Duke University Libraries 
 
 The wounded sol 
 Conf Pam 12mo #517 
 
No. 88. 
 
 THE WOUNDED SOLDIER, 
 
 BY REV. JOHN E. EDWARDS. 
 
 In the curlier part of the bloody war now raffing in the 
 land, (he hare sight of a wounded soldier awakened the 
 liveliest, sympathy in the bosom cf every beholder. No 
 matter where he was met- -in the railroad car, in th? hospi- 
 tal, upon the street, or in the domestic circle — a re iponsive 
 chord whs touched in every heart, and the father v, uli grey 
 bairs, and the mother, bearing the marks of " wrinkled 
 care " upon her brow, young men and maidens vied with 
 other to relieve the sufferer, and contribute something 
 to his comfort and restoration to soundness again. One of 
 the sad effects of the progress of this terrible war jl*s been 
 to deaden our sympathies, and make us more selfish than 
 we were when the tocsin of the battle-strife first sounded in 
 the 'and. Neither men nor women are a3 eager now as 
 formerly to give the best seat, in the car to the wounded 
 soldier — to yield the pavement on the side-walk, lest he 
 should be jostled — to stand by his couch of suffering — to 
 apply the refreshing cordial to his lips, and the cooling water 
 to his wounds. Perhaps this state of public feeling was 
 to have been anticipated. The frequency with which we 
 meet the wounded in a battle, and the long time we have 
 been accustomed to meet them, has robbed the spectacle of 
 its novelty, and, by a law of our bein^, has taken off the 
 
edge of our sensibilities. And yet, the. wounded s ddier is 
 an object of interest. Ever) patriotic heart in our South- 
 ern Confederacy beats with a quicker pulse, and glows with 
 a Warmer devotion to our struggle for independence, at the 
 hight ol i be brave man — be he officer or private, young or 
 old — from his mansion of elegance or his home of poverty — 
 who has been wounded in the defence of our cause against 
 . an aggressive and despotic power. Whether stretched upon 
 his bunk in the hospital, with shattered bones or amputa- 
 ted limbs; whether his features are distorted with agonizing 
 pain, or vary in expression, as, in- his unbroken slumbers, 
 he dreams of home and friends far away ; whether with 
 hand in sling, or splinted arm, or ban,daged brow ; whether 
 he bend on his cane, or hobble with a crutch, or limp as he 
 leans on the arm of his friend, or sits in pensive sadness by 
 the wayside, he is an object of interest to the passer-by; 
 and, in very many instances, of much deeper interest than 
 is supposed by^the wounded soldier himself. 
 
 You, my friendly reader, I take it for granted, are a 
 wounded soldier. As such I address you. It matters not 
 when or where the death-dealing missile of the enemy 
 struck you — whether in the hard fought battle, or in the 
 hotly contested skirmish ; whether in the successive engage- 
 ments in the Valley and among the mountains of Virginia, 
 or in the protracted series of bloody battles before Rich- 
 mond ; whether among the swamps aud lagoons of the 
 South, or beyond the Mississ ; ppi in the West ; whether at 
 Shiloh or Donelson — no matter when or where, you are a 
 wounded soldier. Nor is it material whether the wound be 
 slight or. severe; whether it shall barely leave a scar, or 
 send you upon your crutch to the grave. At present, what- 
 ever be the character or extent of the wound, you are off' of 
 duty. You spend your tipie in the hospital, , or in the pri- 
 vate residence of a friend, or at your own quiet home. You 
 . are looking forward to a partial recovery and a final dis- 
 charge from the service, or to restoration to your accustom- 
 ed soundness, and a return to duty again. You are wholly 
 or partially confined! In any event, you have time for re- 
 flection, for reading, and, if a Christian, for profitable medi- 
 tation and prayer. 
 
. 3 
 
 What effect has your wounding had upon you ? is the 
 question I propound to you. It were unfortunate if it 
 merely led to a flippant remark, and in a feeling of self-con- 
 gratulation that, for a while, you would be released from 
 the hardships of the camp and the dangers of battle. 
 
 " The wound is very slight/' say you. "It would be fool- 
 ish and farcical for me to be serious and thoughtful about il . 
 I was lucky. The casualty might have been much worse." 
 An Atheist might use such language ; or even a Deist, who 
 discards the doctrine of God's special providence over us. 
 But such language is not befitting the lips of one who be- 
 lieves the Bible, and who has been favored with a religious 
 education. Do you not know that the Great Teacher sent 
 from God, has taught you that " the very hairs of your lu ad 
 are all numbered," and that *" a sparrow cannot fall to 1 1n- 
 ground without your heavenlv Father?" Your life is in 
 the hands of God, and, of consequence, all the little inci- 
 dents and events that in any way affect your life, The 
 wound of which you speak so lightly should not be put do\% n 
 to the credit of mere luck or chance. You should rather 
 regard it as a merciful providence of God that it was not 
 worse. Some that were^n ear you in the struggle, while the 
 death-shots were whistling around you, and the bursting. 
 shells were shrieking like fiends of hell above you, Sustained 
 tar more serious damage than yourself. You should be 
 grateful that you fared so well. God's good hand, in preserv- 
 ing you, should be devoutly recognized and acknoweledged. 
 The slightly wounded, who speak in terms of merriment and 
 bravado of the loss of a finger or a mere scratch from the 
 fragment of a shell, may be a fearless soldier, but is greatly 
 wanting in Christian sentiment, and is deficient in the ele- 
 ments of a Bible education. 
 
