davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25
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STORY OF A MESSAGE.
Safely horne by Heroic Woman and
Little Boy to Its Des-
tinatiOn.

Among stories of war, few are more
thrilling than those of dispatches car
ried through an enemy's country. An
instance given by the author of East
Tennessee and the Civil War" offers a
striking picture of the almost infinite
dangers which often attend upon such
service.
During the siege of Knoxville it was
imperative for Grant, at Chattanooga,
to communicate with Gen. Burnside.
He sent five couriers with dispatches,
by as many different routes. One of
the messengers was never heard of
again. Three were taken prisoners,
and the fifth arriving at Kingston,
after ride of 80 miles, was too thor
oughly exhausted to proceed farther.
1t was still 40 miles to Knoxville, as
the crow flies. Burnside must have
the dispatch A few men, to whom
the courier applied, shook their heads.
Longstreet's forces held the country,
the weather was cold, and the roads
were execrable. Then it was that n
| delicate young woman, Mary Love,
| said she would go. Her services were
accepted.
Mounted on a fleet horse, she sped
on, now on the highway. now along
by-parts, now through the forest, now
over the open hills. Suddenly she
came upon a confederate picket, and
was taken to the provost marshal.
With perfect composure she told him
that she was the sister of DR.. Love, a
confederate surgeon at Knoxville, and
that she was riding his horse. The
| provost marshal knew DR.. Love and
knew his horse. The girl was allowed
| to proceed.
Once more she dashed on. After a
| long and circuitous ride she reached
the river opposite Louisville, her ma
tive town, crossed the wide stream
and fastened to the house of her
brother-in-law. She had travelled 35
miles in few hours by night, but her
| exhaustion was compete. She fell to
the ground. and had barely strength
to say that the dispatches must go
on.
Mary Love had come in circles, and
| there were still Is miles to go. The
men of the household had gone to the
war. After hasty consultation, a
boy of 13, John 7. Brown. offered to
complete the journey, and his mother
bade him godspeed.
Wheeler's confederate cavalry held
the town, and pickets were stationed
on all roads. At nightfall, Mrs. Brown
and her boy slipped down to the
rivers euge and scrambled through
the dense underground along it's bank
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25

MY heart is achin' for her. She's feelin'
the way 1 would have if they'd brought
my boy home to me dead, wearin' his
worn-out soldier clothes. know how
Leah feels--poor Leah! I'm goin'
acrost to comfort her--I've got to, l
can't help it. You wouldn't expect a
quarrel to hold good when Little Ben
jie was layin' dead?"
The next days entry was short
enough. Hurt pride and sensitiveness
lurked between the lines of It.
81 couldn't make up my mind to go,
unlimited, and so 1 KEEP waitin' for
Leah to send acrost for me. / made
certain she would, but when she
didn't, even then / couldn't give it
up. 1 was so sorry for Leah, and
my heart was so sore to look at Lit
tie Benjie's face again. l couldn't
stan it, so 1 wrote a note to Leah,
aslkin' if l could come-if she'd for
get the quarrel as l would, and let
us begin again beside Little Benjie.
oh, the Lord in Heaven knows I tried
to say it right! He knows 1 warn't
uppish mite, nor anything but hum
BILE and sorrowin' / said: Forgive
me, Leah, and not word about my
forgivin' her-not word, though
'twasn't me began the quarrel. Well,
I sent the note acrost by Mis- Dag
gett's little boy. I've been waitn' all
day for an answer. 1t hasn't come
yet, but haven't give up"
The little room was quiet save for
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25

