The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1882-09-21
LAST FIGHT ST PETERSBURG.
"A Brilliant Victory hy Bushrod JolinsonS
Divisional Touching Incident.

Divisional Touching incident.
Can't. Il. ~. Ualic. 5gh tijuana Regiment,
IN Chur'sEton weekly Nc~S.
On the cold drizzly morning Of March
81, 1868, Bushrod johnson Division,
consisting of Ransom's North Carolina,
Gracie's Chen Moody's) Alabama, and
McGowan's South Carolina Brigadcs. was
drawn up in line of battle two or three
hundred wards in front OF the extreme
left Of Lees for!iGcations near the lite
Oak Road" Immediately in our iron, Il
slight hill, crowned by u lot Of picket
holes" held by dctachmcnts from our
command, and between us and The en-
trenchmcnts, in orr rear an ugly LOOKING
lot Of "abattis."
Ny recoiccton is that Ransom was on
the right, our brigade (MOody'sj III the
centre, and the South CarolinIans on our
left. The rain came down cold, disagree.
ably and continuously, and our men were
instructed before breaking ranks to llX
hayonets and secure the loaded guns by
driving the bay0nets into the ground in
line, ready to the haud whcn the line was
re- formed. They were further instructed
to hold themselves in readiness torc-iorm
ut n moments warning, 10 break ranks
and get breakfast. Those who had the
honor Of following "MarSc Bob" up to
March, 1865, will readily agree that Il
breakfast outside Tie entertainments on
such morning was not 81 very crrcnin.
nioua affair. The limited amount Of
"hard tack" aud Nassau" in our harcr.
sacks was now disposed Of and myself i'll
company with others OF my command
soon struggled up to the picket holes on
L.. al. Il 4,
hear about our very cuterprising friends,
the "Ianks."
War-worn hardened old veterans we
young in years. and looking back to those
can recall but two subjects Of interest that
occupied our thoughts and Tie little lcas-
IRE that marching, fighting, picket duty
on eur hands. These were first and o.!
supreme import, ytnb, and secondly, n
good long ways behind, "thc GaDks."
Now, if it is waste of time to do a great
deal of thinking about very small mat.
ter, the average Confcd in the last months
of the war wasted IN immense deal Of
that valuable commodity in thinking
about yrnb, for the subject matter had
become not only decidedly small in guam
tity but Of very Indifferent quality. still
it occupied the greater part of our
thoughts, leaving only a small, langnid
sort of surmisc az to what the Yanks were
up to, and il wns in answer 10 this last
proposition that we went out on the
picket line.
! had been on the line about half an
hour chatting with the boys and rather
cautiously inspecting the encmy's skir.
mish line which had been established
sometime during the night, about two
hundred yards to the 'front.' when my at
tcption was called TO the head Of II col.
umn of blue, away down to our left
marching north towards our right, par
nllcl to our line and but little to the rear
of their skirmish line.
Our pickets had orders not to fire in
fact there was no firing along the line
from either side.
The head Of the column, marching in
silence ut quick time in beautiful order
soon passed our puai,ion, followed b.
regiment after regiment until suppose
ut least two brgudcs had gone to the
right. They were then halted, "closcd
up" frontcd, wheeled into column oi
platGons, stacked arms, broke ranks and
set to tearing down fences to make fires
and were soon busy boiling coffee as com
fortnbly ns you please, evidently intent
on having u good square meal there and
then. We were quite close enough 10
zee that our gallant. looking foes belonged
to Warrcp's Corps (having white club
on the left breast, belicvc.)
We had resented the first appearance
Of "thcse people" marching in that direc.
tian, rs evidently threatening tho Sonti
Side road. We had become pretty well
accustomed to their occupancy Of Our
eastern front, and the country down the
AppomattoX and the James. We had
nftor severe contests, given up To them
the Petersburg and Weldon road. We
had disputed the IIatchcr's Run section
foot by foot, in vain, but this was the
"unkindcst cut of all" to pass around tc
our extreme right, with mnace prcpcnsc
TO cut us off from lynchburg, and still
iurthe. reduce our almost starvation scale
of rations. No, sir, this would not DO
and then the extremely COO! way the rus.
calls had of completely ignoring our pres
cnce along our picket lines, not even do.
ing us the honor of an occasional sho,
from their skirmishers, to make things
interesting, and tho crowning impcrti-
nence of all, to watt to our hungry nos.
trils the delicious perfumes of "rale gel.
swine" coffee and the appetizing odor OF
btcilcd meat. Oh, i. was too much, and
to say the least of it, we wet, cold and
hungry, were also mad.
Breakfast over the Yanks touk arms,
wheeled back into line and, instead ol
resuming their march to our right ns We
expected, moved straight on our pickets.
Now this looked tike business. "All
right. (thought y old fellows, if that's
your game. guess you don't know any
thing about our boys down at the foot of
the hill, though"
Our pickets opened at once, glad of the
ehance. while our stagalera started on tn :
run for the command, crying: "Fall
in, men, the Yanks are coming" Our
lines were instantly reformed. Arms
resumed, bayoDets unfixed and thrust
into scabbards, and by common impulse
rs believe, fos heard no order from
any superior officer, the entire line moved
forward at double-quick TO tho support
of the pickets. Every man in that line
was too old soldier and too good tao.
tician 10 alloy the enemy the advantage
of such position on our front, and with
such tangled mass Of felled timber in our
rear
Reaching the picket line our men par.
TALLY re- formed, pouring one very eftec.
tive fire into the advancing enemy, now
not more than ono hundred and fifty
yards away. Reloading rapidly the Con.