 Again, it were to be deplored if your wounding has had 
 the effect to embitter your feelings, and render you crabbed 
 and morose. Too many, under painful dispensations 
 of Providence, turn the edge of an unsubdued temper against 
 God, and becomesour and acrimonious towards those around 
 them. It is foolish to murmur against God. " Why should. 
 ft living, man complain ?" Rather thank God that you are 
 
not dead. The shot or shell that bereft you ot a limb, or 
 disfigured your face, or inflicted a painful and serious wound 
 upon your body, might have entered a vital part, and hurried 
 you instantly into eternity. "What a God's mercy that your 
 life was spared — that your probation was not suddenly ter 
 minated — that you were not, in the twinkling of an eye, has 
 tened to your reward in another state of being! Bow down 
 with cheerful resignation to the will of God, and solemnly puv- 
 pose,'by His grace to derive moral lessons from the provi- 
 dence whu»h has -permitted you to be disabled. It may be 
 turned to good account in your moral discipline ; and in the 
 day of eternity you may have occasion to thank God for 
 that, over which you now so bitterly complain. If yon 
 have not learned to go to Jesus with your sufferings, <gt 
 now. Remember that "He was wounded for our transgres- 
 sions, He wis bruised for iniquities " — that He hath borne 
 our griefs and carried our sorrows" — that His hands, and 
 feet, and heart were<pierced; and that "upon Him was laid 
 the iniquity of us all." He knows how to sympathize with 
 you. His love never grows cold. His heart of tenderness 
 is always responsive to the eries of a wounded and a con- 
 trite spirit. Your sufferings, great as they are, do not 
 exceed your deserts. As a sinner, you have offended God, 
 and wounded Christ, and grieved His Spirit, and might, 
 long since, have been consigned to the perdition of hell. 
 
 It may be that Infinite Wisdom and Goodness foresaw that 
 nothing less than the calamity under which you are now 
 suffering would bring you to repentance and salvation. — 
 God's design is to bring good out of this temporary evil 1o 
 you. You may frustrate His beneficent purpose. You 
 may harden yourself, and grow from bad to worse. On the 
 other hand, you may submit yourself to the chastening rod of 
 your Heavenly Father, and find that you derive "the peace- 
 able fruits of righteousness," which result to those who are 
 properly exercised under His correction. If your heart re- 
 lents — if you, feel that you have " the broken spirit and the 
 contrite heart" — if you feel sorry for your sins, and purpose 
 to give them all up, at onee and forever ; then go at once to 
 Him who has 
 
" A sovereign balm for every wou.\d, 
 A cordial for our fears ;" 
 
 and while the words of penitent confession are on your lips, 
 faith will spring up spontaneously in the heart under the 
 influence of Divine grace, and you will find, to the joy of 
 your disconsolate spirit, that 
 
 " Earth hath no sor:ow that Heaven cannot heal." 
 
 You are in great danger of becoming hardened under your 
 sufferings. There is a foolish noiion, too prevalent among 
 soldiers, that it is unmanly to manifest any feeling under the 
 pressure of bereavment or mental distress — -that it is nnsol- 
 . dierly to exhibit any emotion under the most excruciating 
 pain — that it is womanly and childish to weep. Too man) 
 have made up their minds that a profession of religion is 
 incompatible with the profession of arms. This is all a mis- 
 take. The New Testament furnishes us with some of the 
 most illustrious examples of godly lives, and of all-conquering 
 faith, among the soldiery in the days of 'our Saviour up< a 
 this earth. Cornelius, mentioned in the tenth chapter of the 
 Acts of the Apostles, was " a centurion [captain] of the band 
 called the Italian band. A devout man,, and one that 
 God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, 
 and prayed to God always." This Cornelius seut "a 
 soldier " with his household servants, after Feter, who was to 
 open the gospel ministry at Cesarea. Again, in theeeventh 
 cnapter of Matthew, we have a case recorded of Christ's 
 healing the servant of a centurion, or mililaiy officer, in which 
 he passed the highest commendation upon his faith. It is 
 recorded that, when Jesus heard what the centurion said, 
 " he marveled, and said to them that followed, Verily, 1 say 
 unto you, I have not found so greatfaith, no, not in Israel/' 
 
 A life of piety is not incompatible with the profession of 
 arms. True religion does not interfere with a" man's duties 
 to his conntry. On the contrary, it einiuently qualifies him 
 for the faithful discharge of those duties. Discard, there- 
 fore, the notion that you cannot be a Christian while in the 
 
military service of your country. Banish the idea that it is 
 unmanly to weep, or to exhibit any concern upon the subject 
 of religion. Washington was a Christian. Havelock was 
 as eminent for his piety as for his bravery. Yield to those 
 feelings that now lead you to bow in penitence at the Cross. 
 Embrace Christ Jesus as your Redeemer, Saviour, Friend. 
 Defer it not for a single hour. Come to Jesus just as you. 
 are — 
 
 " Bruised and mangled by the fall ; 
 
 If you tarry till you're better, 
 You will never come at all." 
 
