Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1902-11-20

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with the capacity for gallons of good
ale--but why? Do you know him?"
Aye, we'll! But is he then of a fact
a minister of the church?" and my
wound and the old prison We're forgot
ten as l waited for his answer.
True enough! Though, God knows.
he does more honor to hell and It's
king-the devil"
Marvin-Jim Marvin?'
Aye, lad, old Jim Marvin! You can
see him any day at Gowan's Tavern
What is It? Is the cut paining YEP"
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 Deborah
Philipse. But Deborah there was
aye, should l ever see her again?
So the days passed on, one like am
other, except that the heat ended and
gradually the cold came on, first
comfort to us all. then disagreeable.
and finally terrible. For we had no
sign of fire. except perhaps once week
for our water boiling This, too,
stopped when, as l inferred the want
of wood in the town took what little we
were before allowed
This cold got into my never healing
wound and began to grow too weak
TO stand at all, and so was sitting
against the wall one day, close to some
new-made friends, that we might keep
one another warm, when some forty
new prisoners arrived; and |, lying
back with my head to the wall and my
eyes closed, heard one telling some of
my companions that he came from
Tappan.
when, MANI" j asked, leaning for
ward quicker than l thought l could.
But three days ago"
Tell me then If you can, back two
months now, about the middle of Oc-
tober, did Clinton move on newport"
THAT he did, but he got no further
than Huntington Harbor with ALL his
forces"
why, man. why?" asked.
WHY, because the commander lin
chief, by some means l 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 Hook, and
back came scurryng the Johnnies with
their tails between their legs, thinking
the town was taken or going soon to
be-"
THANK Cod" / 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 done so i'll, and
had kept my word to the general so far
as man could. But l knew I must be
weak indeed, for the excitement of the
of me, and slid down to the cold floor
all in sweat that drenched my clothes
and then frOze upon them.
With that l sank back into a quiet
stupor that lasted 1 know not, nor
never knew, how long; but happier
than had thought to be since coming
to the Sugar House. From time to
time, as l walked bit and looked about,
would catch two or three of my COM
rades looking down at me as lay not
uncomfortably on a little clump of
straw, and, seeing me looking at Them
/ they would ask me how / did. And
smiled and told them, truthfully, as
we'll as they. Once a young and big
fellow took off his coat and threw it
over me. and, try as l would, I could
not make him take it back; for just
then could not seem to rise up on my
elbow, and by and by i laughed and
thanked him and turned aside and
slept long, know not how long.
So l 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
1 asked for bit of WATER and it came
! TO my lips at once. Some one heard
/ talking quietly and looking at me, and
1 caught the word going" And 1 re-
member thinking then with some in
terest that perhaps there was rumor
\ of our going out of this frozen hell.
And on asking IL twas so, they said in
their same Unconditional way, Yes,
man, some of us-some of us will go
\ shortly"
Then on q sudden the group slipped
away. why ] could not see, till caught
/ a CLINT of red uniforms and saw an
Officer and some men walking about the
room stopping now and then. l lay so
ON my side idly watching them APP
proach, when the blood froze in my
4 veins.
Twas Captain Atherton moving
quietly along, pointing now and then
to Il prisoner. He must not see me-.
i That | knew; and so | shrank bacl,
terror to see il he would get by. So
he came on slowly, so slowly, looking
at each and every man and saying not
Il word But as he pointed to prisoner
that one was lifted and carried out. /
could not keep my eyes from him. And
then he came by me.
On sudden he stepped back. Then
qulchiy iiiulteIiHS liltl ne ldu Silpped
1 saw him point at me and walk on
still studying each man. Two soldiers
leaned 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. There
stood Anterior and pointed to a couch
where they laid me and passed out
and l turned my face to the wall, in
hopes he had not recognized me. But
in truth the couch being soft ana COM
Portable did not much care, but gave
something of a long sigh and-went to
sleep.