In the crowded yards of every prison ground, in the dark ravines of the tangled forests, in the miry, poison swamps, where the slimy serpent crawls by day and the will-o’-the-wisp dances vigil at night, in the beds of the mighty rivers, under the waves of the salt sea, in the drifting sands of the desert islands, on the lonely picket line, and by the roadside, where the weary soldier laid down with his knapsack and his gun, and his march of life was ended; there in their strange beds they sleep till the morning of the great reveille. CLARA BARTON. To show the sentiment then existing among the people, and the appreciation of the services rendered,—of the thousands of letters received by Miss Barton are appended the following: GRATITUDE OF A BROKEN-HEARTED MOTHER “Paw Paw, Van Buren Co., Michigan, July the 5th, 1865. “MISS CLARA BARTON, “_Dear Madam_:—Seeing a notice in the paper of the effort you are making to ascertain the fate of missing soldiers from Michigan, I hasten to address you in regard to my son. His name is Eugene P. Osborne. He was a private in the 13th Michigan Regiment, Co. H Infantry; was in Sherman’s Army; left Atlanta last November with the Regiment, became lame soon after leaving there, and fell out the first day of December, near Louisville, Georgia. Since that time we have never been able to learn anything of him, or what has become of him. Those that went with him from this place, and were in the Company with him, have returned, but they know not what has become of him, or what his fate may be. We have endeavored to learn something of him by writing to various persons and places, but as yet we have heard nothing reliable. “Will you, Oh! will you, aid me in the search for my loved but unfortunate son; if so, the prayers and gratitude of a heartbroken Mother shall be yours. Please answer without delay and tell me if you know aught concerning him, for this cruel suspense is dreadful. “Respectfully yours, “Address “Mrs. C. A. OSBORNE, “Paw Paw, Van Buren Co., Michigan.” I never for a moment lose sight of the mothers and sisters and white-haired fathers, and children moving quietly about, and dropping the unseen, silent tear in those far-away saddened homes. CLARA BARTON. THANK YOU FROM MY VERY HEART, HIS POOR HEART-BROKEN MOTHER “MISS BARTON: