l^iE\ 
 
 UGLI 
 
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 .-^■;'-. 
 
 [^^a:*.-.'*-.-- .■'. 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY OF 
 
 NORTH CAROLINA 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 THE WILMER COLLECTION 
 
 OF CIVIL WAR NO\^ELS 
 
 PRESENTED BY 
 
 RICHARD H. WILMER, JR. 
 
 
 
 
 .--.c^^^^i 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER 
 
 l^ootCQ- 
 
 1 
 
 ILLUSTRAT^IONS BY J. H. FRY. 
 
 SAINr LOUIS: 
 
 G. I. JONES & COMPANY. 
 
 1880. 
 
Entered according to an act of Congress, in the year 18S0, by 
 
 G. I. JOXES & COMPANY, 
 
 In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 
 
TO THE 
 
 SOUTHERN PEOPLE, 
 
 IN GRATEFUL HEMEMBKANCE OF THEIR KIND HOSPITALITY, 
 THIS LITTLK BOOK IS DEDICATED 
 
 BY 
 
 THE AUTHOK. 
 Boston, April, 18S(>. 
 
 603218 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 I was about fifteen years old when the war broke 
 out, in the spring of 1861. My only brother had 
 been educated at We.st Point, and was given a com- 
 mission in a volunteer resriment. His leavino- home 
 for the three months' service was the first event that 
 made the war seem real to me. That was a pretty 
 gloomy time in our little family. Mother and sister 
 were very sad ; still, they did not urge my brother to 
 remain at home, for they knew that he had been 
 educated for the army, and the nation was in great 
 need of trained soldiers. Of course, it grieved us 
 all to think of the many perils to w^hich he would 
 be exposed ; but at the same time I could see that 
 our mother felt proud of her soldier-boy, when he 
 bade us a cheerful good-bye and Avas off to the war. 
 
 In the meantime the drums were sounding the 
 
2 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 rub-a-dub-dub all over the land, and soldiers were 
 to be seen marching through the streets at all hours. 
 The people were greatly excited, and one could hear 
 little else talked about save the war. I saw that 
 every one was ready to do honor to the volunteer, 
 and the young man who remained at home must 
 have felt that he was held a little below par by the 
 3^oung ladies, as lacking the personal courage to 
 face the dangers of war. And some young men 
 went into the army, I fear, more to show that they 
 were not afraid, and to gain the admiration of the 
 ladies, than to serve their country. Men know that 
 women everywhere admire a brave man and detest 
 a coward ; and a brave man will do any honorable ^ 
 thing to gain the praise of the lady he loves. It 
 was pretty hard for me to give much attention to 
 my books during these stirring times, and I would 
 sometimes follow the soldiers as they marched 
 through the streets to the sound of the drum, and 
 leave my lessons to take care of themselves. This 
 neglecting my lessons was very wrong, of course, 
 and displeased my teacher very much. It also 
 grieved my mother ; for I had once or twice stayed 
 ^way from home all night in camp, without letting 
 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 6 
 
 ray raother know where I was. This was very bad 
 conduct for one of my age ; but the attractions of the 
 camp made me forget for the time, the duty and 
 love which I owed to my mother. Of course, I had 
 seen nothing of the dangers and hardships of a 
 soldier's life, but only the merry-making in the 
 camp, and so I imagined that it was a very fine 
 thins: to be a soldier. And as I heard the sound of 
 the bugle, the roll of the drums, and the lively 
 martial music of the bands, and witnessed the grand 
 display that the soldiers made when on parade or 
 marching through the streets, — as all these exciting 
 things poured in upon my boyish fancy, a passion 
 for the uniform and gay life of a soldier took com- 
 plete possession of me, and I could think of nothing 
 else, day or night. But my youth made it impos- 
 sible for me to become a regular soldier. No one 
 could be enlisted who was not eighteen years old, 
 and I was not quite fifteen. How to overcome this 
 difliculty was the absorbing question. At last, 
 without solving the problem, and with no definite 
 plans in view, I told my mother of the passion that 
 was burning within me, and of my great desire 
 to serve my country in some way or other. She 
 
4 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 was inclined to take the matter simply as a very 
 good joke, coming as it did from so small a speci- 
 men of the masculine gender. She kissed me and 
 fondled me, and laughed at me, and tried to show 
 me the absurdity and utter impossibility of one of 
 my young and tender growth attempting, mucli less 
 enduring, the hardships, the privations, and the 
 severe discipline of a soldier's life. But I did not 
 feel so tender as my mother represented me to be ; 
 in fact, I felt that I possessed many manly qualities, 
 of which I was justly — of course not unduly — 
 proud, and was not to be deterred from my patriotic 
 purposes by what I considered the natural weak- 
 ness of woman. The first term of enlistment had 
 expired, and my brother was at home, aiding in re- 
 cruiting and reorganizing his regiment for the three 
 years' service. So I determined, — nothing daunted 
 bv the discouraging words of my mother, to ac- 
 quaint him with my martial designs. To my great 
 surprise, he did not consider it a very serious matter, 
 but laughingly said, "Very well, my young hero; 
 come with me to the camp for a few weeks, and I 
 will give vou all you want of a soldier's life, and 
 within a fortnight you will be glad to return to 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 your home, where you may have doughnuts, pud- 
 dings, and other nice things to eat, and a soft bed to 
 sleep in ; for you will soon learn that all of these 
 things must be given up. when one becomes a sol- 
 dier. " Now, I was rather fond of nice things to 
 eat, and a good bed to sleep on ; still, the exciting 
 life of the camp had fired my fancy too hot to be 
 cooled off so easily, and so I made a very bold 
 answer, to the effect that I knew very well soldiers 
 could not indulge in luxuries of that kind, and that 
 I was quite willing to give all of these things up for 
 the good of my country. Notwithstanding this 
 brave speech, my brother felt perfectly certain that 
 a fortnight in the camp, upon the hard fai-e of a sol- 
 dier, would completely cool my patriotic ardor, and 
 I would be glad to return to my comfortable home, 
 where I could have a mother to care for me. So it 
 was agreed that I should live at the camp with my 
 brother until the regiment was ordered to the seat 
 of war, which would not l)e for thirty days at least, 
 as it would require that time to drill and discipline 
 the regiment, preparatory to active service in the 
 field. And so I went for a soldier, in the camp at 
 home, where the enemy was not very threatening. 
 
6 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 and where battles were not very frequent occur- 
 rences. But at the end of three weeks, in spite of 
 the hard crackers and l)acon which I had to eat, 
 and the very uncomfortable bed upon which I had 
 to sleep, the patriotic fire was still burning in my 
 bosom, and I insisted that the country was in need 
 of my continued service. This surprised and an- 
 noyed my brother, and greatly grieved my mother ; 
 for they both felt that I would become restless if I 
 were put to school again, and they feared that in my 
 l)rother's absence I might follow the soldiers off, 
 and fall into idle and vicious habits. Finally it was 
 decided that as my brother was an officer, he could 
 take me with him, and thus have a watch over me 
 until I should become dissfusted with the armv life 
 and return to my home. It was also arranged that 
 my brother was to hear my lessons whenever it was 
 possible, and I agreed to study my books two or 
 three hours each day, which I did pretty faithfully, 
 and at the end of the war I was almost as well 
 fitted to enter college as most of the boys who had 
 spent three years in preparatory schools. But it 
 was necessary that I should do something to make 
 myself believe that I was a real, and not a make- 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 7 
 
 believe, soldier-boy. So my brother put a bugle 
 into my IuukI, and said, " When you learn to blow 
 that, I will have you a uniform made and get you a 
 horse to ride. ' ' ( He belonged to the cavalry. ) Now, 
 this learnino^'to blow the buo'le was what the sol- 
 diers would call a poser, for I had never attempted 
 anything of the kind, and had no reason to think 
 that my talents ran in that particular direction. 
 But, with the vision of a gay uniform and a fine 
 prancing horse before me, I applied myself dili- 
 gently, and after struggling very hard for some 
 time, and wasting much wind, I at last was able to 
 blow some of the more simple camp-calls, and got 
 my uniform, ornamented with golden tape and many 
 brass buttons. And now, with bugle swung round 
 my shoulders, with sword at my side, and mounted 
 upon a gaily caparisoned charger, was getting as 
 much glory out of life as a youth of my age could 
 imbibe without danger of an explosion. I am quite 
 sure, when I think of it, that I thoroughly appreci- 
 ated my own appearance ; and I w^as a great hero 
 already among the boys and girls of my acquaint- 
 ance, although I did not carry the scars of war nor 
 the marks of severe conflict 
 
8 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 One little girl in particular, I remember (Jennie 
 Fisk), looked upon me with a sad kind of admira- 
 tion, mingled with somewhat of childish awe at my 
 very warlike appearance ; but while she Avas charmed 
 she was pained, for she felt that I could never be 
 her little lover and playmate any more. Well, I 
 had about a week at home after I got my uniform 
 and horse, before our regiment was ordered to the 
 front for active duty. During my stay at home 
 there was a party given in my honor almost every 
 night by some of my little school-fi'iends. I always 
 wore my uniform, and was, I think I can truly say, 
 a very lion among the little girls. 
 
 But the boys were not at all jealous of me on ac- 
 count of this marked attention I was receiving, for 
 they seemed to think that I was a superior kind of 
 boy, and was justly entitled to the unbounded admi- 
 ration of all ; and no one thought of becoming my 
 rival. Now, I was as much pleased with this gener- 
 ous good-will of my bo}^ friends as I was with the 
 more flatterino^ admiration of the o'irls. In this 
 connection I would like to say a simple word to my 
 young friends. The very best recommendation a 
 boy or girl, man or woman, can have is the hearty 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 11 
 
 good- will of all those of their own sex and condition. 
 A modest, kind, and truthful girl, let her be never 
 so plain or beautiful , never so rich or poor, will always 
 be loved by other girls ; but a proud, selfish, or tale- 
 bearing girl will be hated at all times and under all 
 circumstances. A truthful, frank, and generous boy 
 will at all times be a hero among other boys ; but a 
 mean, boasting, or cowardly fellow will always be 
 despised. But to resume our story. The day came 
 at last when I had to take leave of all these happy 
 circumstances and joyful associations, and go with my 
 reo-iment to face the dark cloud of war that was 
 hovering over our nation. And now I am quite 
 willing to confess that my heart grew faint when I 
 bade ray little school-friends good-bye, for they 
 all shed tears at parting ; but when I came to take 
 the last loving kiss of my dear mother and sister, 
 whom I was now to leave for the first time in my 
 life, — and it might be forever, —I completely 
 broke down, and cried like the little boy that I was. 
 But in spite of these sorrowful good-byes, which all 
 the soldiers had to bid their friends and loved ones, 
 our regiment marched gaily through the streets, with 
 bands playing, flags flying, and horses prancing ; the 
 
12 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 men and women, boys and girls, cheered us from the 
 windows and house-tops as we rode by, and we all 
 waved back a soldier's salute to their shouts of 
 o^ood cheer, and marched on throu^rh the streets till 
 we came to the depot where we were to take the 
 cars. Our horses were put on a train by them- 
 selves, and we took another one, and away we rolled 
 out of the city, through the fields and woods, on to 
 the land of Dixie. 
 
CHAPTEK II. 
 
 We had a very pleasant and exciting journey, by 
 the steam-car and steamboat, and in ahiiost every 
 village and city through which we passed we were 
 met by the men and women, boys and girls, with 
 roast chicken, roast beef, hot coffee, and all kinds 
 of good things to eat ; and they cheered us, and told 
 us that they were sure we would return with songs 
 of victor}^ This was most encouraging, and it did 
 much toward enlivening our spirits, which had been 
 naturall}^ depressed with the thoughts of home and 
 the loved ones behind. After travelling for three 
 days and nights, we reached our immediate destina- 
 tion, and pitched our tents in a beautiful green 
 meadow upon the banks of the Ohio River, in the 
 State of Kentucky. 
 
 It was in the month of October ; the weather was 
 fine, and the fields and forests Avere iust chan2:in2: 
 their summer attire for their mellow-tinted autumnal 
 dress. I was charmed with the scenery. There 
 rolled the placid waters of **La Belle Riviere,'* 
 
 (13) 
 
14 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 as the French named the Ohio. The banks were 
 dotted with the white tents of the army. Reaching 
 to the distance of two or three miles were fertile 
 fields, rolling pasture-lands, and richly laden or- 
 chards. Stretching still further away, the land 
 was lifted into broad plateaus, which gradually 
 grew into rugged hills that faded away in the dis- 
 tant clouds. This was purely an agricultural dis- 
 trict, and the people had been accustomed to nothing 
 more exciting than the quiet pursuit of the husband- 
 man. But this quiet was now broken, and instead 
 of the lowing of the cattle, the bleating of the sheep, 
 and the merry song of the farmer-boy as he drove 
 his team afield, were heard the neighing of the 
 war-horse, the stern command of the officer, the 
 roll of the drums, and the shrill notes of the bugle, 
 as they sounded out upon the morning air, calling 
 the soldiers to duty. My duties, however, were 
 not very exacting, and I was at liberty to mount 
 and ride at will through the vallevs and over the 
 hills, to the distance of three or four miles, for our 
 outposts were stationed six miles away from the 
 camp. So almost every afternoon I was in the sad- 
 dle, riding through the country, sometimes with my 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 15 
 
 brother, sometimes with the soldiers, but generally 
 alone, as I did not wish, when on these excursions, 
 to be subject to the will of another, and it was not 
 considered dangerous, as the enemy was twenty- 
 five miles away, and I never rode beyond our lines. 
 The country people soon came to know me, as I 
 often stopped at their houses to bate my horse and 
 get something for myself to eat, for which I of 
 course always offered to pay them, but they invari- 
 ably refused to accept anything ; and I then for the 
 first time experienced something of the hospitality 
 for which the Southern people are so justly cele- 
 brated. But these people were puzzled to know 
 how a little boy like me could be of any service to 
 the army. This I tried to make plain, and while 
 they did not seem to fully understand nor rightly 
 appreciate my position, still they were much inter- 
 ested in everything I said. I talked to them about 
 the army, but I was not long in telling all I knew. 
 I could discourse more at length, however, about the 
 city, the streets, and the handsome houses, the ele- 
 gant churches, and other fine, large buildings. They 
 were also interested in hearing about city life and 
 society, and so I told them about school, and parties, 
 
16 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 and theatres, etc. I soon felt that I was a welcome 
 visitor in the homes of these people, and it pained 
 me to think that they were our enemies, and wished 
 and prayed for the defeat of our army. But while 
 they had only hatred for our army, I was quite sure 
 they bore me no ill-will, and could not be tempted 
 to do me any harm. So I felt perfectly safe, and came 
 and went among these kind-hearted people with as 
 little fear as I would have felt in New England. One 
 fine November morning (November weather in Ken- 
 tucky is about the same as October weather in New 
 England) I mounted my horse, without as much as 
 looking into a book, intending to make a day of it 
 among the farmers. After galloping about two 
 miles, I drew rein at the residence of Mr. Phillips, a 
 farmer, with whose family I had become quite famil- 
 iarly acquainted. He had three children, — one girl 
 and two boys. Emma, the oldest, was about fif- 
 teen, Walter was thirteen, and Willie was ten. I 
 found the family all astir, with the horses harnessed 
 and hitched to the carriage, and the boys prepared 
 for a journey ; there was also an old colored man, 
 who was to attend them. I soon learned that this 
 was a nutting expedition, and that Emma and an- 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 17 
 
 other young miss who lived near by were to be of 
 the party. Of course I was anxious to join them, 
 but hesitated on being asked by the boys, for I 
 wished to have an invitation direct from the lips of 
 Emma. Just then Emma called out of the window, 
 ** We will be ready in five minutes. Uncle Ben." 
 This was said to the colored man ; for it is the kind 
 custom of Southern people to call old negro men 
 and women uncle and aunt. The great majority of 
 Southern people were always kind to their slaves, 
 and it is a great mistake to think that they used 
 them as they would brutes. And even to-day there 
 is more genuine personal good-feeling among the 
 Southern people for the negro than among the 
 Northern people. The Southern people have been 
 brought up with them ; they understand them ; and 
 they really have an affection for them which the 
 Northern people have never felt. The North loves 
 the idea, the principle, of equal rights to all, but the 
 South has a real love for the individual. 
 
 In her glance from the window Emma had just 
 caught a glimpse of me, as I sat on my horse near 
 the carriage ; and as she turned to her companion 
 within, she exclaimed in rather a loud whisper, not 
 
 2 
 
18 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 intended to be heard by me, " Sadie, if there isn't 
 the little Yankee soldier you have heard us speak 
 about. " Up went the window again, and Emma 
 laughed out a meny good-morning, and hoped that 
 I would be one of their party. This was what I was 
 waiting for, so I gladly accepted the invitation to go 
 with them. Sadie AVoods was a pretty little dark- 
 eyed girl of about thirteen years, and I was not long 
 in learning that AValter was her accepted sweetheart, 
 and that too much attention from me would cause 
 him some uneasiness, so I directed my gallantry 
 more especially to Miss Emma. Now, Emma was a 
 little older than I, and was therefore a little 
 inclined to patronize me in a way that wounded my 
 pride somewhat, for I felt myself perfectly suitable, 
 in age and bearing, to act as her escort. She had 
 also a way of referring to young men of her 
 acquaintance which irritated me not a little ; for 
 she seemed to be particularly careful to let me 
 know that a bo}^ who was not at least seventeen 
 years old was altogether too young to waste her 
 time upon. But, in spite of this disparity of age 
 between us, I could see that she was not displeased 
 with my attentions, but rather flattered than other- 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 19 
 
 wise. So I endeavored to make up in manner what 
 I lacked iu age and size. Well, we had a jolly 
 ride for the distance of about three miles ; Emma 
 and I on one seat, Sadie and the hoys on another, 
 and uncle Ben in front. I had given my horse into 
 the care of uncle Ben's boy, little black Jake, who 
 brought up the rear. We halted on a hill overlook- 
 ing the camp in the valley below, and could see a 
 regiment which was just forming in line and getting 
 ready for drill. We stood and watched the soldiers 
 go through several maneuvres, but we were too far 
 away to get much satisfaction from the sight ; so we 
 turned to the woods, on the lookout after chestnuts. 
 Our party divided on entering the woods, with the 
 aorreement that we were not to 2:0 l^evond cidlinof 
 distance of one another. Emma and I started off in 
 one direction, and Sadie and the boys in another, 
 while uncle Ben and little Jake were to remain with 
 the horses and carriage, and we were all to meet for 
 luncheon at about one o'clock. We Avere not lomr 
 in finding chestnuts, but I was at a loss to know 
 how to gather them, as this was the first time I had 
 ever gone hunting for them. Now, Emma was too 
 glad to show me how they were to be beaten off the 
 trees with sticks, which I quickly cut for that jDur- 
 
20 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 jDOse. I insisted that she must aWow me to do all 
 the climbiiio^ and beatina*, but this she would not 
 consent to do, for she saw very plainly tliat she 
 could excel me in these matters, and was bent on 
 making me feel it. Now, it was very mortifying for 
 me to be outdone by a girl, and I put forth every 
 power that I could muster, but was still doomed to 
 defeat. Emma greatly enjoyed my humiliation, and 
 talked down to me in a way that was very crushing 
 to my military pride. AVe had trudged on from 
 tree to tree, gathering a few chestnuts here and a 
 few there, until we came to a large tree, richly 
 laden with choice chestnuts. Emma proposed 
 that we should sit down and have a little talk, 
 before attacking its branches with our sticks. " Do 
 you know, " said Emma, " that I feel very sorry for 
 3^our brother and the other Yankee soldiers who 
 have come down here to fight us, for they will get 
 terribly beaten by the Southern boys. Fred Austin 
 told me, the last time he was at our house, how he 
 intended to make the Yankees scatter when he met 
 them in battle. ' ' Now, this Fred Austin I supposed 
 to be one of Emma's admirers, as I had heard him 
 spoken of more than once by her. He was about 
 eighteen years old, and had joined the Southern 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 23 
 
 army a few days before our army arrived at this 
 camp. I determined to give tliis young Soutliern 
 cavalier one shot at least, and at the same time prick 
 Emma just a little. *' I should think, from what you 
 say of this Mr. Austin," said I, " that he is a brag- 
 ging jack, who fights all his battles with words, at 
 very long range, and will avoid a meeting with the 
 Yankees so long as possible." Emma colored up a 
 little at this speech, which was delivered with some 
 warmth, but she did not make an angry retort, for 
 she felt that I had been justly provoked to say what 
 I had said. *' Well, we will leave the fighting to 
 the soldiers,'' she said, " and you and I will go on 
 gathering chestnuts. " Now this seemingly pacific 
 speech of Emma's was not without a sting, for it 
 implied that / was no soldier, — an implication to 
 which I was peculiarly sensitive, and quick to resent 
 under most circumstances, but Emma had put it so 
 skilfully that I could do nothing but hold my 
 tongue. She saw that the arrow liad struck, and 
 was content to leave it so. After a brief consulta- 
 tion, it was thought best to get the party all 
 together before attempting to strip the tree of its 
 chestnuts, for it was a large one, and would supply 
 us with all the chestnuts Ave desired. Two or three 
 
24 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 calls brought Sadie and the boys to where we were, 
 and we began a general assault upon the tree. It 
 required a pretty expert climber to ascend this tree, 
 as its trunk was large and the limbs were beyond 
 our reach from the ground. I found it necessar}^ to 
 remove my boots, as I was not going to let the 
 other boys beat me climbing. Emma offered to 
 boost me to the first limb, and then I felt quite sure 
 that I could go as near the top and as far out on 
 the branches as either of the other boys. Now, 
 Emma was determined to test my courage in climb- 
 ing ; so she suggested that the chestnuts at the top 
 of the tree were the ripest, and could be more easily 
 beaten off. So up I went, hand-over-hand, until I 
 could hardly be seen from below through the foliage 
 of the tree. I laid my stick about me with a will, 
 and the chestnuts rattled down in showers to the 
 o:round. The orirls shouted "Well done," and I 
 paused to take breath. The tree was near the top 
 of a hill, and as I looked below and to the right, I 
 could see a small plateau, with a stately mansion 
 situated near the centre. There were also a great 
 number of small buildings about a third of a mile 
 away from this dwelling, and I had learned enough 
 about the South to know that these buildings were the 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 25 
 
 negro-quarters ; and their number indicated that the 
 owner of the mansion must be a very wealthy gentle- 
 man. *' Who lives in that elegant old mansion down 
 to the right? " I called down to Emma. *' That is 
 the residence of Col. Graves, " she answered back. 
 *'He is the richest man in this county. He owns a 
 great deal of land in this community, and has also a 
 large plantation in Louisiana. He had a great 
 many negroes before the war began, but many of 
 them have run away since the Yankee army came 
 here. " ** Is he a colonel in the rebel army ? " I in- 
 quired. Now I knew that this word * ' rebel ' ' was not 
 pleasing to Emma, but I was not inclined to be very 
 conciliating just then ; besides, I knew that the word 
 '* Yankee " was used as a term of reproach for our 
 army, so I thought I would pay her back in her own 
 coin. To this she could not object, so she answered, 
 **No; Col. Graves is too old to go to the war 
 himself, but he has two sons with Gen. Buckner's 
 army at Bowling Green." " If he has never been 
 to war, why do they call him colonel? " I inquired. 
 *'I don't know why," said Emma, **but I have 
 always heard him called Col. Graves." I learned 
 afterwards that it was a polite custom among the 
 Southern people to call a wealthy and honorable 
 
2f5 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 gentleman by the title of captain, major, or colonel. 
 This conversation was carried on in rather a loud 
 voice, as Emma was on the ground and I was high 
 up in the tree. In looking over the valley below, I 
 fell to thinking of Col. Graves, and his two sons in 
 Gen. Buckner's army; and then my eyes rested 
 upon his stately mansion, and my imagination 
 entered it and went sailino: about throus^h the wide 
 halls and spacious chambers, and I wondered if 
 there were any boys and girls in this dignified old 
 house. Giving my mind up to these thoughts, I 
 almost forgot that I was in the top of a tree, and 
 became careless as to the security of my position. 
 Just then Walter struck the branch upon which I 
 was standing, with his stick, and down I went thump 
 upon the ground. I caught once or twice to the 
 limbs in my descent, which lightened the fall very 
 much ; otherwise I might have had my head broken, 
 and thus ingloriously ended my military career. 
 As it was, I was quite seriously hurt, and unable to 
 rise from the ground. The young folks were all 
 greatly scared and excited, and hardly knew what 
 to do. Uncle Ben was summoned, and quickly 
 decided to send to Col. Graves for assistance. 
 Little Jake was dispatched upon this errand, and in 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 27 
 
 about thirty minutes returned with an elderly 
 gentleman and two colored men. I was taken upon 
 the shoulders of these negroes, and carried to the 
 ** stately mansion" whicli I had been admiring 
 but a few moments l)efore from the tree-top. 
 
