With an equal murmur falleth
The cooling drip of the rain;--
Under the sod and the dew,
Waiting the judgment day;
Wet with the rain, the Blue;
Wet with the rain, the Gray.

6. Sadly, but not with upbraiding,
The generous deed was done:
In the storm of the years that are fading,
No braver battle was won;--
Under the sod and the dew,
Waiting the judgment day;
Under the blossoms, the Blue;
Under the garlands, the Gray.

7. No more shall the war cry sever,
Or the winding rivers be red;
They banish our anger forever,
When they laurel the graves of our dead;--
Under the sod and the dew,
Waiting the judgment day;
Love and tears, for the Blue;
Tears and love, for the Gray.
--F. M. Finch.

NOTE.--The above touching little poem first appeared in the "Atlantic
Monthly" in September, 1867. It commemorates the noble action on the part
of the women at Columbus, Miss., who in decorating the graves strewed
flowers impartially on those of the Confederate and of the Federal
soldiers.

LIX. THE MACHINIST'S RETURN.

[Adapted from a letter written by a correspondent of the Washington
"Capital."]

1. On our way from Springfield to Boston, a stout, black-whiskered man
sat immediately in front of me, in the drawing-room car, whose maneuvers
were a source of constant amusement. He would get up every five minutes,
hurry away to the narrow passage leading to the door of the car, and
commence laughing in the most violent manner, continuing that healthful
exercise until he observed that some one was watching him, when he would
return to his seat.

2. As we neared Boston these demonstrations increased in frequency and
violence, but the stranger kept his seat and chuckled to himself. He
shifted the position of his two portmanteaus, or placed them on the seat
as if he was getting ready to leave. As we were at least twenty-five miles
from Boston, such early preparations seemed extremely ridiculous. He
became so excited at last that he could not keep his secret. Some one must
be made a confidant; and as I happened to be the nearest to him, he
selected me.

3. Turning around suddenly, and rocking himself to and fro in his chair,
he said, "I have been away from home three years. Have been in Europe. My
folks don't expect me for three months yet, but I got through a