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About Harrison press-journal. (Harrison, Nebraska) 1899-1905 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 4, 1902)
SOLDIERS' STORIES. ! ENTERTAINING REMINISCENCES THE WAR. Graphic Account of Btlrrtna- Scenes j Witnessed on the Battlefield and in ' Camp Vetera na of the Rebellion Re cite Experiences of Thrilling Nature. "I alone, dire, am the rear guard of the Grand Army!" exclaimed Marshal Ney as he fired the lust sliot at the Cossacks on t he banks of the Rertzina. This melancholy feature of aioleon's disastrous Russian campaign was doubtless recalled by a few survivors of the last battle of the civil war when they heard of the death of (Jen. EgU'rt lirown. When a line of Confederate cavalry was slowly retiring from the field on tlie plains of Brazos Santiago In Texas, where the blue and the gray hail met In deadly encounter, for the last time a soldier turned In his saddle and after repeating the words of the great Trench marshal, he threw his gun to his shoul der ami fired. It proved to be the last tdiot of tiie last battle, and It was cer tainly the hist stiot of the long war. Fortunately, ns a matter favorable to the truth of history, the man who achieved distinction In connection with this memorable event Is a perfectly re liable man. Ills name Is S. II. Barton. He was a captain In the Confederate army, and he was held In high esteem by his superiors and dearly loved by the brave Texans whose dangers and privations he shared on the march and In the trenches where bulls fell like hall. 1'roiiiotlon sought him many times after the smoke of battle had cleared from a red Held and soldiers were talking of his dauntless courage, l.if he preferred to serve with the com rades of his boyhood. He now lives at Icl Rio, in western Texas, where he owns one of the most desirable small ranches in the State and considerable valuable town prop erty. Everj'lsidy knows Capt. Barton, and those who have known him long and intimately speak of him In the highest terms of praise. He has late ly purchased the Iel Rio Record, and doutuicss will some day tell the public all alxmt the last battle of the war. There are others still living who can bear witness to the fact that Capt. Bar ton fired the last shot at Brazos San tiago, and, strangely enough, among these is an old soldier of the name of Ney, who claims that he Is a descend ant of the famous French marshal who fired the last shot at the Cossacks. A reliable citizen of Del Rio, In .dis cussing this matter, said: "Capt. Bar ton Is sure that he fired the last shot at the close of the last battle of the civil war, and I ttelleve him, for he Is a per fectly truthful man, and he would not misrepresent a matter of that kind In the least, not even to have his fame spread over forty pages of history." The story of that last battle, which was fought on the l.'lth of May, 1805, after, the war was ended and peace de clared, has escaped the attention that It merits, for it was an affair of no lit tle Importance. Ot'ii. Eglx'rt Brown, who nently died at West Plains, Mo., was In com mand of the Federal troops In southern Texas, and he was doubtless well in formed concerning the termination of hostilities. Gen. J. E. Slaughter, who commanded the Confederate troop en camped at Brazos Santiago, had beard rumors of the surrender of the armies commanded by Lee, Johnston und oilier generals, but he had received tio offi cial notice of these facts from the war department. On. Brown, under a flag of truce. Informed the Confeder ates of the state of affairs atMiiit Washington and Richmond, at the name time Inviting them to come In and lay down their arms, as the war was certainly over. On. Slaughter refused to act In an affair of such lmiortaiicc until he was better Informed. Thercuion Col. Bar ret, at the head of a considerable force, was despatched to break up the rebel ramp. A hot battle ensued and, curi ously enough, most of the fighting was done on the old field of l'alo Alto, where On. Taylor achieved a victory over the Mexicans nearly twenty years before. The French soldiers encamped on the southern shore of the Rio Grande were In sympathy with the Southerner and they kept (Jen. Slaugh ter and Col. Rip 1'ord posted na to the movements of the Federal troop. Sev eral spirited encounters occurred and the loss sustained by some of the negro regiments must have been severe. While" the battle raged the Confi-der-ates were frequently Informed by some bold cavalryman In blue that the war was over. One daring fellow shouted: "Lee surrendered a mouth ago. The war Is ended. Why don't you go homer When the engagement was hottest Oen. Slaughter received dispatches and the French sent him a bundle of news papers. Fully satisfied that the cause for which they were fighting was for ever lost, he ordered the firing to cease. At that particular moment neither side could have claimed any advantage over the