 A physician was soon called in, and it was found 
 that my collar-bone was broken, and that I was con- 
 siderably bruised in several other places. Mrs. 
 Graves, very kindly and firmly, decided that I could 
 not be removed from her house until I had com- 
 pletely recovered from all my injuries. A messen- 
 ger was sent to my brother with the following 
 note : — 
 
 Major Monroe. 
 
 Dear Sir : A boy wearing the uniform of a bugler, 
 whom I understand is j^our brother, while nutting near 
 my residence with a party of children, fell from a tree 
 and sustained injuries which will prevent his removal for 
 at least one week. I can assure 3^ou that he will have the 
 best of medical treatment, and the kindest attention from 
 myself and family-. We also extend to 3^ou the most 
 hearty invitation to accept our hospitalities, that you may 
 be with your brother until his bruises are entirely healed. 
 
 I am, sir, most sincerely and cordially yours, 
 
 Christopher Graves. 
 
 This note considerably alarmed my brother. He 
 mounted his horse without delay, and was soon at 
 
28 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 mv bedside. But, not willins: to trust the case to a 
 strange doctor, he brought our reghnental surgeon 
 with him, who, with the assistance of the other doc- 
 tor, soon set the broken bone, and predicted a speedy 
 recovery. Now, I was perfectly conscious all the 
 while, and suffered a great deal of pain, but I did 
 not forget my position as a soldier, and I knew that 
 it would be very unsoldier-like for me to give way 
 to pain, and exhibit the weakness of ordinary people. 
 So I bore up stoutly under the pain which attended 
 the setting of the bone, and did not cry nor com- 
 plain. There were two words, however, that were 
 constantly upon my tongue, struggling for utter- 
 ance, and these words were '' home " and " mother." 
 The good Mrs. Graves would sit by my bedside for 
 hours at a time, and while her kind and gentle at- 
 tentions were very soothing, still her presence in 
 my chamber made me feel sad, for she reminded 
 me continually of my own mother, Avho was far 
 away in Xew England. My brother slept near me, 
 and did everything in his power to relieve my pain 
 and cheer me up. He had written to our mother 
 about the accident, but had put it in so mild a way 
 that it gave her no particular concern about my re- 
 covery. Her letters were always cheerful, and 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 29 
 
 usually contained some kind words to me from my 
 little school-friends, who inquired every day about 
 me. I had been in my bed for three days, and was 
 getting to feel pretty comfortable, when I received 
 the following letter by the hand of little black 
 Jake : — 
 
 Dear George : We were all terribly frightened when 
 you fell from the tree, and if it had not been for Uncle 
 Ben I don't know what we wonld have done. Walter is 
 very sorry, and has grieved a great deal to think that he 
 was the cause of your fall. But of course you know that 
 he did not mean to do it, and yon will not think hard of 
 him. I am also sorry that I tallied so provokingly to 
 you that day ; but I only wanted to have a little fun, you 
 know, and did not mean to hurt your feelings, so I hope 
 you will forgive me. I suppose you have seen Annie 
 Belle Lee, for she lives at Col. Graves's house. Do you 
 think she is pretty ? Most people do ; but for Uly part I 
 prefer dark hair and eyes, and she has blue eyes and light 
 hair, — some call it red. We have hulled the cliestnuts, 
 but -will not roast them until you can be with us. We all 
 send our love (Sadie too), and hope that you will soon be 
 able to visit us again. 
 
 Your friend, 
 
 ExMMA Phillips. 
 
 This letter pleased me and excited my curiosity, 
 and I was very anxious to see this little blue-eyed 
 beauty. I had always been partial toward blue 
 
30 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 eyes and light hair ; for the reason, I suppose, that 
 my hair and eyes were just the opposite. I now, for 
 the first time during my iUness, became a little rest- 
 less, and began to toss about in my bed. Old Aunt 
 Coal, a very black slave, who had the care of my 
 chamber, overheard this tossing as she went al)out 
 putting things in order, and she was afraid that I 
 would give myself a set-back. So she began to 
 caution me, *' Lay still now, dat's a good boy, co's 
 de doctor said dat if you moved about much you 
 would keep de bone from gwine together." 
 ** Thank you, Aunt Coal ;" said I, " I know that I 
 should be quiet, but it is pretty hard for me to lay 
 here flat on my back so long, when everybody else 
 in the house and at the camp are up and stirring 
 about. Is there a boy in the house. Aunt Coal, 
 about my size? for if there is, I would like to have 
 him come and talk with me." The old woman 
 stopped her work, turned to me with a sad face, and 
 said, " No, Massa George, dare hain't no little boy 
 heah, nor no big boys neither, fo' der all gone off to 
 Massa Buckner's army, and de good old times we 
 used to hab are done gone." .'* What were those 
 good old times, Aunt Coal?" I asked. The old 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 31 
 
 black woman drew a chair near my bed, and began : 
 '* I mean de good old times when massa and missis 
 and all de young folks were at home. When we 
 used to hab de big gatherens, and de young gentle- 
 men and de young ladies from all around de 
 country and de city would come heah and frolic and 
 make love Avid each other fo' days and weeks at a 
 time ; and de niggers would sing and dance, and 
 pat juber fo' dem all, and we would all be happy 
 together. But dat's all done gone now," sighed 
 the old woman. ** De men hab all gone to the wa* 
 'cept de old worn-out ones, and der wives and der 
 sweetha'ts are not happy any mo ' ; and de niggers 
 der runnin' away and leaben massa, and de Yankee 
 army is heah, so massa can't go after 'em and fetch 
 'em back." "But, Aunt Coal," said I, **the 
 Yankee army is going to make all you colored 
 people free, so that you can go where you like and 
 be your own masters." My speech, instead of de- 
 lighting the old woman, as I had expected it would, 
 terrified her very much. "Oh, de Lord hab 
 mercy !" she exclaimed, " der not gwine to take me 
 away from old massa and missus, is dar? AVhat will 
 dis old nigger do ? I have always libed heah in dis 
 
32 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 house ; I have been wid missus eber since she was 
 born ; I hab nursed her and all ob de dear children ; 
 and dey was always so kind and good to me, and 
 now if de Yankees go and take me away from de old 
 home it will kill dis old nigger. I knows it will." 
 It almost made me cry to hear the old woman talk 
 with so much feeling and affection for her master 
 and mistress. I was quick to assure her that she 
 need never leave them if she did not wish to. Her 
 sleek, black face brightened up at this, and she said, 
 in very grateful tones, " De Lo'd bless you, Massa 
 George, for tellen me dat, for it makes dis old 
 black heart happy once mo', to think dat I may lib 
 and die wid old massa and missus." I bescan to 
 think that the slave-holders were not all monsters, 
 at least. *' Aunt Coal, you said, I believe, that 
 there were no men nor boys in this house except 
 Col. Graves." *'Dar's one old man here beside 
 Massa Graves, but I didn't think it worth while to 
 mention him, fo' he is done worn-out, and han't fit 
 for nuffen mo'." "But are there any young ladies 
 in the family?" I inquired. I felt a little timid 
 about asking directly concerning Annie Bell, and 
 thought that I would come to the point by degrees, 
 
"WHAi' VVi.liE THObi: GUUi> (JLD TiilESj, xiLMT COAL 
 
 (33) 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 35 
 
 and was in hopes that this question wouhl open up 
 a conversation in which Aunt Coal wouhl mention 
 the little girl, aucl thus I could have some excuse 
 for inquiring about her and asking her to visit me. 
 "Yes, der is two young ladies in de family," she 
 said ; *'der is Missus Lee, who is a widder, and der 
 is Miss Josephine, who is de sister-in-law of Missus 
 Lee. She is near to eighteen years old, and is a 
 beauty, I can tell you." " How long has Mrs. 
 Lee been a widow?" I asked. "It was ten years 
 last water-melon time since Massa Lee died ob 
 yaller feber in NeAV Orleans. Den Missus Lee 
 came back home to lib wid her fader and moder." 
 And here the old woman stopped, with the feeling, 
 no doubt, that she had told me all I wished to know 
 about the family. I waited, hoping that she would 
 continue, but I saw that she had nothing more to say 
 unless I had more questions to ask. " I suppose 
 that Mrs. Lee is very lonely," said I. " Yes, she is 
 so," simply responded the old woman. I saw that 
 I would be obliged to lead more directly to the point 
 for which I was aiming, so I asked, " Has Mrs. 
 Lee no children to comfort her? " " Yes, she has 
 one ; but I don't know that she is any great comfort 
 
36 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 to her. " *'0h, she has one child then, has she, 
 and that is a girl?" I said, in a careless manner. 
 "Yes ; jMiss Annie Bell is a wild girl, and gibs old 
 Aunt Coal a good deal ob trouble." " Her name 
 is Annie Belle, then. How old is she?" I ven- 
 tured to ask. " Let me see," said the old woman, 
 putting her arms akimbo and assuming a very 
 thoughtful air. ' * She will be fourteen years old when 
 persimmons are well ripe, fo' her mother was heah 
 when she was born, and I remember that my black 
 boy Sam brought in a lot of persimmons on dat 
 very day." This was as far as I thought proper to 
 go into the family affairs, so I allowed Aunt Coal to 
 leave my chamber without any further questions. I 
 lay for sometime thinking over what the old black 
 woman had told me, and gradually drifted off into a 
 quiet sleep. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 On the sixth day after my accident, I was per- 
 mitted to sit up and receive visitors. Ahnost the 
 first who called to see me was *' the sergeant," as 
 I afterwards learned to call him. He was a man 
 about sixty years old, and was lame from a wound 
 he had received in the Mexican War. He was a re- 
 mote relation of Mrs. Graves, and had been livinir 
 upon the bounty of Col. Graves ever since his re- 
 turn from the war. It is one of the admirable thinsrs 
 
 o 
 
 about the Southern people that they will stick to 
 their kin through every kind of misfortune, and even 
 disgrace, and treat them at all times with the kind- 
 est consideration. So the sergeant was never made 
 to feel his dependent condition ; but, on the contrarv, 
 in view of his age and service in the Mexican War, 
 he was allowed special privileges, and his opinion 
 on any subject he chose to discuss was always lis- 
 tened to with marked attention and respect, and He 
 never for an instant doubted but that he was as 
 much entitled to what he was receiving as any other 
 
 3 (37) 
 
38 THE LITTLE BCGLER. 
 
 member of the family. I wiis ji little surprised, at 
 first, when I saw him come liiii[)ing through the 
 hall, as I inferred from what Aunt Coal had 
 told me that Col. Graves was the only white man in 
 the family ; l)ut I then remembered that she had 
 added, " 'cept de done worn-out ones," and I was 
 quite certain that my visitor belonged to the " done 
 worn-out'' class. I was sitting in an easy chah* 
 when he entered. He stopped, looked at me for a 
 moment, and quickly brought his cane to a "carry," 
 and then to a "present arms." He then began 
 again, and went through the complete manual of 
 arms, ending with a grand military salute, which, as 
 his inspecting officer, I arose and returncLl, and com- 
 manded him to " rest at will." The old veteran 
 seemed surprised and pleased at the military aptness 
 of the raw recruit, and he extended his hand as a 
 token of fellowship. He sat down, scanned me from 
 head to foot, and from foot to head, for almost one 
 minute before speaking, and then began : "I am an 
 old soldier ; I was all throuirh the Mexican War with 
 Gens. Scott and Taylor. I have seen a great manv 
 soldiers, of all kinds and sizes, in my time, but I'll 
 be court-martialed if you ain't the smallest speci- 
 
5'HK LITTLE HUGLER. 39 
 
 men to wear a uniform that ever I clapped eyes on. 
 The Yankees must be hard up for soldiers to send 
 such as you down here to be shot at." The sergeant 
 had touched my sensitive nerve, and I was on the 
 point of making a pretty saucy reply, but his gray 
 hairs and maimed condition checked its utterance, 
 and I simply said, " I remember that Napoleon was 
 laughed at on account of his youth and small stat- 
 ure." " So he was, — so he was," replied the ser- 
 geant. " I did not mean to wound you, and I accept 
 the rebuke. It is not asce nor size that makes the 
 true soldier, but courage, — and you may have as 
 much of that as any man, for all I know. But you 
 must admit that you are rather a small target for a 
 musket-ball ; and besides, I doubt whether our boys 
 would think it worth their while to waste powder 
 and lead on such small game." <'A11 the better for 
 me if they don't," I responded. *' You seem to take 
 a joke pretty well," said the sergeant, *' and I don't 
 see what's to hinder our becomins: oood friends. I 
 was just thinking that you and I together would 
 make one complete soldier, — you the beginning and 
 I the end, — and the ends, you know, always include 
 the middle." '' But I am afraid that neither end is 
 
40 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 a])le just now for duty, for Ave l)oth helong to the 
 invalid corps, and I am not likely to do much more 
 active service during this campaign. I suppose," 
 said I, " that if both ends were ahle for duty they 
 could not agree, hut woukl try to destroy each other, 
 as I am for the Union and you are against it." "I 
 had not thought of that," said the sergeant ; " but 
 as it is, we will both remain, for a time at least, non- 
 combatants. And now I want you to tell me where 
 your home is, and how you came to be with the 
 army . ' ' * ' ^ly home i s i n Boston , " I rather proudly 
 answered. He straightened himself up at the sound 
 of Boston, and looked more surprised than ever; 
 whether in anger, or not, I was unable to determine. 
 ** Do you really live in that hotbed of Abolitionists ; 
 and did you ever see those negro-thieves. Garrison, 
 Phillips, and Parker? " "I have heard Mr. Parker 
 preach, and have seen Mr. Garrison and Mr. Phillips 
 quite often," I answered. ' ' Well, do yon know that 
 I should like, of all things, to have a hold of one 
 end of a good strong rope with the other end around 
 the necks of those rascals." *' I don't see that any 
 great harm would come to them from that," I re- 
 plied; "because you are not a very large nor 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 41 
 
 weighty man, and could not possibly draw up all 
 three of these men at once." " Perhaps not, per- 
 haps not," said the sergeant ; '' hut I think I could 
 manage them one at a time, eh?" '' You might, if 
 they consented to have you do it, and made no re- 
 sistance," I said ; *' but even in that case I think you 
 would require one or two other rebels to assist you." 
 *' Oho ! you call me a rebel, do you? Well, I sup- 
 pose I am, I suppose I am ; but do ^^ou know I 
 don't like that word ' rebel ' a bit. All my soldier 
 days were spent in the service of the Union, and un- 
 der the stars and stripes, and I don't like to think 
 of our boys fighting against the old flag ; but of 
 course this is all a notion, — an old soldier's notion ; 
 still, I can't forget how beautiful the flag looked as 
 it led the charge in the battle of Buena Vista, 
 where I was wounded as you see. I glory in war 
 when it is waged against a common enemy and in a 
 righteous cause ; but this thing of civil war, this 
 thing of the American people fighting one another, 
 I don't care so much about. I have fought side bv 
 side with Yankee soldiers, and know Avhat kind of 
 metal they are made of; so I tell our boys that they 
 will not have such an easy time of driving them 
 
42 THE LITTLIO lUdLER. 
 
 home as they imagine." " Our army does not intend 
 to go home until the rebellion is all put down," I an- 
 swered. " You think so, do you?" said the ser- 
 geant. Well, that's right, — that's the true spirit of a 
 soldier ; never say fail. But still I am of the opinion 
 that most of the Yankee soldiers will have the pleas- 
 ure of a Christmas dinner at home, — those of them, I 
 mean, who are not killed l)y our boys in the mean- 
 time." " It may be as you say, and I trust it Avill ; 
 but I fear that it will take longer than that time to 
 stop the rebellion, for they seem to have got a pretty 
 good start." The sergeant smiled at this, and pro- 
 posed that hostilities between us should cease for the 
 present. " Then you raise the white flag, do you ? ' ' 
 I asked. *'Yes," replied the sergeant, "but it is 
 not a capitulation, — onlv a truce to give us time to 
 bury our dead." AVe both laughed heartily. 
 
 " But, now," seriously began the sergeant, " Old 
 Abe was a little mistaken if he thought ' the re- 
 bellion," as you call it, could be put down in three 
 months. He'll lind that it is not to be stamped out 
 quite so quickly, if at all. The South has for years 
 too plainly seen that the North was bent on destroy- 
 ing the institution of slavery, and it has been quite 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLEU. 
 
 45 
 
 evident for some time that a separation of the North 
 and South was necessary to protect the rights of the 
 Southern people." " Then you were preparing for 
 war some time before it actually began," I said. 
 *'Yes," said the sergeant, " and that is where we 
 have the start of you, and we mean to keep it. But I 
 think I am capa])le of doing justice to both sides, and 
 hope that I am not wholly blinded to the faults of the 
 Southern people. It is pretty hard, I know, espe- 
 cially at this time, wdien war is actually waging, for 
 a Northern man to do justice in speaking of the 
 South, and vice versa, I suppose ; but as I am a non- 
 combatant, I am more likely to see the good features 
 of both sections than one who is engaged in the strug- 
 jrle. The North had become somewhat accustomed 
 to the wild and menacing threats of ' fire-eaters ' of 
 the South, and the Northern people could not believe 
 that the South actually meant to divide the Union, 
 and so, as I say, the North w^as not prepared for war 
 when it did really come ; and even after it came it was 
 thought to be a rash, impetuous act, led on by the 
 * fire-eaters,' which the South would soon regret ; 
 but in this the North has by this time found out 
 that it was greatly mistaken. The South fully con- 
 
44 THR LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 sidered before it took the decisive step, tind its coun- 
 cils and armies are not led by ' fire-eaters,' but 
 by its very best and most capable men, and they 
 have gone to work in real earnest to separate from 
 the North and establish an ' independent Southern 
 Democracy.' The South, on the other hand, I think, 
 has also miscalculated ; and some Southern people 
 are foolish enough to believe that one Southern sol- 
 dier can whip six Yankees. The Northern youths, it 
 is true, have not taken to the army so much as the 
 Southern boys, and we have, perhaps, more trained 
 soldiers than the North has ; which, of course, is 
 greatly to our advantage. Again, the Northern 
 representatives in Congress have not shown much 
 ' fight,' but have taken direct insults from Southern 
 members without resenting them. This, of course, 
 is not considered manly or honorable by our South- 
 ern ' code ; ' hence some Southern people have 
 jumped to the conclusion that the Northern people 
 are Licking in personal courage, and are no match 
 for the Southern soldier. But I tell them that the 
 Northern man lives in a different atmosphere, and 
 that his courage is not to be tested by the South- 
 ern * code ; ' and I think we are beginning to find 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 45 
 
 that fact out, and the sooner our people come to 
 fully understand this the better. And I am free to 
 admit that thus far the cold-blooded Northerner 
 has carried himself just as bravely as our more hot- 
 blooded Southerners. And why should it l)e other- 
 wise? Are they not of the same national family? 
 Did not their fathers fight side by side in the ' Rev- 
 olution,' in the War of 1812, and in the contest 
 with Mexico ? And what is there in the nature of 
 things to make the man of one section of this coun- 
 try more valiant than any other ? ' ' The sergeant had 
 worked himself up to a high state of excitement, and 
 I was willing to leave the matter as he had put it. 
 Aunt Coal entered at that moment, and I asked her 
 if she would please to do me some slight service, — 
 what it was I do not remember. *' Don't say 
 * please,'" burst out the sergeant, ''because you 
 don't mean it, and one ought always to say what 
 one means." 
 
 ** Aunt Coal is a slave, and knows her place, and it 
 is her business and duty to do what we please to 
 have her do, and not what she pleases to do. So 
 when you want her to do anything Avhich it is her 
 business to do, always tell her to do it, in plain words, 
 
 m-^i 
 
46 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 without giving any reasons for what you wish done, 
 or consulting her pleasure in the matter. Aunt 
 Coal is a faithful old servant, and deserves very kind 
 treatment ; but it is no particular kindness to ask 
 her to please do anything, when she knows that her 
 pleasure is not really tliought of at all. I believe in 
 plain, frank speech in dealing with every one ; and 
 that is one thing that I dislike about you Yankees : 
 it is alwa3^s difficult to know just what you mean, 
 for you don't talk straight at the mark, but beat 
 around the bush too much. ' ' As compared with the 
 frank, plain speech of the Southern people, I felt 
 that the sergeant's criticism was a just one, and did 
 not attempt to argue the point. 
 
 The seroceant arose, went throuah the manual of 
 arms once more with his cane, gave me a final 
 salute, and marched out in as srood order as his asre 
 and lame leg would permit. Soon after this I had 
 a visitor that I enjoyed even more than my military 
 friend ; it was a little girl wnth blue eyes and fair 
 hair, and her name was Annie Bell Lee. She came 
 with her mother and aunt, — Miss Josie Lee. She 
 was very shy, and said little to any one, — nothing 
 to me. I noticed her peeping at me once or twice, 
 
"THE OLD SEKGEANT. 
 
triE LtTtLE BUGLER. 49 
 
 however, and she caught me looking at her, and we 
 both bhished a little. Now, to bo frank, — as the 
 sergeant would have me, — I was dreadfully smitten 
 with Annie Bell. Indeed, I was quite sure that I 
 had never seen so pretty a girl in all my life. Mrs. 
 Lee thought that I would be strong enough to dine 
 with the family the next day, and I caught eagerly 
 at the invitation. Now, this was to be my first 
 appearance in the family circle, and of course I was 
 anxious to look and act my very best, for I knew 
 that I would be under the fire of all eyes, and 
 especially the blue ones of Annie Belle. I spent 
 the greater part of the morning in burnishing my 
 brass buttons, brushing my uniform, and getting 
 myself up generally for the occasion, and when the 
 dinner-hour arrived I felt pretty well prepared for 
 the encounter. I was conducted into the dining- 
 room by Miss Lee, and was shown to a seat just op- 
 posite Annie Belle. We did not seem to take any 
 particular notice of each other at first, but after the 
 substantial part of the dinner had been disposed of, 
 and the more '' social course " was brought on, the 
 conversation became very spirited, and I managed 
 to exchange a word or two with Annie Belle. After 
 
50 «ifi LITfLE BUGLER. 
 
 dinner, Mrs. Lee suggested that Annie Belle might 
 show me through the house, if I felt strong enough 
 for the tour. I felt perfectly strong enough, espe- 
 cially considering who was to be my guide. We 
 went first to the library, and spent some time there 
 looking at the books. There were very few books 
 that I was at all acquainted with, but those I had 
 read I was very careful to mention, and talked about 
 them in a very learned v^ay. I meant to impress 
 Annie Belle with my learning as well as my soldier- 
 ly bearing ; for to be both a scholar and a soldier 
 was the height of my ambition. I was very dig- 
 nified and formal at first, and kept her in awe of 
 me. I talked and acted in a very manly way, but I 
 saw that she was not pleased with this ; so I gradu- 
 ally came down from my stilts, and talked to her as 
 a little boy should talk to a little girl, — in a frank, 
 simple, boyish fashion. She was greatly pleased 
 with the change in my deportment, and we were 
 soon on easy terms w^ith each other, talking and 
 laughing in the most careless manner. The parlors 
 were large and very richly furnished, and the walls 
 were hung with costly pictures, among which were 
 several portraits representing the ancestors of Col. 
 
