New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-01-22

commander perfectly understands |
,his, and he can check of at sight on his |
the names of the men whom he |
never has to watch in battle and the names
If those who will leave the field 1T the |
earliest moment possible. In any company
with tolersble accuracy, but
when the inquiry is extended to an army
Of 81, 900 the numbers Of good soldiers and
Of towards are unknown quantities."
which ba'tle will only prove. not deter
mine. This has always been true of ell armies
since wars were first known. The greatest
of the company officers, COM
and non-commissiOned, in battle,
is displayed in keeping these shameful
and in preventing them from leaving the
field. It is reported of Napoleon the Great
that a. he stood silently regarding the gay
dancers on one occasion he was asked if he
did not dance. to which he pithily replied
that his business was to make. other people
dance. So of the good officer. He had bet
tor not fight himself, but give his whole at
tention to making others fight. He will
have o stern and . disagreeable duty to
perform in doing. this. Not only the lag
CARDS, the men who don't want to fight, but
thoae whose soula are struck with terror
and dismay ct the sights and sounds OF
battle, must al be urged remorselessly up
to the fighting line, and held there. have
known pistols to be drawn upon the shirks
by company officers in the heat OF the &C.
ton. have heard of such men being shot
by their officers while persisting in desert
ing their colors.
In . communication by General Sherman
to the United States Serrice Magazine, for
January. 1865, on the battle Of Pirtsburg
Landing, he says that Buelrs army ZAP
proceeding our field of battle from the rear,
encountered that sickening crowd of lag.
CARDS and fugitives that excited contempt"
The phrase is happy one, and describes
feature of every battle which Is generally
overlooked by amateur students of war. F!
remember that when the long columns OF
our army were pouring through the canon
on the Berryville road on the morning OF
position in the line of battle forming behind
the woods north of Winchester. for the
furious and sanguinary battle that followed.
we saw dozens of stragglers sitting or
standing by the roadside. The unerring
Instinct of the shirk had informed them that
we were ON the edge of battle, and on one
excuse or another, or without any, these
fellows had dropped from the ranks. The
provost marshal and his guard no DOUBT
ward the front; but fancy that they could
not be driven far enough toward the actual
fighting to endanger their skins.
The battle of Winchester, just referred to,
lasted from about noon to tive O'Clock: that
is. there were five hours of close. hard, des-
perste fighting, with enormous slaughter,
before the Confederates gave way. 1t was
a battle where. a. battles 90. our army was
swell in hand" and where, if ever, it might
ts supposed that every comoatant was on
the 1rOund. The statement made TO me q
few days after by Captain George ID.
Weeks, of Brooklyn, then quartermaster,
and attending to his train at the rear. veri-
fies the statements l have been making IN
the foregoing paragraphs. -,
"FrOm NV position, hardly mile back"
he said, I'VE could see the smoke, and hear
the tremendous booming OF the artillery
and the incessant crack OF musketry. we
had no news Of how the day was gong;
INIT to Judge from what l saw around me,
va had surely lost it. There was stream
of fugitives continually dropping out of the
woods and making for the rear, some with
arms and some without. There were hun
dreds of them-I don't know but there
we're thousands. To my excited imagina-
tion. it looked as if halt our army was
leaving the field. The provost guard were
doing their best to turn them back, Du'
thew could not reach half of them. 1t wa
the worst sight ever saw IN the army -
~
of lagpards and fugitives" that is invaria
hlv seen at the rear of every army in &C:
t;Hn. / believe it is historical fact thai
| fnpitives from Wellingt0n's army at Quartr'
Rraa carried news to Brussels that the
Dnka was defeated and his army routed
Certainly, Thackeray has it go IN 'a""'
Fair. .a,
or division has stoutly held position to-
<hn Goo ,a oa ever
and the danger quite as great, spirit
reckless humor begins to possess the men
| and their talk and actions are not at q!
like those of men who ars face to face will
death. ~.
| ed oe of the woods for two hours, and whel
the space between our line and that OF IN
! enemy fairly smoked and tanned Win Tn
fury of the fight. the cry arose that we wer
getting out of cartridges. some i1li woot 40
boxes were brought up, and sucn was tn
haste of the men to get them that they tool
m the boxes and dashed them bodll
AGAINST the trees, splintering them to pieces
and making the cartridges at once a'ai
Ahout the same time l saw one of on
serreants struck in the hip by bullet. II
had inst finished loading his musket, ana q
declared he would not leave the neld 9nt
|
two soldiers, he carefully sighted and fired
and then was helped to the rear. he Ole
from the effects of his wound.
AnrOpos of the cartridges, Major Jon
M Gould. of the Twenty-ninth Name r.
To- that becoming anxious about the SUI
NV he spurred back to find some, and Ell
countered wagon with load OF n1e
ammunition. He ordered the teamster
| take it up toward this part OF the Iront IN
the teamster refused, either OUT ol lesna
| for his own safety or that OF MS niue; oe'
~ THE ;nstant Sheridan road up, and wit
O. round osth. asked what was the matte
The major began to explain, but before !,
I'd half finished Sheridan understood u
s;tuation. and delivered himself somethin
- follows:
CHOW. by-, you take every
team and every -mule and every -
teamster and every =" caruIus1 y.
c.n ind: and hurry them up to the IRON
mat "a = quick as you can.
with considerable more, to the same
fact. "And for every one OF those oa.n1
asys the major, dryly, the army H.; a !"
irons Of the United States require n'"' "
fined g." y .,
have written of the cline OF battle, al
bare again the popular idea u at !.a,s' 8
would. NO doubt, be mnon pre ~aIar r.
mstIcn, with ranks well aligned; 20. ana S'ai ea'
man e1ssty yhs esh ~ the 1 ssrly ds
End e. 1.l 's s5s i S:rs
p.,eH IN represent battles ~ tnie wy
CusI~ XS;s - nnt in the least in aocoro w!
1u' 4 s In the toll of tho ngnt; w
INC INC r rsd loading and firing, ana sne4l,
~" .rt xropping Of mon desc OF wSa an
sesshs.. and ar f fso: sS1Rss
of whom half Will be on the groona 0'' -
| from the knee. .,..