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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..1cfe004 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #67562 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/67562) diff --git a/old/67562-0.txt b/old/67562-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 7ee7c88..0000000 --- a/old/67562-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2337 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of Our Village in War-time, by Sarah -Towne Martyn - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: Our Village in War-time - -Author: Sarah Towne Martyn - -Release Date: March 4, 2022 [eBook #67562] - -Language: English - -Produced by: David E. Brown and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team - at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images - generously made available by The Internet Archive) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OUR VILLAGE IN WAR-TIME *** - - -[Illustration] - - - - - OUR VILLAGE - - IN - - WAR-TIME. - - BY THE AUTHOR OF - ALLAN CAMERON, ILVERTON RECTORY, - ETC. - - [Illustration] - - PUBLISHED BY THE - AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, - 150 NASSAU-STREET, NEW YORK. - - -The incidents in the following narrative are real, and have actually -occurred in the present struggle for our national life, though not -precisely in the order here indicated. Liberty has been taken in -locating and arranging them, and names and places are assumed. - -ENTERED according to Act of Congress, in the year 1864, by the -AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, in the Clerk’s Office of the District Court -of the United States for the Southern District of New York. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - - CHAPTER I. - The Beach Hill neighborhood 5 - - CHAPTER II. - The Soldiers’ Aid Society 17 - - CHAPTER III. - The departure of the regiment 35 - - CHAPTER IV. - The drummer-boy of the Twenty-sixth 50 - - CHAPTER V. - How the boys came home 80 - - CHAPTER VI. - Lights and shadows 102 - - - - -OUR VILLAGE IN WAR-TIME. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -THE BEACH HILL NEIGHBORHOOD. - - -“Would you believe it, Mrs. Glenn, the Tyrrell House is sold, and a -family is going to move into it right away? The painters and carpenters -have been there for a week. I didn’t know the house, it looked so -lively. It seems too bad to have that place shut up from the public, -for we all enjoyed it so much; but I suppose the owner had the best -right to it, after all. I haven’t found out who the family are, but I -shall hear all about it to-morrow, and then I will let you know; for -Aunt Prudence is going there to clean the rooms, and get them ready -for the furniture.” - -As Miss Letty paused to take breath, I expressed my interest in the -news, which, to confess the truth, had affected me rather unpleasantly. - -The Tyrrell House was the “show-place” of Beach Hill, a rambling, -aristocratic mansion, built by a wealthy Englishman, who, after a -series of domestic troubles, shut up the house in disgust, and left the -country. It was his wish that no one should reside there; consequently -the house was out of repair, and the extensive grounds, laid out -originally by a landscape gardener, were overrun with weeds. Still it -was a lovely spot, and the dwellers on the hill held annual picnics -there, and lovers strolled through its shaded walks by moonlight, and -altogether we had come to look upon it as public property, held for our -special benefit. Great was our astonishment, therefore, when we heard -that the house had been purchased, and was fitting up for a family, -who were to take immediate possession. It was felt by us almost as a -personal loss; and woe to the new-comers, should they fail to atone by -the charms of their society for the deprivation we were to suffer. - -Not that we were an inhospitable or quarrelsome set of people. On -the contrary, we prided ourselves on the possession of the opposite -qualities. If there were in the town of Woodbury a model neighborhood, -we believed it to be located on Beach Hill. Ours was a very select -society, reckoning among its members the clergyman, lawyer, doctor, and -editor of the town, and a number of gentlemen of wealth and leisure, -as well as some who led the dubious sort of existence called “living -by one’s wits.” We assumed, however, no airs of superiority over -our townsmen, but were content to manifest our self-complacency by a -quietly patronizing manner whenever we met them. In such a community -as this, it may be supposed the arrival of a new family was quite an -event, particularly as they were about to occupy the best house in the -town. - -The next day I was very busy at home, and had forgotten the coming -event, when just at evening Miss Letty made her appearance, every -line of her face instinct with news which her tongue was eager to -communicate. - -Miss Letty Brown was the dressmaker _par excellence_ of the town of -Woodbury; and though we of the Hill had tried hard to appropriate her, -it was found an impossibility, so we were fain to share her services -with the inhabitants of the village. She was a cheerful, active little -woman, of an uncertain age, with a fresh, breezy atmosphere always -about her, which stirred one very pleasantly--a little given to gossip, -yet no scandal-monger, but a sincere, earnest Christian, loving God and -her fellow-men, and looking persistently on the bright side of every -thing. No matter how dark the day, Miss Letty firmly believed in the -sunshine behind the clouds, and waited for it to break through. Her -services were in constant requisition on every occasion; and as she was -brimming over with what the Yankees call “faculty,” nothing that skill -and ingenuity could accomplish came amiss to her. - -Hardly was the neat white sun-bonnet laid aside, when she exclaimed, - -“Well, it’s really wonderful how things do come about in this world. -There’s old Mr. Tyrrell thought he’d cut off his daughter with a -shilling, and now her grandson has come into possession of the house -and land.” - -“How is that?” I asked; “is this new family connected with the -Tyrrells?” - -“Oh yes; Aunt Prudence has told me all about it. Mr. Fenton, the -gentleman who has bought the property, is the grandson of Emily Tyrrell -that was, and he has lived in Alabama a great many years. It seems he -is a strong Union man; and when this rebellion broke out, he got into -trouble, and has been all this time trying to get away; and now the -family have come, but he stays behind to try and save some more of his -money. Mrs. Fenton is very sick, and has been for a great while; but -there is a grown-up daughter and another young lady, a niece, who is -said to be an heiress, and a son, who I rather think is in the rebel -army, though there isn’t much said about it.” - -“Are the family coming immediately?” I inquired, for Miss Letty’s -account had awakened my interest in these refugees from rebel tyranny. - -“They are expected every day, but I’m sure the house is any thing but -ready for them. When I heard about the poor sick lady, I felt like -taking right hold and putting things to rights; but it would not have -been taken kindly by Aunt Prudence, so I held my tongue. Mrs. Ryder and -Mabel were there, seeing to the furniture and pictures, for it seems -that when Mr. Ryder went south for his health, three years ago, he got -acquainted with this family, and that is the way they found out that -the house was for sale and got it. There was quite a company of Beach -Hill people there, and among the rest Robert Lester, the fine-looking -young lawyer. I don’t often take a fancy to young men--you needn’t -smile, Nellie--but I do like that young man wonderfully. There’s -something so noble about him; and yet he’s as gentle as a woman.” - -I assented cordially to Miss Letty’s praise of the young lawyer, for -he had been a favorite of mine from his first appearance in our town. -He was alone in the world, having no relatives but one sister, who -was at a boarding-school at some distance from Woodbury. His legal -knowledge and splendid powers as a speaker made him a marked man in -the community, and he was rising rapidly in his profession, while his -private character, so pure and manly, won the esteem and friendship of -all. - -Unlike too many young men, Mr. Lester had not been ashamed to avow -himself a Christian by a public profession of his faith in Jesus; and -young as he was, Mr. Ryder had found him an efficient helper in every -good word and work, while even infidels and scoffers were compelled to -admire his consistency and firmness of principle. - -When the war broke out, and with thousands of others the young men of -our village sprang to arms, we expected Robert Lester would be one of -the first to go, for all knew his patriotic devotion to the cause of -liberty; but to our surprise he did not enlist, though he looked sad -enough when the first company marched away, carrying with them our best -wishes and prayers for their success. He was not a man whom one would -like to question about his reasons for any course of conduct, so we -waited to hear what he would say, but he said nothing. - -The second company went, and still no word from him, though his efforts -to promote the good cause were laborious and incessant. There was some -mystery about it, for when urged to accept the command of a company, -he replied hastily, - -“Do not ask it. I would give ten of the best years of my life to be -able to say yes, but I cannot go. I can help to send others, however, -and that I am doing with all my heart.” - -In fact his purse was always open, and as his fortune was large, the -streams of his benevolence flowed in various channels, making glad many -a heart which the war had made desolate. - -Mr. Ryder our excellent minister, Dr. Goodhue our physician, and Mr. -Reed, a thin, pale young man, who edited the Woodbury Chronicle, were -all of opinion that Mr. Lester had good reasons for staying at home, -and the rest of us were satisfied to adopt their belief, though we felt -that he had lost a glorious opportunity of becoming a hero. - -Before leaving, Miss Letty informed me in confidence that the new -family were to be invited to the meeting of the Soldiers’ Aid Society -at Mrs. Atlee’s, and that then we should know whether they sympathized -with the government, or were at heart secessionists. - -“Not that I think there’s any doubt about it,” she said; “for if they -had liked the rebellion, they could have staid there, you know. But -it’s always best to have things clear, and it’s hard to satisfy some -people.” - -This was a fact which could not be denied, even in our neighborhood, -and I contented myself with inquiring if any one besides Mr. Ryder had -seen the Fentons. - -“I don’t know, but I had my thoughts about it, when I saw Mr. Lester -looking so sharp at the portraits of the family which are hung up. -There was one of a young girl, the prettiest thing I ever set eyes on; -it was so beautiful it spoilt all the rest. Her eyes were just like -stars, and such lovely curls of brown hair falling over her white neck -and shoulders; but the sweet look on her face was better than all. -I’m sure I should love that girl, and I guess Mr. Lester thought so -too, from the way he kept going back to it again and again, as if he -couldn’t get away, looking all the while so melancholy. One thing I’m -sure of,” added Miss Letty as she rose to go; “that young man hasn’t -got any thing to be ashamed of; for if ever there was an honest and -brave soul looking out through a face, his is the one, and I’d trust -him with the last cent I had in the world.” - -With this emphatic declaration Miss Letty took her leave, and the last -I saw of the white sun-bonnet, it was disappearing among the shrubbery -at the parsonage. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -THE SOLDIERS’ AID SOCIETY. - - -The new-comers were at length settled in their pleasant home. The -neighbors had all called, and were received with a courtesy and -kindness which won golden opinions from every one. - -Mrs. Fenton was a confirmed invalid, never leaving her apartment; but -the peace of God, which like a river flowed through her soul, filled -the room with sunshine. In early life she had been a proud, ambitious -woman, valuing wealth and social distinction above all things else, and -anxious only that her children should shine in the circles of fashion -to which she belonged. But in the midst of her career the hand of God -was laid upon her, and in the solitude of a sick-room she was forced -to think. Through the prayers and efforts of a faithful Christian -friend she was brought to look to Jesus for pardoning and healing -mercy, and after a season of deep mental anguish, during which all the -waves and billows of divine wrath seemed rolling over her, she found -refuge at last at the foot of the cross, and was enabled to say from -the heart, “I know in whom I have believed.” - -For ten years since that hour she had been confined to her couch with a -hopeless disease, often racked with intense agony, yet always the same -patient, uncomplaining sufferer, always calm and happy, with a heart -full of love and pity for every form of human sorrow. By her household -she was looked upon as a guardian spirit, rather than a helpless -dependent. Every disputed question was referred to her decision, and -whatever storms invaded the domestic circle, “mother’s room” was -always a place of refuge, which seemed to her children the dearest spot -on earth. - -Elinor Fenton the daughter was a delicate, graceful girl, inheriting -her mother’s gentleness and refinement, but with the shadow of a deep -sorrow always visible on her sweet face. That there was a son we knew, -but nothing was ever said of him, and we could easily believe that his -desertion of the Union cause, the uncertainty of her father’s fate, and -the illness of her mother, must exert a depressing influence on one so -young, even before we heard the saddest part of her story. The wealth -of her affections had been bestowed on one who seemed fully worthy of -them, but when the day of trial came he was found wanting. He was one -of the first to enter the rebel army, and his influence over young -Fenton had led the latter to adopt the same course. Thus doubly bereft -of lover and brother, the young girl devoted herself to her suffering -mother; but her heart was open as the day “to melting charity,” and -none ever appealed to her in vain for sympathy or relief. - -When I first went to the house, I saw only Mrs. Fenton and Elinor, -but my interest in both was so much excited that the call was soon -repeated, and on my second visit Mrs. Fenton said to her daughter, - -“Elinor, where is your cousin? Go, my love, and tell Lilian I wish to -see her here.” - -Elinor left the room, and soon returned, accompanied by a young girl -whom she introduced as Miss Grey, and in whom I recognized the original -of the pleasing portrait I had seen. She was indeed most attractive in -face and person; bright, sparkling, and intellectual, with a world -of thought and feeling in her full hazel eye, shaded by long silken -lashes, and an equal amount of firmness and energy indicated by the -finely moulded mouth and chin. - -After paying her respects to me as a stranger, she seated herself on -an ottoman by the side of the couch, and taking one thin, white hand -of the invalid, laid her cheek on it in a caressing way, which was -evidently the expression of a tender and loving nature. - -“And what has my Lilian been about all the morning,” said Mrs. Fenton, -“that I have seen nothing of her before?” - -“Oh, dear aunt, I have been very busy, I assure you. Venus wanted me in -the kitchen a while, for she was afraid her preserves were in danger -of spoiling. Then I gave little Pete his daily lesson; and last, not -least, had to prepare some work to take to the society to-morrow.” - -“Then you are going to our meeting?” I said; “I am very glad to hear -that, for somehow I feared we should not have the pleasure of seeing -you young ladies there.” - -“You do not know our Lilian,” said her aunt fondly, “or you would -have no doubts on such a subject. She is a perfect enthusiast in the -Union cause, and I am afraid she has almost wished herself capable of -bearing arms in its defence. However that may be, she honors a soldier -with all her heart, and would gladly devote herself in any way to do -him good. As for my Elinor,” she added, turning with a smile to her -daughter, “she is no less loyal than her cousin, though not quite so -demonstrative naturally, and tied to a sick mother who can hardly live -without her. But you will see them both to-morrow, for the cause is -dear to us all.” - -When I left the house, Lilian Grey accompanied me to the door, and -taking my hand, said with a frankness that was very captivating, - -“Mrs. Glenn, my aunt has taken a great fancy to you; and if there were -no other reason, we should love you for that. Now I want to ask as -a great favor, that you will take Elinor and myself under your wing -to-morrow, for we cannot help dreading the battery of eyes and tongues -that we must encounter. I dare say you are no worse here than other -people, and perhaps a great deal better, but as Venus says, ‘There’s -no accounting for human nature,’ and strangers usually have to run the -gauntlet in order to gain the freedom of any country town.” - -I kissed the fair cheek that was glowing like a rose, and promised my -best services on the morrow. - -There was a very full meeting of the Soldiers’ Aid Society, for it was -hoped that the strangers would attend, and all were anxious to meet -them. I went early, and found Mrs. Ryder, our president, and Miss Letty -Brown busied in cutting and fitting garments; while in the two rooms -needles and tongues were equally active. - -It was not long before Miss Fenton and her cousin came in, for they -had none of that petty pride which leads its possessor to despise -punctuality as a vulgar virtue. They were both more plainly dressed -than most of the young ladies present; but though simple and unaffected -in manner, there was an innate dignity and refinement about them which -effectually repelled impertinence, and disappointed a few who were -prepared, in their own elegant phraseology, “to find out all about -them.” There was one woman, however, who was not to be foiled in this -determination. - -Mrs. Flint was the widow of a worthy man, who is said to have been -worried out of existence by his disconsolate partner, and none who knew -her could question the probability of such a catastrophe. Her manner -was always deprecating; her step, true to her nature, was soft and -stealthy, and her voice carefully modulated to express only amiability; -but there was a rigidity about the thin lips and a sharp glitter in the -cold blue eye which told quite another story. - -Greatly to the annoyance of our good pastor and his wife, Mrs. Flint -arrogated to herself the office of adviser in all matters relating to -the church; and as she could talk fluently, and call up tears from some -hidden fountain on all proper occasions, some ignorant people looked -on her as quite a saint, while those who knew her best regarded her -as a scheming, dangerous woman, the female counterpart of Bunyan’s -Talkative. She had exerted herself to the utmost to get the management -of the Society, and especially of its funds, into her own hands; -and failing in this, had left us in disgust, and for months had not -attended our meetings, until brought out by curiosity on the present -occasion. - -Mabel Ryder had drawn Elinor away into a circle of young ladies; but -Lilian, who had been consulting Miss Letty about her work, was sitting -alone, and to her Mrs. Flint cautiously made her way. After a few -commonplace remarks, she said in her softest tone, “I am very happy to -see you here, of course, but I hardly expected that you Southerners -would be willing to help us fight against your own brethren.” - -“I don’t know,” was the spirited reply, “whom you mean by my brethren. -I am an American, and love my whole country and the dear old flag -better than my life. There is as much Northern blood in my veins as -Southern, and if it were not so, I should feel just as I do now. No one -could be any thing to me who wished to break up and destroy the best -government ever formed by man. I never see a soldier who has fought for -his country without feeling as if I wished to speak to him as a friend; -and I count it an honor to do any thing, no matter how humble, that can -add to his comfort.” - -The dark eyes flashed and the red lips trembled with the earnestness of -her feelings; and any one but Mrs. Flint would have retired from the -field; but she only answered with perfect coolness, - -“I admire your patriotism, but when we think what a terrible thing war -is, and how many precious lives are thrown away, we cannot help being -willing to do any thing for peace.” - -“I do not consider war as the worst of all evils,” replied Lilian, -“dreadful as it is. There are times in the history of all nations, when -liberty can only be preserved by fighting for it, and I believe God -hates a guilty peace, even more than the desolations of war. Storms -are very useful and salutary things,” she added with a smile, “though -they often make sad havoc of property and life. None can mourn more -than I do the loss of the glorious dead, who have fallen in the cause -of freedom; but it is far better to die so than to live cowards or -traitors.” - -Clearly there was nothing to be made out of Lilian Grey, and Mrs. -Flint looked about for Elinor; but Mabel Ryder was on her guard, and -gave no opportunity for an attack in that direction. So our Beach Hill -diplomat was silent for a time, but during the afternoon I heard her in -discussion with Miss Letty on some subject which seemed to interest -the latter very deeply. I only caught the conclusion of Mrs. Flint’s -remarks. “Such things seem to me very singular, to say the least.” - -“Well, I’m very thankful that I haven’t the faculty of seeing singular -things that some folks seem to have. I always thought that this was -a land of liberty, and that men could go into the army and fight, or -stay at home and help others to go, just as they thought right, without -being called to an account for it. Mr. Lester is able to take care of -himself, and doesn’t need my help; but I hate this mousing round after -characters, just as if they were bits of cheese.” - -“But you must acknowledge,” answered the purring voice again, “that -there’s a mystery about this young man, and that is always against any -one.” - -“Fiddlesticks on your mystery. I sha’n’t acknowledge any such thing. -In the first place, I don’t call every thing a mystery that I can’t -see through; for if I did, there’d be no end of mysteries, seeing I -can understand but very little. In the next place, supposing there -is a mystery, it may be a good one; for I suppose there can be good -mysteries as well as bad ones in this world.” - -“I have been told on very good authority,” persisted Mrs. Flint, “that -Mr. Lester has been much at the South, and he may have his own private -reasons for not wishing to fight the rebels.” - -“And if he has,” replied Miss Letty, “I dare say they are honorable -ones, and if they satisfy him, I don’t see what business ’tis of ours. -When I get a person marked down in my book as pure gold, I a’n’t always -going over them with a magnifying-glass to see if I can’t find a flaw -somewhere. If there are things about them I don’t understand, I take -it for granted they’re of a piece with those that I do understand, and -so it never troubles me a bit.” - -“I know he is a great favorite of yours, and you can’t see any faults -in him; but for my part, I never had clear evidence of his being a -Christian.” - -“And pray, what kind of evidence do you want?” inquired Miss Letty, -with more asperity of tone than I had ever heard from her before. “If -humbly trusting in Christ, feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, -and taking care of widows and orphans, isn’t religion, what is? Mr. -Lester is always on hand when any thing good is going forward in the -church, though he doesn’t pray at the corners of the streets, like the -Pharisees, nor say to everybody, by his looks and actions, ‘See how -good I am.’ I think though, that he follows his Master a great deal -nearer than some who try to make out that their little tallow dip is a -splendid Drummond light. But bless me, Mrs. Flint, you’re sewing that -sleeve in wrong-side out. It wont do to talk about our neighbors and -sew for the soldiers at the same time.” - -With this home-thrust Miss Letty left the room, while we all inwardly -rejoiced that Mrs. Flint had been silenced by one whom she regarded as -so greatly her inferior. - -After tea all work was laid aside, and the gentlemen one after another -came in, until the rooms were filled, and the evening was spent in -social enjoyment. It was remarked by all that Robert Lester and Miss -Grey did not meet as strangers, though there was evident constraint in -the manner of both. Lilian changed color, and seemed about to retreat -when he approached her; and on his part, though remarkable for his -power of self-control, there was something in his appearance none -had ever seen before. They had evidently known each other previously, -and met now on a different footing from that of mere acquaintance. -A dozen pair of eyes were upon them, and the situation was becoming -embarrassing enough, when Elinor Fenton came to the rescue of her -cousin, and entering into conversation with Mr. Lester, drew attention -from Lilian, who took refuge among a group of young persons surrounding -the piano. - -When the company were about to separate, I chanced to be in the -dressing-room, when as Lilian entered the hall I heard Mr. Lester say -to her, - -“Lilian, will you not allow me to accompany you home?” - -“Certainly not,” was the hasty reply; “my aunt has sent the carriage -for us, and I prefer riding with Elinor.” - -“Permit me at least to see you to the carriage,” he said almost humbly, -and I felt hurt at her cold rejection of his offer. - -“There is no necessity for it,” she said. “Pete is here, and he is -accustomed to the duty.” - -What could this mean? Of all the young men I had ever known, I should -have selected Robert Lester as the one best fitted to win the heart -of such a young lady as Lilian; yet she shunned him and repelled his -attentions. My thoughts were painfully occupied with the subject as -I returned home, and in my dreams that night the two were strangely -blended, though always with some invisible barrier between them, which -I sought in vain to discover and remove. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -THE DEPARTURE OF THE REGIMENT. - - -Forts Donalson and Henry had been taken by our brave soldiers and -seamen, and the nation was in a fever of excitement and joy. But -recruits were wanted to fill up the wasted armies in the various -departments, and the work of enlistment went rapidly on among the young -men of our neighborhood, while mothers, wives, and daughters worked day -and night to fit out the beloved ones who were so soon to leave us for -the seat of war. - -Lilian Grey was one of the foremost in this noble work, and four of the -soldiers in company A of the 26th were selected and sent out by her, -with a bounty of three hundred dollars each, to fight for the cause -she loved so well. The shadow on Elinor’s fair brow deepened day by -day, as news came of terrible battles in which soldiers on both sides -fell by thousands; and even Mrs. Fenton’s faith was sorely tried by the -continued absence of her husband, from whom no word had ever reached -her. - -Those were sad, sad days, and every heart felt the oppression as the -hour of parting drew near. True, “the battle of the warrior, with -confused noise and garments rolled in blood,” came to us softened by -distance, but many that we loved were there in the thickest of the -fight, and others were going whom we might see no more on earth. But it -was no time for outward expressions of sorrow, so we resolutely forced -back our tears, and smiled on our brave boys and encouraged them with -words of comfort and cheer, when our hearts were dying within us as we -thought of the dangers to which they were to be exposed. - -It was expected by all, that on this occasion Robert Lester would be -one of the first to offer himself to his country, and a commission as -lieutenant-colonel was actually made out and sent him by the governor, -with the flattering request that he would not refuse it. But his answer -was the same as before. - -“If I could go at all,” he said to his friends, “it would be as a -private soldier; but it avails not to speak of it; my duty lies at -home.” - -Lilian shunned him more resolutely than ever, and once said in his -hearing, “If I were a man, and refused to go when my country called for -my services, I should expect to be driven from society, as unworthy the -love of woman or the esteem of my fellow-men.” - -“You are too severe, Lilian,” said the gentle Elinor; “there are many -other ways of serving one’s country besides fighting for it, and every -one can judge best for himself what his duty may be.” - -There was a look of intense pain in the face of the young man as Lilian -spoke, but he drew himself up to his full height, and the fire in his -eye told all who looked upon him that whatever the cause might be, it -was not lack of courage which kept him at home. - -“A thousand blessings on you, Miss Fenton,” he said in a low voice to -Elinor soon afterwards. “Your kind heart hesitates to condemn even -where it dares not approve. You can never know how much good your words -have done me, suffering as I have from misunderstanding on every side.” - -“You must pardon dear Lilian,” she answered in the same tone; -“she feels very strongly, and your decision has been a severe -disappointment to her.” - -“Miss Grey can never need any one to plead her cause with me,” he said -as he turned to leave the room. - -A few days before the departure of the regiment Miss Letty came to -my house, her face beaming with smiles, and to my inquiry what had -happened, she answered, - -“So much has happened, I don’t know where to begin to tell you. In the -first place, Mr. Fenton has got home with the rest of his money; but -such a time as he has had to get it. Why, the adventures of Sinbad the -sailor were nothing to the escapes he has had and the troubles he has -been in. I don’t think he is much to speak of, compared with the rest; -but that isn’t what I am thinking about. The best of all is, that it -has come out why Robert Lester couldn’t enlist before, and now he has -joined the company as a private soldier; but, my word for it, he wont -be one long.” - -“Are you at liberty to state the reason?” I inquired. - -“Oh, certainly. It seems that the rich old uncle who left him his -fortune, made a condition in his will, that if Robert died without -heirs, the property was to go to another cousin, one Dick Satterlee, -who is a flaming rebel. Our Mr. Lester knew that if he was killed, all -that mint of money would go right into the hands of the Confederate -government, to help on the rebellion. So he thought he could do more -for the Union cause with the money, than by carrying a musket and -getting shot himself. Besides, his poor little sister would be left -without any friends, and poor to boot; so he just made up his mind to -stand it out, and let everybody misjudge him if they would. - -“Last week he saw in the list of killed in some battle, the name of his -cousin Richard Satterlee; so he went right on to find out all about it. -The body hadn’t been discovered, but everybody said he was dead. When -Mr. Lester came back, he waited long enough to make his will, and then -enlisted; and a happy looking man he was, I can tell you. - -“But that isn’t all. He was once engaged to Miss Lilian Grey; but she -was so angry with him because he didn’t go into the army, that every -thing was broken off between them, though she loves him as she does her -life, and he thinks full as much of her. But of course it will all be -made up now, and I’m glad of it, for they are just exactly suited to -each other.” - -When I had expressed my surprise and pleasure at the good news brought -by Miss Letty, I inquired what she intended to do about little Willie, -the son of a deceased sister, to whom she had been a second mother from -his infancy. - -“Well, there’s no help for it, I suppose,” she answered, while a cloud -flitted over her bright face; “he is bound to go as a drummer-boy with -the regiment, and I can’t persuade him to stay at home willingly, -though he says he wont go without my consent. It’s well his poor mother -isn’t living, for her heart would break to have him go, such a baby as -he is, only twelve years old. But I must say for him, he’s the best boy -I ever saw, and the men all love him so, he’ll be well taken care of, -if he doesn’t get killed. It’s hard for me; but I’ve got nothing else -to give, and though it’s like taking the heart out of my body, I’ll try -to do it cheerfully.” - -Miss Letty was sewing at the Tyrrell House when she learned from Mr. -Ryder the facts in relation to Robert Lester, and no time was lost by -her in communicating them to the family. Mrs. Fenton and Elinor heard -with thankfulness that his fame was publicly cleared, though they had -never doubted that it would be so in the end. - -But to the ardent and enthusiastic Lilian, by whom he had been so -bitterly condemned, the news was like a reprieve from death. She threw -her arms round Miss Letty’s neck, exclaiming, - -“Oh, you are the best and dearest Miss Letty in the whole world. I -didn’t think any thing could have made me so happy.” - -“Lilian, dear, you forget,” said her aunt in her gentle tone. - -“No, aunt, I forget nothing,” Lilian replied, while her eyes shone -through tears like stars. “I know we are separated by my own rash act, -and I shall honor him only the more if he refuse again to see me; but I -am glad and proud to know that he is worthy of my love, or that of any -other woman.” - -The days fled rapidly, and still Mr. Lester did not call on his former -friends the Fentons, and as Lilian went out much less than usual, -they seldom met. He was unwilling to try to exonerate himself from a -suspicion which he felt to be unreasonable and degrading, or to sue -for a return of the love he had never forfeited; and Lilian, though -she would gladly have humbled herself at his feet for having doubted -his honor and loyalty, would not take the first step, lest her motives -should be misconstrued. - -Things were in this state when, on the evening before the departure -of the regiment, a note from Elinor Fenton was received by the young -soldier, which brought him quickly to her side. A few words of -explanation passed between them, and then he was ushered into the -library, where Lilian was busy in preparing packages of stationery for -the knapsacks that were scattered about. - -That interview was one never to be forgotten by either of the parties. -There were confessions to be made on both sides, and mutual forgiveness -to be exchanged; for while Lester felt that he should have intrusted to -the woman he loved the true reasons for his conduct, Lilian insisted -that, knowing him as she did, she ought never to have doubted his -loyalty under any circumstances. They parted, pledged to each other, -and Lilian accepted as a sacred legacy the charge of Fanny Lester, in -case of a contingency which her heart refused to contemplate. - -The dreaded morning came at last, when our brave boys were to exchange -the comforts and endearments of home, for the hardships of the camp -and the horrors of the battle-field. But a solemn ceremony remained to -be performed before they went, and with one accord the steps of all -were turned towards the parsonage. There, in the pleasant front yard, -under the shadow of the tall elms that had sheltered her childhood, -Mabel Ryder gave her hand to one whom she had loved ever since she -could remember any thing. Thomas Wiley, first lieutenant of company A, -was a young merchant, and had been a pupil of Mr. Ryder, who saw with -pleasure the attachment existing between the young man and his darling -child, for he knew him to be one calculated in every way to make her -happy. When he joined the regiment, Mabel gave a tearful but willing -consent, but with his urgent solicitation that she should become his -wife before they went, she would not at first comply, the time was so -short and the proposition so unexpected; but when he brought forward -the plea, that as his wife she could with more propriety come to him -if wounded or sick, she yielded. The privilege of attending him in -sickness or suffering was so precious, that she could not lightly -relinquish it; so it was fixed that the marriage should take place on -the morning of their departure. - -It was a beautiful picture, that wedding party under the trees, and -one not soon to be forgotten by those who witnessed it. The fair young -bride, dressed in simple white, with smiles and tears contending for -the mastery on her cheek, with her bridesmaids, Elinor and Lilian; the -happy groom in his becoming uniform, supported by Robert Lester and -the second lieutenant of his company; the groups of friends scattered -about, and outside of all the boys of the Twenty-sixth looking on -with the deepest interest, as the pastor and father pronounced with -trembling voice the words that gave his child to the keeping of -another--all this is engraven on my memory, and can never be erased. - -The ceremony was over, and as the regiment wheeled into line, the -bridegroom with one long, silent embrace consigned Mabel to the care of -her friends and took his place in the ranks. All the stores were closed -and business suspended, as the Twenty-sixth marched for the last time, -with unbroken columns, through our streets. The regiment was raised in -the immediate vicinity, and many of its members were personally known -to us; but at such a moment all seemed like sons and brothers. We were -proud of their soldierly bearing, of their firm and measured tread, -of the precision with which their evolutions were performed, and the -intelligence that lighted up every face. What eager eyes looked out -from the ranks, to catch the last glimpse of mother, sister, wife, -or sweetheart, as, amid the waving of handkerchiefs, half-uttered -blessings, and stifled sobs, we bade them perhaps a final good-by. They -left us full of hope and energy, with all the courage and strength of -young manhood nerving each arm and animating each heart. How would they -come back? - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -THE DRUMMER-BOY OF THE TWENTY-SIXTH. - - -After the departure of the regiment there came to us a season of -languor and depression. We had been in a state of unnatural excitement -for weeks, and the reaction was inevitable. But for the letters -received regularly from our absent boys, and which were read and talked -over by all, and the Society meetings, where we came together to pray -and work for the soldiers, I think we should have experienced a social -stagnation. - -Lilian Grey, now more than ever our “sunbeam,” as we loved to call her, -was out of town for a few weeks, and as Elinor seldom left her mother, -who was suffering more than usual, we saw very little of our neighbors -in the Tyrrell House. Mr. Fenton seemed a moody, disappointed man, -soured by a sense of injustice which he had no power to punish and no -inclination to forgive. - -Even Miss Letty, who had always seemed to possess an unfailing fountain -of cheerfulness and hope, now wore at times a clouded brow when no -tidings came from Willie, or the news from the front was unusually -warlike. She was cheered, however, by continued reports of Willie’s -good conduct and popularity with the regiment, whose pet he had been -from the first. Of his courage there could be no question, for he -had been in several severe engagements, and boy as he was, had stood -unflinchingly by the side of the bravest. - -On one occasion, at the close of a hard fought skirmish, when a furious -charge of the enemy’s cavalry had driven back his regiment, a division -commander riding over the spot soon after, found Willie beating a -tattoo on his drum as coolly as if he had been on parade. - -“What are you doing here, my little fellow?” said the general. - -“You see, sir,” he replied, giving the military salute, “I didn’t know -but some of our boys might be about, and I thought I’d let them know -there was a drummer here, in case they wanted to form again.” - -“But what if the enemy should return, and find you here alone?” - -“If they should, sir, this is my place, and I’d rather they’d find me -here than skulking, any way.” - -“Here’s an unfledged hero for you,” was the exclamation of the general -as he rode on; and the next day Willie was called out and publicly -thanked by the commander in the presence of all the troops. “It was an -instance of bravery which would have done honor to a veteran.” Such -were the words of the general, and a happy woman was his aunt as she -read them in a letter written by Robert Lester on the occasion. - -Then came to us the news of the invasion of Maryland by the rebels, and -in a few days the battle of Antietam flashed over the wires, and with -others we exulted in the victory, little thinking how deeply it was to -affect us, for we supposed the Twenty-sixth to be in a division at some -distance from the seat of war. - -But a few days served to undeceive us; and then, as the “terrible list” -of killed and wounded was read with dimming eyes and blanched cheeks, -we learned how fearful was the loss our own troops had sustained. -Robert Lester, who had risen rapidly from the ranks, and had been made -captain on the field at Williamsburg, was wounded, it was thought, -mortally. Our dear little Willie had lost an arm, and Lieut. Wiley, -the bridegroom of an hour, had fallen gloriously at the head of his -company, while cheering them on. Many others whom we knew and loved had -also died on the field, rendered immortal by their bravery. - -In the evening of the day on which the news reached us, I went to the -parsonage, and found our good clergyman preparing to start for Maryland -to look after our wounded, and to bring home the body of Lieut. Wiley. -Poor Mabel had been overwhelmed by the sad intelligence, and as her -mother was wholly occupied with the heart-broken girl, there was no one -to assist Mr. Ryder; but Miss Letty came in soon after me, and she was -a host in herself. She was very pale, but cheerful and efficient as -ever, thinking of everybody and every thing, and bringing order out of -confusion by the magic of her touch. When I expressed the hope that she -would remain at the parsonage with Mrs. Ryder and Mabel, she answered, - -“Bless you, dear, you don’t suppose I could stay here, and little -Willie lying with an arm cut off at Hagerstown; do you? There is nobody -can do for him as I can, who am like a mother to him; and if they -could, I shouldn’t be willing to have them. No, no, I am going to start -to-night with Mr. Ryder, and I shall count the minutes till we get -there.” - -“But have you no preparations to make for yourself for such a journey?” -I inquired. - -“Oh, my preparations were all made hours ago, as soon as I heard the -news. I have put up every thing I shall be likely to want for my boy; -and as for myself, I am always ready, you know. There is nothing to -be done but to fix up Mr. Ryder and be off. Miss Lilian and poor Fanny -Lester are going with us, to see the captain, if he’s alive; and who -knows but their going may save his life, if he isn’t dead when they get -there. Some folks will blame Miss Lilian for going; but Fanny can’t -go without her, and she wont care much for talk when she thinks she’s -doing right.” - -I saw the little company off a few hours later, and a sorrowful parting -it was, though Miss Letty and Lilian tried hard to assume a courage -they did not feel, to comfort Fanny Lester, whose grief was terrible -to witness; and how I loved and admired Lilian, when I saw her so -forgetful of self, soothing and sustaining the weeping sister, while -her own heart was bleeding silently. This young girl was not one to -proclaim her sorrow on the house-tops, or to make noisy demands for -sympathy. When the iron entered her soul, she would turn away quietly -from observation, and pursuing her daily round of duty, pour the tale -of her suffering into the ear of Infinite pity alone. - -It may be that I am about to betray Miss Letty’s confidence; but her -letters from Hagerstown were such faithful transcripts of her heart and -character, that I cannot resist the temptation to give a few extracts -from them to my readers. - -“... I wish I could give you some idea of the hospitals here, but I -can’t begin to describe them. The rooms look airy and clean enough; -but, Oh dear, those long rows of beds, with poor suffering, maimed, -dying heroes lying on them, some with faces paler than the sheets, some -burning up with fever, and all having such a tired, anxious look, as -if they wanted somebody to comfort them; and, poor fellows, they do -need it bad enough, I can tell you. I should have been glad to stop and -say a kind word to every one of them, but a nurse hurried me on to a -little room beyond the large one, with three or four beds in it, and -there, on a cot, I found my boy, looking as white and weak as could be, -but just as pleasant as ever. - -“He was asleep, and I didn’t want to wake him, so I took a chair very -softly, and sat down close by the dear little fellow till his nap was -out. The first I knew, the tears were dripping, dripping into my lap -just like rain. I’m sure I’d no thought of crying in that place, but -there were tears in my heart when I saw that dear little face all drawn -up with pain in his sleep, and when I thought about that arm that had -been round my neck so often, and never would be any more. By and by he -waked up, and when he saw me sitting there, he gave one shout, and if -the sun had been shining right into his eyes, they couldn’t have been -any brighter. That one look would have paid me for all the journey, if -I hadn’t done a single thing for him. - -“‘Oh, aunty,’ says he, ‘I was just dreaming that you had come, and it -seemed so good to have you over me once more, and now here you are. I -don’t know what to say, our Father is so good to me.’ - -“It was as much as I could do to speak, but I made out to tell him I -had come to stay and take care of him till he could go home with me. - -“He gave his head a little shake, just as he used to when he wasn’t -certain about a thing, and said, - -“‘I don’t think much about going to that home, Aunt Letty; I’m a -little boy, you know, to have an arm cut off, and mine isn’t doing very -well, I know from the doctor’s looks. But it will all come out right;’ -and such a smile as there was on his face. ‘And now, dear aunty, give -me another kiss, and I’ll turn over and go to sleep again; and I wish -you could too, you look so tired.’ - -“I told him I wasn’t tired, and then I shook up his pillow, and he -turned over and went right to sleep like the lamb he is. - -“All this while there had been a pair of great black eyes watching -me ever so wishfully the other side of the room; so when Willie was -asleep, I thought I’d find out who they belonged to. I went over to the -bed, and found a poor young fellow eighteen years old, who looked as if -he couldn’t live twenty-four hours. - -“‘Is there any thing I can do for you?’ said I, for I felt awfully to -see him lie there looking so pitiful. - -“‘O yes, ma’am,’ said he; ‘if you will only speak a few kind words to -me, and smooth my hair as you did little Willie’s, it would do me so -much good. I thought when I saw you kiss his forehead, if my mother -could only come and do that, it would be easier to die.’ - -“‘Well, my dear boy,’ said I, ‘I a’n’t your mother, nor any of your -relation; but I’m a fellow-creature, and I feel for you, and am willing -to do any thing I can to make you comfortable.’ - -“So I got some bay-rum from a nurse, and bathed his hot hands and face, -and brushed his hair and smoothed his pillow, and then I gave him just -such a kiss as I did Willie, and I a’n’t ashamed to own it. The big -tears were in his eyes, and he said, - -“‘I didn’t think any thing in the world could do me so much good. It -seems as if mother was here, and I thank you a thousand times.’ - -“Then I asked him if there was any thing more he wanted, and what do -you think he said? - -“‘If you could only read a few verses out of my Bible and pray with me, -I should be so glad. I’m going to die, and I a’n’t afraid to go, but I -do want somebody to read and pray with me first.’ - -“Only think of that; for me, who never dared to speak loud in any -meeting at home, to be asked to pray with a sick man in a hospital! It -was like a blow to me, and for a minute I didn’t know what to say; but -there were those eyes looking right through me, and he said softly, -‘If you only could.’ So I plucked up courage, and said, ‘I _will_,’ -and then I shut to the door and read a chapter in a low voice, just -so he could hear me, and tried to ask God to help and comfort the poor -boy, for he was nothing more. When I got through, he took hold of my -hand, and said, ‘I can’t thank you for your kindness as I want to, but -God will reward you, I’m sure. Take the blessing of a dying man, and -remember you have comforted my last hours.’ - -“I was ashamed to hear him speak so; for after all, what had I done to -deserve thanks for? - -“He died the next day, and I staid by him all I could when Willie -didn’t need me, and wrote a letter to his mother just as he gave the -words to me only an hour or two before he breathed his last. Poor -woman! I pitied her, for he was a noble-looking fellow, and one that -feared God, and I know a mother must have set a great store by such a -son.” - -In another letter she wrote, - -“My little Willie is getting along very slowly, and the doctors look -sober about him, and I know they’re afraid he’s going into a decline. -His mother died of that, and they say the shock to his system has been -so great that it may not be able to rally again. But he’s just as happy -as the day is long, and says if he had twenty arms, he’d be willing to -give them all for his country. - -“I don’t see much of the captain or Miss Lilian, for he is in another -building where the officers are; and he’s so low, they don’t let -anybody visit him unless they have a special permit from the doctor. I -believe they have a little more hope of him than they had at first, but -Miss Lilian says his life hangs by a single thread. Dear Miss Lilian, -she looks tired and pale, but her smile is just as bright as ever, and -when she comes to see Willie, it always cheers him up, like a breath -of fresh air or a bunch of flowers.” - -[Illustration] - -While Miss Letty was away in Hagerstown, a letter came to the Fenton’s -from their absent son, who was a prisoner in our lines, and had been -severely wounded, bringing the joyful intelligence that he had taken -from his heart the oath of allegiance to the dear old flag. As soon as -he could travel he would come home for a short visit, and then join the -Union army. He told them how he had been left for dead on the field at -Williamsburg, and that a little drummer-boy chanced to find him; that -he brought him water at the risk of his own life, and finally had him -carried from the field by some members of the Twenty-sixth, to which -regiment the boy belonged. - -While in the hospital there, he said little Willie visited him often -at his own special request, and to the artless conversation of this -child he attributed his first convictions of the wrong course he had -been pursuing. “It was the last thing he thought of,” the letter -concluded, “to teach me, whom he regarded as greatly his superior; but -his thoughts, so far beyond his years, brought to mind the neglected -lessons of my precious mother, and now, if I am like the repenting -prodigal, I owe it, under God, to that dear boy, whose heroism is only -equalled by the kindness of his heart.” - -It will be readily believed that the Fentons were enthusiastic in -their expressions of love and gratitude to Willie for the signal -service he had rendered them, and a letter was sent at once to Miss -Letty informing her of the facts, and entreating her to bring the dear -invalid to the Tyrrell House immediately on her return. - -It was a lovely evening in early autumn when Miss Letty and her charge -came back to us, and the first glance at Willie’s pale, sweet face -told us that his days were numbered. Yet his spirits were so buoyant, -his enjoyment of every thing so earnest and childlike, it was hard to -believe that he was indeed passing away from earth. - -When I first visited him at the Tyrrell House, he was sitting up in an -easy-chair in a room overlooking the garden, and with choice flowers -all about him. He smiled as I took his hand and inquired after his -health, saying, - -“I’m quite well, and so happy. I can’t think what makes everybody so -kind to me. I don’t deserve it at all, but God puts it into their -hearts, and I thank him for it. If dear Miss Lilian was only here; but -I’m so glad she’s with the captain.” - -“Were you in Captain Lester’s company?” I asked. - -“O yes, he got me transferred; and, Mrs. Glenn, I don’t think there’s -another man in the world like Captain Lester.” - -“In what respect, Willie?” - -“In every thing. The men all love him so, they’d give their lives for -him; and yet he’s very strict, and wont have any drinking or gambling -or swearing in the camp. They have to do just right, and then he’s the -kindest man I ever saw. If anybody is sick or in trouble, they know -where to go for help; and