The Van Buren press., 1903-05-16
EeWind and the
WhirlWind az
BY r. b. HILL
Copyright. 1908. by Daily Story Pub. COL

an THAT terrible night of Sept,
] sth, 1899, at Galveston, | CHANGED
TO be the means of saving the life of
DR.. Pierre Mallieur, an old and prom
inent physician of New Orleans, who
had been called TO Galveston the day
before in consultation. | was a resi-.
dent of the Crescent City myself, and
the striking face and figure of the
old gentleman were familiar TO me.
"Well, young man." he said to me
the next day, what can | do to show
my appreciation for your heroism
last night?'
Nothing whatever, DOCTOR l re-
piled, unless, as far as the ethics of
your profession will allow, you will
relate 10 me the strangest incident
connected with your practice
After a silence of several moments
he said "As it happens | can do that
very thing, as all those Immediately
connected Herewith are dead.
when the war began l had,
though only a graduate of four
years standing, largely lifted the
burden of practice from my fathers
shoulders; but the war fever entered
my blood, and | went forth as sur
geon in a New Orleans regiment, the
colonel of which was Henry Lespard.
ut is not worth while for me to go
into details regarding that cruel
struggle. Suffice it to say that no
regiment on either side made a more
brilliant record than did the one un-
der Lespard's command. Before the
close of 90 he had been made a gen
eral officer, his old regiment forming
a part of his division.
zone dark night, with the enemy
close in front and battle imminent,
young man dressed in citizens
clothes was captured within our
lines; but in one of his pockets were
found cards bearing the name Capt.
Francisco Lanera, --th L. 5. Cayal-
ry.' When charged with being a spy
Ne vehemently denied it, but refused
% say what brought him there, and
requested to be carried before the
veneral. Gen. Lespard refused to see
lin and ordered him TO be shot the
following morning unless he gave o
satisfactory account of his presence
within our lines. That night the
young man wrote Lespard note,
but the general had gone with his
wife and daughter several miles to
the rear and the messenger failed to
find him until too late, and the sup
posed spy met death as brave man
should as the beams of the rising sun
kissed the tree tops, His last re-
quest was that his body be sent to
his mother who was near by with the
Union forces, and this the general
granted.
Gen, Lespard occupied room N
a farm house near the end of our
lines, my own being just across the
passage. Soon after daybreak on the
morning following that on which
Capt. Lanera was shot, old Timothy,
Gen. Lespard's body servant, rushed
in upon me, his eyes bulging in their
sockets, and stammered forth that
his master was dead, In a moment
| was beside the bed and found that
the negro had sooken but too truly.
As | bent over the dead man in the
uncertain light | observed small
piece OF paper upon his breast Re-
moving it and finding it to be a note
| carried It TO the window and read'
"'The young officer who was shot
yesterday, at this mans order, was
his son by an octoroon slage girl.
He was murdered by his fatherl He
was avenged oy his mothcr!'
81 placed the note in my pocket
and returning 20 the bedside discoy-
cred and removed the dagger with
which Gen. Lespard's heart had been
pierced.
Timothy, ! said TO the negro,
who had been watching my move
ments, some Yankee has managed
10 get inside our INES IN some way
and killed your master, | suppose be.
cause he had that young man shot
But 10 would be best that no one
should know how he died; and so you
and ! will keep the secret between
MS. We will remove every evidence
Of the way in which he was Killed,
] will announce that he had heart
disease, and we will bury the secret
too deep 20 dig up
81 have looked upon many dead
face, but never one on which was
stamped such an expression Of
startled horror MS fixed that Of Gen,
Lespard lie must have walked just
rs the blade was driven home and
looking up recognized who struck
"Not long after secured Il