The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1891-05-13
THE KIDS ENTERTAINED.
A wAIF WHO sTRoLLeD INTO CAMP.
His Appearance and Disappenrance-Littie
FI0's Letter TO the Heavenly Father
Why the Good G RI Died
Youthful Wisdom

1 enlisted as a private in the Second
Louisiana volunteers in 1861, says writer
in the Detroit Free Pres. My first real
so diering was on the Yorktown penin-
sula While there or at Suffolk Il forget
which, there strolled into camp boy,
not over ten or twelve years old, who at
tached himself to one Of the neighboriDg
regiments. Who he was, his name, or
where he came from 1 cannot now recall.
He was looked upon as No Mans child,
and as such found genial fellowship among
the soldiers.
| soon realized that he was a cosmo-
politan and at home anywhere. for | next
saw him the pet of the First South Caro-
lima volunteers. How long he stayed
with them 1 cannot say. 1t was nearly a
year before | saw him again. His small
form and boyish face were great contrast
to the men among whom he mingled. L
remember then how odd it seemed to see
that child in camp, but he was truly
"the child OF the regiment"
After we had fallen back to Richmo nd,
and after those terrible seven days of bat
tie, the army was reorganized and the
troops brigaded by states, so lost sight OF
our Carolina neighbors and also the boy.
At the second Manassas, Aug. 20, 1862,
our brigade (Starks-poor fellow. he fell
ut Sharpsburg) was lying nearly opposite
that terrible deep cut" When the drip
ping, SCATTERING fire Of the Yankee sKir-
mishers drove in our outlookers as "old
jack didn't have n counter-sklrmish
line) the cry Forward" rang along our
81. ard ~,
into the Yankees, who, giving us a deadly
volley, fell back rapidly across q field and
into the woods beyond, where a battery
supported by swarm of troops was
posted. Nothing checked us. Under a
whitening fire of minies and canister we
pressed on, Bushrod Johnson riding
ahead, with his sword run through his
hat, waving us on until we waved him out
OF our line of fire by yelling to him to
clear the way.
When we arrived within about one hun
dred yards of the battery the line was
halted, and under this raking fire the
alingnment was corrected and the men
right dressed" to be shot down.
have thought often that that command
of halt might have been heroic, but 1t
certainly was not war" However, not
a man faltered. Again forward, and We
drove straight lot the guns.
just then / felt thud, a sting, twist
around, and fell. a mimic had struck my
pocket-bible edgewise and, passing nearly
through the new testament part, dug q
trench across my LETT side into the flesh.
With the blood squirting from my side
started rearward while our boys, brave
fellows, went up and over the battery,
scattering its supports like chaff.
As / struggled back over the field. the
dead and wounded, blue and gray alike,
lying all around, / heard great rumbling
OF my LETT, and noticed that our guns
were plunging to the front under lash and
shout, to seize the hills whence to pour
shot into the now retreating foe. can
see them now tumbling, bouncing, surg
ing TO gain the front.
What else did | see?
So close / could almost reach him the
little boy sitting on the timber of OF
the pieces, Lis eyes aflame, his hat wav-
ing, his treble voice shouting excitedly,
and his whole being lit up and aglow with
the terrible magnetism OF baltle-cheer-
ing on the line.
/ have never seen him since. He
passed on and was lost in the cloud and
smoke of the field, but the memory OF
that inspiring scene will never fade.