The river press. [volume] (Fort Benton, Mont.) 1880-current, 1880-12-08
FROM PRIVATE no CAPTAIN.
One laRcAdeaa g.

oAS
It was not once a year, but almost once a
8 week, that the soldier who had anything of
the heroic in his nature was offered a chance
to develop it. Men stepped from the ranks
into shoulder-straps at one stride, and the
case to be related was only once in a humid
red.
We were the rear guard. We had fought
the enemy at Malvern Hill and checked him,
but the army dared not halt. Under the COW
er Of darkness the long trains and the bat
tered and disheartened lines resumed the
march towards White House Landing and
the cover Of the gunboats. Dead and wound
ed were left on the field, and over the swamp
roads deep with mire and mud, plunged wa
gon and gun and caisson and ambulances, fol-
lowed by men whose eyes closed in sleep
even as they walked.
The rear guard had work on hand. Close
on our heels came fresh troops who had or
ders to ride us down-cut us to pieces
frample US in the mire-get rid OF US that
they might reach the army beyond. They
followed us on the road, and they followed
us on both sides of it in the woods. There
was hardly a minute during that long night
that the guns we're silent. Men fell dead in
the mire and were left to sink out Of sight.
Men fell wounded in the bushes and were
not given a second look. When one file Of
men had been shot away in the rear guard
another took its place. and SO the long and
murderous night wore away and the blest day
light came. Daylight was not to end the
pursuit or make wounds less horrible or rob
death Of its ghastliness. Yet it was q relief.
Just at sunrise we had a respite. The
enemy was closing up the push with a de-
termined onslaught. Our men were march
ing at will, detected, %dispondent, sullen and
f%erocious. I could not see an officer any
where up the road. I could look over a
thousand men, but not so much. as the bar of
q second lieutenant was among them. Where
had all the officers gone to? Some were
dead in the road and bushes behind but death
had not claimed all. Here was an entire
1tSlulCul WlaAOuU dA OlAGCA W CCu1llduus
We had made q dozen stands since midnight,
But no one remembered to haVe seen an
officer.
Men had halted, about faced and dressed
lines like machines, and when the pursuit
was checked we had toiled on again.
We struck a terrible slough extending
across the road. Five pieces out Of six in a
battery had been abandoned there with every
thing belonging except the horses. Scores
of men surrounded each u ~caisson, and
lifted them out Of the mire and dragged them
along to a clay hill beyond. On he crest Of
this hill the five guns were planted, and 800
men deployed right and lef5 in. support
Fresh cartridges were served out, a supply of
hard tack came down the line, and we were
resting and eating and wondering what gen.
eral was in command, when a private SOL
der, face black with powder, uniform coy
cred with mud, and his left arm in q sling
and covered with blood, mounted a gun be-
fore us and said boys, we are going to
stop right here and give 'em hi! They
can't flank US, and they cant ride over US as
long as we have a shot left. Let's show Lit
tie Mack how we can fight without shoulder
straps to boss us 81
He was only a private soldier man from
the ranks whom no one would suspect of
having anything heroic in his composition
yet it was under his orders we had saved the
battery-he had planted It, he had deployed
us in support-he had picked up ammunition
and provisions TO serve US,
We had rested for twenty minutes when
the head Of the pursuing column appeared.
had the key Of the road for three miles.
They came on with q yell, the road was
with them, and our battery opened
with grape, and no man lived to cross it. We
were cheering and yelling when 81 aide came
up behind US and shouted
aWhere IS the general in command 3