The daily Alaskan., 1906-01-08
A Soldiers Ghost

close of the struggle Illal eullSleur
 just in time to participate In the last
 campaign of the war, and probably the most terrible-the battles of the Wilder. ness. Ihad neither smelled powder nor seen blood and was obliged to stand
 my ground among men wlIo were allr or nearly all, veterans. It was the trial of my life.
 My initiation on the firing line was in withstaudiug cavalry charge. \ long line of horscmcu. the color of tho dust they stirred up, emerged from thd
 edge of a wood and, making a nasty alignment, dashed forward to the mu' sic of the rebel yell. As soon as they got within range We opened fire on them. They came on and attempted to ride over Us. Right in front of my company a young officer led his men. He was a handsome fellow, with long wavy hair and eyes black as coa!s. took deliberate aim at him and shot him. He saw me do so, Uud as be fell gave me a look that shall never for get. It seemed to me that the feature most predominant in .u was rcprooch. Had 1t been hate OF revenge l think could have borne it w.,I more cIuu. nimiy. As it was, it filled me with remorse. 1 felt like murderer. ] dreaded lest the face 9f the man had killed would haunt ma through fife.
 The charge was rIpuIseI, and we
 stood at rest where We had received 1t. I was obliged to remain for an hour right where I could look at the
 dead body of the man I had killed. Then. when we were ordered forward, marched over 1t. Tho ssgatle-F oyo5 looked straight up at mo, and, whether, 1t was imagination or not, saw again that horrible look Of roproJeh-a look that seemed to say: At my home there are loved ones who will looS for me in vain to return to them. You have pre- vented"
 A few days later we were fighting in the wOOds-the wilderness 1t has been justly called and when the ground
 was covered with the GeaI and dying | a horrible flame and smoke swept down
 on us, burning the dcad and wounded l together. My regiment had been much
 cut up, and l had become separated | from 1t. was searching for some of
 my comrades, hurrylug along. when,
 looking down, l was para.vzcd with
 horror. There beneath wc was .he of- 1 fcer had killed staring at me with | that same look of rcproacL.
 Are you going to let mo be burned | to death here?' he said.
 I struggled with two Impulses. One
 was to get away from a re.ucGnatca ghost that had come back to life to re-
 proach me for his death, the other to | make him some at0uouCnr for having
 killed him. The latter prevailed, and, | stopping. 1 raised him and, throwing | him on my shoulder, carried him Io-
 yond the reach of the flames. While | doing so had no view of his face, and ] it was fortunate that I had not, for Lls reproachtul look would have rendered me pOwerless. l lowered him upon the grass near a rivulct and. understand ing the craving of the wounded for wa- | ter, was starting to get him some wlon, | glancing at him, I saw that he was
 dead.
 Had be been alive?
 Under other circumstances l might have fingered near him from curiosity,
 but as 1t was. had but one desire
 to get away as soon as possible. And | yet he, or rather, lit |" fascinated me. ! I hurried away to a short distance and, i turning, looked back There was the same reproachful look that had seen ! before. l did not for a moment at- ' tribute 1t to imagination. though l
 knew the power of that faculty. l turned and fled from the corpse ghost, or whatever 1t was, and found the roar { of battle a relief.
 l was present at the final surrender | when General Lee and the remnant of
 his army laid down their arms and
 peace came again after four years Of
 fratricidal war. We were all glad at
 the prospect of getting home, but for
 me there was another reason Of far
 greater moment. The man 1 hal killed
 could not again haunt me, at least on
 the battlefield. He might visit mo at
 home in the dead of night, but l hoped
 that having been a soldier. HOW that
 peace was attained, he would rest
 peacefully in his grave.
 1 Our army was drawn up to receive
 the surrender. Perfect silence was maintained throughout the ranks. The 1 men stood waiting I was in the front
 rank, where l would be able to see
 plainly the COufedcratcs who were
 about to march past. Presently 1
 heard their tramp, and in a few min
 utes the head of their column came
 along. There were infantry, artillery 1 and cavalry. l was not fifty feet from
 the line of march. My eyes rested on
 the face of a man marching at the head
 of few men who were supposed to compose a company.
 ! He was the man l had killed.
 My captain, seeing that something
 was the matter wFth me, ordered me
 to fall out, and l staggered to camp.
 My brain was in a whirl. Would this
 only man that l knew l had killed