The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1898-08-06

NllS NOElu III WHICH 10 pant lllleS VI GHe
valley. But all the same. worked up
genuine affection for Dick. noticed the
peculiar look In his face when we got
our letters and none ever came for him,
and one day when / asked him about II,
day" Then / WORKED II all out In ing
mind. II was the old story. He must
have quarrelled with her and then rush
ed foollshly into the ranks. How easy
It Is to weave these coowebs when you
have not anything else 10 think about.
One stlll night in the latter part OF
June, when Dick was on the picket line,
he heard voice husky but distinct say
"Hello Yank" He put his hands trum-
pet-tashlou to his mouth and guarded
ly answered. "1ello Johnny" Then
he listened.
The voice was not sixty feet away.
Got any tobacker?"
rHeaps," says Dick.
Gimme pipe full and I'll give Vou
some news"
IAN rluht-crawl over"
"Square?"
Honor bright"
Then after awhile. q lank figure in
butternut with a haggard face drag
ged Itself TO the edge of our line and
poRed Its nose owe" the bank OF earth,
holding out hand into which Dick put
a tobacco pouch, merely saying, What
is your news?"
wait TIL get Whit" said the fell
low. He filed corn-cOb pipe. took the
match that Dick offered him, lit 1t, and
gave himself, with an absurd concentrn-
tion OF enjoyment, to preliminary
smoke When he had allayed his to-
baccO hunger, he said: Say. Yank, we
bent such d. furriners as we tried to
make out. I allow this is a pipe O.
peace" To which Dick replied, II wish
It was. old man"
We'll, I'm tellIn' you, we're dead lick
ed by hunger. Got nothin' but our con-
sciences to fight on
Whereuron Dick whips out q couple
OF bareback biscuit and shOves them at
the fellow, who snaps at them Ike
hungry hound.
wasn't much use plckin' each other on
any longer, seeln' as how the jlg's up.
It's waste Of caps"
Whats the matter with mY captur.
Ing you" says Dick, "and sending you
TO the rear. where you can get square
meal? A day or two wouldn't make
much difference to anything but o
mans stomach"
That's where you're dead wrong,
Yank. It'd kind o. take the stumu' out
Of mans honor. II you don't mind,
I'll take another hunk OF that baccy
with me and slide back. Well all be In
one camp before the weeks out. mind l
tell sou"
This bit Of news freshened UP our ri.
ne pit enormously. II had the air OF be-
Ing true and confidential. II was pass
ed down the line from mouth 10 mouth,
and grew Into general conviction that
a change was likely to occur at any mo-
ment on nobody was the effect so de-
clded as upon Dick. who evinced new
citation. and could then see how great
n strain the month had been upon him.
We were like torpid animals when they
first smell the SPRING from their bor-
rows. Al we knew was that We were
going 10 break loose and get some
where where there was water, The pro-
mise OF X actually gave kind of ripple
to Dicks new chee"fnlness.
Well, things do not turn out as YOU
plan them in war. suppose You think
that Dick turned out 10 be woman,
and that was the renson / fell In love
with him. Pshaw! Let me tell sou
how It was.
ON the afternoon OF the 3Oth, a bin
mail came In from the Ynzoo. quite
bulglng nm ambulance. was IN the rear
at the quartermaster's tent when Il
came, and got our company's bundle
To distribute. Among the letters was
one for Dick. small. square envelope,
spElngy and padlIke. as X & had some
thing soft In II. may be lock OF hair.
L., NTnn dali
cate, womnn's back-hand. and the post
mark was Marietta. Ohio. II gave me
quite little start ! put II In nv shirt
pocket tenderly. to enjoy the extra lux
ury of giving 1t to Dick myself was
quite sure that there was some kind Of
romance that was golng 10 round Itself
up properly In that letter, and went
nrout among the cursing men at the
wagons as r ] had a kind of sacred
missivc IN ms shirt.
There was d good deal OF confusion In
the camps that afternoon. Some kind
Of q pFemonition 81 the end. without de-
finite Knowledge. seemed 10 have spread
evergwherc and taken the edge al dlscl-
pllnc on Everybody was asking. Have
you heard anVthlnR?" But there wasn't
anything to hear. 4 dead, hot hush had
come down between the armies now
thnt they were almost breathing INTO
ench Others faces. suppose It was one
Of those cases where the truth gets Into
the air without bothering with facts.
II was night before / got on the track
OF Dicks small bare feet In the trenches
nnd followed them along our last paral-
lei to the extreme right Of the line. !
noticed the relaxed state Of things ns
went on. # WIS certnin TINT there
would be- no more inspection OF the
Ilnos wondered what Dick was doing
so FAR down orl IN" right. and some,
body yaid that some id fools had
been firing down there, and he had gone
down 10 gee what Il vas. thought that
,ynH odd. but was chiefly thinking
about the IuNnrk 81 his surprise when I
pulled ont that square letter and gave
II 10 HIN.
came on him at last alone. leaning
Owe, the cool embnnkmcnt with his
arms stretched out on the earth where
tho hank iapcrcd down towards n finish
I ben1n to whistle AUD Lang Syne'
chlrplngiY as came UP, as an lntima-