C31) 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 53 
 
 and Mrs. Graves. There was also a portrait of 
 Annie Belle's father, jDainted a short time before 
 his death ; it showed him to be a man of about 
 twenty-eight or thirty. I looked through the family 
 album, and saw several gray uniforms; among 
 others, Capt. and Lieut. Graves, sons of ni}^ kind 
 host and hostess. I was truly interested in every- 
 thing Annie Belle showed me, and expressed my 
 intei'est in unmistakable ways. This seemed to 
 delight her, and she became very animated, and I 
 saw that she was naturally a very lively kind of a 
 girl. After we had gone pretty well through the 
 line old mansion, we sat down to rest upon a sofa, 
 near a window which commanded a view of the Ohio 
 for a distance of five or six miles. We both sat 
 for a short time looking at a steamboat paddling its 
 way up the river. I broke the silence, and surprised 
 Annie Belle by telling her that I had been in this 
 house before . ' ' When ? ' ' she asked. « « Just before 
 I was brought here on the shoulders of those colored 
 men," I replied. I saw that she was puzzled to 
 know what I meant ; so I told her that when I was 
 in the top of the chestnut tree I saw this fine old 
 house, and liew over here on the wings of my imagi- 
 
54 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 nation, and went sailing up and down the halls and 
 through the chambers, looking for boys and girls. 
 *'And did you see any? " asked Annie Belle. *' I 
 have forgotten about that," I replied ; " for when I 
 returned to my perch in the tree-top, I missed my 
 foothold and fell with such a thump to the ground 
 that it knocked evervthins: out of my fancy that I 
 had seen while I was oyer here, and I simply 
 remembered of havins: made the yisit, and nothinir 
 more. " Annie Belle understood me now, and 
 laughed heartily. " I belieye I must have seen 
 you," she said, " for there was something flying 
 around through the halls that day ; but Aunt Coal 
 said it was a bat, and so they chased it out. " 
 *' But bats do not fly around in the daytime," I 
 responded. '' This one, " she continued, " had been 
 in a dark corner, we supposed, and when the blinds 
 were opened and the sunlight came in, the bat flew 
 out. " I insisted that it would be impossible for 
 me to assume such a hideous shape as that of a bat, 
 and that I thought it more likely that I would take 
 the form of a bird, and if I eyer did it again I 
 would fly into her chamber and sins: to her. She 
 laughingly replied that she supposed I would 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 55 
 
 be a bljickbird, for my hair and eyes were 
 black; but she added, that while the blackbird 
 was quite pretty, it did not have a very sweet voice, 
 so that she would like to have me come in the 
 plumage of the blackbird but with the voice of the 
 canary. I told ler I would borrow all the good 
 qualities from all the birds and combine them in 
 one, Avhen I next visited her. She replied that if 
 I did, she would be certain to catch and cage 
 me, and keep me in her chamber, where she 
 might always see me and hear me sing. I made 
 a gallant answer, to the effect that nothing would 
 please me so well as to be tended by so fair a keep- 
 er, and that I would sing to her in my sweetest 
 notes all day long. I think we both felt that we 
 had orone far enouoh in a certain direction. There 
 now, you see what a muss I was getting myself into. 
 I had gone down South, as I thought, to fight rebels, 
 but I was just about to make an unconditional sur- 
 render, without any show of resistance, to one of 
 the little rebel girls. It was understood between 
 us that we should see each other frequently, so long 
 as I was in the house at least ; and I began to fear 
 that my injuries would not make it necessary for me 
 
56 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 to remain at Col. Graves's much longer. So I did 
 not feel quite so well that evening, and Mrs. Graves 
 feared that I had taken too much exercise, and 
 advised me to be more quiet the next day. When 
 my brother came, I told him all about my visit from 
 the sergeant, dining with the family, and carelessly 
 mentioned the tour of the house with Annie Belle. 
 ^ly brother had dined with the family frequently, and 
 of course had seen Annie Belle, and agreed with me 
 that she was quite pretty ; and when I mentioned her 
 name he smiled, and told me that if I was not very 
 careful I would get another fall, more serious per- 
 haps than the first, and from which I might not so 
 soon recover, but he hoped that no broken bones 
 would result. Of course I knew what he was hint- 
 ing at ; he had not yet heard the sergeant's lecture on 
 frankness, and still indulged the Yankee propensity 
 for indirectness. I made no reply, for I was quite 
 certain that the fall had already occurred. For the 
 next two days I kept pretty closely to my chamber. 
 I went out to my meals, however, and was visited 
 by ever}^ member of the family except Col. Graves, 
 who had gone to Louisville on business. Miss Josie 
 Lee and Annie Belle came in and spent the most of 
 
THE LITTLE 15UGLER. 57 
 
 one afteriioou with me. Miss Lee luid been 
 educated in New Orleans, had spent one year in 
 Paris, and was a beautiful and accomplished young 
 lady ; l)ut she was a great rebel, and hated the Yan- 
 kees with all her heart. Almost every young lady 
 in the South had a brother or lover — often both — 
 in the Southern army, and it was very natural for 
 them to be bitter against the ' ' Yankee ' ' army. It 
 proved that Capt. Graves was the accepted lover of 
 Miss Lee. She denounced the Yankee soldiers in 
 pretty round terms ; her denunciations, however, 
 were so general that they did not irritate me in the 
 least. Miss Lee was too well bred, and naturally 
 too kind and polite, to say anything that could wound 
 my feelings ; and she was careful to make an excep- 
 tion In favor of my brother, whom she spoke of as 
 being a gentleman and a scholar, and worthy a 
 better cause than that of fighting for the freedom of 
 the negroes, whose best and happiest condition was 
 that of slavery. I was not disposed to argue the 
 matter with ^liss Lee, particularly in the presence 
 of Annie Belle ; but I told her that I thought if she 
 knew other Union soldiers she would change her 
 opinion of them, and would like them perhaps 
 
58 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 equjilly as well as my ])rother, for there were a 
 great many gentlemen and scholars among them. 
 But she insisted that my ])rother was an exception, 
 and that she did not wish to extend her accjuaint- 
 ance any further among the Yankee soldiers ; still 
 she hoped that the chance acquaintance with myself 
 and brother, which had been xery pleasant to the 
 whole family, would not terminate with ni}' illness. 
 I hoped so too, and so did Annie Belle. But the 
 mere possibility of my acquaintance with Annie 
 Belle being brought to a close so soon, made me 
 half wish that my injuries had been more severe. 
 I began now to feel that war was indeed a very 
 dreadful thing, when it separated friends in that 
 cruel way. I said that I should be very sorry if I 
 could not visit them frequently, for they had 
 all been so kind to me, and I was sure that I liked 
 them just as well as if they were all for the Union 
 instead of secession. Annie Belle said that she 
 wished the war would stop, for she did not know 
 what it was all about anyway ; but she thought 
 that my brother and I were good Yankees, and did 
 not mean to do much harm to the South. But she 
 advised me not to light for the negroes, for they 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 59 
 
 were not worth fighting for ; and besides, I might 
 get killed, and that would grieve my mother very 
 much. I told her that I had to do my duty, now 
 that I was in the army, ])ut that I did not have any 
 bad feelings at all toward the Southern people, and 
 hoped the time Avould soon come when the North 
 and South could be friends again, and live together 
 as before ; but until that time should come, I wanted 
 to be her friend just as much as if I was in the 
 Southern instead of the Northern army. To this 
 she willingly consented. I suppose it was pretty 
 easy for Miss Lee to interpret the unspoken com- 
 munications that were passing between Annie Belle 
 and myself during this conversation. She took 
 quite an interest in the matter, and said that she could 
 see no reason why we should not become the very 
 best of friends. This Avas most encouraging, and I 
 felt better at that particular moment than I had at 
 any time since my fall. Miss Lee saw that her words 
 had produced a happy effect upon us both ; so she went 
 on to say that it was quite likely, if my parents 
 were living in the South, they would be for secession, 
 and that if Col. Graves and family were living in the 
 North they would be in favor of the Union ; so that, 
 after all, our circumstances make us what we are, 
 
60 THE I.ITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 and we should not think any the less of each other 
 because we found our friends on opposite sides in 
 the war. How kind and generous it was of Miss 
 Lee to say this, Avhen her sympathies were so de- 
 cidedly Avith the Southern cause. I knew that she 
 said it in order to clear the way for Annie Belle and 
 me, and I am sure we were both very grateful to 
 her for it. When thej^ arose to go, Miss Lee bent 
 over and kissed me, and told me to keep a light 
 heart and all would be well. I felt that this was a 
 pledge of her friendship to me and Annie Belle, and 
 I thought \diat a kind, sweet, and lovely lady she 
 was, to take so much interest in the affairs of two 
 children ; especially since I was a Yankee, and her 
 own true lover was a captain in the Southern army. 
 My visitors had filled my heart and my chamber 
 with sunshine. But as I sat thinking of Annie 
 Belle and her soft blue eyes, and of the womanly 
 grace and beauty of Miss Lee, a shadow fell upon the 
 floor and gradually filled the entire room, and I felt 
 its chill creeping all over me ; and this shadow was 
 caused by the thought that my brother must cer- 
 tainly be in love with Miss Lee, as he had been quite 
 often in her company, and I could not imagine how 
 any man could see Miss Lee without being in love 
 
T^HE LI'TTLPi BUGLPiR. ^1 
 
 with her. Now, my sadness came with thought of 
 my brother's great misfortune in loving one who 
 loved another ; and I felt how utterly miserable I 
 should be if Annie Belle's heart had been filled with 
 the image of some little rebel boy, and not my own. 
 But I was quite certain that this could not be, or 
 Miss Lee would not have talked and acted as she 
 did ; besides, I felt sure that Annie Belle and I 
 understood each other pretty Avell, although we 
 had never spoken to each other about the mat- 
 ter. But girls and boys, men and women, can 
 talk to each other without using words ; for 
 there is language in the eyes, the tones of the voice, 
 and in every movement, and it only requires a sympa- 
 thetic spirit to read it. Love, like murder, will out ; 
 and that when we are least aware of it. When my 
 brother came from the camp that evening, I was 
 unusually kind to him, as I meant to inform him of 
 Miss Lee's engagement to Capt. Graves. I felt 
 sure that it would be a great shock to him, and I 
 wanted to break the news as gently as possible. 
 Poor fellow ! how I pitied him. I told him of 
 my two visitors, and how kind and considerate 
 Miss Lee had been. I mentioned especially her 
 kind remarks about him ; but instead of its eplh 
 
6^ THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 ing me on in my sorrowful task, I was afraid that 1 
 had unwittingly given him encouragement. " Miss 
 Lee seemed to think," I went on to say, **that 
 Annie Belle and I have a tender regard for each 
 other, and she said many kind things to encourage 
 us." But I added, "I suppose it is natural for 
 those who are in love themselves to imagine that 
 everybody else is in the same predicament. " Now, 
 I wanted my brother to know that ^liss Lee was in 
 love, before telling him the name of her lover, as it 
 would be too much to tell it all at once. But this 
 was a most unfortunate place to pause, for my 
 brother might reasonably think that he was the 
 object of her love. My task grew more difficult as 
 I went on, for I felt that I had unintentionally 
 awakened hopes which I must soon blast. I grew 
 more determined, and advanced in a more direct 
 way. I said that Miss Lee was a very accomplished 
 and beautiful young lady, but I was sure that she 
 could never love a Union soldier, as she was a great 
 rebel, and had nothing but hatred for the Yankoie 
 armv. I felt that this was comins: verv near the 
 point, and I looked away from my brother, as I did 
 not wish to witness his agony. Xow, he understood 
 me from the beginning, and was greatly amused at 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 63 
 
 toy concern about him ; so he relieved me at once 
 from my embarrassment by saying that " Miss Lee 
 certainly was a very charming young lady, and Capt. 
 Graves was very fortunate, and ought to be proud 
 to have the love of such a woman." The shadows 
 began to disappear. He said also that Miss Lee 
 was a dangerous rebel for a Union soldier to meet, 
 unless he had his heart well protected by the shield 
 of another woman's love. My brother then read 
 me the following letter, which he had that day re- 
 ceiv^ed from home : — 
 
 Deau Ja:\ies: I spent last evening with your mother 
 and Lizzie. Of course our conversation was all about 
 you and little George, and we were glad that you were 
 having such fine weather in Kentucky. Winter has be- 
 gun in earnest here in New England, and it is quite for- 
 tunate for our soldiers that the Southern climate is so 
 much milder ; still, you must have some severe weather soon 
 in Kentuck}^, and it grieves us all to think that 3'ou can 
 have no better shelter than a frail tent provides. Soldiers 
 are passing through the streets almost every day on their 
 way to the front, and it is a wonder to me where they all 
 come from. The North is wide awake by this time, and 
 I believe that the rebellion cannot last much longer. My 
 reading nowada^^s is principally confined to the daily 
 papers, and I keep myself pretty well informed about the 
 movements of the different armies. The resignation of 
 the brave old veteran, Gen. Scott, has been accepted, 
 
64 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 and Gen. McClellan succeeds him in the chief command 
 of our national armies. I hope that he may prove him- 
 self worthy of this high and most responsible position. I 
 see that Gen. Buell is to succeed Gen. Sherman as com- 
 mander of the army in Kentucky. I trust you all will be 
 pleased with him. The battle at "Camp Wild-Cat," in 
 which a part of jour aiTny defeated Gen. Zollicoffer, was 
 good news to us all, and we trust it may prove a 
 prophecy as to the final result in j^our department. I am 
 expecting every day to hear of the advance of your di- 
 vision upon Gen. Buckner at Bowling Green. Gen. 
 McClellan is getting together a very fine army upon the 
 Potomac, and we expect great things of him. 
 
 Annie Parsons. 
 
 I have not given the letter in full, but enough to 
 indicate the relation w^hich existed between Miss 
 Parsons and my brother. This letter completely 
 relieved my mind concerning my brother and Miss 
 Lee, — and I was happy. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Three weeks had passed away, and I had so far 
 recovered from my breaks and bruises that there 
 was no further need of physicians, nor was it 
 necessary for me to remain longer under the care of 
 Mrs. Graves ; so I began, with rather a heavy 
 heart, to prepare for my return to the camp. 
 But my kind hostess and her daughter, Mrs. Lee, 
 insisted that I should remain at least one week 
 longer, as the weather was getting more severe, and 
 there was danger of a relapse from an exposure 
 which would be unavoidable at the camp. My 
 brother hesitated about permitting me to lengthen 
 my stay, for we had already enjoyed as much of 
 their hospitalities as he thought warrantable, con- 
 sidering they would accept nothing in return. But 
 as Mrs. Graves was very earnest and sincere in her 
 wish to have me remain, my brother felt that it 
 would be inconsiderate in him to insist further upon 
 my going. So it was decided that I should remain 
 another week at " Chestnut Hill," for that was the 
 
 5 (65) 
 
66 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 name of Col. Graves's residence. Now, I deter- 
 mined to make the best possible use of these last 
 days in cultivating my chance acquaintance with 
 Annie Belle. Of course, it was not necessary that 
 I should remain in-doors ; so Annie Belle and I put 
 our heads together and arranged a programme of 
 out-door exercises, with something special for the 
 afternoon of each day. The first day we were to 
 explore the barn and barn-yard. One who has 
 never been South can get no true idea of the 
 extensiveness of the barn and barn-yard of a large 
 Southern plantation. All the horses, mules, and 
 cattle have to be sheltered ; and the corn, wheat, 
 tobacco, flax, rice, cotton, etc., must be stored 
 away ; and the barn is usually large enough for all 
 of these purposes. It comprises all the store-room 
 and stables necessary to the plantation. The first 
 object that particularly attracted my attention on 
 entering the barn-yard was a very strange, sad, and 
 solemn-looking creature ; and there was something 
 about it that at once excited my pity, for it looked 
 very unhappy, as though it had recently lost some 
 dear friend. This animal proved to be a donkey ; 
 and I was told that this was its habitual and natural 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 67 
 
 appearance, — that it at all times presented this 
 same melancholy face and figure. I was inclined to 
 linger al)out this grave and sober-minded beast, but 
 Annie Bell, who had been accustomed to these 
 animals all her life, could not understand why I 
 was so much impressed by the donkey ; and she 
 hurried me away, for she said she could see nothing 
 instructive or interesting in that absurd creature. 
 But, absurd-looking as it undoubtedly was, the 
 donkey had nevertheless made an impression upon 
 me, and I shall never forget that particular donkey, as 
 the sequel will show. We next went to the mule- 
 sheds, where we saw the mules, horses, and oxen, 
 more than two hundred in all, which were used for 
 field purposes. Now, the family of the mule is of 
 doubtful origin, and it is therefore not considered a 
 very high-toned beast ; in fact, it is regarded as 
 being very low-toned, and no respectable horse 
 would be found associating with it under any cir- 
 cumstances. Sometimes, however, one will see, in 
 the South, mules and horses harnessed together ; 
 but it is pretty sure evidence that the horse has lost 
 caste among his horse companions, either from bad 
 conduct, the want of a good pedigree, or some kind 
 
68 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 or other of inferiority which renders him an unfit 
 companion for liis fellow-horses. Now, the horses 
 we saw in the mule -sheds were mostly of plebeian 
 orisrin, and could boast of no remote ancestry. 
 They were called by the euphonious name of 
 ** plugs," but what this word signifies in that 
 relation I have never been able to learn. Some of 
 these horses, however, might boast of pretty good 
 blood ; but they had been unable, for some reason, to 
 maintain a respectable position " on the road," 
 either to the wagon or under the saddle, so they 
 had fallen to the low and degrading station of 
 common field-drudges, and were compelled to 
 become the companions of mules and oxen. After 
 our visit to the mule-sheds, where we saw, as I have 
 stated, horses, mules, and oxen living together 
 promiscuously, without any apparent social dis- 
 tinctions, we went to the most aristocratic locality 
 of the barn, where the " thoroughbreds " were 
 stabled. I felt at once that I was in a very dif- 
 ferent atmosphere. There was a superior air about 
 these horses, and the difference between them and 
 those in the mule-sheds was just as marked as 
 the difference between the residents of Beacon and 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 69 
 
 North Streets, Boston ; or Baxter Street and the 
 Fifth Avenue, New York. I wtis k)oking through 
 these well-kept stables and admiring the fine horses, 
 when I heard a familiar whinney, and turning about, 
 saw my own little horse, which I had not seen 
 before since I left him in the care of little 
 black Jake, on the memorable day of the nutting 
 expedition. But there he was, right in the midst 
 of the blooded roadsters, and he held his head just 
 as high, and looked in every way just as respectable, 
 as any of them. He was fat and sleek, and had 
 evidently enjoyed his stay in the barn as much as 
 I had enjo3^ed my stay in the house. Annie Belle 
 said that she had been frequently to see my little 
 horse during my illness, and had carried him apples 
 and peaches, and all sorts of nice things to eat; but 
 he seemed to care more for his corn and oats than 
 for anything else, and so she had ceased to take him 
 anything, except now and then a bit of fresh grass, 
 which he usually ate with little ceremony. My 
 horse seemed to recognize Annie Belle, for he jjut 
 out his nose towards her while she was talkins:, and 
 sniffed about as if he were expecting some more 
 grass ; but instead of the grass she gave him several 
 
70 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 gentle pats, which he took with raucli comphicency, 
 as thouij^h he were accustomed to attentions of that 
 sort. The fact was, I could see very plainly that 
 my horse was putting on most extraordinary airs, 
 aiul pretending that he was used to this kind of 
 living ; while the plain truth was, he had not had 
 a very respectable parentage, nor a very genteel 
 bringing up, and there were very grave doubts 
 about the blueness of his blood. As it some- 
 times happens, through the shifting of circum- 
 stances, that the North Street resident gets 
 quartered in Beacon Street, or the Baxter Street 
 resident in the Fifth Avenue, so in this instance, the 
 horse of low degree (pedigree) had found himself 
 upon a footing with the thoroughbreds ; and as 
 the Baxter or North Street resident is sure to carry 
 with him the marks of his origin, let him climb 
 never so high upon the social ladder, so this little 
 plebeian horse was constantly giving signs of his 
 recent promotion. While Annie Belle patted him, 
 he gave me a sly look out of the corners of his eyes, 
 and seemed to say, " I see, yonng master, that you 
 are getting on very well with the pretty little girl ; 
 and as forme, I am determined to make these proud 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 71 
 
 roiidsters here understand thtit I have seen blooded 
 horses before I came here, and that I am just as 
 good as the best of them, and know what is due my 
 position as the horse of a soldier and a bugler." I 
 o^ave him a 2:lance in return, which he no doubt un- 
 derstood, to the effect that I had no fears of his 
 disgracing me, but was a little apprehensive lest he 
 might betray his low origin by his pretentious airs. 
 Annie Bell showed as much interest in my little 
 horse as I had shown in the donkey. She asked 
 me where I got him, how long I had possessed him, 
 and how I brought him down there with me. I 
 answered the first two questions satisfactorily, but I 
 could not fully explain to her how my horse was 
 brought down as far as Louisville in the cars. 
 She had never seen horses on the cars, and was a 
 little puzzled to understand how they are taken on 
 and off. After a cordial leave-taking of my horse, 
 we went to the apartments where the machinery and 
 farming implements were stored away for the 
 winter. I saw there, for the first time, a cotton- 
 gin. A cotton-gin is a machine for separating the 
 seeds from the cotton, and, strange to say, it was 
 invented by Eli Whitney, a Connecticut Yankee, 
 
72 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 who lived where there wiis no cotton raised, and 
 hence no need for such a machine. Cotton is not 
 so extensive!}^ cultivated in Kentucky as it is further 
 south, so I did not see it in very great quantities. 
 
 For the remainder of my stay at " Chestnut Hill " 
 I will copy from my diarv, which was written at 
 the close of each day. There are few changes made 
 from the original entries : — 
 
 Chestnut Hill ^ Monday^ December 3, 1861. — 
 Got almost ready for my return to the camp ; was 
 packing up my things, and feeling pretty blue, when 
 Annie Belle came runnino^ in to tell me that it had 
 been settled between Mrs. Graves and my brother 
 that I was to remain another week. Annie Belle 
 seemed very glad to have me remain ; this pleased me 
 more than anything else. We made our plans for the 
 week. What a strange and solemn-looking creature 
 a donkey is ; it seems also to be very wise. I saw 
 my little horse for the first time since my accident. 
 
 I will not copy any more from tlie first day's diary, 
 as I have alread}^ given an account of the doings of 
 that day. 
 
 Tuesday, December 4, 1861. — This morning 
 Miss Lee read at the breakfast-table an account of 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 7.3 
 
 a skirmish, in which Capt. Graves had routed a 
 party of foragers from our camp. They all talked 
 about it very merrily, — except Annie Belle. We 
 went to the negro quarters, and saw an old negro 
 woman baking hoe-cakes on a board ; the negroes 
 have no stoves, and do all their cooking over 
 the fire, with a crane, oven, etc. Their food is 
 composed almost entirely of corn-cake and hog- 
 meat. They seem quite happy. They sang us a 
 song, and I have w^ritten down a part of it, that 
 Annie Belle remembered and repeated to me : — 
 
 As I went down in cle valley fo' to pray, 
 
 Bo'n King ob cle Jews, 
 Studyin' about de good old way, 
 Bo'n King ob de Jews. 
 Oh wlia, Oh wha, Oh wha, Oh wha, — 
 Oh wha am He dat was bo'n Kingob de Jews? 
 If yo' git da afo' I do, 
 
 Bo'n King ob de Jews, 
 Tell 'em I's comin' too, 
 
 Bo'n King ob de Jews. 
 Oh wha, Oh wha, etc. 
 
