The age-herald., 1901-03-14
A Confederate Heroine.


 A Confederate Heroine.
 "The first woman nurse on the Con- federate side during the war between the states is now bravely fighting against starvation, and the outlook for her is very dark" said the son of a Confederate yesterday
 How many Confederate soldiers now living who felt the tender touch of this woman's hand in the fever of the strifa9 Mrs. Agatha Clara Willis is her name, and she dwells In two little rooms of a tenement house at Sixty-fourth street and First avenue, New York A kind- hearted man who knows of her condition tells me that she earns a very poor liv- ing and the two dollars a week rent by taking in sewing. Sometimes she has to go without any food. so poor is she, and that seems doubly hard for an old woman of sixty who gave years of her youth ;lnd risked her life in battle in order to nurse the soldiers of the storm-cradled nation that fell
 'iMrs. Willis maiden name was Agatha Clara Burns. Her life has been most TO- mantle. She was born in Spain of Scotch father and a Spanish mother. When she was years old she was stolen by Gypsies and brought to this country. The ship was wrecked near Pensacola, Fla, and the authorities took her from the Gypses and charitable persons brought her up. When she was 16 she married Fred Howard. who became a Confederate officer and was killed. In the meantime Mrs. Howard had become field nurse with General Bragg's army. She was with 1t at Lookout mountain, Murfreesboro, Knoxville, Tullahoma and other battles. At the close of the war she served as nurse during the yellow fever epidemic in New Orleans She then mar ried Lieutenant Thomas Clark, north ern officer, and went north with him. He died ten years later, and she married I'y- man c. Willis, who died in 1892.
 President Harrison in Birmingham.
 Thousands of the people of Birming- ham remember with pleasure the visit of President Harrison to this city ten years ago, and so greatly were they pleased by his frank friendliness that they will feel the loss of friend by his death.
 Thomas G. Jones was then Governor of the State, and he and his staff, to- gether with the Mayor and reception committee of Birmingham, travelled from this city by special train over the Georgia Pacific Railroad to the Georgia state line to receive the President. When the Presi- dential train approached the Union Pas senger Station 1t was greeted by an enor- nous concourse of the people of this city st hlOVinR steam whistle In the city On the front of the locomotive that drew the train was an immense portrait of the President sur rounded by flowers.
 On the middle platform in the centre of the station a platform had been erected, and there the President was formally re- ceived in the name of the city and state The speech of welcome in behalf of the state was made by Governor Jones, who had to wait several minutes for the steam whistles to cease, a fact that plainly tickled the President. The Governor had prepared a speech which would require him five or eight minutes to deliver, but for once in his life that man, of lion cour- age and will lost his self-possession and became extremely nervous, his legs trembling and his speech somewhat wan dering. Thus he spoke twice as long as he meant to- but was vociferously ap- plauded by the great crowd that filled every available foot of space outside the station fence.
 President Harrison, whose diminutive height and bow-legs pleased the multi tude nightly, responded with an ideal speech, and the crowd truly went wild with enthusiasm. Everybody remembers that all of the Presidents speeches in that famous tour of the south were of very high standard.
 Seated in a carriage drawn by six white horses, the President drove through the principal streets, which were profuse- ly decorated, and it was estimated that 50,0O0 people greeted him. His drive end ed at the Caldwell Hotel, where, in the the great lobby. By actual count he ute. At night there was a splendid ban tel, the horseshoe table extending the entire length of the room, with the Pres- ident at the top of the curve at the northern end.
 Amongst the crowd in the streets were over two thousand school children. drawn up on both sides of Third avenue above Twentieth street. About midway of the living lane formed by the children, the President caused his carriage to be stop ped in order that he might receive bas- ket of flowers from a little girl, whom he lifted into his carriage and affectionately kissed. Who was that happy little maid en of ten years ago, and where Is she now? Surely she mourns the death of her illustrious friend of that bright day, so long ago in her life!
 It was a great day for Birmingham!