The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-01-17

land all last night while 1 was pray
ing, something seemed to keep saying
to me that wrong had to be in the
world, and that in consequence my
prayers were falling ON closed ears. If
I could have believed they would be
answered perhaps they would have
been, but my fears were SO overpower-
ing that
ssAh, that's fact, an a big, big oner'
| Abner broke IN, with kindling eyes
"Who knows but that was yore su-
| preme, test? think sech trials have
to come to all of us accordin' to divine
law. Tharin lies the meaning of THY
/ will be done It seems awful unfair
to have to bow the head before injus-
| tice, as we look at it, but eff you or I
/ could rise so high right now as to be
able to submit without murmur even
to the worst that might happen in this
case we might be higher to the nature
o. God. Another Mary long ago had
to stand by an see her beloved son
slowly tortured to death, but look what
has come of it-come of it to the whole
wide world? Can we doubt that that
mother, Twin now amongst the bless+
ed, is satisfied with all that happened?
Why, every soul, Mary, that wings its
way heavenward through that influ-
ence would fall faintin' with bliss at
'er feet Gods law is right, an it is
more sure to be right at the very time
we think it is wrong. I'm shrinkin'
back from this here trouble, but even
eff it went plumb agin me I'd still try
to think God knowed better what was
right than me. Did / ever tell you
about how my best comrade in war
times died?%
ST don't think so,p Mary answered.
s'Me an him was nigh the. same
age,'' Daniel went on reminiscently,
San hardships an trouble in them
awful times tied us closer together.
We marched side by side, shared our
rations o. bareback an salt pork an
drank water from the same canteen
after his was shot of his back in a
skirmish He was the best, purest
minded boy ever knowed. His beard
was jest beginning to sprout like yal-
Ter fuzz on a peach; his eyes was sky
blue, an his hair was reddish gold.
He smiled like a gal. He, was an only
son of poor widow, an she had dotted
on 'im so much that she wouldn't con-
sent to. his goin' to war. But he got
in with d gang of schoolmates that was
goih' an slipped of, an enlisted.
Known that boy convinced me that
tive enough by nature to know when
a thing has happened off at distance
Nand even be aware beforehand that
something important is about to take
place That boy predicted so many
things accurately that the soldiers
would come to i'm at night an ak i'm
Ell all was well at Their homes an eff
they was goin' to git letters, an the
Hike. Sometimes he'd make try at it,
an then agin he'd say he wasn't in
trim for it. He used to tell me things
that he kept back from the others. For
instance, I've seed i'm suddenly point
out comrade as we was marcIin' to
battle am heard i'm sigh an say that
he felt sure that particular one would
fan before night, an it come true.
Just before the battle at Chickamauga
great change COME over i'm. He
wasn't as lively as he had always been,
encouragin' us with jokes an pranks
an jolly songs. He looked downeast
an had far Off stare in his eyes,
get uneasy, fer 4 lowed maybe the
poor food an lack o. substantial shoes
an clean clothes had made i'm sick.
tried to cheer i'm up but he wouldn't
smile. Purity soon,s when the bugIe
was CALM us to the front to meet the
long blue line that we seed across the
hills in Their splendid clean uniforms
an glitterin' guns an bayonets, he
reached out an ketcheN my hand
Shake, Alb, old boy said he. an he
chung to my hand tight, an 1 felt it
quiverin'
What's wrongT said I.
Then, lookin' me straight in the
face, he said, with a husky culver in
his voice: I'm goin' to git shot in this
battle, Alb. I know it.
81 tried to treat it light. 1 slapped
i'm on the back an told i'm to pluck
up, but he stared at me like a person
In a dream. He refused to load his
gun-said he didn't intend to take hu-
man life on the eve of 1osin' his own.
Why said he as eff he'd never thought
of it before, I hain't thing agin any
o. them men out thar. They are drove
| Jest as we are drove by politics an
head men that are well fed an safely
housed in Washington
1.-TWO or three others was listenin',
an they had the saddest faces I ever
seed on human frames, fer they loved
i'm. They 'u'd "a cried eff they hadn't
been ashamed, especially the, fellers
that had left wives an little children
at home an had fear o. death. Right
then durfn' all that hurry an turmoil
he wanted to talk about a future life,
an, above all, he was troubled about
leavin' his mother.
"It is yore duty to load an shoot
said man who was sorter bitter ag'in
the Yanks an hadn't as much heart as
the rest of US.
"I won't do It, the boy answered.
The spirits of the mothers of some o.
them men are hoverin' over 'em tryin'
to protect 'em from harm, an I'm goin'
to join 'em soon. You kin shoot, but l
won't. My commandin officer amt
out thar on a boss in a cooked hat an
spurred boots. He is on high an he
| amt well pleased with this sight, fer
his children wear both blue an gray,
an in this beautiful valley of his crea-