Civil War on Sunday
Page 3
“Thank you,” the boy whispered.
“You know, you’re the bravest kid I’ve ever met,” Jack said.
The drummer boy smiled at Jack.
“You look just like my little brother,” he said hoarsely.
“You look just like my big brother,” said Jack, “except I don’t have a big brother. I don’t have any brothers.”
The three of them laughed. The drummer boy’s laugh was very soft.
The boy laid his head back on his pillow and closed his eyes again.
In a moment, he was sleeping peacefully. A smile was on his lips.
Annie felt his forehead.
“His fever’s gone down,” she said. “We should go tell Clara.”
Annie left the tent.
Jack got up and slowly followed her.
When he reached the entrance of the tent, he turned and looked back. The shadows of twilight fell across the boy’s calm, sleeping face.
It was strange. Jack hardly knew the drummer boy. But he felt they could be brothers.
Listening to the cannon fire in the distance, Jack was afraid for the boy.
Will he live to see his family again? Jack wondered.
“Good luck, John,” Jack said softly.
With a heavy heart, Jack stepped out into the warm evening air.
“Annie?” said Jack.
“Over here!” she called.
Jack saw two figures standing in the twilight.
He walked over to Annie and Clara. They all stared in the direction of the distant battlefield.
Bright lights flashed against the dark blue horizon—cannon shells exploding.
“Every time you see a flash, you know a shell may have taken a life or many lives,” said Clara.
“That’s awful,” said Annie.
“Yes, it is,” said Clara. “A whole world can vanish in that flash—all a young man’s joys and sorrows, all his memories.”
“This is a cruel war!” said Annie.
“All wars are cruel,” said Clara Barton. “People feel they must fight for causes they believe in. But they soon discover that war is not about glory and fame. It’s about misery and terrible pain and sadness.”
“It makes me miss my mom and dad,” said Annie. “It makes me really miss them.”
Annie sounded tired and homesick. Finally, she had lost her cheerfulness.
“I think it’s time for you two to go home,” said Clara.
Jack thought of all the wounded men who needed food and water and kindness and comfort.
“No!” Jack said. “We have to stay. We can’t give up. That’s on the list—Don’t give up.”
Jack pulled out their list to show Clara Barton.
“Oh, yes,” she said, nodding. “I see one of my nurses has written down the things I often say. Let me add one thing more—Do not forget the ones who love you.”
Jack heaved a big sigh. He was homesick, too.
“Can we keep the list?” he asked.
“Of course,” said Clara. “You don’t have to work in a hospital to follow my words. They work in all of life no matter where you go.”
“Thanks,” said Jack.
“My thanks to both of you,” said Clara Barton. “You were great helpers.”
“You were a great teacher,” said Annie.
“Good-bye,” said Clara Barton. “Be very careful going home.”
“We will,” said Jack and Annie. “Bye.”
The sun was setting as they walked out of the camp. The boom of cannons sounded in the distance.
Soldiers sang a song around a campfire.
We’re tenting tonight
on the old camp ground;
Give us a song to cheer
Our weary hearts,
a song of home,
And friends we love so dear.
Jack and Annie walked through the darkening field. By the time they reached the woods, the stars were out.
They climbed up the rope ladder to the tree house. Annie grabbed the Pennsylvania book.
“Wait,” said Jack.
He looked out the window. He couldn’t see anything below. But the soldiers’ song still carried through the warm, starry night.
Many are the hearts
that are weary tonight,
Wishing for the war to cease …
As Jack listened, he thought of Clara Barton, the elderly slave, the young Confederate soldier, and John, the drummer boy …
“War is not a game,” Jack said softly. “It is definitely not a game.”
Many are the hearts
looking for the right
To see the dawn of peace.
The song ended. The cannon fire stopped. The night was quiet, except for the croaking of frogs.
“Ready?” Annie whispered.
“Ready,” said Jack.
“I really wish we could go home,” Annie said, pointing to the picture of the Frog Creek woods.
The wind started to blow.
The tree house started to spin.
It spun faster and faster.
Then everything was still.
Absolutely still.
There was a booming in the distance.
Jack opened his eyes and caught his breath. Is that cannon fire? he wondered. Are we still back in the Civil War?
“We’re home,” said Annie. “Home, sweet home.”
“Oh, man,” Jack whispered.
They were home. They were back in the Frog Creek woods. They were wearing their own comfortable clothes again.
The cannon fire was really only thunder. At that moment, Jack loved the thunder.
Raindrops tapped against the tree house.
“We better hurry,” said Jack.
“Wait. Leave the list in the tree house,” said Annie. “It’s the first special writing for Morgan’s library. Something to follow.”
Jack took the list of Clara Barton’s rules out of his pack. He put it on the floor next to Morgan’s letter.
“I wonder how that list will help save Camelot?” he said.
“I don’t know,” said Annie. “But you know what’s weird about getting that list? I think we couldn’t just have taken it home when we first got it. We had to live it first.”
Jack nodded. Annie was completely right, he thought. He picked up his backpack.
“Wait! I see another note!” said Annie.
She picked a piece of paper off the tree house floor. On it was written: Come back on Wednesday.
“I guess that’s when Morgan wants us to look for the next special writing,” said Annie.
“That’s in three days,” said Jack. “Let’s go home and rest.”
He started down the rope ladder. Annie followed.
When they stepped onto the ground, the rain began to pour down.
“Run!” said Jack.
They ran through the Frog Creek woods, then down their street. They ran to their porch and dashed into their dry, cozy house.
