The Child of Waterloo, or, The Horrors of the Battle-Field — page 16: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE CHILD OF WATERLOO. 18 of it, and let him know from time to time how it was getting on, he felt so overcome by the loss of blood. which had ensued from his wound, and the agony which the being carried from the field gave him, that he fainted, and remained for many hours in a state of unconsciousness. During that time he was taken to one of the hospitals, his wounds dressed, and himself placed in as comfortable circum- stances as the resources of the army on the night of that day of carnage could afford. CHAPTER IV. We have before mentioned that, lying close to where the wounded French officer had originally fallen, was what appeared to be the lifeless form of a young and beautiful female. From the manner in which her arms were clasped round him, and from the interest he took in the child, it may be well gathered that it was in search of him she had come to that dreadful scene, and then died, believing him to be no more, or at all events, as indeed he was, in too hopeless a condition for recovery to be possible, That he had considered her to be dead there can be no doubt; for he had made no allusion to her in the brief conversation he had had with the young English ensign. All anxiety on her account was over, and he had thrown all his energy of supplica- tion into his prayer for protection to the child alone. But it would appear that this opinion of her death was prema- ture. All who have paid much attention to the various united oc- currences connected with the battle of Waterloo, are aware that toward the gray light of morning—the morning after the battle had been lost and won—there fell for about ten minutes a smart shower of rain upon the dead and wounded who had been un- wittingly overlooked in the exertions that had been made to recover all that were possibly imagined not to have breathed their last, from the field. This smart shower of rain recovered several who had fainted, and were, to all appearances dead, in consequence of it plashing upon their faces, and producing a slight shock to their nearly exhausted system. . Among those who thus awoke from a blessed unconscious- ness of much misery, was the young and beautiful girl; for such she seemed who had lain so long in a trance on that fatal spot. The rain fell heavily upon those fair features, which, no doubt, had been idolized by many a heart. It mingled with the blood which had already soaked her long raven tresses, and made the slight clothing she wore cling more closely to her exquisite form. With a deep sigh, she awoke and looked upward at the dull, gray sky, not yet sufficiently lighted by the rising sun to look otherwise than night:like, and not very dark. For some moments she Jay profoundly still. A short, sharp cry of anguish an- nounced that memory had reassumed her scepter, and that the young girl knew now all that had fora few moments been sq confused and dream-like, comicbooks. com