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WHEN THE HUSBAND
WENT OFF TO WAR
A Touching Record of tkt
Trials of A Soldier’s
Wife
By Nancy Caruthers Shaw,
As told to Mrs. Sam Shaw
In the year listil just, west of
Pigeon mountain in MeEejnore’s
cove, there was a littlecabin home
where I lived with my dear hus
band, •). E. Shaw, and three chil
dren, Sain, aged five, Eugenia,
aged three, and Tom, my baby
boy, a little over one year old. It
was a happy home,filled with love
him! peace. We had planted roses
around the door and the lilacs
and snowballs were bursting in
to bdd. The young corn was mark
ing the long rows in the fertile
fields and we made many happy
plans for t he future when we
would build a fine house on the
hill where our cabin home stood.
It was a beautiful Saturday af
ternoon; the week's work was
done; the cakes and [lies baked
and the hens dressed, all in readi
ness for the Sunday dinner and
my husband had gone to I,a Fay
ette. lie was to bring his sis
ter, .Mrs. Talley, home with him
for a visit, so the little ones and
I Were waiting in happy antic
ipation for their coming. Rumors
of war had reached us. but we
had supposed it would not
amount to very much if there
should be much fighting it would
not be anywhere near us.
Ibit iny limt heartache caused
by the war came that night when
my dear husband came home and
fold me he had volunteered to go.
Oh, how my heart ached. I spent
the night in prayer and tears and
the Sabbath morning, though
bright, brought no gladness to
me, what was I to do when my
dear one went away to the war.
But the hope that it would only
bn for a short time kept me tip.
Ah, had I known that it would
be for four long sad years 1 nev
er could have borne it.
Then came the preparations
for hia departure and with lov
ing hands I prepared his clothes
and by candle light I knitted his
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socks. Then came the sad parting
jver which 1 do not care to linger
or none except those W'ho have
experienced it can realize how
sad the parting with loved ones
with only a faint hope of ever
again seeing them alive. He went
with the infantry, so that our one
horse was left me to finish the
crop with. I had never plowed
but the corn was now needing to
be plowed and 1 bad decided to
try it, but my father sent us an
old negro man to do the plowing
and I, with the help of my little
five year old (toy did the hoeing
while the two little ones played
in the fence corners. Sam,
my little helper, would start
out in the . morning with a
brave determination to do all
the work, but when the sunshine
grew hot he would begin to cry
and want to know when pa would
come home and I would tell him
it would not he long, while in my
heart I prayed that it might be
so. The sad days of hard labor
and nights spent mostly in pray
ers and tears past by with only
I lie letters from the dear one so
far away to brighten them. Each
letter gave me renewed hope, lie
cause they told me he was alive
and the belief that the war would
not last long, but another year
past and still no hope of peace.
At about this time, some of our
neighbors and some supposed
friends formed themselves into a
band of tories solely for the pur
pose of looting and destroying
their neighbor's property. They
came to our home and took any
thing they could got their hands
on .bedding, clothing, knives and
forks; took the only pair of scis
sors I had and my sidesaddle.
This was in the third year of tin*
war, and my father thinking it
was not safe for me and the chil
dren to remain in the Cove had
moved us back to his home in
Duck Creek valley. His negroes
had all run away and my broth
ers were in the army. One of
them, Harry Caruthers, never
came home. He was killed in
the battle of the Wilderness. We
my sisters, Emily and Herper
nann, raised the cotton, picked the
seed out of it by hand, carded
it, spun it into thread and wove
the cloth that clothed our fami
ly. An I have already told you,
the tonies had taken my only
pair of scissors. I took an old
ease knife and ground it down to
WALKER COUNTY MESSENQ ER, APRIL 26, 1912.
a point and cut out my children's
clothes with it.
In 18611, just after the battle of
Gettysburg, the glad news came
that my husband had been
wounded, and that he was coin
ing home, and how I prayed that
the war might end before hecouhl
go back. Then began the prep
arations for his home coming. Ev
erything was cleaned up about the
house, the children's homespun
clothes neatly washed and iron
ed and laid away to wear wen pa
got home. My baby, Tom, could
scarcely remember his father, but
we had talked to him so much a
bout his coining that he was wild
with anticipation andwouldstand
in the road for hours looking for
him. It was in July and T told him
he must not stay in the hot sun
bareheaded and his one little bon
net and laid away to weai
on Sunday. lie came, in, hut ii,
a short time I saw him in the
road again with an old ironing rag
:>n his head and he said he wa>
waiting for pa. At last we had tin
pleasure of welcoming our loved
one home once more, wounded,
dirty arid tired, but ours, never
, tieless. Only a few short weeks
he stayed with us, then he return
ed to the army and he remained
until after the surrender.
