Connecticut western news., 1886-04-14
SP0TTSYLVANIA.
Incidents of the Battle by a
 Federal Soldier.


 Vivid Pictures of the Horrors of War
 Drawn by Spectator.
 From an account of the battle of Spott- sylvania by Harvey s. Wells we copy as follows:
 As such close quarters so many men were struck in the head, as the result of deliberate aim. Although to one in the line it did not seem as if many men were falling about him, but steadily all day long the firing of tie sharpshooters,a acss oonplssf1etf its fataa,f- work until the ground was literally strewn with the dead. The weather was warm, the men got tired of lying so long in positions of constraint to their bodies; they wanted water and chance to stretch their wear jed limbs, and, although knowing it was almost instant death, they would rise and run for the rear, sure to be followed by volley of bullets from the rebel sharp shooters. never during over four years of active service in the army witnessed so many individual acts of daring and fool hardness on the part of soldiers as on this day.
 In the company which commanded, out of 31 men who entered the fight 19 were killed and wounded, most of them killed instantly, and half of that number shot in consequent ce of acts of foolhardy daring, uncalled for in the requirements of faithful duty. At the time attributed much of this devil-may spirit to the whiskey in the canteens issued to us the day before. There was drunken artil- lery officer, who rode up and down along our line with gay uniform, mounted on spirited horse, swinging his hat and call ing on the men to charge, who seemed to possess charmed life, for he escaped un- harmed. The man stopped and talked with me short time, with the bullets fly ing all about him, when one of us did not dare poke up finger for fear of having it shot off. A cap on a bayonet stuck up above the breast-work was sure to be per- forated by Confederate bullets.
 When the ammunition of one caisson had been exhausted dozen men reckless ly rushed after another between the two lines and dragged it back with them amid perfect hailstorm of lead. Not less than hundred dead bodies lay close around that brass piece of artillery captured from the enemy when night drew her sable curtain over the sanguina- ry work of the day. s- @
 During the night the enemy abandoned the salient, and early the next morning the Union troops could go over the scene of the previous days carnage without fear of molestation. "Piles of dead" is often used a, figure of speech, but in the works abandoned by the Confederates piles of dead literally and without exag- geration were lying in the compartments which have previously mentioned. Two, three and four deep, tangled-up with each other, bodies and limbs inter twined, actual heaps of dead, their black and bloated faces upturned to the sky, in all manner of positions, and decomposi- tion already polluting the atmosphere with a horrible stench. It was such a picture of war, horried war, as few peo- pie, even those who make business ot war, are permitted to witness. It would take the pen of Victor Hugo to faith fully describe such a scene of death and carnage, such hideous and appalling , holocaust of human life. In the woods, immediately in the rear of the Confeder- ate line of earth-wo one could see tho fearful effect of the musketry fire iron the Union line. Swinton, in his history says that all the trees within the range o1 f the musketry were killed, so blighting il its effects was the fire of leaden bullets poured into the forest in the 20 hours tn, Union troops were ordered to never ceas, firing.
 On that morning after the battle saw ! two oak trees of vigorous growth, abou ! IS inches in diameter, that had been act
 ually cut in two, gnawed off four or fv , feet from the ground by bullets fret :. from the Union line in front the day be fore. This may give the reader som' = idea of the terrible fire concentrated ol : the Confederate line behind their earth
 works on that never to-be-forgotten 12t a of May, 1864, by the troops of the arm.
 of the Potomac. In the fall of 1865
 when was still in the army, visited
 Washington on official business. As ,t entered the War Department, on eacl n side of the main entrance, in front an' '. under little projecting portico, sa, e two stumps of trees, the same that hae d witnessed on the battlefield of Spottsyl d vania. They had been sawed off an F. carried to Washington as mementos 0 d the bloodiest field of battle which histor e records of the late war.
 Ruled Out. l. A witness was called in Dakot I. court.