The Birmingham age-herald. [volume], March 23, 1913, MAGAZINE SECTION, Image 48

About The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950

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f f i Lamar Fontaine—One of South's Famous Figures i_I ; -
A SONG OF LAMAR FONTAINE.
Ho. buglers! sound the charge!
Ho, marshals! clear the way!
For southland's knights, In all their
f might.
Ride Richmond's streets today!
And every gate and doorway, •
Is decked in color bright.
In honor of our chieftain.
And heroes of the fight.
They come, each crowned in glory;
They've won a deathless name,
But renowned within that number,
Is brave Lamar Fontaine;
j Who, like Horatius Codes.
In brave days of old.
Feared neither flood nor foe,
Within bis heart of gold. *
His eagle eye and steady aim.
Twice thirty foemen slew,
While the pulsing minutehand,
Once, ’round the dial flew;
And Lee and “Stonewall’’ Jackson
Stood gazing in surprise.
At the calm and valiant scout,
"Who‘thus the foe defies.
He spared not blood nor muscle,
His duty was his pride,
’Til many gory wounds
Bedewed his gallant side.
On! On! through blood and carnage,
He'll ever press his way,
And will continue
'Til southland wins the day.
Ho! buglers, sound a louder note.
Ho! marshals, lead the way!
For southland’s knight in all their
might.
Ride Richmond's streets today.
But in the serried ranks
Of that long glittering train.
Breathes none more brave, more true
Than Scout Lamar Fontaine!
From an old clipping from the Rich
mond Whig, published August, 1862.
Day by day the ranks of the veterans
of the sixties, those heroes who bore
,the brunt of the greatest crisis that
ever faced the American republic, arc
rapidly diminishing.
A few years—a generation, perhaps,
and none will remain to recount in
personal reminiscence the stirring deeds
the trials and sufferings of 60 years
ago, when the nation was torn asunder
by four years of civil strife.
Then history alone must enkindle
within the breasts of the rising gen
eration that sectional pride and na
fional patrltoism that ts horn in mo
love and admiration of the heroes of
that memorable struggle; for then none
will there b« to draw aside tlie dark
curtain of forgetfulness and to live
over again by the firesides of American
homes both in th<e North and in the
South the stirring events of that mo
mentous conflict, and none will be left
to picture from th<6 indelible imprints
of memory the calm fearlessness of
Lee, the impetuous chivalry of Stuart,
the indomitable determination of
Grant, the patient suffering of Lin
coln, and the sterling character and
military genius of Stonewall Jackson.
Standing among the remnants of his
fellow soldiers of 50 years ago, a hearty
link in the feeble chain of veterans that
binds the past to the present, is Major
Lamar Fontaine, a recent visitor to Bir
mingham.
Veteran of Three Wars
A yeteran of three wars, a scout under
Stonewall Jackson, a soldier of fortune
Jn foreign lands, there is probably no
more picturesque figure in the nation
today than Lamar Fontaine. Poet, philo
sopher and soldier, since early childhood,
when clad only in the garb of nature,
he roamed the prairies of Texas as the
adopted son of an Indian chief and tlie
playmate of the since famous Geronimo,
his life has been one of endless adven
ture.
During his service through three wars
he was wounded 67 times. Eleven of
these time bullets passed through his
lungs, and on 20 occasions he has been
pronounced mortally wounded by army
physicians. From the tribal battles with
the Indians on the plains of Texas to
the snow-covered fields of Russia during
the Crimean war, he has faced the shrap
nel of the enemy and endured all the
heroes of the captive and prisoner. AncL
now, though the slender figure is bent
with an age of service and the hand whose
steadiness waB a marvel to sharpshooters
of two generations has lost its firmness,
the cool grey eyes retain their piercing
glance, and the firm, clear cut ligaments
are unweakened by the wrinkles that
overshadow them.
Marguis of Lothian’s Tribute
The MarqulB of Lothian. Lord of the
Lothians and a Scottish commander dur
ing the Crimean war, in his work on the
Confederate session says of Major Fon
taine:
“A man of remarkable experience is
I^amar Fontaine, a man whose life reads
like the pages from some enchanted ro
mance. Front his birth in a tent on
Laberdie prairie in what is now known
as Washington county, Texas, his being
the first male birth in the Stephen A.
