New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1861-08-08
NUMBER 133.
a Young Seorgian's Experience.

|
Among the individual experiences during the
great battle, with which the papers are filed and
which are still read with avidity, the following
from letter written by Georgia boy to his
mother, is interesting and unassuning as any we
| have yet seen:
As we were retiring, stopped to take a mouth
fuI OF mud-scarceiy could it be called water-1ny
mouth was awfay hot and dry: lust then 7 met
Capt. MeGru1er, gho, pointing to cump Of
! bushes, said, Col. Gardner is wounded'-the frgt
! / knew Of IT, Immediately went there, and there
| lay our gallant Colonel with several nen around
him. threw down my musket took his wounded
| leg in my arTns, while the others supported his
| body; it was then ] saw our own beloved com.
mander. our Gen. Barlow, for the last time-yery
| soon after he received his deatn-wound
We made all the haste We could to get the Col
onel on, as the enemy were advancing. Seeing our
regiment retreat they supposed we were defeated,
and were pushing on rapidly the balls still falling
| around US but when the enemy were only little
distance behind US, we being in the rear of eur
| regiment going up steep hill, only able to ad-
vance slowly, the enemy opened terrific fire. 1t
| il amazing that were not all cut to pieces for
| the balls passed between our very legs Three Of
| Us stuck to the Colonel, but finding it impossible
to succeed in carrying him off and his leg being
very painful, We stopped, after having carried him
about quarter of a mile and laid him down in a
| sort of gully, hoping thus to be protected from
| random shops. His head was my arm Heidt
OF our company, and Banon, of the Rome Light
| Guard, were the two men who were with me. The
Colonel entreated them to leave him and try to
| join the regiment and save their lives q had told
him would remain with him) but they refused
| to 60
| I firmly believe, if found, that we would be
| bayoneted. We had gun the enemy about
| sixty yards of-three regiments distinctly seen, |
| told the Colonel would load it, and fight it out
that we might as well kill as many as possible. Do
| not consider this any bravery on my part. the
| verest coward would have done the same thing
| believing, as did, that he must be killed., The
| Colonel said ''No, if we keep quiet we might not
| be observed" The enemy in the meantime, com
ing on In line OF battle, one regiment came within
| twenty feet of us one man raised his rifle and
| took aim at u.s. and I raised white handkerchief
| on the ramrod, and told them, I" We slarende'.,'
| The officers then came up. I asked permission to
take the Colonel down the hill to a spring, where
we could get water. They said certainly" We
did so, and several physicians came up They all
treated us honorably and as prisoners of war.
Never was | more surprised; the physicians ex-
amined the Coionels leg, had litter brought for
him, gave us water, and in all respects treated US
with every kindness.
Several of our wounded were lying around, and
al Of them received the same kind attentions.
They asked US il we did not know how utterly use
less it was to attempt to resist; that they could
sweep Us all away-that they had fifty thousand
| men as reinforcement.h At that time they felt
confident of glorious victory. While there the
balls and shot from batteries tore away the
limbs of trees all around u.s. With the assistance
of one of their men, we got the Colonel to their
| distant. ...
We laid them under tree in the shade Their
| wounded were being brought in in large numbers
| the whole yard was strewn with them living all
| about in the shade. The old farm house appeared
to be their headquarters as well as hospital, and
We had not been there more than a half hour be-
fore they began to prepare for retreat and then
ensued scene of the widest confusion. But we
had time to observe that their nen are far better
equipped, in all respects, for campaign than ours
| The wounded, believing they would surely be
| killed, begged earnestly not to be left. They or
dered us to put the Colonel on board and carry him
| with tlrem but he told them he would rather that
they should shoot him there than move him again,
and tried to persuade them to leave their wounded,
with their physicians to attend them, pledging his
word that if they would raise yellow flag not a
shot would be fired in that direction, and that their
wounded should receive every attention, but their
confusion was too great to admit of their listening
to reason. At length, however, the Colonel per-
suaded them to leave some of their wounded, as
we'll as ours, and six of their to attend them,
pledsing himself that they should not be consd-
cred nor treated as prisoners, nor would ours and
that their men should be returned as as posi-
bic. To this they consented.
Our batteries were now beginning to open on
the house. Col: G. ordered a white flag Of some
sort to be raised Our handkerchiefs were all too
bloody or soed, so took off part of an under.
garment and tied it to bedstead post, and ran up
stairs, but found no possible way Of getting the
house, and stuck it out of one of the windows.
could distinctly see our battery-the balls came
nearer. Iexpected momentariy to see the old house
> Knocked down. The balls continued to whz.
went down into the yard, and was convinced thai
they did not see the flag. I jerked of my blue
shirt, tied my under shirt to pole, and climbed
the chimney to an Out-hOuse 1t very broad
and from our batteries looked like an embankment.
Heidi was standing near the foot Of the chimney.
| had nothing on but my pants: while trying 10
fasten up the pole batteries must have taken
| me for one of the enemy attempting to mount a
battery. The first thing knew heard a ball com
ing. 1t could not have passed more than three
fnn a hnT fStrhtu j.,
yond. was rather scared I then put up another
flag out in the field, which soon as they observed
they ceased firing at the house.
The rest of the day was busy increasingly il
giving water to the wounded, and trying to fix uL
their wounds the best way I could. There was nc
physician there-all had gone when the enemy
fed. My hand was in blood all day nothing bu
, blood. About every half hour would 90 Tount
the yard, give each of them drink of water-sc
| grateful poor fellows! On one of my rounds
found that two Or three had died while was away
They were shot in every conceivable place.
FROM "PIors " YANKEE.-A pious correspond
ent of the Washington Republican, who was in the
church at Centre7ille which was turned into hos
1 pal gives vent to the following horrible bias
: phemy
+, There were in it, scattered thicky on the foo
D and in the galleries, sixty seventy, wounded il
D every possible way-arms and legs shot off, som
n dead, and scores gasping for water and aid. Tn
.
the communion table of pious anGrchy became a
! dmpmation table, baptized in auiAng blood, am
consec1dted 10 TIE loyal uses of liberty and law
The road and woods, on either side and all around
are strewn with manned and mutiLated heroes AM
the balls from riied go over us like winged
devils. There sits Colonel, with his arm bount
up, asking to be put on his horse and led back tt
his regiment; here lies Captain with a grape sho
through his head, and blood and brains oozne
out as we touch him tenderIy to see if he's dead
yonder comes i'll pale chaplain, cut by canister
while, sword in hand he led his brave little parish
in the name of Almighty God, to the fight
Look around you here. The grim chamber
where the deity Of a strange despotism was wor
shipped, is turned into altar of Freedom, ant
sanctfed anew by the life of heroes Fl
choir that, in the galeries-the intermittent yell
/, Of the dying and the subdued groans of brav
e men! Eloquent preacher, in that point so lon,
, deGled! Glorious burden on that sacramento
table, splendid wine there flowing-where Chris
7 has been SO often cruciiied. Precious and accent
able Eucharist! And these are the services to-
in this chapel of paganisnl, once dedicated, witt
lying lips to God. The house which Baal bull
rises over a holocaust of heroes. And this is th
holy Sabbath day--the worlds White Day. so Ions
! kept as blessed symbol of fidelity, purity, hu
1 mainly, liberty and peace!
And SC the whole nation is to suffer- then for The
dark crimes OF ycars-the Sonth for its terrible