Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1868-10-29
LEES MISERABLES.


s'Mobus, or the Last Days of Lee and hi
Paladians," draws the following pictur,
ri tEa Army of Northern Virginia unde
the command of Gen. Lee:
They called themselves Lees Misera
bles.
That was a grim piece Of humOr, wa
II not, reader? And the TRpe had ,
somewhat curious origin. Victor Hugo
work, Les Mser0bies, had been trans
lated and published by house in Rich
mond; the soldiers, in the great dearth o
reading matter, had seized upon it anC
thus, by&strange chance, the tragic stor,
of the great French writer had become
known TO the soldiers in the trenches
Everywhere you might see the gaunt fig.
ures in their tattered jackets bcndins
over the dingy pamphlets, Famine,
"Cosette," or "Marius,' or "St. Denis
and the woes of "Jean Vatican" the old
galley-slaye found an echo in the heart;
Of these brave soldiers, immured in the
trenches and fettered by duty to their
muskets and their cannon.
Singular fortune Of a writer Happy
NJ. Hugo Nour fancies crossed the
ocean, and, transmitted into anew tongue,
whiled away the dreary hours of the old
soldiers at Lee, at Petersburg!
Thus, thai history of 1.-THE Wretched,
was the pabulum of the South in 1864 /;
and as the French title had been retained
on the backs of the pamphlets, soldiers,
1.-THE familiar with the Gallo pronuncia-
ton, called the book Lees Miserables r.
Then another step was taken. 1t was no
longer the book, but themselves whom
they referred TO by that name. The old
veterans Of the army thenceforth laughed
at their miserieS, and dubbed themselves
Crimly Lees Miserables.'
The sobr:quet was gloomy, and there
was something tragic in the employment
Of it; but it was applicable. Like most
popular terms, it expressed the exact
thought in the mind of every One-coined
die situation into : phrase
Truly, they were "The Wretched -
the soldiers Of the army of Northern
Virginia, in the fall and winter of 1864.
They had a quarter of pound of rancid
Nassau bacon from New England
for daily rations of meat The handful
Of -four or corn meal, which they received,
was musty Coffee and sugar were dOled
cut as luxury, now and then only; and
the microscopic ration became Jest to
those who looked at it. A little grease
and corn brcad-the grease rancid and
the bread musty-tbesewere the food OF
the army.
Their clothes, blankets and shoes were
no better-eyen worse. Only at long in
teryals could the government issue new
ones to ;hem. Thus the army was in
tatters. The old clothes hung on the
men ike scarccrows. Their gray Jackets
were in rags, and did not keep out the
chilly winds sweeping over the frozen
fields. Their old blankets were in shreds
and gave them little warmth when they
wrapped themselves up in them, SILVER,
ing in the long, cold nights The ole
shoes patched and yawning, had served
In many a march aud battle-and nov
allowed the naked soul 20 touch the hare
and frosty ground.
Happy the man with a new blanket
Happy the pOssesscr of a whole rounda
bout What millionaire or favorite child
of fortune passes yonder, the owner of al
uTpatchcd pair Of shOes2
Such was the rations and clothing O
tie amy at that epoch-rancid grease
mu5ty meal, tattered jackets and wOrnou
shoes. And these were the fortunate
ones Whole divisions often went with,
out bread, even for two days. Thousand
had no jackets, no blankets and no shoes
Gaunt forms in ragged old shirts and tori
antalOOns only, clutched the musket
At night they huddled together 70
warmth by the fire in the trenches
When they charged, their naked feet lef
bloud-marks on the abattis through whicl
they went ut the enemy.
That is not an eXaCgeTation, reader
These facts are Of record
And that was q part only 1t was nc
only famine and haEdship which they un
deTwcnt, but the incessant c0mbats an
2ortal tedium of the trenches. All, tn
trenches! Those words summed up
whole volume of suffering No longe
lighting in open field; no longer winte
quarters with power to range; no longe
if.S lOm fresh air healthful movement
thetrenches,
Here, coopei up and hamperod a
every turn, they fought through all thCs
long months OF the dark autumn an
Einter of 1864 They were no longe
men, but machines loading and frin
the musket and the cannon. Burrowin
in their holes and subterranean covered
ways, they crouched in the darkness
rose at the sound Of coming battl,
manned the brcastwOrks, or trained tn
cannon, day after day, week after weel
month a'tCr month, they were in tn
trenches at grim work and some fiat ,
Destiny seemed to have chained theI
there TO battle forever At midnich
rs at noon, they were at their posts. !
the darkness, dusky figures could be see
swinging the spongestaff, swabbinc ii
cannon, driving home the charge. In II
starlight, the moonlight or the gloom !
Is the red glare, those figures, resen
BRag phant0ms, were seen marshaled b.
hind the brcaStworks to repel the comir
VI ault Silence had fled from Il
Il nchcs-the crash Of musketry and Il
below of artillery had replaced it. Tn
seemed never 10 cease The men we
rocked to sleep by it. They slept on
the dark trenches, though the morris
shells rose. described their famil
curves, and bursting, rained iagg
; fragments Of iron spon them. And
many, that Was their last sleep. II
iron tore them in their tattered blanke
They rose gaSPinC, and streaming wi
blood Then they staggered and fe
when you passed by, you saw a SON
thing lying on the ground. covered vi
he Cd blanket IL was one of lie
Miserables,, killed last night bv
mortars and gone 10 answer, HereT !
fore the Master
The trenches l-ah : the trench
Were You in them, reader Thousar
Will tell more of them than can. Tn
an historic was guarding the capita
an historic nation-the great nation
q Virginia-and how they guarded i'll
hunger and cold and nakeduess, Il
guarded il still In the bright days
the dark, they stood at their posts
moved. In the black night-watchet
bv day-toward morning as at evenin
they stood, clutching themusket peer