The National tribune., 1899-08-17

I and turned sharply to the right into the road
TO Rossville Gap.
"Yes, the orders to move has come" said
Shorty: See them big fires, and the boys
burnin' up things"
In every camp the cheering men were
making bontireS OF the furnishings of their
Winter camps. Chairs, benches, tables,
checker-b boards, cupboards, what-nots, etc.,
which had cost them considerable pains to
procure, and upon which they had layished
no little mechanical skill, and sometimes
artistic OrnamentatiOn, were ruthleSsiy
thrown to feed the joyful fires which blazed
in each camp which had been lucky enough
to receive orders. The bands were playing,
| to emphasize and give utterance to the re-
| joicingS OF the men.
Shorty took little Pete by the hand to
assist him in keeping up with the rapid
pace ST and he set up to get back to their
own camp, and participate in its demon
Strations.
''Of course, our rijimint's goin' too-goin'
to have the advance" ST said to Shorty,
more than anything else to quiet little
disturbing fear that would creep in. They
wouldn't leave it behind to guard one O.
these mud-piles they call forts, would
they"
'They never have yit," answered Shorty
hopefully. "They say old Sherman is as
smart as they make 'em. He knows a
good rijimint when sees it, and he's certain
to want the 200th Injianny in the very fore
most place. Hustle along. boys"
As they neared their camp they were de-
lighted to find it in a similar uproar to the
others, with the men cheering, the brigade
band playing, and the men throwing every
thing they could find on the brightly blaz-
ing bonfires. Ordinarily, such a long
march as they had made to the top of Look
out Mountain and back again would have
been very tiresome, but in the enthusiasm
of the occasion they forgot their fatigue
almost forgot their hunger.
"The orders are" the Orderly-Sergeant
explained to ST, as they were cooking sup
per, that were to move out tomorrow morn
ing in light marching order three days
rations, 80 rounds of cartridges, only
blankets, no tents, but one wagon to a regi-
ment, and one mule to company to carry
ammunition and rations. o, we're stripped
down to the skin for fight, tell you. It's
to be business from the first jump, and we'll
be right in it. We're to have the advance,
and clear away the rebel cavalry and pick
cts, to open up the road for the rest of the
division. You'll find your rations and
ammunition in front of my tent. Draw
'em and get everything ready, and go to
of here at the first peep of day. There's a
whole passel of sassy rebel cavalry out in
front, that's been entirely too familiar and
free, and we want to get good whack at
| them before they know what's up
And the busy Orderly passed on to super
OIfltI Ill tHe company.
After drawing and dividing the rationS
and cartridges, ST gave the boys the neces-
Sary instruction about having their things
ready SO that they could get them in the
dark the next morning, and ordered them
to disregard the bonfireS and mirth-making,
and lie down toget all the sleep they could,
in preparation for the hard work of the next
day. Then, like the rest of the experienced
men, who saw that the campaign was at
length really on, and this would be the last
opportunity for an indefinite while to write,
he sat dawn to write short letters to his
mother and to Annabel.
Influenced by the example, Shorty
thought he ought to write to Maria. He
had received a second letter from her the
day that he had gone out to the mill, and its
words had filled his soul with gladness
that passed speech. The dispassionate
to justify this. He would have found it
very commonplace, and full of errors of
spelling and of grammar. But Shorty saw
none of these. Shakspere could have
written nothing so divinely perfect to him.
He had not replied to it sooner, because he
things to say in reply. Now he must
answer at once, or postpone it indefinitely,
and that meant SO much longer in hearing
again from her. He got out his stationery.
his gold pen, his wooden inkstand, secured
piece of a cracker box for a desk, and
seated himself far from ST as possible
among the men who were writing by the
light Of the pitch-pine in the bonfires. Then
he pulled from his breast the silk bandana,
and carefully developed from its folds the
pocket-book and Maria's last letter, which
he spread out and re-read several times.
Commonplace and formal as the letter
was there was an intangible something in
it that made him feel a little nearer the
writer than ever before. Therefore, he be-
gan his reply:
DERE ISS MARIA KLEGG:
81 talk mi pen in hand to inform you that
our walkin'-papers has at last come, and
we start ter-morrer mornin' for Buzzard
Roost to settle Jest whose to roOl that roost.
Our idees and Mister 10 Johnston's differ
on that subieck. When we git through
with him hele no more, though he probably
won't be so purity as he is now
He stopped to rest after this prodigious
literary effort, and wipe the beaded sweat
from his brow. He saw little Pete Skid
more looking at him with troubled face.
"What're you doin' up, Pete? Lay down
and go to Sleep
"Say, Corpril, the Orderly said we wuz