Austin colony of the Brazos river, and
at the time of his advent into this world
there was not a white settlement between
bis birthplace westward to the shores
of the Pacific ocean; only a boundless
wilderness. From that day he has been
p soldier of strange fortune, and his life
almost without parallel In the annals of
recorded history', From the day when
he was three years old his school train
ing was at the hands of an old Polish
exile, a German Baron by birth, who was
banished from the continent of Europe
tor the part he had played in the Polish
i ebeflion.
His preceptor trained him in all the
manly arts of fencing, boxing, wrestling,
in the broard sword exercise, horseback
riding, and in rifle and pistol shooting
until he was master of them all. The
wild, the real nomadic tent life of these
early colonists on the boundless, unln
habitated prairie of Texas, suited the
spirit, the blood of his favored boy and
gave him a vigor, a power of endurance
that, fitted him yell for the life that
lay before him. At this early period he
became the best shot in the colony and
the most daring rider and expert horse
man and was the envy of his less favored
companions.
Whore Austin Now Stands
A few weeks after the colony moved to
where the city of Austin now stands Ea
rner Fontaine was captured by a roving
band of Camancbe Indians and for near
ly five years he was a captive of this
tribe, roaming and bunting with them
from the valley of the Rio Grande on the
south to the. Black Hill region of the
Dakotas on the north, following the buf
falo in their annual migrations. This life
among the Indians gave him added en
durance1, vigor and wonderful eyesight'.
For four years not a vestige of a gar
ment did lie wear except moccasins, mits.
and ear protectors. This exercise made
his skin as impervious to the plural ac
tion of the climate as was his face.
“On the dividing line between Arizona
and Mexico, on what is now known as
the Zuni plateau, on the headquarters of
the Gila river that flows into the Gulf of
California, he made his way across a
trackless w’aste to the city of Austin,
where he rejoined bis own people.”
Enlisted in American Navy
This much of the early life of this sol
dier of fortune served only to render
him better fitted for the more strenuous
activities that lay beyond. A few years
after bis escape from the Indians, and
just prior to the beginning: of the war
with Mexico, he enlisted in the American
navy. It was during this struggle that
lie received his first baptism of fire when
he took part in the battle of Vera Cruz.
After the Mexican war he remained
in the navy until shortly after the out
break of the Crimean war. The vessel
upon which Fontaine was serving hap
pened to be in the Black sea shortly
after this struggle began. He was un
able to resist the call of adventure that
lay before him in the camps of the Rus
sians and British, and, taking advantage
of his expiring term of service, he left
the navy and enlisted as a private sol
dier in the Russian army. This was In
1849.
As a member of Prince Kioskl's cos
sacks, which composed the bodyguard of
Prince GortschyhofT, he saw considerable
service on the plains of Russia, taking
part in the siege of Sebastopol. It was
after this battle that Major Fontaine as
a representative of the Russian govern
ment treated with the English authorities
in an unsuccessful attempt to end the
war. Here he met the Marquis of Leth*
ian who afterward became his stauch
friend.
Leaves for Holy Land
Leaving the Russian service in 1855, he
went to Egypt, where until 1859 he sur
veyed in the Holy land.
When first the rumors of the secession
of the southern states reached him, he
left for America, and enlisted in the
ranks of the Confederates as a private
soldier.
It was during this struggle that Major
Fontaine first came into prominence. His
early training among the Indians and his
experience in the Russian service, made
him invaluable both as a scout and as a
driller of recruits. Stonewall Jackson
soon appointed him to a position on bis
staff and made him scout of hi» divisi?n.
His Unert-ing Markmanship
With Jackson he saw service at the
first battle of ilanassas and during the
famous Shenandoah valley campaign. It
was during these engagements that his
unerring marksmanship gained him the
attention of the whole army. As a sharp
shooter, ills exploits were little leSs than
marvelous. At Waterloo bridge. In Far
quar county. Virginia, In 1862. Just prior
HIRO OF THREE WARS
MAJOR LAMAR FONTAINE
Visitor to Birmingham Whose Life Story is so Full of Romance as to
Moke Him One of South's Most Notable Characters—rPhoto by Bert G.
CovelL \
V
BY CHAS. W. GREER
to the, second battle of Manassas, Major
Fontaine, in the presence of Generals L*ee
and Jackson and nine federal officers,
prisoners at the time, shot down 60 fed
eral soldiers in sixty minutes, with a
breechloading: Whitworth rifle.
