The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-11-29
KILLING A MAN.
A Solder Tells of One of the Things
Required in the Line of Duty.
From the Detroit Free Press

A Soldier Tells OF One of the Things
Required in the Line of Duty.
From the Detroit Free Press.
They do not call it murder when men
meet to slaughter each other in battle They
simply report so many dead, wounded and
missing. When you fire into the smoke con-
cealing the other battle line you fire in the
hopes to kill or wound. 1t 10 your duty.
Battles cannot be won without killing. You
load and fire-load and fire-move to the
right or left-advance or resreat and when
the battle is over you may have fired fifty
rounds and yet you have not had a near
sight OF the enemy; you have simply fired
at him, and you cannot vouch that a single
one of your bullets has found living tar
get.
- Herenis brigade of us In battle line
aordss an old meadow; our right and left
5ofua other brigades. We have thrown
do wn9 the rail fence, gathered logs and
brush and sod and erected breastwork 1t
is only slight one, but enough to Shelter
us while lying down. A division OF the
enemy breaks cover half a mile away and
comes marching down upon us. The field
pieces behind US open on their solid columns,
but they are not checked. Under tbs
smoke we can see the work of the shells,
but they cannot halt that mass of men. The
VI,
but there should be dozen guns instead OF
six.
They are going to charge US. The guns
can not prevent that. Orders run along the
line, and we are waiting until every bullet,
no matter If fred by soldier with his eyes
shut, must hit a foe. | select my man while
he is yet beyond range. l have eyes for no
other. He is a tall soldierly fellow wearing
the stripes of a sergeant. AS he comes
nearer l imagine that he is looking as
f1xedly at me as | am at him. admire his
GOODNESS. He looks neither TO the right nor
30 the left. The man on his right is hit and
goes down, but he does not falter
am going to kill that mani l have a
rest Tor my gun on the breastwork, and
when the order comes to fire / cannot miss
him. He is living his last minute on earth
We are calmly waiting until our volley
shall prove veritabe flame of death. Now
they close up the gaps, and we can hear
the shouts Of their officers as they make
ready to charge. My man Is still opposite
me. He still seems to be looking at me and
no one else. l know the word is coming in
a few seconds more, and aim at his chest.
l could almost be sure Of hitting him with a
stone when we get the word to fire. There
is b!llow of fiame-a billow of smokes
fierce crash, and 4, 600 bullets are fired into
that compact mass of advancing men. Not
one volley alone. though that worked horri.
bic destruction, but another and another,
until there was no longer a living man to
fire at.
The smoke drifts slowly away-men cheer
and yell-we can see the meadow beyond
heaped with dead and dying men. We ad-
vance our line. AS we go forward I look
for my victim. He is lying on his back,
eyes half shut and fingers olutching at the
grass. He gasps. draws up his legs and
straightens them out again, and is dead as ]
pass on. l have killed my man. My bullet
alone struck him, tearing that CHASTITY
wound in his breast, and / am entitled &c
all the honor. Do swing my cap and
cbeerl Do point him out and expect &c
| be congratulated No. l have no cheers
feel no citation. feel that / murdered
him, war or no war, and that his agonized
my life.