The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-02-13


could. He had so much confidence in
! his nanny S skill and experience, and
was so anxious in behalf of his young
| master, that he took pains in selecting
the trees from which he was to chop the
| bark And then he was very particular
as to the quality of the bark; and, in
order that there might be no mistake
about ii, lie Clipped off a larger supply
than was necessary. This took time,
and so when he was ready TO start back
to the big house, he heard his nanny
calling him, and there was a certain
vital emphasis in her remarks that
] caused him to return on q run.
! In fact, Aunt Candace had infused
new energy into everybody about the
place. The little negroes that usually
swarmed about the yard prudently
went to play in the barn, but they were
careful not to make a noise that would
/ prevent them from hearing her voice if
Aunt Candace should chance to want
? one of them TO run on an errand. The
/ plantation medicine chest was ran
! sacked in search of something. Mrs.
! Fitzpatrick and her daughter knew not
what. AT any rate the search was a
relief. They no longer sat supinely in
the midst of their grief. They made
little journeys to the kitchen, where
Aunt Candace was brewing her simples
and she watched them out of the cor
ner of her eye.
''Sposen he'd got kilt dead" she re-
marked; "what'd you done den? Better
go long an set down an nuss yo seves,
I'll nuss Jack fitzpatrick. An 'twon't
be de fust time I've nuss'd i'm all by
myself, needer.''
Scolding and domineering, Aunt Can
dace went ahead with her brewing, and,
in little while, had a crock of dog
wood bark tea ready, as well as a red
oak bark poultice. Her remedies were
simple, but she had the greatest faith
in them. She applied the poultice to
the wound on the shattered collar bone
and compelled Jack to drink a tum-
blerful of the dogwood bark tea. The
dose was a heroic one, and bitter in
proportion. To a certain extent both
remedies were eflicacious. The poultice
was a cooling astringent and the tea
allayed the fever-for somewhere in the
dogwood tree between root and bios
sem, there lies the active principle of
quinine. Jack fell into a deep sleep,
from which he was aroused by one of
those remarkable events that could
have occurred in no country by the
American republic.
Ill
When Plato started back to the house
from the spring branch, where he had
bark, he was in such a hurry that he
forgot his AK, and when he wanted it
again a few hours afterward he hunted
all over the yard for it until he sudden
ly remembered that he had left it where
he had been chopping the bark. He
started for it, but as he was going
down the spring branch he heard
clatter in the road to the left, and,
looking in that direction, saw two fed
eral caValTVTnen gallODinR bV
''Ah-yii' he exclaimed, as if by that
means he could find vent for surprise,
and slipped behind tree. The day was
raw and drizzly, and there was no
movement on the plantation. The ne
groeS were in their cabins, the horses
were in their stable, the mules were
standing quietly under the long shed in
the lot, and even the sheep that were
in the ginhouse pasturage were huddleG
together under shelter, nibbling at a
pile of waste cotton seed. The riders
were couriers, and Plato, observing
them, saw that they did not pursue the
road to the village, but turned off
squarely to the right. For Sherman had
already began his famous march to the
sea. He had begun it, indeed, before
the little skirmish in which Jack Kill
patrick had been wounded, and. though
Plato had no knowledge of the fact, he
travelled with his young master for Is
miles between the parallel lines of the
advancing army, Slocum's corps being
one of the lines and Howards corps
another.
Ignorant of this fact, Plato was very
much surprised to see the federals rid
ing by. "Dey er persuin' right on after
u.s." he remarked aloud. "A little mo-
an dey'd "a cotch us, sho. An dey may
ketch us yit. Kaze Marse Jack can't
hide out, an 1 know mighty well
amt gwine nowhar while Marse Jack
got ter stay" He turned back and went
to the big house, but once there he
remembered his ak and started after it
again.
He found it where he had left it. He
picked it up and flung it across his
shoulder. AS he raised his head he saw
a big federal souldier sitting on a horse