Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1897-05-13
COLONEL ELLSWORTH.
The Brave Colonel of the New York
Fire ZOuayes

The first conspicuous victim of the
civil war, Col. Ellsworth of the New
York fire zouaves, was killed at Alex
andria, May "a 1861. Having occu-
pied the town without resistance, and
seeing a confederate flag floating from
the summit of the Marshall house, he
ran into the hotel, went upstairs to the
roof, and tore down the flag. On his
way down he was met by the hotel
keeper and shot dead. His assassin
persisted at the same moment, killed
by bayon et-thrust by Frank E. Brow
nell. Fllsworth's friend, John Hay,
gives in McClure's magazine such per-
sonal "reminiscences of the young hero
he was but 24-ras may show his sim
pie, kindly heart, and the struggles he
went through to gain legal education:
Poverty drove the boy early out into
the world to make living. He drifted
to Chicago, where he entered a law Of
flee, and lived on a piItance earned by
copying papers. His food and drink
for months were dry biscuits and
water, his bed was the hard floor of
OF Office. He would not accept even an
apple from any one because he could
| not return the courtesy Going on an
| errand into an clearinghouse, he met
friend and several companions, who
insisted on his having an oyster stew.
He refused his friend pressed; the
waiter brought on the oysters for the
party, and Ellsworth sat down. The
stew was the first morsel of food he
had tasted for three days and three
nights. Subsequently he had money:
he went to his friend and told him
that he, Ellsworth. owed him half a
DOLL" The man said no, but Ellis
worth insisted that his memory was
better than his friends and made him
take the money-the price of the
oysters
In dairy which Ellsworth kept for
a little while are such entries as these:
Have written four hours this evening;
two pounds of crackers: sleep on of
flee floor tonight Read one hundred
and fftv- pages OF slept
on floor" II have contracted a cold
by sleeping on the floor. Then there
| is the gnawing sensation which pre-
vents my long-continued application. .
Il spent my last 10 cents for crackers
| to-day Nothing whatever to eat.
| am very tired and hungry tonight.
Onward" While thus living on crack
ers and water he became convinced
that he had been reading Blackstone
too rapidly, and without the thorough
ness necessary to understand and re-
Tain its teachings. He wrote in his
diary: Have commenced again at be-
ginning Blackstone. Now read a prop
! osltlon or paragraph and reason upon
| 1t; try to get at ITO nrinciple involved
in my own language; view it in every
| light TIL I think l understand it: then
| write it down in my commonplace
book. My progress is, in consequence,
very slow, as it takes on an average
half an hour to each page
{ AT the first gun-that on Sumpter-
Ellsworth raised with incredible cell
Gritty the New York zouaves, a regi-
ment LOO strong, and brought it to
Washington. His friends, knowing his
mlIltary talents, thought that his first
battle would make him a brigade-gen-
eral, and that the second would give
nm division. President Lincoln
thought so highly of him that he called
him to Washington to place him in
charge OF a bureau of militia. But
Man proposes, God disposes''