Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1886-04-21
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The following incident, which occurred At
tbs baftlO Of kesnca, was furnished MS by
&C. Allen, Of Algona, Iowa, who ct the
time was , member Of the One Hundred
and Twenty ninth Illinois Volunteer In
fantfy:
On the morning Of the 18th Of May, 1854,
- We were lying In line Of battle Ia the
woods near Resaca, we were relieved by
troops belonging 10 the Fourteenth Corps
and moved to the left, I think, some seven
or eight miles, where we formed at the foot
Of . hill for q charge. Our brigade, which
was the First Brigade Of the Third Division
Of the Twentieth Army Corps, was formed in
column by bettalions, the One Hundred
battle, with, I think, the Seventeen Indiana
first, the One Hundred and Second Illinois
next, the Seventy ninth Ohio next, the One
Hundred and Fifth Illinois next, with Gen.
Vim Ward, Of Kentucky, as brigade CON-
mander. After the lines were formed, with
the Second and Third Brigades Of our di-
vision as support, We were ordered to nn-
sling knapsacks; then we were told there
wss . fort in front Of us we were expected
70 storm n carry. This was, / think, about
2 O'Clock in the afternoon and we started,
too much excited TO think Of dinner, as this
was our first engagement. We went up the
bill in our front and down the other side
and up another hill without seeing a gray
coat, and cam TO the conclusion the fort
We were to charge was a phantom fort that
fed at our approach; bat as we went down
the hill On the other side it seemed as though
plndemonium had broken loose. As we
came in range Of the rebel batteries on
our left, amid the shrieks OF shell and the
commands Of the officers and groans Of the
wounded i seemed appalling, but we NOV
ed on up the side OF the third hill to nearly
the top when q four-gun battery opened
in our front which dispelled all doubts
heretofore formed as to the reality OF the
said fort. Our brigade lost about seventy
men at each discharge, as we were not to
exceed twenty feet from the mouth Of the
guns when they were fred. The colors Of
the One Hundred Twenty ninth and I
think about sixty-two men Of the brigade
were oil that got into the fort, though we
held It until after dark, when we were re-
heved by the Second Brigade. The One
Hundred and Twenty ninth lost their color
sergeant and the flag was badly riddled; one
ball anne near cutting the staff in two.
One thing happened to O member Of our
company Co which made lots Of fun for
rs. We lost a man, or thought we had.
The next morning after the battle the Cap
tain told q man by the name of Smell and
myself to go over the battlefield and see if
we could find him. So we hunted Until
nearly noon for him but could find nothing
Of him and anne back and reported him
not to be found. The Captain laughed and
said he came in soon after we left. We
went and interviewed the lost private, .and
in answer to our question as to where he
had been, he said he was back about two
miles in a "holler" log. I asked him how
he got through the provost guards.
"Oh,' said he, Il was sick, and I guess
they tho't l was, for I really didn't feel
we'll"
It was the last time he. crawled into a
hollow log on the field Of battle, and he was
never known to be sick afterward, for the
boys nearly tormented the life out Of him,
and Tor q long time he was known as the
Sick man. of Company IG.-ChicaOo
Il n