Barre evening telegram. (Barre, Vt.) 1898-19??, 1900-03-24

stoop TO aid the departing soldier, none
TOO poor or low to deny him cheer and
sympathy. The war was still Young
then. Spain had not lowered her riddled
standard and sued for peace. Two
great fleets had been swept from the
seas, the guns OF Santiago were 81.
fenced, and the stronghold of the orr
ent Was sulking in the shadow of the
nag, but there was still soldier work 10
pc done, and so long as the nation sent
Its lighting men through her broad
and beautiful gates San Francisco and
the Red Cross stood by with eager,
lavish hands to heap upon the warrior
sons OF score Of other states, even as
upon their own, every cheer and com.
sort that wealth could purchase, or hui
;aan sympathy devise. 1t was the one
feature of the war days of 'os that will
never be forgotten.
At one Of the fower-decked tables
Aaar the great stage" that led to the
f1ain deck OF the transport, a group
ct blithe young matrons and pretty
girls had been busily serving fruit, cof-
tee and bouillon and substantials TO
the troopers. man after man, for over
two hours. There was lively chat and
merry war Of words going on at the
moment between half n dozen young
sfHcers who had had their eyes on that
particular table ever since the coming Of
the command, and were now making
she most of their opportunities be-
fcre the trumpets should sound the
assembly and the word be passed to
move aboard. All the heavy baggage
and ammunition had, at last, been swung
into the hold; the guns of the battery
had been lowered and securely
checked; the forecastle head was
thronged with the red trimmed uni
forms of the artillerymen, who had al
ready been embarked and were now
jealousy clamoring that the troopers
should be shut OFF, from the further
ministrations of the Red Cross, and
broadly intimating that it wasn't fair
deal that their rivals should be allowed
a whole additional hour of lingering
farewells.
Lingering farewells there certainly
were. Many young soldier and many
. lass paired off" in little hooks and
corners among the stacks of bales and
boxes, but at sthe table nearest the
staging all seemed gay good humor
A merry little woman with straw-col-
ored hair and pert, tip-tilted nose and
much vivacity, and complexion, had APP
parently taken the lead in the warfare
of chat and fun. Evidently she was
no stranger to most of the officers. AL
most as evidently, to d very close OBJ
server who stood few PAGES away.
she was no intimate of the group of
women who with good right regarded
that table as their especial and per-
sonal charge. Her Red Cross badge was
very new; her garb and gloves were
just as fresh and spotless. She had
not been ladling out milk and cream,
or bu1tering sandwiches, or pinnirg
souvenirs on dusty blue blouses ever
since early morning. O:her faces
there lay behind rope barrier, taut
stretched and guarded by a line of sem
tries, an open space close under the
side Of the greater steamer and be-
tween the two landing stages, placed
fore and aft. By this time the north
tide of the broad pier was Uttered with
the inevitable relics of open air lunch
ing, and though busy hands had been
at work and the tables had been
cleared, and fresh white cloths were
spread and everything on the tables
began again to look fair and inviting,
the good fairies themselves looked ask
ance at their bestrewn surroundings.
"Oh, if we could only move everything
bodily over to the other side" walled
Madam President, as from her perch
on stack of Red Cross boxes she sur
veyed that coveted stretch of clean, I'M
hampered flooring.
"And why not?" chirruped Mrs. Gar
rison, from similar perch, a tier or two
higher Here are men enough to move
mountains. All we have to do is to say
the word"
"Ah, but it isn't" replied the other,
gazing wistfully about over the throng
of faces, as though in search of some
one sufficient in rank and authority to
serve her purpose. ''We plead in vain
with the otiicer-of-the-guard. lie says
his orders are imperatve-to allow no
one to intrude on that space" and
madam looked as though she would
rather look anywhere than at the ami
mated sprite above her.
"What nonsense!" shrilled Mrs. Gar
rison. Here, Cherry" she called to
pretty girl, standing near the base of
the pile, give me my bag. I'm army
woman enough to know that order re-
ferred only to the street crowd that
sometimes works in on the piel and
steals" The bag was duly passed up to
her. She cast one swift glance over the
heads of the crowd to where a hand
some carriage was slowly working its
way among the groups of rrettily
dressed women and children-friends
and relatives of members of the depart
ing commands. in whose behalf, az
though by special dispeusation, the Or
der excluding all but soldiers and the
Red Cross had been modified. Already
the lovely dark-eyed girl on the near
side had waved her hand in greeting,
responding TO Mrs. Garrison's en-
thusiastic signals, but her companion,
equally lovely, though of far diAerent
tyre, seemed preoccupied, perhaps I'm
there showed through all their smiles
and sweetness the traces of long days
of unaccustomed work and short nights
of troubled sleep. Marvellous were Mrs.
Frank Garrison's recuperative powers.
thought they who saw her brought
home in the Primes stylish carriage,