Show A WATERLOO VETERAN ze he was proud of his EUs medal maw and d his son s how fate drifted the old veteran into inter our little canadian lake irle erie village I 1 never new drifted him no he ever marched as if under the orders of his commander tall thin white haired close shaven and always in knee breeches and long stockings kings ho he was an antique and martial figure presh fresh whitefish was his cry which he delivered as if calling all the village to i fall i in for drill so impressive was his demeanor that he dignified his occupation for years after he disappeared the peddling of white whitefish fish by horse and cart was r regarded in that district as highly respectable L spec table it was a glorious trade when hen old john locki held the steel yards and served out the glittering fish with an air of distributing for ii a long days combat I 1 believe I 1 noticed on the first day I 1 saw raw him how he tapped his hia left breast with a proud gesture when he had done with a lot of customers and was about abou t to march again at the tha head of his bis horse that restored him from trade to his tol dier ship he had saluted his wat waterloo arloo there bene beneath nth Us hia threadbare old 01 a blue mat coat it lay always felt by the heart i of the hero her why he ha wear wair le it out outside I 1 once asked he used to said my father t till ll 11 1 hiram scudder the druggist as ke d him what hed take for the bu bit of bf pewter what did old john say sal sir 11 take for the bit of pewter said laid he looking hard at scudder with scerni scorn ive took better mens lives nor ever yours was for to get it and rd id sell my own for it na as quick ax as ever I 1 offered it before 11 more fool you said scudder 11 youre youle 1 said old john very calm and cool youre but walking dirt frona from that day forth he would never sell scudder a fish he touch his money it must have been late in in 1854 or early in 1855 that I 1 first fast saw the medal going home from school on a bright winter afternoon I 1 met old john jan walking very erect without his usual fish supply A dull round white spot was clasped on the left breast of his coat mr locke said caid the snail small boy admiration is I 1 that your glorious flo riona waterloo medal youre a good little bladl he stooped to let me see BOO tha noble pewter wars declared against etoshia Eo Ro oshia went on the old man and tows laws right to show it the old regiments s sailed and my only son is with the colors then he took me by the lidid hafid and led m me e into the village store there where the lawyer wyer read aloud the news from the paper that the old veteran gaie cafe him in those days there was no railway wit within ha a fifty fiat y miles of us it had chanced that some fisherman brou brought gilt old john a later paper than any previously received in the village ay but the duke is i a gone said he shaking his white head and its curio curious us to bo be fighting on the same aide with another boney all that winter and the next all the long summer between old john displayed his medal when thi the report of alma came his remarks on tho the french lailure to get into the fight were severe what was they ever without bonay he would inquire but a letter from his son eon after inkerman changed all that half of us waa killed and the rest of us clean tired with fighting wrote corporal locke what with a bullet through the flesh of my right leg and d the fatigue of using the bayonet so 0 o long I 1 was war like to drop the russians Busa Rusa ians were coming on again as it there was no end to them when strange drums came sounding in the mist behind us with that we closed up and faced half balf round thinking they i had outflanked out flanked us and the daywan day was gone so 10 there was nothing more to todo do but make out to die hard like the sons bons of waterloo men you would have been pleased to see the looks of what was left of the old regiment father then all of a sudden a french lumn column 0 o came up the rise out of the tai mitt t roaring their drums beating the charge we gave them room for we wore were too dead tired to go first on they went like mad ad at the russians so that was the end of a hard mornings work I 1 was down fainted with loss of blood but I 1 win will soon be fit for duty again when I 1 came to myself there was a frenchman pouring brandy down my throat and talking in his hir gibberish as kind as any chris christian wan never a word will I 1 say agin them red legged french again show me the man that w would growled old john it was never j in them french to act cowardly di abnot they beat all the world except us a and the duko with the ending of the Crime crimean anwar war our village was waa illuminated rows of tallow candles in every window fireworks in a vacant field and a torchlight old john marched at its head in full fall regimentals straight as a ramrod the hero of the night his son had been promoted sergeant for bravery on the field we boys thought the old army of wellington kept ghostly step with john Locke while le aerial drums pealed and beat with rejoicing at the now new glory of english speaking men aft after that the old man again wore his medal concealed the chinese war w of 1857 was too contemptible to c celebrate by displaying his badge of wa waterloo ter then cams came the dreadful tale of the mutiny meems delhi cawn porel after the we tale of nana Bali sahibo sahibs flos massacre was waa read to old john he ha never smiled I 1 think week weak after week month after month as hideous tidings poured rapidly in his face became more haggard gray and dreadful the tha feeling that he ha was waa too old for use seemed to shame him he ha no longer carried his hi head high as of yore that his eon bon was not marching behind havelock with the avenging avenging army seemed to cut tho the veteran sorely borely sergt locke had sailed with the old regiment to join outram in persia before the broke loose irm im feared some things gone wrong with my heart months went by before we ara learned that the troops tor for persia had been stopped on their way and thrown into india against the mutineers muti at that news old john marched into the village with a prouder air than he be had worn for many days his medal was waa again displayed on his breast it was but the next month I 1 think that the lawyer stood reading aloud the account of a great fort the veteran entered the post office and all made way for him the reading went on re the blowing open of the eastern gate was the grandest personal exploit of 01 the attack it was performed by native nativa sappers rappers covered by the fire e of the sixtieth regiment and headed by liedts howe and salkeld smith carmichael cai michael burgess and locke the lawyer paused every eye turned to the face of the old waterloo soldier he straightened up to keener attention threw out his chest tapped the glo glorious OUs medal and so saluted the names of 7 the brave god be praised my ton son waa therel he said read bead on sergt carmichael while laying the powder was killed and the native wounded the powder having been laid the advance party slipped down into the ditch to allo allow w the th fixing firing party under salkeld to do its duty 1 while trying to fire the charge he ha was shot through ane one leg and arm ile he sank but handed the match to bergt burgess who waa at onee one shot hot dead sergt locke already wounded severely in the shoulder then joked the match and succeeded in firina the train refell he tell at anar moment liter literally aUy riddled with bullets 11 bead on 11 said old ohn john in a deeper voice all forbore to look his face others other of the party were falling ga bac slight gite was as blodi fragments and the oxford oxford light infantry under col campbell rushed into the breach there was a long silence in th the e post omee tul till old john spoke c once more in 0 the lord god be thanked than kell for all his dea dealings links with us my son sergt locke died well for england nervously fingering the medal on his breast the old soldier wheeled about and marched arched in proudly straight down the middle of the village street to his lone lofie y cabin the villagers never saw him in in life if again next day he did not a appear ap pp r all ali refrain retrained ed from intruding on his mourning but in the evening when th the rector erector heard of his parishioners parishioner loss he walked to old johns home b there stretched upon his straw strai bed ed he lay in his antique regimentals stiller than at attention all his medals I 1 ia fastened below t that h at of waterloo walterl oo 00 above his hia quiet beart his right hand band lay on an open bible his face wore an expression of looking forever and ever upon sergt locke and the great commander who takes back unto him the heroes he fashions to sweeten the tha world toronto mail |