Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 89, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 11 April 1912 — WAR REMINISCENCES. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

WAR REMINISCENCES.

PATHETIC INCIDENT OF WAR Body of Unidentified Soldier Found at Gettysburg .Holding Picture of Three Children. All wars, as is Inevitable, give rise to many pathetic incidents, and our own Civil war was no exception in this respect, 'for after every battle came stories of individual heroism or sorrowful mementoes of the loyalty: anddevotion to the Union which actuated our soldiers all through the contest. > One melancholy incident that occurred after the battle of Gettysburg; was the finding of the body of a soldier, unidentified, who had in his dead' hand a picture representing three children, on which the eyes of the dying soldier had been fastened to the last. ~ The picture was brought to Philadelphia and the circumstances of its ; finding widely advertised in the newspapers of the country. A photographic copy of it was also made, in the hope that by its means the identity of the dead patriot would be ascertained and the whereabouts of his family discovered, says a writer in the Philadelphia• Enquirer. The copies were placed on ' sale and were purchased in consider* able numbers, as the proceeds, it was announced, were to be used for the benefit of the children if they were found, and failing that, were to be given to some benevolent institution for assisting soldiers. The broadcast publication of the facts relative to the finding of the soldier and the reproduction of the portraits of the children had the hoped-

for result, and it was ascertained that the soldier was a sergeant in the One Hundred and Fifty-fourth regiment of New York staite volunteers, named Hummistoh, who before he enlisted had resided in Portville, N. Yr- - ’ Bls widow recognized the pictures, the first reliable Information she had received of her husband’s death on the battlefield. Details of his life were eagerly sought for and it soon became generally known that Sergeant Hummiston had been a hamessmaker by trade, though early in life he had been a sailor, making .several whaling voyages to the south Pacific. He enlisted after the call for 500,000 more volunteers, citizens of Portville assuring him that his family should not suffer during bls absence. He was with his regiment at the battle of Chancellorsvllle and his captain testified to his good conduct, soldierly qualities and courage during the engagement Indeed, all who knew him in the army or in Ms home town also testified to his sterling and lovable character. The original picture was sent to Mrs. HummiSton and the story was the means of creating a wide and heartfelt interest in the widow and the three children, with beneficial results to them all. -■

Eyes of the Dying Soldier Had Been Fastened on the Picture to the Last.