when the chaplain is away, he prays and reads -a sermon to the men in the big tent every Sunday. Oh dear, I do hope -he wont die.” And the tears, which no sufferings of his own could call -forth, fell fast for those of his beloved captain. - -“Willie,” I said, “do you remember any thing about being wounded, and -how you felt then?” - -“Not much at first. It is all like a confused dream; how we marched all -day to get up with the army; how we lay down to escape the shot and -shell that the rebs were pouring into us; and at last, how the captain -called out to us, ‘Now, boys, is your time!’ and then we went in on -the double-quick, till we were in the thickest of it. It seems somehow -as if that was years ago; but all at once, when I was beating my drum -as hard as I could, I felt as if I was falling down ever so far, and I -didn’t know any thing more for a good while. - -“When I came to myself, the fighting was over, and the rebs all gone; -but I was so weak that I couldn’t stir nor speak, and I thought my time -had come; but I didn’t feel afraid to die. - -“You remember, ma’am, the time of that revival in the Sabbath-school, -when several of the children were admitted to the church? I think I -gave my heart to the Saviour then; and though Aunt Letty thought I -was too young to come forward with them, I have always loved my Bible -better than any other book; and when I lay there, I tried to look up to -the Lord Jesus, but my eyes were heavy, and wouldn’t keep open. Then -it seemed as if angels were all round me, and I forgot my pain and how -much I wanted water, and went to sleep again. The next thing I knew, I -was in the hospital, and my arm gone.” - -I was affected to tears by this simple recital, and could hardly -command my voice to say, - -“But, Willie, you have always been very full of life and activity; does -it never seem hard to you to lose your arm, and to be shut up here so -sick, and perhaps to die?” - -His face flushed, and he looked up in surprise, but soon answered -pleasantly, - -“Oh, you are only asking that to try me; you couldn’t mean it in -earnest, I’m sure. Why, there never was any boy who had so many -blessings as I have. In the first place, it was such goodness in God -to let me go out with the regiment, such a poor little fellow as I -am. Then when I was hurt, he sent dear Aunt Letty to take care of me, -and bring me home here to such a nice place, and such kind friends. -It isn’t any matter about my arm, for when I die I’ll have wings, you -know, and so it will never be missed.” - -Dear young disciple! So early and plainly taught of the blessed -Saviour, what could older Christians do but sit at thy feet and learn -wisdom from thy simple, childlike words? - -While I still lingered, unable to tear myself away from a scene so -peaceful and hallowed, Mrs. Flint came in, and took a seat by his side. -Her looks and voice were carefully graduated to suit the occasion as -she said, - -“I am glad to see you so comfortable, and hope, my dear child, that the -chastisement of the Lord is doing you good. Do you feel that this is -the case?” - -Willie was a brave, happy boy naturally, and religion had added to -these traits a firm trust in God as his Father, through Jesus Christ, -so he smiled as he answered, - -“I don’t know, ma’am; I hope I love the Saviour, and I know he loves -me, and he gives me so many blessings I don’t think much about -punishment. I don’t feel as if he was angry with me, when he has died -for me, and I want to please him more than any thing else in the world.” - -“I am afraid, my dear,” she replied, “that you do not realize how great -a sinner you are, if you think you don’t deserve punishment for your -sins.” - -“No indeed, it isn’t that,” Willie exclaimed, while his cheeks flushed -with the excitement of his feelings. But Miss Letty could keep silence -no longer, and interrupted him, saying, - -“Mrs. Flint, my little Willie can’t talk much now, but I think he lives -religion better than a great many of us. He means, and I say, that -though we don’t deserve any thing but punishment for our sins, it isn’t -always a sign that God is angry with us when he lets us suffer in this -world. He wasn’t angry with Job, when he allowed Satan to try him so; -nor with Daniel, when he was put into the lions’ den; but he did it to -show what religion could do for people when they are in the worst of -troubles. I believe it’s just so nowadays; and that God is nearer to us -sometimes when every thing seems to go wrong, than he is when it’s fair -weather and smooth sailing.” - -“That may be so,” replied Mrs. Flint, “but don’t you think there’s -danger of making the way of religion too easy, so that people will -think they are Christians when they are not?” - -“I don’t think we have any thing to do with making the way hard or -easy. We must take it just as Jesus Christ left it; and he says, ‘I -love them that love me, and those that seek me early shall find me.’ I -don’t read that any thing but repentance and faith in the Saviour, and -renewing by the Holy Spirit, is necessary to be a humble Christian; -and I am sure the Saviour never turned away any one who came to him in -earnest, and wanted to be his disciple. But Willie is getting tired, -and it wont do to talk any longer.” - -The visitor departed, leaving the little invalid weary and feverish, -until soothed by the gentle ministrations of Miss Letty and Elinor -Fenton. Why is it that some individuals, who pass in society for good -people, have the unenviable talent of making every one uncomfortable -with whom they come in contact? Under all the velvet of their -professions, the claws continually lacerate, even while they seem to -caress. There are few communities in which some of these specimens of -humanity may not be found; and it is sad when they wear the garb of -religion, and pretend to be holier than others, while doing the work -of him who has sought from the beginning to foment strife and jealousy -among brethren. - -During the fall, Willie had several attacks of hemorrhage of the -lungs, which rapidly wasted his strength; but he was still the same -happy, trusting, loving boy, enjoying life with all a boy’s enthusiasm, -yet welcoming death with perfect serenity. - -On one of the last days of the Indian summer, when a golden haze lay -on every thing, softening the landscape and giving to autumn more than -the beauty of spring, I was called to see Willie die. I found him -sitting up in bed, gasping for breath, and his forehead damp with the -death-dew; but his eye was still clear, and on his lips was a smile -bright with heaven’s own radiance. “Dear Willie,” I said, “you are -almost home.” - -“O yes, I like this home very much, but that one is better. I am where -Christian was when he began to cross the river, and in a little while I -shall be over.” - -Bunyan’s inimitable allegory was his favorite book, and he had it -almost by heart. While in camp it had been his greatest pleasure to -repeat portions of it to the listening soldiers, by whom “Willie’s -stories” were preferred to any other. And now on his dying-bed the -pilgrim was to him a living friend who had crossed the stream just -before him, and whom he was about to join in the Celestial City. - -“Willie,” said Mr. Ryder, “have you no wish to live?” - -“To live!” he repeated with animation; “why, don’t you know I am just -going to live? Oh, if you could only see what I see, such beautiful -angels with shining wings, and hear the sweet music, you would be -willing to die too, so that you could go and live with them.” - -The eloquence of look and tone with which this was said is -indescribable. He lay quietly for a few moments with closed eyes, then -suddenly turning to Miss Letty, who was weeping, he said, - -“Dear aunty, you told me of Jesus, and taught me how to seek him, and -now I am going to live with him for ever. Perhaps he will let me fly -down to you sometimes, and whisper to you about heaven when you are -sorrowful; I should love to so much. If I could only have seen the -captain and Miss Lilian once more; but no matter, they’ll come, you’ll -all come home by and by.” - -His voice failed, and he seemed almost gone, when raising his hand, he -whispered, - -“They are all coming, mother; it is light, all light;” and then with -one long tremulous sigh, the ransomed spirit fled, leaving the impress -of its happiness. - -We buried him in a quiet spot, selected by himself near his childhood’s -home, and a plain marble slab, with the inscription, “OUR WILLIE,” -marks his resting-place. His drum, a beautiful and richly ornamented -one given him by his regiment after the battle of Malvern Hills, and -which he kept constantly near him through all his illness, was enclosed -in a glass case, and placed at the head of his grave. We shall see -him no more on earth, but the memory of the little drummer-boy is -still cherished in the hearts of many who loved him here, and who hope -to meet him in the better land where “sorrow and parting are sounds -unknown.” - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -HOW THE BOYS CAME HOME. - - -Capt. Lester was carried from the field of Antietam insensible, and -on examination his wounds were pronounced mortal by the physicians, -though no means were left untried to preserve a life so valuable to -his country. A minié ball had passed through his shoulder to the back -of the neck, and at the same time the fragment of a shell struck his -ankle, inflicting a severe wound, and splintering the bone. He lay for -several days in a half-unconscious state--at times, when partially -roused, becoming delirious, then sinking again into a lethargy from -which it was difficult to awaken him. A private house had been hastily -fitted up for the reception of the wounded, and to this he was taken -and made as comfortable as circumstances admitted. - -When Fanny Lester and Lilian reached the end of their journey, they -were at first denied admittance to the hospital; and it was only after -the most strenuous exertions on the part of Mr. Ryder that they were -allowed to see Capt. Lester. - -“I am afraid, my dear young friends,” said the good man, “that you -will not be permitted to remain with him; the military rules are very -strict, and few favors are shown here.” - -“Have no fears on that score, my dear sir,” Lilian replied. “If once we -gain entrance, it will take at least a regiment to dislodge us.” - -It was evening when they entered the room where the sick man lay, -seemingly insensible to every thing around him; and as Lilian -approached, the nurse who had been moistening his lips from time to -time, came forward, and greeting her kindly, offered her a seat by his -side. Though terribly shocked at his death-like appearance, Lilian -was outwardly calm; and taking from the nurse minute directions with -regard to the treatment to be pursued, busied herself in arranging the -dressings and medicines, to conceal the emotion which threatened to -overpower her. - -When this was done, she seated herself by the bedside, and taking the -hand of the wounded man, placed her fingers on his wrist to assure -herself that he still lived, for in that darkened room his sleep so -closely resembled death, that her heart stood still with terror as she -looked upon him. Hardly had she touched his wrist when a perceptible -thrill ran through the veins; there was a slight movement, and then a -faint voice whispered, “Is this Lilian?” - -Too much agitated to reply at once, she gave him the stimulant -prescribed by the nurse, turned up the lamp that she might see his -face, and then said as calmly as she could, - -“Yes, Robert, it is your sister and Lilian, who have come to nurse and -make you well.” - -“Thank God!” was the low response; and then he seemed to sleep again, -while Lilian watched him through the night, glad to find that her young -companion had forgotten her sorrows in refreshing slumber. From that -time Capt. Lester’s symptoms were slightly improved, and he had more -frequent intervals of consciousness, though there were yet but faint -hopes of his recovery. If medical skill and the most assiduous care -could save him, he was certain to recover, for Lilian or Fanny were -with him night and day, anticipating every want, and soothing by their -tender sympathy the sufferings which no skill could wholly relieve. - -For some weeks it was feared by the surgeons that amputation of -the foot must take place; and nothing but the prayers and tears of -Lilian induced them to delay it, until, by the blessing of God on her -exertions, it was no longer deemed necessary. The ball still remained -in his shoulder, and had hitherto eluded search; but it was at length -found and extracted; and from that hour his progress, though slow, was -sure. - -“How is it, Robert,” said Lilian one day, when he was suffering more -than usual from his wounds, “that you are always so cheerful and -patient, though you suffer so much? I have heard that convalescents are -expected to be irritable and capricious, but you do not avail yourself -of the privilege at all. You must be naturally indifferent to pain, or -else you have too much pride to allow it to overcome you; which is it?” - -“Neither the one nor the other, dear Lilian. I have naturally a great -dread of pain, and do not think myself possessed of a large share of -that moral courage in which your sex excel, and which is the only kind -which will bear the test of suffering. As to pride, it is sadly out -of place on a sick-bed, even if it had the power to deaden a sense of -pain, which I very much doubt.” - -“What is it then that makes you so desirable a patient? for, excepting -my aunt, I never saw any one bear pain as you do.” - -“Shall I tell you, my Lilian? It is the taking home to my heart, and -appropriating that precious promise, ‘My grace is sufficient for thee, -for my strength is made perfect in weakness.’ In myself I am all -weakness; but if an almighty arm is underneath and around me, I have -all the strength and support I need. God grant that you may know from -your own experience the blessedness of which I speak.” - -Tears were in the eyes of Lilian as she answered, - -“With such examples as I have had before me, I can never doubt the -reality of the religion of Jesus, and I would give worlds, if I had -them, to feel its power; but it seems impossible for me to obtain such -a blessing.” - -“Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved,” was the -reply. “And now, dear Lilian, I must send you from me to visit our poor -patient up stairs, who needs you even more than I do, if that were -possible.” - -A few days previous to this conversation, Lilian was passing through -one of the rooms in which lay some rebel officers who had been -recently brought in from Virginia. Most of them were hopeless cases, -and the sight was so painful to the young girl, that she passed on -rapidly, until her steps were arrested by the exclamation, “Miss Grey! -can it be possible?” She turned and saw, though she could hardly -recognize in the pallid face and emaciated form before her, Lieut. -Carter, the betrothed of her cousin, the rebel officer whose desertion -of his country’s flag had caused them all so much unhappiness. It was -a very painful meeting to Lilian, and her first impulse was to leave -the room instantly; but death was stamped on every feature of the young -man, and humanity triumphed. She approached the bedside, and said -kindly, - -“Mr. Carter, I can stay but a moment. Is there any thing I can do for -you, or that you wish to say to me?” - -The sick man replied bitterly, - -“I see how it is; you all hate and despise me; but I cannot help it. I -am a Southerner, and would not desert my brethren in arms though I lost -every friend on earth. What I have done I would do again in the same -circumstances.” - -“You are wrong, Hugh,” said Lilian, “none of us hate or despise you, -though the course you have taken has almost broken the hearts of those -who loved you so dearly.” - -“And who love me no longer, you would say. Well, I knew the penalty -when I put on this uniform, and I am not going now to complain of the -cost. I hate the Yankees,” he exclaimed with an energy of which he -seemed incapable, “and the bitterest thought in dying is, that Elinor -has become one of their miserable canting crew; but they have lost -Stanwood; he at least is true to the bonny blue flag.” - -“Not so, Hugh. Stanwood has seen his error, and taken the oath of -allegiance at Washington, and only waits until his wounds are healed to -go home and be reconciled to his family.” - -The sick man turned ghastly pale on hearing this, and an execration -rose to his lips, which was suppressed from deference to Lilian, who -added, - -“You are very ill, Hugh, and thoughts like these are not suited to one -in your condition. Let me beg you to see the chaplain; he is a good -man, and will gladly visit you.” - -“Oh spare me all that stereotyped nonsense,” he exclaimed. “I will die -as I have lived, without the aid of priest or chaplain. If my belief -is correct, I do not need them; and if I am wrong, it is too late to -mend the mistake. I am dying, and you know it; but I will at least -die game: no whining repentance or hypocritical confessions for Hugh -Carter.” - -There seemed little hope of doing him any good in such a state of mind, -and Lilian, feeling her own incompetency to reply to him, sadly turned -away and left the room, while memory went back to other days, when he -who was going into eternity without one ray of light upon his path, had -been to her almost a brother. There was a shadow on her bright face as -she went back to her patient, who instantly saw it, and inquired the -cause, when she related the scene through which she had just passed. -Capt. Lester had formerly known Lieut. Carter, and though no bond of -affinity had ever drawn the young men together, he was greatly shocked -to learn his present condition. - -“I must see him, dear Lilian,” he said; “he may listen to me when he -would not admit a clergyman. It is too dreadful to let him die so, -without making one effort to do him good. Poor Elinor, how could she -bear this?” - -With great difficulty, and on crutches, Capt. Lester made his way to -the bedside of the wounded officer; but the latter refused to converse -with him, declaring that his mind was made up, and he would never be -such a coward as to change his opinions because death was at hand. In -vain he was urged to listen to God’s own words of promise. - -“To those who can believe, all that is well enough; as for me, I have -never feared any thing in life, and cannot begin to tremble now.” - -A few days afterwards he died in the same state of mind, declaring with -his latest breath that he asked no favors at the hands of God or man. - -Elinor was informed of his death, but not of the circumstances -attending it; and thus she was spared the keenest pang of all--that of -knowing that he whom she had once loved and trusted, died without hope. - -One after another our brave boys came back to us from the hospitals, -wounded and disabled, some maimed for life, yet bating no tittle of -courage or faith in the ultimate triumph of the good cause. A part of -the regiment had reënlisted at the expiration of their term of service, -and were with us for a few days, enjoying the sweets of domestic life -after their laborious campaigns. - -It was during their stay that the death of little Willie occurred, and -the drummer-boy was followed to his grave by many of those who knew and -loved him as a son or brother in the camp. There were manly tears shed -around his grave; and one man exclaimed, as the coffin was lowered -from sight, - -“There goes the best boy I ever knew, and I don’t believe he has left -his like behind him.” - -The first snows of winter had fallen on Willie’s grave before Capt. -Lester came back to us, with his sister and a lady whom we had loved as -Lilian Grey, but were now to know as Mrs. Lester. She was well aware -that the prejudices of her uncle and cousin would be shocked by her -marriage away from home and in a hospital; so she said nothing about it -in her letters, believing that her husband could plead his own cause -far better in person than she could do by writing. The event justified -her expectations; for though at first Mr. Fenton was surprised and -angry, the reasons given by Capt. Lester and the persuasions of -his wife soon reconciled him, and even forced him to confess that -it was probably the best thing that could have been done under the -circumstances. Mrs. Fenton, however, would not consent to part with her -niece; so Capt. Lester became an inmate of the family, and soon won the -affection of all its members, while his health improved rapidly, though -the wound in his ankle was still painful and troublesome. - -Soon after Capt. Lester’s return, there came a visitor to the parsonage -whose arrival was warmly welcomed by Mabel, though it caused her tears -to flow afresh. This was the father of Lieut. Wiley, who had taken the -journey for the purpose of becoming acquainted with the bride of his -son, now doubly endeared to him by her early widowhood and sorrow. - -He was a plain New England farmer, cultivating a few acres of hard -soil, from which he managed by unceasing industry to gain a support for -his small family; but he was rich in faith, and his benevolence would -shame that of many a millionaire. His son had left home while still -very young; but he was fondly remembered, and his loss lamented by -the aged pair, who had only one daughter left to be the stay of their -declining years. - -Mr. Wiley went from house to house through the Beach Hill neighborhood, -wherever a disabled soldier or a bereaved wife or mother were to be -found, often accompanied by Mabel, who in her mourning garb looked so -pale and shadowy that we almost expected to see her vanish from our -sight. The old man loved to hear and talk of his dead son; but he loved -still more to speak of Him who died for sinners, and of the heaven to -which his disciples are hastening. It was impossible on such occasions -for the most careless to listen unmoved; and tears were often seen -to steal down the cheeks of bearded men, though all “unused to the -melting mood,” as they heard from his lips the story so often told, yet -ever new, of Gethsemane and Calvary. - -The visit of Mr. Wiley was a blessing to many souls in Woodbury, and -especially to Mabel and Lilian, both of whom made a public profession -of faith in Christ the Sabbath before his departure. When he left for -home, Mabel and her mother went with him, as our physician recommended -a change of scene for the former, whose health was suffering from the -shock she had sustained. - -Capt. Lester had now so far recovered as to walk with only the -assistance of a cane, when, one evening after Lilian had been spending -the day with me, he came in bringing a large package, which he threw -into her lap, saying, “Read that, dear wife, and then tell me what to -do.” - -She opened the envelope and found inclosed a commission as colonel of -a veteran regiment then being raised, with a letter in which flattering -mention was made of Capt. Lester’s services in the army, and the -estimation in which he was held by the chief magistrate of the state. - -Lilian’s eyes sparkled with all a wife’s pride as she read the letter, -and turning to her husband, she said, “There ought to be but one cause -for hesitation on such a subject. If you are well enough to go, you -cannot doubt for a moment your duty to accept it. I would not hold you -back, if I could, and I am certain that I could not, if I would.” - -“Thanks, dear Lilian; I knew your brave and true heart would cheer me -on in the path of duty; but I have been a petted invalid so long, that -I am ashamed to say the thought of leaving all I love was at first -painful to me.” - -“And may I not go with you?” she inquired; “you know how well I can -bear hardships; and I assure you I will take care that you shall find -me no incumbrance.” - -“That you could never be, in any case,” was his reply; “but the coming -campaign is likely to be a fatiguing and perilous one, and besides, I -must not set an example of self-indulgence to the regiment. It would -never do for the colonel to be enjoying the society of his wife, unless -he grants the same privilege to the other officers, and in that case, -I fear we should be in danger of losing the name of the ‘fighting -regiment,’ which the veterans have so nobly earned.” - -“I submit, as in duty bound, to your decision; but I must have a -promise that I may come to you instantly, if at any time you should -need me.” - -The promise was readily given, and Lilian smiled through her tears as -she playfully pictured his helplessness, when he should find himself -thrown once more on his own resources. - -“I know you have almost spoiled me,” he replied in the same tone, “but -the camp is a good school in which to learn to endure hardships and -self-denial, and I am not likely to want for lessons in our present -service.” - -Several members of the Twenty-sixth, when they found that Capt. Lester -was to have the command of a regiment, were transferred, and most of -his field and line officers were old friends and comrades, so we bade -him farewell cheerfully, though his health was not fully reëstablished. - -True to her former professions, Lilian sent him forth with smiles and -blessings; and after his departure, she had always a word of comfort -and cheer for those who had given their household treasures to the -cause of freedom. But the few who knew her intimately, knew that she -shed bitter tears when no eye but that of God was upon her, as she -thought of the perils by which he was surrounded, and which he had -neither the power nor the wish to shun. - -The regiment commanded by Col. Lester was in the second division of -the Sixth corps in the Army of the Potomac, and was stationed near the -enemy’s outposts, so that picket-firing and skirmishing were of daily -occurrence, though there had been no general engagement since the -battle of Gettysburg. - -That grand Army of the Potomac; how my heart thrills as I think or -write of it! Composed, as no other army on earth ever was made up, -save our own noble troops of the West and South-west, of the very -flower of American manhood, with youth, wealth, intellect, and -talent filling its ranks, and yet, by a strange fatality, doomed to -experience unmerited defeats or fruitless victories, it has waited with -a courage and patience truly sublime for the moment of triumph which -is sure to come at last. So often decimated, yet never subdued, but -Antæus-like, gathering fresh vigor from every disaster, they have not -always been able to command success, but they have done more; for they -have deserved it. In the coming time, when this fearful war shall have -passed into history, and our children are reaping its glorious results, -it will be a prouder boast than that of royal lineage to have the right -to say, “My father was a soldier in the Army of the