"
"I don't think they were a bit nice," said Budge, with
considerable decision.
"Well, the first soldiers wanted to kill THEM, Budge."
"Then they was ALL bad, to want to kill each other."
"Oh, no, they weren't; there were a great many real good men on
both sides."
Poor Budge looked sadly puzzled, as he had an excellent right to
do, since the wisest and best men are sorely perplexed by the
nature of warlike feeling.
"Both parties of soldiers were on horseback," I continued, "and
they were near each other, and when they saw each other they made
their horses run fast, and the bugles blew, and the soldiers all
took their swords out to kill each other with, when just then a
little boy, who had been out in the woods to pick berries for his
mama, tried to run across the road, and caught his toe some way,
and fell down, and cried. Then somebody hallooed 'Halt!' very
loud, and all the horses on one side stopped, and then somebody
else hallooed 'Halt!' and a lot of bugles blew, and every horse on
the other; side stopped, and one soldier jumped off his horse, and
picked up the little boy--he was only about as big as you, Budge--
and tried to comfort him; and then a soldier from the other side
came up to look at him, and then more soldiers came from both
sides to look at him; and when he got better and walked home, the
soldiers all rode away, because they didn't feel like fighting
just then.
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