The Yazoo sentinel. (Yazoo City, Miss.) 1878-1916, 1891-04-02
A BATTLES VICTIMS.
HOW SOLDIERS FALL DURING
AN ENGAGEMENT.
The Battle Ardor Sometimes Re
tanned With the Last Breath
How Mon Act When Wounded
The Spirit Versus the Flesh.


The Spirit Versus the Flesh.
All that are found dead tiRan the bat
tlcdeld figure In the lists as~'killed Il
action." OF these, writes George L
Kilmcr In the New York Sun, quite
percentage may meet with instantaneoui
death, but the majority show proof thai
both mind and body were at work afteI
the fatal blow was received. One Of III,
most convincing cases Of this kind, and
az the same time the most terrible, thai
came to my personal knowledge was al
Antietnm, where General Hooker con.
Quoted the fight when he received his
wound. The Confederates were massed
IN field Of tall corn, and Hooker or
dcred his batteries 70 open on them with
canister. In mis- report he says that the
shot cut every stalk Of corn In the greater
part OF the field close TO the ground as
neat as though cut with a knife. OF
course the men In the corn did not escape
the biting hail. Neither did they stand
like lambs and accept their DOOM
After the first cannon yolley the survivors
started toward Hooker's batteries, mount.
ing rail fence that barred their pro.
gress, and just In front Of and along
THIS fence several hundred, perhaps a
thousand, lay dead after the action. The
regimentin which served took position
at one end Of the fence some hours after
ward and az this field was between the
lines the bodies had not been disturbed.
About sundown there was a sort OF truce
to remove some Of the wounded,
and with others | passed along the
fence to see the line Of dead. Some OF
the poor fellows had got over the fence
and began creeping forward, gun In
hand some had gained the top of the
fence, aud death left them balancing on
the rails, others In the act Of climbing
died leaning against II or dangling from
II headiorcmost, having passed partly
over 1t and been caught by the feet.
Generally the sword or musket was held
In firm grip, the eyeballs turned forward
and every muscle and organ bearing owl.
dencc Of having been strained TO get at
the batteries that were making such dread
iul havoc. When returned TO the end
OF the line and glarcd down again at the !
PROSTATE column, said TO my comrades
who had not gone out 10 get close
view, Boys, 1t Is just ms Il looks from
mere. Those men were caught at IL and
were struck dead In the nct.p IL is NOT .
TO be wondered at that General Hooker
whs too much absorbed at the time Of .
this lighting 20 notice his wound. lie
wrote Of the scene that the. "slain fCon- \
itedernte lay In rows precisely as they
had stood in the ranks few moNGIAs
before
Very very few Of the dead here bore
the look Of having passed away COM
posedly. Yet on the ordinary battlefield
where tho killed number but two or
three TO every hundred of combatants
the exceptions are those who do not die
IN quiet state Of mind and body. Men
who are cut down in charge, and the
tide OF heated action sweeps on leaving
them alone, bend their thoughts at once
TO themselves, and, II death is felt an.
preaching, turn their faces up TO the
quiet skies, composing their souls, and so
breathe their last. II will only be In some
such struggle as this at Antietam, or be.
fore the stone wall at Fredericksburg, or
in Pickctt's charge at Gettysburg, and
the front line at that, that men will die
retaining full intensity Of battle ardor as
long as breath holds out. Here we may
expect TO find men dead with their wea.
pons poised aud their colors held firm in
the death grip
The manner IN which men fall depends
also upon the nature OF tho action ID
which they are engaged. Nearly every
one Is familiar with the traditional stage
fall, where the victim of a supposed
death Shot strikes an attitude, clasps his
hand TO his heart. stitIcns every Joint
and muscle, brenthes Historically, and
goes down like log toppled over from
the end sometimes men are found on
the field IN striking positions, but exam.
ination shows usually that the position
was taken after the fall. As rule, a
man who is hit above the hips goes down.
The slightcr the wound the more
commotion, for the body In
stinetivvly resists Just as il
does when one slips or is pushed
or collides with some object. But a
wound in. a vital spot weakens the re-
sistance, and men sink at once or reel
and tumble with very little self-control.
The reason that men are found dead in
~ NNAANN0 VA HNcAtAhhe ~ WAT ~ lNuR rs
remains they strive TO help II
themselves. The wound creates a tenn
poary panic. Any one who knows the
sensation of being suddenly arrested
when at high rate of speed by some I
accident may imagine the general state I
of mind OF a soldier when hit in action. I
has happened he is the vic
tim how serious is itl Where is holpl !
A mans first thought is the rear of col
umn. and this not from fear, but because \
he expects surgical aid from that direc-
ton. SO long as he can move, II only
At a crawl, he goes toward the place OF
help When he can no longer move he
makes himself as comfortable as he can
and waits. In this waiting many die, I
and it is a question whether many do not c
die from over anxiety-that is. add to v
their hurt by fretting and struggling. (
There are soldiers OF the civil war living Q
Today who received wounds as serious a
It the time as some who died on the /
icld. Either their Compartments were J
more hopeful or their circumstances more a
favorable. AT the st0rming Of Cromp- 5
on's Pass, South Mountain. / was asked {
~ a superior il | would help take a Il
man 10 the rear The fighting {
vas about over. as il turned out, but 5
lemurred at the sending Of a sound man c
,ut OF the fight esneciallv as the wound &