The National tribune. [volume], September 13, 1888, Image 1

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ESTABLISHED 1S77-NEW SERIES.
Washington, d. a, Thursday, September 13, isss.
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THE
605 1
rmy
!gu , .r
Sosatiug aad Fighting Adventures of
Two Boys
IN
MISSOURI AFD AHEAjSSAS
DST 1S6I, 62.
LoyaJLty of Regular Army Sol
diers. BAOTOE OJ GAUTHAGE.
ST THOMAS W. KNOS
Author of Ttoe Boy Travelers. "The Tonns
Nfmrofta, "TbeVawe of the Vivian," "Pulton
cod Stoam Xavfeatiott,'" "Dwsiave Baltics Since
Waterloo," "Mare lok for Boys and Girls,"
o4c, ete.
r
1B86. AIX KIOBT6 BBeseVED.
Chaftkr YHL
ant CASPWOtBD gamp a chaplain's ex
ploit. HERE were no horses
in camp, "but there
were many saddles,
an indication that the
camp was evacuated
so hastily that there
was not time to put
the accouterments on
the steeds, where they
"belonged. The sad
dles came handy to
the civilian attaches
of the expedition, and
so qki tne manueis
and a good many
other things that had
been left behind. A
company of infantry
was left in charge of
the camp, and ihen the rest of the column
pressed on ia pareuit.
Outside the town there was another "brief
halt, caused by the presence of a small com
pany of mounted men, who evidently acted
as a rear-guard, and with whom a few shots
were exchanged. Some of the dignitaries of
Booneville came oat to surrender the place
sad beg that private property should be
respected, sod while tbey were parleying
with Gea. Lyon aad CoL Blair two steam
boats left the landing in front of Booncville
and steamed up the river. They carried the
greater pact of the fleeing rebels, the remain
der naJritt? tfeeir eoeaoe hi- land alone the
river road.
Aad so ended ilie battfe of Booncville.
The losses on the Union side were three
killed and 10 wounded; on the rebel side
the number of casualties was never posi
tively known, owing to the fact that many
of the State troops fled directly to their
homes and staid there, or at all events were
not heard from again. Eight or 10 were
known to hare bees killed, and about 20
wounded.
A year or two later an affair of this sort
would nave been regarded merely as a road
side skirmish, but at that time it was an
occurrence of great moment. From one end
of the country to the other the account of it
was published, and it has become known to
history as an important battle. Politically it
was of great consequence, as it was the first
battle fought ia Missouri, if we leave out of
consideration the incidents of Camp Jack
son and the day after, which cannot be re
garded as battles in any sense. It was the
first trial of strength between the State
authorities of Missouri and the National
Government, aad as a trial of strength it
ebowed the power of the United States and
the resources and abilities of the Govern
ment better than could have been done by
a whole volume of proclamations.
Disciplined troops were brought face to
face with raw recruits who had not received
even the rudiments of military instruction.
Many of them were not even organized into
companies, but had come together hastily at
the call of the Governor, and on the day of
the battle were trvuuc to fieht "on thwr
own hook." And they learned the lesson
which is generally taught under such cir
cumstances ihatanch a hook is a very poor
one to fight on.
The greenness of the men k shown by
some of the incidents of tb day. Rev. Wil
liam A Pile, the Chaplain of the 1st Mo.,
was a muscular Christian, who showed such
a fondness for fighting that he afterward
went into the service and gained the rank of
Brigadier-General before the war was over.
At Booncville he was assigned to look after
the wounded, and for this purpose was given
command of foox soldiers, two of them from
the mounted escort of Gen. Lyon, and two
infantry men from the 1st Mo.
"While looking about the field after the
rebel, had been put to flight, the Chaplain
came suddenly upon a group of men who
seemed uncertain what to do. Most of them
had rifles and shotguns, and might have
made it very uncomfortable for the man of
religion.
lie hesitated not a moment bat drew his
revolver. He was mounted on a good horse,
one of the steeds taken in the early part of
the battle, aad had all the dignity of a Cap
tain of cavalry.
Ordering his two cavalrymen to accom
pany him, and felling the infantry column
of two mento follow as fast as they
could, he dashed up to the group and pre
sented his pistol as though about to fire.
u Throw down year arms and surrender!"
the Chaplain commanded in a voice like the
' roaring of a young bulL
The men dropped their arms to the
ground, aad stood in that dazed attitude
with which a cow looks at a railway train.
