Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-04-25

S1p'',h or.h beggar was familiar IN All 81, 49,
not 90 WIN the supplcatory palm and
work ont, m i.at deadly sap and our dangerous
,rn eouid restrain our mirth"
,,s 50 zee the lighter side of things aoo. 49,.
,,Iu'cate Indifference to tears ., 'oes % not
Nj "S oplnion the average "Tompy" ~
,h, epuai nowhere In seusit!yencss sy,rna
'''I ana gent!eness toward grief
ar u, uN,hs as he does hand In hand ,r,,,,
shr,.I,,. eao reaper he cannot retain thot
ada g, ,,, Iear OF him which would on,y
'"I 80 much to the final terror guy
'hlnk that when soldiers lourt T.. A.
,s'1,. 80 oi death 1t is not callousness hut M
N,Ns OF generous splrit which .oa.
c'early and Is unafraid "''''" secs
So,c''fies men who are naturally tiuia
,.'m m the most daring Of actions an1
'''ese s, are the real heroes.
inc true story of man who Il, ,,. 49,,
h'i was Known as the Dreamer come.
~ was little. nervous. anemic Landau
oo,''e washer, minus average iute,Iigenoo
"1u , as tifnid as the proycrbiol baro
.pa'niy' hs~ompany sergeant called him
point. '' "o' ms strong
one dag, after his trench had sre,ouos
an ' intensive bombardment his mind was IN
mat condition known as .numbed " ne
was dazed half stunned "
MS hps moved in n foolish way HE
, ,iinos twitched convulslvely. lie was onite
.,oonerent. For apart from mental terror
hora'u pnysical concussion Of bonn
,puru,nent Will temporarily rob a man NJ
ms thinking faculties. ''
,.,','n Wn TOP of that the Germans made n raid
nll''iiS good many Of his connnnv and
themselves in the process
ANA after the raid was over tho avf,,,
commandment began again
h'Eh-eXplos've shell burst beside him
nf
legs, half burying him.
drag hlmsr.e free, "
.,, What Was tie Thing lying beside him,
'h"t silent figure with its back ripped upp
KlPLING'S LIN-S RECALLED
II was his young boy-officer
Where--wherc the other men? ougbt bo
to run? '''''' o's"t he
fernaps the words OF Kipling drifted
through his clouded brain;
III your officers dead and the sergants
look white
hehemoer its ruin TO run from a fight"
kun? No. he didn't wish to run, He
Wlshed to save the regiment which lay in
,he rear, in the second and third line
trenches. The Germans had plotted to wine
them out
And he knew that the Germans had cut
the telephone wire! Only two hours ago
ne had heard the little boy-otficer-the one
VINO was now lying so stiff and silent--de-
oIare that they couldn't possibly get sup
ports up until the blasted line was mendad ,
But who was brave enough to crawl out into
that hurricane Of fire and do the mending ?
with choking cry the Dreamer lurched
10 his feet. tearing pain in his left arm
as ne scaled the parapet told him that a
shlper mad got him with bullet
But he kept on.
ked pools were beside him everywhere
NO Mans Land was running red today.
fiere was the wire, and--yes--it was cut
lie got down on his hands aud knees
the Dreamer who had ceased to dream. He
pulled the two ends together in his hands
Ike demon possessed he worked away
until the connection was made good. =
The regiment was safe Communications
with the rearguard were restored =
There was a roaring in his ears-a sound
OF many waters-no: il was shrapnel The
Dreamer saw it coming, looked up and
laughed.
There was mighty crash. a sharp blow
The limp figure slipped down and lay still
with the wire stil held tightly In his hand
And when the stretcher bearers found
him, and quickly dug his grave, their last
vision of him was with the smile still upon
his lips.
For the Dreamer had justified his dreams
and died a hero,
(Copyr!ght)