The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-02-16

But civil war is not pleasant thing
to contemplate, even in the past tense.
Even with the mist Of 80 years over the
| long line Of messy graves intervening,
with the softening light of ebbing sea-
sons upon the grim picture, it has little
in it that we care TO look upon unless it
be with the stern Joy Of the victor. How
would we regard this picture were we
TO look back over the scared and broken
history, across the bitter years of blank
despair and death. down to the quiet
valley where lie our dead, dearer to us
because they died in vain?
But l started ont to say something
else. / was going TO recall some of the
old pictures-the tlntypes, as it were
of war.
Do you recall the early picture of the
volunteer soldier made by strolling
artist with chemicals III his hands clear
to his shoulder blades? Do You remem-
Der this gentleman who came and camp
ed with You and pointed camera at
you just after you had received your
new uniform? He was man who was
thoroughly iInbued with his art and
some other things that they use in de-
VelOping pictures. He placed his victim
on retired chair, put cold, iron prong
IN the back Of his neck and kept him
there until his eyes started from their
sockets. l have seen several such tin
types lately taken by this same artist
In fancy can see him in his studio
on a hot day. He has begun work on a
young soldier whose military coat
sleeves are too long. The young artist
puts the man in comfortable attitude,
where be looks as though death would
be welcome. He then inserts the cold,
cast iron fredog down the back Of his
neck. After that he feels of the young
soldiers chin with burnt lumber hand
and Egyptian mummy's fingers with
saffron nails. Then he sticks his head
into the large beehive ON legs, puts
shroud over himself and gets the war
rior into focus. so that his hands will
take up the entire foreground of the pic-
ture, with middle distance Of hand-me-
down blue clothing and a background Of
tented field and cold relentless head rest.
A few days more, and a young looking
gentleman, wearing a look Of inexperi-
ence and long wasted coat with gilt
buttons on it-eilded after the picture
was made-with one large hand insert
ed in the fabby breast of this same coat
and the other resting on the hilt of an
overgrown sword, enters the home cir
Gle through the medium of the United
States mails. 1t is wildly grotesque, but
deeply pathetic. The careless person
sees only the picture Of a green young
man who has only just begun TO sniff
the holiday atmosphere of war. He sees
a tall youth with red and meager neck,
a wealth OF taffy colored hair and a
hand that IN the amateur artists por-
trait looks as though it could itself
crush an ordinary rebellion if it could
have fall enough.
Those were the days when the volun-
teer armies started ont TO battle, each
soldier carrying a knapsack, valise
and large zinc trunk with plug hat
in it. Those were the days when the
war was a picnic and every man wore
his good clothes on weekdays. What a
sad moment 1t was when the soldier who
had lived for 20 years under the protect
ing roof of a New England home, with
q clean, white shirt TO put on every
Sunday, learned at last that he must
abandon his Gothic trunk and go forth
TO march hundreds of miles without it
War is indeed a stern experience. 1t
involves haste, danger and surprise. 1t
means annoyance, discomfort and incon-
renieDce. Imagine a soldier on the eve
of a long, hot march behind q tree
changing his clothes, with the contents
Of his trunk scattered all around ON the
grass and with his head no doubt hope
lesSly driven into freshly Numbered
and carefully welded shirt. He is fling
ing his arms wildly about trying to
draw himself up through the garment
so as TO hang his grinning chin over the
He smells the hot starch.
His eyes hang red and CLASSY from their
pockets. BE sports pair % low sum-
mer pants and makes another wild strug-
gle &c es1eEge Laro1sa ~ top of the
shlTt when the picket guard rushes into
the apartments with a wild. elocution-
airy cry Of: ITO arms They come The
Greek! The Greek - Such Is war
grim, dusty, announcement war.
To lock st the blue and red pictures
Of battles, such as we used to see. one
would naturally suppose that the war
rior put on his good clothes. had his
horse carefully laundered, buttoned on
fresh collar and cuffs, put on his lawn
tie and wide hat with n 50 plume on
il, had his tall boots blackened. adjusted
a large paiS Of beautiful brass spurs.
nemorized the piece which he intended
10 speak when ne GOT his death wound
and then sent word 10 the enemy that be |
would call IN half an hour.
Such. however, Is not the case. Some
II our greatest warriors Yentinto bSttle !