The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-01-24
WHEN HIT IN BATTLE.
WHAT DOES HE THINK, OR FEEL,
OR KNOW, OR MEAN TO DO?

Is Willing, but the Flesh Cannot
Stand the Wound-The Will Leaves
After the Body Dies.
From the NelO York SIM
%After man is shot in battle, between the
blow and the sequence, whether death or
prolonged suffering, what are his symp-
toms, what bis conscious feelings and emo
tsans7
A remarkable instance may be found in
the case Of Capt Nolan of Balaklava.
Nolan assumed to guide the Light Brigade
in The charge, and with frantic exclamation
and gestures with his uplifted swordh he rode
to the right oblique in order to draw the Six
Hundred out of the valley Of death, which
lay directly in their course, toward the line
of redoubts which they had been ordered to
attack, and where victory and not disaster
doubtless awaited them. When he was
few PAGES to the right of the leading ranks
piece Of she'll struck him on the chest,
tearing into the heart.
"The sword dropped from his hand, Gays
Kinglaks, but the arm with which he was
waving it the moment before still remained
high uplifted in the air, and the grip of the
~
relaxed still held him firm in bis saddle.
Missing the perfect hand of his master and
finding the accustomed governance now suc-
ceeded by the dangling reins, the horse all
at once wheeled about and began to gnllop
back upon the front of the advancing bril-
gade. Then, from what had been Nolan and
his form was still erect in the saddle, his
sword arm still high in the air---there burst
forth cry SO strange and appalling
hAnrar Ia
called it unearthly. And in truth /
imagine" continues the historian "the
sound resulted from no human will, but
rather from those spasmodio forces which
may act upon the bodily frame when life as
power has ceased. The firm-seated rider,
with arm uplifted and stiff, could hardly be
ranked with the living. The shrek men
the shrek OF corpse. The dead horseman
rode on till he passed through the interval
OF the Twelfth Light Dragons. Then at
last he dropped out OF the saddle"
The line between Nolan living and Nolan
dead was very narrow, yet the uplifted arm
and the battle shout ending in an unearthly
yell proved that the soul of the warrior
dominated every element OF activity 30 long
as any activity remained. Had Nolan been
trotttng along In the ranks of the Six Hun
dred with no other thought than that Of
keepiag in line and getting ahead, he would
have gone TO the ground like bolt under
| that blow.
An experience Of the same nature, but at
the other extreme, was that'of Gen. Joseph
Booker at Antiebam, On the morning Of
Sept II. being in the presence
of the enemy WITH bis corps, hS began a
sDS "0s os to s1.S high g sns q BIZ r
confederate line within range OF the hostile
batteries. Soon strong body of the Enemy
showed itself in his pathway and Ia the
excitement of making new dispositions and
routing pursuing the confederates, the
general, to use his own Ian
guage, twas lifted to the skies. "
1.-THE whole merning hes been
| wrote, also. Yet at the end Of the success
| full attack he was removed from his saddle
| just as he was In the eot Of falling from 10,
| weakened by che loss Of blood from wound
| OF which he had not been conscious at all.
A muskst ball had passed directly through
the foot between the muscles OF the srph
| and the sole, the seat, 90 every one knows,
| OF very sensitives nerves. Had the general
1 been In q stats Of moderate repose, as, fer
| some movement. the blow would have un-
snanued him, for the moment at least.
Intensely preocoupisd as he was, aud as he
had good reason to be at that stage of the
battle. be did not notice the BLOW or the
sensations that accompanied aud followed IL.
| My attention was frat drawn to this sub
1ject by q strange personal experieHoe, sus-
! pended bodily animation combined with
| partial mental clearness. The facts we're
OF kind that could be recorded with
accuracy, and / am able to state them in
detail. We we're in the face Of the enemy
at the second attack on Fredericksburg, and
were lying under the shelter Of low ridge,
| expecting to charge or repel charge. The
term OF service of our regiment would
expire the day following, and, with others,
| | specialized not little on the
chances Of escape in the impending fight.
There had been times In nay short
career as a soldier when was ''too anxious
for wounds and scars" as Gen. Grant re-
marked of Ned Buntline, and even at this
time, with the prospect, as believed, of a
speedy return home, consoled myself with
the thought that if wounded at the eleventh
hour would carry glorious badge on the
return march; But went into action that
day convinced, on the whole, that the fell
lows across the line would not pay special
attention to me- for I was an indifferent
mark for good ammunition, q lad of II
years. small inches and hight weight.
1t turned Gut that our position, though
supposed to be well sheltered, was closely IN
spected by number OF confederate sharp
| SnoOberS, pub as IL was very Important unat
we remain ct that point we had to make the
best of it. was near the head of line of
the regiment as we lay strung along on the
slope of the ridge I could see every man In
the command. One after another the sharp
shooters bullets began to tell, and remem-
Der pitying the victims somewhat on the
principle that figured out my own chances
of getting off free. Within very few
hours we would all cease to be in arms
against the oonfederates, and what edvan-
tage were they to reap in exchange for
what seemed TO be atrocities pure and SIM
pie, picking of unsuspecting men
in cold bloodl noticed a
lieutenant in one of the companies
moving about on some official errand, and
making splendid target, aud while was
thinking how cool he was, something struck
him and twisted his body around SO that
noticed the break in his locomotion. He did
not halt but went on calmly and freely for
some PAGES, and in q few minutes, having
delivered some orders and exchanged words
with some of his men, he went to the rear
with decided limp. Between the moment
OF his wounding and the accomplishment of
his purpose he did not limp at all, and prob
ably did not know that he was hit Gt was q
flesh wound in the thigh until told Of it.
| Then when he knew what had happened he
| yielded TO the new mental processes and
| acted as wounded men are supposed to do.
| When che lieutenant had disappeared from
| view / turned my face suilarely to the