Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1899-08-09

going crazy? 1t was noU e.~.. ..,,loe,,-
full thing to die. He had faced death
n thousand times and was not afraid
of that. During that charge mp the
hill the lieutenant had called to- him,
,'''Private Morton, cut these wires"
He was not afraid then, but had
stepped out of the brush into that hor-
nets nest Of lead and with his nippers
cut every wire before he left-and not
q bullet hit him, though the :lieuten-
ant and eight or ten other men fell
dead before they got through. the gap
he had made. Perhaps he bore
charmed life, and TREY nrightrnot hit
him when they came to. try to kill
him next day. 1t was the disgrace of
it all, though. ''In the presence Of
his regimen" THAT had been the SEN
tence, and the disgrace of standing
before his comrades, condemned for
neglect of duty, he, Private Morton,
who had served six years in his regi-
ment and had never mark. against
his name before. This was worse than
death. If he could only sleep little
while and forget that part of it. But
that tooth would persist. in. painingg
so, and one ragge point kept cutting
his tongue and filling his mouth with
blood that almost choked him at times,s
so that no sleep would come. -
With such feverish fancies did the
night pass away, and then the brief
forenoon seemed all too short, They
would come for him in few moments,
and he would march out and meet his
doom before the wholeregiment. Vino;
would come, and who would be told
off for the firing party? He hoped
they would be good shots. ''Reddy"
James would surely be one; he was al
ways on every special detail, and that.
bristling red moustache would be sure
to stand out. stiffer tlran-ever today
>s'Mealy" Mason would be another.
He wassthe man the sergeant always:
detailed to shoot the sick and disabled
horses the summer they were up in
the Bad Lands. But before he could
count up any more the lieutenant came
to inform him that the time was up
and ho must march to the place of ez-
ecution. r--''-. 49, ~ ~ - '- So
1t struck him as little peculiar
just then that no chaplain had been
sent to help smooth his pathway to
the grave; but-it did not give him
much concern, as he never had much
use for chaplain anyway, and all the
boys knew it. Another thing seemed
queer. Had he not seen the; ;lieuten-
ant fall there at the barbed7wire, fence.
with bullet through his head? But
here he was and did not seem to be.
any the worse for it, only his face,
was terribly white and ghastly, and a.
great splash of blood almost covered
his once white gauntlet. Now he came,
to think Of it, "Mealy" had fallen at.
the fence with the whole side of his
head torn away, so after all he would:
not be one of the firing party. He;
wondered if his mother would know;
of his disgrace and if, she would be:
there. He remem bered now : that hes
had heard her voice singing Crock of.
Ages" some time last night, just as:
she used to when lie; was a little chap
and she sang him to sleep at night.
The. officer. started to read some:
thing from a, large roll Of manuscript,
but stopped with a scowl. you
know what it. is, . he said; forward,
march," And Private George Morton3
took his blanket from the sAcor,rolled:
it~up properly-as became United
States regular ,'and followed his lieu
tenantfto the scene of his. death.
He, began to wonder how, it would
feel to be bit; whethsshe shohldknow
anything Gabouts.it and how long 1t