Helena weekly herald. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1867-1900, 1889-04-25
Helena, Montana, Thursday, April IS, 1889.

only a few men of my own company were
left and that they were looking at me with
considerable anxiety.
"'What is the matter Watson? p I called
out to the nearest man to me.
"'Nothing, only the general ordered q
retreat little bit ago.
"'Then why the devil didn't you retreat?
queried.
"'Oh! we thought we could stand it as
long as you, he said.
why you chattering idiot, do you
suppose have been staying here because 1
wanted to? I've been ready and anxious
to 90 any time during the last hour
AT once we broke cover and ran from
tree to tree, loading as we ran and stopping
behind the trees to fire. We reached the
edge of the wood below the house on the
hill which / have already mentioned. The
rebel skirmishers were following close after
us, and 1 saw that if we didn't check them
they would overhaul us before we could
reach onr lines. Turning to the boys
shouted:
"' Halt! Take trees and give them half
dozen shots apiece and see that you
shoot to killp
This had the desired effect, for soon
there was not rebel in sight. Observing
this shouted:
sc Now boys, scoot for your holes?'
No second invitation was wanted.
There was fence in front of us. l don't
recollect that we took it down, but after
we passed there was no fence there, and
we didn't take it with us either.
II saw some right lively work during
the three years and four months service 1
put in with the First Berdan sharpshooters,
but never in all my experience did make
more earnest efforts to make good time
on q retreat, and never did l 80 dismally
fail as on that occasion. Much of the dis
tance after we left the wood was over
at gait that would had done credit to q
streak of lightning 1 have not run far be-
fore sharp pain caught me in the side.
This was caused by long, continued exer-
tion added to the very emphatic kick l
had got in the stomach from the butt of my
gun when the hammer was shot of. The
pain soon became so intolerable that had
to drop down to q slow walk, in order to
recover my breath, or rather, to be able to
breathe at ALL
ITO add to my trouble, now came a lot
of rebel bullets, thought bushel, though
there were only three or four. They
whistled around my head and pitched into
the bank beside me, filling my hair and
face with dirt and dust. and my heart with |
fear. 1t seemed to me to be hours, but it
was probably only a few minutes before 1 |
dashed through the little gate at the cor
ner of the house, and gasping for breath,
dropped on the sod.
THE two women of the house came out |
The Irish lady seeing my convulsive gasp
at my side and struggle for breath, ex-
claimed:
"'Oh, Lord he's shotp and ran into
The house crying, Where's the butcher
knife?'
In moment, to my horror, she returned
knife like seamen's cutless,
and with swoop, as effective as it was
1extrOus, she cut loose my belt, canteep,
1aversack and the waistband of my pants
before could gasp out:
For heavens sake, madam! don't cut
my more. I'm not shotw
Then what's the matter wild We, ye
olatherin divil, that yer maxim all this
owr
'Im-I'm-Tm only out of BREATH 1
,anted.
bad cess til yez it's graf notion have
o give yez prod wild this for scarin' the
ife out of me- and she fourished her cut
ass balefully over me. The next moment
he grabbed me by the collar, and jerking
ne off my feet without any apparent ex-
rtion she screamed in my ear:
"'Run, honny! Run for the life OF your
|arlint! There comes a bloody minded
ebel; l know him by the bla'gysrd hat of
lim'
II looked, and saw a squad of rebels
oming though the gate, as had done and
rabbiDg my rifle in one hand and koldipg
p my disabled pants with the other, 1
ushed out of the opposite gate with per-
ect hail of rebel bullets flying all around
ne turned to the left and ran down the
Dad toward Little Round Top, near which
could see our Third Corps headquarters
ag and Gen. Dan E. Sickles and his staff
reached the group just in time
0 find Gen. Berdan reporting to Gen.
ickles what we bad done, while our troops
y brigades and divisions were Fastening
n the double quick to take possession of
little Round Top and the line on the right
t it, on which some of the hardest fight
,g was done. If we had accomplished
othing else, we had at least kept the
nemy off tha: important eminence until
ar troops were able to occupy it in force"
J. D. G.