'Absut face, march w shouted the Chap
lain, anxious to get the fellows away from
3
ijtau 'a I
their -weapons "before they had time to col
lect their senses and make it uncomfortable
for their would-be captors.
Mechanically the men oheyed, and when
they were at a good distance from the guns
that had heen left on the ground he halted
them to give his infantry a chance to come
up and help surround the prisoners.
The infantry came up, and the prisoners,
24. in all, were duly "surrounded" and
marched into camp, -where they were placed
among others of their late comrades-in-arms.
Twenty-four armed men surrounded and
captured hy fonr soldiers and a Chaplain is
an occurrence not often known in -war. The
prisoners "were mostly "beardless youths, "who
had littte appreciation of what war was or
is. Only the rawest of soldiers could he
captured in this way and "brought safely
into the lines, and it required all the au-
99 m--rJE
Throw Down Your Arms.
daeity of which the Chaplain was capable to
carry out his enterprise.
Booneville was entered in triumph, and
there was great excitement among the in
habitants, many of whom expected to be
murdered in cold blood after witnessing the
pillaging of their houses and the destruction
of everything that the "Yankee thieves"
did not desire to carry away. The poorer
part of the population was generally loyal,
while the wealthier inhabitants were nearly
all in favor of Secession. There were some
rich people who were stanch supporters of
the Union, but they had a hard time of it
among their more numerous Secession neigh
bors. One of the Union officers learned that a
rebel flag had been flying for several days
over the principal bank in the town, and he
sent a Lieutenant and a squad of soldiers to
find it
The Cashier declared that" he knew noth
ing about it, avowed there was no flag of the
kind about the building, and said with great
emphasis that he was a sound Union man
and would not permit anything of a Seces
sion kind about the premises.
The Lieutenant insisted upon searching for
the flag, and opened a closet beneath a stair
way. There lay the flag, a beautiful piece
of work, 30 feet long and made of the very
best quality of bunting. When it was
dragged out the Cashier expressed .the great
est astonishment and said :
"Somebody must have put that thing
there to get me into trouble. I hope you
won't injure me; Pll take the oath of alle
giance this very minute if you want me to."
The Lieutenant then told him the story
of the darky who was caught one night in
a white man's chieken-houso under very
suspicious circumstances. When the darky
was brought into the moonlight, his captor
observed a suspicious movement in the col
ored man's hat, and heard a clucking there
as though a chicken was imprisoned in the
headgear.
"Take off your hat!" commanded the
white man.
"I won't take off my hat," was the reply;
" I done ketch cold if I does."
With that the owner of the premises
knocked off the suspicious hat, when out
flew a chicken. As it darted away the ne
gro gave an astonished look after it and re
marked: "Golly, dat dar chicken musta-clum up
my trouser-leg!"
A considerable quantity of rebel stores
and arms were taken at Booneville and in
the neighborhood, and altogether the forces
that were arrayed under the Secession ban
ner suffered a heavy loss in things that were
valuable to them. The hiding places of
these valuables was pointed out by Union
men, who in some instances desired their
identity concealed for fear of the vengeance
that would be visited upon them after the
Xational troops should go away. They com
plained that they had been very badly treated,
and several of them had been given a certain
number of days in which to close up their
affairs and leave town. Their time of pro
bation had not ended when the battle and
its result rendered their departure a matter
which the rebels were not exactly able to
control.
Gen. Lyon issued a proclamation, in which
he briefly recited the events of the past
week and warned the people not to take up
arms against the Government. He advised
all who had been in arms to go to their homes,
and promised that all who "would do so and
remain quietly attending to their own busi
ness, should not be disturbed for past offenses.
The proclamation had a good effect, and
the number recently under arms who went
home and staid there was by no means
small. Unhappily it was more than offset
by those who responded to the summons of
the Governor and went to follow the for
tunes of the army that he was organizing.
Preparations were now made for an ad
vance into the southwest part of the Slate,
as it was nnd&rstocd that the rebels would
attempt to make a stand there, where they
would be assisted by the troops that the
Confederate Government was sending to
help in getting Missouri out of the Union.
Gen. Sweeney was ordered to march from
Rolla to Springfield, and at the same time
Gen. Lyon would move from Booneville to
ward the same point. Simultaneously a col
umn under Maj. Sturgis was to advance
from Leavenworth, Kau., through the west
ern part of Missouri, and the three column
were to uuite near Springfield and endeavor
to cut off and disperse the rebels that were
concentrating with a view to taking the
offensive. This was the plan, but owing to
the absence of railways it could not be car
ried out in a hurry.