 We heard an old negro man praying aloud in a 
 very strong voice. Annie Belle says that he always 
 prays when he thinks any white persons are listen- 
 ing to him ; she says that he is no t thought to be very 
 sincere in his worship. I was curious to hear what 
 
74 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 kind of a prayer he would offer, and was listening 
 to him, when a stout, cheerful-looking negro woman 
 came up to us and said, " Massa and missus, don't 
 you pay no 'tention to dat old nigger in da ; he'll be 
 stealin' chickens afo' to-mo' night." The old man 
 heard this not very flattering comment upon his 
 moral and religious character, and replied thus : 
 ** Go 'long way fom da, you lyin' nigger. You won't 
 go to de good place you'self, and you don't want no- 
 body else to go da neither." Several slaves had 
 gathered around the disputants by this time, and it 
 was evident that each champion had friends in the 
 audience ; but the negro woman was not very easily 
 vanquished, and, true to her sex, had the last word. 
 ** De good Lo'd don't know you nigger, — de good 
 Lo'd don't know vou," and witha loud laugh, away 
 she ran to her cabin. We had games in the parlor 
 at night. 
 
 Wednesdai/y December 5, 1861. — CoL Graves 
 returned last night from Louisville . He brought with 
 him dresses and manv other nice thino:s for tbe 
 ladies and Annie Belle. She showed me all that was 
 brought her. I think the blue dress is the prettiest ; 
 it is near the color of her eyes. We went to visit 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 75 
 
 the Phillipses to-day, and had quite a nice time of 
 it. I had not seen any of them since my illness. 
 Walter went and brought Sadie Woods over, and 
 we had a fine time roasting chestnuts. They were 
 all very kind to me, and Walter was quite earnest in 
 begging my pardon for his carelessness, which caused 
 my fall from the chestnut tree. Emma wanted to 
 outshine the other girls, especially Annie Belle ; 
 but she did not seem to take much notice of it. I 
 could see, however, that they were not particularly 
 fond of each other. Emma and I had a little pri- 
 vate talk. She asked me many questions about 
 Annie Belle, but I gave her little satisfaction. I am 
 quite sure that she believes me in love with Annie 
 Belle. She spoke of getting letters from Fred. Aus- 
 tin, and said that he was very handsome. 1 heard all 
 of this without exhibiting the least sign of jealousy, 
 which I imagine a little disappointing to Emma. I 
 caught Annie Belle's eyes flashing upon us two 
 or three times, and this made me feel that our pri- 
 vate talk was annoying to her, and so I proposed to 
 Emma that we return to the company. But Emma 
 saw that Annie Belle was not pleased with this 
 secrecy between us, and so she endeavored to detain 
 
76 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 me with various trivial matters. I saw plainly that 
 this was done simply to annoy Annie Belle, and I de- 
 termined that she should see how the matter stood, 
 and that I did not have any particular regard for 
 Emma. So I called out to the others that Emma 
 wastellins: me about her brave and handsome sweet- 
 heart, Mr. Austin, and that I thought the entire 
 company ought to hear it, as it was quite interest- 
 ing. This turned the tables on Emma, and Annie 
 Belle enjo^^ed it more than any other one. She 
 brightened up at once, and was much more lively 
 the remainder of our visit. Walter and Sadie were 
 very sweet on each other. We spent the evening in 
 the parlor at "Chestnut Hill." Col. Graves told 
 us about his visit to Louisville. He says that there 
 are a great many soldiers there, and the citizens 
 are much annoyed by them. He fears that his 
 horses and mules Avill l)e taken l)y our army. I 
 told him that my brother would protect his prop- 
 erty. He said he knew my brother would do all in 
 his power, but he feared it was not in his power to 
 protect him, as it was generally known that he was 
 a Secessionist, and had two sons in the Confederate 
 army. This made me feel very bad, for I thought 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 77 
 
 that it would be a very mean thing for our army to 
 destroy the property of this good family, all of 
 whom had been so kind to a little stranger, as I was. 
 They all talked till quite late, in a very sober man- 
 ner, about their friends in the army and the dismal 
 condition of everything in the South. Annie Belle 
 and I sat in a corner and listened attentively to all 
 that was said. We both frequently sighed, and 
 there was a general feeling of 'sadness, and the 
 *< good-nights" were spoken in almost solemn tones. 
 I wish there was no such thing as war ; how much 
 sorrow and heart-burning it causes. 
 
 Thursday^ December 6, 1861. — This was a 
 bright morning, and we were granted the liberty of 
 a horseback ride to the village. My horse had not 
 been out of the barn-yard for so long that the ladies 
 feared I would not be a1)le to manage him ; but I 
 was quite willing to risk it. A beautiful bay horse 
 was brought out for Annie Belle. The girls in the 
 South learn to ride horseback when very young, 
 and I found to my surprise that Annie Belle could 
 sit a horse almost as well as I. Just as I was 
 seated in my saddle, the donkey set up a terrible 
 braying, and my little horse embraced the opportu- 
 
78 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 nity of exhibiting himself before the family. He 
 pricked up his ears, elevated his tail, snorted, and 
 pranced around Annie Belle, and reared up two or 
 three times. I was not displeased with this per- 
 formance, as it gave me a chance to display my horse- 
 manship. This satisfied the ladies that I was master 
 of the situation. Our horses went prancing down 
 the lane, and the ladies waved their handkerchiefs 
 after us. Annie Belle seems prettier in every new 
 attitude. I don't believe there ever was a girl who 
 looked so j^retty on horseback, or could sit a horse 
 so gracefully as she can. The village is two miles 
 away. AYe called at the post-office and got two let- 
 ters ; one of them was for Miss Lee, — from Capt. 
 Graves, I suspect. I proposed that we should return 
 by way of the camp, as I wanted my friends to see 
 me in company with so pretty a young miss. She 
 was naturally modest, and a little timid about meet- 
 ing soldiers ; and although she did not decline, I 
 did not press her, and so we returned as we had 
 come. We had a race up the lane to the house. 
 I was beaten, and Annie Belle said she knew that 
 I held my horse back on purpose, to let her beat. 
 So I did, and my little horse did not like it at all ; 
 
THR LITTLE BUGLER. 79 
 
 for although he is of humble parentage, yet he can 
 run like a deer. My brother came and spent the 
 evening with the ladies. Miss Lee played the piano 
 and sang several Southern songs, among others, 
 '*The Bonne Blue FUig " and '* Dixie." She and 
 brother sang a duet. Brother has a fine voice, and 
 dances elegantly. I am proud of him, and am quite 
 sure that he is quite as clever and handsome as 
 Capt. Graves. Annie Belle and I danced several 
 times. I wish I could dance better. She says that 
 I am a *' nice partner," but I know that I am not a 
 good dancer. Napoleon or Wellington, I don't 
 know which, said that among their soldiers the best 
 dancers were always the best fighters ; and my 
 brother savs that the colonel who led the charofe of 
 the * * Lio^ht Brio^ade ' ' was noted for his fine dancing 
 and other society accomplishments, — in fact, he was 
 a society " exquisite." So I must learn to dance in 
 the best manner possible. 
 
 Friday/, December 7, 1861, — I was a little stiff 
 from my horseback ride yesterday, and Annie Belle 
 makes the same report of herself. We went hunt- 
 ing persimmons to-day. They are very sweet fruit 
 when fully ripe, but when not perfectly so they 
 
80 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 are very bitter, and pucker one's mouth as though he 
 were trying to whistle. I got one which looked 
 ripe, but on tasting it I found my mistake. Annie 
 Belle laughed at my puckered lips ; but I soon for- 
 got the bitter in the enjoyment of the sweet, and 
 ate a great quantity. We spent the evening together 
 in my chaml^er, as there was company in the parlor 
 that we did n(jt particularly enjoy. I shall never 
 forget this evening. 
 
 Saturday^ December 8^ 1861. — Mrs. Lee, Miss 
 Lee, Annie Belle and I, all went over to Maj. 
 Chrisler's. There were two young ladies at this 
 house. They had evidently heard of me, for they 
 said, ''And this is the little bugler, is it?" The 
 ladies sang Southern songs, and talked about little 
 else than the war. There was a boy and girl. The 
 bov orave me no concern in res^ard to Annie Belle ; 
 the girl is not my style. We had the best corn- 
 bread for dinner that I ever ate. We spent the 
 evening in the library, reading over our notes to 
 each other. I did not read all of mine, and I think 
 she skipped some of her's. I should like to see all 
 she has written. 
 
 Sunday, December P, 1861. — This is the first 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 81 
 
 diiy and the last day, — the first day of the week 
 and the hist day of my stay at " Chestnut Hill." 
 This being Sunday, we were quiet and good. I 
 asked Annie Belle what church she attended, and 
 she answered, Avith some surprise, " The Episcopal, 
 of course." And she looked at me, as much as to 
 say, **N<)W, I hope you are not opposed to the 
 church, too, as well as to slavery." I did not 
 answer her look of inquiry, for I felt that here 
 would be another cause of difference. I said that I 
 was quite familiar with the church service, and had 
 a great many friends who attended it. But this did 
 not satisfy her, and she said, *' I hope you are not 
 a Baptist, are you? " I answered that I was not a 
 Baptist. There were only two churches in the 
 village, an Episcopal and a Baptist, so it was quite 
 natural for her to infer that I must be a Baptist if 
 not an Episcopalian. I told her what church I at- 
 tended w^hen at home, but she knew little about 
 this church, and did not seem to take any interest in 
 the matter. I was very anxious that she should 
 respect my religion, and began to explain, but she 
 took little interest in what I said. She was entirely 
 satisfied to know that I was not a Baptist, so I 
 
82 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 did not attempt any further explanation or defence 
 of my faith. I went to church and read the service 
 with her out of her prayer-book, and if there had 
 been anything wanting, this convinced her that I 
 was sound in the faith. We lingered in the parlor 
 rather late, as it was my last night at «* Chestnut 
 Hill." While our army remains at its present 
 camp I am going to see Annie Belle at least three 
 times a week, and when the army changes camp 
 we are to write often to each other. 
 
 Camp BueU, Monday, December 10, 1861. — I 
 slept very little last night, but when I did I dreamed 
 of Annie Belle ; but it was such a strange and 
 confused dream. It appeared that she was taken 
 from me unwillingly, and carried off in a carriage 
 drawn by six white horses. I followed after her, 
 and found her in a fine mansion. She was very sad, 
 and told me that it was all my fault. I wanted to 
 take her away with me, but she said she coukl not 
 leave that place, but must always live there. While 
 we Avere talking, a strange, cold-looking man came 
 between us and led her away into another apartment. 
 She looked back at me, standing alone, and with 
 sad face and reluctant step disappeared from my 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 83 
 
 sight. This dream awoke me ; I was feeling very 
 unhappy, and could not sleep again. I was up 
 very early, and went out upon the piazza. I was not 
 there long before Annie Belle joined me. She was 
 not looking happy either. I told her my dream. 
 She looked frightened, and said that she had had an 
 ugly dream too, - — about me being on one side of a 
 dark, swiftly flowing river, and she was on the other 
 side, and there was no boat, nor other means of 
 crossino^ the river. We stood there lookins: at each 
 other, and the river grew wider and wider, until we 
 faded away from each other's sight. We were both 
 greatly troubled about these dreams, and were not 
 disposed to converse much, but walked the piazza 
 arm-in-arm, in sad and silent meditation, until 
 breakfast was announced. We told our dreams to 
 Miss Lee, and sought consolation from her. She 
 assured us that the contrary of dreams always came 
 to pass. This lifted the load from our young 
 hearts, and we were happy once more. Annie 
 Belle assisted me in packing my things, and 
 when my brother came I Avas all ready. On taking 
 leave of the family, the ladies all kissed me, and 
 asked me to come and see them often, as Annie 
 
84 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 Belle would be quite lonely without me. O ! what 
 good and kind people they are. I wish the war was 
 over. I had quite a reception at camp, as I had 
 been absent about one month. The officers all 
 greeted me very warmly, and the soldiers gave 
 three cheers for the " little bugler" and kind Mrs. 
 Graves, who had nursed him so well. Our cook had 
 prepared a nice dinner for me, and was disappointed 
 that I ate so little. My brother seemed to under- 
 stand why I had no appetite, and proposed that I 
 should ride out with him and view the picket lines. 
 He thought thus to divert my mind from * * Chestnut 
 Hill." It is believed that our army will not remain 
 here much longer, and that there is soon to be a 
 general advance of the entire army. I suppose I 
 must make my mind up to a separation from 
 *' Chestnut Hill," Annie Belle, and all the good, 
 kind people there ; but we are going to write very 
 often, and when the war is over, and I grow up to be 
 a man — But I guess I shall not write down here 
 what I intend to do, for fear that some one might 
 read it, and then I would be laughed at. But I 
 mean to do it all the same, if I don't write it 
 down. 
 
THE LITTLK BUGLER. 85 
 
 The diary ends here, and I will continue my nar- 
 rative where tlie diary leaves it. My illness had 
 prevented nic from practising upon my bugle, and I 
 found that it was quite difficult for me to blow the 
 ordinary camp-calls. There was, of course, another 
 bugler, w^ho blew all the calls in my absence. He 
 was a German, about thirty-five years old, and had 
 seen service in the *' German Revolution." He 
 was the first bugler of our battalion, a good 
 musician, and gave me lessons on the bugle when- 
 ever I was able to take them. I spent the most of 
 Tuesday practising under his direction. In order 
 not to annoy tlie camp, we went some distance away 
 and climbed down under the banks of the river, and 
 the soldiers were thus spared the very disagreeable 
 noise of bugle-practice. My teacher appointed 
 regular hours for each day, and my brother was as 
 strict in making me attend to those hours as any 
 mother is in requiring her daughter to attend to 
 piano-practice. Ahnost two days and nights had 
 passed since I left *' Chestnut Hill," and it really 
 seemed a very long time. I mounted my horse on 
 Wednesday morning, and headed him in the 
 direction of the ele^rant old mansion where we had 
 
86 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 both been so kindly cared for during my illness. 
 My horse seemed to understand where I was 
 expecting him to carry me, and went forward as 
 though he anticipated as much pleasure in the visit 
 as nwself. 1 took my bugle along with me. Annie 
 Belle had never seen it, and wanted to hear me blow 
 upon it. I permitted my horse to choose his own 
 gait — which was not a dog-trot, by any means — 
 until we got to the lane leading up to the house ; I 
 then blew two or three shrill calls upon my bugle, and 
 putting spurs to my horse, went dashing up to the 
 house in a sweeping gallop. Miss Lee and Annie 
 Belle came out upon the piazza when they heard 
 the sound of the bugle, and Annie Belle ran down 
 to the gate to meet me, as I dismounted and gave 
 my horse to the colored man. The horse seemed 
 as much pleased to get back to " Chestnut Hill " 
 as I was. On entering the barn-yard he gave a 
 loud neigh, which was intended as a familiar salute 
 to the thoroughbreds. Annie Belle asked me to 
 blow again upon my bugle. I did so, and this 
 brought out all the family and servants. Aunt Coal 
 and the sergeant included. The negros could be seen 
 perched upon the fence and out-houses all the way 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 87 
 
 from the barn to the negro quarters. The donkey 
 responded to my call, and gave us a most doleful 
 blast, which, in contrast to my bugle, sounded so 
 ludicrously melancholy that it set us all laughing. 
 The sergeant was irreverent enough to propose a 
 duet between my bugle and the donkey. I indig- 
 nantly declined. We all went into the house in 
 good spirits, and Miss Lee sat down to the piano 
 and sang *' Then You'll Remember Me," as I had 
 never heard her sing before. Annie Belle said it 
 seemed a week since I had left ** Chestnut Hill." 
 I replied that I was very glad my absence was so 
 much noticed by her, but I hoped the time would 
 not hang heavily upon her. She had something for 
 me, she said, which I must not look at until I got 
 back to the camp. I promised I would not, but I 
 came near breaking this promise two or three times, 
 as my curiosity, in this instance at least, was as 
 strong as any woman's. I told her of the camp 
 report that we were to leave our present quarters 
 soon and advance upon Bowling Green. My visit 
 was most delightful in every way, and I was return- 
 ing to the camp in fine spirits, when, as I drew near, 
 I noticed an unusual stir among the teamsters. I put 
 spurs to my horse, and inquired of the first soldier I 
 
8^ THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 came upon, what this bustle and general activity in 
 the camp meant. He answered that he supposed 
 w^e were ''going to mov^e camp," as orders had 
 been given them to have their wagons " ready for 
 the road by five o'clock on to-morrow morning." 
 This excited me. My horse responded to my spurs 
 again, and I was soon at my brother's tent, and 
 eagerly asked of the first person I saw if the army 
 had received marching orders. The reply came 
 in a cold, military voice, that almost chilled me 
 through, " This army moves forward at six o'clock 
 on to-morrow morning." This was spoken by one 
 of the general's statf, an officer who had been 
 educated at AVest Point, and who always talked 
 and acted in the most formal and military manner. 
 He was not a favorite of mine, and it seemed that 
 he knew his answer would give me pain, and on that 
 account took a grim delight in what he said. I 
 asked for my brother, and he replied that " Major 
 Monroe is at present in consultation with the 
 general at headquarters, and cannot be seen." I 
 could not endure to remain longer with this military 
 machine. I rushed out of the tent, on the lookout 
 for some congenial spirit. I caught sight of the 
 genial face of our surgeon, as he was returning 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 89 
 
 from the hospital. He culled out to me with a 
 pleasant smile, and asked about the folks at * 'Chest- 
 nut Hill." He had visited me there several times 
 during mv illness. I went with him to his tent. 
 He told me that the orders were simply to get ready 
 for marching by six o'clock on the next morning, but 
 camp rumor reported that the army was to advance 
 upon Gen. Buckner, at Bowling Green, and engage 
 him in battle. He added that *'the camp rumor 
 has no other foundation than the order to advance, 
 and the fact that Buckner is in our front." His 
 own opinion was that the army would advance to 
 Green River, and there go into winter quarters. 
 I found that my brother was of the same oi)inion. 
 In fact, he almost stated it as something he knew. 
 Of course, we decided at once to ride to " Chestnut 
 Hill" that evening and bid the good people good- 
 bye. They were a little surprised to see us, as 1 had 
 left them but a few hours before. They were all 
 sorr}^ that we were to leave so soon. Annie Belle and 
 I went into the library, that we might have a little 
 time to ourselves. We had some very earnest talk 
 for a boy and girl, the nature of which 1 shall not 
 mention ; but I suppose the reader feels pretty certain 
 what it was, without me being o))liged to talk it right 
 
90 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 out. It is not indelicate, however, for me to say that 
 we promised that we would ever be true to each other, 
 come what would, and we sealed this vow after the 
 most approved fashion of somewhat older persons 
 under similar circumstances. This sealing ceremony 
 was prolonged a little beyond conventional usages, 
 for some reason or other, and on looking up, who 
 should we see smiling down upon us but the 
 sergeant. He gave us a very formal military 
 salute, called me a very gallant — with the accent 
 plainly upon the last syllable — soldier, and said he 
 was quite sure I would never disgrace my uniform 
 if I confined my gallantry to encounters of that 
 nature. We both blushed a little, I imagine. I 
 did not see the face of either of us at the moment. 
 The sergeant evidently felt that his presence was 
 embarrassing to us. So he said that he would not 
 disturb us further, but he knew a little song which 
 he thought appropriate to the occasion, and with our 
 permission he would sing a verse or two, and then 
 retire to his '' fort," which was the name he gave to 
 his chamber. We gave him our silent consent, and 
 he sang, in rather a broken voice, the song called 
 «'The Girl I Left Behind Me," and at the end of 
 each verse he repeated the refrain, "01 the girl, 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 91 
 
 the girl, the pretty little girl, the girl I left behind 
 me." He then gave us a parting salute, and retired 
 in good order to his ** fort." The family all took 
 a tender leave of me, especially Miss Lee, Avho 
 said that I need have no uneasiness about Annie 
 Belle, for she ^vould take the best of care of her, 
 and report to me at once in case of any sickness 
 or other trouble, and in every way see that my 
 interests were properly looked after. This she 
 said apart to Annie Belle and myself in a laugh- 
 ing manner. So I left my little sweetheart in the 
 care of Miss Lee, with their arms around each 
 other. We mounted our horses, and just as we 
 were saying the last words of good-bye, the donkey 
 set up a mournful braying, and our voices were lost 
 in its dolorous echoes. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 On returning to the camp from '' Chestnut Hill," 
 I proceeded at once to examine the neatly done-up 
 package which Annie Belle had given me. It con- 
 tained a Bible and prayer-book, and a little case of 
 court-plaster, with the inscription, *' I heal all 
 wounds save those of love, " in large letters on the 
 front. On the fly-leaf of the Bible and prayer-book 
 was written, in the delicate hand of the giver, ** From 
 Annie Belle Lee to her friend George Monroe, 
 December 12th, 18(31 . " I still have the prayer-book 
 and the court-plaster case. I have kept also, for 
 remembrance sake, a little of the court-plaster. The 
 Bible I kept until two A^ears ago, when, in travelling 
 from the West to New York, ni}^ pocket-book, con- 
 taining my tickets and baggage-checks, was stolen ; 
 and with my trunk was lost the Bible that Annie 
 Belle had given me. But to return to our story. 
 I repeated one of the evening prayers from the 
 service-book before going to bed, but it seemed too 
 general for my special needs ; so I framed a prayer 
 
 (92) 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 93 
 
 of my own, the burden of which was that no harm 
 might ever come to Annie Belle, and that she might 
 always be happy, and that we both might live to 
 old age, and never cease to love each other. It was 
 after midnight before I got to bed, and I was up 
 early the next morning, as the camp was all astir 
 before sun-up. We breakfasted about half-past five 
 o'clock, and a little after six were ready for march- 
 ing. But it takes a long time to get an army in 
 motion, especially one made up of raw volunteers, 
 who had never done any real marching before. 
 As the sun came up, the camp looked very desolate 
 and dreary. The tents were all taken down and put 
 into wagons for transportation, and what were 
 beautiful green meadows when the army first en- 
 camped, was now a seared and blackened waste, 
 with no verdure, and not even the shadow of a fence 
 for an enclosuse. The banks of the river were 
 broken and marred, and its waters were dark and 
 murky. The whole scene was that of desolation, 
 and I pitied most sincerely the people whose homes 
 had been so ruthlessly despoiled by our army. As I 
 sat on my horse awaiting orders, I gazed toward the 
 uplands, and could just see the smoke curling from 
 
94 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 the stately chimneys of '* Chestnut Hill." I won- 
 dered if Annie Belle was sleeping ; and then I 
 thought again, and felt quite sure that she must be up 
 and watching the movements of the army. To my 
 left, and near the river, a long train of wagons 
 drawn hy mules and loaded with the camp-baggage 
 and general supplies for the army are just pulling 
 out on the turnpike. The drivers are shouting and 
 whi'pping ; the roll of the drums and the shrill 
 notes of the bugle are calling the soldiers into line ; 
 orderlies are galloping hither and thither, carrying 
 orders from the general-in-chief to his various subor- 
 dinate officers. At last the soldiers are all in line, and 
 there sounds out from the chief bugler a clear note 
 of command, which means *' forward. " This is 
 repeated by all the other bugles, my own joining in 
 the chorus ; the drums take it up, and it goes for- 
 ward from colonel to captain, until every soldier in 
 the entire army has heard the word " forward." 
 There is a general movement all along the line, and 
 the bands strike up " Hail Columbia," *' The Ked, 
 White, and Blue," <' Yankee Doodle," etc. ; and the 
 army moves forward, with waving banners and cheer 
 upon cheer from the soldiers. There is something 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 95 
 
 truly grand in the appearance of an army ready for 
 battle. It is a sight, also, to inspire one with cour- 
 age. The cheering of the soldiers, the waving of 
 the flags, and the lively strains of the numerous 
 bands all united to drive away the gloom that was 
 settling down upon me, and I found myself feeling 
 quite cheerful, considering what I was leaving behind. 
 We were with the commanding general, and did not 
 move until the army had been some time upon the 
 road. We soon overtook it, and as we went forward 
 the lines opened and we rode through, greeted 
 with hearty cheers from the soldiers. We were 
 soon at the head, and kept that position until we 
 pitched our tents, at four o'clock in the afternoon, 
 near the village of Mumfordsville, on the banks 
 of Green River. It was nightfall before the 
 entire army reached this camping-place, having 
 marched a distance of something more than twenty- 
 five miles. We encountered no enemy, as his out- 
 posts were beyond the river. 
 
