The National tribune., 1902-12-18

When it came night, l was tired, and went
| to bed early"
After that first burst of grief over his
| lot, he seemed not to be troubled in the
thought of death. He simply accepted il
as the next thing before him. Just be-
fore he started for the field. he turned to
me, and said inquiringly. "If die today,
shall go right to Heaven today!" Whe=
| he came TO the place of execution he was
in no degree disturbed by the terrible
preparations. He walked up to the open
grave. and looked into it with childish
curiosity. He kneit again to pray as
calmly us though he were by his own bed
side.
He looked at the firing party with in
terest, as though he saw only kind hearted
comrades. Just as his arms were being
pinioned. n little bird flew over him. lie
turned his head and followed the bird with
his eyes. as though he would like to chase
it. Then he looked again at the muske;s
of the firing party, with soft, steady eyes
as before.
"Let me knecl on the ground and rest
on the coffin he said, as they fixed him
in position.
mo, kneel on the cofTln," was the or
der.
| So, kneeling there. he settled himself
down into crouching position, as though
he must wait weary while
Hardly had he taken this position, when
he fell forward dead. with every bullet
of the firing party directly through his
body-three through his heart. He ut
tered no sound. nor did his frame quiver.
L wrote of this incident, at the time. TO
newspaper in New England. Letters
poured in upon me from sad-hearted moth
ers and fathers in lonely homes on every
side, where boy was missing who might
have been this one. And this gave me a
fresh glimpse of the peculiar sorrow
brought to stricken homes by these execu-
tions. l learned that there was no such
grief over the dead of the war in any
other sphere as in this. 1t was not the
soldier who had been killed on the bat
tie line, or who had worn out his young
life in prison-pen or in hospital, but it was
the soldier who had died as a deserter,
who was mourned hopelessly, ceaselessIy,
and with greatest bitterness OF heart, in
the loyal homes of the North.
But this rapid increase of executions for
desertion did not seem to lessen the num-
Der of deserters. On the contrary, it was
found that every execution was imme-
diately followed by desertions in the regi-
ment to which the condemned men had be-
longed. This seemed strange. The rea-
son for it was by no means obvious. One
day, while talking the matter over with
Lieutenant Colonel-E. d. s. Goodyear,
it suggested itself to me that the new de-
serters in such case were men who were
already guilty of the crime for which the
| others were executed, and that the sight
OF its punishment tempted them to take
fight before they were discovered and
brought to similar end. Then the ques-
ton arose. what would be the best in case
this surmise were correct. 1t seemed evi-
IrV.f ltof E-,~ - IL
Guilty would be the proffer OF immunity
to those who would confess their guilt,
and make the best possible amends in the
case.
PRESIDENT LINCoLN's PROCLAMATION.
Thereupon my commander said he
would ride over to Department Headquar-
ters, and have a talk with Gen. Ord on
the subject. The result was the issuing
Of proclamation, by President Lincoln,
under date Of March IL, 1865, to the eff
feet that any deserter now in service, who
would confess his crime and promise to
serve out faithfully the time for which he
originally enlisted, in addition to that for
which he was newly bound, should be
exempt from the consequences of his de-
sertion, and have, at the close of his term,
an honorable discharge. This proclamn-
tion was duly promulgated, and on the
strength OF it the men of my regiment, in
eluding O large number of substitutes,
were invited to avail themselves of its
provisions, by reporting to regimental
headquarters, If they came within its
scope.
Hardly was the order made public. be-
fore men began to show themselves in re-
sponse to it. First one came, then two,
then five. While these were telling their
stories and entering their names a score
of others were waiting outside for their
turn. Then another score, and another,
came. Eightyfour men in our regiment.
or one-seyenth of those present for duty,
confessed to being deserters. This vas
startling disclosure. If so many de-
serters were found in the ranks of single
regiment, reinforced so largely of late by
substitutes, what must the number be in
the entire army!
Many of these confessed deserters were
like the New England lad whom / had
ministered to, on Gen. Terry's urgent call
that Christmas night. They had yielded
to the temptation to desert from one regi-
ment and enlist in another, in order to
Jump bounty" One Of them said 20
me: My old regiment is just down the
road yOnder, and I've been so afraid some
one from it would see me here. When
I've been out to one of those 'shootings'
(of deserter), I've been so afraid my
time would come next that could hardly
Keep from taking to my heels right away
Others had been seduced and swinded
by bounty-brokers, they hardly knew how.
One of these men was a volunteer officer
in the navy. He had shown special skill
and courage earlier in the war. Having
been North OH leave, he was returning to
Washington. He remembered being in
the Jersey City railroad station, waiting
for the midnight train southwark. The
next thing he knew he was in bunk in
the recruiting camp in New Haven, and
he found that he was enrolled as q SUBJ
stitute recruit in the army, without even
any bounty to show for it. He supposed
he had taken something to drink on the
invitation of another, and SO been drug
ged and enticed away.
He was evidently man Of character,
and his appearance gave credence to his
story. He was bitterly ashamed of his
sad plight. wrote to the Secretary of
the Navy, Mr.. Wells, concerning him, and
l found all his statements verified as to
his position and character. But it would
obviously not do to reinstate him in his
old command, even by his own showing
of the case. The best he could do was to
continue as soldier, and this he was
ready to do. There was an endless variety
Of such stories.
AND VETERAN SIDE BY SIDE.
This was the condition Of affairs when
tho forward movement was ordered by
Gen. Grant, late in March, 1865, which
resulted in the capture of Petersburg and
Richmond, and the surrender of Gen Lee
ftn- inf