News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1886-08-05
sHERMAN's MARCH TO THE SEA.
Story of a Picket Bound TO Have His
Way.


From the Detroit Free Press.
At that point on Grants lines around
Petersburg, where my regiment was
posted for several weeks, Federals and
Confederates were so close to each
other that it was certain death to raise
a head above the breastwoTks: l have
seen a soldiers cap held up ON Gayonet
receive five bullets from sharp-shooters
before it could be lowered. The earth
works were protected by an obattis OF
sharpened stakes, and beyond this
a6attis the pickets were pushed out
every night as soon as da kness fell.
Each man had an excavation deep
enough to shelter him in a cramPed
position, and the distance from the
Federal to The Confederate was in some
places not over eighty feet. There was
a tacit understanding between the pick
cts that no firing should be INDUCED IN
at night. At such close quarters 1t was
simply cold-b looded murder. While
this agreement was fairly held to most
of the time, there were occasions when
orders came from headquarters to fire at
every living thing on our front.
suppose the idea was to worry ana
annoy Lees men and keep them under
arms as much as possible, and under
standing it to mean that, their plckets
would return shot for shot and seek re-
venge. One nigh the picket next to
me was a tall, slathery chap named
Sherman. We were not over ten feet
apart, and his excavation was so narrow
that he was terribly cramped for room.
We had not been posted five minutes
before he began to complain, but just at
that time the pickets down on the left
began blazing away, ana the fire ran
along the entire line until we were all at
it. From that moment it would be
death to show head above ground.
Sherman got some little satisfaction
in blazing away into the Confederate
earthworks. but in the course of half an
hour he called to me:
"Sayl | can't stand thisp'
'But you mustp'
He evidently began digging to en-
large the hole, but three or four rifles
were turned on him and he had to hug
the bottom. Pretty soon he called
again:
Say, I'm going to get out of this p
eff you try that you'll be killed."
"But I'll die anyhow"
He talked so loud that the Confede--
ate sharpshooters heard him, and then
the fire of seven or eight rifles were con-
centrated upon him. He kept down fol-
perha ten minutes, though all the
time l could hear him growing and
swearing. Then, all of sudden, he
sprang up, shouted: "Charge 'em,
boys2" and dashed at the pickets
in his front. There were two
'Johnnies" in the same exca-
walton, and he jumped in on them
before shot was fired. In minute
the alarm spread, and the actions Of
that one "Yank" called out 5000
men in less than ten minutes. He kept
up shouting and yelling, and as the two
pickets were boys about IS years old
they were badly ratified. He disarmed
them, threw their guns away, and then
grabbing either by the hair of the head
he rushed them across the Geutra
grounds past his pit and into the shell
tered reserve lying in dip, and none
of them got wound. A few minute!
later, when the affair came to be under
stood on the other side, the Confederate
raised hearty laugh and called fOl
! Sherman to come back after his cap
which he had left in the pit. Sherman
was placed under arrest for his move
ment, but was released as Lee evacuated
Petersburg, and nothing further wa
ever done in the case.