New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-03-12
Stories of tho War.

It will be remembered that our brave and
dashirg General Phil Kearny was shot by
some Of the Confederate infantry just at
twilight of the evening following the battle
noitering the enemy's position in person.
The details of the death of General Alfred
Moutop, a prominent Confederate leader in
| Louisiana, furnish an exact parallel to that
| of Kearny. Mouton commanded a division
at the battle of Sabine Cross Roads, and
was present with it all day. The battle
closed with an unsuccessful attempt Of the
enemy to break our right flank. Tho charge
| was repealed by the First Division of the
Nineteenth Corps, and the discontinue of
the attack at this point called forth tremen-
| dous cheers from our line. These cheers.
it would seem, we're mistaken by General
Mouton for the expected yells of victory Of
his own troops, and he quickly approached
the unbroken line of our First Division
| with his staff and escort. What followed
| will be best told in the language of com
| rade who saw it all:
II was nearly dark. Our line remained
quiet, awaiting further developments Of the
enemy. Soon a party of horsemen were
seen approaching elowlv over the open
| field. The faint light of departing day and
the clouds of smoke which were settling
around us rendered it impossible for us to
distinguish friend from foe. Captain Ma
thewe, assistant adjutant general of the
brigade, thought the party was our own,
which had been sent to reconnOitre the po-
sition of the enemy. Their nearer approach
soon disabused him of this opinion, and be
directed them to halt. "Federals, by -w
cried one of the party, wheeling his horse
at the same time. "Fire!' was the order,
and instantly the saddles of that fated
party were emptied. and not one ever re.
turned to his comrades in the woods.
l am informed from another source that
fifteen men were killed outright by this dis
charge. The result was not remarkable, as
the fire of at least one battalion was con-
centrated upon the unfortunate party. 1t
was reported that General MOuton's body
bore seven wounds. Mouton was q son of
former Governor of Louisiana, and COM
mander whose ability was highly priced by
the Confederates in the Southwest.
After the action at Sabine Cross Roads,
our army withdrew fifteen miles to Pleasant
Hill, where q furious, but indecislve, battle
was fought April 9. Both armies passed
the night following on the field. expecting
to renew the conflict in the morning, 80 that
there was neither opportunity Eor ability
to succor the wounded. Both armies had
now fought two battles on two different
days, and had marched the whole of the
intervening night, and their energies were
thoroughly exhausted. They were now
u
apart, and any movement for the reliet OF
the wounded, by either side. would Ger
tainly have been interpreted as hostile
movement, and would have drawn volley
of musketry, and precipitated . night
battle. Hundreds of severely wounded
men Of both armies were lying helpless and
suffering in the interspace, and their means
and cries for assistance were truly heart
rending. The whole dreadful story OF war
f,vrv, 1e1, nho
such situation az this. quote again from
the statement of the officer already referred
to:
A picket was thrown forward, that of
our regime mt occupying q portion of the
ground where the Sixteenth Corps had been
posted, and where the fighting had been
severe. As the night advanced it grew 80
cold that all were chilled, and the poor
sufferers that were lying wounded on the
with the duty Of establishing the picket |
line, and the memory of the heart-rending
scenes Of the advanced posts is fresh in my |
mind. Before Us was an extensive field,
where the line of the Sixteenth Corps had
been broken by the enemy. On this
bloody ground we're mingled together, both
rebels and Unionists. But few hours since
they were fighting in almoet hand to hand
conflict for the mastery OF the field; now |
side by side they lay dying. The embit-
tered feelings with which they had 50 re-
Gently commended had passed away, and ap- |
preaching death Invested them of every re- |
sentiment. Walls and cries Of agony were |
mingled by hundreds of these sufferers. |
The following are some Of the cries which |
we're most frequently repeated:
"For Gods sake bring us some water!'
"Where is the Twenty fourth Iowa9'
''Send some one to get me" Fourth Texas,
come here!' twentieth Arkansas, come
for metz 80, bring mo some fre!' "My
God, | am dying! Are any Of the Fifteenth
Illinois here!" s'Water, waterv and "Fire,
tire-O, am freezinew were frequent calls.
There was one voice, apparently that of o
officer in delirium, which kept re-
peating over and over words like these:
forward, men, fcrward-there ehey
are-fre on them-lie dOwn-there they
,ome-up and after them-charge them
here they go-follow them"
md said: II have for some time heard
that made my heart ache. A
hort distance in front lies poor fellow
Who kept crying. o, my wife, my wife! But
or . few minutes I have not heard him
peak. and fancy he may be dead"
In this connection may be added q para.
,raph furnished by the same hand, and
ute germane to the subject:
"A singular coincidence befell the Mis-
ouri troops. In the Sixteenth Corps We
ikewise had several regiments from that
tate. In the second day q battle tho Mis-
ouri federal and Confederate troops were
lifted auainsk each nth0r A c010ue1 kakan | I