 " Now -is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salva- 
 tion." Christ is ready to heal your wounds ; to bind up the 
 broken heart ; to set the captive soul at liberty; to pour the 
 balm of gospel grace upon your bleeding spirit, and fully re- 
 store you to moral health and soundness again. With the 
 love of God in your heart, and the sweet hope of eternal, 
 life before you, your hard camp bed will be as soft as down ; 
 your coarse and homely fare will be thankfully received ; 
 your privations will be cheerfully borne ; and, with a calm 
 resignation to the will of God, you can patiently bear up 
 under your sufferings, and look forward with joyful hope to 
 the hour that shall terminate your bodily pains, and intro- 
 duce you to"the society and enjoyments of the -redeemed in 
 Heaven — 
 
 " Where the war-drums throb no more, 
 And the battle-flags are furl'd." 
 
 What will you gain by declining to act upon the direc- 
 tions given in the pages of this tract? Suppose you become 
 stoical. Suppose you act upon the false sentiment that it is 
 unsoldlerly to show any feeling. Suppose you successfully 
 smother down your sensibilities, and repress your rising 
 emotions. What then ? Your comrades may complimeut 
 you, and call -you brave and heroic. Suppose you drive 
 away serious thoughts, and grieve God's Spirit that now 
 
* 7 
 
 waits to sanctify your afflictions, and lead you to the cross 
 of Jesus. What then? This may be heaven's last effort to 
 save you. Refuse to repent and turn to the Saviour now, 
 and another offer of salvation may never be made to you. 
 The wound in your body may not heal. It may grow worse, 
 day by day, until death steps in to do his office, and sum- 
 mon you to the judgment. ,0, should you recover, it may 
 be only to go into battle Tigain, to fall suddrirfy, without a 
 lingering wound — to go from the gory bed of death, amid 
 the roar of artillery and the dying groans of the slaughtered 
 around you, into the presence of a neglected Saviour and an 
 insulted God, to hear the fearful and appalling sentence, 
 " Depart, depart- into the blackness of darkness forever." 
 Once more the writer, who is a stranger to you, and whose 
 lace you may never see till we meet in judgment, entreats 
 you to repent and come to Jesus. His arms are open to 
 receive you. With more than the compassion of your own 
 father who loves you ; with more than the tenderness with 
 which your mother would embrace her long absent boy; 
 wiih more affection than brother, sister, wife or friend would 
 greet you on your return from the wars, will Jesus, the Sa- 
 viour of sinners, hasten to meet and receive you. Do not 
 lay down this tract till you solemnly resolve, by the help of 
 Heaven, to profit by the lessons which God designs to teach 
 by " the casualties of war," as they are called, through 
 which you have passed and are now passing. - 
 
 But my reader may be a Christian. How have you been 
 affected by your wounding? Have you murmured against 
 God ? Have you said it was a hard lot that you should suf- 
 fer far away from home and friends? Well, it is hard in a 
 certain sense. You are deprived, it may be, of the comforts 
 and sympathies of home. You may not have those around 
 you who would so much delight to dress your wounds and 
 - soothe your pains. You may keenly feel, where you now 
 are, that 
 
 " There is a lack of woman's nursing, 
 And dearth of woman's tears." 
 
This may all be so ; and yet, " there is a friend that nicketh 
 closer than a brother." "Wife, mother, sifter and little one? 
 may not be near. The maimed and halt may be \(\)- 
 panions. Scenes of suffering and distress may greet ;. 
 every harrd. Your companions in arms, one alter another, 
 may be carried to the grave. But still God 'is very good to 
 you. It might be much worse with you than it really is. 
 The wound which disables you.might be worse. Thank Gjbd 
 that your life is spared. Cheer up. Bear your privations 
 and sufferings with Christian resignation. You can yet do 
 something for your dear Redeemer's cause. If not by active 
 labors, at least -by the exercise and manifestation of the pas- 
 sive virtues. By gentleness, patience, and long-suffering — by 
 humble resignation in the Divine will, and by earnest prayer, 
 you can show forth the sustaining power of the religion of 
 •Testis,: and thus you may impress the minds of others, as 
 i hey ny$<er would be affected by the active duties of religion. 
 You may now do a work for God's cause that you could not 
 accomplish in any other way. Take patiently your afflictions. 
 < lod'rt hand is in, them, and when the light of eternity shall 
 clear up the mists and mysteries of time, yen will shout and 
 rejoice over trmt which now extracts your bitterest tears. 
 Your sojourn on earth, is brief. Heaven will richly reward 
 you for all the, sorrows and afflictions of this life; for, sait.h 
 the Apostle, " I reckon that the sulferings of this present time 
 arc not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be 
 revealed in us." "For our light affliction, which is Imt for 
 a moment, vvorketh k>r us a far more es B,nd elernal 
 
 weight of glory." 
 
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