other, but both armies began to re tire from the field 'at the same time. As Capt 8. H. Barton, lu command of the rear guard, was slowly riding away a stray hall struck a young man by his aide, and he fell from his saddle. That was certainly the last man killed In the long war. Capt Barton was unable to recall his name, but be ha It In a note book which be will publish Mine day, "I thought that was hard luck," says the old soldier. "The young man had erred four years and never got a cratch. The last bullet that came our way killed him. Prompted more by a plte at fate than bitterness toward the Mam, I turned In my saddle and fired toward a dark blue line, which I hope was out of range. That wax certainly the last shot of the great war." Bt Iouls Glolie-Defliocvat. Civil Warlioy Heroes. While It Is known that youthful be roes were not rare during the Civil War, It is not generally realized, per haps, at what very tender ages boys were actual allowed to Join the army. Johnny Clem, the drummer boy of Chlckainauga, offered his services to the Third Ohio Regiment when he was but 10 years old, but was rejected be cause of his youth. Johnny Installed himself on the train which bore the regiment to the front and on Its arriv al In Cincinnati repeated his offer to the Twenty-third Michigan. His per sistency was at last rewarded and he subsequently became enrolled as a drummer boy. He conducted himiiell couragwusly at the battle of Pitts burg Landing, but it was at Chlcka nmuga that he ierformed the act of valor that crowned him as a hero. At the close of that memorable day the I'nlon Army fell back to Chattanooga, the brigade to which Johnny belonged being left Itchlnd to guard the position. It was soon surrounded by the trooiKi In gray, and a colonel on horseback dashed forward and ordered the little fellow to surrender. Instead of otey Ing the boy raised his musket and, as the ciloiiel bore down uikjii him, sword In hand, fired, and the officer fell dead from his horse. A fierce on slaught followed. Throe balls pierced Johnny's cap on that day. lie lay ns If dead, and not until the Confederates hud censed firing and night had fallen did he venture forth, making his way to the Union headquarters at Chatta nooga. He was then created a ser geant by General Rosecrans. After this he figured in other buttles and received recognition from Onernl Grant and the Secretary of War, the latter of whom appointed him profes sor military science and tactics at Galesburg University. He was created major and quartermaster In LSX, and stationed at Atlanta, Ga. Some years ago the Wisconsin Leg islature awarded a medal to John E. Francisco as the youngest real soldier of the Union army during the war. Young Francisco was not a drummct Ixiy, but carried a musket from the time of his enlistment unt!lmustcrcd out During the first three years of the war Frawlwo was too young to le accepted as a soldier, but In 1S04, at the age of 14, he had attained a stature and developed a physique that pro voked the envy of lxys several years his senior. Farm life became unbear able to him and he yearned to go to the war. He made several attempts to do so and was finally accepted, though the surgeon expressed his doubts of the lwy's ability to success fully withstand' the hardships of a sol dier's life, whereupon John promptly offered to satisfy them as to hi sol dierly qualities by whipping the ser geant or any other officer present. On his enrollment the captain, think ing to relieve hi in of many trials and hardships, offered to attach John to himself ns his servant, an offer which, made In all kindness, was hotly resent ed, and thereafter the boy was allowed to assume the duties of a regular sol dier. There are other "youngest soldiers of the war." Gilbert Van Kundt. U-tter known as "Little Gib," enlisted at the age of 10 years and 7 months with the Seventy-ninth Ohio Volunteer In fantry. He soon became the et of his regiment and was In all the en gagements that occurred during Sher man's famous march to the sen. At Mllledgeville, Ga., a pony was captured, and by the general's orders it was turned over to "Little Gib." Mounted on this pony he acted as one of the general's orderlies. When the pony was confiscated on the muster out In Washington in June, 1.S0.', Gll Ix'rt, who was then only 13 years aiul U months old, went to President John son and asked permission to take the Iiny lxmie with him. "Which would you rather have, the pony or an offi cer's commission?" asked the Presi dent "The pony," promptly replied the boy, true to his equine friend, and so the pony was given him and taken to his Ohio home. She Said Nothing. It was In 1-S4J2, during the war, when Company B, Fourteenth Iowa Volun teers Inrintry, were stationed at Cairo, Colonel Shaw of the Fourteenth was a man of quick, decisive, nervous tem perament somewhat taciturn, and loved a Joke as well as the next one. He had one Infirmity, a "game leg," as the boys