The National tribune., 1890-02-06
Commands

Then follows q list OF names Of the men who
captured the flags. aud the company and regi-
mcnt To which they belonged. The report is
signed by Gen. Wagner. commanding the Sec
oud Division. Private OReilly of the 10th
Ind, bayonctcd the color. bearer of an Ala
bama regiment aud captured his flag. First
Serg't RamsbOttom Of tho 9th Ohio, captured
a flag which was planted on the bTeastworks
with the man who bore It, Serg't Copeland
OF the Goth Ohio, who had passed outside the
breastworks after the firing ceased there found
"A rebel flag These are the three flags which
are credited to the brigades of Lane aud Con-
rad. The greater number Of the flags captured
at Franklin were picked up on the battlefield
after the fighting was over. While the two
brgndcs had fallen back few PAGES from the
breastwOrks To reform their broken ranks, the
troops who held the line sent scouts over the
breastwOrka who searched IN the darkness for
tho rebel flags which were lying scattered
among the dead aud wounded outside. In this
way Lieut. Brown, Of Gen. Reillys staff So
cured eight flags A soldier of the 9th Ohio,
who had passed outside 10 search for Il miss.
ing conrade, picked UP ono of these flags.
He reported, on his return, that he was
coming through the line Of the Twenty
third Corps they had wrcsted IL from him.
The official reports of the regimentai COM
mandcrs OF the two brpades now file in
Washington, make mention of five other flags
thus seized and claimed by tho Tweuty-third
Corps. When we add to the eight flags picked
up by Lieut.. Brown these six flags captured
from their scattered comrades of the Second
Division we have accounted for II of the %
flags which Gen Cox states were captured by
the Twenty third Corps.
have personal knowledge of how two moro
were captured. When my company had re-
formed after the fighting was over, IL was
learned that several men were missing OF whom
their comrades could give no account. Just at
this time one of the drafted men was brought
in mortally wounded, who had fallen just out
side of the breastworks, and had afterwards
been hit several times by the fire of our own
men, Actuated by wild hope that might
| find aud sucCor more OF our wounded lying
! outside, crossed the breastworks | went To
| the gun of the 9th Ohio battery, east of the
cotton gin, and stepped up into the embrasure to
| pass through. The sight that there met my eyes
| was most horrible, oven in that dim starlight.
| Tho mangled bodies of tho dead rebels were
| piled up in front of the embrasure until the
explosion of the gun had leveled off the top Of
| the heap and prevented higher accumulatOn
| The gunnerB said that repeatedly when the
| lanyard was pulled the embrasure was full of
men crowding TO get iD, who were literally
blown from the mouth of the cannon. What
magnificent courage those rebels displayed
heard numbers of our men expressing their
admiration Of it. Only one of tho rebels over
got past the muzzle of that gun, and the Ser
geant in charge Of the piece killed him with u
| pick.
AS / was passing around that mass of man
gled humanity, one man who was still living,
| and lying with his head out from the bottom of
the heap, begged OF mo for the love of Christ to
pull the dead men from OFF him. The ditch all
along to the right was nearly as bad as in