Year: 1863

umn Of Ere behind the western hills, and now
the stars were coming out swiftly, Ike golden
petals scattered all over al azure sky.


And the stars looked down on the battle
/ field, as they had come out and looked down
1 for scores OF years on the fair young land
which had arisen IN her strength and beauty
until amid all the nations there was none 10
/ compare with heron the great cities that
were hung on her green bosom-on the broad
harvest fields that waved their ireSses for JOY
through her golden summers-on the houses
where the dwellers thereof sat peacefully and
happy under own vine and fig tree-on all this
had the stars which came up night by night
to the watch-towers OF the sky looked until at
last there came change; and now where the
harvests had waved their locks in the summer
winds, was that most terrible sight which the
sun and the stars ever beheld-the sight of
battle field. The conflict had waced bot and
terrible that day


The hearts of the distant mountains had
shuddered with the thunder of cannon and the
earth had drank in blood as in autumn she
drinks in the equinocta gales; but at last the
days awful work was done, and the night
winds lift the grey banners Of smoke from the
battlefield.


The air was full of the heat and smell of
powder; the dead lay thick together with
stark, ghastly faces on the trampled grass
the wounded lay thicker, filing the air with
means riderless horses rushed terrified over
the field; and the dying daylight and the sol
emn stars watched over ALL


4 little way from the battlefield ran small
stream. making blue fold in the dark grass,
and two wounded men had crawled to its
! banks to slake their thirst


And when the two went crawling along the
banks looked up and met each others faces,
they knew they were enemies, and they knew,
too, that few hours ago each had aimed his
rifle at the other, and that aim had made the
ghastly wound little way from the heart,
, which had drank the life. blood of each, and
each had glared desperately on the other
moment before he fell.


But there was no ferceness in the eyes of
those men now, as they sat face 10 face on the
bank of the stream the strife aud the anger
had all gone now, and they sat still, dying men,
who few hours before had been deadly foes
sat still and looked at each other At last one
of them spoke:


We havnt either a chance to hold out
much longer, jndge."


No said the other, with little mixture
Of madness and recklessness. You did that
last job of yours well, as that bears witness"
) and he pointed to a wound little above bis
heart from which the life blood was slowly
oozing.


Not better than you did yours" answered
the other with grim smile, and he pointed to
a wound little higher up, larger and more
ragged-a deadly one


And then the two men gazed on each other
again in the dim light, for the moon bad come
over the hills now, and stood among her stars
like pearl of great price. And as they looked,
a softer feeling stole over the heart of each to
ward his fallen foe feeling of regret for that
inexorable necessity of war which made each
man the slayer of the other and at last one
spoke:


There's some folks in the world thatll feel
worse, s'pose, because you've gone out of it?'


spasm of pain was on the bronzed. CHASTITY
features.


Yes said the man. in thick tones. there's
one woman with little boy and girl, away up
among the New Hampshire mountains, that
it'll well nigh kill to hear of this" and then
the man groaned out in bitter anguish, " Oh
God, have pity on wife and children"


And the other drew closer to him.


"And away down among the cotton fields of
Georgia, there's woman and little girl
whose hearts will break when they hear what
this day has done > and then the cry wrung
, itself sharply out of his heart, Oh God, have
pity upon them ~


And from that moment the Northerner and
the Southerner ceased to be foes. The thought
OF those distant homes on whom the anguish
was so soon to fall, drew themj close together
in that last hour, and lthe 1.-TWO men wept like
little children. Aud at last the Nortberner
spoke, talking more TO himself than any one
else, and he did not kuow.that ithe other was
listening greedily to every word:


She used to come-my little girl-bless
her heart every night tol meet me when
came home from the fields and she would
stand under the great plum tree that's just be
yond the back door at home, with the sunlight
making a yellow crown in her golden curls and
the laugh dancing 10 her eyes when she heard
the click of the gate. | see her there now
and I'd take her in my arms, and she'd put up
her little red lips for q kiss bat my little girl
will never watch under the old plum tree by
the well for her father again. [ shall never