The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1898-08-13

| being questioned he still further ap-
paled his relatives by the startling as
sertion that he heard papa say It,"
| The only worse offender to good taste
than a profane man is q vulgar woman.
These are the days when the veterans
may often be seen in little groups
gravely discussing the great drama of
| other years and recalling the hardships
| in field and camps. There is u certain
| odd little feature of these protracted
conferences which appeals to the
| thoughtful listener and that is the un-
| acknowledged sense of grievance which
many of them seem to possess. Scarce
| ly de1nable as such, this sentiment is
| only noted when one of the group will
| say: And these boys think they had 1t
hard! Well, they just ought to have
| been in that Georgia swamp or on the
| border of the dead line at Libby" or
| in some other terrible spot forever cru
ely branded on the memory of those
who lived through the awful expert
| ence. Then they sigh and shake their
heads and fall to comparing the pres
| ent with the past. l wonder If they
| think for a moment that the young en-
| thuslasm of our soldier boys OF today
will detract the veriest atom from their
peril and their bravery of other years.
| l wonder IL they fancy that ever so
| slightly the brave deeds of today are
obscuring the glory which surrounds
| the heroes of the Civil War. All, no.
| The American people are impulsive to
fault They will go half mad with
| patriotic ferver at the mention of
| Dewey and Hobson, and just now they
want to promise TEDDY" Roosevelt
| everything from the next presidency to
| the immediate position of eecretary of
| war or a general choice of whatever his
| heroship may happen to desire, but ten
derly, sweetly, proud in their hearts
| dwells the reverence for the brave
deeds of thirty-five years ago, for the
matChless sacrifice that made the pres
| ent victories, and all intervening and
future prosperity, possible. What if
| today there is much talk of the depriva-
tions and the patriotism of our soldier
| boys in the war with Spain, the heroism
| of the past shines none the less bright
| ly and not one laurel leaf will be
| plucked from the brows of living or
| dead who won it through pain and
| danger and death.
She was old and gray and poor She
wore black bonnet and veil that had
done service as a tribute of sorrow for
the lost husband of her youth. for the
little baby, the first born of the happy
home when they were prosperous, and
| for the fair young girl whose early
death brought a pain to the mothers
| heart that has never since been stilled.
| Now she was wearing it for her SOL
| dier-her only son and support.
| Il could bear it better" she said
| brOkenly, IF he had been killed in bat
| tie; then l should feel that the sacri-
| flee had been of some use to his coun-
| try. But what good did it do any
body in the wide world for Tom to go
down there and suffer from exposure
| and unhealthy food and water. and
| then waste away in fever?"
| He was such a good boy" she add
| ed pathetically. He never made me
an hours worry in his life till he en-
| listed and went to camp. He gave me
| all his savings before he started to keep
me Il he should come home, and he
even sent me his camp pay and there
he needed things and went without it
so his mother could have enough. My
poor sick boy-and | never knew, and
| there he died and I couldn't be with
| him and never before in his life did he
have even headache and me not close
| by to pet and take care of him and get
the things he liked. Oh, dear, to live
| without him all the days, to never see
him coming in with his bright eyes and
| CHEEKY smile!" Then the tears crept
| down her wrinkled Cheeks-feeble little
| tears, for sometimes there are sorrows
| that drain the fount of their flowing
| dry-and she was but one mother of
| many in all the broad land today who
weep for the sons that are not, and
alas, there must be many more to
mourn the fruitless sacrifice,
| SauCy Bess.