Morning journal and courier., 1888-02-16
A WAR TALK.

 Major N. w. Perkins Before the Young
 Mems Christian AssOefattoh Last
 Evening~The F0Flern Hope of Port
 HdIa0n.
 Last evening in the rooms of the Y. M. o. A. Major N. w. Perkins of this city, a very efficient officer of the Thirteenth Connecticut Volunteers, gave very graphic account of war scenes in which he had taken an active part. His address was very cordially received. He spoke substantially as follows: "The highest honor that ever comes to any man is to serve his God; the second highest honor is to serve his country and stand up for the old flag" The speakers theme for the evening was "The Forlorn Hope at Port Hudson" He graphically spoke of the situation at Port Hudson when, July 16, 1863, General Banks issued his famous order calling for the forma- tion of 8 storming column of 1000 men. Twice before scores of the bravest of the brave perished in assaults upon the rebel stronghold and all about were the helpless, maimed and disabled ones, wounded in these attacks. No brayer spirits were there than True as steel, they still hoped for victory and finched not. The army that lay before Port Hudson were filled with patriotic ardor, but the case seemed desperate. Then rang out General Banks daring order. Congre- gated in that Nineteenth corps were troops from every New England State, New York was there in splendid array ,and Ohio, Illinois and Wisconsin and others of the great States of the West were represented; but in that forlorn hope Connecticut took lead of all the states. Several from the Twenty fifth, nearly fifty from the Twelfth and the entire body of the Thirteenth regiment in solid col
 umn deliberately assumed the tremendous T, kIos- N4fN r1a1
 Birge at their head to lead the assault. There
 was business, my friends, that meant death.
 Whatever fate or fortune might befall those
 who followed, certainly the men who com
 posed the advance were to march into an in
 stant, wide open, inevitable sepulchre.
 The speaker here digressed to tell the sad
 story of the fate of brave, noble young drummer boy, Charles Merwin of Company A, seventeen years of age, who was especially dear to the speaker and beloved by the regi- ment Before light he had voluntarily gone to the bloody front to assist in carrying of the wounded. At eleven while helping carry off wounded officer on a stretcher to get
 him out of the reach of rebel bullets g rifle bullet shattered his leg. l obtained leave of absence from my command for two hours and set out mounted on 8 sure footed and fleet mustang across the fields, 1eaping ditch es, fences and fallen trees until I came to the field hospital, about two miles away, where \ hundreds of the wounded and dying had been gathered. After searching long and fruitlessly among the wounded and dying, and when despairing about to relinquish the search, a faint voice called my name Looking down I saw what had appeared to me to be nothing but heap of cotton lying just in the doorway of another torn down building, and stopping pulled the heap apart; there, with the soft cotton all rolled about him, was the object of my long search. As I bent over him there was the look of heaven upon his face and his voice was sweet though faint as l he told me how he was hit and how just a half hour ago his leg had been amputated and shall never forget the smile of calm ! trust which spread all over his face as I ask ed him what could do for him and his 1 view, though touching and appealing to all the love of my heart, had to be ! brief, so taking from an inner pocket | roll of greenbacks I placed them in his I hands with the words, "'Tis all can do fol you, Charlie" I hastily mounted my
 pony and made my way back to my com ! mand again. But l never saw the noble boy again. He was taken to New Orleans. A l second and third amputation became neees sary and he sank under the terrible suffer. | ing. Now to return to the forlorn hope. On ! June 26 the storming column marched to the ground designated for it's camp. It was sepa rated from the rest of the army and organ
  ! ly divided, instructed and held in readiness to move at five minutes notice. We were kept drilling until June 30, when General Banks reviewed us, and forming us in hollow square about him made one of those remarkably eloquent and appropriate speeches-such as only he could make. In it he promised us We should celebrate the coming Fourth ot July inside Port Hudson. July 3d we re- ceived notice to be in readiness to make the grand attack at fifteen minutes notice. July 4th Farragut fired a national salute with shotted guns into the rebel works, but we
 made no land attack. July 5-No assault by the storming columns. July 6-Still wait ing. July "A solitary horseman was seen
 approaching our outposts, riding as if the
 whole southern confederaey were after him, and mounted on the most jaded looking
 steed ever looked on, having ridden night and day from Vicksburg and bringing us the glorious news of the capture of that strong hold by Gen. Grant. And such shout as went up from our little army as the news was carried along the lines never was heard before, and an unutterable weight was lifted from the minds of the forlorn hope as we knew Port Hudson would surrender as soon as the news of the fall of Vieksburg could be carried inside. And that very evening cessation of hostii- ties was proclaimed along the whole line. White flags and white handkerchiefs and strips of canvas were hung on every part of the works. The long agony of the siege of forty-four days and nights was over. Here at last the demon of war should be drunk with human blood nc more. One of the i'm cidents of the evening of July Eth was visit to the headquarters of Col. Nelson, who com manded colored regiment-and here I wish to bear witness to the dash, valor and con- spicuous bravery of the two colored regi- ments who, led by white officers, charged side by side with us in all the fierce and bloody assaults made on Port Hudson and from whose ranks came 200 volunteers for the forlorn hope. His interview with the rebels was amusingly told. He had been in the habit of conversing during the siege with the rebel officers in his front and had de- lighted in telling them the most egregious lies. Among other things he had gravely in formed them that the. besiegers were so pleasantly situated that they had no desire of terminating the siege; that nothing would suit us better than to remain before Port Hudson until winter and we would regard it as 8 positive misfortune to capture the place; that consequently we had never assaulted the place in earnest; that we were abundantly supplied with every luxury the New Orleans market could afford, that most of the officers had little gardens near their tents which furnished lettuce, radishes, onions and all kinds of garden sauce daily.
 On the 9th of July three commissioners met three rebel commissioners and agreed upon terms of surrender. AS special mark of honor the forlorn hope entered Port Hud- son the morning of July 9th to receive the surrender. A deserved recognition of the distinguished services of the Thirteenth Con neeticut was seen in the fact that our colors and our band were selected from all others to grace the triumphant pageant. When the rebel General Gardner gave the command, "Ground armsl" they flung them spitefully from them. The ceremony oyer the forlorn hope returned to their respective commands The siege had been one long continued battle. A battle that lasted forty four days after the investment was complete. Vicksburg was not so bloody. Seven millions of projectiles had been fired by us since we started for Port Hudson. But now the seem- ingly endless din had closed, and we felt how sweet was rest, how prophetic, too, of that 'noble rest above!"
 No rude alarms of raging foes,
 No cares to break the long repose;
 No groans to n1ingle with the songs
 That warble from immortal tongues
 HIS MIND UNSETTLED.