Here they are! and rushed on with a
sharp demand for surrender.
THE confederates were so tired and
sick that they offered no resistance.
One of them said, with easy indiffer-
ence: You needn't make such fuss.
We surrender. There are our guns
and our one man picked up three guns
and brought three prisoners into
camp. These prisoners told us such
stories that we knew that Bragg's
whole army was in striking distance.
but as tagged as we were. The next
day we left the main road and marched
asrapidlyas men couldlmarch to little,
town west or south of Louisville. We
didn't know where we were going. but
suddenly as we emerged from the
, woods a great river was before us, and
beyond it farms and houses, peace and
prosperity.
''Some one shouted: The Ohio!' and
10000 voices were raised in cheering.
We were at Westpoint, on the Ohio.
where full rations were issued. Every
cne was so hungry, from the general
commanding the division down, that
AhNic NhS iiAAit ioi
ing rations. AS our company ran up
to the lines of barrels and boxes
smallish man was looking over a barrel.
his head and shoulders hid. Now every
man knew that the choicest crackers
were in barrels, and one of our boys,
a rough sort of wag, struck the man
bending over the barrel a smart slap
and said: Get out of the way, pard;
you are too SLOW The head and shoul-
ders of the man struck up with a
jerk. and before us stood Gen. Ammen,
commanding. the brigade.
1.-The man who had done the spank
ing started TO the rear and explained
to the men coming up that he had
spanked brigadier and was trying to
get out of the way. AS the sun went
down fully one-half the men in the
division threw off their clothes and
jumped into the river, while the other
half stood guard. The next day we
marched into Louisville to be received
! with such cheers and enthusiasm as
rarely greeted an army. The dirty,
footsore men of the army of the Ohio,
after a few days rest, turned on their
old enemy, and before the middle of
| November had driven him back to MUIR
| freesboro and McMinnville."
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25
nuIIs from the Front.

Cassidy was on guard, with young
lieutenant, who grumbled at the time
it took to get the sentries posted. "Well,
sorr," said Cassidy, sit is just like this.
1t takes quarter of an hour to get
thin ready, quarter of an hour to get
thin ready to start, and quarter of an
hour to post thin; there ye are, three
quarters of an hour gone in ten min
utes." On another occasion he was
marching body of men back to camp
when he told them that If they didn't
march better he would make them
mark time all the way home.
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25
SHE SPED ON.

for two miles. They had passed the
picket lines. Here the mother turned
back.
The night was bitter cold, but the
boy Travelled on, picking his way
through the darkness and forests. At
length he reached Little river, n dis
tance of eight miles. Tho stream was
swollen and he could not cross. He
doubled back on his trail for some dis
tance, and made his way to the house
of an old friend of his father. The
gentleman received him kindly and,
early in the morning, he proceeded on
his way. By daylight he was able to
cross the river, and at length reached
the federal pickets. Then, under
charge of sergeant, he was sent to
Gen. Burnside's headquarters, still
several miles away.
The general read the dispatch, and
learned that Sherman's army was at
hand. In a few minutes bands of
music struck up, and batteries peaied
the news that relief was coming
Little Jonnny sat wondering what it
all meant. Suddenly soldiers gathccsd
round him, and one of them, catching
him up, set him on his shoulders, and
with cheers and shouts he was carried
down the street. Then, for the first
time. Johnny understood all he had
done
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25
SPANKED A GENERAL.
Humorous Incident of u Raid of Huu-
cry Soldiers Upon Pro-
visions.

lizard marches, dusty or muddy
roads, with no opportunity TO wash,up,
fretted the boys" said the sergeant,
according to the Chicago Inter Ocean,
but they kept in good spirits and came
to take every sort of adventure, mis-
hap and exposure philosophically. We
turned this way and that; we lowered
about wagon trains milesin length; we
stood in line of battle sometimes for
hours, and then went to the right or
left when we thought we ought to go
forward, and all the time we didn't
know where the confederate army was.
But one day one of the boys off on a
visit to one of the other divisions was
making short cut home through a
cornfield when he came upon three
footsore men in gray. He was so star
tied that he resorted to the worn-out
scheme of pretending that henIad other
men with him. He turned and shout
ed: Come on, boys! come on, boysl
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25

marched to that tune away from me.
Why do they keep on playin' it?
Don't they know it makes me see
Benjie right before me now, with his
soldier things on-the handsomest
boy that marched away? And, then
%, why don't they remember? Why
don't they remember that Benjie
never marched back to me again?"
The tree geranium was well along
in years, as geraniums grow old, and
its history was minutely told in Dian
tha's diary. Just the number of
blossoms it had had last year-and
the year before-was set down there
with auxiliary remarks.
"Twenty-three's the most it's ever
had to one time-or, let me see, was it
25 it had last springP l declare, I'm
losin' my memory, and thatTl be some
thin new for Berryl"
The diaries were piled in neat row
on shelf over the table. The year of
each was printed in careful figures on a
bit of white paper on the back. 1t was
easy to find the right one at oLce. She
opened it and read aloud, monot-
onously:
"Aprf1 7-m-m-m-, that amt it. It
was higher the last OF April it bloomed
last year. April 12-13-17,'-here
tits! April 90. The tree geranium's
all bloomed out splendidly. 1t looks
handsome. turned the best side out
SO the soldiers could see it, goin' past.
Isaw Little Benjie looking-he's dread
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25
GRANT WAS CONFIDENT.
The Fight Was Going to He on Land
and He Thought He Would
Win.

