Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-07-25

| tunities were lost and thousands Of lives on
both sides uselessly sacrificed.
At dawn the next morning there was no army
| in sight, save a small squad Of cavalry, about
| one hundred and fifty perhaps, encamped
| about one-half mile away. The railway trains
| had all gone. leaving us at the station with
twenty-one cars and no engine. We had been
| cut off because the engine could not pull us up
| the grades.
CARS FILLED WITH SICK AND WOUNDED.
Many Of the cars were filed with the sick
and wounded; others with officers baggage
and our force Of laborers. About o'clock in
the afternoon we were notified by tho officer in
command of the cavalry, which proved to be
the rear guard, that he was ordered to move on
toward Manassas. He agreed to send us fifty
dismounted men, and We devised plan to
save the train by separating the cars and,
placing about five men to each. push them
all to the top of the first grade. This was &C
complished. Coupling them again and taking
of the brakes, We managed to attain good de-
gree OF speed, which carried US down long
grade and part way up the next. The soldiers
left US and soon rode by, but declined abso-
lutely to again furnish motive power for us for
that sort of railroadinC, and We were again the
rear guard Of Pope's army. With our laborers
We commenced the work Of pushing the cars up
grade. About IL O'Clock we came to a halt
about half way up and concluded to stay where
we were for the balance OF the night.
Bringing up the rear, as the saying goes is
on any occasion Q rather lonesome proceeding,
but on this particular occasion there were ele-
ments OF personal discomfort, apprehension
| and danger that were the reverse Of cheering,
even to a sanguine temperament.
WHEN FITZ JOHN PORTER SHOULD HAVE MOVED
Taking musket, walked but few rods to
the wagon road, which ran parallel to the rail-
way. For mile in each direction the yellow
clay of the road was easily discernible This
was the night Fitz John Porter should have
moved could hear no sound save the barking
of dogs at neighboring farm houses. The sky
was cloudlcss and the stars seemed to wink at
me in q way which said to my overweight
imagination, You are in o tight place,
my boy" From what can now recollec.
am free to say that we very nearly agreed on
that point About O'Clock in the morning
there was rapid firing and great deal of hal
looing and the sound of horses feet, seemingly
in great numbers, heard coming on the railway
track in our direction. IL Q space of time
which was shorter than it takes to tell the story
We had captured and dsmounted tho whole
force, which proved to be a solitary soldier
belonging to the seventh Pennsylvania cavalry.
He informed US that he had been fired upon
by the enemy, and that he supposed he was
riding toward Alexandria, and that he was a
part OF the rear guard of the army. We also
gathered the information that the whole army
was massed in the vicinity of Manassas; that
Mosby had destroyed the bridges across Bull
and Broad run.
OBTAINING him until morning, We dispatched
him with note to the nearest commanding
but We never heard of him the note after
ward.
Dispensing with the details Of our DAYS
labor, 1t Is sufficient to say that on the evening
OF the 18th. about o'clock, we ran all our cars
safely up against the last train, which was
nearly in the center of Gen. Banks corps of
some 1000 men, who wore at tho moment the
rear guard.
Here We found that active work was going on
to finish the bridges; that across Broad run
was finished that evening and the trains were
all moved so that they occupied a position be-
tween the two runs, which are just about a
mile apart. These trains, when closely run to-
gether occupied tho whole distance, nearly a
mile, numbering seven engines and one hun
dred and forty-two cars.
THE TRAINS DESTROYED.
The great battles Of Friday and Saturday or
the 29sh and 3Oth Of August, 1862, known as the
second Bull Run battle, need no description
here, but on Saturday afternoon it became evil
dent that there was strong possibility that
Pope would not be able to hold the railway
long enough to enable the engineers to COM
plete the construction of the bridge, which
would enable us to bring our trains safely to
Alexandria. 1t was no surprise, there
order from General Banks to destroy
all the trains and engines and repair at once
to Centreville. Personal safety now became
the one thing uppermost in the minds of those
OF us who were not in the ranks 1t occurred
to me that 1t would be wise to save tho medi-
cal chest. After good deal Of trouble sue
ceeded in inducing the driver Of a passing
wagon to take us and the chest and was making
a strong effort to place it III the wagon, when
an officer or the staff OF Gen. Banks,
q German captain, came up and said that every
thing in the train must be DESTROYED and that
we could take nothing but our personal bag
gage in the wagon, and not until lie was threat
ened with the contents OF the musket which
had done guard duty with me on the previous
night did he discover that it was best for him
to attend to other matters. Meanwhile the
cars were fired, the engine dismantled
and destruction as complete possible in the
time allowed was the result. The distance TO
Centreville was some three miles and was soon
traversed, the instinct of self-preservation aid
ing largely in urging the mules to high rate
OF speed, as the enemy had for nearly half the
distance full command of the road with their
batteries. solid shot, at one point. COM
pletely demolished our lead team, and we were
obliged to continue the journey with only our
wheel mules.
VALUABLE MEDICINE CHEST.
do not recall any act of all my army life
that gave me more real satisfaction both then
and since. than to know that had been instru-
mental, i'll an humble way, of saving hundreds
of lives and of alternating untold misery, for
the chest was abundantly supplied with anes-
thetics, morphine, bandaSes, surgical instru-
ments and everything needed for a field hos
pital. and for all of which. for some reason,
there was the most urgent necessity.
From Centrevile We went to Fairfax station
and resumed the operation of furnishing for
age. remaining there from Monday morning
until Thursday night, when we again set sup
plies on fire and started for Alexandria on
horseback, having by good luck secured horses
We started at dusk with the shells Of the enemy
bursting all around us. To say that my
trip from Alexandria to the Rapidan and
return had dissipated my preconceived
notions of army life in the field would
be putting it very mild. MY ideas of military
discipline had received very rude shock. I
was very much disappointed and very mad
could not, for the life Of me, see why we had
SO many men in the field and so few of them
permitted to fight when fighting was the order
of the day, and confess am in ignorance of
these points yet. l shall always believe that
we had men in sufficient numbers to have de-
stroyed the organization OF Lees army If they
had been permitted to 20 into the battle of
these two memorable days. J. W. p.
Practical Suggestion.
From the Chicago Tribune.
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