The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-06-05
When John Came Home.

When they mustered Private Jones, Q.
s. V. out of the service he was COW
cred with glory and scars. Otherwise
he had little to show for his exoatience
as a soldier He had biistered AZ Tampa,
received a generous drcking al OaiGuira,
his teeth had chartered in the rain wnich
preceded Ell Caney, and when he snd Els
fellows with a ringing cheer drove the
Mauser-armed "Dagoes" out OF the
blockhouse a bullet whose billet was
Jones. L. S. "" had found its destina-
ton and the young volunteer lay many
parched hours under a pitileSs sky be-
fore the stretcher bearers found him
where ne fell in the chaDarral. When
they did pick him I'D most Of Private
Jones' life mad oozed through hole in
his right breast and il seemed hardly
worth while to carry what remained OF
it TO the big tent which served as a
field hospital
The big minute hand of the big clock
at Montauk Point dragged slowly around
its Roman dial many weary times before
Private Jones parted company with de-
iirium and pain. Perhaps this battle
against odds might have been sooner
won had not youth fought alone Hope
became deserter early in the action.
for Mary did not come When in his
sane moments Private Jones realized her
neglect his heart grew bitter within his
bosom and rosy life looked gray as
ashes. He obey his nurses sullenly. and
once his feeble hands tore off the band
ages of his wound. After that they
watched him closely. which was quite
foolish, for when one doesn't care TO
live It is well TO let him die. The bees
and the ants and humble savage peoples
understand these things much better
than We.
However, one sunshiny day he changed
his mind, and determined TO get we'll for
spite. He would grow strong; he would
arise ana walk. The faithless fair ore
he would hunt and faunt his unconcern
in her cha grined face. There were other
girls-and he was a hero, was ke not?
There came a morning in September
when Jones. q. s. V. was babe TO 60
and return no more. In addition to a
God bless YOU they gave him an hon
orable discharge, mileage to the distant
village which had been his home and
certain few ard stingy dollars which
didn't aggregate a penny q drop for the
blood he had left.
So Jones went home. At any rate he
called IL home. II was where he had
lived, as boy and young man, where he
had gone to school and learned his trade.
where his only kindred slept well in the
little graveyard beyond the chestnut
grove in the lap of the hill. There Mary
lived. too. He drew long breath as he
thought OF Mary. Queer, wasn't IT? Not
Mary alone. but all of his old friends
had failed even to write to him while
he lay so long in the hospital. Not one
had cared. Not even Milford, the stock
man, for whom he had worked ever
since he could bride a horse and drive
a car load OF unruly steers to the pens
at the station. Not even Pete Kellar.
the friend of his bosom. the only fellow
in all Glenhaven who participated in the
secret that pretty Mary Farrell had
promised to wed sturdy John Jones when
the latter came homo from the war
Well, he would soon know what It all
meant. Then he could determine what
to do If Mary had married or was
keeping company" with some one else,
never should sch see the wound she had
left upon his heart He would be the
gayest Of the gay-the most care-free
daredevil who ever came home from
smelling gunpowder and tasting Of lead
Even the crawling accommodation train
on the little "ierk-water" road which
carried Private Jones over the last sec
ton OF his journey did not stop at the
Glenhaven station except upon signal, or
to let off freight or passenger. There
fore, when the putting locomotive stopped
on this shining morning IN the fall, the
agent came to his hand. When he saw
Private Jones, u. s. A, feebly descend
the steps and set his feet toward him
the station agent turned pale. Then ~
shouted and with a bound reached the
homecoming soldier and seized both his
hands
Why John Jones'" cried he, exultant-
~, where have you been; coming along
here like ghost TO set people Alright"
"Where'd you s'pose I'd been, Lawler,
fishin?''