The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1888-04-18
A Remarkable Team.

From an account given by Mr.. Har-
vey Riley, formerly in charge of the
quartermaster's depot at Washington,
we are enabled to give sketch of one
remarkable team Early in the spring
of 1861 a certain group of six met
officially as comrades. They had been
associated occasionally before in the
somewhat mixed society of the quarter
masters corral, but now they are regu-
larly mustered into the service of the
United States by Captain (afterward
GeneraD Sawtelle and were hitched up
together for the first time at Berryville,
Nd, and one Edward Wesley Williams,
colored teamster, united his fortunes
with theirs. He was good teamster,
and at once established those amicable
and confidential relations with his ami
mails which are of the highest conse-
quence to the successful negro driver.
His trace-chains were never so short
that the singletreer banged about the
wheelers' heels. His bits were always
of the regulation size, seven-eighths
round and full five inches between the
rings. His broad harness-straps were
always properly adjusted, so that there
should be no reasonable ground for the
laying back of ears or the letting fly of
heels. The authorities deemed it i'm
portant that Williams and his mules
should be in Washington on the day of
Lincoln's Inauguration, and they started
for the national capital on March | but
history fails to record the exact date of
their arrival. Inasmuch as the cere-
monies passed off successfully and
without interference from the confed-
crates, we may infer that the whole six
added the music of their voices to the
cheers that went up from in front of
the capitol on that memorable occasion.
They remained on duty in and about
the defenses of Washington until May
IA, 1862, when they were transferred to
Fortress Monroe and reported to Gen
eral Mcclellan, or his lawful represen-
tatives. They marched up the Pc
ninsula, participated in the siege at
Yorktown, the battle of Williamsburg
and the arduous mud marches of the
Chickahominy. AT the seven days
fight all six were present for duty, and
with indiscriminate efficiency hauled
army supplies or CHASTITY loads of dead
and wounded, until they reached Har-
rison's Landing with the Army of the
Potomac. Thence Williams drove back
to Fort Monroe and was shipped to
Washington with his team in time to
haul ammunition out to Manassas juno
ton and take part in what an Irish
soldier lad called {" our annual batting at
Bull Rum" They saw the tables
turned at Antietam and turned back
again at Fredericksburg, where they
were in the ammunition train. Under
General Hooker the team followed the
fortunes of war through the Chancel-
louisville and Chantilly campaigns and
was with Grant in front of Petersburg
But there, sad to relate, the faithful
saddle-mule, on whose back Williams
had ridden so many weary miles, was
killed by artillery fire from the enemy's
works. Her surviving comrades bore
up under this affection and admitted a
new incumbent with their usual grace.
The introduction of a stranger was not
permitted to interfere with regular
duties, and the team worked right along
until the fall of Richmond. In June
following (1S65) hostilities had ceased
and the team was ordered back to
Washington, where it was transferred
back to the regular army and was on duty
Herewith in August, 1866. There is
no evidence forthcoming to show that
the faithful Williams is not still crack
ing his black snake over the backs of
his historic team at some remote from
tier post; but, in the nature of things,
the four-footed members of the assoc
citation must long since have been hon
orably retired, orperhaps shot, for such
is the merciful method of dealing with
the superannuated government mule.
None of these animals was more than
fourteen and one-half hands high
nor weighed more than nine hundred
pounds, They frequently went without
hay or grain for four or five days, sub
sisting on wayside groupings, and sew
eral times they were without water for
twenty-four hours. Mdga-
zine.