Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1901-05-09


| VIII now close, hoDino ,,d ,
that this letter may reach vou , py ing
you we'll. anu mo
Remember me to my friends and o;ne
my love to Dick and father. Your SON =
News OF the seige of Richmond Of tho
oattie OF five Forks, and finally of ea' :
surrender, and the disbandinp of ,he
Ion1ederate army reached the Crosslev's
put no news from Hiram. What bad
become of her boy? The mother co,Id
but guess. All, what weary DAYS IF in
certainty for her! Yet she was susta incl
by hope that Hiram was still alive but
something either prevented him from
writing or prevented his letters reachino
her. She kept telling the neighbors Of
her boy and how noble he had turned
OUT 70 be, always concluding her story
by saying that she expected letter eyery
day from her dear, brave, wounded bow.
l his story OF hers, with its patheticallv
hopeful ending, was told so often that
people came to regard her as Slightly out
OF her mind, and to shake their heads
wisely when speaking about it to one
another.
Il did not take on so about Jim when
| heard he died in the battle of Cold
Harbor," said one of them. II don't
quite understand it."
No, Mrs. Danforth," replied Mrs.
Hensley, NOR l didn't, when heard that
my John was killed at Atlanta but maybe
we didn't think just the same of our boys
as Mrs. Crossley does of hers. l have
always heard them say mothers set more
store by their bad boys than by their
good ones. Seems to me she would take
some comfort of her boy at home, who
has always been good to her.
SO they talked, but Mrs. Crossley
seemed to think that she had perfectly
good grounds for her belief that her son
was safe. She kept On talking about
him and the neighbors kept on talking
about her, and, at last, some of them
got 1t that she had become unmanageable
and that Mr.. Crossley intended sending
her to lunatic asylum. People avoided
her. Mrs. Danforth, who had not been
to see her for a month, summoned up
courage to go and see her When Mrs
Danforth arrived at the door of the
Crossley homestead she cautiously open
ed it and entered upon receiving an invi-
tation to do So Seeing a strange look
on Mrs. Crossley's face, who was bend
ing over something in her lap, she half
made up her mind to retreat, when Mrs.
Crossley looked up and said:
Il have just received letter from my
son, who is coming home pretty soon,
See what fat looking letter he wrote
me. / will be SO glad to see him. 1t will
be almost like receiving one resurrected
from the dead can almost imagine
how the widow felt who had her son
brought to life by Christ Dear me!
don't know what to say or do, | am so
happyH
Il am glad to hear it, interposed Mrs.
Danforth. when will he be homer
In about month"; Mrs Crossley an
swered. Won't you stay to tea E
mo; | must go over and see Sally
Jones about making my dress, and see
how Miss Dixon is"
Mrs. Danforth wanted to be the first
neighborhood, so she Immediately backed
out of the house and walked rapidly
down the street.
The letter ran as follows:
Dear Mother When | sent that last
letter to you l never dreamed that I
would be imperilling any ones life to
have it sent, especially the life of one
grown so dear to me, my guardian angel,
of whom | spoke in my letter.
After | gave her the letters in the
morning, I waited all day until way IN
the night for her to come back.
dropped asleep at last, from mere exhaus-
ton. When | awoke it was nearly noon
the next day. | waited anxiously until
far into the next night. Still she did
not come ] then began to realize that
| must have let her go on dangerous
mission. When l fully realized this be-
gan to cry like baby l imagined her
killed or worse than dead. Distracted
with these fears, raved and reproached
myself with all kinds of horrid names.
Finally-it seemed as though ages had
passed-some one bent over my bed and
simply said, 1t is all right now
at was my guardian angel. tried to
express my sorrow for making her go
through such great danger and to ex-
press all of my JOY at seeing her safe
again.
1.-The danger was not SO great, con.
siderinp the pleasure that the letter Will
give your mother / hope to give her
greater JOY by sending you to her soon,
Then | tried to tell her that it would
give you twice the pleasure if ! could only
take her with me as my wife. Then |
would be happy and begin a new lite,
Otherwise | did not know what would
become of me. :.
"She simply said, Wait until | have
considered it we'll, and see what time will
bring.
Il asked her about the war, but she
cast sorrowful glance upon me and
would not speak of it.
"At last we heard that the war was
ended, through a Southern soldier who
came and brought her letter. Seeing
me, whom he evidently took for COM
rade, he shook hands and said:
Pal, its all over and we have lost,
and turning to her he continued, Miss,
| am sorry for YOU
He then bowed himself out of the
room, got upon his horse and galloped
away.