The Placer herald., 1863-06-06
THE PROSE OF BATTLE.
BY AN EYE WITNESS.

|
ture of the war, look in vain for minute des-
crptiOn of any action"
We may trace this deficiency to the disparity
between the writers and the readers of war liter
ature. Those who witnessed and record are
military men, eithor by profession or education:
their accounts lack circumstantiality and sim
plicy. Tney assume that the reader has certain
elementary knowledge Of terms and movem ents,
and their narratives seem therefore vague. gene
raj, and unsatisfactory. 1t will not avail to tell
Mr.. Coke that the "tourh division outhankcd the
enemy for Mr.. Coke, having passed much Of
his life underground, never beheld even militia
training. division. to his mind, may include
twenty men or twenty thousand men, and to out
flank may intimate to ambush to run away.
Mr.. Phlog, the schoolmaster, reads in Il certain
newspaper that certain regiment marched up
in double quick or threw itself into a hollow
square, or formed pyramid to repuse cavalry,
or rallied by tOurs, dpployed as skirmishers or
charged bayoncts. But Mr.. Phlog, though an
intelligent person, would like to be told, in
detail. ho,o the regiment deployed, and how the
pyramid appeared. He has been TO but one
funeral in the course of his life and never
hanging. He wishes, in common with the
urchins he brches, to know more of the real and
! the horrble-how man falls out of the ranks
what hues harden into his dead face, how he lies
among the tangled wretches on the battlefield,
how and by whom he was buried. In fact he
wishes q dagurreOtype of war. When the powder
has flashed out of the sky, and the tabeaux have
fallen away, tell him how the strewn plains would
have looked to him had he been therc-give him.
in word, the "prose of battle"
The writer has followed some of the bloodiest
campaigns of the American civil war in civil
capacity; he has witnessed the incidents of charge
retreat. captivity, and massacre through the eyes
of novice, and some of the "reminiscences may
not be embarrassing to the less experienced.
The first death" which | recall among my
most vivid remembrances happened on the Chick
,l,,ri,, In
sula campaign. The Federal army lay along the
high hills on the north side Of the stream and
the Confederates upon the hills of the other side.
The pickets Of the latter reached almost to the
brink, and the Federals were busily engaged in
erecting bridges at various points. | WIS stand
ing at New Bridge one day, watching the opera
tions of the sodery, when General z. rode
down through the meadows to examine the work.
A guard held the Richmond bank of the creek.
access being obtained to them by series of RATS
or buoys; but the guard could only go little
way from the margin, for some sharpshootels lay
behind IL knoll, and had. up to this time mortally
wounded every adventurer. The General refined
his horse on the safe side Of the river. and called
briefly, 'Major"
A young 1axen haired, norid man, with a gold
leaf on his shoulder bar. stepped out, sauted
and paid respectful attention.
| 'General?'
"Is that your picket?"-pointng to the group
on the opposite bank.
"Yes. General"
"No more men beyond the knoll aud bush?'
mo. general; is dangerous The enemy are
there in fol ce.'
"Do you know their forcc?"
| "No general"
Call one OF your men,"
"Parks!'
A little bullet-headed fellow, whose legs were
muddy to the thighs, and who was driving round
| log to its place in the roadway, dropped his NAL
la@.t tlty md ,,Niv ~
and saluted.
GO cautiously up the bank" said the general,
"you see it there's draw fire if you can; but if
there be response, you will shout to provoke
it,"
saw the knot in the soldiers throat rise slow
ly, as if propelled by his heart; a little culver
came to his lips, and he looked half inquringly
at his major. Ina moment he recovered, tapped
his cap lightly and leaped from buoy to buoy,
reached the guard post ran up the hill, passed
| the knoll, an stood with his head and shoulders
in full view, but his extremities and tru k behind
| the ridge. We all watched sollciOusly and in
dead silence.
"Shout! my man." cried the general, 'shout,
shout"
The hands of the soldier went up; he swung
his cap and called shrilly. ''Hurrlh for Gen
| M'Clellan."
A volley of musketry blazed from the timber
beyond. and the man flung up his arms and dsap
peared. With yell Of revenge, the guard broke
| from the margin, discharged their muskets into
| the ambuscade, and directly returned, bearing
the little fellow with the bulct-head; but the
mud on his trousers was turned red, and blood
drppcd in a ril from his mouth and chin. The
young majors dord face grew pale, he shut his
| lips tightly and the soldiers, u little apart,
swore through their teeth.
81 am sorry he got his billet" said the gen
eral; "but he died fulfilling orders, and he WAS a
| brave man."
wondered as he rode away, attended by his
dashing staff, if any more brave men had died, or
were to die. fulfilling such orders.
A dreadful opportunity occurred after the bat
tie of Hanover Court House, to look upon whole
sale massacre. The wounded on both sides had
been hauled from the distant field to the encamp-
mcnts Of the army, and were quarered in and
around some old Virgni dwellings. All the
COW houses wagon-sheds hay-barracks, negro
cabins, hencoops and barns had been turned into
hospitals. The floors were Uttered with corn.
shucks and fodder, and the MANNED, gashed
and diving lay niisedly together. A few,
slightly wounded related incidents Of the battle
through the windows; but sentries stood at the
door with crossed muskets, to keep out idlers
and gossips. The mention Of my vocation was an
open sesame. and went unreslrained into all the
larger hospitals. In the first of these, an ampu-
tation was being performed. and at the door lay
a little heap of human limbs. | shall not soon
forget the bare armed surgeons, with bloody in
struments who leaned over the rigid and inSen-
sible figure, while the comrades of the subject
looked on horror struck at the scene. The gra-
ting of the murderous saw drove me into the
open air, but in the second hospital which | visit
ed, a wounded man had just expired and l en-
countered his body at the threshold. The Ian
terms hanging around the room within. streaned
ftfully upon the red eyes and haf-naked figures
All were looking up. and saying in pleading
monotone: 'Is that you doctor!'' Men, with their
arms in slings, went restlessly up and down
smartng with fever Those who were wounded
in the lower extremities, body or head, lay upon
their backs, tossing even in sleep. They listened
peevishly to the wind whisting through the
ch nks in the barn. They followed one with
their rolling eyes; they turned away from the
lantern glare, which seemed to scar them. Sol
diers sat by severely wounded, lavng their sores
with water. In many wounds, the balls stillre
! manned, and the flesh was swollen and discolored
: There were some who had been shot in the bow
I els and now and then these poor follows were