Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1865-04-14

4 ing bridge. But the pOntOon trains
were always on hand and the streams af-
! forded no considerable barrier to our pro-
gress. The army moved leisurely along,
going where it listed and gathering its
subsistence from the rich plantations of
the treason-loying rebels of South Caro-
/ lima.
Columbia now lay before US, Augusta
on our left and Charleston on our right
The enemy seemed uncertain in his opin-
ions as to which of these three points we
would now move on. But General Sher-
man exhibited no hesitation in the execu-
| ton of his plans. The work of destroy
/ ing the railroad was no sooner completed
than the entire army resumed Its march.
! The four corps moved on different roads
/ keeping nearly abreast with each other
| The right wing diverged far enough to-
ward that flank to strike the railroad lead
| ing from Branchville to Columbia at Or
angeburg. The place first named had al
ready been evacuated by the enemy and
our army without delay continued its
march to Columbia.
On the 18th the goth Corps crossed the
| North Fork of the Edisto On the 10Th
its advance entered the town of Lexington.
Thus without scarcely the shadow of re-
sistance our army reached the environs of
| Columbia Yet it was known that the
enemy had considerable force there and
very few seemed to think that the place
would fall without some sort of a blow
struck In its defense. On the morning of
/ the 10th the advance was resumed at an
early hour. The trains were left in the
rear and the column was stripped for ac-
ton. Every preparation was made for a
vigorous assault upon any force that might
have the temerity to attempt to withstand
our progress toward the rebel capital
| The troops marched rapidly, for each
Corps was endeavoring to be the first to
enter the city. A. IL A. M. cannonading
was heard at the front. The 18th Corps
had reached the banks of the Congaree
and was shelling the city across that
stream. The enemy appeared, but made
no serious resistance. He seemed to be
preparing to abandon the place to it's fate.
| He withdrew during the ensuing night
\ and the glorious banner of the Union was
| hoisted on the capitol building early on
the following morning. Thus the birth
place of the first Ordinance of Secession
was at length brought back to the authori-
ty and dominion Of the United States
| Government.
Previous to our occupation of the city
the rebel Governor had issued the most
urgent appeals to his subjects to immedi-
ately rally to the defense of the State and
promised the utter overthrow of our ar
my. He recommended his people to de-
/ stroy all provisions that might fall into our
hands, to block up the roads. burn the
bridges, and in every possible way harass
and annoy our column. But these appeals
availed no more than would the incohe-
/ rent rawlings of pinioned madman.-
| General Wheeler, commanding the rebel
cavalry, when asked to report how much
force he had with which to hold the South
| Carolina Railroad, is said to have sarcast-
| ically replied that he had three brigades
and five proclamations.
The rebel newspapers also made the
| most frantic appeals to the people to come
out in response to the call of their Gov
ernor They boasted that if Charleston
might be called the craddle of secession
Columbia was the very couch of It's birth.
| They therefore called most vehemently
upon every able-bodied man to come
quickly to the defense of the city which
was so intimately associated with the his
tory of the rebellion. But the valorous
chivalry could not see it in that light. ="
In fact they considered their blood Of too
royal a tincture to have it poured out by
such a set of varlets as Sherman S
thieves" They had rather fight gen
tlemen''-men of "honor." Then, too,
there was vast difference between fight
ing sixty thousand such scape- -graces as
Sherman commanded and bombarding
with mortar, paixhan and petard," a
helpless garrison of sixty patriots shut up
in an isolated fort mile or two away
: Duelists and negro-whippers are inclined
to be somewhat choice in their method of
dispatching live Yankees. In the first
place, they would rather not have tCo
many of them collected together in the
, same locality Secondly, the shrewd
methods of ambuscade, torpedoes and
poisoned wells are better adapted to their
, ideas of refined and effective warfare
| Thirdly, the code of honor prescribes
that combatants shall have an equal
amount of choice in the time and place
of fighting, the weapons to be used, the
r distance from each other, &c. But in our
/ rough and tumble style of warfare one
: party often arrogates to himself the ex-
= elusive regulation of all these matters.-
/ Consequently chivalry of the first water
e are often compelled to deny themselves
t the pleasure of fighting us on account OF
= scruples about these points of honor
So, [ fancy, it was in this case. Conse-
= quently Sherman captured Columbia and
t did with it what he pleased.
S And what did he please to do? not
: probably, to destroy it, yet, nevertheless
: it was destroyed. A large quantity o
t spirituous liquors was found in the city
e and a great many of our soldiers became
= intoxicated. Then began scene which
5 beggars description. House after house
t was fired and soon the whole town was
e in flames. The fire-engines were ordered
= out but the men made 4 mockery o
h working them. When, perchance, few
e willing hands attempted to use them il
: stopping the conhagration, others unseer
d cut the hose and rendered the whole
II machinery useless. Officers appealed t.
e the men to stop pillaging and destruction
d but their words fell upon deaf ears, o
:. else provoked only maudlin replies. He
It [ would not have any one believe that th
J. discipline of our army is so lax that
a could not have been enforced under al
e most any other circumstances. TIL
= troops fully realized that they were nov
y in Columbia, the birthplace of nullifca
r ton and treason. They thought of tn
!e dangers they had passed, the suffering
Is endured on account of the unholy wa
N here originated The taunting epitbets
id ''cowardly Yankees, "mudsilis,' ant
IA greasy mechanics" first spoken in thes
I'd streets crossed their minds and infame
- them with rage The dark treachery c
S, Sumter loomed up before them-lons
E. gloomy professions of bony forms, til
st starved victims of Southern dungeons
us passed in review before their menta
eSS vision. What wonder then, that Column
fd bia was destroyed? Rather is it not
sd wonder that one stone Of the traitorou
50 city was left lying upon another?
p A. Y. SECHANn.
~ ~ XVIII.