called It which would swing around, and generally took ev eryth!ngat!int came In Its way. On this particular afternoon he was hastening to the barracks to give some orders, and so Intent on his thoughts of business that he paid no attention to an elegantly dressed lady, who was picking her way cautiously over the crossing on the sloppy street She wore very largo crinoline, 'the style In those days, and as the Colonel met her, he tlpied his hat, forgetting, as he did so, to turn aside far enough to give his "game leg" plenty of room. With "one fell swoop" he brought It around, and catching In the lady' hoops. It threw her usn her face In the mud, one way, and him the other. Struggling to her feet, without assist ance, the lady looked with horror upon her ruined garments, and rsge depicted Itself Uion her mud -bespattered coun temtnoe. Opening her lips she was about to pour forth a volley of Invec tives UMn the unfortunate Colonel's head, when he, hastily regaining his feet (or foot), looked as forlorn as she, ajid returning her vicious glare five fold, said before her lips could frame a single word: "Madame. I have nothing against you, but darn your hoops," then lift ing bis bat again, be strode away. THE OLD HOME. la pi Bone that Brine Childhood Joy liack to Ue. Thomas Dunn English, the author of "Ben Bolt" who died in April last was nearly 83 years old. He was born only ten years after Edgar Allan Foe. The announcement of his death was follow ed by the reprinting of his most famous ballad in many places, and its reading and re-reading by thousands of men and women. What is Its charm? It Is not poetry of a high order, nor is It very good verse. It was set to a pleasing tune, but not to one to be compared with the air of "Annie Laurie" or "Swanee River" In those qualities that find per manent favor with the people. Yet it belongs to a small class of songs, every one of which holds a secure place in the hearts of the generation for which tbey were written, and Is known and lovod by many younger folk, who have learned them from parents or grandparents. These songs celebrate In one fashion or another the Influence of country sights, sounds, occupations upon the growing boy or girl.' They are not love songs, except that they are full of the, love of country life. Their phrases are often homely, their music may be cheap; but they have the power to bring tears to the eyes of even a con ventional man or woman of the world, as they carry the Imagination back to the childhood's home. Into this class of poems would go, besides "Ben Bolt," "The Old Oaken Bucket," "Auld Lang Sy,ne," "Wood man, Spare That Tree," "I Remember, I Remember the House Where I Was Born," "The Old Armchair" and "Home, Sweet Home." The man or woman is to bo envied who finds In the lines a value not their own, and to whom they bring pictures as dear as they are vivid. The quota tions are familiar, but they do not grow trite: The orchard, the meadow, the deep-tangled wildwood, And every loved spot which my infarcy knew. And Hie shaded nook by the murmt.ring brook Where the children went to swim. The lilacs where the robin built, And where my brother set The laburnum on his birthday The tree is living yet. And most characteristic of all, this: I remember, I remember, The fir-trees dark and high; I used to think their slender tops Wiye close against the nky; It was a childish ignorance, But now 'tis little joy To know I'm farther off from heaven Than when I wus a hoy. The life that has the country for a background has unfailing refreshment for the hard-working years that follow youth, and that life may be passed In counting-house or factory or shop, far from forest and field. The farm may have seemed dull and prosaic to the boy and girl. To the man and woman It wears the colors of poetry. Its simplicity, its Intimate as sociation with nature ally It to the noblest In the universe, and the mem ory of It prompts those who have known It to a resolve that they will never stoop to Ideals unworthy of their heritage. Youth's Companion. KILLING A NOXIOUS WEED. Canada Thistles May He Extirpated in Two Conaacutive Beaaona. One of the worst enemies of the farmer Is the Canada thistle. It works more Injury every year to farms In this country than many other causes to which greater attention Is given. It spreads slowly apparently, but It soon er or later takes full possession of the land and unless eradicated the entire farm becomes worthless. The heavier seeds, which are carried by winds, will germinate, but Its progress is by means of long white root stocks, which are proof against disease and seasons. It is claimed that a piece of root stock if left In the soil wilLgrow from six to ten feet In a seasoirand from each small plxe us many as fifty heads will grow. The best season for beginning the wur on thistles Is In June. Plow the hind and then plow again every few weeks until well Into the fall, the object being to destroy the young growth as fast as It appears, as any plant must succumb If deprived of forming leaves, as plants breathe through the agency of thejenves. An other plan Is to allow them te grow uutll the plants are Just high enough to mow and then run the mower over the field, repeating the work as fast as the plants appear. As the farmer may prefer to utilize the land be can plow the land and plant It to potato. If lie will then give the potato crop frequent cultiva tion ho will destroy many of the this tles and the potatoes will pay for the labor. It may not be possible to sub due the thistle the first year, but If the work Is well done the thistles may be completely destroyed the second year, when the ground should be plow ed In the spring and a crop of early cabbages grown, removing the cabbage crop and broadcasting the land, after plowing and harrowing, with Hunga rian grass seed. As the Hungarian graes grows rapidly and may be mow ed once a month It gives the thistles but little chance, while the previous cultivation of the cabbage crop will have greatly reduced the thistle In number. The point Is to keep the this tles cut down from July to frost, after which they will be under control. The roadsides must also bo carefully attended to, for It Is on the unculti vated roadside that weeds are neglect ed and hence are protected. Neighbors i should also work harmoniously In the destruction of weeds, as frequentlj some negligent farmer Injures the en tire community by producing the aeedi of weeds which are carried by th winds over a large area. Weeds maj also be carried long distances on tb tops of railroad cars or by water; In fact, there are so many modes of dis tribution that it is almost impossible for any farmer to escape the nuisance of weeds, but all farmers can prevent their spread, and in protecting h!i nelghtor he aso protects himself. The Canada thistle Is not so great a nuis ance as many suppose If farmers will determine to combat Its spread. KNOW BAD MONEY AT SIGHT. Bank Officer Are Seldom Victimized by Counterfeit Currency. It seems wonderful to the casual ob server thut cashiers, bank tellers and others who handle large amounts of paper money are able, at a glance, to detect a bad note. Exactly what It Is that does expose the counterfeit the best experts find It difficult to tell. They say they know It Instinctively. They judge not only by the looks of the note, but also by the feel of It It Is obvious that a counterfeit note must be widely circulated to make it profitable. No sooner does a counter feit appear than Its description Is wide ly published. Those who are likely to suffer from taking counterfeit notes make It their business to be on the lookout for new ones, which are soon distinguishable by some easily discov ered mark. A teller knows of just vJiat denom inations are the counterfeits, and Just where to look for the tell-tale marks. He detects the spurious notes as easily as the reader does a misspelled word. It Is no particular effort It Is a habit. The principal reason why counter feits are so easily detected is because in some feature they are almost uniform ly of inferior quality. This Is Indeed the main protection of the public. Gen uine notes are engraved and printed al most regardless of cost aud the very best materials are used la the engrav ing and printing. It is done In large es tablishments, with costly materials and by the best workmen. It Is practically impossible for coun terfeiters to do as well. They must work in secret and at a disadvantage and of necessity cannot have the ex perience to produce such perfect work. If they get the engraving done nicely they fall in the printing, or If they get the engraving and printing done well they fail in securing the proper paper. Of late years there has been a great deal of care taken to get paper manu factured expressly for the notes Issued by the government. The national bank notes are also Issued by the govern ment, so that the sources of supply for exactly that kind of paper are con trolled. The Lost Child. nere is an amusing story told of an "active and intelligent" officer In the Metropolitan police force: The other day he saw a little boy in the Strand crying bitterly. The officer loomed up over the Infant who gazed up, and, amid sobs, said: "I'm lost!" "Where do you live, little man?" asked the constable kindly, for he had children of his own. "Booboo!" wailed the child. "I don't know, lioohoo!" "Come with me!" said the officer. "What can your mother be thinking oi to let a little one of your size stray away?" And away went the "bobby," re solved to find the parents of the little one and to administer a fitting rebuke when he found them. As he was going up Bow street be met a sergeant. "What's the matter wJth the kid?" inquired the sergeant. "He's lost and I'm trying to find his mother or father. If I can't drop across 'em, I'll land him in the station." "Rats!" responded the sergeant. "Don't