The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1902-11-21


It tight around my body for a bandage.
AS he didso, his eye frightened a bit.
Il knew a queer bird UP the river
who was part c~hirurgeon and part 4
IF God-though mostly pirate" said he,
showed me how thus to, tie q
bandage." I paid little heed to what
the man said, for just then a faintness
rom the pain took me. HE, knew
somewhat of all three trades. "A strange
beast was old Marvin! 1 wonder if he
is hung YETI" and he smiled quietly to
himself. r e.
Marvin" said I, suddenly, WHEREIN
UP above Tarrytown in the neutral
country. I was there myself"
Marvin, a you, mann" cried I,
again. What sort"'
"a sober villain, solemn of face, but
with the capacity for gallons Of good
AYE, WE'LL. But is he then Of a fact
a minister Of the church," and my
wound and the old prison were forgot
ten as I waited for his answer.
True enough! Though, God knows,
he does more honor to hell and it's
king-the DEVIL IL f.
"Marvin-Jim Marvin?"
AYE, lad, old Jim Marvin! o can
see him any day at Gowan's Tavern
What is it? Is the cut paining ye?" :.
The cut!!, What pain could touch me
just then? Pain or no pain, dead or
alive, one thing was sure. There lived
no longer on this earth a Deborah
Philipse. But a Deborah there was
aye, should I ever see her again?.
So the days passed on, one like In
other, except that the heat ended and
gradually the cold came on, first a
comfort to us all, then disagreesble,
and finally terrible. For we had no
sign of fire, except perhaps once a week
for our water boiling. This, too,
stopped when, is I inferred, the want
of wood in the town took what little we
were before allowed.
This cold got into my healing
wound and I began to grow too weak
to stand at all, and SO was sitting
against the wall n day, close to some
nsW-made friends, that we might keep
one another warm, when some forty
new prisoners arrived; and I, lying
back with my head to the wall and my
eyes closed, heard n telling some Of
my companions that he came from
Tappan. &&. *
When, man." I asked, leaning for
ward quicker than I thought I could.
but three days ago." r.,
'"Tell me then If you can back two
months now, about the middle Of Oc-
tober, did Clinton move on Newport %
/ S,tA 10 1 Viii OuI AASs 6oI III LII t1lS1
than Huntington Harbor with all his
forces" ---
why, man, why?" Z asked.
why, because the commander-in-
chief, by some means I do not know,
got wind of the thing before it started
and made a feint-I was with my COM
mand, and twas a stiff fight, too--on
Staten Island and Paulus' He K, and
back came scurrying the Johnnies with
their tails between their legs, thinking
the town was taken or going soon to
be-"
THANK. God," I muttered to myself,
lying back as the man went rambling
on. Curtis and Acton must be safe,
then. And Hazeltine. too, dead or alive!
After all, we had not lone SO i'll, and +
had kept my word to the general so far
as man could. But I knew Unjust be
weak indeed, for the excitement Of the
new mans story had taken the life out
Of me, and I slid down to the cold door
all in q sweat that drenched my clothes
and then froze upon them. - ~rsa
With that I sank back into a. quiet
stuporaethat lasted I know not, nor
never knew, how long, but happier
than T had thought to be since coming
to the Sugar House,. From time to
time, as Iwaked a bit and looked about,
] would catch two or lthree:of my COM
rades looking down at me as I lay not
uncomfortably on, a little clump of
straw, and, seeing me looking anthem,
they would ask me how I did. And I
smiled n told them, truthfu1ly, as
well as they. Once a young and big
fellow took off his coat and threw it
over me, and, try as Lwould, / could
not make him take 1t back; for just
then Icould not seem'to rise up on my
elbow, and by and by I laughed and
thanked him and turned aside and
II r1o0 1N1- r 1,,,N,r y,St 1n1-y 80 ~ TENr--P 10
So I awoke once and found 1t light
in the old house, for the snow reflected
on the ceiling; and seeing the group,
larger than before, standing about me
I asked for a bit of water, and it came
to my lips at3once. Some one I heard
talking quietly and looking at me, and
I caught the word going" And I re-
member thinking then with some in
terest that perhaps there was a ru1nor
of III going out OF: this frozen he'll.
And on asking If twas SO, they said5in
their. same unconditional way, "Yes
man, some Of us-some of us will &c
shortly" ri Y. 5s.
Then on a sudden the group slipped
away, why Icould not see, till I caught
q CLINT Of red uniforms and saw an
ofilcer and: some men walking about the
room stopping now and then. I lay SC
on my side idly watching them APP
Iproach, when the blood froze in my
Isyeins.
Twas Captain Atherton moving
quietly along. pointing&now and Their
to a. prisoner. He must not see me!
THAT I knew; and SO ISshrank back
Into my straw and waited in akind3o1
terror to see Ii he would get by. Sc
he came on sloWly,8so slowly, looking
at8each and every nan and saying moi
asWord.But as he pointed toga prisoner
that oneWas lifted and carried out. ]
could not keep myieyes from him. And
then he came by me.
sOn asudden he stepped back. Then
I$quickly muttering that9he had slipped
saw. him point at me and walk 3on
still studying5ea each Two soldiers
I1eaned down and took me up gently
enough. for + felt no pain; and then We
passed down the corridor. down The
stairs and into light room. Their
stood Afherton and peintedto q couch
where they laid me and passed out
and I turned my a To the wal, II
hopes he had not recognized me. But
ingztrutll thescoucf being soft and COM
Portable i did not but gave
something of along sigh and-went stc
sleep. fsH