“Yes, he’s of the finest. I knew him in Mexico. Gallant as they make them!—He has lost an arm.”
“Yes—at Sharpsburg.”
“It’s no little loss,” said Loring. “By the way—you knew Maury Stafford?”
“Yes.”
“The word ‘Sharpsburg’ brought him up. He was taken prisoner there—unfortunate fellow! There has been no exchange?”
“I have heard of none. They will not exchange.”
“Infernal tactics!”
“It’s all infernal. I have grown to see no sense in this war. North and South, we surely might have been wiser.”
“That may be,” said Loring. “But we are in it now and must act according to tradition.—Maury Stafford!—He was with me during that wretched, abortive, freezing, and starving Romney expedition. I was very fond of him. It aches me to think of him in prison.”
Edward sighed. “Yes, I am sorry, too.”