you recognize your own boy?" It Is not known whether the officer administered a rebuke to the child's Ia rents. His Marvelous Cheek. An Impecunious constituent of Abra ham G ruber willed upon the latter at his office last week and requested the loun of a dollar. A $2 bill was the smallest the colonel had. This he handed to the caller with the remark: "Go to the cigar stand downstairs, get a 15-ce.it cigar, keep a dollar and bring me the change." In a few minutes the visitor reap peared, puffing contentedly ut a cigar and banded the colonel 83 cents. No ticing a peculiar expression on Colonel Gruber's face, ho withdrew the cigar from his lips long enongh to Inquire: "Did you mean that the cigar was for you or me?" -. "Get out of here," was all Gruber could say. New York Times. Would Not Need li Then. An Arkansas man once wrote to In quire the price of a saw-mill that would sow all the various ways thai ho wanted to saw. When he learned) by return mall that such a mill would cost hltn fl.flOO, ho replied by postal card: "If a man had $1,000 what in) thunder wonld he want of a saw-mill?" At the cloe of one of those days, when you have been too busy to look up, you will nlways meet on the way home some one who complains that h enn't kill time. If you discover that you have made a mistake, don't stubbornly Insist upon keeping It u(J; let go and run. It la every man's opinion that ho would have been a g-eat man bad be lived fifty years ago. I Shade for Chicka. There nre thousands of chicks hatch ed late In the season that need pro tection from the sun's,.rays to enable them to make a proper growth .during the summer. The coop illustrated may be used, or any coop of a plau best suited to the ideas of the poultry rais er; any of them may be protected by an arrangement such us shown. What ever the form of the coop, the shed which is to furnish shade should be built on the slant shown, so that any rain which falls on it may be shed. To make this roof, a frame should be SHADE FOK LATE CHICKS. built of light lumber and the corner stakes driven firmly into the ground. The top may be covered with light cornstalks, hay, straw or burlap; In fa-t, with almost anything that will not draw heat, and which will be fair ly weather-proof. Such an arrangement as shown will be of great benefit to the chicks, for it will give them a cool and shady place after a run on the range. A number of these shades may be made at very small cost, so that there is no excuse for going without such a protection- for the coops. Rla for Corn Huakera. For the lament of those who have corn to husk, I send a sketch of a plat form I made to husk fodder on. I find it very simple and convenient Take two 6-in. boards, c c, 4 ft. long, for cleats. Space them so they will pass between the two center crosspleces under the wagon box. Nail four boards 2 ft. long on end of cleats, as shown in the cut. This makes the platform o n RIO FOR FODDER. which to lay fodder. Take a piece of hard wood, b, 3 In. wide and In. thick, long enough to reach from one crosspiece to the other, bolt this to the under side of two center cross pieces of wagon box. This can be done by taking the nuts of the braces on side of wagon box, as shown In the figure. Slide cleats under wagon box, as Indicated In the Illustration. A far mer having this arrangement may husk corn all day with ease Nelson Savage, In Farm and Home Nitroicen for Sweet Corn. The New Jersey Experiment Station has been for three years testing diff erent forms and amounts of nitrogen ous fertilizer for sweet corn. The first group of plants had either nitrate of soda 150 pounds per acre, sulphate of ammonia 120 pounds per acre, or dried blood two hundred pounds per acre. Each was calculated to furnish the same amount of nitrogen. On a second group these amounts were multiplied by 1 2-3, and on a third group by 2V4. The three years test has shown an In crease of 23.3 to 40.2 per cent The yield was largest where the most ni trogen was applied. The returns for sulphate of ammonia for three years was $12.00, for drhxl blood, $0.05, and for nitrate of soda $0,119 per acre, and as the average ewt of fertilizer was $4 per acre, they think It pays to sup ply the nitrogen. On cabbages they found the best results from dried blood, alwut 2T0 pounds per acre, though 200 pounds of nitrate of soda was nearly equal In results. The aver age Increased value of the croi was over $50 per acre. They seemed to act about ollke In hastening the earll nees of the crop. New England Homo stead. Don't Bow Seed by Hand. The sowing of seed by band Is not an economical method, as more seed Is required than when a drill Is used, rtnd there Is a larger return from the drill, owing to better covering of the seed and greater uniformity of depth. The drill lias been Improved to a high degree of efficiency, and some have fertilizer attachments, bi all experi ments made to determine the compar ative value of the drill and