The 1st Iowa reached Booneville shortly
after the battle, and most of its officers and
soldiers were greatly disappointed to think
they could not have had a hand in the fight.
Jack and Harry had their first view of the
Missouri River from the bank opposite
Boonevile, and were greatly interested in
studying the mighty stream as the ferryboat
carried them across.
As he looked at the yellow flood pouring
along with the rapidity which is one of its
characteristics, Jack remarked :
"I understand now why they call it c The
Big Muddy,' as it is certainly the muddiest
river I ever saw."
" Yes," replied Harry ; " but I don't believe
it is as bad as Senator Benton said of it,
'too thick to swim in, but not thick enough
to walk on.' Anyhow, we'll settle that ques
tion by having a swim the first chance we
get."
They had their swim, but though they
verified the incorrectness of the distinguish
ed Senator's assertion, they decided that one
must be very dirty indeed to be benefited
by a bath in the Missouri ; and they readily
believed what they were told by a resident
of Booneville, that in the time of flood you
can get an ounce of solid matter out of every
eight ounces of water from the river.
"Look on the map of the United States,"
said their informant, " and see how the Mis
sissippi River has pushed the delta through
which its mouths empty into the Gulf of
Mexico. The laud that is formed there has
been brought down by the water that fills
the channel of the river ; some of it comes
from the lower Mississippi, but probably
the greater part is from the Valley of the
Missouri."
Chapter IX.
REGULARS AND VOLUNTEERS FORAGING
IN THE ENEMY'S COUNTRY.
Jack and Harry were pretty busily em
ployed about the camp for the first two or
three days following their arrival at Boone
ville. After that time they had more lei
sure, and were greatly interested in many
matters that came under their observation.
One of the first things to arouse their curi
osity was the camp of the Regular soldiers
that formed a part of Gen. Lyon's expedi
tion. When they heard of this part of the
force they wanted to know what a " Regu
lar " soldier was.
" They are called Regulars," the Quarter
termaster explained, "because they belong
to the Regular Army which the country
maintains in time of peace. Compared with
the volunteer army, the Regulars are few in
number, but as long as we have only In
dians to contend with they are quite enough
for all practical purposes. In time of peace
our Regular Army includes only 20,000 men,
but in case of war the President calls on the
different States to send volunteer troops to
the field in such number as may be wanted.
The President called for troops to put down
the rebellion, and the States that remained
loyal to the Union have sent the number re
quired of them in proportion to their popu
lation." " That's what is meant by the ' quota' of
each State, I suppose," said Jack.
"Yes," was the reply. "The quota of a
State is made out according to its population,
and Jhere have been some funny complica
tions arising out of this point. In order to
have as many representatives in Congress as
possible, and for other reasons, some of the
II M
Getting Into Trouble.
new States have been overstating their popu
lation, or claiming more inhabitants than
they really have. Now, when it comes to fur
nishing troops on the same basis, they are
trying to understate their population, and
declare that they made mistakes in their
previous figures."
"It is like a man claiming to be rich in
order to obtain credit or 'show off,' aud
then pleading poverty as a reason for not
paying his debts."
" That's exactly the case," was the reply.
" You could not have made a better illustra
tion." Neither Jack nor Harry could see that
there was any great difference between
the camp of the Regulars and that of the
volunteers, excepting that the former seem
ed to be under more rigid discipline. When
it came to drilling and performing the evo
lutions necessary to military life it was evi
dent that the Regulars were greatly the su
periors, but the youths naturally concluded
that it was simply a question of experience.
"These Regulars," said Jack, "have been a
lone while in the service, and had nothing
to do except to learn their business. Wait
till the volunteers have been the same time
under arms, and they'll come out j ust as good
soldiers."
"RighL you are," said the Quartermaster,
who overheard the remark. " It takes time
and practice to make a soldier; the raw re
cruit may be just as brave as the veteran,
but one veteran is worth as much as a dozen
raw recruits, for the simple reason that ho
has been drilled and disciplined."