 A very strange and pai'ticularly sad accident 
 occurred during the march, which I will relate. 
 There were in one of the Indiana regiments twin 
 brothers, who had always been together, partial- 
 
96 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 pating in each other's jo^^s and sharing each other's 
 sorrows. One never did anything of any conse- 
 quence without consulting the other. When they 
 enlisted in the army, it was after talking the matter 
 over between themselves, and both agreeing. Their 
 devotion to each other was very marked, and yet 
 they were so manly withal as to disarm ridicule, 
 and they were esteemed by all their comrades for 
 their soldierly bearing. The army halted about 
 noon for refreshments, and these brothers w^ent to 
 a spring hard by for water. One of them Avas 
 kneeling down to fill his canteen from the spring, 
 when his bayonet-strap caught the hammer of his 
 musket and discharged its cartridge. His brother 
 was standing just in his rear, and the ball entered 
 his mouth and passed through his head, killinc: him 
 almost instantly. The grief of the surviving brother 
 was most piteous to behold, and many a stout- 
 hearted soldier dropped a tear into the grave of the 
 ** twin brother." 
 
 As I have stated, the enemy's outposts were 
 beyond the river ; but as this river could be ordina- 
 rily crossed by horses, there was a constant liability 
 of collision between the pickets and the reconnoiter- 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 97 
 
 ing parties from the hostile armies. This nearness 
 to the enemy and liability of contact with him 
 kept the camp constantly on the alert, and it was 
 altogether more exciting than in our previous 
 quarters. All kinds of rumors were flying through 
 the camp, to the same general effect, — that a battle 
 was imminent. One report had it that Buckner was 
 going to cross the river about ten miles above, and 
 attack us ; another rumor had it that our army was to 
 cross the river at the point of our present encamp- 
 ment, and engage Buckner in battle. Nothing, 
 however, in these rumors could be traced to authen- 
 tic sources ; but still they multiplied, to my utter 
 confusion and demoralization. For one moment I 
 was expecting an attack upon our camp, and the 
 next I was called upon to screw my courage up for 
 an assault upon the enemy ; and thus I was con- 
 stantly vacillating between an attitude of defence 
 and one of attack, until the distinction l)etween my 
 offensive and defensive poise of mind gradually 
 faded away, and I became completely unstrung. 
 But it was the o^eneral belief amono^ all that an 
 eno^aofement between the armies would soon take 
 place in some way. I therefore thought that I 
 
 7 
 
98 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 would defer writing to Annie Belle until after the 
 battle, and then I would have something exciting to 
 relate. This excitement came on the third nisz:ht 
 after our encampment upon Green Kiver. I had 
 just returned from a tent where some officers and 
 private soldiers who had seen service in the three- 
 months' campaign were relating incidents of battles 
 in which they fought. It was past ten o'clock ; the 
 bugles had sounded the signal for retiring, and I 
 had just succeeded in tucking myself " in my little 
 bed," and was preparing to dream of " Chestnut 
 Hill," and the image of a little girl was in my mind 
 to give direction to my fancy, when all at once I 
 concluded that I did not want to sleep, and had no 
 disposition to dream, and I believe that a half-dozen 
 bottles of ** grandma's soothing-syrup " could not 
 have provoked a single nod ; I was, in fact, thor- 
 oughly awake. How I extricated myself from the 
 entanglements of my little bed I do not now 
 remember, but the first thing I did was to present 
 myself before my bi'other's tent, without my usual 
 amount of wearing apparel ; and the first word that 
 ever dampened my patriotic ardor was a command 
 which came from my brother, in rather a stern and 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 99 
 
 martial voice, — something like the tones of the 
 military machine referred to. When I had fully 
 interpreted this command, it signified that I was to 
 return to my tent, dress myself, and report to him 
 on horseback, with my bugle and side-arms. He 
 then mounted his horse, which his body-servant had 
 just brought up in front of his tent, and began to 
 caution the soldiers to be cool and attentive to 
 orders ; their bravery, he said, he confidently relied 
 upon. In the meantime I was endeavoring to carry 
 out his orders to me. But it did seem to me that 
 my brother was mighty authoritative all at once, 
 and he talked to me as thouo^h I was oblis^ed to do 
 what he commanded. Well, I suppose I was ; but 
 his stern voice struck me as being just a little out 
 of place, considering that I was his brother. I re- 
 ported, however, as he had commanded, — mounted, 
 with buofle and side-arms. Lookins: back throuofh 
 the vista of eighteen years at myself, as I sat that 
 night upon my little horse, I am of the opinion that 
 my toilet was not so elaborate as it might have been 
 under other circumstances. I am sure that I would 
 hesitate long before presenting myself in a parlor to 
 a company of ladies without more care than was 
 
100 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 iriven to mv dress on that memorable nioht. Durinor 
 all this while the pickets were keeping up a con- 
 tinual fire, and the "long roll" was sounding upon 
 almost a hundred drums. The clatter of all these 
 drnms, which sounded very much like the rattle of 
 musketry, made me think that a hand-to-hand con- 
 flict was ranins: in the midst of the camp. I had not 
 
 CO i 
 
 long to speculate, however, for my brother, after 
 some effort to get my attention, laid his hand heav- 
 ily upon my shoulder and ordered me, in the same 
 peremptory tone of voice, to blow a certain call, 
 which signified to the soldiers that they were to form 
 m line and get ready for action. I endeavored, in 
 the true spirit of a soldier, to obey my superior 
 officer, but I could not pump up wind enough. 
 My brother remonstrated with me upon the hazard 
 attending delay ; but still the sound was not forth- 
 coming. The mouth of the bugle did not seem to 
 fit my lips ; I could not get it to stay where I put 
 it ; it seemed excited, and shook ver}^ much. I was 
 myself a little confused about the distinction be- 
 tween the different calls, and in the confusion of 
 the moment, and without intending it, I blew the 
 " sick call." This was a most ludicrous and mor- 
 
THE LITTLK BUGLER. 101 
 
 tifjing mistlike. But my brother was not Ju a 
 trifling mood, and was disposed to make me respon- 
 sible for the waj^wardness of my l)ugle. He seemed 
 thoroughly displeased, if not disgusted, with my 
 uncanny appearance and Avant of soldierly conduct, 
 and he insinuated that I was not much of a soldier 
 after all. This put me on my metal. I had by this 
 time learned that the enemy was not at least within 
 sword-thrust. So I told him that I wa-wa-Avasn't 
 af-af-raid, bu-but something wa-was the matter with 
 my bugle. I took hold of it again with a firmer 
 grip, and with one tremendous efl*ort blew the 
 proper call. Of course, the other buo'lers were doino- 
 their duty all the time. Our battalion formed in line, 
 and away we went at a sweeping gallop down the 
 pike road, in the direction of the enemy. After 
 charging for about two miles and a half, we came to 
 a halt, and formed a line of battle by the roadside, 
 behind a stone fence. An officer rode down the 
 line, cautionuig the soldiers to remain as still as 
 possible, and not to fire iu any event until further 
 orders were given. We had not waited long until 
 we distinctly heard the tread of approaching foot- 
 men. Tramp, tramp, tramp; and still they ad- 
 
102 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 vanced. Now, I was alarmed lest our ' ' boys," as the 
 soldiers were called, should be taken at a disadvan- 
 taofe, and belie vin^: that the officers were not usinir 
 proper precaution, and not stopping to question 
 my right of command, I sang out at the top of my 
 voice, •* Cock your pistols, boys ; they are coming." 
 But the enemy did not come. The affair proved to 
 be a false alarm, gotten np b}^ the general in com- 
 mand, with a few other officers, to test the courage 
 of the army; but I never heard the last of " cock 
 your pistols, boys." I wrote a full account of this 
 affair to Annie Belle, omitting, of course, any details 
 which might reflect discredit upon my own martial 
 dignity. Before sending this letter, however, we 
 had a battle that proved to be no sham, as the killed 
 and wounded testified. As this was the first real 
 battle that I witnessed, I will give a brief account 
 of it : — 
 
 The exact position of the enemy was not known. 
 It was supposed that his headquarters were at Bowl- 
 ing Green, a distance of more than two days' 
 march from our camp. It was also reported that 
 Buckner's advanced line was but a few miles beyond 
 the river, and that he was prepared to dispute the 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 103 
 
 further jidvance of our jirmy. In order to find out 
 what truth there was in this report, and at the same 
 time to ascertain something about the surface of the 
 country through which our army hoped to advance, 
 it was determined to send forward a detachment for 
 these purposes. An Indiana regiment was selected 
 for this enterprise. It was commanded hy a colonel 
 who had seen service in the German Revolution. 
 Two officers not belonging to this i-egiment were 
 selected by the general to accompany this expedi- 
 tion. My brother was one of these officers. After 
 much special pleading, I was permitted to go with 
 him. I wished to have all the exciting events I 
 could get, to enliven my correspondence with Annie 
 Belle. The regiment crossed the river in companies, 
 by means of a ferry-boat which was worked by 
 hand. We crossed with the first company, and after 
 three or four others had joined us we began the 
 advance, expecting soon to be reinforced by the re- 
 maining portion of the regiment. We had advanced 
 but a short distance when we came upon the enemy's 
 outposts. These pickets fired and immediately 
 fell back. Our battalion pushed on pretty vig- 
 orously, and was suddenly confronted by more 
 
104 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 than three times our nuinl)er. An engagement be- 
 gan at once. My brother had no command, as he 
 was merely sent, or went, to observe the manner in 
 which the officers handled their troops and to wit- 
 ness the bearing of the soldiers in action. He 
 could best accomplish his mission by taking no 
 part in the conflict, and by occupying a place of 
 comparative safety. He and his fellow-officer, 
 together with several others who had volunteered 
 to accompany this expedition, separated themselves 
 from the line of battle and took a position on the 
 right, where they had a good view of the engage- 
 ment. I was among this number, and was prepared 
 at a moment's notice to beat a hasty retreat to the 
 bank of the river. In fact, I believe that at the very 
 beginning I headed my horse in the direction of the 
 river, for I felt pretty sure that a retreat would be 
 certain, sooner or later. But it was astonishing to- 
 witness the stubborn resistance that our troops made 
 to these superior numbers. When they were com- 
 pelled to retreat, they did it reluctantly and in good 
 order, firing as they slowly fell back towards the 
 river. They were, however, soon reinforced by the 
 remainder of the reg-iment, which came forward on 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 105 
 
 the double-quick, were soon in line, and gave a sud- 
 den check to the advance of the enemy. The fight- 
 ing was now renewed with twofold vigor, as the 
 numbers were nearer equal. Suddenly there was 
 heard a shout from the left of tlie enemy's line, and 
 on looking in that direction we saw a column of 
 horsemen moving down upon our flank. This 
 caused us spectators to change our position, for 
 these troopers were bearing down right upon us. 
 We quickly sought the rear, which was considered a 
 better place for our observations. The German 
 colonel was equal to the emergency. He quickly 
 formed his men into a hollow square with four fronts, 
 so that he really had no rear nor flank. On came 
 the cavalry, yelling like madmen ; but this did not 
 seem to terrify the " Hoosier boys." They stood up 
 to the work in a most determined way, and the dash- 
 ing troopers were compelled to pause a little in their 
 mad career. But on they came again, — and again 
 they halted. This advance and retreat of the cavalry 
 was repeated three distinct times, and still the 
 *'Hoosiers" held their ground, until at last the 
 enemy withdrew, and our troops were permitted to 
 take up their dead and wounded and retire in good 
 
106 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 order to the banks of the river, where they were 
 under the protection of our cannon, planted on the 
 opposite side. I had seen a real, and as the Southern 
 negroes say, a '* sure enough " battle, and I was not 
 scared nearly so bad as I had been on the night of the 
 false alarm. There was something so exciting, so 
 really fascinating, about the charge and the repulse, 
 the rattle of the musketr}^, the boom of the cannon, 
 the flash of the sabres, and the shouts of the sol- 
 diers, that one almost forgot for the time that at 
 every peal of the cannon and every discharge of the 
 musketry, brave men on both sides were falling, 
 gasping, and dying. The colonel had handled his 
 regiment superbly, and the soldiers had all behaved 
 with a cool bravery which would have done credit to 
 veterans of a dozen campaigns. The enemy had 
 fought with equal bravery. The cavalry were very 
 daring ; three times did they spur their horses 
 against the firm steel of the " Hoosier" bayonets. 
 This preliminary engagement convinced both armies 
 that they had a foe to contend with which was in 
 every way their equal. I gave an account of this 
 battle in my letter to Annie Belle. My brother was 
 better pleased with my conduct on this occasion 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 107 
 
 than he had been at the time of the midnight charge 
 and the false alarm. He told me that I might 
 make a soldier after all. 
 
 Nothing particular occurred for the next fortnight. 
 I received in the meantime a letter with the following 
 address : '* George Monroe, the Little Bugler, in care 
 of Major Monroe, Headquarters Centre Division of 
 the Army of Kentucky." This, you see, was a very 
 lengthy address, and covered almost the entire en- 
 velope, but it was all necessary to insure its safe 
 carriage and delivery. I shall insert an extract from 
 this letter : *' Yes, you were right in thinking that 
 I was up very early that morning you all left the 
 camp, and watching the movements of the army. 
 Aunt Josie [Miss Lee] slept with me that night, and 
 talked me to sleep. She said a great many nice 
 things about you, and I know she likes you very 
 much. She is just as lonely as she can be. I awoke 
 in the morning about four or five o'clock, and could 
 just hear the notes of the bugles and the sound of 
 the drums from the camp. I imagined that I could 
 hear your bugle distinct from the others, and it 
 seemed to say * Good-bye, Annie Belle, — good-bye, 
 Annie Belle.' I sat for a long time looking out of 
 the window, and could see the fires as they blazed up 
 
108 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 all over the camp. The sight was very beautiful ; and 
 Aunt Josie got up also. She said that it was as sol- 
 emn as it was beautiful, for this army would soon be 
 carrying the work of death and destruction into many 
 a happy Southern home. We sat looking out of the 
 window until the sun came up. The tents were all 
 gone and the camp was entirely deserted, and I 
 am sure I felt very desolate. AVe could just see the 
 army as it formed in line and marched away. Oh, 
 what a dreadful thing war is ! I pray every night 
 that it may cease, and that all the people, North 
 and South, may be friends again. It is perfectly 
 awful to think of your brother and Uncle Will l)eing 
 on opposite sides and fighting against each other. 
 I know they would like each other if they could 
 know each other. Oh, I should think you would 
 be awfully scared to be waked out of your sleep in 
 the night, expecting every moment to be shot. I 
 wouldn't stay in the army if I were you, for your 
 brother said you need not stay if you did not want 
 to. But bovs are not a bit like o^irls ; thev seem to 
 like anything that is dangerous. I am glad that it 
 was a * false alarm,' but I would have been just as 
 much frightened as if it had been a real battle ; but 
 the real battle did come. Oh, how awful it must 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 109 
 
 be to see poor soldiers shot right down before your 
 eyes. I am so afraid that you will get hurt. Your 
 brother said that you need not go into the battle, 
 and 1 wish you would not. If you were to get hurt, 
 you would have to lay in the tent with the other sol- 
 diers, and have no one but the rough men nurses 
 to take care of you. I send you a piece of my new 
 dress, and also of Aunt Josie's. The sergeant and 
 Aunt Coal send their love to you. You spoke about 
 the donkey : it is as gloomy-looking as ever, and 
 frequently gives us one of its doleful sounds. 
 They all send love to j^ou and your brother. Aunt 
 Josie says for me to tell you that she is taking good 
 care of me for you. We are expecting a letter from 
 Uncle Will [Capt. Graves] giving an account of the 
 battle you wrote about, as his regiment was engaged 
 in it." 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 The army remained in camp on Green River until 
 about the middle of February, when a general 
 advance was made upon Bowling Green. Buckner, 
 with about half of his army, had gone to Fort Don- 
 elson to reinforce Gens. Floyd and Pillow. This 
 fort was threatened with an attack from Gen. Grant, 
 who had just taken Fort Henry. This division of 
 Buckner' s army reduced the defence of Bowling 
 Green to about fourteen thousand soldiers, who 
 were unable to withstand an army of thirty thou- 
 sand strong. Our army therefore occupied Bowling 
 Green, after but a slight resistance by the now 
 weakened enemy. On the march to Bowling Green 
 we passed the Mammoth Cave, which I explored in 
 company with my brother. But I shall not weary 
 the reader with a description of this wonderful 
 cave, as it is in no way essential to my story, and 
 if I were to narrate all the events that were more or 
 less exciting, my story, I fear, would be too long 
 drawn out. Our army made but a short pause at 
 
 (110) 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. Ill 
 
 Bowling Green, and passed on toward Nashville. 
 One division was sent to aid Gen. Grant in his 
 attack upon Fort Donelson, but it arrived too late to 
 be of any assistance, as the battle had been fought, 
 the victory won, and Gen. Buckner with about 
 thirteen thousand of his brave men were prisoners 
 of war. Gens. Pillow and Floyd had run away, and 
 left the brave Buckner to surrender the fort. The 
 fall of Forts Henry and Donelson left Nashville 
 with little defence, and it surrendered without any 
 show of resistance, and our army marched in 
 triumph through its streets. The news of the fall 
 of Fort Donelson reached Nashville on Sunday 
 morning; many of the people were at church, 
 when suddenly messengers entered the various 
 places of worship, and in the midst of the services 
 shouted aloud that " Fort Donelson had sur- 
 rendered, and the Yankee army would soon be in 
 possession of the city." This was truly a sad hour 
 for the people of Nashville. But a short time before 
 they had sent forth the brave and handsome Zolli- 
 coffer, with a valiant and hopeful army of Ten- 
 nessee's best blood. It was confidently expected 
 that this army would soon drive the Yankees beyond 
 
112 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 the Ohio River and carry the war into the homes 
 of their enemy. But within a few short weeks after 
 his going forth, their gallant Gen. Zollicoffer's dead 
 body was borne through the streets which he had so 
 recently trod with bright expectations of speedy 
 victory. His beautiful daughters were broken- 
 hearted, and the entire city was now wrapped in the 
 heavy weeds of mourning, for with their beloved 
 general, and at Fort Donelson, had fallen hundreds 
 of the brave sons of Tennessee. Mothers, wives, and 
 maidens wept the loss of loved ones, and "would 
 not be comforted, because they were not." Misfor- 
 tunes had come upon them with rapid strides, from 
 the death of Gen. ZoUicoffer, the fall of Forts 
 Henry and Donelson, until now they beheld the army 
 which had defeated their brave sons marching in 
 triumph through the streets that had but a short 
 time before resounded to the hopeful tread of their 
 own valiant army. The sorrow which enveloped 
 this city made me also feel sick at heart, for I 
 thought of the good and beautiful Miss Lee, and 
 feared that her lover, Capt. Graves, might be 
 among the killed or wounded. We can all forgive 
 the Southern women for the intense hatred with 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 113 
 
 which they looked upon our soldiers, when we re- 
 member that they saw in the national army the 
 slayers of their husbands, their brothers, and their 
 lovers, and the despoilers of their homes, — in a 
 word, the destroyers of all they held dear. On 
 the approach of our army to the city, the bridges 
 were burned and all the public stores were thrown 
 open to the people. Valuables of all kinds were 
 hurried away in the direction of the retreatino- 
 army. Few of the male population remained in 
 the city, and the majority of those who did were old 
 men and boys unable to do military duty. While 
 in Nashville, my brother and I had apartments in a 
 private house that had been deserted by its owner. 
 We took our meals at the St. Cloud Hotel, where 
 many of the officers boarded. One day a tall, awk- 
 ward-looking countryman came into the dining-room 
 with one of the generals, and sat with him at our 
 table. The countryman said that he lived about 
 fifteen miles in the country, towards Murfreesboro. 
 He heard that the Union army had taken Nashville, 
 and he told his wife that he felt he ought to do 
 something towards helping the Union cause along; 
 so he yoked his oxen, and had brought a wagon-load 
 
 8 
 
114 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 of breads tuffs for the army. He said that it wasn't 
 much to give, but it was all he had. The ** widow's 
 mite " was mentioned by some one, but the country- 
 man was very modest, and said he hardly thought 
 the cases parallel. But the other speaker insisted 
 that his gift was truly the *' widow's mite." I was 
 greatly interested in all he said, for he was quite a 
 handsome man, with remarkably fine eyes ; and he 
 asked me several questions about myself. After 
 dinner he went with one of the officers to his tent, 
 and told him if he would send out a body of cavalry 
 to where he would direct, that they could capture a 
 company of rebels who belonged to John Morgan's 
 command. The soldiers were sent the next day, 
 and were promptly met by this countryman, but in 
 the uniform of a Confederate officer and at the 
 head of a fine body of cavalry. Our soldiers were 
 all made prisoners by this friendly countryman, 
 who proved to be no less a person than John 
 Morgan himself. This Gen. Morgan became very 
 famous durino^ the war as a bold rider and darinsf 
 raider. He was the only Southern officer who led a 
 force beyond the Ohio River. In going to and from 
 our hotel, we passed a handsome dwelling, which 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 115 
 
 had the **air of aristocratic age" about it, and we 
 occasionally saw pretty female faces at the windows, 
 which indicated that it was occupied by a fnmily. 
 One brio^ht mornins: I was returninij: alone from the 
 hotel, when I was approached by a negro woman in 
 front of this residence. After an obsequious bow, 
 the woman presented a card, upon which was written 
 the following, *' Mrs. Gaines would be glad to see 
 the soldier-boy at her residence, as she wishes to 
 have a talk with him. Will he please tell the bearer 
 when he can call ? " I tore a leaf from my note- 
 book and wrote, ** I am very much obliged to Mrs. 
 Gaines for her kind, courtesy, and shall be glad to 
 call this evening at eight o'clock. Very sincerely, 
 George Monroe, bugler." I was pleased with 
 the idea that I was to extend my acquaintance 
 among the Southern ladies, as I was so much de- 
 lighted with those I had already seen. I presented 
 my card at the appointed time, and was greeted in 
 the hearty manner so characteristic of the Southern 
 people. But in spite of their efforts to be cheerful, 
 their deep sorrow was plainly visible. Mrs. Gaines 
 thanked me for calling. She then stated why she 
 had wished to talk with me. Since the entrance 
 
116 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 of the Northern army into the city, she and her 
 daughters had remained constantly in-doors. They 
 had expected at first to be driven from their homes ! 
 but they had suffered no violence nor insult what- 
 ever, and they began to feel that they were not 
 going to be molested in any way. This made her 
 think better of the Northern army ; but still she 
 knew nothing about the army, save that its good 
 conduct thus far had taken away much of the bit- 
 terness with which they had at first regarded the 
 Federal soldiers. She was ignorant as to what the 
 general in command intended to do with the private 
 property in the city. They had often seen me pass 
 the house in company with an oflicer, and they 
 thought I might be able to tell them something 
 about Northern prisoners, as her only son had been 
 captured at Fort Donelson. They were also a little 
 curious to know what a boy of my age could do in 
 the army. They were very anxious to learn what 
 kind of treatment Southern prisoners received in 
 the North. I assured her that her son would receive 
 such treatment at the hands of the Northern people 
 as was due to an honorable prisoner of war. I 
 said also that the o^eneral in command at Nash- 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. H? 
 
 ville had issued a proclamation, in which lie stated 
 that all private property would be protected. After 
 this the conversation became more general, in 
 which the young ladies took part. They asked me 
 many questions about my home and friends, and how 
 I liked the camp life. These questions were asked 
 in the kindliest manner ; not from mere curiosity, 
 as I could plainly see, but from a real interest in 
 me. I answered them without any reserve, and our 
 conversation throughout was frank and earnest. 
 They all felt, I am sure, that I was truly in sympa- 
 thy with them, without me telling them so ; but I 
 did not betray the secret of this sympathy : I merely 
 said that some friends of mine had dear friends in 
 Gen. Buckner's army, and that I was concerned 
 about their safety. I repeated the lesson that Miss 
 Lee had taught Annie Belle and me, viz. : that 
 our circumstances usually determine our opinions 
 and sympathies. They all assented to this ; but 
 Mrs. Gaines added, that while this was true, our 
 opinions and sympathies were none the less power- 
 ful in directing our actions and inspiring our lives. 
 I spent more than an hour with this family, and on 
 leaving, was cordially invited to visit them as often 
 
118 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 as I felt inclined. There were four in the family, — 
 Mrs. Gaines, her two daughters, and a little grand- 
 daughter about nine years old. The elder of the 
 young ladies was about twenty, and the younger 
 about eighteen. Neither of them was in any sense 
 plain-looking, and the younger was really a 
 very beautiful brunette, with large brown eyes, 
 that could easily play the mischief with a fellow's 
 heart "if he were not well protected by the shield 
 of some other woman's love." (This quotation, it 
 will be remembered, is the language of my brother.) 
 I sat for m}' picture the next day. I sent two of them 
 home, one to ** Chestnut Hill," and intended to 
 give one to Mrs. Gaines if she should ask me for 
 it. That night we received marching orders, and I 
 had time but for only a short call the next day at 
 Mrs. Gaines's. I did not wait to be asked for my 
 picture, as I had intended, but offered it outright to 
 the prettier of the young ladies, and asked for her's 
 in exchange. She received my picture with some 
 show of pleasure, and said she would gladly give 
 me her's if I would promise not to let any of the 
 soldiers see it except my brother. I promised, and 
 have the picture yet. We were at Nashville about 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 119 
 
 a month ; during that time I wrote to Annie Belle, 
 and received a letter from her, weekly. Her last was 
 a very sad one, as the following extract from it will 
 show : ** We have just received a letter from Uncle 
 Will. He is wounded and a prisoner. Poor Aunt 
 Josie cannot sleep nor eat, and grandma is not able 
 to leave her bed. I have not had one real happy 
 day since you left, and I don't believe that I can 
 have another so long as the dreadful war lasts ; for 
 when the Northern army is victorious I grieve for 
 grandpa and my uncles, and when the Southern 
 army gains a victory I grieve for you and your 
 brother." Poor little girl I her lot was certainly a 
 sad one. 
 
