The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1899-12-12

M @>ZZ%&A battle ueld mas just
~ HlzMM been disclosed by
W. the petition Of
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Leonard, whom she
married thirty-four years ago. says
Pittsburg correspondent OF the New
York World. August "a, 1884. there
was born at Brest, France, girl whose
father was a full-bIooded Turk. Her
mother was French. When she was
ten years old her father was beheaded.
The shock of his death killed the moth
er of the child, and the little one, when
fifteen, was brought to America. Five
years later she married Bernardo Tebe
in Philadelphia. Tebe was a tailor. and
at the breaking out of the rebellion
enlisted in Company l, Twenty-seventh
Pennsylvania Volunteers Col Einstein,
on April 16, 1861. Tebe wanted to leave
his wife at home to manage the small
tailor shop, but she refused to stay and
went out with the regiment as a VIVIAN
diere. Her uniform was similar to that
of the women who followed the eagles
of France. She wore blue zouave
jacket, short skirt trimmed with red
braid, which reached to just below the
knees, and red trousers over a pair of
boots. She wore a mans sailor hat
turned down She purchased a store of
tobacco, cigars, hams and other things
not issued by the government and sold
them to the soldiers. She also did a
thriving trade selling contraband whis-
ky. She carried the whisky in a small
oval key strapped to her shoulder. She
was under fire thirteen times She was
in the first battle of Bull Run, wit
messed the slaugi sr at Fair Oaks and
| campaigned with Mcclellan near Rich
mond- When the regiment was not in
action she cooked, washed and mended
| for the men. She drew the pay of a
soldier and was allowed 25 cents per
Gay extra for hospital and headquarter
services, making her pay s2145 per
month for over two years. Then some
friction in the paymaster's department
about the enlistment of a woman stop
ped her pay, but did not dampen her
! patriotism. She continued selling
goods to the soldiers, and SIS per pint
| for whisky was not an unusual price.
One night some soldiers, among whom
was her husband, broke into the VIVIAN
| diere's tent and stole 81 500. The men
were afterward punished, but the VIVIAN
diere decided to quit the regiment. She
refused to have anything to do with
her husband, and despite the pleadings
/ of Col. Einstein made preparations to
go back to Philadelphia. Col. Einstein
asked her to stay until after the regi-
ment was reviewed by Gen. Mcclellan.
| The latter was told the circumstances
of the case, and personally requested
her to continue with the regiment, but
her indignation was so great that she
left When the One Hundred and
Fourteenth Pennsylvania volunteers
Coils Zouaves d'Afrique, was organiz-
ed in Philadelphia by Charles H. T.
Coils, now of New York. he prevailed
upon her to go with the regiment. At
the battle of Fredericksburg she receiv-
ed bullet in her left ankle. 1t is still
there and frequently pains her. After
this battle she was called before the
brigade and Gen. Phil Kearny gave her
a medal. The medal is in the form of
a Maltese cross and is worn constantly
on the woman's breast On one side is
"Kearny's Cross" on the other Dir
ney's Division" She also has a silver
cup presented by Lieut.-Col. Spanish of
the One Hundred and Fourteenth. 1t is
inscribed: TO Marie, for noble con-
duct on the field of battle" Another
treasured possession is a letter dated
December 81, 1862, from Col. Coils.
thanking her for her bravery at Fred
ericksburg. From the time she left the
| Twenty-seventh and went back to the
heat of war she had not heard from
her husband, Tebe. About 4 o'clock
one morning during the Gettysburg
slaughter a soldier crawled into the
lines of the One Hundred and Four
teenth and asked for French Mary. .
as the woman was called. He said a
member of his regiment. the Twenty
seventh, which was near by. was diving
and begging his comrades to bring
French Mary" to him. With bullets
flying around her, she found the man
and recognized her husband. He died
in her arms. After dragging her hus-
bands body out of the range of fire
French Mary" saw that it was buried
and then went back to her regiment
Col. Coils handsome young ORDERLY.
Richard Leonard, fell in love with her.
proposed and was accepted They were
married by the chaplain at Culpeper.
Va, and the ceremony was interrupted
by sharp orders to move
French Mary says she did not get
a marriage certificate because the
trumpet went tara, tara, pack-up.
paek-up. tara. pack-up!' Then every
body grabbed his belongings and got
in line.
She remained with the One Hundred
and Fourteenth until her husband was
mustered out. The couple then came
to Pittsburg, and have been living in
Baldwin township. on the outskirts of
that city. ever since.
81