Col. Harry S. Swords, deputy col
of the republican national convention,
lately told a story at the Fifth Avenue
hotel, says the New York Press.
sin 1877" said Col. Swords, when
Grant was a candidate for the presi-
dency and the liberal republicans put
up Horace Greeley, there was move
ment to nominate Rear Admiral Porter.
He was a gallant sailor, had served in
engagements with Grant at Vicksburg
and elsewhere in the civil war. and
many thought it would be good politi-
cal move to head the democratic ticket
with Porter. war hero, as was Grant.
A delegation waited on the admiral
and broached the subject to him. He
said he would think ii over.
"He and Grant We're close friends,
and Porter was at the white house a
great deal. One day he told Gen. Grant
all about the proposition that had been
made to him, and asked:
"'What do you think of the idea, gen
eral?'
sGrant took his cigar from his mouth,
thought minute, and then said, slow
ly:
"'Dave, guess you'd better not do
it. You and l have fought together,
and if we'd been on opposite sides
guess you would have beaten me If the
| fight had been on the sea. But this
fights going to be ON land, Dave, and
I'd lick you.'"
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25
FOR LITTLE
@BENJlEg
Decoration Story.

HE counted the
buds and blossoms
over again. with
slow care. There
were so many!
'Thirty-seven-
!, Dinnfha Rnrru
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25

the soft rustic when Diantha Berry
turned a leaf At the top of the new
page she began again:
I've give up. Leah amt goin' to
answer my letter. It's most night
now, and 1 sent it acrost yesterday
mornin' when Mis- Daggett's little
boy went past to school. She don't
want me to come overland to-mor-
row mornin' they'll bury Little Ben
jie! l shan't ever see his face again!"
1t was like a cry of pain, in little
neat set letters, there on the page.
1t seemed to echo through the room.
The diary slipped to the floor with
gentle thud. 1t lay there, unno-
ticed, long while. The twilight
dimmed tonight while Diantha Ber-
ry sat musing. The darkness crept
about her like soft mantle and
wrapped her in. The low creak of
her chair, as she rocked monotonous-
ly, was the only sound in the room.
After awhile she began to talk again
aloud, as lonely women do.
tuesdays Decoration days, 90,
30, yes, Tuesday. To-day's the eth
O. May. Well, I'm goin' to cut off
some O. my geranium tree blooms and
carry 'em down to Little Benjie Tues
day. They'll look so beautiful-and
Benjie was dreadful fond o. pink flow
ers. Therell be enough to make a
great wreath at his head. I guess
can spare lot of them to Little
Benjie! / shall have him all to my
self -Leah's got a spell of rheumatism.
If 'twarn't for that, couldn't go at
ALL"
She experienced fierce joy, and the
sound of it was in her voice. She was
glad that Little Benjie's mother was
sick Across the yard there was no
glimmer of light. Little Benjie's
mother sat in the dark, too, and
mused. A faint remnant of daylight
kissed her wan face gently as it van
ished.
"He was such little mite of boy,
Benjie was, when I put him into
pants" her thoughts kept on, with
relentless cruelty, ''and I sent him
over to Diantha's to show 'em to her.
When he came back, all his little
pochtts were luii y Sooules. Can
see just how he looked, struttin'
acrost the yard, talsin' long steps like
a man. And can hear how Diantha
laughed. She couldn't have been
much fonder of Little Benjie-she al
ways called him Little Benjie-if he'd
have been her own boy. But after
ward -afterward, when he laid still
and cold in his blue clothes, she for
got she'd ever loved him. She forgot
then. If he'd been her own boy
would she have forgot? Would she
have kept away from him then be.
cause of little foolish quarrel?"
In the bitterness of her soul, Leah
Swallow flung cut her arms and cried
out sharply. The rough motion tor
tured her pain-racked body, but she
scarcely felt it.
"Benjie! Benjie!" she moaned
mothers boy, why didn't
hold you back? I need you SO. Why
did let you go? Weren't there other
boys enough? Weren't there boys
whose mothers had other boys al
home? And you were all had, Ben
jie! We thought it was so fine, dear
the soldier clothes and the sound o
the band playin' the Red, White and
Blue and the glory Of settin' Cubs
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25
D1ANTHA BERRY SAT MUsING.

