The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-02-17


( different. But he was alone and had
1 been hit in his soul. He brooded and
cursed and ragged. No man in that
great army knew his duty to his cOun-
try better than Sergeant Joe. He him-
self had arrested men for disobedience
of orders. he had seen three men shot
for desertiOn and felt no pity for them.
But as he cursed and brooded there
was feeling stronger than duty pull
| ing him away from that camp fire. He
resisted 1t for an hour. and then
walked away into the dark woods and
was swallowed up. Half an hour later
went back to the company that he
must have been surprised and cap
tured by Confederate scouts.
At no other time during the war
could the sergeant have done what he
then accom- plished. The army and the
ment to know where Lee was going to
strike, and there was hurly-burly ans
confusion everywhere. The deserter
fanked his command and rushed on to
Washington. There he obtained a suit
of civilians clothes, and as a private
citizen he set his face toward his home.
Ten miles away he left the train for
the woods, and after hours of gliding
and skulking he finally drew near the
home of his betrothed- Father, moth
er and daughter were sitting on the
veranda, and with them the sneak who
had written the letter. Concealed be-
the Veranda, the sergeant heard every
words of the conversation for an hour.
The writer of the letter had lied to him.
His feelings had been aroused to the
pitch where he had sacrificed his honor
and his good name without Just rea-
son. Through the man who sat there
boasting of what he had written a SOL
der with q clean record had become a
sneak and skulk Should he reveal
himself then and there he would be
loaded with anathemas and reproaches-
No father with patriotism in his heart
would have him for a son-in-law-no
girl who thought of honor and reputa-
ton would welcome him.
The deserter groaned in agony as he
realized the situation, and the people
had withdrawn into the house to go to
bed before he crawled away That
night he walked fifteen miles, lodging
and skulking and afraid of everything
that moved by the roadside. In the
morning he was headed for Pennsyl-
vania The papers told him which way
Lee was moving. He found confusion
in Philadelphia. There was no provost
guard to pick him up and ask ques-
tions-no citizen to suspect him of be-
! ing q =deserter. He found a place where
1 he could exchange his suit for a uni
form, and was off for the front an hour
/ later.
The country was overrun by parties
from either side, and 1t was the ser
/ geant's fOrtunte to be gobbled UP by
q
the rear as a prisoner. He was held
until the thunder of the three days
battle was hushed and Lee was falling
slowly back on Falling Waters, and
/ then he and hundreds more were
( headed for the Potomac The rest is
to be found in the history Of his COM
/ pany and regiment. That history reads:
las Lee fell back. his retreat encum-
! bered with wounded men, prison rs
/ and a long baggage train, Custer press
] Al 0f "a
mountain roads. There were constant
attacks, and the confederates fought
braVely to save what they had won. A
a point about ten miles from the river,
| where we made an unusually fierce at
tack, and where the resistance was
proving too much for US, a sudden d.
version gave US the victory. A federal
sergeant belonging to a Michigan regi-
ment. and who was a prisoner in Con-
! federate hands, rallied about four
hundred of his fenOW-ca ptives, rushed
their guards, and with arms thus OBJ
tanned made flank movement and
scattered the force opposed to US, and
came charging through to US. The
sergeant brought in the flag of a Con-
federate regiment that he had cap
tured, and there is no doubt of his
promotion for his brave conduct"
A month later Sergeant Wise was
Lieutenant Wise. The order read on
dress parade spoke to the regiment OF
his being captured while on duty at a
picket post. OF escape ana recap pure
and recorded his act OF capturing the
flag and turning on his captors as one
of the bravest things during the war.
The sergeant had not lied nor boosted.
He had left others to figure It out as
they wanted to, and they had made the
most of it. A year and a half later he
was a captain, and on his way home to
marry the girl who was waiting for
him.
He did not march to her house. nor
yet to his, from the depot. He took a
contrary direction until he brought UP
! before the house of the man who had
held his honor in his hands. Then
things happened A year later the JUS
tice of the peace would have called it
/ felonious assault. and jail might have
J been the consequence: but Lee had sur
rendered. the war was over. and the
I homecoming veterans owned the
country. The wife has never known
No human being except the SER
geant's chum has ever known. Tt was
a race between honor and disgrace. and
| honor won.