"THINK O' YER MITHER."

Bush Advocate, Volume VII, Issue 650, 16 July 1892, Page 5

"THINK O' YER MITHER."

I The Rev. F. G. Young, in the memoir of his | father, and extracts from his own journal, writes : The following story was told me by a gentleman whom I met in Wiltshire, and whom I have never seen since, I (In not pretend to toll it in liis own *\vords, I only answer for the f nets as I rememher them : — A widowod lady was fortunato onough to obtain for her ton, a boy at Harrow, not yet 18 years of age, a commission without purchaeo. A few weeka after receiving it his regiment was ordered oat to the Crimea, in ltiot. Many weeks elapsed, during which the mother was iv great anxiety in consequence of never having received a lino from hor sou. The first iutelligence«she received of him was in a lottor published iv one of tho newspapers, and written by an amateur spectator who had witnessed tho first engagement between the Itusaiana and tho Allied Forces at tho Alma. After giving sundry details of tho battle itself, lie went on to deacriba the ctscs of individual heroism which ha liad witnessed, and among the number lie mentioned tha courage of a lad of eighteen, who turned out to bathe widow's son. Jn the pride of her heart she wrote to him in terms of praiso natural to a mother, culling him " her hero boy." Tho letter ebo received from him in reply seems to have been both candid and modest — I cannot pretend to repeat with any degree ot verbal accuracy alettel'l never saw, imil only hajnl recited secoud-haud, but this was its purport: — " 2xow, dear mother, that your feaTS about ray safety arouilayod, and that you have been choortd by f.ivour.ib'o iutelligeuca of nic, I must undecoivo jou iis to my having any right to such an opilhet as you applied to me in your letter. I must confo.-a to you that when 1 saw tho liufshu guns open fire, and bsheld tho 3n;oke wreathing itself upon ilia heights, 1 felt disposed to run away as fa^t as my leps could carry ti:e. 1 fcit I was a bom coward ! Aly tongue clove to the roof of my mouth, my heart beat ag.vfnst my ribs like a sled»o hammer, my *nees knocked together. I could not resist looking over my left shoulder to see how the laud lay behind me, when Buddeuly I was onacioujof a strong hand between my shoulder blades, and a kindly voice in good broad Scotih saying to me, ' Come, laddie, forwaid, mou, forwaid ! Duty — aye, duty ." At that moment had I been twitted with what must have beep, plain to read iv my ashen face and shrinking step, I fear I should have run away. Cut there was something co encouraging in the tone of the friendly worJs, coupled with tho brave bearing of our old serseniit-mttjor, that I felt as if I hud had a freah Dackbouo put into me. " On I wont for somo little distance, till, as I arew closer to tho scene of actiou I saw more of the hideoua effects of shot and shell, I found myEeli once morelookingovcrtjthaleft; when again the same hand was at my back, and the same Iciud wnrds repeated iv my ear, ' Eh, air ! Come, com o, iaddio; yo'vo done verra weel. Forward, then ! puty's the worJ — aye duty. Com?; than ; I'm just proud o' j-q.'' "Inspired with a fresh ambition to deserve his gor.d opinion, and tho more so en account of his generosity and forbearance, I put forth all tho energy and resolution that 1 could muster, until the man on my right, and the other on my left, wf re ahct down by my side. This was too much for my coward heart. Nature asserted itself, and I deliberately turned round to fly, when both my shoulders were again seized ia au iron grasp, and these words were hissed iv my ears : •' Fie, fi<>, laddie ! Think o' yer mither !' . Then it was that, stung with self-reproach, and wrought up to resolution by tho magic power of that name, I- remember springing forward, rushing iuto the very thick of tho fray, and, I hope, bearing myself as a soldier."