full fond O. flowers. His mother'd got
cactus blossom pinned onto his coat,
among the brass buttons. can't bear
cactus blossom. If things hadn't
been just so, I'd have sent Little Ben
jie off to war with plenty O. my pink
geraniums on his soldier coat"
Diantha Berry's voice came to
stop with jolt. She had forgotten to
see how many blooms the tree gera-
mum had last spring-when Little Ben
iie went to war. Little Benjie! she
had a clear vision of him before her
eyes; Little Benjie in his brand-new
soldier suit, with his brown, curly head
up in the air, tramping away like a
veteran. How plainly she saw him!
The way the morning sunshine had
played with his brass buttons-how
plainly she saw that! Was it the daz-
zle of it in her eyes that made them
water? Diantha Berry was old-if 60
years is old-and lonely and grim.
There had been few shadows-or sun
flashes-in her life. Little Benjie had
been more to her than, in her heart,
she would confess. He had been to her
almost what her owIk son might have
been.
She sat back in her chair now, rock
ing tiercely, and remembered many
things. Little Benjie was in them all.
They filed before her mind in steady,
relentless succession-the time when
Little Benjie put on his first bits of
trousers and stumped across the yard
to show her the pockets in them-the
time when he first went to school and
she tucked pair of his beloved straw
berry tarts, unnoticed, into his lunch
basket, for surprise-and the time
Diantha Berry drew ia her breath
sharply, with the pain of remember
ing-the time when, in his brave SOL
dier clothes, he marched away to war,
to the tune of the "Red, White and
Blue" That memory hurt her. She
wondered, in dull misery, if mothers
could feel worse than that. If Little
Benjie's mother-but she would not
finish that thought out. Her thin
lips clenched. What had she to do
with Little Benjie's mother? 1t was
only Little Benjie that mattered to
her.
"But I'd pity her-I'd do that, if
'twarn't for the way she treated me
when they brought home Benjie's body.
I'd have forgot all the rest then
wasn't l ready to? Wasn't the first
one to give in? Do you suppose I'd
have let miserable little quarrel
stan between us then, when Little Ben
jie lay dead in the house? But Leah
felt different. She wouldn't make up
even then-then! If 'twarn't for that,
I'd pity her, settin' acrost there, all
alone. I'd be sorry for the mother o.
Little Benjie. I'd go acrost and see how
her rheumatism was, and I'd run down
the street where the bands practicin'
and make 'em stop goin' over that tune
of Little Benje's. I'll tell 'em to have
pity-it hurts his mother SO to hear
it. But now"
She turned the pages of the diary
in her hand, searching for something
1t was not thereof course not! II
was in the next little book further
along in the rom. She took it down and
found the page she wanted.
"They brought little Benjie home
deud, to-day. Little Benjie dead!
saw 'em take the box out of the hearse
| and carry it in to Leah--poor Leah!
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25


seem to guard the silent battle lines;
Der all the land, from sea to sea, the gar
lands softly fall
On those who sleep upon the plain or on
the mountain wall;
Vhe gentle ringdove softly cooes where
once the grass was red,
And tears and blossoms mingle o'er the
Nations sacred dead.
For them no more the stirring fight, for
them no chargers neigh,
The blades they drew where Death was
king Nation wreathes to-day;
The bushes In Virginia's wales wave o'er
them fair and free.
And seraphs guard their bivouac from At
lanta to the sea;
A common country hastes to pay Its trfb-
ute fair of flow'rs,
For May for them her treasures yields
from all her fragrant bow'rs,
The Southland and the Northfand meet be-
side the crystal rill
Beneath the flag that won the day on grim
San Juan's Hill.
Columbia's heart beats fast to-day o'er
every silent line
As she mingles the palmetto with the
branches of the pine;
She looks and in a vision sees marching
line of gray
And on each flank dash of blue, end then
she turns away;
MY children" cries Columbia. "See! In
bonds of love they come,
Z hear again their martial tread hear the
muffied drum;
No Northl No South! One Union meath
the flag that made us free,
They crown their hero comrades sleeping
now 'twixt sea and sea-"
The ocean sings a requiem to the lands i'm
mortal brave.
The rose of peace blooms sweetly upon
every sacred grave;
They fought and died beneath our flag
from Sacramento's pines
To where the war-cloud hovered DER Ma
nila's battle lines;
They sleep the soldiers dreamless sleep
where clear the rivers run
Through lands of peace and plenty to the
mighty seas of sun;
The blue-bird trils her matchless lays
from out the cannon's mouth
Which guarded grimly long ago the gate
way of the South.
In peace they rest this holy day-Colum-
bias gallant dead.
For them again the banners wave, for
them the tear is shed;
Their campfires burn no longer on the
mountain and the plain,
But where they sleep beneath the flag the
blossoms fall like rain;
To them the Nations boundless love goes
out from shore to shore,
They fought the fight they kept the faith
they're ours forevermore;
A grateful Nation bows her head beneath
the skies of May,
And Columbia strews her garlands on her
own Memorial Day.
IT. c. Harbaugh, in Ledger Monthly.
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25
-ssSi

