El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1898-05-21

Hes gone to be soldier in the army
of the Lord,
And his soul is marching on.
"The regiment was commanded by
Col. Fletcher Webster, the son of Dan
iel Webster. He was just like father
70 the boys. He knew US all by name,
and we all loved him. Shnt up to-
gether there we were all like one big
family, any way. We would have fol-
lowed hum through the grave itself.
He was a brave soldier. He fell at the
to his SOUL"
moments. Then his eyes twinkled.
Camp life isn't all hardship and
sorrow, though" he began again
I'VE were so fond OF Webster that we
called ourselves his cattle. Once after
q long march when we were half-stsrv-
ed some of the Buys killed farmer
pet COW. They didn't know it was his
eve lamb, you know. But the farmer
came in high dudgeon to the colonel
and rated the boys soundly. The col
Onel was very sympathetic and sootheo
the farmer do vn. "I'll tell ths boy
cot to kill your pet cow again." he as
sured the irate husbandman. "All
the same, I'm glad it was one of your
cattle, not mine that was killed" rh.
farmer not appreciating the humor O.
the remark, walked off shaking his
fist.
But where was 1 about the song? l
was just going to tell you why we
m sde the fourth verse. We were
Well, this fourth verse went:
His pet lambs will meet him on the
way,
While he goes marching on
"Even then, you see, the original
idea of the song was growing q LITTLE
azy, and we brought the colonel into
master and was written down by one of
the band. Soon after the tune wa
played on dress parade and HOO voices
took up the words. Copies were given
to Gilmore's band and TO the Germa-
mia and OF yer Ditson published the
song, and then it became public prop
erty.
Our Webster regiment sang 'Johu
Brown 10 Boston for the first time n
July Is, 1861, wheo our colors were
presented by Hon. Ed ward Everett.
We sang it in New YorE just after the
first terrible battle of Bull Run The
country was almost paraly zed with hor-
ror, and we were ordered to the front
vt once. We landed at East Four
teenth street, in New York. on our
wav to Boston and marched to Broad
way. The colonel gave the orde'
Route step, which means carry your
guns at will, you know. The bano
struck up the song, end 1040 voices
sang with their might:
"John Browns body lies a-molderinQ
in the grave
John Browns body lies a-moldering
in the grave,
John Browns body lies a-molderipg
in the grave,
But his soul goes marching on.
broadway was so crowded with the
multitude of people who had come to
see US that ahead it looked IKE q vat
ant heap, and the policemen had all
they could do to clear q path for US.
When we bsRau singing there was a
spectacle for gods and men. The peo-
pie were SO slunned and discouraged
by the defeat that they had been u.
quiet as company of mice, but after
a few bars OF that song they began TO
cheer aud hout Ike mad thinps.
Tney threw up their has and never
saw them again. Perfect strangers
Rugged one another and wept like
chi dren. Opposite the city hall We
stopped singing from sheer exhaus-
ton. But the sight of our splendidiy
trained regiment and the swing and
sweep of that song put hope into that
vast concouree of people as it did into
US many time afterwards when We
were foOtsore and weary and nigh unto
death.
son March 1 we sang that song on
the very spot where John Brown of o.
sawa'omie was banged. It was kind
thinking much of the Scotch John
Brown while we sang. But even then,
1 think, we had him in mind more
than we knew. For even though re-
giment after regiment adopted the
song, until it came to be indeed the
m srching song of the bation,' our
Twelfth Massachusetts rarely sang
it in the latter part of its history.
" hen we wee at Fort Royal we cross
ed the river on pontoOn bridges one
night when the darkness was so thick
that you could have cut it with knife.
John Brown fell in and was drowned.
OF course we were all used to battle
and sudden death. but some way the
accident took hold of US, and we didn't
care to sing the song much after
that.
I'm July, 1864, we went home. We
marched through the Boston streets
again. One thousand and forty of us
had gone forth to do battle, eighty-five
of US came back. Some one started
the old song, but we. choked and our
voices broke, and with our tattered
colors, we marched silently into histo-
ry. But the boys we're always true
to the Twelfth Massachusetts, At a
fashionable concert several years sfter
the war the Twelfth Mass, oy Weber,
was one of the numbers of the pro-
gramme. just before it was TO be
played a man sprane up, shouting at
the top of his voice, 'Hurrah for the
Twelfth Massachusetts! 1 belor ged to
the Twelfth Masss chusetts! Three
cheers and tiger You can imagine
the establishment of tn at audience"
OTne veter IN sat silent. He looked as
the coal fells together. His cigar had
gone out. He took q match and lit it
again, then blew rings of smoke into
the air.
Valuable Mineral Discovery.
A fortunate discovery of the minera
ferro-manganese is reported in Penn
svlvania. 1t Is opportune, too, in that