 The enemy was getting together a large army 
 at Corinth, in Northern Mississippi, under the direct 
 supervision of Gen. Albert Sidney Johnson, the 
 commander-in-chief of the Confederate armies. 
 Corinth was therefore made the objective point of 
 Grant's and Buell's armies, which were to form a 
 junction at Savannah, Tennessee, before moving up- 
 on the enemy. Gen. Negley was left in command 
 of Nashville with a strong garrison, while the 
 main body of Buell's army, consisting of five 
 
120 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 divisions, tooK up its march for Savannah, by way 
 of Columbia. These divisions were commanded by 
 Gens. Thomas, McCook, Nelson, Crittenden, and 
 Wood. We left Nashville on the 2Sth of March, 
 and I was in the saddle about ten hours each day for 
 eio^ht successive davs. The weather was fine, we 
 had plenty of provisions, and the soldiers were in 
 the best of spirits. On the eighth day of our 
 march, which was Saturday, April 5th, the 
 army bivouacked within about fifteen miles of 
 Savannahc It was the intention, I believe, to give 
 the army a Sabbath day's rest, as no immediate 
 battle was expected. But early on Sunday morning, 
 before the " reveille " had been sounded, cannon- 
 adins: was distinctlv heard in the direction of 
 Grant's army, which was encamped a few miles 
 below Savannah, upon the opposite side of the Ten- 
 nessee River. Orders were at once given for a 
 forward march, and iu a short time the whole army 
 was in motion. Gen. Buell and staff hurried to 
 Savannah to see Gen. Grant, but Gen. Grant had 
 gone to the battle-field, about eight miles away. As 
 we approached nearer and nearer, the roll of cannon 
 and the rattle of musketry gave unmistakable 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 121 
 
 evidence that a terrific battle was rao:inor. Our 
 division reached the bank of the river opposite the 
 battle-ground late in the afternoon. One could see 
 at a glance that the situation of Grant's army was 
 most perilous. It had been surprised and driven at 
 every point, and its total destruction seemed certain 
 without immediate reinforcements. This BuelFs 
 army brought ; but it was not an inspiring sight to 
 our soldiers to behold Grant's army beaten and 
 shattered, and a victorious and confident enemy to 
 meet them. Nelson's and Crittenden's divisions 
 reached the battle-field and got ready for action on 
 Sunday afternoon ; McCook and the remainder of 
 Buell's army came up and crossed during the night, 
 and in the morning his entire army was in line 
 of battle, ready to give the confident foe a warm re- 
 ception. But I shall not attempt to give an account 
 of the battle of Shiloh, or Pittsburg Landing. 
 Everybody knows what a terrible battle it was, 
 and how Buell's timely arrival saved the day to the 
 national cause. I will, however, give the *' little 
 bugler's" personal experience in this great battle. 
 We crossed the river about five o'clock on Sunday 
 afternoon, and took our position in the left of 
 
122 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 Buell's line of battle. I did not sleep one wink 
 that night, for we were right on the battle-field, with 
 the dead and wounded lying all about us. I knew 
 that another terrible battle would be fought on the 
 morrow, and I hardly dared to hope that myself and 
 brother would both escape unharmed. My brother 
 said that it was not at all necessary for me to expose 
 myself in battle, and he asked me to ride a short 
 distance to the rear and remain under the protection 
 of the gunboats. He was always very kind and 
 gentle towards me, but his words were unusually 
 tender that night, as we sat there on our horses, with 
 the dead and wounded lying on either hand . I said 
 that I wanted to be with him. He replied that it 
 would distress him very much if I did not promise 
 to remain where he had directed. I promised. We 
 then talked about home, and he said that if any 
 serious accident happened to him I would get a 
 permit to go home at once, and he made me 
 promise that I would do so. He said that I must in 
 that event remain with our mother, and do all in 
 my power to comfort her. He gave me some other 
 good counsel, and was then called away to his post 
 of duty. On leaving me, his last words were, ** Be 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 125 
 
 a brave, true boy, and you will grow up to be a 
 good and useful man, and all things will go well 
 with you." Oh ! the sadness that filled my young 
 heart as I sat there awaiting the coming of morning, 
 that would bring with it a terrible battle, in which 
 my brother's life was to be exposed. The en- 
 gagement began before sunrise, and in a short time 
 the whole line — four or ^ye miles long — was 
 sending forth missiles of destruction and death. I 
 watched with great anxiety that part of the line 
 where I knew my brother was. It began to advance 
 slowly, and I could hear the soldiers cheering as 
 they pushed the enemy steadily before them. They 
 pressed on and on, until the advance became 
 general all along the line. The fighting was most 
 terrific, and the wounded were beino^ brouo^ht to the 
 rear in great numbers. Among the wounded officers 
 I saw one whom I knew, and inquired if he knew 
 anything of my brother. He replied that *' Major 
 Monroe had borne himself most bravely, but ' ' — and 
 he hesitated, either from pain caused by his wound, 
 or from an unwillingness to be the bearer of sad 
 news ; I for the moment did not know which. I did 
 not urge him in words, but my steadfast and eager 
 
126 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 look into his face showed too plainly my feelings of 
 alarm. ** My dear boy," he continued, " your 
 brave brother is, I hope, unharmed ; but just before 
 I received my wound I saw his horse fall under him 
 as he was leading his command forward ; that is all 
 I am able to report." At this moment loud cheers 
 from our centre-lines indicated that the enemy was 
 being driven also at that point, and soon the news 
 came pouring in from all directions that the day was 
 ours. I had been with the annv lonsr enousfh to 
 know the colors of the several divisions, so I started 
 out in search of my brother. I knew that he was 
 on the left of Buell's line, so I rode in that direc- 
 tion. I passed over the ground where the battle had 
 been most severe. It was a terrible and heart-rend- 
 ins: siffht. The s^round was literallv strewn with 
 the dead and wounded. As I rode on, some of 
 the wounded recognized the "little bugler," and 
 called out for help. One poor fellow whom I knew 
 quite well, and who had lost a leg, gave me a feeble 
 cheer as I approached him, and said that the 
 ** Johnnies " were skedaddling, and that Buell's boys 
 had gained the day( ?) I asked if he knew anything 
 about my brother. He replied that he did not, but 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 127 
 
 supposed that he was after the ** Johnnies. '* A 
 comrade had bound a handkerchief about this poor 
 fellow's leg, and supplied him with a canteen of 
 water ; so that he was pretty well cared for. He 
 said that he was all right, and could remain where 
 he was for twenty-four hours if necessary. The 
 din of battle had almost ceased by this time, and our 
 troops had retaken all of the ground lost on Sunday. 
 I urged my horse forward, and was soon upon the 
 line of battle ; but the battle was now over and the 
 enemy had retreated. The soldiers of our division 
 all knew me, and cheered me lustily as I passed 
 along the line. They of course supposed that I 
 had been in the battle. I saw a group of officers 
 talking together, and rode directly to where they 
 were, when one of them came out to meet me ; it 
 was my brother. I did not recognize him at first, as 
 he had exchanged his cap for a broad-brimmed hat, 
 and was mounted upon a bay instead of his black 
 charger. I said that I had kept my promise until 
 the danger was over. He did not rebuke me, but 
 seemed glad to see me, and said, ** George, we have 
 won a glorious, though a dearly bought victory. 
 It is a terrible thing for a boy of your age to witness 
 
128 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 this slaughter, and I trust it will not blunt your 
 tender sensibilities." Many officers and private 
 soldiers whom I knew, were among the killed and 
 wounded. One of my brother's classmates, an of- 
 ficer of whom I was particularly fond, was shot 
 down at my brother's side. He was a gentle, kind- 
 hearted man, and his death was felt very much by 
 his comrades. My brother's horse had been killed, 
 as the wounded officer reported ; a ball had also 
 passed through his coat, just under his left arm, but 
 he had escaped without a scratch. My brother 
 sent a telegraphic message home the next day re- 
 porting our safety, as he knew our friends would be 
 anxious about us. Corinth fell within a few days, 
 after some show of resistance. The Confederate 
 army succeeded, however, in getting away. The 
 Confederate general, A. S. Johnson, was killed in 
 this battle, and his body fell into the hands of the 
 national army. The Confederate army at the battle 
 of Shiloh was remarkable as having been com- 
 manded by the most brilliant galaxy of Southern 
 generals that ever met together on one battle-field. 
 Gen. Albert Sidney Johnson was the first in com- 
 mand, Beauregard second, and then came the names 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 129 
 
 of Gens. Bragg, Hardee, Breckenriclge (recent vice- 
 president of the United States), and Polk (Episcopal 
 bishop), who had laid aside the "cassock" for the 
 sword. I had now seen war in all of its terrors, and 
 my curiosity was completely satisfied. I wished to 
 be away from those scenes of blood and death. I 
 was anxious to visit my home, as it had been six long 
 months since I had seen my mother and sister. I 
 thought it necessary to go through the form of 
 applying for a <' leave of absence," which was 
 granted without any hesitation by the general in 
 command . 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 I started northward about the 12th of April, on 
 board of a hospital-boat loaded with wounded sol- 
 diers, and bound for Louisville, Kentucky. I knew 
 that this boat, in going up the Ohio Eiver, would 
 pass by our old camping-place, and I determined to 
 go ashore at that point and visit '' Chestnut Hill," 
 and continue my journey homeward by rail. The 
 captain of the boat had strict orders to make no 
 landing, except for coal and other necessary sup- 
 plies. These orders were given from the fact that 
 Kentucky was at that time overrun by raiding par- 
 ties of Confederate cavalry, and the boats on the 
 Ohio River were sometimes captured and burned. 
 I could not, therefore, persuade the captain to land, 
 but when we drew near our old camping-place he 
 consented to send me ashore in a row-boat. My 
 bairsrao^e was to be left for me at the Gait House, 
 in Louisville. So I was put ashore at old " Camp 
 Buell." But the scene was very different from 
 what it had been. There I was, all alone, — no 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 131 
 
 tents, no camp-fires, no horses, no soldiers. It 
 was the time for mounting the guard ; but I heard 
 no bugle-note, no roll of the drums, no military 
 command. I sat down on a little mound near 
 the place where my brother's tent had been, 
 and fell to thinking of all that had happened 
 since our army left that camp. Where were all 
 those merry soldiers, whose laugh and song had so 
 often rung out upon the evening air? Then I re- 
 membered the march, — the twm brothers, the 
 false alarm, the first real battle. Fort Donelson, 
 Nashville, the battle of Shiloh, — and my heart grew 
 sick as the visions of the bloody battle-fields passed 
 before me. My questioning was answered ; hun- 
 dreds of the brave fellows who once lay peacefully 
 upon this, their first camping-ground, were now 
 lying peacefully in soldiers' graves, far away from 
 their homes and friends. The notes of the bugle, 
 the roll of the drum, and the command of the offi- 
 cer were alike powerless to disturb their slumbers. 
 They slept on, and I could say to each of them : — 
 
 *' Soldier, rest, thy warfare's o'er, — 
 
 Sleep the sleep that knows no waking ; 
 Dream of battle-fields no more, — 
 Days of danger, nights of waking." 
 
132 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 I was aroused from this reverie by a most melo- 
 dious sound, which came floating along upon the 
 quiet evening air. I stood up and looked around, 
 and saw, coming down the road towards where I 
 was standing, a company of slaves, old and 3'oung, 
 male and female. They were returning from the 
 dav's work in the iields, and were all sinocinof a ne- 
 gro melodv, with the following chorus : «* Oh, don't 
 git weary, children ; Oh, don't git weary, children ; 
 Oh, don't git weary, children, a huntin' fo' a home." 
 They did not see me, but continued to sing until 
 their voices were lost in the distance. The sun had 
 set, but the sky was still red with its lingering rays. 
 I turned my eyes towards the upland, and saw, or 
 imagined I saw, a reflection of the last parting ray 
 upon the observatory at ' * Chestnut Hill. ' ' I stepped 
 out upon the highway and started towards the old 
 mansion with a pretty quick motion. I was rapidly 
 overcoming the distance, when a painful thought en- 
 tered my mind. I had not heard from Annie Belle 
 since our army left Nashville, and I had not written 
 to her of my expected visit to " Chestnut Hill." My 
 reason for not writins: was a fear that I might be 
 prevented, in some way, from making the visit, and 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 133 
 
 the disappointment to her would l)e very great. I 
 was now troubled with the fear that they might all 
 be away from home, as they had no reason what- 
 ever to expect me. I was considerably agitated by 
 these painful thoughts, and sat down by the road- 
 side to compose myself. But the suspense was un- 
 bearable, so I started forward again with no abate- 
 ment of speed. I had gone but a short distance 
 when I heard the rattle of a vehicle, and was soon 
 overtaken by a two-horse road-wagon, driven by a 
 a colored man, who was very willing to " give me a 
 lift.'* He carried me within a short distance of 
 * * Chestnut Hill. ' ' The twilight had faded away into 
 darkness, and *' all the air a silent stillness held," 
 when I opened the gate and slowly made my way 
 to the door. I ascended the steps and rang the 
 bell. The door was soon opened, but I paused for 
 a moment. There stood Aunt Coal, peering out 
 into the darkness, which hid me from sight. She 
 gazed a moment, and could just see the glimmer of 
 my brass buttons. She stepped back into the hall 
 with some alarm, and called out, "Who's da, — 
 who's da, I say?" I emerged out of the darkness 
 into the light. My action was rather sudden, and 
 
134 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 startled the old woman ; but in a moment she 
 exclaimed, " De good Lo'd bless mv soul, if it 
 ain't Massa George, sho as I'm bo'n. AVha on 
 de face ob de arth did you come from ? ' ' The 
 delay of Aunt Coal in the hall had been ob- 
 served by the family, who were at the supper- 
 table. Two persons stepped out in the hall from 
 the dining-room, where they heard the last part 
 of Aunt Coal's exclamation. These persons were 
 a 3^oung lady and a girl, — in other words, Miss 
 Lee and Annie Belle. On seeing me, Annie Belle 
 fainted away in Miss Lee's arms. This confu- 
 sion brought Mrs. Graves and Mrs. Lee into the hall 
 also. They could not at once comprehend the 
 situation ; they first looked at me and then at Annie 
 Belle. The facts finally became plain to them, how- 
 ever, viz., that the "little bugler" was really 
 there in the hall-way, and that Annie Belle had 
 fainted. She was taken into the parlor, and soon re- 
 vived. Her first words were, "Aunt Josie, did you 
 see him, — did you see George? Oh ! how pale he 
 looked." I kept back so that she did not see me, 
 and Miss Lee answered, " Yes, my dear, I saw 
 George ; he is looking quite well, I think. He has 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 135 
 
 come to see you. We have all seen him, and he is 
 here in the parlor now." "Where ishe? " asked 
 Annie Belle. '* Why, here I am," I said, advanc- 
 ing ; * ' and I think you ought to give me a kiss for 
 keeping me waiting so long for my reception. ' ' The 
 dear little girl looked up and blushed, and I did the 
 bold thing, and kissed her right in the presence of 
 them all. There was something so real about this 
 that it at once convinced her of my actual presence. 
 Miss Lee and the other ladies kissed me also. Miss 
 Lee remarking that Annie Belle was rightfully en- 
 titled to the first, but she did not think her claims 
 ought to extend to a monopoly. Annie Belle was 
 fully awake by this time, and no longer doubted the 
 evidence of her senses. But some one else had 
 entered in the meantime, that caused a momentary 
 shiver to pass through me. This person was a 
 handsome young man of about twentj^-tivo or six 
 years ; he wore a gray uniform, and carried his right 
 arm in a sling. There we stood in the centre of the 
 parlor looking at each other, — the gray and the blue, 
 the man and the boy. The young officer advanced 
 with a pleasant smile, and said, *'Ah, this is the little 
 bugler, I presume, of whom I have heard so many 
 
136 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 pleasant things from all the family. You will ex- 
 cuse my right hand, I hope, as your army has ren- 
 dered it unable for duty. I am right glad to see 
 you, however, as I perceive that you are unarmed, 
 and evidently don't mean to make an attack upon 
 me." Saying this, he gave me a hearty greeting. 
 He asked me if I had not been on a forced march ; 
 and turning to his mother, said, *' This soldier, I 
 think, needs as full rations as the state of the com- 
 missary will admit." Annie Belle came bounding 
 up at this, and kissed her uncle, and said, '* Oh, 
 I knew you would like each other. Oh, I am so 
 glad you are both here together." 
 
 Miss Lee in the meantime had not been unmind- 
 ful of the supper. They all went back to the 
 dining-room and sat down at the table with me. 
 Annie Belle seemed very happy, and ran around the 
 table kissing everybody save me and Aunt Coal. 
 Miss Lee sat on one side of me and Capt. Graves — 
 for that was the name of the young officer — on 
 the other. Mrs. Lee and Annie Belle sat just 
 opposite, and Mrs. Graves at the head of the table. 
 Col. Graves was away from home. I was about 
 to make inquiries about another member of the 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 139 
 
 family, when I heard the sound of a cane in the 
 hall, and looking up, beheld the sergeant going 
 through the manual of arms with his stick. He 
 finally brought it to a ** jDresent arms,'' and then 
 marched into the dining-room, took my hand in a 
 very ceremonious manner, and stretching himself up 
 and sfivinof me a formal salute, he said : — 
 
 " Come you in peace, 
 Or come you in war, 
 Or come you in love. 
 My young Lochinvar?" 
 
 I blushed a little at this, and Capt. Graves said 
 to the sergeant, ** He evidently comes in peace, as 
 you will observe he is unarmed ; and as to the other 
 matter, I think we shall all agree that he has a per- 
 fect right to be silent, for the present at least." 
 The sergeant added, *' I think he brings with him 
 terms of capitulation, if not for the entire Federal 
 army, for himself at least ; and we," here he looked 
 in the direction of Mrs. Lee and Annie Belle, '* will 
 no doubt accept his terms of surrender." He then 
 produced his pipe, with a significant look at his to- 
 bacco-box, and marched out in the direction of his 
 « * fort . ' ' After supper we all returned to the parlor ; 
 
140 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 but before taking you there with me, I must detain 
 you a moment for a brief explanation. As I have 
 said, I had not written to Annie Belle since leaving 
 Nashville. Of course they had all heard about the 
 great battle of Shiloh, and knew that the army I was 
 with had been engaged in it. Annie Belle had been 
 in great distress of mind about me, and my very 
 sudden and altogether unexpected appearance in 
 the hall made her think that she had seen an appa- 
 rition, and hence her fainting away. Capt. Graves 
 had been wounded and taken prisoner at Fort 
 Donelson. He had been exchanged, and returned 
 to his home but a few days before. We will now, 
 after this slight detention, proceed into the parlor 
 and have an evening of it. My brother had 
 been asked about, and they all seemed glad of his 
 safety. Miss Lee wanted me to tell them all about 
 my experiences since the time I left *' Chestnut 
 Hill." I related everything, not forgetting my 
 chance acquaintance with Mrs. Gaines's family. 
 I also mentioned the friendly countryman, who 
 proved to be the famous Morgan. Gen. Morgan's 
 home was at Lexington, Kentucky, and Capt. 
 Graves had seen him frequently, and was very much 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 141 
 
 amused at my story about him. They all laughed 
 heartily when I told them about the false alarm, 
 and about my command to '' Cock your pistols, 
 boys." I, in turn, asked Capt. Graves about his 
 experiences. He had gone from Bowling Green 
 to Fort Donelson with Gen. Buckner ; had been 
 wounded, and taken prisoner on the surrender of 
 the fort. He was taken to Camp Morton, Indiana. 
 He had been well treated, and his opinion of the 
 Yankees had undergone quite a change ; and this 
 had probably affected the whole family. He asked 
 me particularly about the battle of Shiloh ; and after 
 I had concluded, he said, ** Yes, the battle of Fort 
 Donelson convinced me that the Yankees were just 
 as good soldiers as our own Southern boys, and I fear 
 we shall have hard fighting to gain our cause, which 
 I believe is a just one." Miss Lee looked very pretty 
 and very happy. The beauty was nothing unusual 
 to her, but her happiness I attributed somewhat to 
 the presence of this handsome Confederate officer. 
 Mrs. Graves and Mrs. Lee retired to their chambers 
 soon after nine o'clock. I thought I could see that 
 Capt. Graves and Miss Lee desired to be left to them- 
 selves, and I think that Annie Belle and I felt the 
 
142 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 same way ; so we went into the library to look at 
 a book that Annie Belle had received during my 
 absence. I had reserved many things to tell her 
 alone. She said that she had been so unhappy ever 
 since the morning the army left Camp Buell. They 
 had all been in great trouble about Uncle Will ; 
 they had heard of his being wounded and captured, 
 and hardly knew what to expect, until a few days 
 since, when he had so unexpectedly come home. 
 She said that she had dreamed about me the night 
 before, and when she saw me in the hall, she 
 thought that it was only a vision, and not my real 
 self. She told me how things had gone at " Chest- 
 nut Hill." All the horses had been taken; the 
 majority of the negroes had run away, and the plan- 
 tation was neglected and uncultivated. I remained 
 at ** Chestnut Hill " three days, and I can truly say 
 that I never have experienced happier days, before or 
 since. I was accompanied a part of the way to 
 Louisville by Capt. Graves, Miss Lee, and Annie 
 Belle. I reached home in two days after leaving 
 ** Chestnut Hill," and on the next day after my 
 arrival I was given a reception party at the home of 
 one of my school friends. If I had been a hero 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 143 
 
 before I went to the war, what was I now? Just 
 think of a boy of my tender age, fresh from a ter- 
 rible battle, where he had seen hundreds of dead 
 and wounded, lying here and there and everywhere 
 over an extent of miles. But I hope I carried my- 
 self with a modest bearing, and did not brag of my 
 wonderful exploits. I called to see all my girl 
 friends of "our set," and all the boys called to see 
 me ; so I was pretty busy for two or three weeks. 
 I was a marked character. Every word I said was 
 listened to, and I found that I could almost monopo- 
 lize the conversation of any circle in which I chanced 
 to find myself. I frequently mentioned ** Chestnut 
 Hill " in my conversations, but carefully avoided any 
 reference to Annie Belle. And how natural this 
 was. One usually talks least about what they love 
 most. I think we have all observed that, in love as 
 in religion, those who talk most are always the least 
 sincere. 
 