Potomac.” - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -LIGHTS AND SHADOWS. - - -I had been absent from home for several weeks, and after my return, -sickness in the family confined me closely, so that I knew little of -what had been occurring in the neighborhood. Miss Letty, through whom -my information usually came, was seldom seen abroad, to the great -surprise and inconvenience of many families who had learned to look -upon her frequent visits as an indispensable part of their domestic -arrangements. - -“What has happened to Miss Letty?” I inquired of Lilian Lester, at a -meeting of our Aid Society, as I noticed the look of gravity which -seemed strangely out of place on her countenance, usually so cheerful. - -“I am not aware of any cause for it,” Lilian replied, “and yet she -certainly does look as if she were carrying a weight of care. Dear Miss -Letty, I hope nothing has happened to trouble her, for she is so kind -and unselfish that she ought to be very happy.” - -As I left the house, Miss Letty came up, and proposed to accompany me -home, an offer which I gladly accepted, for it was evident that there -was something she wished to communicate, and I hoped, by sharing her -anxieties, to alleviate them. We walked for a few steps in silence, -and then my companion, in an embarrassed tone, very different from her -ordinary manner, inquired, - -“Mrs. Glenn, have you ever seen Mr. Thurston when he has been here -preaching for Mr. Ryder?” - -“Mr. Thurston,” I repeated; “is he the home missionary stationed at -M----, among the mountains? If so, I have seen him, and heard him -preach; but why do you ask that question?” - -Strange to say, I had not a suspicion of the state of affairs, -notwithstanding the confusion of my companion, for I had never heard of -the death of Mr. Thurston’s wife, and therefore was not likely to think -of him in connection with Miss Letty. - -“Why,” she said, “I only wanted to know whether you had ever seen him, -and how you liked him, if you had; for you see he has been over here -several times lately, and called on me with Mr. Ryder, and--pshaw, how -silly I am--well, he has asked me to marry him.” - -Miss Letty actually blushed like a young girl as she made this -confession, which took me so utterly by surprise, that for a moment I -had not a word to say. - -“I see you are astonished at it, and no wonder; I told him that -everybody would wonder that he should offer himself to me, a -seamstress, and without one cent of money in the world; but he only -smiled, and said he wanted a wife for himself, and not to suit the -public; that he didn’t want a young girl, nor a rich wife either, to -look down on him and his poor people.” - -“You are mistaken,” I replied; “it isn’t that which surprised me, but I -had never heard that he was a widower; and then the thought of losing -you is something so new, and not very pleasant, I assure you. What -shall we do without you?” - -“I thought of that,” was the reply, for Miss Letty had too much -simplicity of character to pretend to be ignorant of her importance in -the community, though she was truly humble in her estimate of herself; -“and I told Mr. Thurston I had been here so long, and had got so into -the habit of doing every thing for everybody, that I was afraid they’d -miss me a good deal. But he said if that was the case, I was just the -one for a poor minister, who had to contrive to make ends meet, and -that his children needed me more than the folks in Woodbury did. You -see he just brushed away all my objections like so many cobwebs, so -that I couldn’t say another word.” - -“I am glad he seems to appreciate your worth; if we must give you up, -it will be a comfort to know that you are happy.” - -“Oh, as to that I don’t know; I suppose people at my age haven’t very -romantic notions of happiness; I’m sure I haven’t; but if I can do any -good to one of the Lord’s servants, I shall be glad. But when I think -how much will be expected of me, I am so frightened I feel like giving -it all right up. You see, when I was a child they didn’t care much -about education in our town, and though I’ve picked up some ideas here -and there going through the world, I don’t know very much. Then I’m -plain and homely in my ways, and I’m afraid he’ll be ashamed of me some -time when he sees me by the side of other ministers’ wives; but when I -told him so he only laughed, and said if that was all my difficulty, he -should look on it as settled; so I had to say yes, for he wouldn’t hear -to any thing else.” - -I said every thing in my power to encourage Miss Letty, for I felt that -Mr. Thurston had made a wise choice for himself and his children, and -that our little seamstress, with her fund of good sense, energy, and -activity, and above all, with her unwavering trust in God, would make -a far better wife for a clergyman than many an educated and refined -woman who was deficient in these qualities, as too many are. - -“And how soon are we to lose you?” I inquired; “I trust not -immediately; you must give us a little time to become reconciled to the -thought of such a change.” - -“Mr. Thurston is very anxious that I should go right away; he says -he has been alone so long, and his children need me so much; but I -told him I must see to the work I had on hand, so as to leave you all -comfortable, or I shouldn’t be easy in my mind about going. It’s hard -to leave such friends as I have got here, and to go away from dear -little Willie’s grave too; but Mr. Ryder seems to think it is my duty -to go, because there are so few that would be willing to take such a -place. I don’t see how that can be, for I’m sure Mr. Thurston is one of -the best of men, and I think any woman might be happy with him.” - -From the earnestness with which this was said, I saw that Miss Letty -was really interested in the good minister, and not about to sacrifice -herself from a sense of duty merely; and I was glad to believe -this, for I feared she might not be as comfortable under her new -responsibilities as she had been in Woodbury. - -The wedding took place in church; and after an hour or two spent at -the parsonage, where the friends of the bride called to offer their -congratulations and to bid her good-by, the happy pair left for their -mountain home, from whence we have repeatedly heard of the new Mrs. -Thurston, as useful and beloved beyond any of her predecessors in that -place. - -Mrs. Fenton had been for months rapidly failing, and her symptoms were -now such as to indicate a speedy release from her sufferings. She was -intensely anxious to see her long-absent son once more on earth, and -this strong maternal feeling seemed actually to hold back the spirit, -already pluming its wings for flight. “I shall not die till I have seen -him again,” was her constant reply to the inquiries of her friends. “He -will come in time to receive my parting breath, and I am content.” - -Stanwood Fenton had never recovered from the wound received at South -Mountain, and after months of terrible agony, had recently been -obliged to submit to amputation of the hand as the only means of -saving his life. He was now recovering slowly, and had been sent to -the convalescent camp, when a letter from Elinor informed him of -the condition of his mother. In spite of the remonstrances of his -physicians he obtained, through the influence of Col. Lester, a -dismissal from the camp, and started for home under the care of Capt. -May, a former member of the Twenty-sixth, and now commander of a -company in Col. Lester’s regiment, who had a furlough in consequence of -ill health. - -Mrs. Fenton had seemed to be in a dying state for several hours, but -her frequent inquiries showed us that she still expected the arrival of -her son, though no word had reached her of his intention to start for -home. - -“It is my only earthly care,” she said, “and I think my Father will -grant me this request.” - -She had been apparently sleeping, and all was perfectly still in and -around the house, when suddenly starting and opening her eyes, she -exclaimed, “He is coming; I hear the wheels; he is almost here; thank -God.” - -None of us could hear a sound; but the mother’s ears, quickened by -affection, caught the distant rumbling, though the moment before death -seemed about to close them for ever. A few moments brought the carriage -to the door, and Elinor and Lilian flew to meet and welcome the -returning wanderer. - -“Is my mother still living?” was his first inquiry; and on receiving an -answer in the affirmative, the strength which had sustained him on the -way suddenly deserted him. He sank into a chair, and covering his face, -gave way for a few moments to the emotions which shook his frame, while -Elinor threw her arms around his neck, and wept silently. But Lilian, -who knew the anxiety of her dying aunt, said tenderly, - -“Dear cousin, this will never do. Think of your mother, whose life -is now counted by moments, and who is waiting for you. All your -strength will be needed for this interview, and you must be calm, since -agitation might be instantly fatal to her.” - -“I know it,” was his reply, “and you shall see me a man again soon; but -I have feared the worst all the way home, and the revulsion of feeling -overcame me at first. May you never know, dear girls, what it is to -have remorse added to the sorrow of such an hour as this.” - -The interview between the dying mother and her erring, but penitent -son, was witnessed only by members of the family; and at its close, -she was so exhausted as to be almost insensible. But the lamp of life -burned up brightly once more before going out for ever. She bade us all -farewell, with a few tender and appropriate words to each; then turning -to her son, who was kneeling at the bedside, with his face buried in -the pillows, she said, as she laid her cold hand upon his head, “My -dear boy, I once asked for you in my blindness length of days and -temporal prosperity. Now I trust I have sought better things of God for -you; but you must seek him for yourself, or you will never see his face -in peace. With my dying breath I charge you, make it the business of -your life to meet me in heaven.” - -After a few loving words to her husband, Elinor, and Lilian, with a -kind message to Col. Lester, she said, in a voice clear and distinct as -in health, - -“I wish to give it as my dying testimony to all here present, that -not one good thing has ever failed in my experience, of all that the -Lord has spoken. The religion of the Bible has been to me an infinite -blessing. I have lived on it for years, and it has supported me in -suffering and sorrow, and now I am dying in perfect peace; for Jesus is -with me, and his rod and staff, they comfort me.” - -Her voice died away, but the smile on her countenance was like the dawn -of heaven in its brightness; and it may have been the reflection of -that radiance, for before her words had ceased to echo in that hushed -chamber, the spirit had escaped from its wasted tenement, and was -already rejoicing before the throne of God. - -Col. Lester came home to see her buried, but stayed only a few days, -as active service was soon expected. He was in good health, and seemed -very happy, and as Lilian was to return with him to Washington, there -was nothing to mar her enjoyment of his brief visit. After their -departure, Elinor and her brother were very lonely, and Capt. May, -whose leave of absence had been extended, was a frequent visitor at the -Tyrrell House, and a great favorite with all its inmates, from Mr. -Fenton down to Mammy Venus, and Pete recently promoted to the dignity -of coachman. - -To know Elinor Fenton intimately was to love her, and the young soldier -found, before he had dreamed of danger, that his heart was no longer in -his own possession. He could not with propriety make known his feelings -to Elinor so soon after her bereavement, but from his friend Stanwood -he received all the encouragement which a brother’s best wishes could -give; and when he rejoined his regiment, he carried with him a hope -which brightened his darkest hours, and made every hardship seem light. - -Young Fenton had been at home but a few months before he became a -universal favorite, as we discovered the acquisition we had made in -his society. He was ardent, impulsive, and generous even to a fault, -and possessed the best traits of Southern character, with an ingenuous -frankness peculiarly his own. Often led astray by the warmth of his -feelings, he was quick to perceive and retract his errors, and eager to -make reparation for them. It was impossible to associate with Stanwood -Fenton without being constantly reminded of the Saviour’s remark to the -young man who came to him, and who awoke so deep an interest in his -benevolent heart: “One thing thou lackest.” Deep religious principle -was the one thing wanting in his character, the balance-wheel without -which his movements were erratic and uncertain, guided rather by the -impulse of the moment than by any sense of accountability to God. - -His original plan had been to enter the Union army as soon as possible -after the death of his mother, but his health had suffered greatly -from long confinement in the hospital; and the loss of his hand, -together with the entreaties of his father and sister, induced him to -relinquish the idea, and devote himself to the care of his father’s -business, which had suffered from neglect. The light came back to -Elinor’s eye, and the bloom to her cheek, as she saw her brother once -more in his proper place at home; and though her beloved mother was -still fondly remembered and her loss deplored, it was with a chastened -sorrow, as she felt that for her to die had been great gain. - -Winter, with its storms and sunshine, its triumphs and reverses, wore -away at length, and with the first blossoms of May Lilian came back -to us, more welcome to our hearts than the breath of spring or the -fragrance of forest flowers. She was accompanied by Captain, now Major -May, who was on the staff of Gen. Lester, and who eagerly availed -himself of an opportunity to revisit the spot where his earthly hopes -were centred. During her stay at the head-quarters of her husband, -Lilian had learned to appreciate the worth of the young _aide-de-camp_, -and ardently hoped he might be successful in his suit. Why should I -narrate the progress of events? It was the same old story repeated -once again, a tale as old as the history of the race, yet new in the -experience of every human heart--the story of faithful love meeting its -reward at last in the affection of the beloved object. As Elinor heard -from her cousin the recital of the gallant exploits of Major May, of -his courage and devoted loyalty, she loved him not only “for the perils -he had passed,” but for the high principle which had thus far shielded -him from the peculiar temptations of a soldier’s life; and before his -departure he won from her a promise, that when the war was ended, or -his term of service expired, he might claim his reward. - -Months have passed, and still the cloud of war overshadows the land, -and still our beloved ones are absent from us, some with the heroic -Sherman in Northern Georgia, scaling the heights of Kennesaw and -Lookout mountains, and driving the eagle from his eyrie, as they plant -the stars and stripes among the clouds; some are in the sultry swamps -and bayous of Louisiana, exposed to a foe more insidious and deadly -than the rebel armies; and others, among whom are our best and bravest, -are swelling the ranks which threaten the Confederate capital. - - “The time has come when brothers must fight - And sisters must pray at home.” - -But while we look up to Him who alone can send help and deliverance, -it is our privilege to labor as well as to pray, and while we wait -upon God, to watch for every opportunity of doing whatever our hands -find to do in the good cause, with our whole heart. - -The heavens are dark above us, and the earth rocks wildly under our -feet, but God has a divine purpose underlying all these convulsions, -and it is fixed and immutable as his throne. Faith sees in the -overturnings around us the majestic march of his providence, preparing -a way in the tempest, and making the wrath of man to praise him, while -he restrains the remainder thereof. - -It is good for us sometimes, when hope deferred makes the heart sick, -to go back to first principles, that we may gather strength from a -review of our past history and of God’s dealings with us as a nation. - -The American republic was unique in its inception and establishment. -The pilgrim band who came to New England in the Mayflower were not -a company of commercial adventurers, led hither by the hope of gain; -still less were they a party of military freebooters, actuated by the -lust of conquest, like the Spaniards, who carried fire and sword among -the unoffending inhabitants of Southern America. The principle which -led those noble men and women to forsake kindred and home, and to brave -the perils of a howling wilderness, and which sustained them amid all -their privations and sufferings, was not earthly or perishable. It -was the burning, quenchless thirst for religious liberty, the strong -determination to worship God according to the dictates of their own -conscience, though the roof of their temple were the boundless sky and -their altar the rough stones of the forest, that actuated the founders -of this republic in their sublime enterprise. - -They came to these wilds of nature that they might found a colony -and build up a church, and advance the interests of the Redeemer’s -kingdom, and serve as stepping-stones to others in the great work of -human progress. And never has the divine declaration, “Them that honor -me I will honor,” been more signally fulfilled than in the growth of -the infant nation thus established. Every step of the way in which, -as a people, we have been led, from the landing on Plymouth rock to -the proud position which we have hitherto occupied among the nations, -has been marked by special interpositions of Providence, no less real, -though less miraculous, than the pillar of cloud and flame which guided -the ancient Israelites to the land of promise. - -But in our prosperity we have forgotten the Rock whence we were hewn, -and have rebelled against our father’s God, and refused to obey -his commands, until in his righteous indignation he has come out in -judgment against us, and left us to our own ways and to eat the fruit -of our own devices. As a nation we have deeply sinned. As a nation we -are suffering a fearful punishment. - -But let not the enemies of liberty in the old world or the new, exult -in the belief that the republic is about to be rent in fragments, -and the last hope of the oppressed millions of Europe to be for -ever entombed. We are bearing the indignation of the Lord because -we have sinned against him; but when his purposes concerning us are -accomplished, he will arise to execute judgment for us. - -No careful observer of God’s providence can doubt that he has reserved -America for a grand destiny--that our country has a mission to -perform of the sublimest import, and a grand agency to exert in the -regeneration of the world. - -If we read aright the divine purpose in reference to this nation, and -the historical causes here concentrating, we must believe that the -vital forces inherent in our government and institutions will, with -the blessing of God, master all the antagonisms now threatening their -overthrow; and that, having passed through this baptism of blood and -fire, we shall emerge cleansed and purified, and stand as a beacon -light to the struggling nations of the old world, until suffering -humanity everywhere, regenerated and redeemed, shall rejoice in one -grand jubilee of liberty, Christianity, and universal brotherhood. - - - - -Beautiful Books - -FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH. - -AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, 150 NASSAU-STREET, NEW YORK. - - -=Flowers of Spring-time.= Combining amusement and instruction in most -attractive forms. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online -at <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> - -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: Our Village in War-time</p> -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Sarah Towne Martyn</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: March 4, 2022 [eBook #67562]</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</p> - <p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left'>Produced by: David E. Brown and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)</p> -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OUR VILLAGE IN WAR-TIME ***</div> - -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/cover.jpg" width="40%" alt="" /></div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/i_002.jpg" alt="" /></div> -</div> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/i_title.jpg" alt="" /></div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="titlepage"> -<h1>OUR VILLAGE<br /> - -<span class="small">IN</span><br /> - -WAR-TIME.</h1> - -<p>BY THE AUTHOR OF<br /> -<span class="large">ALLAN CAMERON, ILVERTON RECTORY,<br /> -ETC.</span></p> - -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/i_titlelogo.jpg" alt="" /></div> - -<p>PUBLISHED BY THE<br /> -<span class="large">AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY,</span><br /> -150 NASSAU-STREET, NEW YORK.</p> -</div> - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<div class="blockquot"> -<p>The incidents in the following narrative are real, and -have actually occurred in the present struggle for our -national life, though not precisely in the order here indicated. -Liberty has been taken in locating and arranging -them, and names and places are assumed.</p> - - - -<p><span class="smcap">Entered</span> according to Act of Congress, in the year 1864, by the -<span class="smcap">American Tract Society</span>, in the Clerk’s Office of the District Court -of the United States for the Southern District of New York.</p> -</div> - -</div> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<h2 class="nobreak">CONTENTS.</h2> -</div> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2" summary="table"> - -<tr><td class="tdc" colspan="2">CHAPTER I.</td></tr> - -<tr><td>The Beach Hill neighborhood</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_5"> 5</a></td></tr> - - -<tr><td class="tdc" colspan="2">CHAPTER II.</td></tr> - -<tr><td>The Soldiers’ Aid Society</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_17"> 17</a></td></tr> - - -<tr><td class="tdc" colspan="2">CHAPTER III.</td></tr> - -<tr><td>The departure of the regiment</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_35"> 35</a></td></tr> - - -<tr><td class="tdc" colspan="2">CHAPTER IV.</td></tr> - -<tr><td>The drummer-boy of the Twenty-sixth</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_50"> 50</a></td></tr> - - -<tr><td class="tdc" colspan="2">CHAPTER V.</td></tr> - -<tr><td>How the boys came home</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_80"> 80</a></td></tr> - - -<tr><td class="tdc" colspan="2">CHAPTER VI.</td></tr> - -<tr><td>Lights and shadows</td><td class="tdr"><a href="#Page_102"> 102</a></td></tr> -</table> - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_5">[5]</span> - -<p class="ph2">OUR VILLAGE IN WAR-TIME.</p> - -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER I.<br /> - - -<span class="small">THE BEACH HILL NEIGHBORHOOD.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p>“<span class="smcap">Would</span> you believe it, Mrs. Glenn, -the Tyrrell House is sold, and a family is -going to move into it right away? The -painters and carpenters have been there -for a week. I didn’t know the house, it -looked so lively. It seems too bad to -have that place shut up from the public, -for we all enjoyed it so much; but I suppose -the owner had the best right to it, -after all. I haven’t found out who the -family are, but I shall hear all about it -to-morrow, and then I will let you know; -for Aunt Prudence is going there to clean<span class="pagenum" id="Page_6">[6]</span> -the rooms, and get them ready for the -furniture.”</p> - -<p>As Miss Letty paused to take breath, -I expressed my interest in the news, -which, to confess the truth, had affected -me rather unpleasantly.</p> - -<p>The Tyrrell House was the “show-place” -of Beach Hill, a rambling, aristocratic -mansion, built by a wealthy Englishman, -who, after a series of domestic -troubles, shut up the house in disgust, -and left the country. It was his wish -that no one should reside there; consequently -the house was out of repair, and -the extensive grounds, laid out originally -by a landscape gardener, were overrun -with weeds. Still it was a lovely spot, -and the dwellers on the hill held annual -picnics there, and lovers strolled through -its shaded walks by moonlight, and altogether -we had come to look upon it as -public property, held for our special benefit.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_7">[7]</span> -Great was our astonishment, therefore, -when we heard that the house had -been purchased, and was fitting up for a -family, who were to take immediate possession. -It was felt by us almost as a -personal loss; and woe to the new-comers, -should they fail to atone by the charms -of their society for the deprivation we -were to suffer.</p> - -<p>Not that we were an inhospitable or -quarrelsome set of people. On the contrary, -we prided ourselves on the possession -of the opposite qualities. If there -were in the town of Woodbury a model -neighborhood, we believed it to be located -on Beach Hill. Ours was a very select -society, reckoning among its members -the clergyman, lawyer, doctor, and editor -of the town, and a number of gentlemen -of wealth and leisure, as well as -some who led the dubious sort of existence -called “living by one’s wits.” We<span class="pagenum" id="Page_8">[8]</span> -assumed, however, no airs of superiority -over our townsmen, but were content to -manifest our self-complacency by a quietly -patronizing manner whenever we -met them. In such a community as this, -it may be supposed the arrival of a new -family was quite an event, particularly as -they were about to occupy the best house -in the town.</p> - -<p>The next day I was very busy at home, -and had forgotten the coming event, when -just at evening Miss Letty made her appearance, -every line of her face instinct -with news which her tongue was eager to -communicate.