Rocky Ford enterprise., 1896-05-28

right up an maze LlSe an ole Mlnkeys
de coachman. go and brung dat pooh
fellah to de house. She an me fxin'
up bed fur him while dey is gone.
"Byenby dey toats him in an lays
him in 1t. He was outen his hade lake.
an missus send right of fur doctor,
aud he foun' he was shot in de side, de
ball goin' roun' by de spine. an he say
dat air pooh boy dun got he death
blow, and de doctor recon he was elder
shot while on picket duty or had
dropped behind when he dun got hurt,
while de army marched on an lef' him.
Anyway, dar he was. an he doant know
nobody ner nothing. an de doctor say
he was parlised, SO he couldent even
move his pooh lounge.
"Wall, missus an me nussed him till
we both pretty nigh dun drop in our
tracks fur week. Den at las he dun
went home to glory. as de sun was
settin' lake In sea Of fab.
But jis afore he breaved his las he
kinda com'd to his senses, an KEEP O
lookin' at missus-an' he try'd so
mighty hard to speak an was dat dis
tressed case he couldn't, de big tears
roll outen his handsome black eyes an
roll down his cheeks dat was as white
as de sheet, an de sweat lay so cole an
thick on his hands dat his pretty dark
curls looked like dey were don got
dipped in de rain water barrl.
"De Missus take his ham an say:
"'Nebber mine. de lovin' Jesus knows
jes what We want to say an would
help him ter make her en'stan,' anyway
she would dun find out who his folks
war an write 'em all about how he fit
an died duin' his duty, or what he
thought war his duty.
Den he kept looking at his pooh
ragged clothes, dat was hangin' whar
he could see 'em, till missus takes de
hint from his appealin' eyes. and goes
and hunts through de pockets. She dun
found nothin but little bible, an when
she bring it to him his eyes jes shine,
opened 1t an leetle tintype of putty
young thing holdin' little baby er
about year old drapped out, an then
he looked SO glad. Missus aXed him ef
dat war his wife an baby, an b.
nodded yas, an den missus say: Z
kin find dem by 'vertisin in de news
papers, an tink dun know what ye
want me to tell dem,' an den she see
dat he was satisfied. an his poor eyes
was loosin' deir light. She dun took his
han in hers, an sang lake an angel
dat pretty hymn about:
"'All my trus' on de is staid.'
"Dar was two or three verses, but I
disremember em. Anyway while she
was singing de gates c1 glory opened
and TUX dat poor boy in.
"Ef he war flghtin' on de wrong side
he dident dun know it. He just did
his duty as he had learned it from older
hades. So de missus had him laid to
res UP In de grove back of de house,
an cherry Decoration Day she dun put
poses on dat lone grade, rain or shine.
| sick or we'll"
"Did she ever advertiser" asked
Jennie, wiping the tears out Of her
eyes.
Deed she did! an fur years she war
irwin to fine dem folks OBJ hisen, till
it went on fur nigh on ter fifteen years.
De wah was dun, de niggars all free,
NASSAU Cartep loss an arm a f1ghtin'
agin it, an his only chile, young Massa
John. war growed up to be man. an
like his ma, as putty as a picter, and
dat smart dat he run de plantation his
own self. He hired de niggahs to work
dat war good fur anything, an let de
triflin' ones go.
Wal. der used to be lots of COM
many allus comm up from charles
ton. an one day in May dar war Massa
Johns cousin, Miss Liddy Carter, dun
come out to de plantation ter make
visit, an she brung erlong o young