The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1888-06-30
IN A BoMBARDED CITY.
The First Shell Of the siege-.-The
Last Shot.

Within it's blood-red circle of re-
doubts and breastworks the beleag-
ured city sweltered and throbbed
in an agony of terror and tumult.
The Atlanta of that day was the
most important stronghold of the
Confederacy. It was at once city
and a camp. Thirty thousand cit
liens and 10000 soldiers were
packed within its bristling ramparts
awaiting the onslaught of the $4,000
foemen whose Haunting colors could
be seen advancing from every di-
rection.
In the crowded streets good-na-
tured anarchy ruled the hour, and
the occasional rub-a-dub-dub of a
drum and the blare of bugle were
lost in the dull, grumbling roar of
moving artillery trains and army
wagons.
On some of the spacious Peach
tree piazzas groups of young ladies
might have been seen chatting with
a few officers whose bronzed faces
and battle marked uniforms showed
plainly enough that they were just
from the front. 4
Suddenly there rose above the
humming discord of camp and city
a ahideous, shrieking, whizzing noise,
SO unearthly and blo6d-curdling
that thousands of peaceful citizens
turned white with fear and fled aim
lessly from one point to another.
"a shell, by God! y exclaimed a
cavalry officer who was in the act
of mounting his horse near the
corner of Peachtree and Ellis.
1t was the first shell of the siege,
and it had fallen inside the city
limits.
The soldiers shrugged their shoul-
ders and laughed, and then the
most reckless of them looked seri-
Gus for a moment. They were
Of the women and children
who were about to go through the
coming baptism of fire.
Tom Crusselle, who had been
watching Hooker's batteries on
Todd's Hill, a little eminence north
east of Ponce de Leon Spring, was
standing in his front yard, the
present site of Colonel Bob Mad
dox's residence, when the shell
came plunging through the air.
He could have sworn that it was
heading straight for the spot on
which he stood, but a strange fas-
cination compelled him to watch
its curving course until it tore it's
way into A. G. Ladd's lot, opposite
the weil-knoWn Calico house on
Wheat street.
Mr.. Crusselle did not lose any
time in fancy speculations. He
was a man of action, and he felt
that the time had come for him to
prepare for the worst.
1t was not an easy matter to Sc
cure help, but in less than an hour
he had several men hard at work
digging a bomb-proof in his back
yard. AS the whole city was honey
,ombed with just such dug-outs in
he course Of a day or two, a pic
,ure of this one will describe them
ILL.,
The stately Herring mansion on
Peachtree, In later years known as
he Leyden House, had more than
is share of these missiles. One
crashed through the house, and
'icocheted, landing on a bed In
which lady was trying to take a
zap, where it cozily settled down
IN one of the pillows with its fuse
till smoking. Another, a spent
she'll, dropped into one of the rooms
IN the first floor, where it poised
tself on it's end before a pier glass.
'It merely paused for reflection"
emarked one of the inmates Of the
house who, by the way, had rushed
lcross the street to put on such
as he had carried with
,im in his flight.
But all this occurred in one lo-
,ality. The same wild experience
,efel other parts of the city. The
called Deantown was
helled almost out Of existence.
rhe heavy projectiles darted in a
straight line down Marietta street,
nearly every house OF It's
yeather-boarding.
The bomb-proof was 20 feet long,
feet wide and 9 feet deep. The
:ntrance to it was in zig-zag shape.
t was we'll lined with thick plank
md carpeted. Great care was ia
zen with the covering. First, heavy
imbers were laid across the trench,
md then mountain of closely
packed clay, tweEty-one feet high,
vas piled on top.
In this snug little retreat, for the
lext forty days, three families spent
considerable part of their time.
Only two shells hit it during the
iege. There was a frightful jar
when one of them, 50-pounder,
but the fortress held its
,Wn.
The first shell was followed by
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