The youths talked with some of the Regu
lars, and found that they had not troubled
themselves much about the causes of the
sO j
mf l24 r xm VI
war nor the questions involved in the con
test. The most they knew was that they
were enlisted to serve under the Govern
ment. They wero there to obey the ordera
of their officers, and that was the whole busi
ness. It was the same with some of the Regular
officers when the war broke out, but by no
means with all. Some of them treated the
question of loyalty as altogether a matter
over which they had no control ; they were
to support the Government, and had no oc
casion to trouble themselves about political
questions. Others entered into the political
bearings of the subject, and were swayed ac
cording to their predilections. Those born
and reared in the Northern States adhered
to the National cause almost to a man, and
served according to the best of their abili
ties, while the majority of those who came
from the Southern States considered them
selves bound to go as did their States. These
men resigned their commissions in the Army
and entered the service of the Confederacy,
If :
1 4T-C
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m
"v'
Cft'Vl
ftiA.!
I
tf
The Boys Become Expert Foragers.
though there were some who felt that while
they could not fight against their native
States, it would not be compatible with
honor for them to take arms against the Na
tional Government. These officers remained
neutral throughout the war, some of them
staying quietly at home, while others went
abroad to be out of the reach of disturbing
influences.
It was a noticeable circumstance that the
Bpirib of loyalty to the Government was
stronger among the enlisted soldiers of the
Regular Army than among the officers, in
proportion to their combers. In the in
stances where the forts and arsenals in the
-3estinp3t- Stetos Wfi'trcalierxyuy, sur
rendered to the Secessionists at the begin
ning of the war, nearly all the soldiers re
fused to serve against the Government, even
when their officers urged them to do so.
Preparations for the march into the south
western parfc of Missouri were pushed as
rapidly as possible, but the difficulty of get
ting together the necessary wagons and ani
mals for transportation purposes consumed a
fortnight of valuable time. This time was
utilized by the Slate authorities, who gather
ed several thousand men at Lexington and
marched thence in the direction of the
Arkansas frontier, where they were to meet
the famous Texan Ranger, Ben McCul
loch, who was to come north to join
them. In spite of all his activity Gen. Lyon
was not able to get away from Booneville
in season to head offGen. Price and the rebels
that were serving under him.
But the rebels came near meeting another
obstacle that they did not know of. Gen.
Eral Sweeney ,with thebrigades of Gens. Sigel
and Saloman, marched from Rolla in the
direction of Springfield, and so quickly did
he move-that Price had no knowledge of his
advance. As soon as he reached Springfield
Gen. Sweeney sent Gen. Sigel westward in
the direction of Carthago to head off the
rebels who were supposed to be under com
mand of Price. The fact was the latter
General had already gone south with his
escort to meet Ben McCulloch; the State
troops which Gen. Sigel was trying to cut
off were consequently headed by Gov. Jack
son in person.
The two forces met each other on the 5th
of July not far from Carthage and fought a
battle which was very much like the one of
Booneville in the extent of its casualties,
though less successful for the Union cause.
Sigel's command was only about one-fourth
the number of those opposed to him ; nearly
2,000 of the rebels were mounted men, al
though very few of them had any weapons
whatever, a fact which was unknown to the
Union commander. When he saw this great
force pressing on his flanks, he naturally
supposed his column to be in danger, and
prudently gave the order to retire from the
field. The retirement was effected in good
order, and though the rebels pursued a few
miles they inflicted no damage. The collis
ion delayed the movements of the rebels to
ward the sonthwest, though it did nob pre
vent it, and the elation which they felt over
the repulse of the enemy was more than an
offset for the delay.
On the march from Booncville to Spring
field strict orders were given that there
should be do depredating on private prop
erty, the rights of every citizen being fully
respected. The order was very well obeyed,
but it was impossible to carry it out to its
fullest extent. Cliickcus that did not roost
high had a habit of disappearing at night
and never turning up again except in the
slewpans of some of the soldiers or possibly
in 'those of the officers ; pigs that strayed
from their pens when the army was about
did not readily get back again, but on the
whole there was not much cause of remon
strance on the part of the inhabitants.
The most serious complaint was on the
part of the Union men, and certainly they
had a right to say something on the subject.
