Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1896-04-09
THE SENTRY'S SHOT.
BY AMBROSE PIERCE.

clump Of laurel by the side Of a road
IN western Virginia. He Law at full
length on his stomach. his feet resting
upon the toes, his head upon the left
forearm. His extended right hand
loosely grasped his rife. But for the
somewhat methodical disposition of
his limbs and slight rhythmic move
ment Of the cartridge.box at the back
OF his belt, he might have been thought
to be dead. He was asleep at his post
OF duty. But, II detected, he would be
dead shortly afterwsrd, that being the
penalty Of his crime.
The clump Of laurel in which tho
criminal lay was in the angle Of q road
which, after ascending southwark :
steep ACTIVITY to that point, turned
sharply to the west, running along the
summit for perhaps one hundred yards.
There 1t turned southwark again and
went zigzagging downward through
the forest At the salient Of that sec
ond angle was q large fat rock, jut-
ting from the ridge to the northward,
overlooking the deep valley from
which the road assembled. The rock
capped : high cliff; stone dropped
from its outer edge would have fallen
sheer downward ono thousand feet to
the tops OF the pines The angle where
the soldier lay was on another spur Of
the same cliff. Had he been awake he
would have commanded view, not
only OF the short arm Of the road and
the jutting rock but of the entire pro-
Tile of the Cliff below it.
No country is so wild and difficult
but men will make it theater of war;
concealed in the forest at the bottom
of that military rat-trap in which half
a hundred men in possession of the
exits might have starved an army to
submission, lay five regiments Of fed.
eral infantry. They had marched all
the previous day and night and were
resting. At nightfall they would take
to the road again, climb to the place
where their unfaithful sentinel now
slept. and, descending the other slope
Of the ridge, fall upon a camp of the
enemy at about midnight Their hope
was to surprise it, for the road led to
the rear of it. In case OF failure, their
position would be perilous in the ex-
treme.
The sleeping sentinel in the clump
of laurel was a young Virginian named
Carter Druse. He was the son of
wealthy parents, an only child, and
had known such ease and cultivation
and high living as wealth and taste
were able to command in the noun
tain country OF western Virginia. His
home was but few miles from where
he now lay. One morning he had risen
from the breakfast table and said,
quietly: Father, union regiment
has arrived at Grafton. am going to
join it,"
The father lifted his leonine head,
looked at the son a moment in silence,
and replied: 60, Carter, and, what
ever may occur, do what you conceive
to be your duty. Virginia, to which
you are traitor, must get on without
you. Should we both live to the end
OF the war, we will speak further Of
the matter. Your mother, as the ply
stefan has informed you, is in most
critical condition; at the best she can
not be with us much longer than few
weeks, but that time is precious. 1t
would be better not to disturb her"
So Carter Druse, bowling reverently
to his father, who returned the salute
with stately courtesy which masked
a breaking heart, left the home OF his
childhood to go soldering. BY con-
science and courage, by deeds OF devo-
ton and daring. he soon commended
himself to his fellows and his officers;
and it was to these qualities and to
some knowledge of the country that
he owed his selection for his present
perilous duty at the extreme outpost
Nevertheless, fatigue had been stronger
than resolution, and he had fallen
asleep What good or bad angel came
in dream to rouse him from his state
of crime who shall say? Without a
movement, without sound in the
profound silence and the languor OF
the late afternoon, some invisible mes
senger of fate touched with unsealing
finger the eyes Of his consciousness
whispered into the ear Of his spirit the
mysterious awakening word which no
human lips have ever spoken, no hui
man memory has ever recalled he
quietly raised his forehead from his
arm and looked between the masking
stems of the laurels, instinctively clos
ing his right hand about the stock OF
his rifle.
His first feeling was a keen artistic
delight. On a colossal pedestal, the
cliff. motionless at the extreme edge
Of the Gaping rock and sharply out
lined against the sky, was an eques-
trian statue OF impressive dignity.
The figure of the man sat the figure OF
the horse, straight and soldierly, but
with the repose Of the Grecian god
carved in the marble which limits the
suggestion of activity. The gray cos
tune harnlonized with its aerial back
ground; the metal of accoutrement
and caparison was softened and sub
.dued by the shadow; the animals skin
had no points Of high light. a carbine'
strikingly foreshortened, lay across the
pommel Of the saddle, kept in place by
IL af the