New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-03-26
WALT WHITMAN.

Little hands close up the store for the day.
WALT WHITMAN.
His "reminiscences Of the War.
This venerable author has in press work
entitled Memoranda of the War" In his
introduction he Gays:
81 commenced at the close of 1862, and
continued steadily through 1863, 1864 and 800
TO visit the sick and wounded of the army,
both on the field and in the hospitals in and
around Washington City. From the first l
kept little note books, just a sheet or two
of paper folded small and fastened with
pin, to carry in the pocket for impromptu
lettings in pencil to refresh my memory Of
names and circumstances, and what was
specially wanted, etc. In these l briefed
cases, persons, sights, occurrences in camp,
by the bedside, and not seldom by the
cOrpses of the dead. Some were scratched
down from narratives heard and itemized
while watching or waiting or tending some
body amid those scenes. have perhaps
forty euch little note books left, forming
special history OF those years for myself
alone, full of associations never to be posi-
bly, said or sung. l leave them just as
threw them by during the war. blotched
here and there with more than one blood
stain, hurriedly written, sometimes at the
clinique, not seldom amid the excitement OF
uncertainty, or defeat or Of action, or get
ting ready for it, or march,"
With the above for introduction. we will
now give few extracts:
Future years will never know the seeth-
ing hell and the black internal background
Of countless minor scenes and interiors mot
the few great battles of the secession war;
and it IL best they should not. In the
mushy influences Of current, times the
feryid atmosphere and typical events OF
those years are in danger Of being totally
forgotten. have at night watched by the
side of a sick man in the hospital, one who
could not live many hours. l have seen his
ewes flash and burn as he REQUIRED to the
crnelties on his surrendered brother, and
mutilations of the corpse afterward. see
following the incident at Upperville-the
seventeen, killed as in the description, were
left there on the ground. After they dropped
dead, no one touched them-an were made
sure of, however. The carcasses were left
for the citizens to bury or not, as they
chose.
Sroh was the war. 1t was not quadrille
in ball room. Its interior history will not
only never be written. its prarticality,
minutia of deeds and passions, will never
1926. North and South, with all his
ways, his incredible dauntlessness, habits,
practices, tastes, language, his appetite,
rankness, his superb strength and animal
| ity. lawiess gait, and a hundred unnamed
| lights and shades of camp-1 say. will never
be written-perhaps must not and should
not be.
The hospital part of the drama. from
| 1861 to 1860, deserves perhaps to be speci
ally recorded, Of that many.hreaded
drama, with its sudden and strange sur
| prisee, its confounding Of prophecies. its
moments of despair, the dread OF foreign
interference. the interminable campaigns,
| the bloody battles, the mighty and cum
brous and green armies, the drafts and
bounties-the immense money expenditure,
| like heavy pouring constant raln-wlth.
| over the whole land, the last three years Of
| the struggle, an unending, universal
mourning wall of women, parents, or
phans-the marrow of the tragedy concen-
| trated in these hospitaIs-(it seems some
| times as if the whole interest OF the land,
| North and South, was one vast central nos
pitsl. aud all the rest of the affair but
| fan .es those forming the untold and IN
written history of thu war-intinitely
! greater tiil1e lite's) than the few scraps and
distortions that are ever told or written.
| Think how much, sn1 Of Importance: will
! be-how much, civil, and military, has al
ready been-buried IN TIE grave in eternal
darkness.
May II, lS63-We already talk Of histo-
ries Of the wi.r tpresently to accumulated
| yes, technical histories of some things, sta
tistics, official reports, and so on. but shall
we ever get histories of the real things!
| There Wa. part of the late battle at Chan
ceIlorsville Second fredericksburg little
over week ago, Saturday, Saturday night
and Sunday, under General Joe Hooker, l
would like to give just glimpse Of-a mo
ment's look in q terrible storm at sea, of
1 III E.,
| full details impossible. The fighting had
been very hot during the day, and after
an intermission the latter part. was re.
sumed at right and kept up with furious
energy till three O. clock in the morning. That
| afternoon Saturday an attack, sudden and
strong, by Stonewall jackson. had gained
great advantage to the Southern army,
and broken our lines, entering US like a
| wedge, and leaving things it that position
at dark. But Hooker at eleven O'Clock at
night made p desperate push, drove the
secesh forces back, restored his original
lines, and resumed his plans. This night
| scrimmage was very exciting, and afforded
countless strange and fearful pictures. The
fighting had been general both at Chancel-
lorsville and northeast at Fredericksburg.
| I'VE hear of some poor fighting, episodes.
skedaddling on our part. think not of it.
l think of the fierce bravery, the general
rule.) One corps, the sixth. Sedwick' 8
fights four dashing and bloody battles in
| thirty six hours, relreating in great jeopardy.
| losing largely and maintaining itself, fight
! ing with the eedrnest desperation under all
circumstances, getting over the Rappahan-
| mock only by the skin Of its teeth, yet get
ting over. 1t lost many, many brave men,
| yet it took vengeance, ample vengeance.
But it was the tug of Saturday evening,
and through the night and Sunday mornin g
| wanted to make special note of. 1t was
largely in the woods, and quite general
engagement. The night was very pleasant,
| at times the moon shining out full and clear
| all nature SO calm in itself, the early sum-
mer grass SO rich, and foliage of the tire es-
| yet there the battle raging, and many good
fellows lying helpless, with new accessiOns
to them. and every minute amid the rattle
| OF muskets and crash of cannon flor there
was an artillery contest tool, the red. life.
blood OOzing out from heads or trunks or
limbs upon that green and dew-cool grass.
! The woods take fire, and many of the
wounded, unable to move ESPECIALLY some
of the divisions in the Sixth Corps are
consumed quite large spaces are
swept over, burning the dead also
| some of the men have their hair
and boards singed-some, splatches of
burns on their faces and hands-otbers
! holes burnt in their clothing. The flashes
| of fire from the cannon, the quick flaring
| flames and smoke, and the immense roarS
the musketry go general, the light nearly
bright enough for each to see one another
the crashing. tramping of men-the veil
lhg-ciose quarters-we hear the seoesh
ytis-our men cheer loudly back, espe-
claiiyi Hooker is in sight-hand to hand
Coz fiots, each side stands up to it, brave,
determined as demons, they often charge