Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1906-08-30
IDENTIFIED
fOriEinal.l

Passing through Richmond, Va, in
the spring Of 1890, 1 fell in with a
party Of northern people who were
coming up from Florida and had stop
ped over to visit the historic capital of
the short lived Confederate States Of
America. There were two very pretty
young girls, Bessie and Marge Hicks,
under the care Of their aunt, q spinster,
Miss Keyes. A couple Of young fellows
had attached themselves to the Misses
Hicks, and the chaperon had all she
could do to keep the young people with
in conventional bounds.
"Aunt Lenie," protested Bess when
taken to task for some mild indiscre-
ton, "why can't you remember that
you were once young yourself? You
act as if you'd never had a young man
attentive to you. 1 don't believe you
ever had or you would know how to
sympathize with a girl"
We visited the museum in the presi-
dents mansion, the site Of Libby pris-
on, and Il morning drove over the
fields Of the battles which had resulted
in the driving back Of McClellan's
army from the environs Of the city. 1t
was a sunny morning, and the boys
and girls were in a merry mood. One
would not suppose that they were Wis
iting scenes in which a generation be-
fore laughter would have been discord-
ant, in which at every volley of mus
kerry, every discharge of cannon, poor
fellows were laid low and those who
loved them were made to mourn.
At one Of the battlefields the guide
who conducted us was very %garrulous.
He had been born on the ground and
taken part in the fight. After it was
owe he had helped bury the dead, and
years later had been in the employ Of
the United States exhuming and identi-
flying the bodies which now lie in the
little cemetery near by.
"There," he said, pointing, twas a
trench in which were ffty-fve bodies.
From under that tree 1 took up the
body Of a young man and have got the
trinkets 1 took out of his pocket yet,
hoping that I might identify him by
them. There were a pocketknife with
a bone handle, a little comb and q
silver heart"
By this time the boys and girls had
quoted under the guides pictures, all
the more affective since he had seen
them with his own eyes. Aunt Lenie
seemed to be living again in those
days when thousands at home were
scanning long lists Of killed and wound
ed, dreading to see what they looked
for. I was looking at her when the
guide was naming the articles he had
taken from the soldiers pocket, and
when he mentioned the silver heart 1
saw the blood leave her cheeks as if
taken out at the first stroke Of an air
pump.
Sometimes continued the guide,
II took things off the bodies that had
something on 'em to identify the own
er, such as initials Of regiment and
company. This silver heart I spoke of
had initials on both sides and a date,
but no corps"
"Where do you keep such things?"
asked.
Eat the house usually. This one I've
made a pocket piece Of"
He drew a fiat silver heart from his
happened to glance at Aunt Lenie.
There are no words to describe her ex-
preston, but 1 knew by it that the bit
Of silver was a connecting link between
her and a dead past. In a moment she
had regained her self control and cast
a quick glance at her nieces to see if
they had noticed her emotion.
con this side," the guide went on,
"are the letters j. r. and on this
L.. K, Sept. 10, 1857"
A silence fell on us all. We were
standing among the pines that had
sprung up since thirty years before to
shade the graves of those who still
slept there. We crowded around the
guide to read the letters and the date.
Aunt Lenie was standing back.
We were startled by a sob.
AS we turned to look Aunt Lenie
turned also, so that we could not see
her face, but we knew the sob had
come from her. In a moment she was
herself again.
1.-THE grave" she said-"where is the
grave?"
The guide led us to the little plot
with it's uniform white headstones and
stopped before one marked Gun
known" Aunt Lenie knelt beside it.
We men uncovered, and the girls, 60
ing to their aunt, knelt one on each
side Of her, with an arm about her
waist.
Motioning to the men Of the party to
come, moved away, and they fol-
lowed me. 1 bought the articles found
on the dead soldier of the guide. He
offered them without price, but l
thought that Miss Reyes, for whom I
Intended them, would prefer to pay.
Later I learned the story-a story as
old as the peninsula on which these
men fought and as fresh as the tiny
wild flower that springs up over the
soldiers graves. Tom Ray, a young
ster Of twenty, loved Leonore Reyes, a
girl of nineteen. He enlisted in the