The story of this remarkable feat found
its way into the federal lines through
the prisoners who had witnessed it. Hear
ing of the feat the marquis of Lothian,
who was In this country at the time,
made his way to the Confederate lines
and found its truth in the testimony of
those who had witnessed it. and in his,
“The Confederate Secession,*’ he speaks
of it as one of the most remarkable in
stances in the history of civilized war.
With Jackson When Killed
Just before the second day’s battle of
Chaneellorsville, Major Fontaine was rid
ing in company with Stonewall Jackson
at the time when that noted Confederate
general was shot down by his own troojjs,
v.ho mistook his party for that of the
enemy. Wounded in the same volley, the
last glimpse that Major ^Fontaine ever
had of the general whom he had long
loved and followed, was when the strick
en general was borne from the field upon
a stretcher. Major Fontaine was de
clared mortally wounded' by the army
physician, having been shot through the
right lung, but within two months he
was again in the Confederate ranks.
On May 12, 18*54, in the fearful charge
to recover the Confederate breastworks
at "Bloody Angle,’' at Spottsyl vania
courthouse. Major Fontaine w'as shot
down and left upon the field for dead.
Soon thereafter federal soldiers, finding
him only wounded, took him prisoner.
From May until August he was con
fined in a federal prison in Philadelphia,
where in a dark and filthy cell, and fed
upon a meagre quantity of revolting sub
stances. be suffered horrors with which
these of the battlefield failed to com
pare. When taken from this cell, he w'as
.transferred to a prison ship, en route to
New' Orleans. On this trip, in company
with *500 Confederate prisoners, after
ward known as the "immortal fiOO," Major
Fontaine was forced to undergo another
season of prison hoi*ror.
Spirit Never Broken
Never, however, was the spirit of the
man broken. On one occasion, Captain
Bell, who had charge of the Confederate
prisoners at that time, wanted to ex
change Major Fontaine for a federal
major, who was then a captive in the
Confederate lines. Major Fontaine was
sent to confer with General Hardee, who
was in charge of the Confederate works
around Charleston, S. C.. at the time, re
garding the exchange. General Hardee,
who was a personal friend of Major
Fontaine, was anxious to effect the ex
change. and sent for the federal captive
to arrange for conveying him to the fed
eral lines.
But the whole proceedings were marred
when Major Fontaine met the man tor
whom1 he was to be exchanged. The
federal officer, so it happened, was not
up to Major Fontaine’s standard of a
soldier. His cowardice had been the joke
of his captors for some time. He fawned
upon his captors, ready to accept any
terms or to take any oath prescribed to
get his release. Major Fontaine balked.
He would not be exchanged for such a
specimen, he told General Hardee, and
was sent back to the federal prison. Here
foe remained several months longer, until
an agreeable exchange could he effected.
Last Wound of the War
Just prior to the surrender of Bee at
Appomatoac, Major Fontaine received his
last wound of the war, and one that ren
dered him wholly unfit for service; and
when again he was ready to take the
field, the war was over, and th^ cause
for which he had spilled so much of his
heart’s blood was lost forever.
Immediately after the war Major Fon
taine left America for Brazil, where he
spent some time as a teacher in a uni
versity. Afterwards he returned to his
native land, his thirst for adventure
quenched, and settled down to a quiet
life in the Mississippi valley. And there
he now lives, content to live in the past
and enpoy the memories of ihe days when
his life's blood coursed races through his
veins, and when the love for adventure
mastered his soul. He is an old man
now, but hale and hearty, and lives a
quiet reminder of memorable days that
are passed.
His Famous Poem
As a poet, Major Fontaine’s most noted
work, “All Quiet Along the Potomac,”
has been a subject of much comment
since Its appearance in 1861. Several have
claimed the authorship of the piece, and
to Miss Ethlyn Biers, it has been gen
erally credited. The poem, typical of the
spirit of the days in which »t was written,
has been preserved, not because of its
poetic or structural value, but for its
simple note of appeal to those who still
hold dear the memory of the heroes who
lost their lives in the great struggle be
tween the states.
