Emanuel Francis died at the residence of his son, Edward Francis, near Limestone, in Marshall County on Tue. night.
     Mr. Francis was born in Brooke County on Mar. 7, 1801. When he was 2 yrs. old his parents moved to Tyler County. On Jan. 10th, seventy six years ago, he moved to Marshall County. He conducted a Blacksmith Shop for some years, after which he engaged in farming near Pleasant Valley.
     In 1862 at the age of 61 he enlisted in Company B., 12th W. Va. Volunteer Infantry and served to the close of the war. At the battle of Winchester, under General Milroy at the close of the first day’s severe fighting, Mr. Francis became separated from his command late in the evening and spent the rainy night secreted in the cemetery. At daylight he discovered it was the Grey and not the Blue passing near him. He made a wide detour and got back to the Union lines. From this exposure his eyes became affected and he has been totally blind for over 22 years.
     Mr. Francis has been a ruling elder in the Presbyterian Church of Wold Run and Limestone, Marshall County for over 50 years. He lived an upright life for the many years.
     He was attacked with the grip on Monday Jan. 9th, to which he quickly succumbed and died, surrounded by his children , grand children and great grand children and many friends. He was married three times and was the father of 13 children, nine of whom survive.
     The burial will take place to day at the Limestone Cemetery at 1 pm.
     Mr. Francis was the oldest resident of Marshall County.

The death Saturday of Joseph Templeton Francis, 89 year old Civil war veteran on Saturday, brought to light among his cherish belongings a poem composed by his father, Emanuel Francis, while the father and son were serving in the same company and regiment in the Shenandoah Valley during the Civil war. - Emanuel Francis, then 60 years of age; and his son Joseph Templeton Francis, enlisted together in Company B, 12th Virginia Infantry, and served through the war together. - In February, 1863, in the Shenandoah Valley, the elder Mr. Francis composed the verse which he captioned A Soldier's Reflection. The verse, secured today from A. F. Francis, a son of J. T. Francis and grandson of the writer, follows:

When this rebellion first broke out,
And set me all on fire;
To become a soldier was my heart's desire.
The welfare of my country bore heavily on my mind.
And when Joseph hastened to the fight,
Then I could not stay behind.
As together in our home
We bowed in humble prayer,
So now with pleasure we look back
And know our Lord was there.
But we are far from the family altar,
Soldiers in a Southern Plain;
Yet we can lift our hearts to God,
And make to Him our humble claim.
And while on our couch at night,
We think of our home;
Kind angels guard us while we sleep,
And we forget to mourn.
We don't regret the course we took
To save our Native Land;
And if we meet the Rebels,
We'll fight them hand to hand,
And should it be our lot to fall
In the midst of battle roar,
We would rather die on the field of blood
Than to give our country o'er.
And now, dear wife, when I think of you,
Fresh hopes spring up within my mind;
For soon we shall meet again.
To you I know the time seems long;
But put your trust in God alone
And closer to him cling.
He is a God of saving power -
His love is still the same;
He'll support your feeble life,
And recompence your pain.
And now, dear children, every one,
I send a prayer for you;
That you will all prove faithful,
And your heavenly way pursue.
If we should ne'er again come home,
Be kind to your dear mother;
O' live in Peace, Harmony and Love together.
But we trust the war will soon be o'er,
Then we'll both come marching home,
Where we all can meet in the church of God
As we oft have done before.
But should we be disappointed,
And have to tarry long,
We'll put our trust in God
To guard us safely on;
For he can lead us to the victory.
And strike the great Rebellion dead;
Then we'll come to Marshall
With laurels on our heads.