The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1899-07-06
"Shoo.. Shoot"


march barefooted, live on roots and
sleep without cover before I'd desert.
I'd do it in the first place out of prin-
ciple, and secondly, because when the
end comes not q man of you will have
anything but war record as a reward
for your services. All who live through
it will get an honorable discharge, and
wives and children and neighbors will
welcome them home Things will set
tie down, and after time the south
will be in control of herself again. Then
the men who stuck to their flag will
come to the front, but what of the de-
serters?"
"Say, Yank, yo' talk, yo' do" ex-
claimed the confederate with an admir-
ing glance.
"Well, am in earnest"
"And durn me if yo' don't talk sense!
If our captain would only do leetle
chinnin' o. that sort we'd all feel a
heap better. Yes, what of the desert
ers? When them times comes yo'
speak of he won't be in it, viii he?"
mo. he won't. It'll be known and
recorded that he deserted his cause, his
flag and his comrades, and nobody will
have any use for him."
''Wall, had no idea of desertin', yo'
know"
"Of course not"
"Jest sorter dropped over for leetle
talk"
I'm glad you did. War is bad
enough, without pickets trying to MUIR
der each other. Got to 60 back now?''
eyes, / think I'll be movin', as the re-
lief will be along purity soon. So yo'
| think Gen. Lee is suah to be whopped?'
'Sure to be. We all know him for a
fighter, but he must cave in to odds.
However,
"Oh. I'm goin' to see the thing out
| you bet yo'r butcs / ami" interrupted
the confederate. Tin goin' to stick
| right by till the last guns fired, and
mebbe I'll go fghtin' on my own hook
after that. Nobody could hev coaxed
me to desert. l was just sorter akin
out O curiosity, yo' see?"
81 understand. Well, 50 long to you,
old man, and l hope TO see you again"
A week later both Grant and Lee
were massing fresh troops on that
| front. A battle was to be fought, and
| each strained every nerve to get ready
| for it. There was no more visiting
among the pickets. They had murder
in their hearts now and were shooting
to kill. One morning as the red sun
| leaped above the tree-tops, men were
rushed into battle-line and a cloud of
| sliirmishers went running down in
| front. The enemy sent forward cloud
| to match, and these men ran and
| lodged, crept and crawled, and made
} targets of each other. 1t was the pref
ace of a forward movement of the
lines. 1t was a brief prologue. At one
time the federal skirmishers pushed
back the confederates-agai the con-
federates gained ground. Tom Boyer
was there among the men of his COM
pany, and as he rested for a moment
behind hillocll he said to the comrade
at his elbow:
I'm arter that Yank behind the
stump. He'll poke his head out agin in
mint, and then-whoop! Say, now,
| but / got him. Come on-we've got em
on the rum"
The confederates moved forward a
| few rods and were checked. Tom
| Boyer hnelt beside the man he had
killed with a grim smile on his face,
but as he turned the dead man over
his smile vanished and his face went
white.
whats the matter, Tom?"
"I-I've killed him!"
| eyes, you've killed Yank, but what
of ito"
God forgive mel" whispered Tom, as
! he looked at the face again.
whats all this about, say?'
! "God! God! But I've killed the
squarest, fa'rest Yankee in Gineral
Grants hull army! He was the man
who told me toto stick"