The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1885-11-20
A CONFEDERATE BATTERY.
The Box Cannoneers of Richmond.

L \OOAAASSAS0j
Association, of Richmond, Va, have
made good selection of historian.
The battery was largely composed OF
bows, who required written permission
from their parents to enlist. 1t was
organized in the spring of 1862, and
after service, East and West, saw the
| last of the war at Appomattox.. It's
| story is given to the world in a book
| in which the lights and shades OF war
are genuinely mingled. The realities
| of fighting and marching with a bat
| terry are doubtless as graphically PIC
| tured here as in any volume to be
! found. The author was not a. seces-
sionist, and his mother wept when
she saw the flag of the United States
| hauled down in Richmond. He en-
| listed, however, because he was a V1r-
ginian, a distinction that in turn
would have given trouble to the
Southern Confederacy If 1T had sue
ceeded in it's war for separation. The
boy battery had it's baptism by fire
at the second battle of Manassas,
! where it was posted in line of eighteen
guns between Jackson and Longstreet.
The guns broke one of the most
dangerous of the Union infantry
! charges, that of Porter with about
five thousand men. The fight at this
point lasted half an hour. Lee had
placed the guns so thickly there that
the cannoneers almost elboWed each
other "Every man was at his post;
No talking; no ducking OF heads All
was intense earnestness. The face
was flushed; the eyes full; and the arm
stronger than is wont. ltwas astrug-
gle for life 1t seemed that the very
heavens were ablaze; or that two
clouds, surcharged with electricity
and waited by opposing winds, had
met in terrific struggle"
The battery had several men wound
ed in that battle. At Antietam it
passed through fearful ordeal, losing
twentv-one men in killed and wound
ed. When the Confederate army fell
back across the Potomac at Sheperds-
, town the author noticed General Lee
standing at the ford giving directions
even to teamsters. Soon after that
campaign the livingin the Confederate
army became less elaborate. Only
commissioned officers had servants.
The commissary issued little except
fresh beef.
The battery had but one man wound
ed at the battle of Fredericksburg.
: During the following winter, the Con
| federates had many amusements IN
their winter-camp. The private
{ soldiers fought SNOWFALL battles; but
J one of their most relished diversions,
) was to yell a. citizens in tall hats
"Come down out of that tall hat, and
: ioin the soldier-boys, and help whiI
5 the Yanks," was the cry. A hundred
} voices would take up the shout with
"come down! come down. know yor
. are up there, see your legs"
r The author was captured, with
= about a third OF his company, by
e Sedgwick's charge at Charlottesville
t The prisoners were treated well, ane
= in three weeks, having been exchanged
were back at the front.
= At Gettysburg Parker's battery wa'
!, among the heseventy-fve guns with whlel
Il Lee rained iron upon the Union posi-
Y ton as a prelude to Pickett's grea
/, charge upon the heights. Lees artil
e lery suffered heavily, during this BON
bardment, and expended nearly al
s their ammunition. Parker's batter.
It alone fired 1,142 rounds. Its los
O was three killed, and ten wounded
Y The retreat from Gettysburg was be
l. gun in torrents of rain, but Lees arm
,e was held well in hand, and pursuit c
it, even by fresh troops, could nc
y have been pushed rapidly.
>. When Longstreet was ordered e
Georgia, Parker's Battery went wit
the two divisions, but did not arriv
4 in time to take part IN the battle
" ,Chickamauga. The battery was pos
ed on Lookout Mountain for TIM
s. A Union picket in front of them wa
N heard one night to remark tha
things went wrong at Chickamaugs
= but "as soon as,Longstreet goes ava
le we'll give you the d-dest whippir
ID YOU ever had in your life." The ba
+. tery moved with Longstreet to Eas
- Tennessee, where the living WAS har
- and the fighting without tangible r
IL suits. More than that, the Contede
OF ates were for the first time hostil
The men ofthe region were either hit
of den in the mountains or were In I'll
I'd Union army. The women were spzrl
10 ed, not to say saucy. During an "e
sy gagement near Beams Station q wen
TO an came out of house and ordere
Of the Parker gunners to "move the
g. things out OF my yard.' At this m
It, ment a gunner's leg was struck by
he piece of shell, and his pocket boo
pit thrown out upon the ground. T
ed said: "Well, 1 always thought tt
cb Yankees were mighty smart fellow
Y. but 1 didn't think they could pick
wv fellows pocket a mile Off" 1t Wa
at not considered safe for a Coz
m federate to sleep in an Ea
at Tennessee cabin about that tim
ne The battery returned to Lee on tt
1t. Rapidan and remained with him
j." the close of the war. In the Wilde
N. ness artillery could not be use
de and the battery was not engage
b. '.During this campaign. when the ince
he SAINT lighting and marching had trunt
ks night into day, and we had hard
,p- time to.eat, we wereGoined by the ba
a TALON Of heavy infantry which hs
g. been stationed for a long time in tt
defense line of Richmond. They be
rk seen no active service, and one OF q
or boys asked a private OF this battalie
he how long they would stay with Y
ne 4 don't know was the sincere repl
eli but we can't stay over Sunday an
lnr