 What a great change a few months can make in a 
 girl. Jennie Fisk, with whom I used to play, and 
 who was for a long time my most intimate friend, was 
 no longer so attractive to me as she once had been. 
 There was not only a change in her face, but there 
 
144 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 was something about her manners and voice — a 
 **ye ne sais qua *' — which, if it did not repel me, yet 
 rendered us no longer congenial companions. We 
 both plainly saw, without a word being spoken 
 about it, that we could never more enjoy each other's 
 company as we had done in the past. We danced 
 together frequently, and I made special efforts to be 
 attentive to her ; but beneath it all there was that 
 tacit understanding between us which rightly in- 
 terpreted every word and act. 
 
 Let us take a look southward. The Confederate 
 army had been divided after the battle of Shiloh, 
 and Gen. Bragg' s army had given Buell the slip 
 and was marching northward, with our army in pur- 
 suit. Buell soon concluded that he could not over- 
 take Bragg ; so he took another road, with the hope 
 of getting to the Ohio River in advance of him. 
 Buell's line of march was almost the same over which 
 his army had passed in its southern advance. This 
 countermarching was rather humiliating to our army, 
 after the great victories of Donelson and Shiloh ; and 
 my brother's letters evinced a want of faith in the 
 generalship of Buell. Our army, however, arrived 
 at Louisville before Bragg, and succeeded in head- 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 145 
 
 ing him off and saving the city of Louisville from 
 falling into the hands of the Confederates. Gen. 
 Buell was now relieved from his command by Gen. 
 Rosecrans. The army was reorganized, under the 
 name of the "Army of the Cumberland," and start- 
 ed at once in pursuit of Bragg. Severe battles were 
 fought at Bardstown and Perry ville. At the latter 
 place my brother received a flesh-wound, which was 
 quite painful but not dangerous, and from which he 
 soon recovered. Brasfsr retreated into Tennessee, 
 and Rosecrans followed. Braofar came to a stand 
 at Murfreesboro, and prepared for battle. Rose- 
 crans encamped near by, and the two armies re- 
 mained thus until about Christmas. I returned to 
 the army near Murfreesboro on the 1st of December, 
 having been absent several months. It was plain, 
 from my long absence, that the army could get along 
 without me. President Jefferson Davis visited 
 Bragg at Murfreesboro, and he was given a grand 
 reception. Gen. John Morgan, of whom I have 
 several times spoken, was married during the presi- 
 dent's visit, and Mr. Davis attended the wedding. 
 Annie Belle's last letter informed me that Capt. 
 Graves had returned to the army, and was with 
 
 10 
 
146 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 Gen.Bniirs:; so that we were now face to face in 
 opposing armies. Col. Graves was going to close 
 up *' Chestnut Hill " and take his family to Sa- 
 vannah, Georgia. My uext letter to Annie Belle 
 was to be directed in care of Col. Christopher 
 Graves, Savannah, Georgia. Camp rumor was to 
 the effect that a battle was daily expected. For- 
 aging parties from both armies were frequently 
 coming in contact with each other. There had been 
 some pretty brisk skirmishes, with considerable loss 
 on both sides. I accompanied a large foraging party 
 one day, and was thoroughly convinced that these 
 excursions meant anything but pleasure-rides. We 
 had passed over two or three miles on a gentle can- 
 ter, when suddenly, at an abrupt turn in the road, 
 we came face to face with a body of mounted infan- 
 try three times our number. Both parties were 
 entirely surprised, and there was a momentary 
 pause. Our body was the quickest in motion, how- 
 ever, and we were soon in line of battle, discharged 
 our carbines, and were ordered to charge with 
 pistols and sabres. Our commander — who was my 
 brother — had taken in the situation at a glance, and 
 acted without hesitation. Mounted infantry cannot 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 147 
 
 fight on horseback, and the quick movements of our 
 men were to prevent the enemy from dismounting 
 and forming a line. Our movements were entirely 
 successful. The enemy were armed with long 
 muskets, which they could not handle on horseback ; 
 and the surprise was so sudden, and our attack fol- 
 lowed so quickly, that they had little time for dis- 
 mounting and forming a line. Those that did 
 dismount were either killed or taken prisoner, and 
 the others were completely routed. We had gained 
 in about fifteen minutes a brilliant little victory, 
 and I had for the first time the glory of taking part 
 in a real battle. I had left my bugle at the camp, 
 as the battalion was so small that the orders could 
 be distinctly heard from the commander's lips ; and 
 besides, the notes of the bugle might betray our 
 position and movements to the enemy. I was 
 armed as the other soldiers, with carbine, pistol, and 
 sabre. In this engagement I used the carbine and 
 pistol, but not the sabre. I do not think that I did 
 very great execution upon the enemy. The dis- 
 charge of the carbine almost unhorsed me, for it shot 
 forward and kicked backward at the same time ; 
 and its back action was so forcible as to wrench 
 
148 E LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 it from my grasp, and I was only prevented from 
 losing it by the strap to which it was attached, and 
 which was securely buckled over my shoulder. 
 When it came time to use my pistol, my whole mind 
 was taken up with the thought of holding on to it, 
 as it was not secured by a strap ; so I was very little 
 occupied with bloody designs upon the foe. When 
 the firing was over, I rode up to my brother with a 
 vast deal of satisfaction, and announced that ** I 
 held on to it." *' Held ou to what?" asked my 
 brother, with thoughts evidently of prisoners and 
 spoils. **The pistol," I replied. **What! have 
 you captured and disarmed a prisoner? ' ' he inquired. 
 This suggestion of what I might have done, and of 
 what my brother had actually done, made my feat 
 of holding on to my own pistol seem, after all, a 
 not very wonderful nor tragic afiair ; and my face 
 reddened a little when I stated the unvarnished 
 truth, and encountered the smile of my brother, who 
 said I certainly did well to come out of my first 
 engagement with all my weapons about me. My 
 brother knew that it was not best to follow up the 
 enemy's retreat, as he had no reserve force, and we 
 were not far from Bragg' s outposts. The ambu- 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 149 
 
 lances and forage- wagons came up ; the dead and 
 wounded were picked up and put into the ambu- 
 lances ; the forage, such as was to be had, was 
 quickly piled into the wagons, and we started for 
 camp. The enemy soon reorganized, and with a 
 superior force advanced upon us. Skirmishers 
 were thrown out to check the advance of the enemy 
 and cover our retreat. We placed the ambulances 
 and forage-wagons in front, and retired as fast as 
 they could move. Avery sad thing occurred during 
 this retreat, which I shall briefly relate. We had 
 fallen back before the enemy the distance of a mile 
 and a half or more. I was ridins^ bv the side of a 
 lieutenant about twenty-two years old. I had 
 known him before the war. He was a handsome, 
 brave, and merry young soldier, and a particular 
 friend of our fxmily. I had slept under the same 
 blankets with him, and eaten at the same mess- 
 board. Of all the soldiers, next to my brother, I 
 loved Lieut. Harrington best. As I rode along by 
 his side, he said many witty things about the 
 *' Johnnie Rebs," and was altogether in the best of 
 spirits. We had reached the top of a little hill, and 
 
150 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 the enemy was on an opposite one, when, turning 
 about in his saddle and facing the foe, he remarked 
 that our ambulances and forage-wagons were now 
 safe, and we might have a little fun with the 
 ** Johnnies." These were his last words. Zip! 
 zip ! zip ! went the enemy's musket-balls, and look- 
 ing around, I saw our friend reeling in his sad- 
 dle. I was quickly at his side, and prevented his 
 falling. Two soldiers came to my aid and supported 
 him in his saddle, and we moved forward to an am- 
 bulance. He was then lifted from his horse and laid 
 gently down upon a blanket. His young, handsome 
 face was disfigured by the ugly mark of a musket- 
 ball. His large brown eyes had a fixed, glassy 
 look, and I knew that death was near. He tried to 
 speak, but could not ; he raised his hand and laid it 
 on his breast-pocket ; it rested upon the photograph 
 of a sweet young girl, who lived far away in New 
 England. The ugly missile that pierced the temple 
 of our friend pierced at the same time the tender 
 heart of my sister, and it proved alike fatal in 
 both cases. The one ball had cut down two young 
 and beautiful lives. I stooped down and kissed his 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 151 
 
 handsome face, and looking up, saw my brother, 
 who was just kneeling on the other side. He took 
 one hand of the gallant young officer and I took 
 the other, and the spirit of our friend and brother 
 passed between us, up from the dark scenes of war 
 and death to the light, and life, and peace of God. 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Gen. Braofs:, who commanded the Confederate 
 army at Miirfieesboro, was a particular friend of 
 President Davis, who honored him with a visit, as 
 has been mentioned. During this visit the presi- 
 dent reviewed the army, and attended the brilliant 
 wedding of the daring and famous guerilla, Gen. 
 John Morgan, alias the friendly farmer. The Con- 
 federate camp was gay and confident ; but I think 
 that our army, if not so gay, was equally as confi- 
 dent of victory in the impending battle. I felt 
 thoroughly initiated by this time, having witnessed 
 three battles and actually taken part in one, — and 
 that without losing my weapons. I began to as- 
 sume the air of a veteran, and when new recruits 
 arrived in camp I talked to them in a patronizing 
 kind of way, in imitation of the old soldiers. Sol- 
 diers who have seen real service, and have carried 
 themselves creditably through an engagement, look 
 with a great deal of contempt upon new, untried 
 volunteers who have never smelt the enemy's pow- 
 
 (155) 
 
156 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 der. I felt that I had now earned the title of a sol- 
 dier, and of course was expecting to take part in 
 the coming battle. But what was my chagrin and 
 mortification when I was told by my brother that 
 all the superfluous baggage and camp-followers 
 were to be sent back to Nashville, and I was made 
 to understand that " camp-followers " included me. 
 I looked steadily at my brother for a moment, 
 thinking that he was jesting, and meaning to rebuke 
 him ; but there was something in his face which told 
 me that he meant what he had said. I burst out 
 crying, — rather a boyish performance, I admit, for 
 an old veteran. But I felt hurt. I thought it very 
 cruel in my brother to talk to me in that humiliat- 
 ing way. He saw that he had unintentionally 
 wounded my feelings, and he very tenderly said, 
 ** Why, George, you know that I did not mean to 
 wound you ; but I acknowledge that it was very in- 
 considerate, and seems unkind in me to class you 
 with the * camp-followers,' for you are by no means 
 a * camp-follower,' and I beg your pardon for the 
 thoughtless remark. Now, let me explain : A great 
 battle is soon to be fought. My command, as you 
 know, has two other buglers besides yourself; and 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 157 
 
 while you are not superfluous, yet we can get along 
 without you, and my anxiety for your safety and my 
 love for our dear mother has caused me to ask you to 
 return to Nashville and remain until after the battle. 
 I am very proud of you, my brother, for I know 
 that you are a brave and manly boy ; and I don't 
 command this, but ask it as your elder brother. 
 Think of our mother and her deep sorrow, should 
 anything serious happen to either of her sol- 
 dier-boys." This kindly speech did not stay 
 my tears, but their flowing was no longer from a 
 feeling of mortification, but from the thought that 
 my brave and good brother had reckoned the proba- 
 bilities, and in the event of his own death he wished 
 to feel certain that I would be left to comfort our 
 mother. I answered that I was obedient to his 
 wish, but that my anxiety about his safety would 
 cause my return to the front so soon as the issue of 
 the battle was at all certain. To this he consented. 
 On the next morning our army struck tents and 
 moved forward towards Murfreesboro. Gen. Rose- 
 crans had not only the confidence, but the love 
 of his entire army. He had been very successful in 
 West Virginia, and his soldiers felt that they had 
 
158 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 an experienced, brave, and capable commander to 
 lead them against the foe ; besides, he was a modest, 
 pious, and kindly man. 
 
 The supernumeraries in charge of the superflu- 
 ous baggage started on their backward march for 
 Nashville so soon as the army had made a forward 
 movement. I was really given a squad to com- 
 mand, which elated me not a little. My army con- 
 sisted of three or four convalescent soldiers, a half- 
 dozen cooks and hostlers, and two or three negro 
 families. I marched at the head of this variegated 
 column in all the pride and glory of a commanding 
 officer. 
 
 On reaching Nashville, I turned over my com- 
 mand to an officer of rather low rank, — a corporal, 
 I believe. Being relieved of my charge, I began 
 looking about for my quarters. I had a note from 
 my brother to an officer stationed at Nashville, and 
 through him I was given very comfortable lodgings. 
 One of the first things I did after securing my quar- 
 ters was to call at the residence of Mrs. Gaines, as 
 I was anxious to renew my slight acquaintance with 
 that family. I have always sought and much en- 
 joyed the society of ladies, and I attribute to their 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 159 
 
 pure and sweet influence whatever of the true, the 
 good, and the beautiful there may be in my life and 
 character. I was very cordially received by Mrs. 
 Gaines and her daughters, and spent a most agree- 
 able evening. The young ladies were not at all 
 patronizing, but talked to me as they would to a 
 young man of their own circle. This pleased me ex- 
 ceedinglv. And here let me remark, for the benefit 
 of boys from the age of fourteen to eighteen, that if 
 there is anything they do not like about young 
 ladies, it is the habit which so many of the fair ones 
 have of talking to a boy, especially in the parlor, 
 as if he were a mere child. Oh, I beseech you, my 
 dear young ladies, to *' reform it altogether." 
 
 There was constant communication between the 
 army and Nashville, and on the next morning heavy 
 skirmishing was reported. During the entire day, 
 reports of our army's steady advance and the 
 enemy's retreat came pouring into Nashville. On 
 the following morning a heavy engagement was said 
 to have taken place, in which our army had been 
 entirely victorious, and was pushing the enemy at 
 every point. It was generally believed that this 
 meant a retreat of Bragg further south. I made up 
 
160 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 my mind at once to return to the front, as I felt 
 quite sure that the hard fighting was over. A sup- 
 ply train was to leave Nashville that afternoon with 
 provisions and ammunition for the army, and I ^vas 
 granted permission to accompany it. We reached 
 the army after nightfall, and the line of battle could 
 be distinctly marked by the camp-fires. I had little 
 trouble in finding our division ; it was on the ex- 
 treme riijht of the armv. The officers were at 
 supper in a barn when I arrived, and my brother 
 was surprised and annoyed at my presence. I ex- 
 plained to him why I had been induced to leave 
 Nashville. He answered that there was no reason 
 to believe that the battle was half over ; in fact, he 
 believed that the morning would bring a very fierce 
 engagement, as the orders just received from Gen. 
 Rosecrans indicated. He did not chide me, but 
 said, "We must make the best of it, now that you are 
 here." He said that there was generally some place 
 of comparative safety, and he hoped that in the 
 morning I would go to the rear and keep w^ith the 
 supply train, which was always well guarded. The 
 officers were all glad to see me. One of them said 
 he knew the " general," as he always called me, 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 161 
 
 ** would not be willing to remain at Nashville with 
 the invalids, the negroes, and the shirks." 
 
 Now the truth is, when I came to analyze my feel- 
 ings, I found that I was not at all anxious about 
 getting into another battle, and the probabilities of 
 a hot engagement on the next day disturbed some- 
 what my slumbers. My brother, however, slept 
 very soundly. We were all astir very early the 
 next morning, which was caused by the rapid firing 
 of the pickets, and before we could get fairly into our 
 saddles the enemy was upon us. Here they came, 
 marching in solid column four or five ranks deep. 
 Our division was taken almost completely by sur- 
 prise, and before the officers could form a line of 
 battle the Confederates had charged us, capturing 
 two brigade commanders and killing another, — 
 Gen. Sill. I saw him shot down in attempting to 
 mount his horse. There was a hurried and confused 
 retreat, which grew rapidly into a stampede. The 
 day seemed irretrievably lost, and I thought of noth- 
 ing but my own and my brother's safety. In the 
 confusion of the charge of the enemy I had been 
 separated from my brother's command, and from 
 that moment my whole mind was occupied with the 
 
 11 
 
1(;2 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 thought of getting to the rear, and the best way of 
 findhig the rear was to follow the crowd. I was, 
 however, not long a follower, but soon became one 
 of the very advance leaders, as the speed of my 
 horse — which I made no effort to check — carried 
 me to the very front (of the rear). I remembered 
 my brother's counsel about the supply train being a 
 place of safety, and guided my horse in that direc- 
 tion, and there I came to a halt. I then learned 
 that the retreat had been confined to the right wing 
 of our army, and that the centre and left were 
 maintainimz; their o:round. It became evident also 
 that the right wing had not been completely demoral- 
 ized, and I began to think that my retreat had been 
 a little in advance of the army, and rather hurried, 
 upon the whole. But my meditations were suddenly 
 broken in upon. The cavalry force of the enemy 
 had gained our rear, and was just emerging from 
 the wood, with the evident intention of attacking 
 the supply train, which was not well guarded. AVe 
 were to all appearances surrounded, and there 
 was therefore no rear, and no available place of 
 safety. I reined my horse behind a little cedar tree, 
 which aiforded but a slight protection, and in this 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 163 
 
 position I awaited the attack. I was not kept long 
 in suspense ; on came the troopers, yelling and firing. 
 Our guard made little resistance, and I made none, 
 as I was without a carbine ; my pistol was empty, 
 and I did not think to reload it. I saw one trooper, 
 as I thought, making right for me with pistol in 
 hand. I threw up my hands, in token of surrender, 
 but he galloped past without seeming to notice 
 me. The poor, defenceless teamsters attempted 
 to flee, but many of them were shot down and 
 the others surrendered. Some of the cavalry dis- 
 mounted and set fire to the wagons, and in a short 
 time the provisions intended for hungry soldiers 
 were feeding the flames. I was expecting every 
 moment to be called upon to surrender, but my 
 presence was unrecognized. I suppose that the 
 tree shielded me somewhat from view, or it may be 
 my youth appealed to their feelings ; at all events, I 
 was not captured nor killed. I could see that the 
 enemy were in a great hurry to do their work and 
 begone, and this was soon explained by the rapid ap- 
 proach of a body of horsemen carrying the stars 
 and stripes. The Confederates stayed long enough 
 to give our soldiers one round, and then away they 
 
164 THE LITTLE BUGLER. « 
 
 rode as swift as their horses could carry them. But 
 in this last fire I had not been entirely overlooked, 
 for a bullet had searched me out and left its mark 
 upon my left arm. I thought for a moment that 1 
 was certainly killed, as the blood from the wound 
 was running down upon my clothing and saddle, 
 and the pain was very acute. But it proved to be a 
 flesh-wound. The ball had past over the most sen- 
 sitive part of my forearm. Had the wound been 
 more severe, the pain for the moment, in all proba- 
 bility, would have been less acute, as sensation 
 would have been somewhat benumbed. But there 
 I was, wounded and bleeding. The regiment that 
 had driven away the enemy was the Fourth United 
 States Regulars, not a man of whom knew anything 
 about me, or my brother's command. They were 
 certainly very ignorant, I thought. An officer made 
 some inquiries about my wound, and sent a private 
 soldier to conduct me to the field-hospital, which 
 was not far away. I had my wound dressed and 
 bandaged and was set at liberty, as my case was not 
 considered at all serious by the surgeon. The bat- 
 tle was still raging, but with what results I could 
 not learn. This much I did hear, however; that 
 
TiiE \voL'^Dl^G (jk' i m: 1.1....^ i>cv.^...c 
 
 Ciwj) 
 
THE LITTLE liUGLER. 167 
 
 the right wing had re-formed, and was slowly re- 
 coverino; the s^round lost in the mornino:. I also 
 saw a wounded sergeant, who told me that our 
 brigade had kept together throughout the confusion 
 of the morning. Night drew near, and the firing 
 abated somewhat. And here I will give a brief 
 account of a cavalry fight which I witnessed. The 
 Confederate cavalry at this battle was superior to 
 ours in numbers and for the most part in discipline, 
 and their successes on the morning in question had 
 inspired them with the belief that our cavalry was no 
 match for them in any sense. Quite a large body 
 had gained our rear, destroyed the supply train, and 
 was endeavorins: to turn Rosecrans's flank. The 
 sun was jast setting when I saw a body of about four 
 thousand cavalry forming in the Wood to our right 
 and preparing for a charge. The Fourth United 
 States Regulars, a Pennsylvania regiment, and, as I 
 afterward learned, our own battalion, — all cavalry, — 
 were in line and ready to receive the enemy. The 
 space over which the Confederates would have to 
 pass was obstructed by a rail fence. This it was 
 necessary to remove before the charge could be 
 made. Men were dismounted and sent forward to 
 
168 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 do this dangerous work ; but they were, almost every 
 man of them, picked off before they could accom- 
 plish their hard task. Others were sent, and still 
 others, until the fence was sufficiently lowered to 
 permit a horse to go over without much risk of fall- 
 iucr. The combatants stood fjicino^ each other for a 
 moment, then suddenly, with a loud shout, the Con- 
 federates dashed forward. Thev first discharsred 
 their carbines, which the Federals received without 
 reply. The Confederates then drew pistols, but 
 before they got within pistol-range the Federals 
 opened a deadly fire with their carbines. Their 
 carbines were breech-loading repeaters. The first 
 fire caused the enemy to slacken their pace ; the 
 second and third brought them to a halt ; and the 
 fourth, fifth, and* sixth (for each carbine contained 
 six charges), fired with such precision and in such 
 rapid succession, was too much for these brave, 
 dashing Southerns, and they were forced to turn 
 and gallop back to the wood, leaving their gallant 
 dead and wounded comrades lying upon the field. 
 My position commanded a fine view of this engage- 
 ment, with little risk to myself. The sun had just 
 set, and its last red rays cast a soft sheen over the 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 169 
 
 combatants ; and when the battle had ended, it 
 had gathered up its lingering rays and dropped 
 below the horizon, as if unwilling to look upon this 
 cruel and bloody work of brother against brother. 
 I rode over a portion of this battle-ground, and 
 picked up a handsome pistol which had been lost by 
 some Confederate officer. I still have this pistol as 
 a relic of that battle. Myself and horse had not 
 taken food that day, and we both, I think, became 
 conscious of this fact. My horse grew restless. I 
 rode about in every direction, seeking something 
 for my horse to eat. I at last thought of the sup- 
 ply train, and hoped that I might be able to get 
 something out of the ruins that would make a feed 
 for my horse. When I reached the wreck, I found 
 that many others had thought of the same thing and 
 were there before me. Still, I succeeded in find- 
 ing some oats that had been spilt upon the ground, 
 and my horse made a good meal, and seemed satis- 
 fied. I also gathered up enough in my feed-bag to 
 give him two additional meals. I felt pleased with 
 the provision made for my horse ; but my own appe- 
 tite, in the meantime, was asserting itself with no 
 little emphasis, but it was destined to wait three long 
 
170 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 days l)efore it could be gnititied, and ;it the end of 
 that time I dined on horse-flesh and crackers. The 
 want of rations was caused by the destruction of the 
 supply train, and also by the fact that for two days 
 all communication with Nashville was cut off" by a 
 cavahy force which had gained the rear of our 
 army. The description that I have given of this 
 day's battle is drawn from my own observation. It 
 Avill be remembered that Rosecrans's right wing 
 was badly shattered on Wednesday. He had 
 strengthened his left and weakened his right, with 
 the purpose of crushing Bragg' s right ; and Bragg 
 had weakened his right and strengthened his left for 
 a similar purpose. But Bragg was the first to 
 move, and thus gained an advantage which resulted 
 almost in the defeat of Rosecrans's entire army. I 
 believe that the coolness and personal bravery of 
 Gen. Rosecrans turned the tide in his favor, and 
 finally gained him a victory, though a very dearly 
 bought one, over Gen. Bragg. I saw Gen. Rose- 
 crans in the thick of the battle, giving personal 
 directions to his subordinates, and since that day I 
 have ever admired him. 
 
