His mother then told the captain that she was from East Tennessee where her husband had been killed by the rebels and all her property destroyed and she must find a place for the boy. "Well, well," said the captain, impatiently, "Sergeant, bring the drum and order our fifer to come forward." In a few moments the drum was produced and the fifer, a tall, good-natured fellow over six feet in height, made his appearance. "Here's your new side-partner, Bill," said the captain. Bill stooped down, and down and down until his hands rested on his ankles and peered into the boy's face carefully. "Why, captain," said he, "he ain't much taller than the drum." "Little man, can you really drum?" he asked. "Yes, sir," said the boy. "I used to drum for Captain Hill in Tennessee. I am nearly ten years old and I want the place." The fifer straightened himself up slowly, placed his fife at his mouth and commenced to play "The Flowers of the Forest," one of the most difficult pieces to follow on the drum. The little chap accompanied him without a mistake and when he had finished began a perfect fusillade of rolls and calls and rallies which came so fast that they sounded like a volley of musketry. When the noise had finally died out, the captain turned to his mother and said: "Madam, I'll take that boy. He isn't much bigger than a minute but he certainly can drum." The woman kissed the boy and nearly broke down. "You'll surely bring him back to me, captain," she said. "Sure," said the captain; "we'll all be discharged in about six weeks." An hour later Eddie was marching at the head of the Iowa First playing "The Girl I Left Behind Me" as it had never been played before. He and Bill, the fifer, became great chums and Eddie was the favorite of the whole regiment. Whenever anything especially nice was brought back by the foraging parties, Eddie always had his share and the captain said that he was in far more danger from watermelons than he was from bullets. On heavy marches the fifer would carry him on his back, drum and all, and this was always Eddie's position in fording the numerous streams.