In supporting his claim to the author
ship of the piece, Major Fontaine has
in his possession what is claimed to be
the first print of the poem as it came
from the press of Julian A. Selby of Co
lumbia, S. C., in October, 1861. This old
document, a facirnile of the title page
of which* appears on this page, dedicates
rtie poem to the unknown deod of the
“present” revolution, and gives as its
author Umar Fontaine. In further sup
porting his claim, Major Fontaine has In
his possession a letter from T. It. Heald,
written in 1897, who commenting upon the
discussion as to the authorship of the
poem, says in part:
“I was a sergeant in the Massachu
setts regiment, and stationed at Pool
ville, Maryland, in October, 1861. I was
frequently on picket duty.along the Po
tomac river, near the hanks of Edward's
ferry, where w’e afterward recrossed with
part of our forces, after the battle of
Ball’s bluff. During the time I was on
picket, I remember that one night we
received from one of the Confederate
pickets, written or partly written. “All
Quiet Along the Potomac Tonight.'* and
in some way (I have forgotten just how
T received this information) I was told
that it was written by some one con
nected with the Mississippi regiment then
stationed near Leesburg, by the name of
Fontaine. My Impression is that when
we first received tile poem it was headed,
"All Quiet Along the Potomac,’’ and I
think you will find that the Boston Her
ald first printed those lines, but I know
that they were received in the manner
mentioned by me on picket duty in Octo
ber, and 1 have frequently spoken of the
matter and stated that I remembered
that the name of the writer was Fontaine,
in the book stores at Charleston, S. C„
you will find a publication entitled "Mar
ginelln," and I think has letters from
that place at that time making mention
ot it.’’
Structure Indicates Authorship
The very structure of the poem, says
Major Fontaine, indicates that it is from
• the pen of a Confederate or Confederate
sympathizer, in supporting this conten
tion, Major Fontaine brings forward the
argument that during the early days of
the war, the federal soldiers adopted the
Scott tactics of drilling, while the Con
federates. were drilled according to the
Hardee system.
The position of the picket while on
duty, according to the Scott tactics, was
pretty much the same as the “port arms"
now used. In other words, the federal
picket paced his beat with his gun sup
ported in the hollow of his elbow with his
left arm folded over lit and upon his
side. The right hand vam* kept over the
lock of the gun, with the forefinger
on the trigger, while the thumb rested
upon the hammer of the gun. With one
movement he had his gun in position for
tiring or charging with his bayonet, while
with the same movement, he cocked the
gun with his thumb.
The Confederate, drilled by the Hardee
tactics, paced his beat with Ills gun in
the hollow of his left elbow, but with
the gun drawn up perpendicular to his
side. His right arm was free, and was
carried at the side. Thus it was neces
sary for him to make three distinct move
ments when challenging, before ills gun
was# ready for action.
Method Determines Authorship
Now in claiming that these two meth
ods of drilling are not without Importance
in determining the fact that the poem
was written by one sympathizing with
the Confederate cause, and therefore
making the Confederate picket the hero
of the lines, Major Fontaine quotes the
following lines:
"Then drawing his sleeve roughly over
his eyes,
He dashes off tears that are welling;
And gathers his gun up close to his
breast,
As if to keep down the heart's swell
ing.”
The position alluded to is exactly in
keeping with one that might have been
taken by the Confederate picket. With
Ms gun pressed against his heart by his
left hand, his right arm was free to brush
away the welling tears, still he would
retain the position required while on
picket duty.
On the other hand the federal picket
would have to free his right arm. sup
port his gun entirely with his left to con
Kaiser Lavish With His Honors
BY BASIL SANDWYCH
BERLIN, March 22.—(Special)—Kai
ser Wilhelm suffers from head
ache. and the hair of Excellence
von Valentini, chief of his secret civil
cabinet. Is turning white. It is all over
the jubilee, which comes around next
June, when Kaiser Wilhelm will be a
quarter-of-a-century emperor. The fact
is hundreds of deserving—and undeserv
ing-persons want orders, decorations, ti
tles and distinctions, while hundreds of
other persons equally deserving—and un
deserving—think that no orders, decora
tions, titles or distinctions should be giv
en at all. They say that lavish Wilhelm
has already given enough, and that he
depreciates badly their value by giving
more.
Kaiser Wilhelm’s civil cabinet and the
kingly Prussian college of heralds are
up to their necks in this momentous prob
lem, and neither gets any further. ^Vil
helm II is democratic, and he shows this
<1
by levelling up. by trying to give every
German something that will make him
feel better than everyone else. His pres
ent highly desirable aim is to gUfe titled
nobility to some of the great men who
are spreading German finance, commerce
and cigars all over the earth. In this he
does not succeed. He gives them the
unnoble rank of "Kommerzienrat,” which
is "commercial councillor,’' and means
that the recipients will be laughed at In
the "Lustlge Blatter." He gives them
more rarely the particle of nobility,
"von." That makes them equivalent to
Frenchmen who put. "de" before their
names, and to untitled English squires.
