The Irish standard., 1896-05-16


were lowering near your lines toae6ect
the escape Of tho spy. But hesays thai
although they failed to help her abe
did escape, or was passed through tho
lines ysyorr connivanoe. He says that
you seemed to know her, that from
what Rose, themulattow woman, told him,
you and she were evidently old friends.
would not speak Of this, nor intrude
upon your private ahairs only that
I think you ought to know that / had
no knowledge of it when I was In your
house, but believed her TO be stranger
to you. You gave me no intimation
that you knew her, and I believed that
you were frank with me-. But should
not speak Of this at all, for I believe
that it would have made no difference
with me in repairing the wrong that I
thought had done you, only that as I
am forced by circumstances to tell you
the terrible ending of this story you
ought to know it all.
"My brother wrote to me that the
evening after you left the burying par
ty picked up the body of what they be-
lieved to be mulatto woman lying
on the slope. It was not Rose, but the
body of that very woman-the real and
only spy-whom you had passed
through the lines at daybreak. My
brother thinks she was accidentally,
killed in the first attack upon you by.
her own friends, and so fell double
martyr. But only my brother and his
friend recognized her through her
blackened face and disguise, and on the
plea that she was servant of one of.
their friends, they got permission from
the division commander to take her
away, and she was buried by her friends
and among her people in the little cem-
etery of Three Pines crossing, not far
from where you have gone. My brother
thought I ought to tell you this; it
seems that he and his friend had q
strange sympathy for you in what they
appear to know or guess of your rela-
tions with that woman, and think he
was touched by what he thought was
your kindness tand. chivalry to him on
account of his sister. But do not
think he ever knew, or will know, how
great is the task that he has imposed
upon me.
'You know now, do you not, why I
did not speak to you when we first
met. 1t seemed SO impossible to do
it in an atmosphere and festivity that
was so homogeneous to the dreadful
message I was charged with. And
when had to meet you later-perhaps
may have wronged you-but it seemed
to me that you were SO preoccupied
and interested with other things that
I might perhaps only be wearying you
with something you cared little. for,
or perhaps already knew and had quick
II had been wanting to say some.
thing else to you when 1 had got rid Of
my dreadful message. do not know
if you still care to hear. But you were
once generous enough to think that
I had done you service in bringing
letter to your commander. Although,
I know better than anyone else the
genuine devotion to your duty that
made you accept my poor service, from
all that can hear you have never had
the credit Of it. Will you now try me
again? I am in more favor here, and
1 might yet be more successful in show
ing your superiors how true you have
been to your trust, even if you have
little faith in your friend Matilda
Faulkner"
For long time he remained notion
less with the letter in his hand. Then
he arose, ordered his horse and galloped
away.
There was little difficulty in finding
the cemetery of Three Pines crossing;
q hillside slope, hearsed with pine
and cypress and starred with white
crosses, that in the distance looked
like flowers. Still less was there in
finding the newer marble shaft among
the older ichen spotted slabs, which'
bore the simple words: "Alice Ben,
ham, Martyr" A few confederate SOL,
diers, under still palmer and newer
wooden headstones, carved only with
initials, lay at her feet. Brant sank
on his knees beside the grave, but he
was thrilled to see that the base of
the marble was stained with the red
pollen of the fateful lily, whose blos-,
SONS had been heaped upon her mound, !.
but whose fallen petals lay dark and
sodden in decay.
How long he remained there he did
not know. And then solitary bugles
from the camp seemed to summon him
as it had once summoned him before.
and he went away-as he had gone once
before-to a separation that he now
knew was for all time.
Then followed month of superin-:
tendence and drill, and the infusing!
into the little camp under his instruc-
ton the spirit which seemed to be-
passing out Of his own life forever.
Shut in by alien hills on the border land
of the great struggle, from time to time
reports reached him of the bitter fight
ing and almost disastrous successes Of.
his old division commander. Orders
cine from Washington to hurry the
Of HIS raw levies for the
field, and faint hope sprang up in his;
mind. But following it came another
dispatch ordering his return to the
capital.
lie reached it with neither hope nor
fear, so benumbed had become his spfr-
It under this last trial, and whatseemed
to be now the mockery of his last sacri-
fee to his wife. Though it was no
longer question of her life and safety,
he knew that he could still preserve
her memory from stain, by keeping