The Windham County reformer. (Battleboro, Vt.) 1876-1897, 1896-05-29
A FEDERATION OF PEACE.
A STORY FOR DECORATION DAY.
BY Mrs. M. l.. Rayne.

ny MIS- W. -. h"yhc'
"'You won't forget, Arthur, what
YOU promised me for Decoration day?
"A ride to Woodlawn with the chill
dren? But, Margie, we have no sol.
der grave to decorate.
ayes, dear, we have. ! have adopt
ed one. y
81 don't understand Margie"
"You remember that one. lone grave
beyond the monument on the hill
slope? We noticed last year that 1T
had been overlooked, and | found out
the reason. No one knew that it was
"A soldiers grave, because it was so
apart from the rest. looked the mat
ter up The man was soldier OF the
same company to which my father
belonged-my father, who fell fighting
for his country when was in my cradle.
So | have his grave to decorate to-
morrow. " :,
"All right, little wife, you shall
for love or money.
"Giye them for love, Arthur, love
of our dear country, and OF those who
fought her battles and left us legacy
what good commanding general
you would have made, Margie, with
your patriotic spirit. "
ooh, it's easy enough to be patriotic
in piping times of peace, answered his
wife, "but you and | are old enough
to have heard the echoes of shot and
shell. We imbibed patriotism with
our mothers milk, but with these chill
dren it is different They know only
the splendor and glory of war. They
are old enough now to be taught its
reality, so that they may not onl y
learn to live like soldiers but to die
like them.
The two children. girl of II and
boy of II listened with interest and
curiosity for to them war was indeed
splendid pageant in which music, flags
and glitterng uniforms made such
grand tabeau, and they looked for,
ward to Decoration day, when they
could witness the ceremony OF strewlng
flowers on the graves of the honored
dead.
Arthur Lyman felt rather small
when he left home after having heard
his wife IS Grafton. IL seemed to him al
most as if he were to blame for being
only five years old at the time of the
war, and not shouldering arms and GO
ing into the battle But he had no
need to be ashamed of his vocation, for
he was soldier in the bravest sense
of the word -soldier of peace.
1t is common saying that man IS
often his own worst enemy.
Arthur knew what this meant. His
hasty, impetuous disposition was con-
tinually getting him into trouble, and
1t took all his wits TO get
out again. He had at last found help
by helping others. 4 white haired
man had come to his Office one day
and asked for desk room He had no
money and was blind. The presump-
ii n of the man in thus demanding as
sistance surprised Arthur so much as
to render him for the moment speech
less, and he looked at the intruder in
blank amazement. If blind man can
hypnotize, then Arthur was hpynotized |
into giving the old man the space he
There the blind stranger set |
up little stock Of pencils and station.
cry, and at the end of month ten
dered small rental for his stand.
On this morning, when Arthur en-
tered his office, he saw that the little |
stand was gone: and that the bind
protege, upon whom he had come to
rely as a friend, was not present. Ii
worried him SO much that he sent
clerk off to the old man y lodging, but
be was not there.
Something has happened to him
be has met with an accident, Arthur
said anXously, and he determined to
look up his whereabouts as soon as
possible.
He had pever mentioned the blind
nan to his wife, for il struck him as
Quixotic sort of venture at which she
night laugh. Besides, it was bust
less deal in one way, and belonged TO
he store, where Arthur left all bust
less details under lock and key. But
his evening he was so disturbed by
he loss of the old man that he related
he incident to Margie, and she sug-
rs soon as Memorial day was over
The little family went to Woodlawn
he next day and formed in themselves
IN interesting part of the grand fed
grafton of peace which was being Gel.
,brated with flowers and flags and /
,eating drums, in memory OF the silent
heroes who long have slumbered be-
leath. To the lonely grave on the hlll- {
tide, which Margie had adopted, " as
be quantity expressed it, they took
heir way, lauen with the flowers Arthur 1
lad provided While the children dis I
the floral tributes on the mar I
ow mound, MGrgie seated herself and {
cad aloud u poem she had cut from
he morning paper at the breakfast ia 4
lie. 1t was so appropriate that Arthur {
ccused her OF writing it. The last
tanZa ran thus: |
here's grave on the hillside, Father, I
Thy searching voice shall yet |
louise up the sleeping soldier
For Thou dost not forget {
here's "a lonely grave on the hillside,
But, oh, before Thy throne '
he humble shall be honored, c
The unknown shall be known. 9
Suddenly Arthur gave loud excla- e
lation of Look there! That is he" {
They looked, expecting to see gen i
raj of the army in splendid regalia, !,
ut they saw only a little band of vet :
rams in their faded uni forms, led by I;
lind man who played melting military l.
usic upon a fife. a
Its my old blind mani never e
new that he had been soldier. He Y
ever told me-" Arthur said, breath b
ssly.
He looks like a hero" said his &
ife, enthusiastically, and she did not Il
Ike her eyes from that noble and re- il
gned face until her husband had Il
aylaid the old man and said to him {
So have found you and you cheat Il
me nicely, never telling me you were il
ice a soldier. a
81 am soldier--once soldier al al