</p> - -<p>Miss Letty Brown was the dressmaker -<i>par excellence</i> of the town of Woodbury; -and though we of the Hill had tried hard -to appropriate her, it was found an impossibility, -so we were fain to share her -services with the inhabitants of the village. -She was a cheerful, active little<span class="pagenum" id="Page_9">[9]</span> -woman, of an uncertain age, with a fresh, -breezy atmosphere always about her, -which stirred one very pleasantly—a -little given to gossip, yet no scandal-monger, -but a sincere, earnest Christian, -loving God and her fellow-men, and looking -persistently on the bright side of every -thing. No matter how dark the day, -Miss Letty firmly believed in the sunshine -behind the clouds, and waited for -it to break through. Her services were -in constant requisition on every occasion; -and as she was brimming over with what -the Yankees call “faculty,” nothing that -skill and ingenuity could accomplish came -amiss to her.</p> - -<p>Hardly was the neat white sun-bonnet -laid aside, when she exclaimed,</p> - -<p>“Well, it’s really wonderful how things -do come about in this world. There’s -old Mr. Tyrrell thought he’d cut off his -daughter with a shilling, and now her<span class="pagenum" id="Page_10">[10]</span> -grandson has come into possession of the -house and land.”</p> - -<p>“How is that?” I asked; “is this new -family connected with the Tyrrells?”</p> - -<p>“Oh yes; Aunt Prudence has told me -all about it. Mr. Fenton, the gentleman -who has bought the property, is the grandson -of Emily Tyrrell that was, and he -has lived in Alabama a great many years. -It seems he is a strong Union man; and -when this rebellion broke out, he got into -trouble, and has been all this time trying -to get away; and now the family have -come, but he stays behind to try and -save some more of his money. Mrs. -Fenton is very sick, and has been for a -great while; but there is a grown-up -daughter and another young lady, a -niece, who is said to be an heiress, and a -son, who I rather think is in the rebel -army, though there isn’t much said -about it.”</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_11">[11]</span>“Are the family coming immediately?” -I inquired, for Miss Letty’s account -had awakened my interest in these refugees -from rebel tyranny.</p> - -<p>“They are expected every day, but -I’m sure the house is any thing but ready -for them. When I heard about the poor -sick lady, I felt like taking right hold -and putting things to rights; but it would -not have been taken kindly by Aunt -Prudence, so I held my tongue. Mrs. -Ryder and Mabel were there, seeing to -the furniture and pictures, for it seems -that when Mr. Ryder went south for his -health, three years ago, he got acquainted -with this family, and that is the way they -found out that the house was for sale and -got it. There was quite a company of -Beach Hill people there, and among -the rest Robert Lester, the fine-looking -young lawyer. I don’t often take a -fancy to young men—you needn’t smile,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_12">[12]</span> -Nellie—but I do like that young man -wonderfully. There’s something so noble -about him; and yet he’s as gentle as -a woman.”</p> - -<p>I assented cordially to Miss Letty’s -praise of the young lawyer, for he had -been a favorite of mine from his first appearance -in our town. He was alone in -the world, having no relatives but one -sister, who was at a boarding-school at -some distance from Woodbury. His legal -knowledge and splendid powers as a -speaker made him a marked man in the -community, and he was rising rapidly in -his profession, while his private character, -so pure and manly, won the esteem -and friendship of all.</p> - -<p>Unlike too many young men, Mr. Lester -had not been ashamed to avow himself -a Christian by a public profession of -his faith in Jesus; and young as he was, -Mr. Ryder had found him an efficient<span class="pagenum" id="Page_13">[13]</span> -helper in every good word and work, -while even infidels and scoffers were compelled -to admire his consistency and firmness -of principle.</p> - -<p>When the war broke out, and with -thousands of others the young men of -our village sprang to arms, we expected -Robert Lester would be one of the first -to go, for all knew his patriotic devotion -to the cause of liberty; but to our surprise -he did not enlist, though he looked -sad enough when the first company -marched away, carrying with them our -best wishes and prayers for their success. -He was not a man whom one would like -to question about his reasons for any -course of conduct, so we waited to hear -what he would say, but he said nothing.</p> - -<p>The second company went, and still -no word from him, though his efforts to -promote the good cause were laborious -and incessant. There was some mystery<span class="pagenum" id="Page_14">[14]</span> -about it, for when urged to accept the -command of a company, he replied hastily,</p> - -<p>“Do not ask it. I would give ten of -the best years of my life to be able to -say yes, but I cannot go. I can help to -send others, however, and that I am doing -with all my heart.”</p> - -<p>In fact his purse was always open, -and as his fortune was large, the streams -of his benevolence flowed in various channels, -making glad many a heart which -the war had made desolate.</p> - -<p>Mr. Ryder our excellent minister, Dr. -Goodhue our physician, and Mr. Reed, -a thin, pale young man, who edited the -Woodbury Chronicle, were all of opinion -that Mr. Lester had good reasons for -staying at home, and the rest of us were -satisfied to adopt their belief, though we -felt that he had lost a glorious opportunity -of becoming a hero.</p> - -<p>Before leaving, Miss Letty informed<span class="pagenum" id="Page_15">[15]</span> -me in confidence that the new family -were to be invited to the meeting of the -Soldiers’ Aid Society at Mrs. Atlee’s, -and that then we should know whether -they sympathized with the government, -or were at heart secessionists.</p> - -<p>“Not that I think there’s any doubt -about it,” she said; “for if they had -liked the rebellion, they could have -staid there, you know. But it’s always -best to have things clear, and it’s hard -to satisfy some people.”</p> - -<p>This was a fact which could not be -denied, even in our neighborhood, and I -contented myself with inquiring if any -one besides Mr. Ryder had seen the -Fentons.</p> - -<p>“I don’t know, but I had my thoughts -about it, when I saw Mr. Lester looking -so sharp at the portraits of the family -which are hung up. There was one of a -young girl, the prettiest thing I ever set<span class="pagenum" id="Page_16">[16]</span> -eyes on; it was so beautiful it spoilt all -the rest. Her eyes were just like stars, -and such lovely curls of brown hair falling -over her white neck and shoulders; -but the sweet look on her face was better -than all. I’m sure I should love that -girl, and I guess Mr. Lester thought so -too, from the way he kept going back to -it again and again, as if he couldn’t get -away, looking all the while so melancholy. -One thing I’m sure of,” added -Miss Letty as she rose to go; “that -young man hasn’t got any thing to be -ashamed of; for if ever there was an honest -and brave soul looking out through a -face, his is the one, and I’d trust him -with the last cent I had in the world.”</p> - -<p>With this emphatic declaration Miss -Letty took her leave, and the last I saw -of the white sun-bonnet, it was disappearing -among the shrubbery at the parsonage.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_17">[17]</span> - -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER II.<br /> - - -<span class="small">THE SOLDIERS’ AID SOCIETY.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="smcap">The</span> new-comers were at length settled -in their pleasant home. The neighbors -had all called, and were received -with a courtesy and kindness which won -golden opinions from every one.</p> - -<p>Mrs. Fenton was a confirmed invalid, -never leaving her apartment; but the -peace of God, which like a river flowed -through her soul, filled the room with sunshine. -In early life she had been a proud, -ambitious woman, valuing wealth and social -distinction above all things else, and -anxious only that her children should -shine in the circles of fashion to which she -belonged. But in the midst of her career -the hand of God was laid upon her, and -in the solitude of a sick-room she was<span class="pagenum" id="Page_18">[18]</span> -forced to think. Through the prayers -and efforts of a faithful Christian friend -she was brought to look to Jesus for pardoning -and healing mercy, and after a -season of deep mental anguish, during -which all the waves and billows of divine -wrath seemed rolling over her, she found -refuge at last at the foot of the cross, and -was enabled to say from the heart, “I -know in whom I have believed.”</p> - -<p>For ten years since that hour she had -been confined to her couch with a hopeless -disease, often racked with intense -agony, yet always the same patient, uncomplaining -sufferer, always calm and -happy, with a heart full of love and pity -for every form of human sorrow. By -her household she was looked upon as a -guardian spirit, rather than a helpless -dependent. Every disputed question -was referred to her decision, and whatever -storms invaded the domestic circle,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_19">[19]</span> -“mother’s room” was always a place of -refuge, which seemed to her children the -dearest spot on earth.</p> - -<p>Elinor Fenton the daughter was a delicate, -graceful girl, inheriting her mother’s -gentleness and refinement, but with -the shadow of a deep sorrow always visible -on her sweet face. That there was -a son we knew, but nothing was ever -said of him, and we could easily believe -that his desertion of the Union cause, the -uncertainty of her father’s fate, and the -illness of her mother, must exert a depressing -influence on one so young, even -before we heard the saddest part of her -story. The wealth of her affections had -been bestowed on one who seemed fully -worthy of them, but when the day of trial -came he was found wanting. He was -one of the first to enter the rebel army, -and his influence over young Fenton had -led the latter to adopt the same course.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_20">[20]</span> -Thus doubly bereft of lover and brother, -the young girl devoted herself to her suffering -mother; but her heart was open -as the day “to melting charity,” and -none ever appealed to her in vain for -sympathy or relief.</p> - -<p>When I first went to the house, I saw -only Mrs. Fenton and Elinor, but my interest -in both was so much excited that -the call was soon repeated, and on my -second visit Mrs. Fenton said to her -daughter,</p> - -<p>“Elinor, where is your cousin? Go, -my love, and tell Lilian I wish to see her -here.”</p> - -<p>Elinor left the room, and soon returned, -accompanied by a young girl whom -she introduced as Miss Grey, and in -whom I recognized the original of the -pleasing portrait I had seen. She was -indeed most attractive in face and person; -bright, sparkling, and intellectual,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_21">[21]</span> -with a world of thought and feeling in -her full hazel eye, shaded by long silken -lashes, and an equal amount of firmness -and energy indicated by the finely moulded -mouth and chin.</p> - -<p>After paying her respects to me as a -stranger, she seated herself on an ottoman -by the side of the couch, and taking -one thin, white hand of the invalid, -laid her cheek on it in a caressing way, -which was evidently the expression of a -tender and loving nature.</p> - -<p>“And what has my Lilian been about -all the morning,” said Mrs. Fenton, “that -I have seen nothing of her before?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, dear aunt, I have been very busy, -I assure you. Venus wanted me in the -kitchen a while, for she was afraid her -preserves were in danger of spoiling. -Then I gave little Pete his daily lesson; -and last, not least, had to prepare some -work to take to the society to-morrow.”</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_22">[22]</span>“Then you are going to our meeting?” -I said; “I am very glad to hear that, for -somehow I feared we should not have -the pleasure of seeing you young ladies -there.”</p> - -<p>“You do not know our Lilian,” said -her aunt fondly, “or you would have no -doubts on such a subject. She is a perfect -enthusiast in the Union cause, and I -am afraid she has almost wished herself -capable of bearing arms in its defence. -However that may be, she honors a soldier -with all her heart, and would gladly -devote herself in any way to do him good. -As for my Elinor,” she added, turning -with a smile to her daughter, “she is no -less loyal than her cousin, though not -quite so demonstrative naturally, and -tied to a sick mother who can hardly -live without her. But you will see them -both to-morrow, for the cause is dear to -us all.”</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_23">[23]</span>When I left the house, Lilian Grey -accompanied me to the door, and taking -my hand, said with a frankness that was -very captivating,</p> - -<p>“Mrs. Glenn, my aunt has taken a -great fancy to you; and if there were no -other reason, we should love you for that. -Now I want to ask as a great favor, that -you will take Elinor and myself under -your wing to-morrow, for we cannot help -dreading the battery of eyes and tongues -that we must encounter. I dare say you -are no worse here than other people, and -perhaps a great deal better, but as Venus -says, ‘There’s no accounting for human -nature,’ and strangers usually have -to run the gauntlet in order to gain the -freedom of any country town.”</p> - -<p>I kissed the fair cheek that was glowing -like a rose, and promised my best -services on the morrow.</p> - -<p>There was a very full meeting of the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_24">[24]</span> -Soldiers’ Aid Society, for it was hoped -that the strangers would attend, and all -were anxious to meet them. I went early, -and found Mrs. Ryder, our president, and -Miss Letty Brown busied in cutting and -fitting garments; while in the two rooms -needles and tongues were equally active.</p> - -<p>It was not long before Miss Fenton -and her cousin came in, for they had -none of that petty pride which leads its -possessor to despise punctuality as a vulgar -virtue. They were both more plainly -dressed than most of the young ladies -present; but though simple and unaffected -in manner, there was an innate -dignity and refinement about them which -effectually repelled impertinence, and disappointed -a few who were prepared, in -their own elegant phraseology, “to find -out all about them.” There was one woman, -however, who was not to be foiled in -this determination.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_25">[25]</span>Mrs. Flint was the widow of a worthy -man, who is said to have been worried -out of existence by his disconsolate partner, -and none who knew her could question -the probability of such a catastrophe. -Her manner was always deprecating; -her step, true to her nature, was soft and -stealthy, and her voice carefully modulated -to express only amiability; but -there was a rigidity about the thin lips -and a sharp glitter in the cold blue eye -which told quite another story.</p> - -<p>Greatly to the annoyance of our good -pastor and his wife, Mrs. Flint arrogated -to herself the office of adviser in all matters -relating to the church; and as she -could talk fluently, and call up tears from -some hidden fountain on all proper occasions, -some ignorant people looked on her -as quite a saint, while those who knew -her best regarded her as a scheming, dangerous -woman, the female counterpart of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_26">[26]</span> -Bunyan’s Talkative. She had exerted -herself to the utmost to get the management -of the Society, and especially of its -funds, into her own hands; and failing -in this, had left us in disgust, and for -months had not attended our meetings, -until brought out by curiosity on the -present occasion.</p> - -<p>Mabel Ryder had drawn Elinor away -into a circle of young ladies; but Lilian, -who had been consulting Miss Letty about -her work, was sitting alone, and to her -Mrs. Flint cautiously made her way. -After a few commonplace remarks, she -said in her softest tone, “I am very happy -to see you here, of course, but I hardly -expected that you Southerners would be -willing to help us fight against your own -brethren.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know,” was the spirited reply, -“whom you mean by my brethren. -I am an American, and love my whole<span class="pagenum" id="Page_27">[27]</span> -country and the dear old flag better than -my life. There is as much Northern -blood in my veins as Southern, and if it -were not so, I should feel just as I do -now. No one could be any thing to me -who wished to break up and destroy the -best government ever formed by man. -I never see a soldier who has fought for -his country without feeling as if I wished -to speak to him as a friend; and I count -it an honor to do any thing, no matter -how humble, that can add to his comfort.”</p> - -<p>The dark eyes flashed and the red lips -trembled with the earnestness of her feelings; -and any one but Mrs. Flint would -have retired from the field; but she only -answered with perfect coolness,</p> - -<p>“I admire your patriotism, but when -we think what a terrible thing war is, -and how many precious lives are thrown -away, we cannot help being willing to -do any thing for peace.”</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_28">[28]</span>“I do not consider war as the worst -of all evils,” replied Lilian, “dreadful as -it is. There are times in the history of -all nations, when liberty can only be preserved -by fighting for it, and I believe -God hates a guilty peace, even more than -the desolations of war. Storms are very -useful and salutary things,” she added -with a smile, “though they often make -sad havoc of property and life. None -can mourn more than I do the loss of -the glorious dead, who have fallen in the -cause of freedom; but it is far better to -die so than to live cowards or traitors.”</p> - -<p>Clearly there was nothing to be made -out of Lilian Grey, and Mrs. Flint looked -about for Elinor; but Mabel Ryder was -on her guard, and gave no opportunity -for an attack in that direction. So our -Beach Hill diplomat was silent for a -time, but during the afternoon I heard -her in discussion with Miss Letty on<span class="pagenum" id="Page_29">[29]</span> -some subject which seemed to interest -the latter very deeply. I only caught -the conclusion of Mrs. Flint’s remarks. -“Such things seem to me very singular, -to say the least.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I’m very thankful that I -haven’t the faculty of seeing singular -things that some folks seem to have. I -always thought that this was a land of liberty, -and that men could go into the army -and fight, or stay at home and help others -to go, just as they thought right, without -being called to an account for it. Mr. -Lester is able to take care of himself, -and doesn’t need my help; but I hate -this mousing round after characters, just -as if they were bits of cheese.”</p> - -<p>“But you must acknowledge,” answered -the purring voice again, “that there’s -a mystery about this young man, and -that is always against any one.”</p> - -<p>“Fiddlesticks on your mystery. I<span class="pagenum" id="Page_30">[30]</span> -sha’n’t acknowledge any such thing. In -the first place, I don’t call every thing -a mystery that I can’t see through; for if -I did, there’d be no end of mysteries, -seeing I can understand but very little. -In the next place, supposing there is a -mystery, it may be a good one; for I suppose -there can be good mysteries as well -as bad ones in this world.”</p> - -<p>“I have been told on very good authority,” -persisted Mrs. Flint, “that Mr. -Lester has been much at the South, and -he may have his own private reasons for -not wishing to fight the rebels.”</p> - -<p>“And if he has,” replied Miss Letty, -“I dare say they are honorable ones, -and if they satisfy him, I don’t see what -business ’tis of ours. When I get a person -marked down in my book as pure -gold, I a’n’t always going over them with -a magnifying-glass to see if I can’t find -a flaw somewhere. If there are things<span class="pagenum" id="Page_31">[31]</span> -about them I don’t understand, I take it -for granted they’re of a piece with those -that I do understand, and so it never -troubles me a bit.”</p> - -<p>“I know he is a great favorite of yours, -and you can’t see any faults in him; but -for my part, I never had clear evidence -of his being a Christian.”</p> - -<p>“And pray, what kind of evidence do -you want?” inquired Miss Letty, with more -asperity of tone than I had ever heard -from her before. “If humbly trusting in -Christ, feeding the hungry, clothing the -naked, and taking care of widows and orphans, -isn’t religion, what is? Mr. Lester -is always on hand when any thing good -is going forward in the church, though he -doesn’t pray at the corners of the streets, -like the Pharisees, nor say to everybody, -by his looks and actions, ‘See how good -I am.’ I think though, that he follows -his Master a great deal nearer than some<span class="pagenum" id="Page_32">[32]</span> -who try to make out that their little tallow -dip is a splendid Drummond light. -But bless me, Mrs. Flint, you’re sewing -that sleeve in wrong-side out. It wont -do to talk about our neighbors and sew -for the soldiers at the same time.”</p> - -<p>With this home-thrust Miss Letty left -the room, while we all inwardly rejoiced -that Mrs. Flint had been silenced by one -whom she regarded as so greatly her inferior.</p> - -<p>After tea all work was laid aside, and -the gentlemen one after another came in, -until the rooms were filled, and the evening -was spent in social enjoyment. It -was remarked by all that Robert Lester -and Miss Grey did not meet as strangers, -though there was evident constraint -in the manner of both. Lilian changed -color, and seemed about to retreat when -he approached her; and on his part, -though remarkable for his power of self-control,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_33">[33]</span> -there was something in his appearance -none had ever seen before. -They had evidently known each other -previously, and met now on a different -footing from that of mere acquaintance. -A dozen pair of eyes were upon them, -and the situation was becoming embarrassing -enough, when Elinor Fenton came -to the rescue of her cousin, and entering -into conversation with Mr. Lester, drew -attention from Lilian, who took refuge -among a group of young persons surrounding -the piano.</p> - -<p>When the company were about to separate, -I chanced to be in the dressing-room, -when as Lilian entered the hall I -heard Mr. Lester say to her,</p> - -<p>“Lilian, will you not allow me to accompany -you home?”</p> - -<p>“Certainly not,” was the hasty reply; -“my aunt has sent the carriage for us, -and I prefer riding with Elinor.”</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_34">[34]</span>“Permit me at least to see you to the -carriage,” he said almost humbly, and I -felt hurt at her cold rejection of his offer.</p> - -<p>“There is no necessity for it,” she said. -“Pete is here, and he is accustomed to -the duty.”</p> - -<p>What could this mean? Of all the -young men I had ever known, I should -have selected Robert Lester as the one -best fitted to win the heart of such a -young lady as Lilian; yet she shunned -him and repelled his attentions. My -thoughts were painfully occupied with -the subject as I returned home, and in -my dreams that night the two were -strangely blended, though always with -some invisible barrier between them, -which I sought in vain to discover and -remove.</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_35">[35]</span> - -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER III.<br /> - - -<span class="small">THE DEPARTURE OF THE REGIMENT.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="smcap">Forts</span> Donalson and Henry had been -taken by our brave soldiers and seamen, -and the nation was in a fever of excitement -and joy. But recruits were wanted -to fill up the wasted armies in the various -departments, and the work of enlistment -went rapidly on among the young -men of our neighborhood, while mothers, -wives, and daughters worked day and -night to fit out the beloved ones who -were so soon to leave us for the seat of -war.</p> - -<p>Lilian Grey was one of the foremost in -this noble work, and four of the soldiers -in company A of the 26th were selected -and sent out by her, with a bounty of -three hundred dollars each, to fight for<span class="pagenum" id="Page_36">[36]</span> -the cause she loved so well. The shadow -on Elinor’s fair brow deepened day by -day, as news came of terrible battles in -which soldiers on both sides fell by thousands; -and even Mrs. Fenton’s faith was -sorely tried by the continued absence of -her husband, from whom no word had -ever reached her.</p> - -<p>Those were sad, sad days, and every -heart felt the oppression as the hour of -parting drew near. True, “the battle -of the warrior, with confused noise and -garments rolled in blood,” came to us -softened by distance, but many that we -loved were there in the thickest of the -fight, and others were going whom we -might see no more on earth. But it was -no time for outward expressions of sorrow, -so we resolutely forced back our -tears, and smiled on our brave boys and -encouraged them with words of comfort -and cheer, when our hearts were dying<span class="pagenum" id="Page_37">[37]</span> -within us as we thought of the dangers to -which they were to be exposed.</p> - -<p>It was expected by all, that on this occasion -Robert Lester would be one of the -first to offer himself to his country, and a -commission as lieutenant-colonel was actually -made out and sent him by the governor, -with the flattering request that he -would not refuse it. But his answer was -the same as before.</p> - -<p>“If I could go at all,” he said to his -friends, “it would be as a private soldier; -but it avails not to speak of it; my duty -lies at home.”</p> - -<p>Lilian shunned him more resolutely -than ever, and once said in his hearing, -“If I were a man, and refused to go when -my country called for my services, I -should expect to be driven from society, -as unworthy the love of woman or the -esteem of my fellow-men.”</p> - -<p>“You are too severe, Lilian,” said the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_38">[38]</span> -gentle Elinor; “there are many other -ways of serving one’s country besides -fighting for it, and every one can judge -best for himself what his duty may -be.”</p> - -<p>There was a look of intense pain in the -face of the young man as Lilian spoke, -but he drew himself up to his full height, -and the fire in his eye told all who looked -upon him that whatever the cause -might be, it was not lack of courage -which kept him at home.