The situation was expressed in this way by
one of them who was'talkiug with an officer
in the presence of Jack; and Harry :
"Look a-here." said the citizen; "why
don't you-'uns go "and take Jones's co n and
I U!7,L 'I V
H rflKSTB- Vfi f ' f t - X I
V m "ff mil. ?5
in
iT flfc .lUffufj fat. -n II 1
wnm
potatoes and anything else you want? He's
a Secesher of the worst sort, and you ought
to make him sweat for it. When the State
troops went through here they took my
horses and corn and wagons and paid me
with receipts that I can't sell anywhere for
five cents on the dollar. I tried to get them
to let mo alone, but they said I'd been say
ing I was a Union man, and if I was I'd got
to help support the war, and they'd take
everything I had. They didn't touch Jone3,
because he's on their side.
" The rebels come along and plunder the
Union men, but when you-'uns come you
don't touch the Seceshers nor anybody else,
except to pay in clean cash for what you
want. It's a one-sided business anyhow,
and if it keeps on I'll have to turn Secesh
to save myself."
This was actually the case for some time in
Missouri and other border States, and there
is no doubt that many men who were in
favor of the Union at the start became rebels
in course of time in order to save their
property. After a while affairs were changed
and the men who were on the side of the
rebellion had to suffer when our armies came
in their vicinity. The property of all was
seized wherever wanted. A Union man was
compensated for his loss, while a pronounced
rebel had great difficulty in securing com
pensation, and very often did not get any
thing whatever.
Later in the war Jack and Harry became
known for their expertness in foraging, and
many were the chickens and pigs that fell
into their hands. They had splendid noses
for scenting game, and when they could not
find anything edible in a section of country
it was pretty certain that the region had
already been swept bare.
The skill acquired by our soldiers in
catching " game " is well illustrated in the
way they used to take pig3 while marching
at will along the road. A pig would make
its appearance by the roadside along which
a regiment was making its way. Some of
the foremost men would throw out a few
grains of corn, and at the same time word
would be passed along the line and several
of the men in the rear would fix their bay
onets on their guns. Piggy, all unsuspicious,
would bo toled by the corn close to the
roadside, and as the rear soldiers came along
two of them transfixed the creature through
the neck with a bayonet and swung him in
the air. He was caught in the arms of
two other soldiers, who speedily disembow
eled him, and then cut up and distributed
the meat. It was all done without breaking
outoftheline of march, and was characterized
by the officers as a " wonderful triumph of
mind over-matter."
Chickens were the favorite plunder of food
seeking soldiers, partly on account of their
toonsome 'character and partly in view of
their portability. Pigs and sheep came
next in the line of desirable things, as they
could be subdivided with ease and if neces
sary with great celerity.
Chapteu X.
LESSONS IN MUXE-DErVIXG CIUTICAL POSI
TION OF THE AK5IY.
Onr young friends wero not long in receiv
ing the promotion they desired auu certainly
deserved. From being mere attaches, or as
Jack expressed it, " Adjutants," of tho wagon
train they wero raised to the dignity of drivers,
each having a team of his own. It was a pro
motion at which they woro greatly elated,
though it brought additional responsibilities
and hard work.
Shortly after leaving Booneville one of tho
regular drivers fell ill and was left behind.
His place was given to Harry, who had
shown himself fairly competent to fill it in
spito of his youth, and also in spite of his lack
of that accomplishment of tho ordinary team
ster, a familiarity with profanity. Wo have
already alluded to this peculiarity of tho aver
ago driver, and tho faith possessed hy many
people that mules and oxen cannot bo success
fully managed except by an expert in swear
ing. But Harry got around tho difficulty
nicely and very much to his credit.
His educatiou was not extensive, and had
been confined to the ordinary branches of the
common school. Ho was proficient in tho
three R's: "reading, 'riting and 'rithmetic,"
aud had made a fair start in grammar and
geography. Whilo wondering what to do in
Nigger General on a Black Horse.
order to he able to drivo a mulo team success-'
fully, and at the. same time avoid falling into
tho use of profanity, ho hit upon an idea which
is commended to all readers of this narrativo
under similar circumstances.
Ho picked out tho hardest names ho could
remember in his geographical studies and de
termined to make them tho means of propel
ing obstinate animals and inducing them to
pull properly when pulling was desired. With
the permission of one of the regular drivers he
practiced on tho teams and found his plan
worked very well ; so well, in fact, that it re
ceived tho commendation of tho Chaplain and
of tho Colonel of tho regiment, and further
more tho team seemed to enjoy it.