THE MURDER OF
THE M c SPADOENS
Miss Orpha Center Tells the
Story of This Black
Crime
By Miss Orpha Center.
The McSpadden's, who during the
war, lived in the house now occupied
by Mr, Langley on the Broomtown
road, were one of the best known
and most highly respected families in
Walker county. The two young sons,
Earnest and Christopher, were con
sidered two of the most reliable and
genteel boys in the whole community.
They were scouts during the war,
and when Earnest was taken ill
down near Bethel In Chattooga coun
ty, and Christopher was nursing him.
Sam Roberts, a well known and much
feared desperado, together with a
band of outlaws, found out their
whereabouts, and after a desperate
light on the part of the boys, the
one who was sick In bed, using his
pistol too, they were killed. Mr.
Crawford, a neighbor, hearing of
their death sent one of his negroes
up to Bethel to dig the graves and
bury them, but these men who killed
them, threatened to kill the darky
if he touched them. Mr. Crawford
himself came and after talking to
them quite awhile, finally got them
to let him bury them, and with his
own hands he dug a grave and bur
ied them both together.
A short while after this terrible
murder by these outlaws, Sam Rob
erts came to my father's house here
In LaFayette early one morning,
bringing with him the clothes worn
by the McSpadden boys at the time
of their death, and told us he was
on Ilia way down to the McSpadden
place to make Mrs. McSpaddden cook
his breakfast, and to show her the
bullet holes in the clothes worn by
her sons. I begged him not to, tell
ing him of what a trial such a thing
would be to their mother, and finally
told him if I were her, and could get
it, I would give him a dose of pois
on in whatever I prepared. Nothing
would stop a man with such a stone
heart he had, and he went on down
there and accomplished his purpose.
SIOOD GUARD WHILE
REBEL SCOUTS DINED
By Mrs. W. A. Foster.
The battle of Chickamauga was
fought September 19-20,, 1863, which
j was Saturday and Sunday. My fath
er, Allen Williamson, lived in Mc-
Lemore’s Cove, on Cove road. On
the 17th scouts from both sides be
gan to pass through looking the
country over in getting the nearest
way towards Chickamauga. Hooker
was then coming across Lookout
mountain. Some Rebel scouts came
in at father’s; we asked them to
eat. They answered, “We haven't
time, the Yankees are near.” I said,
“let me stand picket.” They asked
if I could shoot, I answered, yes in
deed. Lieut. Camp gave me his
pistol; I stood guard, and they had
a hasty lunch. They came out. I
can never forget when they mount
ed they said, "if we never see you
again may God bless you.” They
had not been gone five minutes when
they came dashing back and said
Yankees were just behind. They
went South through a narrow lane to
BEAUTIFUL TREE GUARDS
AN HISTORIC SPOT
THE FAMOUS BRAGG OAK
On the public school around at LiFiyette where Gen. Bragg met his staff
before the battle of Chickamauga and gave orders for the fight. To the
right is seen the brick academy erected in the early days of LaFayette
where Gen. John B. Gordon ODCe went to school.
the creek, rode up the stream and
hid in some bushes and escaped. The
Yankees came up at break-neck speed
asking which way the Rebs went. I
told them to keep straight road go
ing west, I thought they might over
take them, for the Rebels had gone
another direction. On the 18th, the
road seemed to have turned blue;
you could smell them for miles, the
oil clothes were so strong. They
came in and robbed and carried off
corn, wheat, hogs, horses, chickens,
turkeys etc. One of the negroes came
‘ running and said, “Lord, Miss Nan
cy, they’s a takin off the bees,” but,
kind readers, believe me, that the
bees were victorious and how they
rolled on the clover for relief. Pick
et firing began at Andrew's Ford
and the nearer towards Chickamau
ga the fiercer, so on Saturday morn
ing it began in earnest and it was
continual firing.
You had better trade with me; I
give the most goods and the beßt
goods for the least money.—S. T.
Carson.