The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1885-09-10
FIGHTING THEM OVER
What Our Veterans Have TO Say About
Their Old Campaigns.
VERSIONS BRIGADE.
An Old Controversy in Regard TO IFS Capture Re-
neNed.

article published IN your columns nhueF udte
of June IS previous, IN reference 10 the cap
ture Of Iversons Brigade in the first days bat
tie at Gettysburg Illness prevented response
from me at the time.
After a lapse of time, examining Wehrum S
article again, with a view TO a reply, con-
cluded it TO be hardly worthy of my attention I;
but in THE NATIONAL TRIBUNE of April %, L
notice Carleton" in his article To the Boys
and Girls of the United States" seems TO have
given credence to his vaporings, for he says,
"Over the fence leap the 18th Mass" 10
"switch" this writer onto the right track,
proceed to give my knowledge of the affair and
expose the Transparency Of the AdJutants let
ter.
To the close, intelligent reader this article
needs no touch from my feeble pen to cause its
evaporation. But lest nay silence be taken by
some as presumptive evidence that he has es-
tablished a claim for himself and his regiment
TO advancing upon, and of participating IN, the
capture of the aforenamed prisoners, In behalf
OF truth and justice come again to the rescue
Unfortunately for his tale, the Adjutant starts
off with plain and palpable untruth. He
says: Capt. Hall claims the whole credit for
the 9th \. Y"
AS am glad to sustain truth where find it,
give Adj't Wehrum credit for correctness in
his statement of the position of his regiment
in reference to the balance of the brigade-at
the beginning of the battle. he says:
Our regiment went into action on the extreme
right of our brigade facing nearly north observ-
ing the enemy more to our left Col. Bates, his at
tention being called thereto, changed the regiment
front half to left marching forward TO the top OF
the hill. Part of our regiment changed here again
to conform TO the stone wall alluded to. AT this
time the enemy distinctly visible lof course,
not distinctly visible before and firing began III
earnest.
Very true, for ND to this time we had received
the fire only from a strong invisible skirmish-
line on the right of the 9th n. Y, and to the
front of the 18th Mass; but when Col. Bates had
wheeled his regiment to the left and moved up
on line with the 9th, where he could see the
enemy, it began in earnest" The correct
ness of this is shown by the following copied
from the Regimental Letter book, 18th Mass,
page 142:
A second change of front by the regiment en-
abled il to deliver destructive enading fire into
the advancing lines of the enemy at short range,
while the troops on the left received them with a
steady and rapid fire in front. This soon brought
the enemy to show the white flag and to cease their
fire, and rapid charge OF part of the brigade re-
suited III the capture of some 400 prisoners
As these quotations agree mainly with my
former letter, which was written prior TO obtain
ing the statement from the Regimental Letter
book of the 18th Mass, and, as far as they 90,
.orroborate what was therein said l herein
after reproduce portion of that rather than to
employ other words to produce the same ideas;
also, that the reader may the better compare
and draw just conclusions
Baxter's Brigade rested at the beginning of
the battle, described i'll my former letter, on the
western slope of the ridge, nearly west of
where T. Sheads's dwelling now stands, at tie
northern edge of piece of woods fronting
north. About 80 yards of these woods have
since been cut away. rail fence was in front
of the brigade The 11th Pa. was first moved
forward into the meadow north of Baxter's
line, and halted in the tall grass, and l was or
dered to deploy two companies from the right
OF the 9th and advance TO a high rail fence, a
little over 200 yards TO the front, as described
in my former letter. In that letter had esti-
mated from memory the distance across that
meadow to be $50 yards, but in copying off l
left out 100 yards by mistake, and did not dis
cover 1T till 1T appeared in print. L now quote
from my former letter what took place while
was crossing the aforensmed meadow with my
skirmish-iine:
AS soon my movement commenced the bri-
gade moved little to the right. The 18th Mass
lCol. Bates commanding filed left along the east
side of the aforenamed wall and was reformed upon
reaching the woods NOW but scattering trees
mainng) and fronted that way towards the Mum
masburg road, from which by late observation
have discovered II was then distant about 100 yards
The 9th n. Y. following the 18th Mass, halted in
rear or east Of this wall and fronted left and a
regiment part of regiment fronted the same
way, thus covering the front of the balance of the
brigade.
This wall afforded protection, but the land for
q short distance to the front rose gradually and
then fell off to gradual slope the other side
that our regiments in of the wall and little
back from II were hid even while standing from
the observation of any force that might approach
the narrow meadow in their front. Mean
while l. with my two companies. reached the fence
without unearthing any Confederates and without
injury save by the fire ia front and was ordered to
march my command by the right flank and join my
regiment.
Let it be understood, had marched my Skin
mish-line to the north till / reached the fence
just south of where Forney's peach orchard now
is and south Of the bushes and saplings west of
the northern extremity of the present cross
1VVb I had ioip
of the stone wal! (since removed), and down the
eastern slope of the ridge, several yards below
the aforementioned crOsS-road, the right of the
9th then rested just equally north to the east
terminus of the aforenamed rail fence. (This
fence is not indicated upon Col. Bachelors
map The 18th Mass. was the only regiment
then to the right Of the 9th, and its line ex-
tended east farther down the slope, fronting
north as aforesaid. The line remained in this
position nearly an hour, and Col. Bates, not
more than five minutes before the attack of
Iverson's Brigade, had spoken TO me in refer
ence TO a movement that should be made to
GULL THE CONFEDERATE sKIRMIsHERs
in his front, in which he used this expression:
"They are wounding my men," 1 had already
had one more of my company killed and sew
eral wounded while in line there.
i can attest on more than one battlefield the
18th Mass. played a gallant part, and that Col
Bates was gallant intrepid officer, and stood
py MS DlcIr anu SUCH generally Truth
full as i believe him TO have been. Had his
regiment captured Iverson's Brigade or assisted
in its capture, he would have been with his
men, and il is not at all probable that he would
have neglected TO mention such an occurrence
in his report. 1t is quite evident from Col
Batess statement that when he heard the Con-
federate yell he wheeled his regiment to the
left and poured vollcy, simultaneously with
the 9th, upon their flank. Had he moved
over the wall his regiment would then have
been north Of the aforenamed high rail fence
while the Confederate line was south of it !;
consequently, he would not have been in posi-
tion 10 make sudden dash upon the enemy
which was made by the 9th and other troops
upon its left know this much: My company
moved forward in taking the aforenamed Con-
federates close TO the south side of the fence
sforenamed and the 18th could not have ad-
vanced on that side of the fence unless it had
gone in rear of the 9th, which was not the
case. Had it advanced north of the fence it
would not have reached Iverson's Brigade
but the strong skirmish- line which was SO de-
structive upon our ranks during that charge
would
HAVE BEEN BRUSHED AWAY.
Iyerson and his command were as much sur
prised by the fire of the right of Baxter's Bri-
gade as he would have been had we sprung
upon him out Of the ground, and the Confeder-
ates did just what i have known good veteran
Union tToops-whcn attacked in flank and
rear-tO do. They sought the nearest shelter,
and undoubtedly sUpposing they had been led
a.,