" Scbastopol " was one of his favorite exple
tives, and when he hurled it at a mule, hissing
tho first syllable through his teeth and giving
full vent to his voice on tho last, that mulo was
suro to do his level best until tho load moved
or tho harness gavo way. In the same man
ner ho found "Calcutta" an explctivo of
great power, and so was "Nagasaki " and also
"St. Petorsburg." When ho wanted something
of unusual strength for a momentous occasion
ho informed hisobstinatcanimals that "Vienna
is tuo Capital of Austria," or " tho Dutch havo
taken Holland." Nothing could surpass the
efforts of the team when ilicso phrases wero
thrown into the elongated ears of tho unschool
ed mules.
Harrv imnartcu his nkn tn Inpl- nml wlmn
that youth was shortly aftoward put in charge
of a team which had been hired at Boonevillo
for tho trip to Springfield, ho ropeated tho ex
periment. It did not work as well as in
Harry's case, but the reason was found in
tho fact that Jack's mules wero of Missouri
(Continued ou 3(1 page.)
$$r y' wli
S1
um
The Army of the Tennassae on tk
M0Y6.
AT SNAKE CREEK GAP.
Laying Pontoons in a Hot
Place.
TURNIBFQ- RESAOA.
Johnston Outgeneraled by Lo
gan at Allatoona.
BY J. V. LOKO, 2D IOWA.
K the 4th of May,
18&1, the army under
Gen. Sherman lying
in and around Chat
tanooga started on
their great campaign
to the sea. The most
of us had veteranized
during the Winter,
been home and seen
v. orcr !fc gM, and
" when we got back we
were in high spirits
and ready to perform any service that Gen.
Sherman thought would be for the best
interests of the country. The last of April
we left our pleasant Winter quarters
at Pulaski, Tenn., for Chattanooga, where
we found everything on the move for the
front. The next morning we moved out,
camping that night on the historic Chicka
mauga Creek. The next day we made a
forced march, going through Snake Creek
Gap just at sundown, the 0th 111. in the ad
vance. Why we did not push on and capt
ure the railroad I have never been able to
understand. We were several miles in the
rear of Johnston's army, and only two or
three miles from the railroad. We remained
at the mouth of the gap three or four days,
He Wanted the Flag.
or until the rebel army marched by us and
took up a
strong position at resaca.
The morning of the battle we marched to
the extreme right of the army, taking up a
position in an old field, where we remained
until the next morning. It was in that field
that Gen. Corse took command of our divis
ion; and a better soldier never lived than
John M. Corse. The morning of the second
day our division was sent down the Oosta
naula River some four or five miles to make
another flank movement. Arriving at the
place selected to cross, my regiment wa3
detailed to carry the pontoons to the river,
some three-quarters of a mile away.
We had been in several tight places be
fore, but that proved to be the most disa
greeable job we were called upon to perform
during our four years of service. Between
us and the river was a large field that was
swept by a rebel battery on the opposite
side, while the river bank was lined with
their sharpshooters well protected. There
was a small creek running down across the
field, with a few trees and small brush scat
tered along it, but at no place thick enough
to hide us from the enemy. There was 16
men to each boat, and it made a very heavy
load.
The firing would get so heavy at times
that we would have to set them down and
get under the creek bank for shelter. It
would be hard to describe one's feelings
under such circumstances. With a pontoon
on your shoulder, under a heavy fire, and no
gun in your hand, you would feel about
like a man would in a bath-tub with
several thousand, more or less, shooting at
him. The 2d Iowa always thought they
were a pretty nervy set, but that day it re
quired more than the usual supply to stay
with it. After two hours of hard work we
lanched the first boat, when the 81st Ohio
marched up to make the crossing. We had
no desiro to stay and see them make the ef
fort, as we were anxious to see our guns
again. There were a number of the 81st
shot out of the boats whilo attempting to
cross, aud, as I was informed at the time,
only a few succeeded in crossing.
Just at dark the pontoon train was sent
down to the river, the boats reloaded, and
everything withdrawn from our side. We
fell back a couple of miles aud went into
camp, hoping that the morrow wonld bring
better luck.
Just here I would like to tell of
the daring deed
of a meitiher of the CGth Ind. While we
were carrying the p6ntoor;a the 66th were
thrown out across the field as skirmishers,
sheltering themselves behind a few largo
trees scattered along tho river bank. The
Johnnies had built some rifle-pits right ou
the bank on the opposite side, and into the
F
iwron.
JOHN
TON
'Klflin.