</p> - -<p>“A thousand blessings on you, Miss -Fenton,” he said in a low voice to Elinor -soon afterwards. “Your kind heart hesitates -to condemn even where it dares -not approve. You can never know how -much good your words have done me, -suffering as I have from misunderstanding -on every side.”</p> - -<p>“You must pardon dear Lilian,” she -answered in the same tone; “she feels<span class="pagenum" id="Page_39">[39]</span> -very strongly, and your decision has -been a severe disappointment to her.”</p> - -<p>“Miss Grey can never need any one -to plead her cause with me,” he said as -he turned to leave the room.</p> - -<p>A few days before the departure of the -regiment Miss Letty came to my house, -her face beaming with smiles, and to my -inquiry what had happened, she answered,</p> - -<p>“So much has happened, I don’t know -where to begin to tell you. In the first -place, Mr. Fenton has got home with the -rest of his money; but such a time as he -has had to get it. Why, the adventures -of Sinbad the sailor were nothing to the -escapes he has had and the troubles he -has been in. I don’t think he is much -to speak of, compared with the rest; but -that isn’t what I am thinking about. -The best of all is, that it has come out -why Robert Lester couldn’t enlist before, -and now he has joined the company<span class="pagenum" id="Page_40">[40]</span> -as a private soldier; but, my word for -it, he wont be one long.”</p> - -<p>“Are you at liberty to state the reason?” -I inquired.</p> - -<p>“Oh, certainly. It seems that the -rich old uncle who left him his fortune, -made a condition in his will, that if Robert -died without heirs, the property was -to go to another cousin, one Dick Satterlee, -who is a flaming rebel. Our Mr. -Lester knew that if he was killed, all -that mint of money would go right into -the hands of the Confederate government, -to help on the rebellion. So he -thought he could do more for the Union -cause with the money, than by carrying -a musket and getting shot himself. Besides, -his poor little sister would be left -without any friends, and poor to boot; -so he just made up his mind to stand it -out, and let everybody misjudge him if -they would.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_41">[41]</span>“Last week he saw in the list of killed -in some battle, the name of his cousin -Richard Satterlee; so he went right on -to find out all about it. The body hadn’t -been discovered, but everybody said he -was dead. When Mr. Lester came back, -he waited long enough to make his will, -and then enlisted; and a happy looking -man he was, I can tell you.</p> - -<p>“But that isn’t all. He was once -engaged to Miss Lilian Grey; but she -was so angry with him because he didn’t -go into the army, that every thing was -broken off between them, though she -loves him as she does her life, and he -thinks full as much of her. But of course -it will all be made up now, and I’m glad -of it, for they are just exactly suited to -each other.”</p> - -<p>When I had expressed my surprise -and pleasure at the good news brought -by Miss Letty, I inquired what she intended<span class="pagenum" id="Page_42">[42]</span> -to do about little Willie, the -son of a deceased sister, to whom she -had been a second mother from his infancy.</p> - -<p>“Well, there’s no help for it, I suppose,” -she answered, while a cloud flitted -over her bright face; “he is bound to go -as a drummer-boy with the regiment, and -I can’t persuade him to stay at home -willingly, though he says he wont go -without my consent. It’s well his poor -mother isn’t living, for her heart would -break to have him go, such a baby as he -is, only twelve years old. But I must -say for him, he’s the best boy I ever -saw, and the men all love him so, he’ll -be well taken care of, if he doesn’t get -killed. It’s hard for me; but I’ve got -nothing else to give, and though it’s like -taking the heart out of my body, I’ll try -to do it cheerfully.”</p> - -<p>Miss Letty was sewing at the Tyrrell<span class="pagenum" id="Page_43">[43]</span> -House when she learned from Mr. Ryder -the facts in relation to Robert Lester, and -no time was lost by her in communicating -them to the family. Mrs. Fenton -and Elinor heard with thankfulness that -his fame was publicly cleared, though -they had never doubted that it would be -so in the end.</p> - -<p>But to the ardent and enthusiastic -Lilian, by whom he had been so bitterly -condemned, the news was like a reprieve -from death. She threw her arms round -Miss Letty’s neck, exclaiming,</p> - -<p>“Oh, you are the best and dearest -Miss Letty in the whole world. I didn’t -think any thing could have made me so -happy.”</p> - -<p>“Lilian, dear, you forget,” said her -aunt in her gentle tone.</p> - -<p>“No, aunt, I forget nothing,” Lilian -replied, while her eyes shone through -tears like stars. “I know we are separated<span class="pagenum" id="Page_44">[44]</span> -by my own rash act, and I shall -honor him only the more if he refuse -again to see me; but I am glad and proud -to know that he is worthy of my love, or -that of any other woman.”</p> - -<p>The days fled rapidly, and still Mr. -Lester did not call on his former friends -the Fentons, and as Lilian went out much -less than usual, they seldom met. He -was unwilling to try to exonerate himself -from a suspicion which he felt to be unreasonable -and degrading, or to sue for -a return of the love he had never forfeited; -and Lilian, though she would gladly -have humbled herself at his feet for having -doubted his honor and loyalty, would -not take the first step, lest her motives -should be misconstrued.</p> - -<p>Things were in this state when, on the -evening before the departure of the regiment, -a note from Elinor Fenton was -received by the young soldier, which<span class="pagenum" id="Page_45">[45]</span> -brought him quickly to her side. A few -words of explanation passed between -them, and then he was ushered into the -library, where Lilian was busy in preparing -packages of stationery for the -knapsacks that were scattered about.</p> - -<p>That interview was one never to be -forgotten by either of the parties. There -were confessions to be made on both -sides, and mutual forgiveness to be exchanged; -for while Lester felt that he -should have intrusted to the woman he -loved the true reasons for his conduct, -Lilian insisted that, knowing him as she -did, she ought never to have doubted his -loyalty under any circumstances. They -parted, pledged to each other, and Lilian -accepted as a sacred legacy the charge -of Fanny Lester, in case of a contingency -which her heart refused to contemplate.</p> - -<p>The dreaded morning came at last,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_46">[46]</span> -when our brave boys were to exchange -the comforts and endearments of home, -for the hardships of the camp and the -horrors of the battle-field. But a solemn -ceremony remained to be performed before -they went, and with one accord the -steps of all were turned towards the -parsonage. There, in the pleasant front -yard, under the shadow of the tall elms -that had sheltered her childhood, Mabel -Ryder gave her hand to one whom she -had loved ever since she could remember -any thing. Thomas Wiley, first -lieutenant of company A, was a young -merchant, and had been a pupil of Mr. -Ryder, who saw with pleasure the attachment -existing between the young man -and his darling child, for he knew him -to be one calculated in every way to -make her happy. When he joined the -regiment, Mabel gave a tearful but willing -consent, but with his urgent solicitation<span class="pagenum" id="Page_47">[47]</span> -that she should become his wife before -they went, she would not at first -comply, the time was so short and the -proposition so unexpected; but when he -brought forward the plea, that as his -wife she could with more propriety come -to him if wounded or sick, she yielded. -The privilege of attending him in sickness -or suffering was so precious, that -she could not lightly relinquish it; so it -was fixed that the marriage should take -place on the morning of their departure.</p> - -<p>It was a beautiful picture, that wedding -party under the trees, and one not -soon to be forgotten by those who witnessed -it. The fair young bride, dressed -in simple white, with smiles and tears -contending for the mastery on her cheek, -with her bridesmaids, Elinor and Lilian; -the happy groom in his becoming uniform, -supported by Robert Lester and -the second lieutenant of his company;<span class="pagenum" id="Page_48">[48]</span> -the groups of friends scattered about, and -outside of all the boys of the Twenty-sixth -looking on with the deepest interest, as -the pastor and father pronounced with -trembling voice the words that gave his -child to the keeping of another—all this -is engraven on my memory, and can -never be erased.</p> - -<p>The ceremony was over, and as the -regiment wheeled into line, the bridegroom -with one long, silent embrace consigned -Mabel to the care of her friends -and took his place in the ranks. All the -stores were closed and business suspended, -as the Twenty-sixth marched for the -last time, with unbroken columns, through -our streets. The regiment was raised in -the immediate vicinity, and many of its -members were personally known to us; -but at such a moment all seemed like -sons and brothers. We were proud of -their soldierly bearing, of their firm and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_49">[49]</span> -measured tread, of the precision with -which their evolutions were performed, -and the intelligence that lighted up every -face. What eager eyes looked out from -the ranks, to catch the last glimpse of -mother, sister, wife, or sweetheart, as, -amid the waving of handkerchiefs, half-uttered -blessings, and stifled sobs, we -bade them perhaps a final good-by. They -left us full of hope and energy, with all -the courage and strength of young manhood -nerving each arm and animating -each heart. How would they come -back?</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_50">[50]</span> - -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER IV.<br /> - - -<span class="small">THE DRUMMER-BOY OF THE TWENTY-SIXTH.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="smcap">After</span> the departure of the regiment -there came to us a season of languor and -depression. We had been in a state of -unnatural excitement for weeks, and the -reaction was inevitable. But for the letters -received regularly from our absent -boys, and which were read and talked -over by all, and the Society meetings, -where we came together to pray and work -for the soldiers, I think we should have -experienced a social stagnation.</p> - -<p>Lilian Grey, now more than ever our -“sunbeam,” as we loved to call her, was -out of town for a few weeks, and as Elinor -seldom left her mother, who was suffering -more than usual, we saw very little<span class="pagenum" id="Page_51">[51]</span> -of our neighbors in the Tyrrell House. -Mr. Fenton seemed a moody, disappointed -man, soured by a sense of injustice -which he had no power to punish and no -inclination to forgive.</p> - -<p>Even Miss Letty, who had always -seemed to possess an unfailing fountain -of cheerfulness and hope, now wore at -times a clouded brow when no tidings -came from Willie, or the news from the -front was unusually warlike. She was -cheered, however, by continued reports -of Willie’s good conduct and popularity -with the regiment, whose pet he had -been from the first. Of his courage there -could be no question, for he had been in -several severe engagements, and boy as -he was, had stood unflinchingly by the -side of the bravest.</p> - -<p>On one occasion, at the close of a hard -fought skirmish, when a furious charge -of the enemy’s cavalry had driven back<span class="pagenum" id="Page_52">[52]</span> -his regiment, a division commander riding -over the spot soon after, found Willie -beating a tattoo on his drum as coolly -as if he had been on parade.</p> - -<p>“What are you doing here, my little -fellow?” said the general.</p> - -<p>“You see, sir,” he replied, giving the -military salute, “I didn’t know but some -of our boys might be about, and I thought -I’d let them know there was a drummer -here, in case they wanted to form again.”</p> - -<p>“But what if the enemy should return, -and find you here alone?”</p> - -<p>“If they should, sir, this is my place, -and I’d rather they’d find me here than -skulking, any way.”</p> - -<p>“Here’s an unfledged hero for you,” -was the exclamation of the general as he -rode on; and the next day Willie was -called out and publicly thanked by the -commander in the presence of all the -troops. “It was an instance of bravery<span class="pagenum" id="Page_53">[53]</span> -which would have done honor to a veteran.” -Such were the words of the general, -and a happy woman was his aunt -as she read them in a letter written by -Robert Lester on the occasion.</p> - -<p>Then came to us the news of the invasion -of Maryland by the rebels, and in a -few days the battle of Antietam flashed -over the wires, and with others we exulted -in the victory, little thinking how -deeply it was to affect us, for we supposed -the Twenty-sixth to be in a division -at some distance from the seat of war.</p> - -<p>But a few days served to undeceive -us; and then, as the “terrible list” of -killed and wounded was read with dimming -eyes and blanched cheeks, we -learned how fearful was the loss our own -troops had sustained. Robert Lester, -who had risen rapidly from the ranks, -and had been made captain on the field -at Williamsburg, was wounded, it was<span class="pagenum" id="Page_54">[54]</span> -thought, mortally. Our dear little Willie -had lost an arm, and Lieut. Wiley, -the bridegroom of an hour, had fallen -gloriously at the head of his company, -while cheering them on. Many others -whom we knew and loved had also died -on the field, rendered immortal by their -bravery.</p> - -<p>In the evening of the day on which -the news reached us, I went to the parsonage, -and found our good clergyman -preparing to start for Maryland to look -after our wounded, and to bring home -the body of Lieut. Wiley. Poor Mabel -had been overwhelmed by the sad intelligence, -and as her mother was wholly -occupied with the heart-broken girl, there -was no one to assist Mr. Ryder; but -Miss Letty came in soon after me, and -she was a host in herself. She was very -pale, but cheerful and efficient as ever, -thinking of everybody and every thing,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_55">[55]</span> -and bringing order out of confusion by -the magic of her touch. When I expressed -the hope that she would remain -at the parsonage with Mrs. Ryder and -Mabel, she answered,</p> - -<p>“Bless you, dear, you don’t suppose I -could stay here, and little Willie lying -with an arm cut off at Hagerstown; do -you? There is nobody can do for him as -I can, who am like a mother to him; and -if they could, I shouldn’t be willing to -have them. No, no, I am going to start -to-night with Mr. Ryder, and I shall -count the minutes till we get there.”</p> - -<p>“But have you no preparations to -make for yourself for such a journey?” -I inquired.</p> - -<p>“Oh, my preparations were all made -hours ago, as soon as I heard the news. -I have put up every thing I shall be -likely to want for my boy; and as for -myself, I am always ready, you know.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_56">[56]</span> -There is nothing to be done but to fix up -Mr. Ryder and be off. Miss Lilian and -poor Fanny Lester are going with us, to -see the captain, if he’s alive; and who -knows but their going may save his life, -if he isn’t dead when they get there. -Some folks will blame Miss Lilian for -going; but Fanny can’t go without her, -and she wont care much for talk when -she thinks she’s doing right.”</p> - -<p>I saw the little company off a few -hours later, and a sorrowful parting it -was, though Miss Letty and Lilian tried -hard to assume a courage they did not -feel, to comfort Fanny Lester, whose -grief was terrible to witness; and how I -loved and admired Lilian, when I saw -her so forgetful of self, soothing and sustaining -the weeping sister, while her own -heart was bleeding silently. This young -girl was not one to proclaim her sorrow -on the house-tops, or to make noisy demands<span class="pagenum" id="Page_57">[57]</span> -for sympathy. When the iron -entered her soul, she would turn away -quietly from observation, and pursuing -her daily round of duty, pour the tale of -her suffering into the ear of Infinite pity -alone.</p> - -<p>It may be that I am about to betray -Miss Letty’s confidence; but her letters -from Hagerstown were such faithful -transcripts of her heart and character, -that I cannot resist the temptation to -give a few extracts from them to my -readers.</p> - -<p>“... I wish I could give you some -idea of the hospitals here, but I can’t begin -to describe them. The rooms look -airy and clean enough; but, Oh dear, -those long rows of beds, with poor suffering, -maimed, dying heroes lying on -them, some with faces paler than the -sheets, some burning up with fever, and -all having such a tired, anxious look, as<span class="pagenum" id="Page_58">[58]</span> -if they wanted somebody to comfort -them; and, poor fellows, they do need it -bad enough, I can tell you. I should -have been glad to stop and say a kind -word to every one of them, but a nurse -hurried me on to a little room beyond -the large one, with three or four beds in -it, and there, on a cot, I found my boy, -looking as white and weak as could be, -but just as pleasant as ever.</p> - -<p>“He was asleep, and I didn’t want to -wake him, so I took a chair very softly, -and sat down close by the dear little -fellow till his nap was out. The first I -knew, the tears were dripping, dripping -into my lap just like rain. I’m sure I’d -no thought of crying in that place, but -there were tears in my heart when I saw -that dear little face all drawn up with -pain in his sleep, and when I thought -about that arm that had been round my -neck so often, and never would be any<span class="pagenum" id="Page_59">[59]</span> -more. By and by he waked up, and -when he saw me sitting there, he gave -one shout, and if the sun had been shining -right into his eyes, they couldn’t -have been any brighter. That one look -would have paid me for all the journey, -if I hadn’t done a single thing for -him.</p> - -<p>“‘Oh, aunty,’ says he, ‘I was just -dreaming that you had come, and it -seemed so good to have you over me -once more, and now here you are. I -don’t know what to say, our Father is -so good to me.’</p> - -<p>“It was as much as I could do to -speak, but I made out to tell him I had -come to stay and take care of him till he -could go home with me.</p> - -<p>“He gave his head a little shake, just -as he used to when he wasn’t certain -about a thing, and said,</p> - -<p>“‘I don’t think much about going to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_60">[60]</span> -that home, Aunt Letty; I’m a little boy, -you know, to have an arm cut off, and -mine isn’t doing very well, I know from -the doctor’s looks. But it will all come -out right;’ and such a smile as there was -on his face. ‘And now, dear aunty, -give me another kiss, and I’ll turn over -and go to sleep again; and I wish you -could too, you look so tired.’</p> - -<p>“I told him I wasn’t tired, and then -I shook up his pillow, and he turned -over and went right to sleep like the -lamb he is.</p> - -<p>“All this while there had been a pair -of great black eyes watching me ever so -wishfully the other side of the room; so -when Willie was asleep, I thought I’d -find out who they belonged to. I went -over to the bed, and found a poor young -fellow eighteen years old, who looked as -if he couldn’t live twenty-four hours.</p> - -<p>“‘Is there any thing I can do for you?’<span class="pagenum" id="Page_61">[61]</span> -said I, for I felt awfully to see him lie -there looking so pitiful.</p> - -<p>“‘O yes, ma’am,’ said he; ‘if you -will only speak a few kind words to me, -and smooth my hair as you did little -Willie’s, it would do me so much good. -I thought when I saw you kiss his forehead, -if my mother could only come and -do that, it would be easier to die.’</p> - -<p>“‘Well, my dear boy,’ said I, ‘I a’n’t -your mother, nor any of your relation; -but I’m a fellow-creature, and I feel for -you, and am willing to do any thing I -can to make you comfortable.’</p> - -<p>“So I got some bay-rum from a nurse, -and bathed his hot hands and face, and -brushed his hair and smoothed his pillow, -and then I gave him just such a kiss -as I did Willie, and I a’n’t ashamed to -own it. The big tears were in his eyes, -and he said,</p> - -<p>“‘I didn’t think any thing in the world<span class="pagenum" id="Page_62">[62]</span> -could do me so much good. It seems as -if mother was here, and I thank you a -thousand times.’</p> - -<p>“Then I asked him if there was any -thing more he wanted, and what do you -think he said?</p> - -<p>“‘If you could only read a few verses -out of my Bible and pray with me, I -should be so glad. I’m going to die, -and I a’n’t afraid to go, but I do want -somebody to read and pray with me -first.’</p> - -<p>“Only think of that; for me, who never -dared to speak loud in any meeting at -home, to be asked to pray with a sick -man in a hospital! It was like a blow -to me, and for a minute I didn’t know -what to say; but there were those eyes -looking right through me, and he said -softly, ‘If you only could.’ So I plucked -up courage, and said, ‘I <i>will</i>,’ and -then I shut to the door and read a chapter<span class="pagenum" id="Page_63">[63]</span> -in a low voice, just so he could hear -me, and tried to ask God to help and -comfort the poor boy, for he was nothing -more. When I got through, he took hold -of my hand, and said, ‘I can’t thank you -for your kindness as I want to, but God -will reward you, I’m sure. Take the -blessing of a dying man, and remember -you have comforted my last hours.’</p> - -<p>“I was ashamed to hear him speak so; -for after all, what had I done to deserve -thanks for?</p> - -<p>“He died the next day, and I staid by -him all I could when Willie didn’t need -me, and wrote a letter to his mother just -as he gave the words to me only an hour -or two before he breathed his last. Poor -woman! I pitied her, for he was a noble-looking -fellow, and one that feared -God, and I know a mother must have set -a great store by such a son.”</p> - -<p>In another letter she wrote,</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_64">[64]</span>“My little Willie is getting along very -slowly, and the doctors look sober about -him, and I know they’re afraid he’s going -into a decline. His mother died of -that, and they say the shock to his system -has been so great that it may not be -able to rally again. But he’s just as -happy as the day is long, and says if he -had twenty arms, he’d be willing to give -them all for his country.</p> - -<p>“I don’t see much of the captain or -Miss Lilian, for he is in another building -where the officers are; and he’s so low, -they don’t let anybody visit him unless -they have a special permit from the doctor. -I believe they have a little more -hope of him than they had at first, but -Miss Lilian says his life hangs by a single -thread. Dear Miss Lilian, she looks -tired and pale, but her smile is just as -bright as ever, and when she comes to -see Willie, it always cheers him up, like -a breath of fresh air or a bunch of flowers.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter"><img src="images/i_068.jpg" alt="" /></div> - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_65">[65]</span>While Miss Letty was away in Hagerstown, -a letter came to the Fenton’s -from their absent son, who was a prisoner -in our lines, and had been severely -wounded, bringing the joyful intelligence -that he had taken from his heart the oath -of allegiance to the dear old flag. As -soon as he could travel he would come -home for a short visit, and then join the -Union army. He told them how he had -been left for dead on the field at Williamsburg, -and that a little drummer-boy -chanced to find him; that he brought -him water at the risk of his own life, -and finally had him carried from the -field by some members of the Twenty-sixth, -to which regiment the boy belonged.</p> - -<p>While in the hospital there, he said -little Willie visited him often at his own<span class="pagenum" id="Page_66">[66]</span> -special request, and to the artless conversation -of this child he attributed his -first convictions of the wrong course he -had been pursuing. “It was the last -thing he thought of,” the letter concluded, -“to teach me, whom he regarded as -greatly his superior; but his thoughts, so -far beyond his years, brought to mind -the neglected lessons of my precious -mother, and now, if I am like the repenting -prodigal, I owe it, under God, to that -dear boy, whose heroism is only equalled -by the kindness of his heart.”</p> - -<p>It will be readily believed that the -Fentons were enthusiastic in their expressions -of love and gratitude to Willie -for the signal service he had rendered -them, and a letter was sent at once to -Miss Letty informing her of the facts, -and entreating her to bring the dear invalid -to the Tyrrell House immediately -on her return.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_67">[67]</span>It was a lovely evening in early autumn -when Miss Letty and her charge -came back to us, and the first glance at -Willie’s pale, sweet face told us that his -days were numbered. Yet his spirits -were so buoyant, his enjoyment of every -thing so earnest and childlike, it was -hard to believe that he was indeed passing -away from earth.</p> - -<p>When I first visited him at the Tyrrell -House, he was sitting up in an easy-chair -in a room overlooking the garden, and -with choice flowers all about him. He -smiled as I took his hand and inquired -after his health, saying,</p> - -<p>“I’m quite well, and so happy. I -can’t think what makes everybody so -kind to me. I don’t deserve it at all, -but God puts it into their hearts, and I -thank him for it. If dear Miss Lilian was -only here; but I’m so glad she’s with -the captain.”</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_68">[68]</span>“Were you in Captain Lester’s company?” -I asked.</p> - -<p>“O yes, he got me transferred; and, -Mrs. Glenn, I don’t think there’s another -man in the world like Captain Lester.”</p> - -<p>“In what respect, Willie?”</p> - -<p>“In every thing. The men all love -him so, they’d give their lives for him; -and yet he’s very strict, and wont have -any drinking or gambling or swearing in -the camp. They have to do just right, -and then he’s the kindest man I ever -saw. If anybody is sick or in trouble, -they know where to go for help; and -when the chaplain is away, he prays and -reads a sermon to the men in the big -tent every Sunday. Oh dear, I do -hope he wont die.” And the tears, -which no sufferings of his own could call -forth, fell fast for those of his beloved -captain.