Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1886-06-17

officers rushed forth and called to us 70
"Come on, they are retreating." Soon q
volley from the second relief sent them
back. The enemy was relieved at inter
walls of half hours all through.
Some of the boys in my company had
boosted before they were near the enemy
that when they should be in action we would
not see them crouching behind logs and
stumps, but they would stand out in bold
relief. Glancing to my right l saw Ser
geant s. ID. Cronchbrest. said, Stephen,
you are q splendid mark" AT that instant
he fell, and such was the fate of nearly all
who did likewise.
As the south wind cleared the smoke,
saw that many brave boys had fallen. One
of my shoes was covered by clotted blood
/ looked to the rear, and there Mr.. Ford
| lay, his head in reach of my feet, mass OF
blood. said to myself he is surely dead
but he afterward turned up, recovered.
| After some two and half hours of fight
ing a breeze cleared away the smoke in
front, and l saw some eight or ten rebs in
| q clump of bushes Haunting their colors. II
made my blood boil, and / said now is my
opportunity. brought nv gun TO the side
of the tree and fired twelve we'll directed
rounds at the color bearer, praying he would
take one or more of them to heart, and al
last the colors fell to earth.
The battle ragged and both parties stood
where they did Mt first. i and nearly ali OF
our men had eighty rounds of balls, and by
this time our boys had acquired confidence
and felt that we could hold the fort if the
good Lord or somebody would bring car
tridges, for ours were growing few, and the
rebs kept up bold front. Our water had
given out and there was not cracker in
the party. We had left them all in camp
for the Johnnies, and l doubt if they
thanked us for them.
After six hours of terrible fighting our
skirmish line said, "If you come over this
line you will come over us dead" / no.
ticed the firing in parts of our line was less.
/ knew then some were out of cartridges.
had three left. looked around and found
/ was alone on the line; all had leaped to
the rear. fired my last ball and followed
them, and found them trying to drink q
creek dry. i helped them. We then moved
up the steep hill, Indian file. Our company
cook fell beside big tree and we left him
for dead, but he turned up oil right in due
time.
When we were halfway up they showered
us with balls. On the top of the ridge
Colonel Malmburg formed us, handful of
boys, in a hollow square. We all thought
we were to be sacrificed to the enemy, but
as soon as they saw the square they ceased
firing. We remained short time, until
we saw them ranging a battery at us, when
Colonel Malmburg moved us slowly toward
the landing, getting something to eat on the
way, and we finally met the cheering news
that General Nelson, of Buell's command,
had arrived across the river, and would
cross as fast as possible. Cheers rang
through the forest.
1t was then near five o'clock, and all was
quiet in the woods, as all the balance of the
army had fallen back hours before. We
moved back TO the deep ravine that Grant
speaks of as the place where the second at
tempt 10 turn his flank occurred, and we
supported the siege guns on the line half
mile from the landing. This line was es-
tablished as military necessity quite early
in the day, as the army commenced to fall
AffifIefy, and was composed or guns IN
sections. / say there was no water in this
ravine as per General Grants story.
On Saturday, Mt p. m, ii began to rain,
and the rebs made their debut across the
run at the same hour, and formed line.
Our folks did not modest them until they
opened with some twelve FOUNDERS. Two
volleys and then volley from our entire
line silenced them, and we heard no more
from our neighbors.
There was no sleep for us that night, as
every fifteen minutes our gunboats on the
river sent she'll creeping through the tree
tops, while the gain poured in solid sheets,
and Mt daylight it was still raining. At a.
m. we were relieved, and near the landing
We had the best breakfast ever ate.
Roll-ca told q sad tale; our company
left camp Sunday morning with fifty seven
| afa1 tn IN hnIr VnIn nanx
were but nine. After all was over we were
introduced to Stuart rs his "immortal nine,
and all the regiment was drawn up in line
before Sherman's headquarters, and re-
ceived quite demonstration.
A few days after, part of my brigade
marched ont in front eight miles to rebel
hospital. AS We rested in a valley flag of
truce came over the hill, borne by some
dozen rebels, members of the regiment that
engaged us on Sunday, the 9Th. We soon
entered into conversation about the battle,
and many questions were asked; in fact, all
hatred was forgotten, and it was the most
interesting inquiry meeting ever attended
| They asked what kind of guns made hole
in them big enough to throw a rabbit
through. They were most eager to know
if our men were not all in line on the
ridge. They explained to us that some
half hour after the ball opened they urged
Chalmers to chase that skirmish line and
take it. He paid no attention until they
grew desperate, when he said il was sim
ply Yankee trick; that the deep ravine in
our rear was full of Yanks, aud we were
trying to pull the wool over their eyes and
draw them in to charge. They also said
| Chalmers had orders to take his command
to the left flank of the Union army, and
wipe out small brigade at the ford, then
to go on to the landing and destroy all
the transport trains, and oil the appurte-
nances of Lincolns army. He would then
have been in the renr, the front would have
been taken care of, and they would have
had it all in nutshell. ll.-Scotty, in Chicago
/