band seed ing a leu quantity ot seed, carefully m IT WAGO.V TLATFORM FOR FODDER. drilled In, yielded more bushels per acre. In proportion to seed used, than seeding by hand. Care of Poultry House. Nine out of ten poultry houses re main uucleaned during the summer, except for the removal of the drop pings. If the houses are occupied. As a 1 result the lice greatly increase in num ber, and are responsible for the slow i growth made by many of the chicken during the summer. There is no reason why the house should not be fumigated during the summer almost as regulurly as during the winter, and the labor Involved is really not so great An abundance of whitewash and some carbolic acid will usually do all necessary to rid the houses of lice, provided it is applied so that nil cracks and crevices are reach ed. Nest boxes should be removed and new ones substituted unless the old ones can be thoroughly cleansed. Roosts should come down so that the diseufectant may be placed In all the cracks; In short, the house should be thoroughly cleansed, and that several times during the summer. Grain and Dairy Farming. An Important difference between dairy farming and grain farming is the amount of the frm that is sold with the product that is of the fertility of the farm. The man who sells a ton of wheat sells In it about $7 worth of fertilizing elements, and if he does not buy something to replace them his farm is so much poorer. The dairy man who sells a ton of butter has sold but fifty cents' worth of fertilizing ma terial, and if he is a good dairyman, tie has probably added much more than that, or twenty times that to the value of the farm in the bran, oil meal, cot ton seed or other food that he pur chased while feeding his cows for mak ing that ton of butter. It is in this way that the dairyman's farm is con tinually growing more productive, and if he does not make much froin; his dairy, he should from the crops that he can grow on his much enriched soil, American Cultivator. A Plow Shoe. The good farmer does not throw the plow on its side and drag it from one . fie field to another. lie will make a ooden runner. as shows' In the cut, or 'he cuts PLOW SIIOE. away an old boot or shoe, all but the sole and toe, for a runner. The good appearance of a lane or roadway should not be spoiled by plow'.marks it looks as if the farmer didn't care. Epitomist. -' Late Fodder Crops. Late fodder crops include Kaffir corn, millet sorghum, rape, corn, the cereals and the clovers. One writer claims that where hogs are kept rape is the greatest of all those mentioned,' as a half acre will feed forty hogs during the season If the crop gefs a good start. Sorghum is looked upon as one of the very best crops for shocking and curing to be fed cut during the winter. As this crop may be seeded after cereals have been harvested, there Is still am ple opportunity to prepare the soil and sow the seed. If the soil is plowed to a depth of three or four inches and afterwards well worked down with the harrow and cultivators such a seed bed will favor the production of sev eral tons of cured sorghum per acre. One writer recommends Mammoth Early Orange as being the best sor ghum for both fodder and seed pur poses Iowa Homestead, A Change Needed. Fowls will often do well on a, small place for several years and then fall off and become unprofitable Just as the owner thinks he has learned It nil. The usual reason is cither that the stock has become run out by too mucV con finement or that the fowls have used up some of the things about the place which they need. They have killed out the grass, used up all the sharp gravel or perhaps the soil has become infested with disease or the coops with lice. Remedy Is to note conditions, supply what Is needed and Introduce fresh stock. Mule Statistics. According to the government census of 1000, there are 3,271,121 mules in the United Suites. It Is also stated by the census officials that mules are in creasing In this country. According to the numeration In 1800, 157,022 mule colts were foaled In 1889, whereas In 1899 the number had Increased to 231, 097. The actual Increase of the total number of mules In the entire country Is said to be some 34 per cent during the past ten years. Orowlns Hsdiahss. The radish is a hardy plant and can be grown every month from spring un til late In the fall. But few should be planted at a time, as they soon become tough If left In the ground or are al lowed to approach maturity. To have them crisp and tender they should be grown on rich soil and forced, as the sooner they reach the table stage tbe better tbelr quality. Motor Plow. The Agricultural World of London, England, says that Dr. Gatllng, Invent or of the Gatllng gun, has Invented plow to be operated by a gasoline mo tor. He claims that It can be run at 4 cost of $2 per day, so that It will de the work of thirty men and eight horses. He proposes to make It a feature of the St. Louis Exposition.