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_69">[69]</span>“Willie,” I said, “do you remember -any thing about being wounded, and how -you felt then?”</p> - -<p>“Not much at first. It is all like a -confused dream; how we marched all -day to get up with the army; how we -lay down to escape the shot and shell -that the rebs were pouring into us; and -at last, how the captain called out to us, -‘Now, boys, is your time!’ and then we -went in on the double-quick, till we were -in the thickest of it. It seems somehow -as if that was years ago; but all at once, -when I was beating my drum as hard as -I could, I felt as if I was falling down -ever so far, and I didn’t know any thing -more for a good while.</p> - -<p>“When I came to myself, the fighting -was over, and the rebs all gone; but I -was so weak that I couldn’t stir nor -speak, and I thought my time had come; -but I didn’t feel afraid to die.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_70">[70]</span>“You remember, ma’am, the time of -that revival in the Sabbath-school, when -several of the children were admitted to -the church? I think I gave my heart to -the Saviour then; and though Aunt Letty -thought I was too young to come forward -with them, I have always loved my Bible -better than any other book; and when I -lay there, I tried to look up to the Lord -Jesus, but my eyes were heavy, and -wouldn’t keep open. Then it seemed as -if angels were all round me, and I forgot -my pain and how much I wanted water, -and went to sleep again. The next thing -I knew, I was in the hospital, and my -arm gone.”</p> - -<p>I was affected to tears by this simple -recital, and could hardly command my -voice to say,</p> - -<p>“But, Willie, you have always been -very full of life and activity; does it never -seem hard to you to lose your arm, and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_71">[71]</span> -to be shut up here so sick, and perhaps -to die?”</p> - -<p>His face flushed, and he looked up -in surprise, but soon answered pleasantly,</p> - -<p>“Oh, you are only asking that to try -me; you couldn’t mean it in earnest, I’m -sure. Why, there never was any boy -who had so many blessings as I have. -In the first place, it was such goodness -in God to let me go out with the regiment, -such a poor little fellow as I am. -Then when I was hurt, he sent dear Aunt -Letty to take care of me, and bring me -home here to such a nice place, and -such kind friends. It isn’t any matter -about my arm, for when I die I’ll have -wings, you know, and so it will never be -missed.”</p> - -<p>Dear young disciple! So early and -plainly taught of the blessed Saviour, -what could older Christians do but sit at<span class="pagenum" id="Page_72">[72]</span> -thy feet and learn wisdom from thy simple, -childlike words?</p> - -<p>While I still lingered, unable to tear -myself away from a scene so peaceful -and hallowed, Mrs. Flint came in, and -took a seat by his side. Her looks and -voice were carefully graduated to suit -the occasion as she said,</p> - -<p>“I am glad to see you so comfortable, -and hope, my dear child, that the chastisement -of the Lord is doing you good. -Do you feel that this is the case?”</p> - -<p>Willie was a brave, happy boy naturally, -and religion had added to these -traits a firm trust in God as his Father, -through Jesus Christ, so he smiled as he -answered,</p> - -<p>“I don’t know, ma’am; I hope I love -the Saviour, and I know he loves me, and -he gives me so many blessings I don’t -think much about punishment. I don’t -feel as if he was angry with me, when he<span class="pagenum" id="Page_73">[73]</span> -has died for me, and I want to please him -more than any thing else in the world.”</p> - -<p>“I am afraid, my dear,” she replied, -“that you do not realize how great a sinner -you are, if you think you don’t deserve -punishment for your sins.”</p> - -<p>“No indeed, it isn’t that,” Willie exclaimed, -while his cheeks flushed with -the excitement of his feelings. But Miss -Letty could keep silence no longer, and -interrupted him, saying,</p> - -<p>“Mrs. Flint, my little Willie can’t talk -much now, but I think he lives religion -better than a great many of us. He -means, and I say, that though we don’t -deserve any thing but punishment for -our sins, it isn’t always a sign that God -is angry with us when he lets us suffer in -this world. He wasn’t angry with Job, -when he allowed Satan to try him so; -nor with Daniel, when he was put into -the lions’ den; but he did it to show what<span class="pagenum" id="Page_74">[74]</span> -religion could do for people when they -are in the worst of troubles. I believe -it’s just so nowadays; and that God is -nearer to us sometimes when every thing -seems to go wrong, than he is when it’s -fair weather and smooth sailing.”</p> - -<p>“That may be so,” replied Mrs. Flint, -“but don’t you think there’s danger of -making the way of religion too easy, so -that people will think they are Christians -when they are not?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t think we have any thing to -do with making the way hard or easy. -We must take it just as Jesus Christ left -it; and he says, ‘I love them that love -me, and those that seek me early shall -find me.’ I don’t read that any thing -but repentance and faith in the Saviour, -and renewing by the Holy Spirit, is necessary -to be a humble Christian; and I -am sure the Saviour never turned away -any one who came to him in earnest, and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_75">[75]</span> -wanted to be his disciple. But Willie is -getting tired, and it wont do to talk any -longer.”</p> - -<p>The visitor departed, leaving the little -invalid weary and feverish, until soothed -by the gentle ministrations of Miss Letty -and Elinor Fenton. Why is it that some -individuals, who pass in society for good -people, have the unenviable talent of -making every one uncomfortable with -whom they come in contact? Under all -the velvet of their professions, the claws -continually lacerate, even while they -seem to caress. There are few communities -in which some of these specimens -of humanity may not be found; and it is -sad when they wear the garb of religion, -and pretend to be holier than others, -while doing the work of him who has -sought from the beginning to foment strife -and jealousy among brethren.</p> - -<p>During the fall, Willie had several attacks<span class="pagenum" id="Page_76">[76]</span> -of hemorrhage of the lungs, which -rapidly wasted his strength; but he was -still the same happy, trusting, loving boy, -enjoying life with all a boy’s enthusiasm, -yet welcoming death with perfect serenity.</p> - -<p>On one of the last days of the Indian -summer, when a golden haze lay on every -thing, softening the landscape and -giving to autumn more than the beauty -of spring, I was called to see Willie die. -I found him sitting up in bed, gasping -for breath, and his forehead damp with -the death-dew; but his eye was still -clear, and on his lips was a smile bright -with heaven’s own radiance. “Dear -Willie,” I said, “you are almost home.”</p> - -<p>“O yes, I like this home very much, -but that one is better. I am where -Christian was when he began to cross -the river, and in a little while I shall be -over.”</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_77">[77]</span>Bunyan’s inimitable allegory was his -favorite book, and he had it almost by -heart. While in camp it had been his -greatest pleasure to repeat portions of it -to the listening soldiers, by whom “Willie’s -stories” were preferred to any other. -And now on his dying-bed the pilgrim -was to him a living friend who had crossed -the stream just before him, and whom -he was about to join in the Celestial City.</p> - -<p>“Willie,” said Mr. Ryder, “have you -no wish to live?”</p> - -<p>“To live!” he repeated with animation; -“why, don’t you know I am just -going to live? Oh, if you could only see -what I see, such beautiful angels with -shining wings, and hear the sweet music, -you would be willing to die too, so that -you could go and live with them.”</p> - -<p>The eloquence of look and tone with -which this was said is indescribable. He -lay quietly for a few moments with closed<span class="pagenum" id="Page_78">[78]</span> -eyes, then suddenly turning to Miss Letty, -who was weeping, he said,</p> - -<p>“Dear aunty, you told me of Jesus, -and taught me how to seek him, and now -I am going to live with him for ever. -Perhaps he will let me fly down to you -sometimes, and whisper to you about -heaven when you are sorrowful; I should -love to so much. If I could only have -seen the captain and Miss Lilian once -more; but no matter, they’ll come, -you’ll all come home by and by.”</p> - -<p>His voice failed, and he seemed almost -gone, when raising his hand, he -whispered,</p> - -<p>“They are all coming, mother; it is -light, all light;” and then with one long -tremulous sigh, the ransomed spirit fled, -leaving the impress of its happiness.</p> - -<p>We buried him in a quiet spot, selected -by himself near his childhood’s home, -and a plain marble slab, with the inscription,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_79">[79]</span> -“<span class="smcap">Our Willie</span>,” marks his resting-place. -His drum, a beautiful and richly -ornamented one given him by his regiment -after the battle of Malvern Hills, -and which he kept constantly near him -through all his illness, was enclosed in a -glass case, and placed at the head of his -grave. We shall see him no more on -earth, but the memory of the little drummer-boy -is still cherished in the hearts -of many who loved him here, and who -hope to meet him in the better land -where “sorrow and parting are sounds -unknown.”</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_80">[80]</span> - -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER V.<br /> - - -<span class="small">HOW THE BOYS CAME HOME.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="smcap">Capt. Lester</span> was carried from the -field of Antietam insensible, and on examination -his wounds were pronounced -mortal by the physicians, though no -means were left untried to preserve a -life so valuable to his country. A minié -ball had passed through his shoulder to the -back of the neck, and at the same time -the fragment of a shell struck his ankle, -inflicting a severe wound, and splintering -the bone. He lay for several days in -a half-unconscious state—at times, when -partially roused, becoming delirious, then -sinking again into a lethargy from which -it was difficult to awaken him. A private -house had been hastily fitted up for -the reception of the wounded, and to this<span class="pagenum" id="Page_81">[81]</span> -he was taken and made as comfortable -as circumstances admitted.</p> - -<p>When Fanny Lester and Lilian reached -the end of their journey, they were at -first denied admittance to the hospital; -and it was only after the most strenuous -exertions on the part of Mr. Ryder that -they were allowed to see Capt. Lester.</p> - -<p>“I am afraid, my dear young friends,” -said the good man, “that you will not be -permitted to remain with him; the military -rules are very strict, and few favors -are shown here.”</p> - -<p>“Have no fears on that score, my dear -sir,” Lilian replied. “If once we gain -entrance, it will take at least a regiment -to dislodge us.”</p> - -<p>It was evening when they entered the -room where the sick man lay, seemingly -insensible to every thing around him; -and as Lilian approached, the nurse who -had been moistening his lips from time<span class="pagenum" id="Page_82">[82]</span> -to time, came forward, and greeting her -kindly, offered her a seat by his side. -Though terribly shocked at his death-like -appearance, Lilian was outwardly -calm; and taking from the nurse minute -directions with regard to the treatment -to be pursued, busied herself in arranging -the dressings and medicines, to conceal -the emotion which threatened to -overpower her.</p> - -<p>When this was done, she seated herself -by the bedside, and taking the hand -of the wounded man, placed her fingers -on his wrist to assure herself that he still -lived, for in that darkened room his sleep -so closely resembled death, that her heart -stood still with terror as she looked upon -him. Hardly had she touched his wrist -when a perceptible thrill ran through the -veins; there was a slight movement, and -then a faint voice whispered, “Is this -Lilian?”</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_83">[83]</span>Too much agitated to reply at once, -she gave him the stimulant prescribed by -the nurse, turned up the lamp that she -might see his face, and then said as calmly -as she could,</p> - -<p>“Yes, Robert, it is your sister and -Lilian, who have come to nurse and make -you well.”</p> - -<p>“Thank God!” was the low response; -and then he seemed to sleep again, while -Lilian watched him through the night, -glad to find that her young companion -had forgotten her sorrows in refreshing -slumber. From that time Capt. Lester’s -symptoms were slightly improved, and -he had more frequent intervals of consciousness, -though there were yet but -faint hopes of his recovery. If medical -skill and the most assiduous care could -save him, he was certain to recover, for -Lilian or Fanny were with him night -and day, anticipating every want, and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_84">[84]</span> -soothing by their tender sympathy the -sufferings which no skill could wholly -relieve.</p> - -<p>For some weeks it was feared by the -surgeons that amputation of the foot must -take place; and nothing but the prayers -and tears of Lilian induced them to delay -it, until, by the blessing of God on -her exertions, it was no longer deemed -necessary. The ball still remained in -his shoulder, and had hitherto eluded -search; but it was at length found and -extracted; and from that hour his progress, -though slow, was sure.</p> - -<p>“How is it, Robert,” said Lilian one -day, when he was suffering more than -usual from his wounds, “that you are -always so cheerful and patient, though -you suffer so much? I have heard that -convalescents are expected to be irritable -and capricious, but you do not avail -yourself of the privilege at all. You<span class="pagenum" id="Page_85">[85]</span> -must be naturally indifferent to pain, or -else you have too much pride to allow it -to overcome you; which is it?”</p> - -<p>“Neither the one nor the other, dear -Lilian. I have naturally a great dread -of pain, and do not think myself possessed -of a large share of that moral courage -in which your sex excel, and which is -the only kind which will bear the test of -suffering. As to pride, it is sadly out of -place on a sick-bed, even if it had the -power to deaden a sense of pain, which -I very much doubt.”</p> - -<p>“What is it then that makes you so desirable -a patient? for, excepting my aunt, -I never saw any one bear pain as you do.”</p> - -<p>“Shall I tell you, my Lilian? It is -the taking home to my heart, and appropriating -that precious promise, ‘My grace -is sufficient for thee, for my strength is -made perfect in weakness.’ In myself I -am all weakness; but if an almighty arm<span class="pagenum" id="Page_86">[86]</span> -is underneath and around me, I have all -the strength and support I need. God -grant that you may know from your own -experience the blessedness of which I -speak.”</p> - -<p>Tears were in the eyes of Lilian as -she answered,</p> - -<p>“With such examples as I have had -before me, I can never doubt the reality -of the religion of Jesus, and I would give -worlds, if I had them, to feel its power; -but it seems impossible for me to obtain -such a blessing.”</p> - -<p>“Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and -thou shalt be saved,” was the reply. -“And now, dear Lilian, I must send you -from me to visit our poor patient up -stairs, who needs you even more than I -do, if that were possible.”</p> - -<p>A few days previous to this conversation, -Lilian was passing through one of -the rooms in which lay some rebel officers<span class="pagenum" id="Page_87">[87]</span> -who had been recently brought in -from Virginia. Most of them were hopeless -cases, and the sight was so painful to -the young girl, that she passed on rapidly, -until her steps were arrested by the -exclamation, “Miss Grey! can it be -possible?” She turned and saw, though -she could hardly recognize in the pallid -face and emaciated form before her, -Lieut. Carter, the betrothed of her cousin, -the rebel officer whose desertion of -his country’s flag had caused them all so -much unhappiness. It was a very painful -meeting to Lilian, and her first impulse -was to leave the room instantly; -but death was stamped on every feature -of the young man, and humanity triumphed. -She approached the bedside, -and said kindly,</p> - -<p>“Mr. Carter, I can stay but a moment. -Is there any thing I can do for you, or -that you wish to say to me?”</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_88">[88]</span>The sick man replied bitterly,</p> - -<p>“I see how it is; you all hate and -despise me; but I cannot help it. I am -a Southerner, and would not desert my -brethren in arms though I lost every -friend on earth. What I have done I -would do again in the same circumstances.”</p> - -<p>“You are wrong, Hugh,” said Lilian, -“none of us hate or despise you, though -the course you have taken has almost -broken the hearts of those who loved you -so dearly.”</p> - -<p>“And who love me no longer, you -would say. Well, I knew the penalty -when I put on this uniform, and I am -not going now to complain of the cost. I -hate the Yankees,” he exclaimed with -an energy of which he seemed incapable, -“and the bitterest thought in dying is, -that Elinor has become one of their miserable -canting crew; but they have lost<span class="pagenum" id="Page_89">[89]</span> -Stanwood; he at least is true to the bonny -blue flag.”</p> - -<p>“Not so, Hugh. Stanwood has seen -his error, and taken the oath of allegiance -at Washington, and only waits -until his wounds are healed to go home -and be reconciled to his family.”</p> - -<p>The sick man turned ghastly pale on -hearing this, and an execration rose to -his lips, which was suppressed from deference -to Lilian, who added,</p> - -<p>“You are very ill, Hugh, and thoughts -like these are not suited to one in your -condition. Let me beg you to see the -chaplain; he is a good man, and will -gladly visit you.”</p> - -<p>“Oh spare me all that stereotyped -nonsense,” he exclaimed. “I will die as -I have lived, without the aid of priest or -chaplain. If my belief is correct, I do -not need them; and if I am wrong, it is -too late to mend the mistake. I am dying,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_90">[90]</span> -and you know it; but I will at least -die game: no whining repentance or -hypocritical confessions for Hugh Carter.”</p> - -<p>There seemed little hope of doing him -any good in such a state of mind, and -Lilian, feeling her own incompetency to -reply to him, sadly turned away and left -the room, while memory went back to -other days, when he who was going into -eternity without one ray of light upon -his path, had been to her almost a brother. -There was a shadow on her bright -face as she went back to her patient, who -instantly saw it, and inquired the cause, -when she related the scene through which -she had just passed. Capt. Lester had -formerly known Lieut. Carter, and though -no bond of affinity had ever drawn the -young men together, he was greatly -shocked to learn his present condition.</p> - -<p>“I must see him, dear Lilian,” he said;<span class="pagenum" id="Page_91">[91]</span> -“he may listen to me when he would not -admit a clergyman. It is too dreadful to -let him die so, without making one effort -to do him good. Poor Elinor, how could -she bear this?”</p> - -<p>With great difficulty, and on crutches, -Capt. Lester made his way to the bedside -of the wounded officer; but the latter -refused to converse with him, declaring -that his mind was made up, and he -would never be such a coward as to -change his opinions because death was -at hand. In vain he was urged to listen -to God’s own words of promise.</p> - -<p>“To those who can believe, all that is -well enough; as for me, I have never -feared any thing in life, and cannot begin -to tremble now.”</p> - -<p>A few days afterwards he died in the -same state of mind, declaring with his -latest breath that he asked no favors at -the hands of God or man.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_92">[92]</span>Elinor was informed of his death, but -not of the circumstances attending it; -and thus she was spared the keenest -pang of all—that of knowing that he -whom she had once loved and trusted, -died without hope.</p> - -<p>One after another our brave boys came -back to us from the hospitals, wounded -and disabled, some maimed for life, yet -bating no tittle of courage or faith in the -ultimate triumph of the good cause. A -part of the regiment had reënlisted at -the expiration of their term of service, -and were with us for a few days, enjoying -the sweets of domestic life after their -laborious campaigns.</p> - -<p>It was during their stay that the death -of little Willie occurred, and the drummer-boy -was followed to his grave by -many of those who knew and loved him -as a son or brother in the camp. There -were manly tears shed around his grave;<span class="pagenum" id="Page_93">[93]</span> -and one man exclaimed, as the coffin was -lowered from sight,</p> - -<p>“There goes the best boy I ever knew, -and I don’t believe he has left his like -behind him.”</p> - -<p>The first snows of winter had fallen on -Willie’s grave before Capt. Lester came -back to us, with his sister and a lady -whom we had loved as Lilian Grey, but -were now to know as Mrs. Lester. She -was well aware that the prejudices of -her uncle and cousin would be shocked -by her marriage away from home and in -a hospital; so she said nothing about it -in her letters, believing that her husband -could plead his own cause far better in -person than she could do by writing. -The event justified her expectations; for -though at first Mr. Fenton was surprised -and angry, the reasons given by Capt. -Lester and the persuasions of his wife -soon reconciled him, and even forced him<span class="pagenum" id="Page_94">[94]</span> -to confess that it was probably the best -thing that could have been done under -the circumstances. Mrs. Fenton, however, -would not consent to part with her -niece; so Capt. Lester became an inmate -of the family, and soon won the affection -of all its members, while his health improved -rapidly, though the wound in his -ankle was still painful and troublesome.</p> - -<p>Soon after Capt. Lester’s return, there -came a visitor to the parsonage whose -arrival was warmly welcomed by Mabel, -though it caused her tears to flow afresh. -This was the father of Lieut. Wiley, who -had taken the journey for the purpose -of becoming acquainted with the bride of -his son, now doubly endeared to him by -her early widowhood and sorrow.</p> - -<p>He was a plain New England farmer, -cultivating a few acres of hard soil, from -which he managed by unceasing industry -to gain a support for his small family;<span class="pagenum" id="Page_95">[95]</span> -but he was rich in faith, and his benevolence -would shame that of many a -millionaire. His son had left home while -still very young; but he was fondly remembered, -and his loss lamented by the -aged pair, who had only one daughter -left to be the stay of their declining years.</p> - -<p>Mr. Wiley went from house to house -through the Beach Hill neighborhood, -wherever a disabled soldier or a bereaved -wife or mother were to be found, -often accompanied by Mabel, who in her -mourning garb looked so pale and shadowy -that we almost expected to see her -vanish from our sight. The old man -loved to hear and talk of his dead son; -but he loved still more to speak of Him -who died for sinners, and of the heaven -to which his disciples are hastening. It -was impossible on such occasions for the -most careless to listen unmoved; and -tears were often seen to steal down the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_96">[96]</span> -cheeks of bearded men, though all “unused -to the melting mood,” as they heard -from his lips the story so often told, yet -ever new, of Gethsemane and Calvary.</p> - -<p>The visit of Mr. Wiley was a blessing -to many souls in Woodbury, and especially -to Mabel and Lilian, both of whom -made a public profession of faith in Christ -the Sabbath before his departure. When -he left for home, Mabel and her mother -went with him, as our physician recommended -a change of scene for the former, -whose health was suffering from the -shock she had sustained.</p> - -<p>Capt. Lester had now so far recovered -as to walk with only the assistance of a -cane, when, one evening after Lilian had -been spending the day with me, he came -in bringing a large package, which he -threw into her lap, saying, “Read that, -dear wife, and then tell me what to do.”</p> - -<p>She opened the envelope and found<span class="pagenum" id="Page_97">[97]</span> -inclosed a commission as colonel of a -veteran regiment then being raised, with -a letter in which flattering mention was -made of Capt. Lester’s services in the -army, and the estimation in which he -was held by the chief magistrate of the -state.</p> - -<p>Lilian’s eyes sparkled with all a wife’s -pride as she read the letter, and turning -to her husband, she said, “There ought -to be but one cause for hesitation on such -a subject. If you are well enough to go, -you cannot doubt for a moment your -duty to accept it. I would not hold you -back, if I could, and I am certain that I -could not, if I would.”</p> - -<p>“Thanks, dear Lilian; I knew your -brave and true heart would cheer me on -in the path of duty; but I have been a -petted invalid so long, that I am ashamed -to say the thought of leaving all I love -was at first painful to me.”</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_98">[98]</span>“And may I not go with you?” she -inquired; “you know how well I can -bear hardships; and I assure you I will -take care that you shall find me no incumbrance.”</p> - -<p>“That you could never be, in any -case,” was his reply; “but the coming -campaign is likely to be a fatiguing and -perilous one, and besides, I must not set -an example of self-indulgence to the regiment. -It would never do for the colonel -to be enjoying the society of his wife, -unless he grants the same privilege to -the other officers, and in that case, I fear -we should be in danger of losing the -name of the ‘fighting regiment,’ which -the veterans have so nobly earned.”</p> - -<p>“I submit, as in duty bound, to your -decision; but I must have a promise that -I may come to you instantly, if at any -time you should need me.”