 There was another officer, — the chief of Gen. 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 171 
 
 Rosecrans's staff, — whom I saw soon after this 
 battle, whose appearance and general bearing made 
 a very deep impression upon me. He was about 
 thirty years old, above the average in size, had 
 brown hair, and mild blue eyes, and seemed thor- 
 oughly self-possessed. This young officer distin- 
 guished himself afterward at the battle of Chicka- 
 mauo-a, where he had a horse shot under him. He 
 was promoted to the rank of major-general for gal- 
 lant conduct in that most bloody battle. The name 
 of that officer was James A. Garfield. 
 
 On Thursday morning the armies occupied about 
 the same relative positions that they had on Wednes- 
 day before the furious attack upon our right. I saw 
 very little fighting that day, and in the afternoon was 
 gladdened by a sight of our own battalion. I soon 
 learned that my brother was still with his com- 
 mand, but many of his brave soldiers were absent; 
 and I saw unmistakable signs that they had all ex- 
 perienced severe fighting. My arm was in a sling, 
 and this attracted the attention of the soldiers, 
 especially of our battalion. They expressed their 
 sympathy in various ways, and after being as- 
 sured that it was a mere trifle, they all seemed 
 
172 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 proud, and rather glad, I thought, that their ** little 
 buo:ler" carried the evidence of havinor been under 
 fire. They took me upon their shoulders and car- 
 ried me to where some officers were talking. My 
 brother was a little frightened at first when he saw 
 me with a bandaged arm, and insisted that our sur- 
 geon should examine my wound. But I took my 
 arm from the sling and convinced him that no bones 
 were broken, and that it had been carefully dressed 
 by a division surgeon. The truth is, I was not will- 
 ing to uncover the wound, as it was so slight as to 
 cause a laugh, I feared. So, while convincing them 
 that it was not dangerous, I at the same time was 
 not anxious that the exact nature of the wound 
 should be known, as I felt that the imagination of 
 my brother and other friends would draw a more 
 highly colored picture of my bravery, my wound, 
 and my endurance than the real facts would justify. 
 I stayed at the front during the remainder of this 
 battle, but was not again under fire. On the next 
 day (Friday), in the afternoon, the severest engage- 
 ment of this battle took place. It was then that 
 Rosecrans massed his cannon, that did such terrible 
 work of death and destruction. Almost the entire 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 173 
 
 army was brought into action. The enemy behaved 
 with their accustomed bravery, but were finally 
 compelled to retire, and Rosecrans won a great vic- 
 tory, — great from the almost equal strength in 
 numbers and discipline of the two armies engaged, 
 and also from the terrible slausrhter on both sides. 
 There was probably not a harder contested battle, 
 nor a more bloody one, considering the num- 
 bers engaged, then the battle of Stone River, or, 
 as it is sometimes called, Murfreesboro. On 
 Saturday morning I rode with my brother over 
 the battle-field. Those awful scenes of blood- 
 shed tended naturally to weaken one's belief in 
 the sacred n ess of human life, and my brother 
 did what he could to counteract their influence 
 upon my mind. He spoke of the great sin of 
 war, the wanton destruction of life and property 
 which it caused, and said that the people who went 
 to war for an unjust cause were as criminal as 
 the man who kills his fellow in a quarrel. My 
 brother seldom permitted a day to pass without giv- 
 ing me some lesson in the gentle virtues of kindness, 
 sympathy, and brotherly good-will. He hoped thus 
 to keep pure and sweet the fountain of my thoughts 
 
174 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 and feelings. It is a very dangerous thing, we all 
 know, for one to become accustomed to sights of 
 cruelty or bloodshed. What man, valuing the 
 jDurity of his soul, would not shrink from such 
 influences ? Of course, these influences may not sub- 
 vert the soul, for the evil seen may never be loved 
 or welcomed ; on the contray, it may make such a 
 deep impression of the awfulness of sin as to cause 
 the heart and mind to turn from it with horror and 
 disgust. But still it is something to have these 
 ugly images in the soul, giving out their expression 
 and diflfusing their odor among our thoughts and 
 feelings, so long as we live. But, again, how often 
 do we find that the veteran of many battles carries a 
 heart as tender and sympathetic as a girl, incapable of 
 wanton cruelty. I have raised this question, not to 
 settle it, but simply to suggest that all of the truth 
 cannot be found on either side. 
 
 My brother's words had made a deep impression 
 upon my mind, but I received another lesson upon 
 this battle-field which appealed more directly to 
 my feelings. "We were returning to camp, when we 
 came upon a carriage drawn by a mule and driven 
 by a colored boy. The carriage contained three 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 175 
 
 ladies. The boy politely removed his hat, and said 
 that his * ' missus' ' wished to speak to the officer. We 
 turned about in our saddles and saluted the ladies, — 
 an elderly lady and her two daughters, as they 
 proved to be. The elder daughter was about 
 eighteen and the younger about fifteen. The first 
 glance was sufficient to show us that they were all 
 in deep sorrow. The mother asked, in a sad, trem- 
 ulous voice, if we could direct her to that part of 
 the battle-field where the Confederate Gen. Brecken- 
 ridge's forces had been engaged on the day previ- 
 ous. My brother regretted that his duties at the 
 camp demanded his presence, but said that "my [his] 
 brother here will gladly direct you, and be of any 
 other service to you that is within his power." The 
 ladies thanked us sincerely, and accepted my 
 services. I led the way and directed the boy to 
 follow me. We had gone but a short distance 
 when it was found necessary to leave the carriage 
 and proceed on foot. I left my horse in care of the 
 boy. The mother said that the object of her visit 
 to the battle-field was to search for her only son, a 
 boy of but sixteen years, who had left school to 
 engage in the battle of Friday. She had heard 
 
176 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 nothing of him since he left her, and feared that he 
 was among the slain. But the work of burying the 
 dead had already begun, and I had little hopes that 
 the sorrow-stricken mother and sisters would suc- 
 ceed in finding the lost boy ; and it soon became evi- 
 dent that they would be compelled to give up the 
 search. The awful scene of blood was too much for 
 the tender sensibilities of women, especially of a 
 mere girl. The young ladies grew sick and were 
 compelled to turn back, and the sad search was 
 given up. The mother gave me the regiment and 
 company of her boy, together with a personal de- 
 scription, and I promised to do all in my power to 
 gain some tidings of him. I took the name and 
 residence of the lady, who lived in Nashville, but 
 was stopping in Murfreesboro, and promised to 
 report to her the next morning. On arriving at 
 camp I consulted my brother, and put the case into 
 his hands. The first thing he did was to consult the 
 rolls containing the names of the prisoners, and 
 what was our o^reat delisfht to find the name of this 
 young man. The prisoners had not yet been re- 
 moved to the rear. We were not lono: in findiuo: 
 Harry Hollo way. He was a tall, handsome, fair- 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 177 
 
 haired j^oiing man, with clark-gray eyes, and a 
 proud, almost haughty bearing. I told him of 
 having seen his mother and sisters, and immediately 
 his haughtiness forsook him, and the crystal tears 
 glistened upon his cheek. He was eager in his 
 questioning about them, and thanked my brother 
 and me very warmly for the kindness we had shown 
 in the matter. I told him that I intended to visit 
 his mother at once, and would gladly take any mes- 
 sage he had to send. He was provided with paper 
 and pencil, and wrote a brief note, which he gave to 
 me for delivery. My brother went at once to head- 
 quarters, and succeeded in getting this young man 
 dismissed on parole. I, in the meantime, had 
 visited Mrs. Hollo way. I first announced that I 
 did not believe her boy was among the killed ; I 
 then said that he had been heard from, and that I 
 had seen him, and that he was well, and I then gave 
 her his letter. The mother threw her arms about 
 me and kissed me in the most affectionate way. I 
 cried like a little boy, and was ashamed of myself ; 
 the young ladies cried too, and we all had a very tear- 
 ful time of it. Tears are not always an indication of 
 
 12 
 
178 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 sorrow. The next day I had the great happiness of 
 accompanying Harry Holloway to visit his mother 
 and sisters. I called to see them in Nashville on 
 my way North, and have to this day kept up this" 
 very delightful acquaintance, which began with a 
 chance meeting on the battle-field of Stone River. 
 I will close this chapter with an extract from Annie 
 Belle's last letter : — 
 
 '* I don't like the city nearly so well as the coun- 
 try. There are no houses here that are half so nice 
 as * Chestnut Hill ; ' and then you can't be so free 
 as in the country. I go calling sometimes with 
 Aunt Josie, but I don't like it much, as everybody 
 is so stiff and formal. I have gone to two parties, 
 but did not enjoy them much. The girls all acted 
 like young ladies, and the boys were not very nice. 
 I don't wish to go to any more, but I suppose I 
 must. We get letters frequently from < Chestnut 
 Hill,' written by the ' sergeant,' whom we left in 
 charge. Aunt Josie has just received a letter from 
 Uncle Will ; he is with Gen. Braofor's armv, as vou 
 know. He says that they are expecting a battle 
 every day. It is dreadful to think that you and 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 179 
 
 your kind, good brother, and Uncle Will will be 
 against each other when the battle conies off. I 
 pray every night for you all. Oh, how I would 
 jump for joy if you should make us another sur- 
 prise visit ; but I suppose it is impossible now, as we 
 are too far south." 
 
CHA PTER IX. 
 
 After the battle of Stone River, I was induced by 
 two reasons to return to my home : First, my 
 brother felt that I ought to be in school ; and, 
 second, my sister's health had become very precari- 
 ous since the death of Lieut. Harrington, to whom, 
 as the reader has doubtless inferred, she was 
 betrothed. My brother had little trouble in getting 
 me dismissed from the army. My sister became a 
 confirmed invalid, but lingered, broken-hearted, 
 until a few years since, when she passed quietly 
 away. She lived mostly within her own chamber ; 
 and when the time of her departui-e came, there 
 were only traces of joy and gladness left upon her 
 thin, pale face, and none of that sorrow which had 
 crushed her beautiful young life, and which she had 
 patiently borne for twelve long years. I entered 
 school at once, and found that I was not so far 
 behind my former classmates but that I could over- 
 take them within a few months, if I should give 
 myself closely to study. It was pretty hard for me 
 
 (180) 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 181 
 
 to acquire studious habits, and I often became dis- 
 couraged, and felt as if I would like to throw up 
 my books and leave the school-room, never to 
 return to it again. The dull routine of the class 
 exercises was very different from the gay and 
 exciting life of the camp. But the quiet life of a 
 student was much better for me than the wild life of 
 a soldier. I was wise enough to see and appreciate 
 this fact, and determined to begin life from a more 
 serious stand-point than that of a careless soldier- 
 boy. I was ambitious, and applied myself very 
 diligently. I gave up parties and everything else 
 that interfered in the least with my studies, and at 
 the end of four months I stood an examination and 
 was promoted to the class for which I had been 
 striving. I was now in good working trim, and 
 found it quite easy to keep up with my class. Of 
 course I had not neglected my ** little girl," but 
 every week sent her a good, long letter, telling her 
 how I was getting on in my new life. Her letters 
 also came regularly once a week. My brother's 
 letters kept me well informed as to all my friends 
 in the army. I had been at home about six months, 
 when a week passed and no letter came from Annie 
 
182 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 Belle. Another week went by, and still another, 
 until six weeks had dragged their weary lengths be- 
 tween me and the last word from my little sweet- 
 heart. I did not cease to write ; I ^vrote the oftener, 
 but all was silent ; I awoke no response. I became 
 very anxious ; not about her love for me, for I felt sure 
 of that, come what would. I was anxious about 
 her health, her safety, her happiness. But I 
 reflected that if anything serious had happened, 
 Miss Lee would certainly have informed me. My 
 mother and sister sought to quiet my fears. They 
 said that correspondence with the South was liable 
 to interruption at any time. A letter from my 
 brother, about this time, stated that no communica- 
 tion of any character was now permitted between the 
 two armies. All this was confirmed by several 
 of my letters being returned to me from the dead- 
 letter office at Washington. Six long months 
 passed, and the silence was unbroken : but I never 
 doubted for a moment the fidelity of Annie Belle, 
 and my own heart never varied for an instant from 
 its little Southern matrnet. 
 
 Thus far my story has been substantially a true 
 one ; but I am greatly tempted in this closing 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 183 
 
 chapter to deviate somewhat from the truth, and 
 let the curtain fall upon a picture of unalloyed 
 happiness. It would, I am sure, be more pleasing 
 to the reader; and if I were writing pure fiction, I 
 am certain I would not cast a shadow upon the last 
 pages of my book. I am not writing fiction, how- 
 ever, but narrating actual occurrences, and shall 
 therefore give a faithful account of what has 
 happened thus far to the principal characters intro- 
 duced in this sketch. My brother's command had 
 reenlisted for three years longer. The officers were- 
 granted a leave of absence, and the private soldiers 
 a thirty days' furlough. My brother wrote, stating 
 at what time he might be expected home. His 
 friends kindly proposed to give him a public recep- 
 tion and dinner, as a mark of their high esteem 
 for his gallant conduct as a soldier. It was, of 
 course, very pleasing and gratifying to my mother 
 to see this high respect and honor in which her son 
 was held by his friends and neighbors ; and my 
 sister seemed to grow strong, and her eyes to 
 brighten, in the expectation of seeing her brave 
 soldier brother. I was almost wild with excite- 
 ment. My love for my brother was, I imagine, 
 
184 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 something like the love of a son for a father. I had 
 not known my father, and my brother was to me a 
 father, a brother, and a companion ; always kind, 
 loving, and tender. I was proud of him. He was 
 handsome, and brave, and clever; and I looked 
 forward to his visit with ixreat iov and irhidness. 
 I wanted to see him honored and admired ; I 
 wanted to hear him praised ; I wished to walk the 
 streets with him, and go to church with him, and 
 make calls with him ; for I knew that he would be 
 glad to have me with him almost everywhere. The 
 time for his arrival was but three days distant, and 
 preparations were making for his reception, when a 
 telegraphic message was handed to me, directed to 
 my mother, and I was told to read it before giving 
 it to her. The substance of this message is given 
 in the following extract : — 
 
 "Maj. James Monroe, while gallantly leading 
 his battalion in a charge upon the enemy on the 
 15th instant, was, it is feared, mortally wounded by 
 a ball entering his left side and passing through the 
 region of the liver. He is not in great pain, and is 
 entirely conscious." 
 
 I broke this sad news as gently as possible to our 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 185 
 
 mother and sister, and to Miss Parsons, who was 
 visiting my mother when the sorrowful message 
 arrived. Miss Parsons and I started for the South 
 on the first train, with the hope of seeing my 
 brother before his spirit should pass away ; but we 
 arrived about six hours after the dissolution. My 
 mother never fully recovered from the shock caused 
 by my brother's death, and about two years since 
 she followed my brother and sister to that land 
 beyond the river. 
 
 My brother, as I have said, had been granted a 
 leave of absence to visit his home. The day before 
 his intended departure the lines were attacked by 
 Gen. Longstreet's soldiers, and he asked the privi- 
 lege of leading his battalion against them. It was 
 granted. He drove the enemy back, but received 
 his death-wound. Soon after my brother's death, 
 Atlanta, Georgia, was taken by Gen. Sherman, who 
 was now in chief command of the Army of the Cum- 
 berland. I wrote to an officer, giving him the ad- 
 dress of Col. Graves, and asked him to call and make 
 inquiries about Annie Belle. He did so, but Col. 
 Graves and family had gone further south, he 
 could not learn where. I entered the army again 
 
186 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 in the winter of 1865, and was with Gen. Sherman 
 at Kaleigh, North Carolina, when Gen. Johnston 
 snrrendered. I was also at the grand review at 
 Washington, which followed the close of the war. 
 I completed my preparation for college, and 
 entered in the autumn of 1868. Up to the close 
 of the war I had heard nothing from Annie Belle. 
 As soon as peace was declared between the North 
 and South, I renewed my efforts to learn some- 
 thing about her. I wrote to Emma Phillips, asking 
 if the family had returned to <' Chestnut Hill." 
 She answered that the family were still South, — 
 where, she could not find out. The serireant had 
 been dead more than a year, and the ** Chestnut 
 Hill " mansion was closed up. About three months 
 after this I received another, saying that " * Chest- 
 nut Hill ' is being cleansed and repaired, and it is 
 reported that Col. Graves's family are soon to 
 occupy it again." I wrote again to Emma, asking 
 her to let me know at once when the family should 
 return. In a few weeks I received the following: 
 
 Dear Sir: Col. Graves's family have returned to 
 " Chestnut Hill," and are to occupy it, I understand, as 
 their future home. Mrs. Graves, Mrs. Lee and daughter, 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 187 
 
 and Capt. Graves and wife, constitute the family. Col. 
 Graves died during their residence in the South, and the 
 other son was killed in the war. 
 
 As ever, your friend, 
 
 Emma Phillips. 
 P. S. — In your next, please address me as Mrs. Fred. 
 Austin. E. P. 
 
 On receipt of this I determined to visit *' Chest- 
 nut Hill" lit once. I had become thoroughly dis- 
 heartened in my efforts to get a letter from Annie 
 Belle, and I now resolved to trust no longer to the 
 United States mails, but to go in person and learn 
 my fate. On arriving at Louisville, I took a 
 steamer down the river to Graves's Landing, and 
 reached old Camp Buell about three o'clock in the 
 afternoon. What was once Camp Buell was now 
 covered with flax and wheat, and tobacco and grass. 
 It was all fenced in, and there were few traces left of 
 the army. I went first to the residence of Mr. 
 Phillips, which was near the landing. I was very 
 cordially received by all the family, especially Mrs. 
 Austin, who was a very pretty and happy bride. I 
 did not meet Mr. Austin during my stay. Miss 
 Sadie Woods came in, and I was made to under- 
 stand that she was soon to become Mrs. Phillips. 
 
188 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 After supper I was carried over to ''Chestnut 
 Hill." It was in the month of June Nature was 
 in her merriest and prettiest mood. The fields 
 laughed with their golden harvests ; the birds 
 twittered among the leafy trees ; the air was balmy 
 and fragrant with the sweet clover and the honey- 
 suckle. But suddenly this quiet serenity of the 
 evening twilight was broken by a sound which 
 seemed to come from a '' spirit maledict in regions 
 dolent." This mournful wail gave positive evi- 
 dence to me that the donkey was still among the 
 living creatures of earth. It made me sad. I felt 
 that it was prophetic of anything but a happy 
 termination of my visit. As I approached the 
 house I saw a lady and gentleman sitting upon the 
 piazza, and as I drew nearer I recognized Miss Lee 
 and Capt. Graves. They did not know me until I 
 had spoken and presented my card. Miss Lee 
 could not speak for a moment, and her first words 
 were, *' She must not see him; it would drive her 
 mad." She then asked me to come quickly with 
 her into the library. She burst out crying, and 
 said, *' O ! George, forgive the strange reception I 
 have given you ; but your appearance at this time 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 189 
 
 is most traoric." She then told me that Annie Belle 
 had been married about one month ; that she had 
 written letter after letter to me, and received no 
 reply ; but still she remained true to me, and a 
 day did not pass without her speaking of me, and 
 wondering if I were dead, or was living and had for- 
 gotten her. Years passed. Her hand was sought 
 by a young gentleman of New Orleans. She told 
 him frankly that she could never love him as she 
 had loved another. He pressed his suit, and her 
 mother urged her to accept him. The war had left 
 them quite poor, and this young gentleman was 
 rich. Still she had deferred the wedding-day, time 
 after time, in the hope of hearing from me. They 
 all finally concluded that I was either dead or had 
 forgotten Annie Belle ; so the wedding took place, 
 and she and her husband were now visiting ** Chest- 
 nut Hill." They had gone out riding after supper, 
 and were expected back every moment. I listened 
 to all this in a half-conscious state, and when she 
 had ceased speaking, I could say nothing but re- 
 peat the name of Annie Belle. Mrs. Capt. Graves 
 '^Miss Lee) continued, **If she were to see you 
 here, I am sure she would go mad." I assured 
 
190 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 her that my only thought was for Annie Belle's 
 happiness, and that I would do whatever she 
 (Mrs. Graves) would suggest. Still, I desired one 
 last look at my lost Annie Belle, if this could be 
 had without fear of her seeing me, or knowing of 
 ray presence. Capt. Graves, who was present, said 
 he thought it could be contrived in some way for me 
 to see Annie Belle without her knowing about it. 
 It was arranged that I was to occupy a chamber 
 opening upon the piazza. Mrs. Capt. Graves would 
 walk with Annie Belle, and sit near my window, 
 where I could have a fair view of her and still she 
 could not see me. I took my station at the 
 window. Soon after, the riding party had re- 
 turned ; I heard them approaching, and recognized 
 the voice of Annie Belle before I saw her face. It 
 was the same sweet voice, but there was a tone of 
 deep sadness which I had not known in days gone 
 by. I will give some of the conversation which I 
 overheard: *'Aunt Josie, why are you so sad to- 
 night? There is something really strange about your 
 eyes, that I cannot understand. You are not ill, 
 dearest auntie, are you? You look at me with such 
 an earnest, I had almost said such an eager look. 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 191 
 
 I dreamed of George last night, — the same sad 
 dream which I had the hist night he slept here 
 before his return to the camp. Wouldn't it be 
 awful if I should hear from him, after all? for I can- 
 not believe but that if he is alive he still loves me." 
 ** But, my dear," said her aunt, ** you are married 
 now, and have a kind and loving husband, and ought 
 not to think any more of George. We all loved 
 him, you know, and I am sure that he loved you 
 truly ; but you must now think only of your 
 husband's love, and let the memories of the past 
 fade away with the dark clouds of war." <' But we 
 did love each other so truly," said Annie Belle; 
 ** and it is impossible for me to forget or cease to 
 love the brave little soldier-boy who wooed me so 
 gallantly and so tenderly. O, my little soldier-boy I 
 Annie Belle can never fors^et vou, nor cease to love 
 you I " ** It was my hope," said her aunt, ** that 
 you and the * little bugler ' should grow up and be 
 united in holy marriage ; but Providence, or what- 
 ever we may call it, has ordered otherwise, and it 
 is for you to submit to the inevitable." At this 
 point they arose and passed out of sight and hear- 
 ing, and I never saw Annie Belle again. I stayed 
 
192 THE LITTLE BUGLER. 
 
 overnight at the residence of Mr. Phillips, and 
 started for home on the following morning. My 
 visit was to remain a secret to every one at " Chest- 
 nut Hill " save those who had seen me. I returned 
 home sick at heart, and was confined to my bed with 
 a brain fever for some weeks. Annie Belle went 
 with her husband and mother to New Orleans to re- 
 side. In 1878 I received a letter from Mrs. Capt. 
 Graves, bearing the sad news of Annie Belle's death. 
 I could not have published this simple story during 
 her life. She would have recognized it at once, 
 although the characters all appear under different 
 names. 
 
 I know that any of my Southern friends into 
 whose hands this little book may chance to fall, will 
 not think unkindly of the mention I have made of 
 them. I believe that, so far as I have drawn the 
 picture of Southern society, it has been by no 
 means unfavorable to the Southern people. It is 
 also a true picture. For frankness, for heartiness, 
 and for kindly generosity, the Southern people are 
 not excelled by any other section of our Union. 
 Lying, slander, and low, mean cunning are not 
 the prevailing sins of the South. In fact, the 
 
THE LITTLE BUGLER. 193 
 
 Southern people are peculiarly free from these vices ; 
 their sins, whatever they may be, are of a different 
 and more open character. 
 
 And now the story of the '* Little Bugler" is 
 ended. It is substantially a true narrative. There 
 are no plots invented, and no fictitious characters 
 introduced. It has given the real experience in 
 war and love, of a boy, who now as a man gives 
 his most hearty assent to the following lines of the 
 poet : — 
 
 " 'Tis better to have loved and lost, 
 Than never to have loved at all." 
 
 THE END. 
 
 13 
 
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