Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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i V Barnwell, ‘j- Stock $10,000.00 -4 Home Bank Building South Carolina - Loans on improved Farm Lands on long time and easy terms negotiated. „ No commission charged, usual rate of interest. State, County, School and Municipal Bonds bought and sblcj. , Those desiring loans, or wishing to invest oh good security call on or write any of the officers or directors. W.e wrte Fire and Life Insurance. . \ 4 . Brown & Bush, Attorneys. . . i ; -4. Harry D. Calhoun, President. ' J. M. Easterling, Vice-President. N. G. W. Walker, Secretary and Treasurer. N. Lawton Kirkland, Physician. DIRECTORS. A. M. Kennedy, President Hank ot WiMiston, Williston, S. C J. Fred Lightsey, Director Citizens Bank, Fairfax, S. C. B. M. Jenkins, Sr., President Bank of_ Kline, Kline, S. C. E. A. Brown, Attorney-at-Law and Court Stenographer, Barnwell, S. C J. Norman Anderson, Agent Southern Railway, Barnwell, S. C. E. H. Oswald, President Bank of Allendale, Allendale, S. C. John M. Easterling, Planter and Cotton Buyer, Barnwell, S. C. Julien J. Bush, Attorney-at-Law, Barnwell, S. C. W. H. Duncan, Clerk of Court for Barnwell County, Barnwell, S. C. ; - --r - DIRECTORS. ' " Harry Rich, Planter and Cotton Buyer, lilackville, S. C. N. Lawton Kirkland, Practicing Physician, Barnwell, S. C. N. G. W. Walker, Cashier Home Bapk, Barnwell, S. C. J A. Porter, Merchant and Cotton Buyer, Barnwell, S. C. • Harry D. Calhoun, President Home Bank of Barnwell, Barnwell, S. C. B. L. Easterling, Director Home Bank, Barnwell, S. ! C. J. O. Sanders, Planter and Director Home Bink of Barhwell, Barnwell, S.C W. I. Johns, Planter, Baldoc, S. C. Herbert E. Gyles, Attorney-at-Law._ Blackville, S. C. B-.F. Anderson, Merchant and Cotton Buyer, Dunbarton, S. C. i All .T'lrxiin^i® to Jr^Limn Wl io Waits. Emily Porter in the December Number of “High School Idea” The day was beautiful, as only a Southern June day can be. The warm sunshine shone on the large Colonial home; it made dancing shadows through the maple leaves on the driveway below; it played on the sparkling little^ lake; and it brought out the rich colors in the huge flower beds on either side of the circular steps. The lawn was like a carpet of green velvet sloping gradually dawn to the hedge that divided it from the whiteness of the sand road outside. The old maples swayed and sang softly in the light breezes as they met overhead. Every tired pass er-by would stop and peer in the great iron gates at the cool whiteness of the house at the end of the avenue, and look longingly at the comfortable chairs and hammocks all around. Old Tom stood at the edge of the porch holding a beautiful pony, waiting for “Miss Millie" to take her morning ride. “Thank you. Tom! Good-bye, Mumsey! Good-bye, Daddy! I’ll be back soon.” - Millie'Clarkson was a pretty girl with large brown eyes, long and curly auburn hair, a fair complexion, white pearly teeth and ruby red lips. She was the oojy child of Colonel and Mrs. Clarkson and was very much petted by both. She always had a kind word and pleasant smile for everybody, therefore, not only the slaves loved her but all the people in the village. She looked particularly pretty as she galloped down^the avenue this morning in a pink dress While the'breeze seemed to be playing hide and seek in her curls. . — — -When Bh€ turned out of the avenue into the road leading to the village, Mrs. Clarkson turned to her hus band and seeing the worried look on his face asked: .. “What is the matter, Harry? Have you had bad news ?" “Yes, Annies I had news from Richmond today. Lee needs all the men he can get, for he fears the Yankees will make their third attempt to take the capital." Millie, taking the mail from the box in the small pctet office, noticed that one of the letters to her father was from Fort Meyers. She hastened to her little horse, and hastily jumping on, fairly flew over the road home. Tom met her at the mounting block and Millie threw_ him the reins without a word of thanks. ^She rushed-ineo the drawing room where her father was sitting. “Oh,.daddy, here’s a letter from Fort Meyers!. Has? Richmond been taken?" Mr. Clarkson’s hand trembled as he opened th^ en velope and his face turned white as he read: He turned to Millie, saying: “Yes, daughter, Richmond has been taken and I njust- go!” - . , ’/ /. . Just as the sun was pinking to rest, Mr. Clarkson rode away on his black horse followed, by the faithful Tom. His wife and daughter stood on the porch, biting their lips to keep back the tears. „ Many months have passed and we now see Millie on her way to the post office for the weekly letter from her father. As she passed through a small pine thicket she was startled by a sudden-“Halt!” She reigned in her horse and was very much surprised to see a Yankee sol dier standing fn front of her. - “Pardon me, I did not know it was a lady I had stopped, but may I ask you the road to Happy Valley?" he politely asked. ~ JVith a cold look in her eyes she answered shortly: “I doti’t know, but if. I did I don’t think I’d tell a ‘Yankee’soldier.” — < “But don’t you live in these parts?” he asked. “I am trying to get my soldiers to Happy Valley, and we were told a few miles back that this was the road." . ■ “Yes, I do live around here, but I think you are on the wrong road. May I pass? I am in a hurry," said Mil lie impatiently. “Yes, you may pass, but let’s part friends, not ehe- mies. Here’s my address. You may need me sometimes. Now, may I ask what is your name?’’ “Millie Clarkson,” she threw back at him as she gal-' loped off. . . “What do I want with his address?” she asked her self when she got out of sight, and throwing down the slip of paper he had handed her she went on. “But, I may need him sometimes, so maybe I’d better keep it,” she said so she turned around to gee the paper. Written on it in a large hand was— Jack Decatur.. Happy Valley until Dec. 21, then Fort Hudson. • < . . Tw’o months have passed since Millie’s meeting with the “Yankee” officer. “Hey, there, you old Nigger! Give these horses o’ mine some water and be quick about it, too.” These were thewords that frightened Millie and her mother one-lovely morning in December, and looking*out of the window they saw a crowd of Yankee soldiers out on the lawn addressing the negro boy Juba. “Yas, suh, shoa I will, and I’d give ’em wine, but some o’ them Yankee people done gone and took all the wine we had,” answered Juba. “Dis hyar war am ter rible. We’s gettin’ so po’ we had tb turn the butler off ’cause his suit done wo’ out, and Mis’ Annie she can’t -ford to go and buy ’nothqr fer ’im, an’ all ob de horses done* gone, an’ all de carri’ges, and mosa eberyt’ing else. I reckon we’ll soon be turned out o' de house.” , “Hush up and give the horse some water. Come op, fellaws, u we’ll see what we can find inside.” With this they walked into the house. They were met'at the dorr by Millie and her mother, who politely asked what they wanted. “None of your business,” curtly replied the leader. -“Stand back, wiU you, till we pass. We’re going to see what we can find.” With this he rudely pushed the two women aside and started toward the cellar steps, followed by his men. “Oh, mother, what will we do?” cried Millie. “I don’t know, dear, but we must do something.” In a few moments the men came back with their arms loaded with groceries. “We have pitched our tents in your yard,” said the leader, “and will camp here for the present.” it” “Indeed,” said Millie, “how kind of you "Well, you see, we Northerners are not as kind as the Southern gentlemen.” . /" “So I see.” . X “I would like to hear some music,” said the Yankee. “Won’t you play for me?”. “Yes, I’ll play for you,” and seating herself at the piano Millie began to play “Dixie.” , “Stop that!” cried the angry leader as he grabbed her by the arm, which caused Millie to give a wince of pain. “What does all this mean?” said a voice in the door. “Where have I heard that voice before?” said Millie to herself. “Oh! it is Jack Decatur; why, what could * have brought him here?” “W’hat are those tents doing in the yard?” Decatur asked. “We decided this would b« anice place to camp, so we pitched ours out there/’ answered the other Yankee. “Well, you can be moving them out, and don’t let me hear of anything like this again. Understand?” “I am sorry this happened," he said, turning to Mil lie, “but these are not our regular men; they are deserters from the South. He >vas coldly thanked by* Millie and her mother as they left. Several days later as Millie was riding home her pony suddenly stopped as a man fell out of the bushes in to the road. Who could this be? He was a Yankee be cause he wore the uniform. Must she ride'on or stop? No, she could not leave anyone lying in the road uncon scious, even if he was a Yankee. These were the thoughas that ran through her mind before she passed the man. Calling to Juba, who was coming behind her, she got off her pony to look at the man. She jumped back as if she had been shot when she saw that the man on the - ground in front of her was Jack Decatur. Juba came up about this time, and Millie sent him to a nearby spring for water. Decatur was murmuring something and Millie lean ed over to catch the words: “Target practice—the boys 'hit me instead.” In a few moments Juba returned with the water, then Millie sent him to the soldiers camp for some of the men. Decatur opened his eyes and murmured, “Millie.” “Mr. Decatur,”, she answered sternly. “It was very kind of you to help me, and I want to thank you.” , . “I couldn’t see even a Northerner suffer unattend ed,” Millie answered., • - Oh!Shehaddroppedthehated“Yankee.” - " “Millie, won’t you?” he pleaded. ^ "V 1 “Jack,” she murmured faintly, “be a stainless gen tleman till the end of this war and if we meet again who knows what will happen ?” With these words Millie jumped on her pony and gal loped off while'irt the distance she saw the soldiers hurry ing toward Jack Decatur. ^ y f T f T t t T T t T f T ❖ : ? T f ? I I T T T T T T T T T i i f t Send Us Your Next Order for Job Work. We have the best equipped plant in Barnwell ’•'.tv and guarantee quick delivery. Brief and pamphlet work a specialty.