Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-09-10
A Southern Lily.
A True Story of the Civil War.
BY NJ. s. HANDY.

| BY NJ. s. HANDY.
! Use hungry, mudder. and l don't like
| beans one bit. Why don't we have nice
| fried chicken and waffies, and huckeberry
| puddin like we use to have?''
Lilys question brought tears to heI
| mothers eyes, as did her refusal to eat the
| BEANS which with bread constituted their
only article OF food. 1t was all the harder
| that the family had always lived in the
greatest luxury, with many servants and
all tnat goes to make life easy and pleas
ant. But now all was changed because of
the war-that war which divided the north
from the south. For years both sides had
fought bravely, but now one side must lose
This side was the southern side, and the
one to which Lily's father and big brothers
belonged
Lily was little southern girl. and her
home was in Richmond, Va, and the time
was 1865, just before the surrender of Lees
soldiers to Gen. Grant. Lily was only five
years old, but she had seen MANY ups and
downs in her short life. She could scarcely
remember her father, who for three yeafs
mad been fighting for the cause he thought
was right. She remembered but vaguely
Inc splendid big house in which they had
hVed until the soldiers had set fire to ii
and burned all her mothers beautiful fur
hiture The only thing that was saved was
her fathers picture. Lily was daily shown
this and told of what great happiness would
come to them all when father came home.
bringing news of victory to the southern
people.
After the fire Lily lived In much smaller
house and the goodies grew less and less
frequent They had plenty of money, but
mother tried to tell the children that their
money wasn't worth much. She would
sometimes go to market with a basket full
OF money and come home with pocket
full of provisions" Just think of having
$50 for chicken and S. for an orange!
before the surrender.
For the last two weeks the northern SOL
dlerS, or Yankees, as the SOutherners called
.hem mad surrounded the city, and were
trying to force surrender. The southern
government or "confederacy" as 1t was
called. took possession of all the stores and
warehouses where food was kept In order
to make this limited supply last as long as
possible 1t was measured out to each family
daily, just as rations given to the SOL
diers. Every morning Lily's brother Fred
and Sambo. their only remaining colored
servant would go down the street to get
their supply. The men in charge would
make them tell how many grown people
and how many children were in each fami-
ly, then carefully measure out so much
food for each one
For several days nothing was to be had
but bread. salt Goldfish and beans, until
today even the Goldfish was missing. Mrs
aiiiSOH HedTI WAS very nedVy as Sne sum-
moned her little family to their dinner of
beans.
The grown people were worried about
something more than the scarcity of food.
The end of the was imminent and
even the most hopeful had little doubt
but what the southern cause was lost
one. When the news of the surrender did
come very few were unprepared for the
blow. The daily supply of rations could
no longer be hoped for for the Yankees
would take everything in the town to feed
their own men Word went from house to
house, for the people to get all the supplies
they could before they were seized
Mrs. Allison sent Fred and Sambo post
haste to the store house. Every one else
was there also, and the greatest confusion
reigned. 1t time for ceremony.
Men. women and boys showed and pushed
to gain possession of whatever they could,
for otherwise it meant starvation to their
loved ones.
Fred waded up to his shoe tops in the
deSpiSed dried beans. Some one had over