Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1895-03-01
MisGellaneoua.
AN AMAZON OF THE SIXTIES.


peared in recent number of Blue and cruz,
signed by Albert BigeIow Paine 1t "alI
came out, according 10 the author, last year,
on the death of the woman who had been n
nurse in military hospital for nearlya gen
Grafton
When the war broke out, this woman
was country girl of eighteen, with a
sweetheart a year or so older The girl
was unusually tall and masculine, though
with good features The youth was
slight and had n pretty, womanish face.
This will explain, perhaps, why the girl
loved him and remained faithful also
why the young man grew weary of n big
creature who had surpassed him by half
head n height and was getting to look
and act more like a man every day
They had been engaged three years
when he finally got tired of it all and
enlisted and marched away without tell
ing her, or coming to say good by.
This was in 1862.
For month or two the girl went
about her work MS usual The facts
were not generally known, | believe, at
that time. Then one day she, too, dis
appeared. No trace of her could be
found, and the search was finally aban-
doned. These people lived in Kansas,
near the Missouri line, and good many
strange things were happening then
along the border
Bot far away IN the South, where re
cruits were stumbling along through
tangled vines and bad-smelllng water,
and falling over cypress knees IN their
mad haste to JOIN Grants army and be
shot at, big, smoothed-faced boy APP
piled one day for admission into the
regiment wherein the recrcant lover was
marching. 1t was at a time when men
we're needed and volunteers not closely
scrntinlzed. The boy was enlisted and
assigned TO one OF the incomplete com
panies. Later, he succeeded in getting
exchanged into that of the runaway.
Day after day they marched side by
side over very bad roads aud through
moccasln- haunted swamps. where there
were no roads whatever. Recognizing u
familiarity OF voice and features, the
truant lover had inquired OF the boy con-
corning his relatives during their first
meeting and had been satisfied with the
reply. with n trace, perhaps, OF the
old love in his heart, he grew fond of
the new recruit shortly and they became
friends.
by and by he told the boy his story
how he had loved and grown tired of
girl that had looked enough like the boy
to be his sister also how he had run
away from her Then the boy, in re-
turn, told him, truthfnlly enough, that
he had also left home on account Of
love affair. But no spoke falsely con
corning his home, which he said was in
tho South, And all the time they were
hurrying to the front through the mud
aud burning sun.
AS the days passed, and harIships
wore away the last thread of romance,
the young man spoke TO the boy more
aud more tenderly cf his home and the
girl he had forsaken. The truant was
beginning to appreciate the love he had
thrown away, and marching beside him,
the boy, grown strong aud accustomed
to misery, listened and grew stronger
daily, though he blushed rosy, now aud
then, for he was still woman at heart
One night, when they had reached the
end of their hard marches and were lying
on their guns waiting for the battle at
daybreak, the false one vowed to the
doy, who lay beside him, that he still
loved the girl dearly; also that be had
been fool and villain that if God
spared bis life until the war closed he
would return and ask her forgiveness on
Bonded knees. The boy said nothing at
all but seemed to be sleeping with his
face pressed down into his arms. sup
pose he did not speak for fear Of reveal
ing himself and being sent to the rear.
He wished to go into the battle and die,
if necessary for the man he loved, which
shows a want of the proper spirit in the
breast of even the most masculine Of
women.
At sunrise began one of the fcrcest