Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1875-06-27

shot Within Few Feet OF the Feder-
aIs-SYOu Have KILLED the Best Man
in Our Army''-ErrOrs I'm sherman's /
Memoirs
The publication Of Sherman's Memoirs
has excited much and ta=isd comment, and |
brought out many important facts Bearing |
upon the war between the sections, but /
none that win be read with more general |
interest than the following, written by |
Capt. Richard Beard, Of Afurree5boro, a |
gallant ex-Confederate, who was not sim
ply an eyewitness, but an active partiei-
psLt IN she affair which he so graphically
describes.
To the Union and American:
1 notice in your paper, and also in The
Bonner, Of the oath. letter from q c5r-
respondent at Shelbyville, connecting my
name and also that Of my company with
the killing Of Major General Mcpherson,
of the United States arIly, IN the battle Of
the 22d of July, 1864, before Atlanta Both
letters are substantially correct, with the ex-
ceptiOn Of one important particular. The
impression is made By your correspondent
LLLdL We were uGllLllCtl -a AlAC llAA4Na AAAA IA
ambuscade, which is erroneous, for we
we're in line Of battle with our regiment
the 5th COnfederate-and With Cleburne's
Division, TO which we belonged.
After my return from prison, at the close
of the war, l heard thai it had been charged
by the Northern press that Gen. McPher-
son lad been murdered, aud have been
fredaently requested TO write q letter OF
Of the facts connected with his death, but
owing 10 my ignorance Of localities and
the general arrangements Of the battle Of
the 22d of July, 1 have failed to do so.
mp to this time. The simple, unvarnished
facts Of the case, however, are these:
For day or two previous TO the battle, ]
had been in command Of brigade line Of
! skirmishers, and early on the morn
ing Of that day, was ordered TO join my
| regiment and diFisiOn, which were moving
out from Atlanta, on the Decatur road, in
order 10 strike the LETT flank Of Gen. Sher-
mans army, under the command Of Gen.
| Mcpherson, which stretched across the
Augusta railroad While halting upon the
road we were furnished with sixty ad-
ditiOnal rounds Of amunition, and were
| told that there was a hard days work be-
fore US.
We were placed in line Of battle about
/ II or O'Clock in the day, and the last or
der given by Gen. Pat. Cleburne to us,
was 70 move forward, turn neither TO the
right hand nor to the left, until we were
within The enemy's breastwOTks. Shortly
Afterwards a heavy and rapid cannOnadiug
commenced, from what we supposed to be
/ Gen. Bates division, which announced too
clearly that the ball was about to open in
| good earnest. Under the excitement
| aroused by il, we commenced a double
quick through forest covered with dense
] underbrush. Here we ran through a line
Of skirmishers, and took them in. without
the firing Of a gun, and suddenly came up
to the edge OF little wagon road, running
parallel with our line Of march, and down
which Gen. MePheTsOn came laundering
at the head Of his staff, and, according 70
my best recollection, his body guard. He
had evidently just lefs the last conference
that he ever had with Gen. Sherman, near
the Howard House, and was on his way to
see what the rapid and sudden firing upon
his left all meant.
Gen. Sherman is certainly mistaken, in
his Memoirs, when he says that he was
almost, if not entirely alone, for / estima-
ted bis rank entirely by the size of his
retinue, and in that estimate L fixed his
rank at nothing less than a corps cOmman-
der. He had a considerable staff with him,
and, according to my best recollection, a
body guard followed him.
He WIS certainly surprised 10 find him
self suddenly face 10 face with the Rebe
line. My own company and possibly Others
Of the regiment had reached the verge OF
the road, when he discovered, for the
first time, that he was within a few
feet Of where We stood.
threw up my sword TO him as q
signal 10 surrender. Not 3 word was
spoken. he checked his shOTse slightly
! raised his hat, as politely as if he was sa
luting 4 lady, wheeled his horses head d.
rectly to the right, and dashed of TO th'
rear in a full gallOp. Young Corporal Cole
man, who was standing near me, was or
dered 10 fire upOn him. He did so and
was bis ball that brought General Nc
PhersOn down. He vas shot passing unde
) the thick branches Of tree, and as he wa
bending over his horses neck, either Z
avoid coming in contact with the limbs, or
more probably, 70 escape the death-dealin.
T bullet Oftbe enemy, that he knew was sur
: to follow him. he was shot in the back
J and as Sherman says, in his Memoirs, 9Th
ball ranged upwards across the body AM
{ passed near the heart
A number Of shots we're also fred int,
his retreating staff.
2 / ran Immediately, up TO where the deat
D | General lay, just rs be had fallen, upon hi
knees and face. There was not a quiver q
D | his body to be seen, not 4 sign OF life per
E | ceptible. The fatal bullet had done il
E ! work well. He had been killed instantly
D Even as he lay there, dressed in his Najo
\ | Generals uniform, with his face inthe dust
e be was as magnificent a looking picture {
+ manhood as ever saw.
Right BY his side lay a man, who, If 3
all hurt, was but slightly wounded, bu
5 whose horse had been shot from under bin
From his appearance, / took him 90 be Oh
Adiutant or Inspector General Of The stat
Pointing 10 the dead nan, l asked han
HWhO IS this lying heTe?' He answere,
| with tears in his eyes, "Sir, il IS GeI
0 | McPherson. You have killed the best ma
o in our army This was the first intimati0
:. that we had as 70 who the officer was an
9 as to his rank.
r. Gen. sherman alleges in his book tbs
Gen. lIcPhersOn's pocket hook and paper
were found in the haversaCk Of q prisOne
3. Afterwards. That may be 50, hut th'
prisoner did not belong 10 our party. cap
l W. A. Brown, Of Mississippi, picked up hi
hat that had caught in the branches Of th
0 tree under which be bad fallen, and thi
was the only piece Of MePhesOn's pTopert
disturbed by any Of us.
q As stood Oy er the body the bullets wei
:: beginning TO whistle rapidly around th'
.e | locality. Soon after an order was sci
commanding the division to move by Oh
right flank. Mai. Richard Person, ga
3. liant officer, who commanded the regimen
/, was on tie extreme Jeff and ia front Of j
and did not hear the order, but pushed o
to the Federal entrechments, which WeT
before and in sight Of us. l was saiishs
then that, deiaChed As We were, the NOV
4 ment would only result in our death
is capture; but feeling it my duty 70 stick
the cOlOrs Of my regiment and share D
fate, no matter what il might be, did 81
and the result was as l anticipated
were all taken prisoners.
10 After our capture We had several eOnye
satiOns with Federal officers in regard
the killing Of Mcpherson, and L had m
self one conversation with an officer OF
staff who had been fortunate enough to
cape our bullets when Mcpherson fell.
The next day we started on our way
Northern prisons, the officers 10 Johns
Island. near Sandusky, Ohio. A short di