fotNtn-
eight-thirty-pine Diantha Berry
cried, delightadIy. The level rays of
the late afternoon sunshine sifted
through the close branches of the
great tree geranium and made an &C.
centric tracery in lines of light on
her plain face The splendid plant
stood head and shoulders above her,
and it's topmost leaves swept the
whitewashed ceiling. Its clusters of
rosy pink petals peeped out blushing-
iy, all over it.
Across narrow space of yard little
Leah Swallow put on her glasses and
tried to count the blossoms, too. Her
pale, lean face was wistful with long
ing. On her own window-sill pot of
stunted cactus grew.
1t was late May, and the tiny village
"band" down the street little way
was aspracticingt the "Star Spangled Ban
ner" ambitiously. It was hired to go
to a little distant town to play on
Memorial day. There was only one
soldiers grave at home, and the peo-
pie had never made any observance
soldiers grave that little Leah Swal-
low was thinking-and Diantha Ber-
ry,yacross the yard. But it was Leah
who was crying.
BY and by the great tree geranium's
petting ended; Diantha went back to
her sewing at the other window.
81 declare, believe can smell lini-
ment," she said, aloud. "Leah's got
another of her spells of rheumatism,
guess. She uses dreadful smelly
1iniment, and the winds this way. ]
can smell it as sure as / live"
A sudden memory made her grim
features relax into a smile She was
thinking how Leah used to say-when
they were bits, knee-high- she
could smell Mis- Job Daggett's boiled
dinner round two corners. Her talent
for smelling had developed early.
The band struck up the "Red, White
and Blue,"a the faint rhythm of the
music set Diantha Berry's feet tap
ping. Across the strip of brown
grass, it sent Leah Swallows heat
down into her open hands.
mot that can't let 'em play
that!" she sobbed, desolately. "ThaI
was Benjies tune. 1t don't seem a,
n anybody else had any right to il
but Benjie. He used TO sing 1t wher
he wasn't but speck of knee.higl
boy and played soldier Then, after
ward, when-whsn it wasn't play. HI
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25
E,ectricity In Kisses.

There is electricity in a kiss, says a
scientist. Perhaps that is why kissing
shocks some folks. = Chicago Daily
News.
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25
A Question.

If man is nagged to death cpn his
wife be tried for murder?--Atohison
Globe.
Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1900-05-25
~A &N q q q
(OLUMEIKS
MEM0RlAL nKM.

EHERE stately trees
beneath the sun
cir emerald
foliage spread
And the rivers seek
the ocean, sleep
Columbia's hero
dead;
No bugle blast awakes
them now, no war
cry shakes the
pines.
At =.
El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-03-12
COMING TOA SHOW DOWN.
The Texas State Railroad Commits
sion Has At Last Set d Day For
The Hearing of Evidence In
The Double Header Controversy
Trdinmen Active.

SIT may be- said trainmen to-
day that the state railroad commits
s.un will not ind the running'of double
headers dangerous, but If such is the
case, it will be exactly the same sort of
case as the supreme court of the Unit
ed States declaring the income tax
Law uncon stitutional. Every one will
be won ing how they arrived at
such a cOuclueion.'
Trainmen in Ell Paso are not so ac-
tive as men on the Gulf, Colorado and
Santa F'e in getting up evidence to
present to the railroad commission
concerning the danger OF double head
ers, but they are actively in sympathy
with the movement.
The Texas Railroad Commission has
fixed day for hearing the complaints
of employees. The hearing was set at
the request of conductors on the Santa
F'e, the date being Tuesday, March p.
There will be great interest in the pro-
oeedings. Ever since the bill was
passed by the spscial session of the
4egis lature placing the matter in the
hands of the commission, employee
have been at work collecting evidence
with which to siren CITIZEN their cause.
1t is presumed that the officials have
been equally bnsy and the hearing
may be regarded as test case. 1t
will be watched with interest by every