"If I should die..."

[LoyaltyOfDogs]

Here's a touching scene from a print in the Library of Congress titled "Woman's Mission." The engraving, by A.B. Walter, is based on a painting by Christian Schussele and was published in 1865 by John Dainty of Philadelphia. The caption reads, "To the patriotic and benevolent ladies of the Union who by their devoted services aided their country in its trying hour and comforted its brave defenders; This print is respectfully dedicated." The dedication is followed by several lines of verse from "Marmion" by Sir Walter Scott:

O, Woman! In our hours of ease,
Uncertain, coy and hard to please,
And variable as the shade
By the light quivering aspen made;
When pain and anguish wring the brow,
A ministering angel thou!

The full scene, below, is in the Library of Congress at https://www.loc.gov/resource/pga.04223/.

 

[donna]

Wonderful print. Love the dog with head on the bed.

 

[LoyaltyOfDogs]

Wonderful print. Love the dog with head on the bed.

I do too, @donna. I'd seen that print before and somehow hadn't noticed the dog, probably because he's not one of the central figures. But when I zoomed in on the soldier and nurse, I was startled to see that she was looking as someone else, not him. It wasn't until I followed her gaze that I understood the little drama being played out.