River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1879-10-02
LAST DAYS OF LEES ARMY.
The Men Who Led the One Hundred-Cap
English and the Flag of Truce.

/
scenes, and in whose breasts the feryid
words OF the narrative Weakened memories
that have for years been smothered By
he hum and hustle of the world
| Capt. James English of this city is the
man whe received the first note of the
| correspondence between Gen. Grant and
Gen. Lee that resulted IN the surrender.
1t came about on the night of the It'll of
April. Capt. English was commanding
a company in the second Georgia battal-
ion, in Wright's Georgia brigade. This
brigade had been engaged all
| the afternoon in a heavy fight
with Miles division, and had captured
| about 1900 prisoners. The men were
| feeling pretty good over 1t. Their lines
were resting near High bridge in Vir-
gina. At night courier dashed up to
the lines and asked for truce, stating
that he desired to send note from Gen.
Grant to Gen. Lee. Capt English, in
whose front he had halted, went forward
and told him that he would communicate
his wishes to the brigade headquarters
AT length the permission was granted
and the sealed message was sent forward.
While it was gone, the courier who had
brought the message began talking. 'sDo
you know what that message isl" he said
to Capt. English, who had lust been
Joined by State Senator Perry, who was
ABUNDANT general of the brigade. "No, /
don'tF' was the reply. at is demand
for the surrender of Lees argyi" We
are not permitted to chronicle the exact
nature of tho roPly naado Ivy Capt Eng
lish and Adjt. Perry to this information.
A PATHETIC INCIDENT.
A gentleman in this city writes us the
following account of most pathetic in
cident that occurred on the night attack
on Fort Steadman. 1t gives the name of
the leader OF the 100 men who took the
fort. A more touching or heroic incident
is not be found in the annals of the war:
ATLANTA. Ga, Sept. III. w. Ora
DY: Dear sir-Your interesting account
of a recent interview with Gen. Gordon
regarding the closing scenes of the late
war in yesterdays Constitution brings to
the mind of the writer an incident that |
think worthy of note as illustrating the
hon-hearted determination OF the humble
actors in that bloody drama. The officer
who commanded the hundred ri1emen,
whose task was to capture Fort Steadman,
was Capt Joseph P. Carson, Company |,
Fourth Georgia regiment, Phil Cooks
brigade, WHO now resides on his planta-
ton near Reynolds, Taylor county, Geor-
gia, a younger brother of Capt Carson,
only about nineteen years old at the time,
and acting as courier for Gen. Cook,
followed his brother unawares into the
fight, and was probably the first man
L. Il E.,i,r 1a. 4,
Capt. c. found his body lying on the
edge of the fort with head to the enemy
Capt. Carson kept the body near HIM,
moving from point to point during the
fight, and when the order was given to
retire, took the dead brother on his shout
ders, still commanding his men, and
brought it and the survivors of his men
into the confederate lines and, since the
surrender the body to its home in Georgia
where it now rests AS no official accounts
of these names have been kept, as an act
of justice to the living and the dead,
beg to bear testimony to these facts, hav-
ing been an eye witness. Yours very
respectfully, w. T. Wilson
Lieut.. Fourth Georgia Regiment
PIECE OF UNwRIrTEN HISTORY.
We present also from Prof j. H. Logan
an interesting account of the events OF
that night, and of piece of history not
heretofore written:
EDITORS CoNsTITUTIoN.-Afte read
ing II. W. G.'s thrilling account of the
last acts of the confederate army at
Petersburg, Va, l felt somewhat con-
strained, being an eyewitness of much
which he describes, to add something,
though in very poor way, to his bril-
liant narrative. Such contributions, from
any source, OF reliable character, will be
of great value to the future historian
who shall write that story for the coming
generations
| was then serving in Gen. William
Wallace's South Carolina brigade, form
erly Gen. Evans, and attached to Gen.
Gordon's corps on Gen. Lees extreme
left, near Hatcher's Run and Southside
railroad.
| cannot forget the night of the 23d
and Gath of March, 1865. About rundown
of the 23d courier arrived ut our field
hospital with an order that about mid
night we should move with the brigade
to Petersburg, about six miles distant.
The night was brilliant with moonlight
enterprise before us, but that it was one
involving serious work we inferred from
the preparations and the midnight march.
BY 12 o'clock the command was moving.
Just before leaving called to see young
Norwood, who was dying of fever in one
of the tents-a son of the distinguished
physician, Dr. Norwood of South Caro-
lima, and nephew of Mrs. Speer, ven
cradle lady now of Atlanta. He passed
away, believe, that night, and doubtless
at the very hour when his friends and
comrades were storming Fort Steadman.
On the march, short distance from
Petersburg, we passed Gen. Lees head
quarters. 1t was about three in the
morning, the house was lighted up, and
a large number of horses readily saddled
standing around the enclosure. This was
another indication of the hazardous en-
terprise before us. The cocks were crow
ing loudly for day, as the brigade filed
through the silent streets of the sleeping
city; without msment's halt, the men
were hurled upou the enemy in or around
Fort Steadman.
The surgeons scarcely had time to get
things ready in the field hospital before
the wounded began to pour in upon us.
1t was costly nights struggle to South
Carolina; we lost there some of the best
men of the old brigade that had seen so
much service in Virginia, Maryland, and
Mississippi. By the afternoon of the
Gath the hospitals of the city were full of
such of our wounded as could be borne
from the field. The 18th South Carolina,
my own regiment, came back leaving
both its Colonel Ct. W. MONASTERY of
Columbia and its lieutenant-colonel( Culp
of CHESTER wounded, and in the hands of
the enemy. The gallant Benbow of the
23d was badly wounded and left in the
enemys hands, There were other prom
lnent officers of the brigade who fell or
suffered that night, whose names / can
not recall now. Those of them who were
only wounded could not see then that a
merciful God had laid them aside to be
hidden from the more fearful sufferings
of the retreat and the scenes a Appoma-
tox. They were kindly called for. be-
lieve, in every instance, by generous enc
my.
| never met Col. McMaster again till
after the close of the war The meu who
had returned fIOm the midnight assault
could give no account of him, except that
as usual he had fought CALAMITY and was
seen to fall, and was either dead or was a
prisoner. Alter returning to our old