</p> - -<p>The promise was readily given, and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_99">[99]</span> -Lilian smiled through her tears as she -playfully pictured his helplessness, when -he should find himself thrown once more -on his own resources.</p> - -<p>“I know you have almost spoiled me,” -he replied in the same tone, “but the -camp is a good school in which to learn -to endure hardships and self-denial, and -I am not likely to want for lessons in our -present service.”</p> - -<p>Several members of the Twenty-sixth, -when they found that Capt. Lester was -to have the command of a regiment, -were transferred, and most of his field -and line officers were old friends and -comrades, so we bade him farewell cheerfully, -though his health was not fully reëstablished.</p> - -<p>True to her former professions, Lilian -sent him forth with smiles and blessings; -and after his departure, she had always -a word of comfort and cheer for those<span class="pagenum" id="Page_100">[100]</span> -who had given their household treasures -to the cause of freedom. But the few -who knew her intimately, knew that she -shed bitter tears when no eye but that -of God was upon her, as she thought of -the perils by which he was surrounded, -and which he had neither the power nor -the wish to shun.</p> - -<p>The regiment commanded by Col. Lester -was in the second division of the -Sixth corps in the Army of the Potomac, -and was stationed near the enemy’s outposts, -so that picket-firing and skirmishing -were of daily occurrence, though there -had been no general engagement since -the battle of Gettysburg.</p> - -<p>That grand Army of the Potomac; -how my heart thrills as I think or write -of it! Composed, as no other army on -earth ever was made up, save our own -noble troops of the West and South-west, -of the very flower of American manhood,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_101">[101]</span> -with youth, wealth, intellect, and talent -filling its ranks, and yet, by a strange -fatality, doomed to experience unmerited -defeats or fruitless victories, it has waited -with a courage and patience truly sublime -for the moment of triumph which is -sure to come at last. So often decimated, -yet never subdued, but Antæus-like, -gathering fresh vigor from every disaster, -they have not always been able to command -success, but they have done more; -for they have deserved it. In the coming -time, when this fearful war shall have -passed into history, and our children are -reaping its glorious results, it will be a -prouder boast than that of royal lineage -to have the right to say, “My father was -a soldier in the Army of the Potomac.”</p> -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<span class="pagenum" id="Page_102">[102]</span> - -<h2 class="nobreak">CHAPTER VI.<br /> - - -<span class="small">LIGHTS AND SHADOWS.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p><span class="smcap">I had</span> been absent from home for several -weeks, and after my return, sickness -in the family confined me closely, -so that I knew little of what had been -occurring in the neighborhood. Miss -Letty, through whom my information usually -came, was seldom seen abroad, to -the great surprise and inconvenience of -many families who had learned to look -upon her frequent visits as an indispensable -part of their domestic arrangements.</p> - -<p>“What has happened to Miss Letty?” -I inquired of Lilian Lester, at a meeting -of our Aid Society, as I noticed the look -of gravity which seemed strangely out -of place on her countenance, usually so -cheerful.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_103">[103]</span>“I am not aware of any cause for it,” -Lilian replied, “and yet she certainly -does look as if she were carrying a weight -of care. Dear Miss Letty, I hope nothing -has happened to trouble her, for she -is so kind and unselfish that she ought to -be very happy.”</p> - -<p>As I left the house, Miss Letty came -up, and proposed to accompany me home, -an offer which I gladly accepted, for it -was evident that there was something -she wished to communicate, and I hoped, -by sharing her anxieties, to alleviate -them. We walked for a few steps in -silence, and then my companion, in an -embarrassed tone, very different from -her ordinary manner, inquired,</p> - -<p>“Mrs. Glenn, have you ever seen Mr. -Thurston when he has been here preaching -for Mr. Ryder?”</p> - -<p>“Mr. Thurston,” I repeated; “is he -the home missionary stationed at M——,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_104">[104]</span> -among the mountains? If so, I have seen -him, and heard him preach; but why do -you ask that question?”</p> - -<p>Strange to say, I had not a suspicion -of the state of affairs, notwithstanding -the confusion of my companion, for I had -never heard of the death of Mr. Thurston’s -wife, and therefore was not likely -to think of him in connection with Miss -Letty.</p> - -<p>“Why,” she said, “I only wanted to -know whether you had ever seen him, -and how you liked him, if you had; for -you see he has been over here several -times lately, and called on me with Mr. -Ryder, and—pshaw, how silly I am—well, -he has asked me to marry him.”</p> - -<p>Miss Letty actually blushed like a -young girl as she made this confession, -which took me so utterly by surprise, -that for a moment I had not a word to -say.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_105">[105]</span>“I see you are astonished at it, and no -wonder; I told him that everybody would -wonder that he should offer himself to me, -a seamstress, and without one cent of -money in the world; but he only smiled, -and said he wanted a wife for himself, -and not to suit the public; that he didn’t -want a young girl, nor a rich wife either, -to look down on him and his poor people.”</p> - -<p>“You are mistaken,” I replied; “it -isn’t that which surprised me, but I had -never heard that he was a widower; and -then the thought of losing you is something -so new, and not very pleasant, I -assure you. What shall we do without -you?”</p> - -<p>“I thought of that,” was the reply, -for Miss Letty had too much simplicity -of character to pretend to be ignorant of -her importance in the community, though -she was truly humble in her estimate of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_106">[106]</span> -herself; “and I told Mr. Thurston I had -been here so long, and had got so into -the habit of doing every thing for everybody, -that I was afraid they’d miss me -a good deal. But he said if that was the -case, I was just the one for a poor minister, -who had to contrive to make ends -meet, and that his children needed me -more than the folks in Woodbury did. -You see he just brushed away all my objections -like so many cobwebs, so that I -couldn’t say another word.”</p> - -<p>“I am glad he seems to appreciate -your worth; if we must give you up, it -will be a comfort to know that you are -happy.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, as to that I don’t know; I suppose -people at my age haven’t very romantic -notions of happiness; I’m sure I -haven’t; but if I can do any good to one -of the Lord’s servants, I shall be glad. -But when I think how much will be expected<span class="pagenum" id="Page_107">[107]</span> -of me, I am so frightened I feel -like giving it all right up. You see, when -I was a child they didn’t care much about -education in our town, and though I’ve -picked up some ideas here and there going -through the world, I don’t know very -much. Then I’m plain and homely in my -ways, and I’m afraid he’ll be ashamed -of me some time when he sees me by the -side of other ministers’ wives; but when -I told him so he only laughed, and said -if that was all my difficulty, he should -look on it as settled; so I had to say yes, -for he wouldn’t hear to any thing else.”</p> - -<p>I said every thing in my power to encourage -Miss Letty, for I felt that Mr. -Thurston had made a wise choice for himself -and his children, and that our little -seamstress, with her fund of good sense, -energy, and activity, and above all, with -her unwavering trust in God, would make -a far better wife for a clergyman than<span class="pagenum" id="Page_108">[108]</span> -many an educated and refined woman -who was deficient in these qualities, as -too many are.</p> - -<p>“And how soon are we to lose you?” -I inquired; “I trust not immediately; -you must give us a little time to become -reconciled to the thought of such a -change.”</p> - -<p>“Mr. Thurston is very anxious that I -should go right away; he says he has -been alone so long, and his children need -me so much; but I told him I must see -to the work I had on hand, so as to leave -you all comfortable, or I shouldn’t be -easy in my mind about going. It’s hard -to leave such friends as I have got here, -and to go away from dear little Willie’s -grave too; but Mr. Ryder seems to think -it is my duty to go, because there are so -few that would be willing to take such a -place. I don’t see how that can be, for -I’m sure Mr. Thurston is one of the best<span class="pagenum" id="Page_109">[109]</span> -of men, and I think any woman might be -happy with him.”</p> - -<p>From the earnestness with which this -was said, I saw that Miss Letty was really -interested in the good minister, and -not about to sacrifice herself from a sense -of duty merely; and I was glad to believe -this, for I feared she might not be -as comfortable under her new responsibilities -as she had been in Woodbury.</p> - -<p>The wedding took place in church; -and after an hour or two spent at the -parsonage, where the friends of the bride -called to offer their congratulations and -to bid her good-by, the happy pair left -for their mountain home, from whence -we have repeatedly heard of the new -Mrs. Thurston, as useful and beloved -beyond any of her predecessors in that -place.</p> - -<p>Mrs. Fenton had been for months rapidly -failing, and her symptoms were now<span class="pagenum" id="Page_110">[110]</span> -such as to indicate a speedy release from -her sufferings. She was intensely anxious -to see her long-absent son once more -on earth, and this strong maternal feeling -seemed actually to hold back the spirit, -already pluming its wings for flight. “I -shall not die till I have seen him again,” -was her constant reply to the inquiries -of her friends. “He will come in time -to receive my parting breath, and I am -content.”</p> - -<p>Stanwood Fenton had never recovered -from the wound received at South Mountain, -and after months of terrible agony, -had recently been obliged to submit to -amputation of the hand as the only means -of saving his life. He was now recovering -slowly, and had been sent to the convalescent -camp, when a letter from Elinor -informed him of the condition of his -mother. In spite of the remonstrances -of his physicians he obtained, through<span class="pagenum" id="Page_111">[111]</span> -the influence of Col. Lester, a dismissal -from the camp, and started for home under -the care of Capt. May, a former member -of the Twenty-sixth, and now commander -of a company in Col. Lester’s -regiment, who had a furlough in consequence -of ill health.</p> - -<p>Mrs. Fenton had seemed to be in a -dying state for several hours, but her -frequent inquiries showed us that she still -expected the arrival of her son, though -no word had reached her of his intention -to start for home.</p> - -<p>“It is my only earthly care,” she said, -“and I think my Father will grant me -this request.”</p> - -<p>She had been apparently sleeping, and -all was perfectly still in and around the -house, when suddenly starting and opening -her eyes, she exclaimed, “He is coming; -I hear the wheels; he is almost here; -thank God.”</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_112">[112]</span>None of us could hear a sound; but -the mother’s ears, quickened by affection, -caught the distant rumbling, though the -moment before death seemed about to -close them for ever. A few moments -brought the carriage to the door, and -Elinor and Lilian flew to meet and welcome -the returning wanderer.</p> - -<p>“Is my mother still living?” was his -first inquiry; and on receiving an answer -in the affirmative, the strength which had -sustained him on the way suddenly deserted -him. He sank into a chair, and -covering his face, gave way for a few -moments to the emotions which shook -his frame, while Elinor threw her arms -around his neck, and wept silently. But -Lilian, who knew the anxiety of her dying -aunt, said tenderly,</p> - -<p>“Dear cousin, this will never do. -Think of your mother, whose life is now -counted by moments, and who is waiting<span class="pagenum" id="Page_113">[113]</span> -for you. All your strength will be needed -for this interview, and you must be -calm, since agitation might be instantly -fatal to her.”</p> - -<p>“I know it,” was his reply, “and you -shall see me a man again soon; but I -have feared the worst all the way home, -and the revulsion of feeling overcame -me at first. May you never know, dear -girls, what it is to have remorse added -to the sorrow of such an hour as this.”</p> - -<p>The interview between the dying mother -and her erring, but penitent son, was -witnessed only by members of the family; -and at its close, she was so exhausted -as to be almost insensible. But the lamp -of life burned up brightly once more before -going out for ever. She bade us all -farewell, with a few tender and appropriate -words to each; then turning to her -son, who was kneeling at the bedside, with -his face buried in the pillows, she said,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_114">[114]</span> -as she laid her cold hand upon his head, -“My dear boy, I once asked for you in -my blindness length of days and temporal -prosperity. Now I trust I have sought -better things of God for you; but you -must seek him for yourself, or you will never -see his face in peace. With my dying -breath I charge you, make it the business -of your life to meet me in heaven.”</p> - -<p>After a few loving words to her husband, -Elinor, and Lilian, with a kind -message to Col. Lester, she said, in a -voice clear and distinct as in health,</p> - -<p>“I wish to give it as my dying testimony -to all here present, that not one -good thing has ever failed in my experience, -of all that the Lord has spoken. -The religion of the Bible has been to me -an infinite blessing. I have lived on it -for years, and it has supported me in -suffering and sorrow, and now I am dying -in perfect peace; for Jesus is with<span class="pagenum" id="Page_115">[115]</span> -me, and his rod and staff, they comfort -me.”</p> - -<p>Her voice died away, but the smile on -her countenance was like the dawn of -heaven in its brightness; and it may -have been the reflection of that radiance, -for before her words had ceased to echo -in that hushed chamber, the spirit had -escaped from its wasted tenement, and -was already rejoicing before the throne -of God.</p> - -<p>Col. Lester came home to see her buried, -but stayed only a few days, as active -service was soon expected. He was in -good health, and seemed very happy, and -as Lilian was to return with him to Washington, -there was nothing to mar her enjoyment -of his brief visit. After their -departure, Elinor and her brother were -very lonely, and Capt. May, whose leave -of absence had been extended, was a frequent -visitor at the Tyrrell House, and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_116">[116]</span> -a great favorite with all its inmates, from -Mr. Fenton down to Mammy Venus, and -Pete recently promoted to the dignity -of coachman.</p> - -<p>To know Elinor Fenton intimately was -to love her, and the young soldier found, -before he had dreamed of danger, that -his heart was no longer in his own possession. -He could not with propriety -make known his feelings to Elinor so -soon after her bereavement, but from his -friend Stanwood he received all the encouragement -which a brother’s best wishes -could give; and when he rejoined his -regiment, he carried with him a hope -which brightened his darkest hours, and -made every hardship seem light.</p> - -<p>Young Fenton had been at home but -a few months before he became a universal -favorite, as we discovered the acquisition -we had made in his society. He -was ardent, impulsive, and generous even<span class="pagenum" id="Page_117">[117]</span> -to a fault, and possessed the best traits -of Southern character, with an ingenuous -frankness peculiarly his own. Often led -astray by the warmth of his feelings, he -was quick to perceive and retract his -errors, and eager to make reparation for -them. It was impossible to associate with -Stanwood Fenton without being constantly -reminded of the Saviour’s remark -to the young man who came to him, and -who awoke so deep an interest in his benevolent -heart: “One thing thou lackest.” -Deep religious principle was the -one thing wanting in his character, the -balance-wheel without which his movements -were erratic and uncertain, guided -rather by the impulse of the moment -than by any sense of accountability to -God.</p> - -<p>His original plan had been to enter the -Union army as soon as possible after the -death of his mother, but his health had<span class="pagenum" id="Page_118">[118]</span> -suffered greatly from long confinement in -the hospital; and the loss of his hand, -together with the entreaties of his father -and sister, induced him to relinquish the -idea, and devote himself to the care of -his father’s business, which had suffered -from neglect. The light came back to -Elinor’s eye, and the bloom to her cheek, -as she saw her brother once more in his -proper place at home; and though her -beloved mother was still fondly remembered -and her loss deplored, it was with -a chastened sorrow, as she felt that for -her to die had been great gain.</p> - -<p>Winter, with its storms and sunshine, -its triumphs and reverses, wore away at -length, and with the first blossoms of -May Lilian came back to us, more welcome -to our hearts than the breath of -spring or the fragrance of forest flowers. -She was accompanied by Captain, now -Major May, who was on the staff of Gen.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_119">[119]</span> -Lester, and who eagerly availed himself -of an opportunity to revisit the spot -where his earthly hopes were centred. -During her stay at the head-quarters of -her husband, Lilian had learned to appreciate -the worth of the young <i>aide-de-camp</i>, -and ardently hoped he might be -successful in his suit. Why should I -narrate the progress of events? It was -the same old story repeated once again, -a tale as old as the history of the race, -yet new in the experience of every human -heart—the story of faithful love -meeting its reward at last in the affection -of the beloved object. As Elinor heard -from her cousin the recital of the gallant -exploits of Major May, of his courage and -devoted loyalty, she loved him not only -“for the perils he had passed,” but for -the high principle which had thus far -shielded him from the peculiar temptations -of a soldier’s life; and before his<span class="pagenum" id="Page_120">[120]</span> -departure he won from her a promise, -that when the war was ended, or his -term of service expired, he might claim -his reward.</p> - -<p>Months have passed, and still the cloud -of war overshadows the land, and still -our beloved ones are absent from us, -some with the heroic Sherman in Northern -Georgia, scaling the heights of Kennesaw -and Lookout mountains, and driving -the eagle from his eyrie, as they plant -the stars and stripes among the clouds; -some are in the sultry swamps and bayous -of Louisiana, exposed to a foe more -insidious and deadly than the rebel armies; -and others, among whom are our -best and bravest, are swelling the ranks -which threaten the Confederate capital.</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> -<div class="first">“The time has come when brothers must fight</div> -<div class="verse">And sisters must pray at home.”</div> -</div></div> - -<p>But while we look up to Him who -alone can send help and deliverance, it<span class="pagenum" id="Page_121">[121]</span> -is our privilege to labor as well as to -pray, and while we wait upon God, to -watch for every opportunity of doing -whatever our hands find to do in the -good cause, with our whole heart.</p> - -<p>The heavens are dark above us, and -the earth rocks wildly under our feet, -but God has a divine purpose underlying -all these convulsions, and it is fixed and -immutable as his throne. Faith sees in -the overturnings around us the majestic -march of his providence, preparing a -way in the tempest, and making the -wrath of man to praise him, while he -restrains the remainder thereof.</p> - -<p>It is good for us sometimes, when hope -deferred makes the heart sick, to go back -to first principles, that we may gather -strength from a review of our past history -and of God’s dealings with us as a nation.</p> - -<p>The American republic was unique in -its inception and establishment. The<span class="pagenum" id="Page_122">[122]</span> -pilgrim band who came to New England -in the Mayflower were not a company of -commercial adventurers, led hither by the -hope of gain; still less were they a party of -military freebooters, actuated by the lust -of conquest, like the Spaniards, who carried -fire and sword among the unoffending -inhabitants of Southern America. -The principle which led those noble men -and women to forsake kindred and home, -and to brave the perils of a howling wilderness, -and which sustained them amid -all their privations and sufferings, was -not earthly or perishable. It was the -burning, quenchless thirst for religious -liberty, the strong determination to worship -God according to the dictates of -their own conscience, though the roof of -their temple were the boundless sky and -their altar the rough stones of the forest, -that actuated the founders of this republic -in their sublime enterprise.</p> - - - -<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_123">[123]</span>They came to these wilds of nature -that they might found a colony and build -up a church, and advance the interests -of the Redeemer’s kingdom, and serve -as stepping-stones to others in the great -work of human progress. And never -has the divine declaration, “Them that -honor me I will honor,” been more signally -fulfilled than in the growth of the -infant nation thus established. Every -step of the way in which, as a people, -we have been led, from the landing on -Plymouth rock to the proud position -which we have hitherto occupied among -the nations, has been marked by special -interpositions of Providence, no less real, -though less miraculous, than the pillar of -cloud and flame which guided the ancient -Israelites to the land of promise.</p> - -<p>But in our prosperity we have forgotten -the Rock whence we were hewn, and -have rebelled against our father’s God,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_124">[124]</span> -and refused to obey his commands, until -in his righteous indignation he has come -out in judgment against us, and left us to -our own ways and to eat the fruit of our -own devices. As a nation we have -deeply sinned. As a nation we are suffering -a fearful punishment.</p> - -<p>But let not the enemies of liberty in -the old world or the new, exult in the -belief that the republic is about to be -rent in fragments, and the last hope of -the oppressed millions of Europe to be -for ever entombed. We are bearing the -indignation of the Lord because we have -sinned against him; but when his purposes -concerning us are accomplished, -he will arise to execute judgment for -us.</p> - -<p>No careful observer of God’s providence -can doubt that he has reserved -America for a grand destiny—that our -country has a mission to perform of the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_125">[125]</span> -sublimest import, and a grand agency to -exert in the regeneration of the world.</p> - -<p>If we read aright the divine purpose -in reference to this nation, and the historical -causes here concentrating, we -must believe that the vital forces inherent -in our government and institutions -will, with the blessing of God, master all -the antagonisms now threatening their -overthrow; and that, having passed -through this baptism of blood and fire, -we shall emerge cleansed and purified, -and stand as a beacon light to the struggling -nations of the old world, until suffering -humanity everywhere, regenerated -and redeemed, shall rejoice in one -grand jubilee of liberty, Christianity, -and universal brotherhood.</p> - - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p class="ph3">Beautiful Books<br /> - -FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH.</p> - -<p class="center">AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, 150 NASSAU-STREET,<br /> -NEW YORK.</p> -</div> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p><b>Flowers of Spring-time.</b> Combining amusement and -instruction in most attractive forms. One hundred and -fifty Engravings. Quarto size.</p> - -<p><b>Home Scenes.</b> An elegant small quarto for the family, -with fourteen photographic pictures, fac-similes of fine -Engravings.</p> - -<p><b>Views from Nature.</b> Forty scenes in nature and art -Finely printed in tint.</p> - -<p><b>Songs for the Little Ones at Home.</b> Attractive as -ever. Beautifully illustrated.</p> - -<p><b>Lullabies, Ditties, and Tales.</b> Original short Poems -for the Children, Containing Tales, Songs, and Dialogues. -With eighty-four Engravings.</p> - -<p><b>Home Pictures.</b> 72 pages. A fine Cut on each page.</p> - -<p><b>My Picture-book.</b> 64 pages. Sixty-one Engravings.</p> - -<p><b>Fireside Pictures.</b> 64 pages. With a Cut on each -page.</p> - -<p><b>The Illustrated Tract Primer.</b> The Children’s favorite. -Finely Illustrated.</p> - -<div class="blockquot"> - - -<p>FOR SALE AT 150 NASSAU-STREET, NEW YORK; -40 <span class="smcap">Cornhill</span>, BOSTON; 1210 <span class="smcap">Chestnut-street</span>, PHILADELPHIA; -75 <span class="smcap">State-street</span>, ROCHESTER; 163 -<span class="smcap">Walnut-street</span>, CINCINNATI; and in other cities and -principal towns.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<div class="transnote"> -<p class="ph1">TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES:</p> - - -<p>Obvious typographical errors have been corrected.</p> - -<p>Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been standardized.</p> - -<p>Archaic or alternate spelling has been retained from the original.</p> - -<p>The cover image for this eBook was created by the transcriber and is entered into the public domain.</p> - -</div></div> -<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OUR VILLAGE IN WAR-TIME ***</div> -<div style='text-align:left'> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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