The National tribune., 1890-05-15

! ought TO have heard Sheridan swear and he fin
| ished his damns with order To his Aid to stand
| there by the creek bank and g Shoot the first -
man that stopped" Well, the boys bounded into
the water and went out the other side the
| IL was right. We had no time to change clothes
| Just then. Speed was valuable; but always
thought the General wns too rough on the poor
| bows, who We're doing graudy rs ii wRsl
! The duty of our signal party was TO get informa-
| ton OF the encmy's whereabouts, and could
! not do IL by observation stations il became
snry TO scout. IL would take long evening to tell
you all our experience in those eight nine days
One OF the iightest places was cverin was near
! Amelia Courthouse, just our corps was leaving
| our little earthworks southwest OF .jciersville
But discovered the line of march that The rebels
took that morning. have photographed topo-
! graphical map of The country about Five Forks
that gives every road and farm in That vicinity
But sketch of the battlefield is lust about tho
| thing. ! have been anxiousy awaiting for your
! map of Appomnttox; as have never seen sketch
! or map that did not consider vague. Gen Hum
pireys's maps, you say, do not locate anything
only the farm roads. landmarks, etc. ] like Your
sketch very much, but there some things can
not reconcile with my memory OF the ground. My
! party moved on the ground think between 8 and
! 9o'cloclS on the morning of the 9th. think the
Twenty fourth Corps had tho lead tho Sth and
struck Appomattox Station that evening late nt
| night, where know part of the 9th Ohio wns
guarding some cars of rebel stores captured by the
cavalry. In fact. you know That on the Sth Custer
| captured n large wagontrnin, which we passed In
our march. i remember that we paid no attention
10 roads but followed the skirmish line of the dis
mounted cavalry. When we were probably on the
lnge or Trent farms some cnvalrymcn sang out
"THEY HAVE SURRENDERED"
| and there n STAN pcde. We all gaoped or
| fast as we could and very met rebel officer
| carrying n small white flag which think was II
| white handkerchief fastened TO short stick. lie
| galloped 10y us evidently desiring to reach the
corps commander. My cumrade, Sergt Bennett
W. Marcy (signal Corps now Cashier OF the First
National Bank of Wilkes Barre, Pa riding
near me, and closed mp TO the road running into
the village of Appomattox, where we struck tho
sktrmish-line. There was still little firing,
although IL did not last long ;cveryono rcn!iaed
looked
opportunity TO open signal communication, aud
was about To establish - station on large two
story house the right side Of the pike tihe
SenTs Houscl. but was informed by an officer who
| think was OF Gen. Grnin's staff, that il would
not hc well TO have such station between the
lines, and gave it up, there was no house IN the
open inside our lines; so ! took the best high
ground could get and put mp our flag and tried
10 catch sight OF the flags from the Second or sixth
Corps. hs know about where they were, bat they
were not I'm sight.
recollcct seeing Gen Griffin very soon after we
struck the road al Appomattox. Saw him ut the
blacksmitli shop at the corner, the south side OF
the Villagc. | incose sketch Of the grounds
cupicd by the two armies, etc, as my memory
serves me.
On the IOb, you know, all was quiet, while the
terms of the surrender were being submitted TO
the President aud Secretary of War. Well, that
day rode down the road through the villngc, by
the low ground north OF the town, and at the
of the road above the town there was n pmnl
orchard OF Struggling apple trees peTilnps four
five trees in ali some of them quito in the road.
way, aud just beyond was a small house. There
ing off chips from the trunk Of quite n large apple
tree which had been freshly cut down and quite a
good share of it carried away. ! asked them wlHt
they wanted, were doing with It, They said
they were after relics that IL was claimed that
Lee and Grant met under that tree. Well, you
know, we fiud they were partially correct. but not
fully. Grant says they met that low ground mt
the curve In the road perhaps near. but not under
the apple tree. rode on up the hill, and by tho
rebel camp on the high ground passed around in the
rear Of Gen. Lees lent | told that that was
his tent, and saw him sitting in 1t talking with
his portrait i was told by attendant mBny
things very interesting 10 INC. HRvii satisfied my
curiosity returned the same way had come.