There arc a few Mendelssohns. Schwa
bachs. Priedlander-Fuld's, and other
financial magnates who have got thus
high. But 10 gove them a noble title is
beyond Wilhelm s power. And this in
tensely offends the German merchant
millionaire, who in England or Austria
would have the rank of baronet, peer or
baron.
It is known that Wilhelm does not ap
prove of this state of affairs. He does
not see why there should not be as
easily a Count Mendelssohn in Germany
as there was a Baron Hirsch in Austria.
But the heralds office is higher than
Kaiser Wilhelm. Kaiser Wilhelm, in
IDOn, proposed that men who had ren
dered great services to Germany in busi
ness spheres should have the possibility
to rise to the rank of baron (Freiherr),
or count (graf). His civil cabinet elab
orated the spheres. But there the her
alds’ office stepped in, and made trouble.
It pointed out politely that it exists not
by virtue of royal favor, but as repre
sentatives of the nobility, titled and un
titled. of Prussia. And it declared to
Kaiser Wilhelm that while he has a. right
to choose what individuals .he will give
titles to, lie lias no right to bring in a
new class of men without consulting the
existing nobility.
The heralds office theory, which is put
forward In a pamphlet by Herr Zim
mermann, is that the titled nobility
should be increased only from the ranks
ot the untitled nobility. A man already
“von” might he made a baron, count or
prince, but a mere business man without
the “von’’ had no claims. The heralds’
office here raises the contention of “the
historical pact/’ This pact, it says, is an
understanding of past monarchs with the
titled Prussian nobility that the nobility
were members of a limited class which
should be increased only slowly and judi
ciously. If this rule is violated every
new baron or count decreases the value
of existing titles. “if the king of Prus
sia makes titles without end. then the
old titled Prussian nobility will be tempt
ed ^to repudiate their own titles. With
merchant and financial counts and even
princes, it will be a great distinction
not to have a title.
Other German classes that have any
distinction are in the same nervous ap
piehension as is the titled nobility. If
Kaiser Wllhflm presents some palace
door-opener twith the fifth class of the
HOhenzoUem house order, then all who
already hava that fifth class growl that
KAISER’S JUBILEE PHOTOGRAPH
Striking New Likeness of the German Ruler Who Is Suffering From
Severe Headaches Caused by Trying to Satisfy Everybody in Ger
many in the Matter of Titles.
orders are becoming common and losing
their worth. The same feeling actuates
Germany's numerous commercial couni
cillors. A “commercial councillor” is a
rich manufacturer, storekeeper, or finan
cier, wiio in theory has rendered some
great service to the empire’s economic
interests. In reality, he is a man who
has enriched himself, and perhaps given
some fraction of ids wealth to charity,
science or art. The competition for the
post of commercial councillor is keen.
It is equalled only by the competition
among commercial councillors for the
higher title of privy commercial coun
cillor. And whenever Kaiser Wilhelm
has a modest birthday, jubilee or New
Year celebration, all the rich business
men look out f»»r these titles, and many,
too many, get them.
Endowing a local museum, or rescuing
a charity from poverty is a good way,to
becorrte a commercial councillor. It is a
small reward compared with the reward
given in other countries where the charit
able man gets a hereditary title. But
It is worth having. And whenever the
title-strewing time is near, the news
papers teem with “Herr Schuppe s” bene
ficence and with “Herr SkuppeV’ newly
awakened interest in chemical science.
And 1913 is a jubilee, title-strewing year.
That explains why the “Frankfurter Zei
tung” statistician says that In 1912 thera
were twice the number of normal charit
able donations.
“Commercial councillor” has now be
come bo common that it has lost its mil
lionalfe-hinting value. Herr Zimmerman,
the expert, says that “the average wealth
of the man thus honored by the kaiser
has declined by nearly -10 per cent during
the last 15 years.” This fact has created
"an aristocracy and a plebeian class'
among the commercial councillors. “Com
mercial councillor A. (made in 1897) looks
down on commercial councillor B. (made
In 1911), not because B. is a junior,, but
because he is probably a poorer man.
Despite the plethora of distinctions
Kaiser Wilhelm is about to create a
one. It will be an order for women. At
present, Wilhelm has the Woman's order
of Louise and the service cross for women
and spinsters. The service cross has go*
so common that jokes about it are ma<]e
on the stage of the Metropole theatre.
