Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1869-12-09

4
which, before tho gale sttfened the head
long currents, actually swept out into the
swollen rushing creeks several of the
| feeblest of the men under single hospital
tents, and they were drowned. Night
set in, with the most intense coldness,
such rs the badly fitted up hospitals were
wholly unprepared for.
All that night Mother Bickerdyke
worked like Titan to save her bloodless
feeble patients from being frozento death.
There was fifteen hundred in hospital
tents-all wounded men all bad cases.
The fires were piled higher and higher.
with logs, new fires were built with
closer proximity to the tents, until they
were surrounded by Gordon Of immense
piles blazing and cracking in the sting
ing wintry atmosphere. Before mid
night the fuel gave out, and to send men
out into the forest to cut more in that
darkness and awful Goddess seemed bar
| barous. The Surgeon in charge crawled
off into his quarters, and wrapping him.
self in blankets, left Mother Bckerdyke
to meet the emergency. She was equal
to it. With Der usual dsdain of red
tape, she appealed to the pioneer corps
to take their mules and axes, hooks and
chains. and tear down the breastworks
near them made Of logs, with earth
thrown up against them.
There was no one who dared give the
order for this to be done, but after she
had refreshed the shivering men with a
cup or two of ranada apiece, which was
made of whisky, hot water, sugar and
crackers, they went to work at her sug
gestion without orders. They knew as
did she, that on the continuance of the
huge fires through the night depended
the lives Of hundreds of their wounded
comrades. For there was no bedding
for the tents, only blanket or two for
each wounded man. So the men Of the
pioneer corps set to work, tearing down
the breastworks, and hauling the logs up
to the fierce fires, Mother Bickerdyke di
rectipg half dozen barrels of meal to
be broken open, and mixed with warm
water, to feed their mules. Immense
i CduidTOIlS vi uOL uIluho WCto ICuCWoui1
made under her direction-hot coffee,
panada, and other like rou rishng pota-
bles-aud layers of hot bricks were put
around every wounded and sick man of
the entire fifteen hundred, as he lay in
his cot. From tent to tent she ran all
night in the gale, hot bricks in one hand
and hot drinks in the other, cheering
and warming, and encouraging the poor,
shivering fellows.
AS the night was passing slowly into
the cold, gray day, the Major of the
guard commanding the post, was inform
ed of Mother Bickerdyke's unauthorized
exploits, and hastened down where the
demolished breastworks were fast being
consumed By the hungry flames. He
took in the whole affair Immediately, and
evidently saw the necessity and wisdom
of the course she had pursued. But it
was his business to preserve order, and
maintain discipline, and so he made a
show of arresting the irregular proceed
ings. By no mere order of his could
this be done. Not until day dawn, when
they could 60 safely into the woods to
get fuel, were the men disposed to reIin
quish their raid on the breastworks, which
wore comparatively useless, having served
their purpose of defense against tue enc.
my weeks before.
MADAM, consider yourself under ar
rest" was the Majors address to ubiquit.
Gus Mother Bickerdyke.
To which she replied, as she flew past
him with her hot bricks and hot drinks,
+" All right, MAJOR! only don't NEEDLE
with me till the weather noderates, for
my men will freeze to death if you do"
A story got in circulation that she was
put in the guard house by the Major.
and this is still current in The west, and
by many is believed; but it was not
true. There was some little official hub.
bub over her nights work, but she de
Tended herself to the officers who quietly
reproved her action, with this indisputa-
bic statement: " It's lucky for you, old
fellows, that l did what l did. For if l
hadn't, hundreds of the men in the hos
ptal tents would have frozen to death.
Nobody at the north would have blamed
me. but there would have been such a
hullaballoo raised round your heads.
for allowing it to happen, that they
would have had to come of, whether or
no."
After the battle of Chickamauga in
1858 and during the succeeding winter,
Mother Bickerdyke's labors and anxieties
for her " boys" were so great that phys.
ically, she became completely worn down
and at the opening of spring was obliged
to 60 north to recuperate. But as soon
as she had regained her strength, she
again returned to her post. General
Sherman was pouring supplies, proven
der and ammunition into Chattanooga,
for it was to be his base of supplies for a
long campaign. So he had issued an or
der absolutely forbidding pound of sani-
tary stores, or an agent of any description,
from going over the road from Nashville
TO Chattsnooga, alleging as the reason
for the prohibition that be wished the en-.
tire ability of the railroad devoted to
strictly active army operations. There
was great distress in the hospitals below
Nashville in Consequences of this stringent