Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1845-1854, 1851-08-11
Catching Bullets in she Mouth,

tiGiDgs Of him. w. H. T.
Catching Bullets inthe Mouth.
There is a.man now living in East Dix
field, Oxford county, Me-, who actually
caught in his mouth ball discharged from
musket. Hs was at the battle Of Bridge.
water, in the war of 1912, and while bit>
ing off the end of a catridge, for the pur-
pose of loading his gun, was struck by
ball, which entered the left side of his face,
knocked out eight of his teeth, cut off the
end of his tongue, and passed into his
throat. He raised it, went I'd the hospital,
stayed out the remainder Of his enlistment,
and returned home with the bullet in his
pocket .-Es. Paper.
The New Orleans Picayune, one of
whose editors was an eye witness of most
of the leading battles Of Mexico, copies the
foregoing paragraph and appends to it the
following relation:
We can relate an incident even more
strange than this. AT the seige, of Mon.
terey, in 1916, and while. Gen. Worth's
troops were advancing to storm the small
fort known as La Soldada, man named
Waters, an excellent soldier belonging to
Capt. Ben McCulloch's Rangers, caught a
large grape shot directly in his mouth. l.
was fully the size of hens egg, was
rough, uneven in shape, and in its course
completely carried out the four upper front
teeth Of the ranger and part Of the. Jaw,
cut off the four lower teeth as with q CHS
el, split his tongue in twain, carried away
his palate, went through to the back of his
head, nd:striking a tendon glanced down
and lodged under the skin of the shoulder
blade, where il was extracted by surgeon
and safely placed in the pocket Of Waters
for future reference.
No man thought the wounded ranger
could liye-he could swallow neither food
nor water. We saw him two nights after
wards, in room in the Bishops Palace,
which had been converted into hospital,
sitting bolt upright among the wounded
and the dying, for the nature of his terri.
BILE hurt was such that he could not lie
down without suffocatipg. His face was
swollen to more than twice its ordinary
size-he was speechless, of course-his
wants were only made known by piece
of broken slate and pencil, and he was
slowly applying wet sponge to his mouth,
endeavoring to extract moisture, which
might querch thes fever and intolerable
thirst under which he was suffering. By
his side lay young Thomas, of Maryland,
member Of the same company, who was
morally wounded the morning after, and
who was now dying. Wounded men,
struck that afternoon in Worth's advance
upon the Grand Plaza, were constantly be-
ing brought in, the surgeons were ampu-
taling and dressing the hurts Of the Grip
pied soldiers by pale and sickly candle
light, and the groans Of those in grieyous
pain added new horror to a scene which
was at best frightful. We recollect per.
fectly well poor fellow, struck in both
legs by grape shot while advancing up
one of the streets. He was begging lusti-
ly, after one of his limbs had been 4ampu.
tated, that the other might be spared him
on which to hobble through the world
Poor Thomas, as gallant spirit as ever
lived, finally breathed his last; we brought
Waters fresh cup of water with which to
moisten his wounds, and then left the room
to catch an hours sleep; but the recollec.
,ions Of that terrible night will not soon be
effaced from our memory.
A.
The above incidents occurred on the
night of the 23rd,. and morning of the
24,h September, 1s46. During the early
part of the month of February following,
while passing into the old St. Charles in
this city, we were accosted with strange
voice by fine looking man who seemed
extremely gladt to see US, although he had
most singular and unaccountable mode
of expressing himself. We recollected
the eye as one we had been familiar with,
but the lower features Of the face, although
in no way dis6gured, for the life of US we
could not make out.
"Why, don't you know me?" in num-
bling, half iudistinct and forced manner
said the man, still shaking our hand vig-
orously; s.I'm Waters"
And Waters it was, in reality, looking
as well and healthy as ever, and without
showing the least outward sign that he had
ever caught grape shot in his mouth
luxuriant growth Of moustachious COM
pletely covered his upper lip, and conceal
ed any scar the iron missile might have
made; an imperial on his under lip hid any
appearance Of wound at that point; and
with the exception Of his speech there was
nothing to show that he had ever received
the lightest injury about the face. His
tongue, which was terribly shattered, was
still partially benumbed. rendering articu
lation both difficult and tiresome; but he
assured US he was every day gaining more
and moro the use Of it, and in his owl
words he was soon to be jus. as good as new
1t is needless to say that we were trul!
rejoiced to see him--to meet one We ha