Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1889-06-20

CHAPTER XIV
kill nE, MA9sA, 4SD ~ sEcnEF OBJ 20

has own manu- ana acted independently
The impartial student OF history will verl
readily como 10 the conclusion that il wa.
well for the cause OF the Union that Gen
eral Grant never received those orders. fol
/ if he had, instead Of pushing ON and seizins
Nashville and even Donelson, he would have
had to lay at Fort Henry. West Point ha.
made some good military men among Tho
thousands turned out from that institution
but General Grants common sense was O,
more value to his country than all his early
military training
On the 18th OF March, 1869, Grant was re
stored 10 command, and found the Union
army IN his district divided, one part being
on the east side Of the Tennessee at Savan
nah, while one part was at Crump's Land
I ing on the west bank four miles further III
the river, while q third division was III
Pittsburg Landing, which was still ivemiles
further up the river
Tho loss Of Forts Henry, Donelson and
Nashville had greatly demoralzed the Con
federates, and 10 once more bring the army
into something like marching orders, Gen
eral Sidney Johnston, one of the most eff
! Gent commanders in the Southern army
began concentrating all the available forces
/ at Corinth. The wisdom of this action must
be acknowledged by all military mon John.
ston had learned the kind OF man Grant
was. Corinth was the junction Of two OF
the most important railroads in the Missis.
sippi valley one connecting Memphis, and
the other the Mississippi river with the
East, and the other leading TO all the cotton
I States of the South. Still another railroad
connected Corinth with jackson, in West
/ Tennessee.
| Grant at once saw that if he obtained DOS
session Of Corinth the enemy would have
no railroad for the transportation of armies
I or supplies, unbl that running east from
I Nicksburg was reached. In fact, it was the
/ great strategic position at the West be.
/ tween the Tennessee and the Mississippi
/ rivers, and between Nashville and Vicks-
burg.
4 General Grant at once put all the troops
/ at Savannah IN motion for Pittsburg Land.
ing, 1t was his intention TO march from
this position IN Corinth as soon as Bnell
! with his army from the Ohio should arrive,
and the west bank Of the river was to be the
1 starting point.
4 Colonel Mason was thrown well TO the
/ front in the brigade of the brave old GEN
eral b. NJ. Prentiss. Lukes regiment was
filled with recruits which were almost
hourly pouring into camp. Many of the
new soldiers were young men fresh from
the farms, counting houses, shops and
stores, who had never yet smelt powder,
but who were destined ere long TO learn
something of the terrible realities of war.
Arkansaw Tom, Corporal Max, Ned Cot
ton and Bill Snow. who were stll with the
regiment, had become sort of self-im-
posed body guard for the new Colonel.
Though not on his staff, they were always
near at hand in hours of danger
The Colonel came to love these four vet
Grams like brothers, and even though Max
did grumble he knew he could be relied on
when hard fighting was required.
"Wall, Kernel, don't yer think we're
gwine ter hev fight purity soonW asked
Arkansaw Tom one morning, strolling into
his Colonels tent.
II don't know, Tom; sit down on that
cracker box. Wen, about the fight-I
shouldn't wonder General Johnston is
massing his forces at Corinth and l be.
lieve General Grant intends to move on
that place There will be powder burned
when those two meet"
Shouldn't be s'prised, Kernel. I've been
tellin' Nv tn boys ter git ready fus the gol
darnest knock down they ever heerd on.n
1--WE will have heavy fighting soon, but
wheni will take place, and where, don't
know"
"But, l say, Kernel, come in T. tell We
somethin'."
"What, Tom2"
"Don't yer remember that air dod blast
ed Niger wot yer cali Black Jack ur suth-
in o. the kind, who went on Their boat t.
Belmont, an we thort war killed n tn
swamp clus Z Donelsonin
eyes, you mean Blackhawk.n
oval, he's turned up agin"
"Where is hef"
ain camp. It's Gods fact. Saw i'm
this mornin',n said old Tom smoking his
short pipe
"Where?"
ain camp Came past our quarters
whar our mess war;
ibid you speak with HING the Colonel
asked
ayes; axed him whar he'd been, an
he said he'd been layin' n tn brush ter
shoot a cuss as he hates He's been clar
out ter Corinth, but hain't got his man yit.
Golly, We orter see his gun; it's a great,
big, long barreled ole fashioned rife. Very
thing ter kill buck"
"He ought to know something about
what the rebels are doing. / wish you
would find him, Tom, and send him TO me-"
"Tll do it, Kernel. I'll go right now m
hunt 'im up and old Tom rose to his feet
and started from the tent TO find the mys-
FERROUS negro; but Backhawk, as usual,
could not be found when sought, and Tom
had fruitless search
That evening General Prentiss ordered
Colonel Mason to take two hundred men
next morning and go out several miles IN
their advance to recOnnoter, as it was re-
ported that the enemy had been seen in
considerable force along the Corinth road.
Almost ever since his arrival at Pitts
burg Landing Colonel Mason had heard of
skirmishing in their front, and his own
pickets had been fired on several times.
cit is probably some guerrllas,r said the
Colonel TO himself. "They are providing
through the country, and the woods are
full of them. A few companies of cavalry
can easily put them to flight
or course the four men who had been his
self-constituted body-guard formed part Of
the two hundred picked men, and with
three days rations and forty rounds, they
set out at daylight next morning. AS they
were passing one Of the outlying picket
posts sergeant hailed them and said:
'Ye'd better look little out"
"Have you seen any thing of the enemy
this morningl'' the Colonel asked.
sNo; but they've been shootin' at US
boys all night and wounded Jack Gates"
Chow many times were you fired onl"
"Three. The last time they gave US
dozen shots all at once"
"They are only few bushwhaekers; we
will drive them from the woods" said the
Colonel,
With three ore four exceptions Luke's en-
tire two hundred were veterans who had
been trained in the hottest fights al Bel
mont and Donelson.
The country was undulating and covered
with a dense growth OF trees and under
brush, except where clearings had been
made and fields cultivated.
The Colonel and his staf were the only
mounted men in the expedition. The re-
cent rains had made the roads muddy, and
marching was difficult and wearisome.
They had gone about five or six miles
when the advance guard Informed the
Colonel that they were in sight Of farm
house, near which a number Of horses were
hitched.
.sThey are bushwhackers. Now to capt
ure thcm.'' said the Colonel.
He divided his command into two d.
visions, and approaching the house from
the south and east prepared to flank it so as
to prevent any one from escaping.
Luke glanced at the SKY to see what the
hour was, but it was too cloudy for him 20
determine by the sun, and. consulting his
watch, he discovered it was after twelve.
"They are at dinner" he thought, "we'n
bag orr game and learn something from
them"
The Colonel was not yet in sight Of the
house. winch was concealed by the thick
woods and underbrush, when single shot
rang on the air.
4