Holmes County farmer. [volume] (Millersburg, Ohio) 1857-1926, 1862-05-01
Uarittp.
The Ohio Troops AT Pittsburg--
Did amy Of them Run.

The Ohio Troops mt Pittsburg-.
Did amy Of them Run.
We extract the following from the cor
respondence of the'St. Louis RcpuJticdn
dated Pittsburg, April l4th:
Did the Ohio troops run? It's all
base slander, isu't it?
Frankly, my good friend, | think some
of them did run. In fact | am sure oi
it. 1t so happens, too, that troops from
other States ran also. Thus | happen to
know that certain Michigan regiments
who were brought up to support McCier
nand's line, when Sherman was falling
back, broke in such confusion as to be
utterly worthless. SO know OF Iowa
and Wisconsin troops that fed in as wild
panic as any. So, too, Illinois troops
waveled and fell back. In fact | do not
know of any troops on the field on Sun
day that did not do some running, and
there were not few that ran quite as fast,
as early and as far a those from Ohio.
The motley crowd that thronged the
bluffs and sneaked behind the river banks
for protection, Sunday afternoon, were
not all nor mainly Ohioans. saw plen-
ty of Illnoians there, with the usual cow
ards story about how their regiments
wore cut to pieces; plenty of Missouri
ans, Iowaians and others from the regions
which assume such special virtue about
Ohio runaways. They were not Ohio
officers who swan across the Tennessee
in their wild dread of deadly pursuit,
and Ohio regimental rolls do not contain
the names of all the panic stricken herd
that drowned or narrowly escaped drown
ing in attempting the same.
As to the conduct Of the 77th Ohio
on Tuesday, Gen Sherman's official re-
port, Just published, leaves nothing to be
added or subtractcd. But as to the con
duct Of the 53d, 18th and portions Of
other regiments on Sunday morning,
there is good deal to be said.
They ran, certainly ran, some OF them
without their arms, and all of them in
confusion that rendered them well nigh
worthless. You would have done tho
same. The blatant critics who are talk
ing about Ohio racing, ana carefully ne
glecting to say anything about their own
runaways, would have run away them.
selves, even had they been as brave as
those Generals Of theirs who rode coolly
through tcmpcsts of grape and whirl
winds Of muskct balls unh rmed,
Suppose you are quietly sleeping, whel
you are suddenly startled by the crasl
Of volley of muskctry, and rebel
musket in hand, rushing at you from tn
door of your tent. You might defcn,
yourself even in sudden surprise, if you
weapons were at hand and in readiness
but otherwise, strongly suspect yo,
would be getting out of the other side o
the tent as fast as vigorous legs woulc
carry you. Don't be complaining, then
if some raw troops did precisely the sam,
thing.
The amount of that "disgraceful run
ming Of Ohio troops" on Sunday morn
ing is substantially this The men wor,
completely surprised. Some Of their Of
hcers were bayonetcd in their beds; other,
were shot in their tents while springina
up; all were under heavy fire from an
enemy fairly in their camps before they
had an instant for seeking and grasping
their weapons. There may have been
Spartan veterans who, under such circum-
stances, would have stood to be shot
down rather than "disgracefully run"
but suspect modern armies do not con
tain many Of them.