The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1899-08-25
PRIVATE hopkins.


AS they drove out of the village and
over the bridge and up the long hill,
the husband and father slowly read
aloud the words written by the SOL
dier-son, now at the front. 1t was a
gloomy letter. 1t told Of hardships
and sufferings and privations, and not
a brave word was to be found from be-
ginning to end.
poor boy!" sighed the mother. as
the reading was finished and she relin
quished the lines.
"Wall I don't like it," replied the
father. He was bound to go, in spite
of everything, and now he ought to
put up with things and not be baby.
Them Spicer boys don't send home no
such letters as this"
T-I wish he hadn't gone!"
But he did go, and now he's got to
grin and bear 1t, same as the rest.
Don't you let on to nobody that he's
homesick and ready to cry. If the
nayburs got hold of it they'd poke all
manner of fun at him and be sneer-
ing at u.s."
but we can sympathize with him."
said the wife.
"a little. mebbe, but we amt goin'
to say very much. I'm goin to write
him that he wants to take things as
they come and be man. There's
them Spicer boys, and Tom Johnson
and Henry Doolittle and Ben Smith,
and nobody ever hears whine from
them"
"Its cause William is homesick to
see u.s."
wall, he must get over it, then. l
didn't want him to go, but bein' he's
down there he mustn't play baby and
make us ashamed. I'd feel like hang
ing myself if our William fiunked out
of fight or deserted his colors.
You've bin doin the writin'. and l
guess you've writ to softly"
Down on the Rapidan in the old
Sixteenth private William Hopkins
wasn't making a good record for him
self. For the first four weeks of army
life he was cheerful and enthusiastic,
but after that a change had come.
Homesickness Is worse than a fever
or a wound for a soldier. Every man
with home had had a touch of it,
but most of them had thrown it off.
Perhaps he tried to, but If so he didn't
succeed. The boys got onto him, and
though they felt to pity him, they did
not spare him their jibes and taunts.
He was the BOBBY of Company G, and
even his terminate had a feeling of
contempt for him. One day the order
ly sergeant dropped in on him to say:
LOOK here, Bill Hopkins, this thing
has gone about far enough! You are
making a first-class fool of yourself,
and if you don't brace up the boys will
give you away at home. Get out and
chase yourself and fling this home
sickness off. A boy ten years old
would be ashamed to NOPE around as
you dol"
Private Hopkins was hurt by these
remarks, instead of beipe oraced up,
and turning his face away from the
sergeant he then and there resolved on
a desperate deed. He would desert at
the first opportunity. He wouldn't ad-
NIT that homesickness had anything to
do with it. He had been ill-used.
They had given him extra guard
duty-extra work around camp-had
bullied and jeered him in place of CIV
ing him a fair show. He could figure
out that the captain and both lieuten-
ants were down on him, and of the
ninety men of the company he was the
martyr. He had given no cause for
this, and he wouldn't submit to such
indignities. He was certain of SYM
pathy from father and mother, and
once more back home he would stay
there, even If he had to hide in the
garrett Every soldier who lets the
feeling of inconsistencies get the better
of him follows the same train Of
thought and arrives at the same con-
clusions.
An opportunity to carry out his plan
came to private Hopkins much sooner
than he had hoped for. Company G.
was ordered out on night recoHnois-
sance, and pale-faced and weakened,
the homsesick boy took his place in the
lines. No one expected any fighting,
but it so happened that small force
of the enemy was in the neighborhood,
and there was a skirmish and the
company was driven back. At roll
call it was found that five men were
missing. Two of these had been left
dead in the road and two others were
believed to have been wounded and
crawled into the bushes. The fifth
man was private Hopkins, and it was
altogether likely that he had been TAX
en- prisoner. At any rate, he was thus
recorded on the company roll until
something more could be learned.
AS a matter of fact, the homesick
boy had narrow escape from cap
ture. but the danger had no sooner
passed than he found the opportunity
to desert. Throwing away his gun and
accoutrements. he headed for the fed
eral lines, and, having reached them,
he set to work to dodge pickets and
sentries. When morning came he was
clear of those who would have halted