While we were doing duty at Arlington many of the fair sex of Washington and Georgetown frequently honored us with their presence at our dress parades, and among them was the beautiful and charming daughter of Mrs. E. D. E. N. Southworth, the gifted authoress, who resided in a pretty rose-embowered cottage that nestled among the trees and shrubbery on Georgetown heights, and just across the Potomac from our fort.
Adjt. Lawrence of the Second New York was about as slick a looking officer as ever walked out in front of a regiment on dress parade, and it is not strange that Miss Southworth fell in love with him, and an intimacy sprang up that resulted in the fair young southern girl changing her name to Mrs. James V. Lawrence.
During the preliminaries the writer was the bearer of many presumably tender missives over to the Georgetown cottage, and as he had to wait for the sweet-scented replies he was entertained by Mrs. Southworth, who probably knew just how fond a young, growing boy is of lemonade, cakes and other sweet things, and the charming lady took it upon herself to make life very pleasant to the youngster during the brief visits at her home. Soon after the marriage of the young couple Lieut. Lawrence was detailed on staff duty and was never returned to our regiment.
How well I remember my first Christmas in camp. Our company was at Fort Haggerty on the road leading from the Acqueduct bridge to Arlington. Capt. Smith’s home had been one of the handsomest in Carthage before the war and under his command the fort had been transformed into one of the slickest ones in the defences of Washington.
Christmas morning in 1862, after the calling of the roll our company formed in line and marched up in front of the captain’s quarters. Several of the boys had provided themselves with some nice evergreen trees, and when the captain appeared the command was given “present arms” and the movement was executed with the trees. The fifer and drummer of the company then played “Hail to the Chief” and “The Girl I Left Behind Me.”
The captain appeared mightily pleased and made us a nice little speech, and said that he wished that he could send us all home for the holidays but as that was an impossibility he had planned to make us as happy as circumstances would permit, and the quartermaster had been furnished money to get up a dinner in keeping with the occasion. Cheers and a tiger were given for our kind-hearted commander, and then the voice of one who has several times been mentioned by the writer spoke out: “Pardon me axin’ the question, cap’n, but would there be a wee drop for anny so inclined?” The captain smiled and nodded affirmatively.