The Vermont transcript. [volume] (St. Albans, Vt.) 1864-1870, 1864-06-10

wounded men had been carried away.
we heard loud wailings and cries in the
direction of the city | was told a
negro woman, in walking through the
yard, had been struck by fragment
of shell, and instantly killed The
screams of the women of Vicksburg
were the saddest / have ever heard.
The wailings over the dead seemed full
of hcart-sick agony. | cannot at
tempt TO describe the thrill of pity,
mingled with fear, that pierced my soul,
rs suddenly vibrating through the air
would come these sorrowful shrieks -
these pitiful means sometimes al
most simultaneously with the explosion
of a she'll This anguish over the dead
and wounded, was particularly low
and mounful, perhaps from the de
preston. Many women were utterly
sick through constant fear and appre-
hension. 1t is strange that the ladies
were almost constantly in caves, and
yet, did one go ont for short time
she was almost certain to be wounded /;
while the officers and soldiers rode and
/ walked about, with very little destrue-
tion of life ensuing"
5 in these pages are touching exhibi-
tons both of endurance and bravery.
which lead us to respect many Of the
defenders of Vicksburg as "foemen
worthy of our steel" 1t is a pleasure
to record incidents like the following
GA federal soldier left on the field,
badly wounded in the leg, had begged
most piteously for water; and lying
near the confederate intrenchmonts,
his cries were all directed to the con-
federate soldiers. The firing was
heaviest where he lay, and it would
have been at the risk of life to have
gone to him; yet, confederate soldier
asked and obtained leave to carry
water to him, and stood and famed
him in the midst of the firing, while he
eagerly drank from the heroic soldiers
canteen.'
Nor were the rebel soldiers deficient
in that passive courage which is often
more difficult than the impulsive dar-
ing of a moment
ALREADY the men in the rifle pits
We're on half rations-hour or meal
enough to furnish bread equivalent in
quantity to two biscuits in two days;
many of them ate it all ut once, and
the next day tasted, preferring, MS they
said, to have one good meal. So they
sat cramped up all day III the pits
their rations cooked in the valley and
brought to them-scarcely daring to
change their position and stand erect,
for the federal sharpshooters We're
watching for their heads; and to rise
above the breastworks was almost GER
tain death. Frequently, Parrot
shell would penetrate the intrench-
ments, and, exploding, cause frightful
wounds, and death most frequently.
All ! said NJ, one day, it is to the
noble men in the rife pits that Yicks-
burg Will owe aught of honor she may
gain IN this siege. revere them. as
see them undergoing every priyation
with courage and patience, anxious only
for the high reputation of the city
They amused them elves, while lying
in the pits, by cutting out little trim
kets from the wood of the parapet and
the Mimic balls that fell around them.
Major Fry, from Texas, excelled in
skill and ready invention, l think; he
sont me one day an armchair that he
had cut from Mimic ball-the most
minute affair of the kind | ever saw,
yet perfectly symmetrical. At another
time, he sent me a diminutive plow
made from the parapet wood, with
traces of lead, and lead point made
from Mimic ball"
After all this patience, pain and peril,
the hour came when the husband of
the fair historian entered with a pale
face, saying sadly
cts all over The white flag floats
from our forts Vicksburg has sur
rendered! He put on his uniform
coat, silently buckled on his sword, and
prepared to take out the men, to de-
liver up their arms in front of the for
LITIGATION. felt a strange unrest, the
quiet of the day was so unnatural.
walked up and down the cave until Nj
returned The day was extremely
warm; and he came with violent
headache. He told me that the federal
troops had acted splendidly; they We're
stationed opposite the place where the
confederate troops marched up and
stacked their arms; and they seemed
to feel sorry for the poor fellows who
had defended the place for so long Il
time. Far different from what he had
expected, not jeer or taunt came from
, any one of the federal soldiers. Occa-
sionally, cheer would be heard; but
the majority seemed to regard the poor
unsuccessful soldiers with generous
, sympathy. After the surrender, the
, old gray-headed soldier, in passing the
hill near the cave, stopped, and touch
ing his hat, said; It's a sad day this
madam; little thought we'd come to
it, when we first stopped in the in
trenchments. hope you'll yet be
! happy, madam, after all the trouble
you've seen. TO which | mentally re-
, sponded, amen. The poor hunch-
back soldier, who had been sick, and
who, at home in southern Missouri, is
worth million Of dollars, | have been
. told, yet within Vicksburg has. been
nearly starved, walked out to-day in
the pleasant air, for the first time for