Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1891-11-26
THE BATTLE FIELD.
HIS FIRST BATTLE
A Veteran Relates the Story of His MaideI
Experience In War.

record of forty battles behind him.
We'll, was frightened, suppose"
replied the soldier.
Tell US about it"
He was by no mean anxious for the
task, but they urged him, and he be-
gan:
Il was with the army OF Gen.
Thomas there at Chattanooga in the
fall of 1868, when Gen. Bragg. with
splendid army. had US cornered and was
slowly starving US to death When
Grant came we were told there would
be plenty of fighting. We were in no
condition to fight. for we were in rags,
and many were sick with scurvy.
There was no ammunition, and we did
not possess a single position from which
the enemy could be attacked It seems
that as Grant was coming forward he
telegraphed back for ammunition,
clothing and small rations, and the very
day of his arrival these were issued to
the army. You can have no idea how
it strengthened and encouraged us
Where we had been weak and dispirit-
ed before we were now active and full
of energy, and all we asked was to be
led against the enemy
But, really, when orders came to
advance, I confess the courage was
cooled very noticeably. One thing was
that the movement began in the night
Along in the evening our company was
ordered to report for ratious, and the
first hint we had of how long the fight
would last was when we received ten
days rations. Ammunition was next
issued, and we were kept moving. l
well recollect had left a waterproof
blanket behind, intending to get it be-
fore we finally started. But as soon as
the cartridges were drawn, and with
out breaking ranks, they marched US
straight down to the river. Many
night afterward l wanted that blanket,
but l never saw it again. Down the
river and along the rocky bank over
road that was difficult enough in day
time, we went tumbling along.
Presently, as l rose to the top of a
little hill saw a lot of boats just ahead
at the rivers edge, and the soldiers
climbing in them. There was jam of
men before me. They could not en-
bark rapidly enough. Some were in
the water wading and trying to clam
ber first into one boat and then in an
other. Some lost their guns After a
while we were afloat and drifting down,
crowding together-the whole river
full. No one knew where we were
going.
Some one said: 1t is getting day
light The east was becoming red.
While l watched it, crampled half
kneeling in the boat, heard some fir
ing Just above ON the left hand, and
then there was a rush of the boats
ahead and a loosening of oars Pretty
soon every one was along the shore
and climbing up on the bank. Not
even the company officers knew where
we were going. But there we were,
all ashore, and forming in something
like a line, but irregular and crowded,
and with companies and companies that
never had seen before No one heard
command, but yet we were going for
ward. Just before sunrise l passed q
group of confederates. There must
have been fifty That's the picket
guard we captured, some one said.
hadn't known we had captured any one.
At daylight we were stopped, though
there had been no formal orders that
any one heard. Men ahead were sit
ting around on the ground and fences
and rocks eating. We all fell to eat
ing, too. Then there was a forward
movement, and all the army-it looked
like s. 600 men-was marching rapidly.
Lookout mountain lowered up there on
the left Confederate works reached
clear down to the valley. The sun was
very hot. Some of the men wanted
water. My canteen was quite empty.
wondered why l had not filed it at
the river
"All of a sudden the air seemed to
burst, to shatter, with volley of ar
tillery. A hill on our left, half way to
the mountain, was occupied by Con-
federate battery. They were firing
right into our column. The soldiers
Just ahead of us were running out of
the road up toward the cannon. Our
company ran out of the road, too. The
grounds sloped up easily. The guns
were about a quarter of a mile away.
They kept on firing. Now, for the first
time l saw some one was hit here and
there in our troops. l could tell by the
little diversion it would cause. Men
would look to a common center, where
all behind would part and hurry around
looking at the ground in that center.
Just before us stretched a thick piece of
low, stunted timber l could not see the
battery, but heard it constantly. The
shots were tearing through the trees
Some one said they had another bat
terry in the woods. We were painting
from the run. Now and then a soldier
would loosen his blanket or his KNAPP
sack and let it roll away.
I'VE were in the timber. A man was
killed right in front of me. He fell, strug-
Cling and trying to rise, but making no
| cry A soldier lifted his canteen strap
from his neck and ran on, taking drink
from the full supply. thought it was
horrid and brutal thing to do, but the
soldier ran on, slipping his own head
and arm through the canteen strap
out on the other side of the woods.
There was no battery there. But the
one up on the hill seemed terri
bly, near. 1t was firing with dreadful
regularity. Soldiers from three sides
were running up that hill Some were
/ shouting It occurred to me we were
in great danger. 1 wondered more of
us were not hit We were in range of
muskets. The first volley fairly swept the
advance runners from the ground. AS
we ran on we passed dead and wounded