The clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1883-1888, 1884-10-15

& until the regiment, which he thougl
! would not be in the meantime MISE
b got to the woods several hundred var,
2 OF, and then to scatter and reach him
e best they could. The result was th.
5 the only casualties in making the su
< cessful retreat were two men wounde,
6 The gallantry of these troops and tn
= splendid handling of them was Feporte
: to Gen, Bragg, who, on the capture {
:, the place on the 18th following, directe
3 that the flag which was floating over tn
3 fort on the 18th be presented to th
r Twenty-ninth Regiment, but it turne
| out that the colors were not to be foun
: among the surrendered trophies, an
, were probably borne off as part of som
. soldiers underwear.
After the lapse of several hours fror
the time the Tenth made its charge, an
i. during lull in the firing soon follow
ing the withdrawal of the troops frou
and near Fort Craig, a white flag wa
seen emerging from behind the enemy
Notifications in the immediate front o
the Tenth Regiment. 1t. proved t
be flag of truce, and was born
out by young captain in an In
diana regiment, directly facing tn
position of my company, (K), and wa
met by me about midway between ou
lines. was then informed that Gen
Chalmers under flag of truce sent il
on our right, had demanded the surren
der of the Federal troops; that the de
mand had been refused, but that al
armistice for the purpose of removing thu
dead and wounded had been agreed to
and thst ten minutes notice would bt
given before the flag was withdrawn
These facts were communicated by me
to our men, who at once began to remove
the dead and wounded, together with
their guns and accoutrements, and con-
tinued until everything of value had
been carried to the woods from whence
We commenced the attack. On retiring
with the withdrawal of the flag, and
reaching our men in rear, found that
the dead were being hastily buried and
the living were preparing for speedy
return to Cave City.
Two days later Gen. Bragg moved up
with the greater part of his army and
surrounded these troops, then reinforced
and commanded by Col. G. L. Dunham.
For this purpose he crossed a part of
Folks corps to the north side of Green
river, and upon the eminences there had
placed a number of. field pieces COM
pletely commanding the Notifications
below, with instructions to open fire at
early dawn the next (17th) morning.
Surrounded by overwhelming numbers
and realizing their utterly hopeless con-
dition, Col. Dunham, who had reached
there with his regiment after the fight
on the 14th, superseding Col. Wilder
in the command, yielded before day on
the morning of the 18th to the demand
of Gen. Bragg for their surrender. The
troops surrendered consisted of the
Seventeenth, Forty-third, Sixty-seventh,
sixty-eighthi and Sixty-ninth Indiana
Regiments, company of Louisville
cavalry, part of the Fourth Ohio and
q section of the Thirteenth Indiana
Battery, amounting in all to about 1900
men and ten guns, together with large
supply of quartermaster and commissary
stores. At an early hour on the morn
ing of Wednesday, the 18th of Septem-
Der, Just twenty-five years ago to-day;
the Tenth Mississippi Regiment, in re-
turn for and in compliment of its gal
liant fight on the 18th, was marched in
to receive the surrender of the troops
and take possession of the forts. Our
brave foes, who had been accorded very
reasonable terms, were on the same day
marched back to the lines of Gen. Buell.
and paroled. This ended the battle and
surrender of Munfordville, which we
have to-day gathered to recall, and en-
balm in memory and perpetuate in mar
bic the deeds of our heroes who fell in
that rash, ill-advised and sacHifcial fight
as noble as ever gave their lives
for country or honor"
On our retreat from here the evening
of the 18th, Col. Smith was carried to
a house in the neighborhood and left in
charge of his body-servant Henry, the
sergeant-major William French and his
brother-in-law, Capt. Dobson, of his
regiment, and lived until after the sur
render on the 18th, his last thought
reaching out for the welfare and concern
of his men. His remains were tenn
porarily inferred near the the scenes of
his death until the following March,
when the loving care of sister and
nephew, who, by permission of the author
tiles, came through the lines and removed
them to his adopted city, where they
were finally deposited with honor and
reverence. In the beautiful Cemetery
at Jackson, Miss, can be seen a circular
plot of ground surrounded by tasteful |
iron railing, inclosing Scotch granite |
shaft with the following inscriptions
Erected to the memory of Col. r. A. |
Smith, of the Tenth Mississippi Regi- |
meut, Confederate States Army a native |
Of Edinburgh, who fell mortally |
wounded in the battle of MunfordviIle,
KY, September IA, 1862, while gallantly |
leading in the charge. Aged twenty |
six years. Erected by his fellow
citizens" In Dean cemetery, Edin-
burgh, Scotland, a similar monument
with almost like inscription can be seen,
which a brothers love erected as a |
tribute of his grief and reverence.
Having been first the color bearer,
then adjutant Of his regiment by ap-
pointment of Col. Smith, and at the
time of his death captain commanding
q company under him, and from our |
entry into the service, personal and in
innate friends, am prepared to sympa- |
thize with that brothers grief, and to |
add that in my opinion the loss of that
brave and intrepid soldier and true man
was the greatest blow to the Mississippi
troops of any that happened during the |
Kentucky campaign. To the Tenth |
Mississippi the loss was irreparable. The |
star of their destiny had been extin-
guished, and its brave men could never |
afterward, in following another, feel the |
same soldierly pride or patriotic hope.
Perhaps it will be said that his dash |
and bravery when in action were not |
traits of the Confederate |
soldier; that under the stimulus of ex-
cited physical faculties and of the NOV
ing passions" the same was true of thous-
ands of those who fell in or survived
the late war. That is 50, but no one
who had known Col Smith, or had OBJ
served him well, could fail to discover
that his was a different character and of
3 more earnest type than was that of
most soldiers who were equally brave
and dashing.
We need portray him only as he was
looked upon by his troops brave, earn
est, single-minded and unassuming-a
deYotee to duty, who softened its asper-
tiles to Others causing those who knew
him best to admire him most. "Self-
restraint, which has been termed the
highest form Of self-assertion," is a
marked characteristic of the race from
which Col. Smith sprung, and was pos
sessed BY him in an eminent degree. He
never gave way to moods" and only
when the necessities of discipline de-
manded would he inflict upon the DISC
bedient or unworthy the pain of his
frown, and even then his better nature
would soon assert itself in the charms Of
BIS favor. No man. woman OF child
could be more tender when deserving
ones 0nught his sympathy. No warrior
could Be more stern when duty prompt
ed reproof. The refinements of his ma
ture would not brook the slangs and
abuses Of speech, nor tolerate evil words
4.