Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1864-02-19
Mistella
:" INTO me LIONS MouTH. .

written 1t, on my side, pencil in hand; then |
snoozed then looked across the burrows,
through the sweet, sunny, blossom scented
airs, to the long line of the Ninety-frst, their
color exactly opposite ours. Half dozen
pigs ran down between the regiments; a gaunt-
let, believe, not one survived and before
night they were eaten with much gusto for,
during our stay at Baton Rogue, we have very
rarely tasted fresh meat.
Boom, boom!-big guns from the river. We
can hear, too, the cough of high-pressure
transport steamers and know now that the
feet are, at least, as near old Port Hudson
as we are; and we are only four or five miles
away. At length, Fall in, men, at once ~
An aid has come galloping up to the colonel,
who is on horseback in a moment. ave
shall probably have sharp work before we
come back" keep cool, and do not waste
your fire." SO Capt. Morgan and the rest
gave such caution to their men as is needful
on the eve Of battle. Leave knapsacks here;
the footsore men will guard them, poor
Hines, and the like OF him, whose feet these
real secesh roads have beaten and bruised
with true rebel violence.
How do we feel, We are going out to
meet the enemy, we all fully believe, and so
do our officers and even staff officers Of the
General, who are friendly to us, look plying
ly after, as we march on; ipr they know,
though we do not, that we are to be pushed
up VI front ofthe whole army. into close range
of the cannon upon the fortress walls The
tifty-second is COOL and yet eager; and not a
man, that can limp at all, wants TO stay
For the last thing, Load ~ Open car
tridge-box; tear the tough paper from the
powder and--there it goes down the barrel;
and now the ball; hali-cock, then cap the
cone, and all is done. III have to fire, 1t
will be for the cause. Scruplcs, now, are
mere squeamshncss. Now, 4" BY the right
flank, forward =" Hardiker carries the white
State flag, the tall sergeant, the Stars aud
Stripes. Old flag, you are woven Of no or
binary stuff! Rank and file and shoulder
straps, ia sacred thing 1t has for warp.
liberty; and Tor wool, constitutional order;
and is dyed deep in tints Of love and Justice.
Between Hardiker and the sergeant marches
Wilson, fne-lookng corporal, with a mil
itary face, eye, and figure mustached, oeard-
ed, eager-such face as have seen in Vor-
ace Vernet's battle-pieces. A good marks
man, too, is Wilson; for many years the ter
ror of squirrels in the woods of E.. Prince
and Claypole cover Hardiker and Wilson /;
while march behind, right in the folds OF
the great flag Alongside. in the line OF
fe-ciosers, 60 West, and lisping light-hared
Wiobel, the German and last, the ever sa, .,
serene, and satisfactory Bias Dickinson.
SO we go out of the field into the road, in
the centre of the long column, with banners
waving, and, hope, the true light Of battle
upon our faces--soldiers in noble cause
farmer and mechanic, merchant and preacher,
shoulder to shoulder. Boom go the far
away guns. We are moving rapidly TO the
front: so the other regiments and the stout
battery and tho yellow cavalry give
way for us. cheering us on Down a cross
road towards the river, sweet south wind
shaking white cloud favors out of every win
dow in heaven at us; the sun smiling God
speed, and the lady rose bushes, from fence
corners like balconies, showing their bios
som-handkerchiefs.
Cautiously, boys A few steps, and we
stumble over the handsome horse of the woun-
ded colonel dead in the middle OF the road,
with eight bullets through him. There, too,
is the bloody boot of his rider, hastily cut off
after the wounding was accomplished A
company are detailed as hankers and as
they 30 through the wood few rods distant
from the road, they hear the gtoans Of other
wounded men. They cannot 20 to them for
to stop would be 10 expose the whole flank
of the column to danger.
Now we pass other dead horses belonging
to cavalry-men, which were shot in the road
by the retreating Rebel picksts. At length
we reach fork where Is a regiment drawn up
andGen Grover sitting on horseback with his
staf-a light-haired man, with face sufficient
ly resolute, his beard cut in peak, and
wearing a cavalier hat. We halt only for
moment The generals pointing hand indl
Gates the direction we are to take so down
wo go through wooded road, driving before
us the enemy's pickets our Aankers in the
woods seeing them mount their horses and
gallop off as we come within musket-range.
Presently we go by their camps, where they
have cut ON trees some defiance or warning
to us:
=" Beware, Yankee this is hard road to
travel"
BY the side of the column rides an officer
of engineers, who stops every now and then
to note by-path or prominent knoll, or draw
rough plan of the wood. The dust has
hardly settled yet along the road from the
tramp Of their retreatiDg infantry. We press
on close behind, until ut length the column
halts close within the range OF the Port
Hudson batteries.
We fell back that Saturday night two OF
three miles, then camped in the woods
Later, a battery went forward to position
near that to which we advanced, and fired
shells for while towards the rebel intrench-
ments. Our blankets and baggage were four
miles behind. We hung equipments and
haversacks on the gunstocks and, wet with
sweat, lay down in our clothes, without COW
ering. Wilson and laid rails on the ground
then made shopping roof Of rails overhead,
which was some protection against the damp.
The eyelids shut together like pair Of
SCISSOR blades, and cut the thread of con-
sciousness but in the midst of my dreaming
crash after crash broke upon my ear, like the
chorous Of doomsday, We all jumped to
our posts for we thought the hour of battle
had come. looked at my watch by the
light of few embers 1t was half past elev-
en-. At the time, we were in complete igno-
rance Of the events that were trsnspiring.-
We know now that it was the fleet Just pas
sing the batteries, and all this was the up
ia he 10 a.