'V
fresh dirfc y a ma of OMirraciwoBba
flag. FinJytt nk came to tb con
clusion ths be s rbl flag, and, I
presume, thought ha wftald vr have a
bettor chance to get one; so he polled off his
clothes and plunged into the river to sake
the effort. The boys kept up a heavy firs
on the rifle-pits, keeping them down until
he swam over, crawled up the bask, got the
flag, aad back into the water again.
A3 soon as they saw their flag disappear
every rebel in sight opeaed Are ee him.
They churned the water ivto a Ami around
him, bat his R Paul Jones "lack serar for
sook him. He got back ail right, ttad that
night he was promoted to Color-Sergeas of
his regiment.
The next morning by 7 o'clock we wore ia
the timber again, facing the rebel battery.
Our regiment was ordered to ake the at
tempt to cross on the ferryboat, aa old scow
ofa thing that wouldn't hold over 25 or 30
men. The enemy had been reinfeseed dur
ing the night, and was strongly intrenched
about 300 yarde from the river. Ooraenran
up two or three batteries, and in a short time
had theirs silenced. We made a daeh ibs
the ferry, over half a mile away, aad within
30 minutes after starting our company and
part" of Co. D made the crossing.
We didn't feel so shaky as we dM the day
before carrying the pontoons, but still it was
a ticklish undertaking. As fast as we cross
ed we were deployed as skirmishers, keeping
under the river bank a mile from the ferrv
before we were ordered to climb the bank.
As soon as the enemy saw that we had made
the crossing they commenced withdrawing
their forces. The 7th Iowa crossed immediate
ly after us and charged the works. They had.
a desperate fight for 15 or 20 minutes, but
succeeded in driving the last of them from
their work3.
Oar regiment didn't get to 4ie n shot, bet
we had reason to ieel that we were in a very
dangerous position.
About 11 o'clock a. m. we were called back
to the ferry; they had the poatooos down
and were crossing men by the thousand.
That afternoon Johnston went flying south
ward again. About 9 o'clock that night we
feU in behind him, marching all night. Our
regiment was very fortunate ou both days,
losing but very few men. Occupying the
position we did, it seemed a- miraele that we
got through without losing one-half of our
number. Our cup of ambition was full ever
afterward; we had no desire to go through,
another such undertaking.
After flanking Johnston from Resaca, wa
kept at his heels until he turned
AT BAT ON ALLATOONA MOUNTAIN.
The army wa3 compelled to halt at King
ston to await the arrival of the railroad
trains with supplies. It was here that our
non-veterans were sent back to be discharg
ed. We were sorry ibr a day or two that we
could not go home also, but we afterward had
reason for believing that the veterans made
the Atlanta campaign a success, aad felt
proud that we were of those who K marched
down to the sea." In using the pronoun " we n
I have reference, in our flank movement, to
the Army of the Tennessee. At that time I
knew but very little about what fee Armies
of the Ohio or of the Cumberland were do
ing.
By the 23d of May preparations were made
for another flank movement to the right.
We started off with 30 days' rations in our
wagons, no one from a Colonel down knowing
where we were going or what we were expect
ed to do. Some said we were going to Mo
bile to help Canby; others thought that we
were going around Johnston and slip into
Atlanta unawares. We had to laugh when
we thought how surprised the Johnnies
would be when they got back and found
that we were there ahead of them. We had
even made up our minds that we would eaU
upon his best girl and let her know where
he was. While we were enjoying our antici
pations an Aid rode up and ordered our
entire regiment deployed as skirmishers. We
marched through woods and fields Ibr three
or four miles without a sound seareely but
Logan in Batxlb.
our own tramping. Just at sundown wa
passed through Dallas, going into eamp not
over half a mile from town. A few minutes
before we stopped there were a few shots fired
on our front, which we supposed to havo
been fired by a few retreating cavalrymen.
After supper some one happened to think
that it might be well enough to send out a
few pickets for appearance sake, if nothing
else. The rest of us laid down and slept
soundly ugtil morning. Abont daylight a
few of us early risers had got up and gone
down to a small stream in front of the regi
ment to bathe. Before we got through there
were a few shots fired on the picket-line,
when here came our boys with the Johnnies
after them.
Before the alarm could be given
there were a number of men shot ibne
in bed. Yon may be sure things were lively
around x-xsih fcr awhile. No one seemed to
know what to do. In a few siinutes Gens.
Dodge and Sweeney came hurrying down
the road rubbing their eyes. They could ba
& ai .-.'