Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1885-10-12
Siege OF SUMTER.
q Visit to the City Of Charleston
During the Memorable
Bombardment.
The Screaming Shells which pIoped
the Air ana Exploded US They
Struck the Earth.
a Leaf from ihc Memoirs Of conf.der,,,
Nass"an pUrlng tho Las, Yea,
Of the war.


IMitlgh, 0Icn under command oi OH
Mallett' The family physicians certia,
cate had kept linn out of tho vnr
Tor three years. But The armioa
81 the COnicderacy had been
depleted by desortion, disease and casu.
altles on the field TO such an extent tlnt
the eonscript orders became too sweeping
Tor the writer Of these lines longer ~
remain out Of the service or out OF hear.
Ing OF the clash Of hostile armies. So he
went and having a choice whether 10 take
the navy or the army, he chose the for
mer and was hustled OF under
guard 60 the school ehlp.
the old "lndian Chlcf,n which, possibly.
lew readers Of this article may remem.
Der as lying, during the war, on the bat.
terry at Charleston.
HEARING RIM Guns
This was my first Introduction 20 the
sublime scenes Of the greatest war of
modern times. ! had never heard tho
booming OF hostile cannon, but heard
them now. As the train rumbled
into the old depot The nashlne
OF Confederate uniforms, the glitter of
oayoneis everywhere, showed me was
IN what was In reality big military
camp. AS the guards stepped OF the
platform and accompanied them deep,
heavy sound, like the distant and period.
cal slanmlng of u great door, omlnously
iell upon my ear and echoed against
The huge piles OF brick aud
mortar that loomed up around the depot.
II was the bombardment of sumter by
the federal batteries planted on the islands
10 seward. with other recruits and
conscripts ! was soon delivered on board
The school or training ship, the Indian
Chiei, and ! was shipped as a laudsman
M lho navy OF the Confederate states OF
America, aud In the Charleston squadron
there, and until the close Of the war,
commanded by Commodore Tucker,
After a few days was put on picket
service, the chief duty OF which was IN
ien'oared boat, under command Of
"masicr's mate lying out all night at
anchor IN front OF the federal batteries
aud Keeping watch against their fleet, also
riding at anchor to scaward.
CHARLESTON DURING rnE noMnARn.
MIST
had not been in the service many days
before got u pass to como
ashore aud spend part Of the day In the
belcaeucred city. The situation was new
90 me, aud It's dangers, besides the natural
curiosity Of youth, caused me closely 60
observe everything about aud around me.
Those who have ever seen besieged city
can never forget 1t. The sicgo Of Charles
ton and It's bomhardmcnt had, at the time
Of which ] write, been IA steady
and uninterrupted progress for long and
cycntfnl months, during which death.
dealing shell fell, remember, In The en-
vlrOns OF the city every fifteen minutes,
and with the regularity OF clock work
Three.iourths OF the city had long since
been deserted. Grass was literally
growing between the crcviccS OF
the bricks on the ancient side.
walks OF King and Meeting streets
At night not fight was visible Ia The
area reached by the shells. Whole blocks
of magnificent buildings were silent and
dark as the tomb, except when OCCASION
ally lit up by an exploding she'll Ere
qugutly you came 10 a lluc building
through which one of these machines
Of destruction had torn Us way
and shattered the walls or knocked
the interior 90 pieces, or into a shapeless
mass OF debris The Inhabitants had
either left altogether, or retired % the
western districts Of The city, not reached
by The shells.
As walked through the deserted dis
t,,irt I marc tbnn nnct. STAINED listoupd
~ IN. sound nf n sbeu nIoyyinC its yav
tbronob IN" atr overhead nn1
sbranI brcl ~ awaited breathless. 10
sce ,ybc,r M amessenccr 81 deatbr
,,ontd f,il Moro tbap once n bunib eana
rrasbing down AMONG tl,e buildings moi
,,ero Inn a t1oce ngay. nnd tio dcep.
hna,,y toan M tbc ryploslon iarred tbs
, ivan, pn tybich stood
S"f,,rn mn, no mn cry.
I'm another occnslGn. with a
hrothor lapdsman. | pot pas. and
ratnc osborg' No wandered through thc
dcSrrted ,iistrict IN which The shclls had
hcon ,aili,g. und INTO ono of the silent
5trnst. tn,yard. mo nbattcry. - almost III
,i,,' ha,ln,,. nj n tan church gplre wei
encountered an old neprcss.a slayc fhow
s,rSn,,e si,c word sounds now after twenty
yenrsI The old woman carried hasketl
~ trnit. which She cried, ne
,,susi N nrno cities Observing our
naval uniforms and iauuty caps, SIR
.,o,,,,ed ~ repnrd as M we passed AL
t,af moment the distant, morning, an
es,thlU scream of d coming she'll brcanr
faintIy audible. Az n rushed through