The new order will probably be for girls
and women who have distinguished them
selves in nursing and social work.
And everyone who wants it will get it,
until the rival order-holders begin to
growl that orders are no longer a dis
tinction. That makes trouble for Kaiser
Wilhelm. On the other hand, if he gives
no new distinctions, there will he more
trouble, because the distinctions have be
come so common that every man—or
woman—feels injured if left without one.
Altogether Kaiser Wilhelm and bis secret
civil cabinet are up against a difficult
problem, and It is no wonder that they
have headaches, and that their hair turns
white.
form with the position described in the
poem.
It is Major Fontaine’s contention that
during those days of antagonism, no fed
eral sympathizer would have made a hero
of the Confederate picket, while on the
other hand, a Confederate sympathizer
would choose a picket of his own people
to whom to dedicate verse.
Miss Biers was a native of Boston, and
claimed that the poem first appeared in
Harper s Weekly In November, 1861. Ma
jor Fontaine claims that he wrote the
poem during the fall of 1861, and that it
was printed in Charleston in October of
that year.
Conditions Under Which He Wrote It
In telling of the conditions under which
he wrote the poem and the events which
prompted its writing, Major Fontaine
gives a most graphic description of the
conditions surrounding the soldier’s life
in 1861 when the armies of the north and
south lay confronting each other along
the shores of the Potomac.
On the night previous to the writing
of the poem, Major Fontaine in company
with a man by the name of Moore was
assigned a beat along the Confederate
shore of the riv^r. Moore had recently
received a letter from his young wife,
who with the children at home, was
aw'aiting with feverish impatience the
news from the front, and praying for the
safekeeping of the young husband who
had sacrificed the pleasures of his home
and family for the principles he believed
to be right.
He was in the act of reading the letter
to Fontaine when they were accosted by
a picket from across the river and asked
if they would like to exchange papers,
istajor Fontaine, then a private, waded
out to the middle of the river and the
exchange was effected. While converts
ing with his foeman, Fontaine was in
vited to take supper' with a small federal
detachment which was stationed nearby,
and putting on a federal overcoat, he ac
cepted. During the course of the evening
the federal lieutenant who was in charge
of the small detachment, spoke of the
unnecessary loss of life that was caused
by the guerrila warfare between the
pickets of the two armies, which lie
claimed was without^ause and which
gained nothing for either side. He stated
that if Fontaine would see to it that the
Confederates put a stop to the promiscu
ous firing at that point that he w^ould
see to it that his m£n would do so.
Signed an Agreement
Fontaine agreed and the two men drew
up and signed a contract to this effect.
T’pon returning to his camp, Fontaine
made known the agreement to the Con
federate pickets at that point, and these
readily acquiesced in carrying It out.
That night, not fearing a chance shot
from the opposite lines, Fontajne built
a fire near the termination of His beat—
a luxury which he had feared to enjoy
for some months—and paced back and
forth in full view of the fire. Toward
early morning, he wakened Moore to re
lieve him, but scarcely had his com
panion arisen from his bed In the sha
dows and approached the firelight, when
a shot rang out from across the river,
and the young Confederate pitched for
ward upon the ground, pierced through
the temple by a federal bullet.
“T ran at once to him,'’ said Major
Fontaine in describing the Incident, “and
saw a gush of blood pour from his scull,
and his brains scattered upon a paper
upon which he had fallen. Almost
paralyzed by the tragedy that had over
taken my young companion, I sat contem
plating the scene in a sort of dazed
stupor. T felt almost. like a murderer
for accepting the agreement of the fed
eral lieutenant and thus exposing Moore
to the fire of the enemy by building the
campfire. Then—for I was hotblooded
then, and saw hut one side of the great
question which had disrupted a nation—I
knelt by my companion and fervently
prayed to the God who held the universe
in the hollow of his hand, to give me the
power to wreak revenge upon my hated
enemy.
“I prayed for a markmanship that would
make my name one to be feared in the
camp of the federate. Gladly, I thought,
would I be willing to lay beside him, but
not until after I had lived to keep the
memory of his death before me to spur
me on to a service that might add its
mite in winning the cause for which my
people were struggling.
