St. Tammany farmer., 1922-02-04
oft bu Doubledau, Pace &Conponu.

+, Sometimes they did, but most times
they didn't. Sometimes they fought
like wildcuts-and sometimes we were
the ones that ran away"
"But the Johnnies were bad men,
weren't they, Grandpa?''
| mo"
| The Boys forehead customarily va
cant, showed some little vertical
shadows, produced by struggle to
think. "Well, but" he began slowly.
Listen, Grandpa. listen here! You
said--you said you never got scared
the ole Johnnies were goin' to win"
"They did win pretty often" said
the grandfather "They won a good
many battles"
: 81 mean, you said you never got
scared they'd win the war"
"No, we were never afraid of that"
"Well, but If they were good men
and fought like wildcats, Grandpa,
and KEEP winning battles and every
thing. how could that be? How could
you help bein' scared they'd win the
warp
The grandfather's feeble eyes twin
kled brightly. ''Why, we knew they
couldn't, Ramsey"
At this the little vertical shadows
on RamScy's forehead became more
pronounced, for he had succeeded in
| thinking. "Well, they didn't know they
couldn't, did they?' he argued 'They
| thought they were gOin' to win, didn't
| they?'
"Yes; guess they did. But you
see they were wrong"
"Well, but" Ramsey struggled
Listen! Listen here Grandpa! Well.
anyway, If they never got scared we'd
win, and nobody got scared they'd win
well, don't see"
| "You don't see what?"
But Ramsey found himself unable
| to continue his concentration. "Oh,
i nothin' much," he murmured.
| II see." And his grandfather laughed
/ again. you mean: If the Johnnies
| felt just as sure of winning the war
as we did and kept winning battles,
| why shouldn't we ever have had any
| doubts we were going to win? That's
1t, isn't it,"
II guess so, Grandpa"
swell, think it was mostly because
we were certain that we were right"
II see," said Ramsey. 'sThe Johnnies
knew they were on the side of the
devil" But at this, the grandfather's
laugh was louder than it had been be-
| fore, and Ramsey looked hurt. "Well,
you can laugh If you want TOP he
objected in an aggr1eved voice. "Any-
way, the Sunday school sup'intendent
told us when people knew they were
on the devils side they always"
II dare say, I dare say the old man
interrupted, little impatiently. "But
In this world mighty few people think
i they're on the devils side, Ramsey.
The South thought the devil was on
our side, you see"
''Well, that kind O. mixes it all up
more'n ever.''
Suppose you look at it this way:
The South was fighting for what it
believed to be it's right to- be coun-
try by itself; but we were fighting for
Liberty and Union, now and forever,
one and inseparable.' There's the rea-
son we had the certain knowledge that
we were going to win the war How
plain and simple 1t isl"
Ramsey didn't think so. He had be-
gun to feel bored by the conversation,
and to undergo the oppression he u.s.
ually suffered In school. The earnest
old voice of the veteran was only
sound in the boys ears.
Boom" The veterans had begun
to fire their cannon on the crest of the
low hill, out at the cemetery; and from
little way down the street came the
rat-a-tat Of toy drum and sounds of
fife played execrably. A file of chill
| dren in cooked hats made Of newspa-
pers came marching Importantly up
| the sidewalk under the maple shade
trees; and in advance, upon ve1oci-
pede, rode a tin-sworded parsonage,
shrieking incessant commands but not
concerning himself with whether or
not any military obedience was there
! by obtained Here was a revivifying
effect upon young Ramsey; his slug
| gard eyelids opened electrically; he
| leaped to his feet and, abandoning his
grandfather without preface or apollo
| gy, sped across the lawn and out of
the gate, charging neadlong upon the
| commander Of the company.
"You get off that 'locipede, Wesley
| Benderl' he beloved. "You gimme
that sword What rights you got to go
bein' captain O my army, I'd like to
| know! Who got up this army, in the
first place, I'd like to know! I did.
| myself. yesterd'y afternoon and you
get back In line or I won't let you
b'long to it at alli'
The pretender succumbed; he In
stantly disnomted, being out-shouted
| and overaWed. On foot he took his
place In the ranks. while Ramsey be
came steruly vociferous "In-tention
company Farwud march! Column
right! Right-showdler harms!- Halt
Far-wud march. Garry harms"
The army went trudging away un.
der the continuous but unheeded fire
of orders, and presently disappeared
round corner, leaving the veteran
J chuckling feebly under his walnut tree
| and alone with the. empty street. All
trace of what he had said seemed to
1