The Spokane press. [volume] (Spokane, Wash.) 1902-1939, 1906-01-25
THE BIG HEART OF THE OLD
CONE EDE RATE SOLDIER
WENT OUT TO THE LITTLE
SISTER,

SIS Elk.
Somewhere among the archives
of the confederate government may
be found a document dated Sept. 2,
1864, wherein Jos. Wilson was or
dered to be shot, and on the back
of which is the Endorsement: Gap
proved, Jefferson Davis, president"
You see, my companion was then
in Virginia, and it was war time
Of a certainty. We rebels were
hard pushed on all sides, having
little to eat and less to wear. Some
of us were philosophers enough to
endure what we couldn't cure, but
the young men, especially the chaps
who had been conscripted, were
terribly uneasy. They were ready
to give it up for lost cause and
start for home. Well, this feeling,
coupled with starving rations, rag
ged uniforms and daily fighting,
sent a good many of our boys over
to the union lines as deserters, and
this brings about my story.
One of the conscripts of my COM
pany was a boy of II, named Joe
Wilson. All of us fellows of 80 or
about felt like a father to him, as,
aside from his youth, he was poor
and pale. with not much of fight in
him. The idea of little Joey Will
son helping to breast Yankee line
Of battle would have set us all
aroar. He should have been home
with his ma, and none of us felt
anything but pity for him.
One night, after the assertions
had gone on and become so numer-
Gus that the big officers had to
take notice of suspects, a trap was
set, and 10! our poor little Joe fell
into it. Yes, sir; nabbed sin the
act of deserving to the enemy" and
maybe you don't know what that
signifies, especially when that enc
my isn't cannot shot away? 1t was
a surprise to us that the lad had
plucked up courage enough to
make break, but reckon he was
desperate and hoped in some man
ner to get back to his home,
1t was determined to make an
| example of little Joey, and | guess
it wasn't over 10 days before he
was convicted, the sentence APPROX
ed at Richmond, and an order read
that he was to be shot at a certain
hour. | suppose it was all quite
proper and according to army regu-
lations, but it must have gone hard
on the men on the court martial
to convict him. Had he been gull
ty of murder | could not have aided
to bring in a verdict against him.
Nobody had seemed to care
whether he had relatives or not,
! and so our surprise was great to
learn on the day before he was to
ne -. hat a sister had arrived
IN ,.n.p 20 plead for her little Joes
lif- It was too late. She had been
| jeaied by the president, and of
course nobody in the field had any
| authority to stop the execution
She was in camp all day long, and
most of us got to see her. II
should tell you she was the bright
est chippest, smartest girl Of 10 |
ever saw | would be telling you the
truth. She was exactly like Joe in
looks, except a few points hand
somer, and she had his size and
walk and ways. When | saw that
| girl believe her name was Nell
breaking down under the news and
realizing her helplessness, I'd have
been willin' to let them shoot me
in Joe's stead. Deed I would, al
though ] say it so long after. |
just wanted to lay my hand or her
head and say:
There, there, poor child, don't