Gently Raised Companion
“Gently I raised my dead oompanian
from the position in which he had fallen,
and upon the paper beneath his head,
clotted with the blood that so recently
coursed his veins, I read in bold type
across .the page: ‘All quiet along the Po
tomac.’ /
“The bitter irony of the words burned
into ray brain as I clasped the body of
my dead companion to my bosom ami
thought of the young wife and children
back in Virginia who were praying for
the safety of their dear one upon the
field of battle. 1 seized the paper, and
there before the light of the campfire
and with the body of the dead soldier at
my side, 1 dashed off the first few verses
of the poem: ‘All Quiet Along the Poto
mac.’
“Later these were added to, and f dis
tributed copies of them to Confederate
pickets along our lines. It was not until
some time afterward that I had the first
prints of the poem made, and this was at
Charleston, S. C. The first copy of the
poem that came from the Washington
hand press at Charleston, I have given
to you.”
“All Quiet Along the Potomac Tonight”
ranks with “The Battle Hymn of the Re
public” and “Maryland, My Maryland,” as
three of the greatest of civil war poems
The poem as it appeared from the first
print at Charleston, follows:
“All is quiet along the Potomac, to
night,”
Except here and there a stray picket,
Is shot as he walks on his beat to and
fro w •
By a rifleman hid in the thicket.
’Tia nothing; a private or two now and
then
Will not count in the news of the
battle;
Not an officer killed; only one of the
men,
Moaning out alone the death rattle.
“All quiet along the Potomac tonight,”
Where the soldiers lie peacefully
dreaming;
And their tents in the rays of the clear
autumn moon
And the light of their camp fires are
gleaming.
A tremulous sigh as a gentle night
wind
Through the forest leaves softly is
creeping;
While the stars up above with their
glittering eyes
Keep guard over the army while
sleeping.
There’s only the sound of the lone sen
try’s tread,
* As he tramps from the rock to the
fountain;
And he thinks of the two in the low
trundle bed,
Far away in the cot on the mountain.
His musket falls slack—his face dark
and grim.
Grows gentle with memories tender;
As he mutters a prayer for the children
asleep,
And their mother—may heaven de
fend her.
The moon seems to shine as brightly
then—
That night when the love yet un
spoken ;
Leaped up to Ills lips, W'hen low' mur
mur vows
Were pledged to be ever unbrokem.
Then drawing his sleeve roughly over
his 65*cs. t
He dashes off tears that are welling:
And gathers his gun close up to his
breast.
As If to keep down the heart swell
ing.
He passed the fountain, the blasted
pine tree.
His footsteps are lagging and weary;
Yet. onward he goes thro* the broad
belt of light.
Towards the shades of the forest so
dreary.
Hark! Was It*the night wind rustled
the leaves?
Was it moonlight so wondrously
flashing?
Jt looked like a rifle! Ha! Mary, good
bye!
And his life-blood was ebbing and
plashing.
“All quiet along the Potomac tonight.”
No sound save the rush of the river.
While soft falls the dew on the facf
of the dead.
The picket’s off duty forever.
Mining in Pennsylvania
From the Philadelphia Press.
Tlie report issued by the state de
partment of mines is a gratifying rec
ord, both as relating to the prosperity
of the Pennsylvania mining industries
and the improved conditions of labor
in the bituminous and anthracite coal
fields. The statistics published for the
year past show that the coal produc
tion in this state amounted to one-half
of the total for the entire country.
The unprecedented output for 1912.
notwithstanding the halt made during
the deadlock in the anthracite section,
indicates an excess of 11.414,381 tons
over the high figures reached in 1907.
The summarized estimate of soft and
hard coal combined ani&untH to 245,
231,355 tons—a significant Index of
the flourishing business activities
throughout the United States.
Along with industrial progress, a
noteworthy feature of the report is the
decided falling off In the number of
accidents. These have* been reduced 15
per cent in the Pennsylvania mining re
gion. This happy issue Chief Roderick,
attributes to the beneficial operations
of the bituminous mine code of 1911.
For this reason lie advocates the enact
ment of the recommendations still un
der advisement of the commission ap
pointed in 1911 by legislature.
It is gratifying to note that the
miners are being effectually protected
and the perils of a dangerous vocation
sensibly lessened so far as safety ap
pliances and supervision can avail. That
this is largely due to the promptitude
and ready co-operation of the mine
owners in complying with the law is i
commendable phase of the present for
tunate conditions.
QUIET ALONG THI POTOMAC
TITLE PAGE OF FAMOUS SON|H
rom Copy of First Edition. Major Fontaine Sub^K
Authorship of the Words H
/ m