The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1898-03-02
WYNNE's COURAGE

Vos.cr, not only because Of the sun.
rhich was responsible for a mere
100 degrees of temperature, but be-
souse of the inordinate number of
~aumrently immortal Arabs s.hc
we're narshaled or rather thrown
IN l,attlc array and who came rush
,uc ever and again i'll yelping multi
,udes on the devoted bayonots of Il
rt,ir ,uuare OF British infantry.
They Iell. of course, i'll heaps before
,lr vnlleying rifles and machine
o,uas. but die they would not. Per
ye,.j,y lral taken flesh within them.
and they writhed. fouming Will,
,,,u. through sand and scrub, to
nuuy their steel, not i'll tho bosoms,
hrl in tie lower limbs and e~ntrulls
nf their enemies.
There wcro young soldiers fasci-
mated By tho fear Of death, who
would watch them coming, power
les: to ward off the blow, the empty
rit.c clutched foolishly in the trem-
bling hand, till the fierce steel had
bitten out their life.
Mar1naluke Wynne was Il youns
/ soldier; not SO young i'll years, but
this was his first battle, and he
was afraid-horribly, paralytically
afraid. He felt fear in his heart, in
his throat, in his arms, bis legs, his
feet and his hands. 1t had worked
its way into his revolver and his
sword: his very helmet seemed in
fected by it, and covered Imply on
his hcad. He s.cc3a 81, a curIIer OF
the square behind his men, not even
pretending TO direct their fire, his
face white under the suEburn, and
his eyes half closed 10 hide tho nor
ror around him. He dared not look
up; if the fear once crept into Ills
brain he knew he must run whittier
he could not tell-perhaps into the
midst of the enemy for very shame.
He a surprised ut his weakness,
though all his past life might have
told him that it was bound to come
upon him. Not that his soul was
cowardly; rs u boy he had ever
dreamed of high deeds Of knightly
rrowcss which he would 90 when
manhood had given him the power,
but now that his first maturity had
6een entered ne still felt himself, as
of old. powerless to realize his bravo
ambition. At Cairo he had blushed
at the anticipation of his coming
glory; here at the front facing the
enemy his stomach was sick with
fear and dishonor.
On came n posse of families, their
long knives afiame in the sunlight.
A shout, n burst of smoke, IL culver
Of bayonets-they disappear, but
W more of Marmaduke's men are
gone. One had been just in front
Of him-the enemy had got SO far.
His lips blanch; the adjutant's voice
breaks in upon his ear.
Say, Wynne, this won't do. This
beggar's rifles sighted TO 1900.
That's all nonsense"
Another shout, another rush; the
boy slips back the sight, raises the
rife to his shoulder. picks out a
horseman in the oncoming mob and
pulls the trigger.
Got 'im!" says the adjutant tri-
u%mphantly as the man falls from
his saddle, thereby impeding the
rush of those behind. The boy
throws down tho rifle and turns
away saying, TRY 800, and keep
your men better in hand" He passes
on down the square.
Wynne dared not reply. He knew
y bus teeth would chatter If he opened
MS mouth. How he envied the other
DIS coolness, and yet hithertoahhe
had never thought him q better man
man himself-scarcely had he deem
ed him as good. 1t was all u question
4 OF temperament, he supposed. Ger
lalnly that the latter had killed
The savage horseman was entirely
tnanks to his nerves; there was no
courage required to shoot a man 200
yards away if one only knew how
70 DO it. Then he reflected that lie
himself was afraid to fire off his re-
'olvcr for fear of hitting his own
men. There was nothing cowardly
that; it merely showed his con-
saeration for others or at worst his
3 ,ack of self confidence. And yet he
new at the bottom Of his soul that
q 20 was behaving disgracefully.
81 dc tried to pull himself together,
.nd as a fresh charge came shrging
II inward he enado a movement as if
u advance TO meet it, bnt II spear
shlszed over his head, and in spite
u himself he shrank back. The
r ayages rushed in upon his men.
HI nth a dreadful howl, and to his
4 olror they gave way. His sergeant,
90 whom he had relied, was cut
2sown md the young soldiers fell
luck. He tried to tell them to be
d aeady, but the words would not
s. rome. He shook in Il palsy Of fear,
S. 1d for one long moment he stood