The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1888-08-23

NDG1lOO1Ss NJ w. =
reunions that they are having and see
the wives and old mothers and sisters and
children of the fellows that are not here
to reunite they look lonely like-God
bless 'em, I hope that there will be a
great reunion some day, where there
won't be none absent and all will be at
home.
.sI vas the hero of that occasion, and
as first one aud then another would ask
me erbout their homes and loved ones
and I began telling in general way, I
was soon surrounded by eager listeners,
and now and then first one and then
another would turn his head to one side
and wipe his eyes with the sleeve of his
jacket; but they wouldn't leave me, as
tired as they were, till the rattle of guns
in direction Of trenches scared me so bad
that I hushed, and then the men went to
cooking the rations they had, for there
was no telling when they would have to
double quick back to the trenches.
'The cooking wasn't morn done till,
sure enough, the whole camp was broke
up and everybody had to 60 into the
trenches. The report was that the yan.
KEGS were going to attack and there was
so much hustle and confusion in the
darkness, that didn't know what else to
do but to go along with the crowd and
so, pretty soon, was in a trench and in
sight of the first yankee line of battle
that had ever seed.
"It was erbout twelve o'clock when We
got into the trenches and still dark and
er raining and the mud was ankle deep
and here aud. there q puddle of water.
In or mint heard splashiug up the
line erbout fifteen or twenty feet that
sounded like hog er laundering in a
mud hole and I heard soldier say, I
wish I was dog and then the fellows
laughed, but can't see to this day how
one soldier could laugh at another, when
they were all in such a bad FIX.
II was longing for daylight to come,
for it was chilly aud worse than any.
thing, thought, that could be, but day.
light hadn't more'n come till 1 was er
longing a heap worse for darkness to
come ergin. As soon as. day broke, a
fellow pretty close by me flowed that he
would freeze to death if he kept crampt
up there, and so he kinder Strengthened
himself and peeped over the bank, but
he raised most too high and before be
could jerk his head.down.er ball hit him
and he drapped over on the fellow next
to him and give one or two kicks in the
mud and water, aud that was the last Of
him. That started things. Our fellows
began to pick at them, and by sunup 1
thought to myself I'm er dead man, but
I didn't have to be told to keep down.
done it without any telling, and how the
soldiers got used to the thing, and set
there cramped up in the trench and
laughed and joked, with every now and
then a fellow getting hit with ball, is
more'n can understand. So it vent on
all day. Every now AMI then the fellows
would start to shooting, and the balls
would zip GROUND aud I'd lay low, and
then things would sorter quiet in the
trenches, and the big guns on the hill
would commence pecking at each other,
and then squealing shells would pass
over US and layed lower still. Things
wouldn't morn get er little quiet and I'd
begin to git up often the leg I'd been set.
ting on and straighten it out in front to
get the cramp outen it and feel in my
breeches pocket for piece of tobacco,
till some devilish fellow would put his
cap on er ram-rod aud poke it up above
the banks and before you could say scat
a ball would hit it and I'd drap. Thus
the day was spent in the trenches and
as soon as darkness came ergin I didn't
have to have no guide to take me away
from there.
Most any Of the old soldiers will lsquat
down on one leg aud. whittle with a
knife aud talk to you from sun up to sun
down,erbout the war, and never git tired,
butiit will all be erbout the charging ol
batteries and The clash of .sabres, but
can:tell you that the fighting was only q
part of the war. Hunger and thirst and
marching and losing sleep aud lying
still, cramped up in trenches, would
make man take fighting as desert"
SARGE.