The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1881-01-14

A SOLDIERS SENSATION WHEN ENGAGED
IN BATTLE,

Whenever you can find soldier who,
under fire, aims low and shoots to make
every bullet wound or kill, you will find
fifty who are nervously throwing away
ammunition, seeming TO reason that the
reports of their muskets would check or
drive the enemy. And yet this nervous
ness need not be wondered at, for they
are playing game of life and death.
AT Malvern Hill, seventeen soldiers be-
longing to an Ohio regiment took cover
in dry ditch, which answered admira-
bly, for rifle pit. A Georgia regiment
charged this little band three times, and
were three times driven back. The fire
was low and rapid, and the loss in front
OF their guns was more than one hun
dred in ten minutes. Regiments have
been engaged for an hour without losing
over half that number The fire of these
seventeen was so continuous that Nc
Clellan ordered forward brigade to
their support, believing that the entire
regiment had been cut off
AT Mine Run the writer was Just in
the rear of New York regiment which
was suddenly attacked. n single com
pany OF confederates, cut off from the
regiment and dodging about to reioin it
suddenly debouched into field, and
found itself face to face with union
regiment Fighting commenced at once
A regiment fought company, both ly-
ing down for cover. l. lay so near a
third sergeant that | could touch his
heels, and / watched his fire. Every
time he pulled the trigger he elevated
the muzzle of his gun at an angle of for
ty-tive degrees, instead of depressing it
for the enemy lying down. | saw him
repeat this operation fourteen different
times. The man next to him fired as
many bullets plump into stump in his
front, and the man on the other side
shot into the ground about ten feet away.
Others must have been wasting bullets
about the same way; but that little com
pany was shooting to kill In that ten
minutes of fighting the New Workers
suffered "A loss of thirty six killed and
wounded, and then a bayonet charge
doubled them backed and opened a gap
for the little bands escape. ! walked
over the ground and found one dead and
one wounded confederate. Not gun,
blanket, knapsack or canteen had been
left behind
Any soldier will no doubt fight better
under cover than he will in the open
field, but cover does not always insure
good fighting. At Pittsburg Landing
five thousand Union soldiers skulked
under the river bank, safe from the enc.
my's fire, and many of them threw their
guns into the river rather than fire a
shot. Again, at Yellow Tavern, five OF
Clusters men, dismounted and lying be
hind fence, held five companies of cav,
airy at bay for twelve minutes, and kill
ed twenty-five men; and this without
getting scratch in return.
At Mine Run Union regiment went
into the fight with sixty pounds of am
munition per man, making a total Of
perhaps four thousand bullets. This reg
iment was placed to act as a check tt
any advance of the enemy in certain
direction. They did not see thirty con
federates during the whole day, and ye
it was twice more supplied with ammuni
ton. 1t fired away at least twelve thou
sand bullets, and yet only killed two reb
el skirmishers.
One cool man will do more execution
with his musket than thirty men firing a
random One must have will stron,
= enough to crowd down all emotions, an
! to oblige his hands to cease trembling a
= the word, Out of every regiment nc
more than one hundred men were fight
ers These shot to kill The other
! shot at random. and killed only by acc
v dent. Thirty cartridges would last
good fighter for an all days fight Th
$ ordinary soldier would fire out his sixt
ee in an hour and half, and like enoug
a have his eyes shut half the time when i
d pulled the trigger a member of IL
II Second Michigan infantry hit the ca:
pretty well at Blackburn Ford. Whe
the skirmishing began he counted h
y cartridges, and said;
v Just sixty of EN-, and I'll fire thre
a minute, and have these fellers lickt
le in Just twenty Minutes to tck!'