Ia your sketch OF the grounds Rt Appomattox II
seems TO me that you hRve the main army-that is
the Second and Sixth Corps-too TO the Court
house, and too close up. II you mean the 9th OF
April. They were not iu sight from the rebel camp
] know the direction you give IL Is right. but
not aware they were close. Again Cor
dons Corps could not have been FAR south of thc
town on the 9TH oil April unless u was early iD the
morning. as there was no heavy firing. aud we were
on the ground nj O'Clock. Gordon might have
been there the sth possibly strui the night
there but was hardly there on tie qih uHuk
you have own--thc Finh-nnd tlio Twenty
fourth Corps and the cavalry very well ioCBrd. /
should have placed the rebels back u little They
would appear nm your ctch on tbc low ground:
while their skirrnish line at the foot Of tie hi
bni their main body were baek on the high .Toaud
the 9th.
You have given us n truthful story well told. and
now give us good ronnd finish on the surrender.
No historian has covered the whole ground 50 we'll
and your book will bo pocket diary Of tlIe boys
Of the Filth Corps. / had the misfortune 10 lose
Of my best diary. and have wrI,teitns wholly
from memory, and am OF course liable To- ho mis-
taken.
Thanking you for your very intcrcstin. account
of your experiences a. have read Il iu THE ma
TIoSAL IRfHUSE. Hn, yours. j. l.. PgAY,
scrgt Signal Corps, a. S. o. Fihh Corps
The suggestions ard corrections offered by
COmrade Pray, together with those Of other com
radcs TO the same purport have enabled mo 10
correct my diagram OF the positions of tho d fer
ent corps of the army 10 an extent which think
may be considered amounting h historical
accuracy. The suggestions Of Comrades Clarke
and Pray are OF particular value on account Of
the peculiar character Of their respective duties
at the time one being Acting Signal Officer
and the other Chief of Pioneers. ItFoes with.
out saying that IL anyone would know tho e1.
act positions Of the different commands of nm
operating army. it must be the Signal Officer,
whose duty IL was TO maintain communication
TO establish it at the earliest possible moment
between the two separate wings Of the Grand
Army. j therefore defer entirely 10 tho sug-
gcstions of Comrade Pray. IN order to do so IL
has been necessary to extend the scope OF my
map more 10 the northward aud eastward. to
take in longer stretch Of the FArmville road.
This brings the valley Of Rocky Ran into the
scope OF the diagram aud locates the main rebel
army on the high ground between Rocky Run
aud the North Fork. instead OF TO the west
ward Of North Fork as frat placed them. IL
also places the main Army of the Potomac on
the east side of Rocky Run. Again, Gen.
Harris's statement necessitates change Of Fos-
tsTs Division. Twenty fourth Corps. from the
rear of Turner's Division rs shown in the or.
iginal map, 10 position prolongng Turner's
line TO the left across the Lynehburg road and
extending 10 the Staunton rOad-or, moro
strictly speaking, the road leading northwest
direct To Amherst Courthouse and thence north
10 Staunt0n. But while these corrections
doubtless cGnduce 10 general accuracy in locat-
ing the troops, the result must still be unsats-
factory when compared with such elaborate
maps rs those Of Gettysburg and Chickamauga.
IN which the positions of each regiment and
battery are delincated, and their changes of
place ia the fluctuations of battle accurately
followed. In this rude diagram aud in the alb
sence Of data, more conclusive than the recol-
lections Of the writer and his comrades, il is
not possible TO locate the troops In detail of Or
CARNATIONS smaller than a corps or division.
II is 10 be hoped that the War Department will
take this matter in hand and proceed at once
TO preserve for the uses Of history the exact pO-
eiti0us occupied by the troops who participated
in this most dramatic scene OF WaTlike an aals;
this dropping Of the curtain on tho four-year
tragedy Of our civil war.
Concluded follt map ne1t t0eek)
The Noble Art or Self Defense.
DE dDlsteTdaDlneT1