The National tribune., 1885-07-30
SPRING HILL TO FRANKLIN.
The Story Told Again OF that Eventual Night and
the Next DAYS Battle.

SPRING HILL TO FRANKLIN.
The Story Told Again Of that Eventual Night and
the Next Days Battle.
To THE EDITOR Twenty years seem to play
sad havoc with the memory of some of our old
'pards." In your issue of Feb. 26 Serg't Sic
mans, Of the 40th Ind. claims that Comrade
Infield is wrong when he places the Tooth Ill.
in tho Second Brigade, Second Division, Fourth
Corps at the battle of Franklin, Tenn. If my
memory is not at fault, Comrade Infield is
correct. It is strange the Sergeant has forgot
ten the heroic struggle made by the Tooth to
retain possession of their colors, which were up
and down at least dozen times before they
were borne at last in triumph within our lines.
But the most amusing controversy going on
is what regiment was rear-guard between
Spring Hill aud Franklin. A number of men
must be mistaken for the honor is claimed by
different ones. 1t may have been certain
uncanny feeling that produced that idea in
the minds of particular individuals. The
movements of Gen. Scbofeld's army on that
day was liable to mislead an inexperienced
soldier in regard to that fact, for brigadcs and
divisions were kept well in hand within sup
porting distance, but rarely in sight of each
other. And right here / may claim that Scho-
fields retreat from Pulaski to Nashville stands
unequaled in the history of the war OF the re-
bellion His most trying difficulty arose from
rally fallen to his command were withdrawn
from both his TANKS and sent to points where
they were practically useless during that part
of the campaign. Another vexing matter was
the loss of his cavalry during the most critical
period Of the march the night of the 29th of
November, while Hood was moving parallel
with him oftentimes at less than half mile
distance and in plain sight of the Union troops
as they filed past their campfres.
In connection with this will state an I'M
usual fact that is well known to many of our
men who were on the march that night. At
intervals as we were moving along mounted
men would come up and join our stragglers and
enter into friendly chat. They seemed to be
most interested as to the position our cavalry
occupied in the column, and as we did not
know ourselves we could give them no salts
factory reply. When these men were finally
discovered to be Confederate troopers no sur
prise was manifested, and in most instances
they would disappear in the darkness in the
direction of their own lines.
After Wilson's mistake came Wagner's nearly
fatal blunder by allowing the Second and Third
Brigades of his division to become enveloped
by vastly superior force. But the gallant
Opdycke with his First Brigade, assisted by
Whites dashing Kentuckians. nobly won back
all that Wagner had lost The result of this
battle was indeed terrible to the enemy. In a
line of less than 500 yards extent lay IL gen.
battlefiags with at least dozen other stand
ards lying between the two opposing armies
until the close Of the engagement, stamps this
one of the most deadly battles of the war. No
troops could have moved more steadily to the
attack than did those Confederate soldiers.
The factthat the Union skirmish-line (deployed
in some places at half distance) retired firing
almost in the faces of the enemy without re-
ceiving return shot, is strong proof of this
assertion. Gen. Hood showed but meager mill
tary skill in this affair, for had he lost one
fourth of the men killed in making strong re-
commissioners on the night of the 30th, which
would have kept Gen. Cox from crossing the
Harpeth River, and at the same time placing
his artillery in good position, he would have
been enabled to make an entirely different re-
port of this battle on the night of the 3lst.
1t matters not who was our rear-guard on
that march from Spring Hill The honors are
easy, for the enemy treated us like gentlemen
on that occasion. The last men in from Spring
Hill were small body of Gen. Cox's skirmish
ers, who left Columbia between II and o'clock
at night On the Goth. They numbered about
rs or 100 men, mostly 1ndianians Kentucki-
ans and Illinoisans. This outfit was composed
principally of men who were detailed to picket
the river at Columbia, and were from Gen.
Easements Brigade of the Twenty third Corps
under command of Maj. Dow, Inpector- General
of the Third Division of that Corps. They
had for support the 18th and 10th KY. These
regiments, with this detail halted to rest at
about a. IN. of the 30th about one mile south
of Spring Hill when about 100 men withdrew
from the command into grove by the road
side, unroled their blankets and retired for
much needed rest. The sun was nearly an hour
high when they were awakened by a few Con-
federate cavalrymen. who rode nearly over the |
sleeping men before they were discovered. A
few shots were fired without result, when the |
men quietly rolled up their blankets and Pro-
ceeded on their way to Franklin. Shots were |
exchanged at long range with the enemy at in
tervas all the way into Franklin and this fire |
all came from the east side of the pike, as the |
enemy seemed to give the Columbia pike |
wide berth after their experience at Spring |
Hill the day before. These were the last men |
in on the retreat. for when they arrived at |
Franklin and Joined their command, Opdycke's |
men were in position in rear of the Carter |
House eating their supper.
Now, these men may be called rear grard or |
not, it matters little; but what state is fact. |
When We arrived there was not room in the |
works for all, and most of these men had to
remain outside the shelter of the works, in the |
rear, until the engagement was over. / am |
prepared to see this disputed, but know that |
many of Easements men will bear me out in |
this statement" BLUE SHIELD" Co. E, 65th
ILL.,, I'd Brig, Sd Div, 23d Corps.