hi
 military training had only been for on
 Tn1- = gal,
 i'll his eyes Doubtless it would hay
 required months of training from
 drill sergeant to get it to growing an
 other way. Approaching the fence, h
 climbed 1t and sat with one leg on eac
 side of it.
 Do ye know me, me boy?' aske J Ratigan,
 Does l know onc O them signa lights on tn mounting:'
 "Oh, Jakey," sighed his sister.
 Well. me lad. pursued the corpC
 raj. laughing. Who am I?'' Rats
 II see yc have a good memory. Rat,
 It's quare yo should have remembere
 that. " And the corporal chuckled goo
 naturedly
 'Mebbe y remember some un = name"
 , And who is that?"
 Miss Bags"
 Certainly I do, said the corpori
 somewhat startled and confused. a ''I sor her t'other day" u "Ye don't mean it:''
 "Reckon I do" "
 "Where:''
 ''She war a-trottin thet ole critter
 hern, goin nO'th like shot from squi rel gun
 ], Upon me wordr' ejaculated the co
 poral, evidently much interested
 Reckon she war up to somep'n."