They found their parents reading in the living room.
“Dad! Mom!” Annie cried. “We’re so glad to see you!”
“Well, we’re—we’re glad to see you, too,” their dad said, sounding a little puzzled.
“Go put on dry clothes,” said their mom.
Jack and Annie started up to their rooms. Halfway up the stairs, Jack stopped.
“Oh, I have a question,” he called to his parents. “Did anyone in our family fight in the Civil War?”
Their dad looked surprised. “Yes,” he said. “One of your great-great-great-grandfathers was a drummer boy.”
“Oh, man,” whispered Jack.
“What was his name, Dad?” asked Annie.
“John,” their dad said.
Jack and Annie gasped.
“And—and what happened to John?” Jack asked. “Was he hurt in the war?”
“No, he grew up to be a schoolteacher,” their mom said. “He had five children.”
Jack and Annie whooped with joy.
> “That’s great news!” said Annie.
“Really great news!” said Jack. “Thanks for telling us!”
“Sure.” Their dad smiled, though he looked puzzled again.
As Jack hurried up to his room, some words from the Civil War song ran through his mind:
Give us a song to cheer
Our weary hearts, a song of home …
FACTS FOR YOU AND JACK
1) More soldiers were killed in the Civil War than in any other war in American history.
2) In 1861, when the Civil War began, about 3.5 million people were slaves in the South.
3) In 1865, President Abraham Lincoln convinced Congress to pass the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which abolished slavery throughout the nation.
4) Eleven states fought for the Confederacy. Twenty-three states fought for the Union. A number of territories also fought for the Union.
5) Soldiers during the Civil War often sang songs together. One of the most famous songs was “Tenting Tonight on the Old Camp Ground,” written in 1861 by Walter Kittredge.
“Tenting Tonight on the Old Camp Ground”
We’re tenting tonight on the old camp ground;
Give us a song to cheer
Our weary hearts, a song of home,
And friends we love so dear.
(Chorus)
Many are the hearts that are weary tonight,
Wishing for the war to cease;
Many are the hearts looking for the right
To see the dawn of peace.
Tenting tonight, tenting tonight,
Tenting on the old camp ground.
We’ve been tenting tonight on the old camp ground,
Thinking of days gone by,
Of the loved ones at home that gave us the hand
And the tear that said, “Good-bye!”
(Chorus)
Check out the Web site www.civilwarmusic.net/songs.php for more songs of the Civil War.
CLARA BARTON
Clara Barton, known as the “Angel of the Battlefield,” nursed soldiers during the Civil War. She also used her own money to bring them supplies. After the war, she formed a bureau to search for soldiers who were missing as a result of the war. Her work brought information to more than 22,000 families.
In 1881, Clara Barton founded the American Red Cross. Her organization not only provides relief during times of war but also helps people who have suffered terrible natural disasters, such as hurricanes or floods.
DRUMMER BOYS
It is thought that nearly 60,000 boys served as drummer boys or buglers in the Civil War. One of the youngest drummer boys was Johnny Clem, who enlisted at the age of eleven. He was so brave that he was made a sergeant when he was only thirteen!
Here’s a special preview of
Magic Tree House #22
Revolutionary War on Wednesday
Available now!
Excerpt copyright © 2000 by Mary Pope Osborne.
Published by Random House Children’s Books,
a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
“Wake up, Jack!” Annie whispered.
Jack opened his eyes. He looked at his clock. It was six A.M.
“Come on!” Annie whispered. She was standing at his bedroom door, already dressed.
“Now?” said Jack.
“Yeah, it’s Wednesday! We have to go to the tree house!” she said.
“Oh, man, Wednesday!” said Jack. Suddenly, he was wide awake.
“We have to help save Camelot,” said Annie.
“I know, I know,” said Jack, scrambling out of bed.
“Meet you out front,” said Annie.
Jack quickly changed into his jeans and T-shirt. He threw his notebook and pencil into his backpack.
Then he slipped down the stairs and out the front door.
Annie was waiting in the gray early light.
“All set?” she whispered.
“Yep,” said Jack.
They took off running across their yard. They ran down their quiet street and into the Frog Creek woods.
Soon they came to the tree house. They climbed up the rope ladder.
In the early light, they saw Morgan’s note, the same note they’d found on Sunday. Jack picked it up and read aloud:
Dear Jack and Annie,
Camelot is in trouble. To save the kingdom, please find these four special kinds of writing for my library:
Something to follow
Something to send
Something to learn
Something to lend
Thank you,
Morgan
Annie picked up a piece of paper lying on the floor. It was a list of rules from the famous nurse Clara Barton. They had met her on their journey to the Civil War.
“On Sunday we found the first special writing,” said Annie, “something to follow.”
“Yeah,” said Jack, “and now we need to find the second thing, something to send.”
He picked up a book lying near the note. The cover showed soldiers on a snowy riverbank.
The title was The Revolutionary War.
Jack frowned.
“Uh-oh,” said Annie.
“Another war,” said Jack, sighing.
“You still want to go?” said Annie.
“We have to,” said Jack. He hated the suffering he’d seen in the Civil War. But they had no choice. They had to help Morgan and save Camelot.
He pointed at the cover of the book.
“I wish we could go there,” Jack said.
The wind started to blow.
The tree house started to spin.
It spun faster and faster.
Then everything was still.
Absolutely still.
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#6: AFTERNOON ON THE AMAZON
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#19: TIGERS AT TWILIGHT
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#22: REVOLUTIONARY WAR ON WEDNESDAY
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