Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1906-06-17
The Deserter
Copyright, ls)6 i,e Homer sprag,,e. ]

(Copyright, lso6 he Homer sprague.j
 It was while GcnesGi Lee was nIak Ing his preparations for the invasion of Pennsylvania. Tn "harge If pick was Sergeant Joe Wise Nho was called the best ndturcd man n tolapahy q and who had proved his bravery ora three or four battletielts- The sergeant was thirty five years Gii and unnaf- ried. but back at home ia Michigan a red checked farmers da ushter had said that she would be his wife when Le came marching home from the war.
 On this night, as the sergeant sat hy the fire with his men ol.t ol post. on, of the company cane along atld baEe. ed him a letter received at regi,neDtat headquarters two hours previously. It was opened TO be read at the tIclleriuS flames Of the fire. Ii was from a stay at home nan, one of those malicious minded gossips who delighted In telling all he knew and much more of affairs back home. According to his ep;s'le many things had occurred in the little village ill the last month, and one C. them was the engagement Of Joe's sweetheart to a merchant who had fun nished a substitute for the war. Be put It strong to the sergeant that he had been made a fooi of.
 Half an hour later Joe was missed. An hour later word went back to the company that he must have been sur prised and captured by Confederate scouts.
 The deserter fianked bis command and rushed on to Washington. There he obtained a suit of civilians clothes, and as a private citizen he sat 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, mother and daughter were sitting on the ye- randa and with them the sneak who had written the letter. Concealed be- hind the lilac bushes growing close to the veranda, the sergeant heard every word of fAe 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 req son.
 Through the man who sat there boosting of what he had written sol fler with q clean record had become sneak and skulk. Should he reveal himself then and there he would be loaded with anathe1nas and reproaches. No father with patriotism i'll his heart would have him for son-in-law. No girl who thought of honor and reputa- tion would welcome him.
 The deserter groa:.ed n agony as he realized the situation anti tie people ! had witht7ra VII in:e, the. h0lse to go to bed before he craNi"d away. That night he walked hffee.l niles, lodging and skuiking and afraid of everything that moved by the roadside In the morning he was heaet-l For Pennsyi- vanla. The papers tolj hin which way Lee was moving. He founu confusion in Philadelphia. Taere was no provost guard to pick him np and ask aues- tions: uf citizen to suspect him of be- ins deserler. He found a place where he could exchange his suit for unl- form and was of for the front an hour later
 The country was oyerf1n Dy parties from either side, and it was the ser geant;s fortune to be gobbled up by : Confederate cavalry. He was sent to i the rear as prisoner. He was held until the thunder Of the three days bat i tie was hushel and Lee was falling slowly back on Falling Waters. and 1 then he and hundreds more were head found in the history of his company and regiment That history reads: 1 "As Lee fell back. hie retreat incum- ]. bered with wounded men, prisoners and Iong baggage train, Custer press ed one division of it closely over the mountain roads. There were constant ] attacks and the ConfeGerates fought :, bravely to save what they had won. l At point about ten miles from the river. where we made an unusually fierce attack and where the resistance was proving too much for us, sud den diversion gave us the victory. A Federal sergeant belonging to a Michi- gan regiment and who was prisoner in Confederate hands rallied about 400 of his fellow captives, rushed their guards and, with arms thus obtained, made flank movement and scattered the force opposed to us and came charging through to us. The sergeant brought in the flag of Confederate regiment that he had captured, 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 and recapture. and recorded his act of capturing the flag and turning on his captors as one of the bravest things in war. The ser geant had not lied or bOasted. He bad left others to figure out as they 1 wanted to and thev had made the