The southern sentinel. (Winnfield, La.) 1883-1910, 1903-08-14


She could not have been much under
70 years, but was hale and strong and
descended lightly in spite of her flesh
Once on the ground she turned and
held cat a hand to some one still IN.
side.
There met hers hand slender, white
and bony, hand almost feshless,
wrinkled and venous. 1t closed like the
meager claw of bird. 1t was a left
hand and on the forefinger blazed and
rioted single diamond larger than
filbert, a white stone of violet and
crimson fires, an almost priceless
stone. 1t seemed to throw CLEANS OF
light upon the brittle wrist above it.
There came from the carriage, step
ping stiffly down, a woman whose face
was a skull with dead skin stretched
across it. The upper lip was shortened
by painful nervous contraction, show
ing all of the teeth in front. The nose
was thin to tenuity, the chin sharp.
The eyebrows were as white as snow
and beneath them were eyes OF bril-
liant and tender blue, the only living
things in that face. The mass OF
snowy hair, dressed in the fashion OF
the early sixties, bore only wreath OF
orange blossoms. The talons of the
right hand clutched an enormous bou-
uuet of orange blossoms. From head
to foot the woman was robed in bridal
white; white satin slippers met her
white stockings on a high instep;
about her wasted neck was a circle OF
pearls. from her srowy hair to the
hem Of her snowy sflken gown fell
snowy veil.
She spoke in thin voice. This voice
had dried and wasted as she had dried
and wasted. She said:
"Once again, Clara! Oh! once
again!"
She walked slowly to the grave and
laid the blossoms upon it. then sunk
upon her knees. raised the CHASTITY
hands to the CHASTITY face and bowed
her head. The other woman stood
rigid. her face set, looking afar off and
silent. So she stood through five min
utes. then she put her hand tenderly
upon her companions shoulder.
"Come!" she said.
"Not yet" was the answer. The
kneeling woman rose and going to the
shaft laid her forehead against it. Then
she turned and spoke:
1--WE must talk of him first. could
not 60 away without talking of him.
He was handsome and brave, was he
not? So handsome and brave and
good. And he died long ago-long ago.
Tell me how he died, Clara?"
HE died in the last charge, under
his flag. Its silk was over his face
when they found him."
"You were his sister, yet you have
not grieved as / grieved, Clara"
II was his sister. but you were near
er and dearer to him."
"And on this day long ago-so long
! ago-we were to have been married.
He wrote that he was coming home on
/ furlough. Then there was the great
battle down in Virginia and I heard
the guns over the hundreds Of miles
of space. I came to you. don't you re-
member, and told you that the world
was damp with blood. You took me in
your arms and tried to comfort me.
That seems five lifetimes since. He
was handsome and brave. What does
the stone say. Clara?"
ut says that it is sweet and right to
die for ones country"
els that true?"
cit is true, I believe"
at is-it must be. But Il seems so
hard. Why should his life be taken?
He was so handsome and brave and
good; / loved him; I wanted him so;
and / was waiting for him. This gown
came from the makers yesterday; i
mean that yesterday long ago. Don't
you know tried it on and you kissed
me on the cheek and said thathe would
kiss me there soon? Oh, God! 1t was
SO long ago! To-day was the battle
mean to-day back yonder in the
years"
HE sleeps soundly mid thousand
happy whisperings of flowers. He
sleeps soundly when the leaves of au-
tumn march a million strong. He
sleeps the seasons through, and it viii
not be long now until you see him
again"
'Until we see him again, Clara. You
will be there when we meet, won't you?
Then you shall kiss me on the cheek
and he shall kiss me. You have been
with me all of the lifetimes since he
fell. You will not let death part us ?"
II shall be there" said the dark wo-
men. ave three shall be there"
II was 20 years old that day." said
the woman in the bridal gown. "and
now I am old and you are old; the
world is old"
She stopped and placed her hand
upon the great slab which rooted the
tomb, then entered the carriage ST.
lently. The other followed and the
door closed softly. The horses wheeled
at sober gait. Harding watchod them
winding among the graves and soon
they went from sight. He passed his
hand across his eyes. for II seemed to
him that he had dreamed Only the
orange blossoms told him that he had
been awake. He read these lines, deep
" chiseled into the granite:
Sacred to the Memory of John
Hardnett Ray, Lieutenant Company A,
Eighteenth Pennsylvania Volunteers.