Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1890-05-01

ing out of the ranks 10 gain the rear. In
a quarter of an hour half company OF
ConfederateS could have driven the
Eh5ie brigade like hCeE 81 sfiesP, I
saw men cry like children. 1saw Others
tremble and sit down from weakness
Every fresh report added to the feeling
of terror, and by and by pride and dis
cipline gave way to a grand rush, and
1t was every mar for himself No ono
would stop to reason. No one cared
whether hts e6mrade was ahead or be-
hind. This was called eowardiee; but it
was not. 1t was panic-the terror Of bat
tle-a senseless but powerful something
which seizes the bravest men and makes
children of them
In the streets of Fredericksburg / saw
Federal soldiers discharge their mus
kets into the air, when the enemy was
within point-blank range. | saw plenty
of them DROP on their faces and tremble,
groan and cry. This vas : ease where ev-
cry man saw the hopeIessness OF attack:
He felt that he was pushed forward to be
shot down. There was no way for re-
treat until the lines should fall back:
On the other hand, the Confederate
troops posted behind the stone wall at
the foot of Mayre's Hill jOked and
smoked and were in the highest spirits,
| feeling themselves secure from bullets,
and knowing they eould beat back any
force: One of THEM told me that after
taking a dead aim on thirteen different
men and dropping every one of them he
refrained from firing the next quarter
of an hour after sheer pity for the hu-
man targets being showed up to meet
death.
At Malvern Hill my regiment lay in
the dry bed of creek at the foot OF the
| elevation. 1t was natural rife-pit, and
sheltered lis SO we'll that we had only a
slight loss in killed and wounded. As
the Confederates charged across the
fields we felt to pity them. We poured
| in our volleys without danger in return,
and out of five Confederates who rushed
| into our lines in their bewilderment
three were crying and sobbing. 1t
wasn't cOwardice but terror No coward
could have been induced to march across
those meadows in the face of that ter
|
At Cold Rarbor, after beating of
every thing it our front. and while most
of the men were cheering, some one
started the report that the Contederates
had gained our rear. Two thousand
men broke back like lot of boys, some
even throwing their guns away, and the
! ieers of other troops had no effect until
the frenzy had had time to evaporate.
At Gettysburg my regiment had the
cover of stone wall, and we knew that
we were we'll supported. We hoped for
a charge, and when it came every man
was cool and calm and confident. One
band of prisoners numbering about thir-
ty, was led past us on their way to the
rear, and noticed that many were cry
ing and all were whitefaced. have
seen the best soldiers and the Oldest
fighters win their medals in one battle
and show the white feather In the next
saw a second lieutenant almost cry fol
the privilege of leading charge at An
tietam, and yet at Chantilly he fell into
a ditch and pretended to be hit so as tC
drop behind in the charge. towards
never go to war. If they get into the
ranks through the draft they desert OF
commit suicide. 1t is only brave mel
who face the grim monster on field o
battle, and next to the foe his wOrs
enemy is terror which seizes him as
chill or fever might come on. and there
is no remedy for 1t except to get away
from the screaming missiles of dealt
until ones nerve and sand returflS.-De
troit Free Press.