The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1901-05-17
Confederate
Family.
BY PAUL GRANT

To get the true favor Of war we must
look to those who have participated In
war. The following story smacks of the
trials of a southern family and the hard
ships and injustice to which It was sub.
jected.
Hurry, hurry" cried the captain.
Soon the fight will begin. and II we will
have to ride down the lines, 1t will be no
joke"
So away they went down the lines, two
miles to Resaca. across the pontoon bridge
over the river there. where the Federals
open fire on them: then on to Calhoun.
where a hot cavalry fight was going on.
After two days spent there anxiousiy
waiting for Johnston to drive back the
enemy and enable them to go home. and
finding that he was retreating and that 1t
was impossible for them to return through
the lines they Joined the great army Of
refugees and at last found safety In that
general asylum, southwest Georgia.
Their retreat was sorrowful. Their re-
turn was comical.
The war was over, and the southerners
stood a nation of paupers. Not one cent
did any one have. Dazed they stood and
gazed at their heaps of Confederate mon
ey, some of II so new and crisp that 1t
seemed to mock them with their blasted
hopes.
The first thought Of the refugees was
how to get home. Their friends, who had
Hospitality entertained them. from being
wealthy planters were now ruined and
had not bread for themselves, as their
negroes became demoralized and would
not work. But with no money and
wretched transportation who could travel
In the history of all distressed people
there Is found Moses who rises up to de-
liver them. So now In the history Of the
G.'s the eldest daughter played the part
Of Moses and led them home.
After they had become refugees she
had for a while acted as matron In q hos
pital in Macon and as such ranked as a
Confederate officer. So now. on this
ground. she applied to the Federal post
commandant at cambridge for transpor.
tation to Macon. The officer honored the
demand and furnished It. and she made
the best of her way there to interview
General Croxton, post commandant at
that point.
"Be sure" said q polite friend, shat
you put on your best clothes 50 as to i'm
press the Yankees. Nothing like looking
well off"
81 intend to-" said she. And this Ia how
she was dressed:
She wore what to Confederate eyes
seemed q black silk dress True, It had
once been a green striped one, but having
been dipped in q weak solution of log
wood the stripes only vaguely betrayed
themselves. The garment was gayly
trimmed with stripes Of palmetto braid.
plated by the wearer's own industrious
fingers. She had also Manufactured the
gloves which covered the said fingers.
Then her head was adorned with a
wonderful bonnet. 1t was q, sort Of
phenix in the way In which II rose from
its ruins, having been made over several
times into divers shapes. according as ru'
mors of fashions reached Its owner. For
even in the shut In Confederacy the wom-
en-, in the midst of the mlltifarious duties
devolving on them. strove to follow the
fashions as they vaguely heard they were
worn In the outside worli,
1t proved afterward they were misin-
formed, for while they were painfully
building up three story bonnets. with but
scanty material to build with. looking
like "Pelion on Ossa piled" the outside
world wore little pancakes on their heads.
Strong In the rectitrde Of her ap-
parel, Miss q. went forth to Empress"
General Croxton. How he was Impress
ed, whether with amusement. wonder
or admiration, will never be known. as
he was too gentlemanly to show any
emotion.
Escorted by boy cousin. Miss g..
sought the generals presence. Her
bIother declined accompanying her.
at will never do for big. ablebodied
fellow like me to CO." said he. "and be-
sides women can do more with the
Yanks than men,"
Having thus eased his conscience. he
left her to face the foe. which she did
with great equanimity, and made her
claim for her own transportation az q
Confederate officer and for her fathers
family on the plea that the Federal gov
eminent, having forced them from their
home at the point Of the bayonet. 30 to
say, II was Its business to take them
back.
before Confederate officers obtain
transportation they surrender" said the
general. smiling. "Have you surrender
ed"
This was a horrid speech. for the south,
ern women prided themselves on never
surrendering.
81 decline to answer that" cried she In
dignantly.
He laughed and after bantering her
little. struck by the novelty Of both ap
plications. he made out the transportation
papers for them all and gave them to her,
And so In September the scattered fam
lily rcndezvoused at Macon and started on
their trip home. The government did not
furnish very stylish transportation. They
were given a freight box car, into which
they packed themselves and scanty
supply of household goods, for news
reached them through the lines that their
house had been sacked and Its contents
scattered to the four winds.
They reached Atlanta the next morning
and were switched off on eide track to
be taken In charge by the officials Of the
Western and Atlantic railroad. and young
G. went. out to interview these parties.
They now made the acquaintance or what
was afterward known as the "carpetbag
gentry.
The town Of Atlanta was then hardly
more than q sort of camp. inha bited by q
few of the old citizens, Yankee garri'
son and lot of what might be called mis-.
cellaneous Adventures.
The post commandant was an old
| Dutchman OF autocratic proclivities. In.
deed, had he been an eastern pasha under
the viceroy of Egypt he could not have
had Il keener eye to eXacting back
shccsh" At this timr few Cntrrnrisins