The National tribune., 1900-02-01

youth one of the poles; take this and dig a
hole with your knife about foot deep,
right here" and he indicated the furthest
limit Of the ground assigned them, "and set
it in straight, and pack the dirt down
around it hard"
Gid Mackall. Monty Scruggs and Alf
Russell received similar instructions for the
other three corners, and in a few minutes
the four uprights were in place. Then 81
fastened them together with other poles,
tied with the withes and vines.
you've got the bones o the house put
together in very good shape" said Shorty,
looking at the work critically. "The next
take a good many back-loads O. this truck
to make the roof and sides"
"Pll go out tomorrow and help you,
said ST. "If we each bring in a lead it will
go long way toward finishing up the
house, and protecting us from the sun and
| rain"
They spread out the boughs to make a
mattress upon which to lay their blankets.
Then Shorty, who was dead tired from the
exertions of the day, crawled in. The lest
sat around awhile, and talked over Shorty
achievement, and how they would go on
and perfect their establishment, until they
had exhausted the subject, and then crawled
place next to Shorty, while 81 lay, or the
other end Of the line, bringing all the boys
| between him and Shorty. They lay down
on their right sides and "spooned" close
| together, to make the blankets reach them
| all
"Scrouge up there, boys" 81 commanded.
"Straighten out, you haint got a 1O-acre lot
to lay in, Harry Joslyn. Take that hump
out o. your back, ALI Russell. Sandy
Baker, you can't curl up like a dog inleaves,
as you do in a feather-bed at home.
Straighten out. The blanket don't come
| in foot O me-"
"Don't scrouge up any more, boys, u
moaned little Pete. I'm as thin as rib
bon now, and my gallus buttons, before and
behind, are grinding my innards between
'em."
But ST was inexorable. A violent dash
Of rain came up, as was customary in that
irving month of June in AnderSonyille
few minutes, and then the sun would as
suddenly burst out from behind the clouds,
and literally scald the damp men.
81 instructed them that when they were
tired of lying on their right side to say SO,
and he would command Left Spoon"
when they must all turn over at once.
They slept fairly well through the night,
and were Weakened at early dawn by the
rebel drums outside beating the reveille,
and the flies screeching the perennial,
aggravating Bonnie Blue Flag" the only
tune which the rebel fifers knew, and could
"Consarn their old flag" grumbled 81, as
he arose, rubbed his eyes, and gathered
some of the scattered pine-tufts together.
"Tain't blue, it's got moren a single star,
and Pm blamed if it's bonnie Hello,
where's our tent gomez"
They all looked around. The sticks
which they laboriOlIsly erected the night
before had disappeared
"Yes, and one of our blankets is gone,
too" yelled Shorty, after hunting about for
the one for which they had over them.
"Plumb stole away while We wuz snorin'!
What Internal thieves have we fell among?
Steal from their own comrades while they're
asleep! Pull a mans house up by the
roots and carry it off from over his head
while he's in bed, and take his bed-clothes
to boot! Lord, how | hate thief, especi-
ally one that takes away what another
mans got by honest labor. The fcller that
took away that blanket ID steal the coppers
off'n dead nigger's eyes A man thatd
Then he remembered how he had gotten
the blankets himself, and added in a lower
tone:
.Well, only stole 'em from rebels, and
it's all right to steal from them. Besides,
they'd stole them from our men. But if |
kin ketch the feller that stole that blanket
from me I'll pound the head often him.
The low-lived, ornery thief"
"'The chances of ketching him" said ST,
philosophically, as he surveyed the swarm
of % 900 men incarcerated in the stockade,
"are about equal to going to an ant-hill and
pickin' out the partickler little varmint
that's bin nibblin' at yollr sugar. The
blankets gone, and the feller with it, Our
poles IS gone, and the feller's with them
We've got to make the best of it. I'll go out
to-day and bring in load"
"Humph," snorted Shorty, "ketch me
goin' out agin to break my back carryin'
in truck for other snooZers to lug off while
the rest O you fellers lay around and
snore."
"Come, Shorty" expostulated ST. Don't
be unreasonable. Don't waste any time
cryin' over split milk. The fellers here
knoWed we wuz greenhorns, and they took
advantage of it. It'll learn us lesson.
They can't play that trick on us agin."
What are you goin' to do?" inquired the
unpaciffed Shorty. "Rivet the poles to the
ground? Grow roots on 'em? Fasten 'em
with paddock and staple? Setu all night
TO guard 'em? l tell you, | know them
poles | brung in, and that blanket, by
marks on 'em. Pm goin' to look through
the camp to find 'em, and I'll make the
feller that got 'em mighty sick, as sure's
you're foot high"
It'll just be a waste O time" ST persisted.
"A feller that's got sense enough to git
away with them things when We wuz
asleep, is smart enough to hide 'em where
you kin never find 'em. Let's go down to
the crick and wash, and after roll-call Pll
try the pass racket, and if | git out, I'll
bring in nearly as big a load as you did,
and we'll git fresh start on our house."
Shorty followed his partner down to the
4 l. -