Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1906-01-03


could not reveal at the time. He had
revived sufficiently to recognize Benton
and to speak feebly a few moments;
but that very night, in the fog and
darkness, was begun the building of
the bridges, the crossing of the left
grand division, and Fred could only
leave his poor friend with the sur
geons and hasten back to his duty.
-Four days later, when he would have
ridden to the hospital camp in search
OF him, it was too late. Urgent orders
had come from Stanton himself, the
great and growing war secretary, to
send the prisoner patient thither as
soon as he could be moved. Jennings
had already gone under strong guard,
and all Benton could learn at the mo-
ment was that there had been break
from prison camp; that, aided by resi-
dents of Baltimore and of Charles
county, some confederate officers had
escaped to the Potomac; and, while
some of the party had succeeded in
crossing, one boat had been fired on
and swamped. Two of the officers
had been captured, one being poor
Paul, who had been nearly drowned,
and was found in fishermans hut not
far from Matthias Point. Two of the
party were still at large. Arrests of
suspected civilians. had been made,
both in Washington and Baltimore.
and certain secret service officials had
been summarily discharged by order
of the secretary, as being unworthy
to hold positions of such trust and
responsibility.
Stanton is terror" said Fred's
informant, a staff officer just from
Washington. God help the man that
has to bump up against Stanton just
now!"
1t was now some &c hours after
F'red's serious difference with his d.
vision commander. He had sent an
urgent appeal to his old general to be
set free from further contact with these
things he almost loathed. He looked
for answer within the week, and, TAX
ing advantage of the permission, cold
ly accorded him by the chief of staff,
to be absent over night, he had gone
heavy-hearted, to his old friends of the
Iron Brigade, and sought at their hands
the sympathy and consolation to be
expected of men who had themselves
felt that the official atmosphere was
frigid where once it had been so fair.
And it was here, on Thursday morning,
while breakfasting with the genial
commander of the Black Hats and lis
tening to his philosophic advice to
take things coolly" and that call
would come right" he was surprised by
the coming of a cavalry orderly,
splashed with mud, who bore missive
addressed by the Acknowledgement of
the division and marked Immediate. :"
With word Of apology to Col. Fair
child and his officers, Benton tore it
open, and two papers fell out. One
read:
Capt. Benton: Enclosed just re-
ceived. The general says you better
come this way where the necessary
orders will meet you, and you can get
what luggage you need. There will be
steamers going all the evening.
"(Signed) BREWSTER, A. A. G."
The second was a telegram to the
commanding general, -th division.
til corps, and bore the singular re-
semblance to one recei<ed on almost
the same ground some seven months
previous:
"Secretary of War desires to see
Capt. Benton of your staff at once.
Take first boat. intermediate COM
manders notified. No delay.
IL. THOMAS, Acknowledgement"
ITO Be Continued