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Article THE WOUNDED CAPTAIN. ← Page 2 of 3 →
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The Wounded Captain.
" F RONT OP THE LINE , ARMY OF THE ' ¦ ' POTOMAC . "June 20 , 186— . " MRS . C . ARTHUR—Dear Madam : — It becomes my painful duty to inform you that on the clay of June , in an
engagement with the forces of the enemy , under Stonewall Jackson , your husband , Captain George Arthur , AVUS severely wounded and taken prisoner by the enemy . If living he is a prisoner , but his Avonnds Avere of such a nature ( as I have
learned ) as to preclude much hope of his recovery . Yours , with respect ancl sympathy with your affliction , "A S .
" Major Commanding 7 thRegt . —Lift . Vol . " " Ah , my child , we are without hope ! Even if he should still be living he is Avouuded , ancl a prisoner in the hands of inhuman soldiers , from whom there is no hope of obtaining his release . He can not
survive long in a hospital without the medical aid and the kindest attention ; then Avhat hope can there be for him in the hands of enemies ?" " No , no , mother , say not so ; Avas not father a Freemason ? " rejoined Eda .
"Yes , child , " replied the mother , "but what of that . Freemasonry avails but little in a war of brother against brother . My child , think of that dread Libby prison and A ndersonville ; " ancl again Mrs . Arthur burst into tears , and threAV herself upon the sofa in deep agony .
Eda gazed a minute upon her mother thoughtfully , her eye gradually assumed a new light ; she softly folded the letter , and placing it in her bosom , with a gentle but firm step stole from the room . About three o ' clock that afternoon , in the village of S , sat Judge B in
his office . He was p >< ist the meridian of life , he was neither corpulent or lean , but of that full habit which is necessary to perfect a fine , large physical form . His large head , graced with a full suit of steelmixed hair , Avas well balanced upon his
broad shoulders , while good nature smiled playfully upon every lineament of his hundsome features . A deep , intellectual eye , a thoughtful composure of countenance and a hi gh , broad forehead bespoke the man of profound thought and mental labour . Judge B AVJIR now n
practising attorney iu the village of S , although he had long presided in one of the judicial tribunals of his state , and hacl with credit represented his constituency in the national legislature . He Avas surrounded bclients Avhen Eda Arthur
y entered his office . She slowly and softly approached Judge B ; she stood awhile reading his features ancl looking into his eyes inquiringly . " What do you Avant , my child ?• " inquired Judge B returning her
pene-, trating glance . Eda , as if assured by the tone of voice and gentle play of features that accompanied it , without removing her eyes from his , slowly withdrew the letter from her bosom and placed it in his hand .
The judge ran his eye hastily over the contents of the paper , ancl turning to his clients , said : " Gentlemen , you must come some other time ; here is more important business than yours which demands my immediate attention . "
" But , " said one of the persons , ' . ' Ave have come a great distance to see you , judge , and our business is also of great importance . " "True , " returned the judge , "but it matters not . This note , brought by this little girl , puts me in possession of facts
ancl circumstances which require my attention , to the exclusion of every other matter ; so you understand me . " " But , judge , " returned the client , " if you Avill consider , we can not conveniently come again . If you can not do
our business Ave must go to some other laAvyer . " " Very well , " returned the judge , " that will do better . There are several competent lawyers in town ; go to one of these , gentlemen . I must be master of my time
the rest of this day , perhaps longer . " So the clients left . "Are you Mrs . Arthur ' s child ? " inquired the judge of Eda , ivho replied in the affirmative . He took the child upon his kneeandkissing herasked" W'hy
, , , , did you come to me with this letter ?" " Because , " returned Eda , " once , when mother was blaming father for being a Freemason , father told her that you were also one , and that ought to reconcile her to his being one . He told her that Masons
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Wounded Captain.
" F RONT OP THE LINE , ARMY OF THE ' ¦ ' POTOMAC . "June 20 , 186— . " MRS . C . ARTHUR—Dear Madam : — It becomes my painful duty to inform you that on the clay of June , in an
engagement with the forces of the enemy , under Stonewall Jackson , your husband , Captain George Arthur , AVUS severely wounded and taken prisoner by the enemy . If living he is a prisoner , but his Avonnds Avere of such a nature ( as I have
learned ) as to preclude much hope of his recovery . Yours , with respect ancl sympathy with your affliction , "A S .
" Major Commanding 7 thRegt . —Lift . Vol . " " Ah , my child , we are without hope ! Even if he should still be living he is Avouuded , ancl a prisoner in the hands of inhuman soldiers , from whom there is no hope of obtaining his release . He can not
survive long in a hospital without the medical aid and the kindest attention ; then Avhat hope can there be for him in the hands of enemies ?" " No , no , mother , say not so ; Avas not father a Freemason ? " rejoined Eda .
"Yes , child , " replied the mother , "but what of that . Freemasonry avails but little in a war of brother against brother . My child , think of that dread Libby prison and A ndersonville ; " ancl again Mrs . Arthur burst into tears , and threAV herself upon the sofa in deep agony .
Eda gazed a minute upon her mother thoughtfully , her eye gradually assumed a new light ; she softly folded the letter , and placing it in her bosom , with a gentle but firm step stole from the room . About three o ' clock that afternoon , in the village of S , sat Judge B in
his office . He was p >< ist the meridian of life , he was neither corpulent or lean , but of that full habit which is necessary to perfect a fine , large physical form . His large head , graced with a full suit of steelmixed hair , Avas well balanced upon his
broad shoulders , while good nature smiled playfully upon every lineament of his hundsome features . A deep , intellectual eye , a thoughtful composure of countenance and a hi gh , broad forehead bespoke the man of profound thought and mental labour . Judge B AVJIR now n
practising attorney iu the village of S , although he had long presided in one of the judicial tribunals of his state , and hacl with credit represented his constituency in the national legislature . He Avas surrounded bclients Avhen Eda Arthur
y entered his office . She slowly and softly approached Judge B ; she stood awhile reading his features ancl looking into his eyes inquiringly . " What do you Avant , my child ?• " inquired Judge B returning her
pene-, trating glance . Eda , as if assured by the tone of voice and gentle play of features that accompanied it , without removing her eyes from his , slowly withdrew the letter from her bosom and placed it in his hand .
The judge ran his eye hastily over the contents of the paper , ancl turning to his clients , said : " Gentlemen , you must come some other time ; here is more important business than yours which demands my immediate attention . "
" But , " said one of the persons , ' . ' Ave have come a great distance to see you , judge , and our business is also of great importance . " "True , " returned the judge , "but it matters not . This note , brought by this little girl , puts me in possession of facts
ancl circumstances which require my attention , to the exclusion of every other matter ; so you understand me . " " But , judge , " returned the client , " if you Avill consider , we can not conveniently come again . If you can not do
our business Ave must go to some other laAvyer . " " Very well , " returned the judge , " that will do better . There are several competent lawyers in town ; go to one of these , gentlemen . I must be master of my time
the rest of this day , perhaps longer . " So the clients left . "Are you Mrs . Arthur ' s child ? " inquired the judge of Eda , ivho replied in the affirmative . He took the child upon his kneeandkissing herasked" W'hy
, , , , did you come to me with this letter ?" " Because , " returned Eda , " once , when mother was blaming father for being a Freemason , father told her that you were also one , and that ought to reconcile her to his being one . He told her that Masons