The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1891-09-03
PICKET SHOTS
From Alert Comrades All Along the
Line.
The 9Th W. Rat,erv.

~
Mills. Ne, answers the inquiry Of COmrade
Donald, rs 20 what battery the two guns be-
logged that were stationed 40 the junction Of
the Plank and Brock roads, ut the Wilderness,
By saying that they belonged 20 the 6,h Ne.
battery. The battery belonged 20 the Second
Corps and came in on the Brock road on the
afternoon Of May ,, and halted about 800 yards
south Of the Plank road The right section
was detached and sent to the junction Of the
roads 10 take the place OF two guns which had
been disabled earlier in the day. These must
be the two guns the cOmrade referred 20 as one
Of them had a piece knocked OIL the muzzc.
The guns were Il pound brass Nap0ieOns. Tho
writer was gunner on the right piece, and fired
the signal gun for the charge that was made
on the rebel lines in the morning os the 9th by
the Second Corps. William Leavitt Of Island
Falls, Me, was the other gunner. The other
four guns went into position about 900 yards
south Of the Plank road and no doubt are the
same guns referred 10 by COmraGc Carter, 81
Md, as doing efficient service in helping re-
pulse the charge on their lines which was made
on the 9Th. Carter also said that Gen. Han
cock thanked the Colonel Of their regiment for
saving the two pieces OF artillery that were
abandoned or tho Plank road. The writer
thinks that Carter must have gotten things
somewhat mixed, as there were no other guns
on the Plank road on the 9th but the 6.h Me-
and IL any guns were abandoned it must have
been on the 9th, before they got there. No line
Of battle advanced down the Plank road on the
9Th. The left Of the rebel line was about 200
yards 70 the left OF the writer's section and as
it come in sight tho two guns were swung
around and they gave the rebel line a double
shot OF canister in flank, while the other four
guns gave il to them in front.
Fighting the Indians.
J. o. HatIestad, Co. !, 1st MINI. Mounted
Rangers, Hurdal, Mimi. writes that his regi-
meat, which was also known n the lst MINI.
Cav, was organized in the Fall Of l-G3, after
the Indian outbreak, and took active part
in suppTessiug those Indians. In tho Spring
Of 1863 an expedition commanded by Gen.
Sibley marched against the Indians and gave
them their deserved dues for what they had
done TO defenseless settlers on our Western
borders. It became known TO Gen. Sibley
that band Of renegade Indians had returned
to Minnesota for plumber, so three companies
Of the rangers were sent 70 protect the settlers.
A line Of stOckades were built, extending nearly
across the settled portion Of the State, from 10
to 20 miles apart, and patrols were constantly
passing 10 and fro. In this way 1t was found
where the eHemy's last degiltry had been COM
miited and squads Of cavalry would be sent
after them. and the writer thinks that most Of
them never got back with their plumber.
The Gettysburg Fight.
wv. Griswold, Co. G.. 4ith y. Y, Third Bri-
gade. First Division, Fifth Corps, does not re-
member the day Of the month his regiment
reached Gettysburg but thinks that it was the
2d Of July. Ii was about or go p. m. when
the First Division Of the Fifth Corps halted
and rested on arms. Ia the early morning
they were formed in line facing piece Of tim
Der, remaining there but Il short time, when
they moved by the left flank into pasture lot
covered with bricrs and bushes finally ascend
ed a hill in their front and moved rapidly Oft to
the left. After going Some distance they took
position on a foOt-hill near Little Round Top,
where the enemy made their appearance in
about 10 minutes surgiug through the woods
on the fat in their immediate front. The bat
tie began about o'clock in the morning on
that part Of the line. and continued with I'M
abated fury until shutdown. ll the principal
fight was on the "a Of July, then the writer
regiment got there on the night Of the 1st; but
if it was on the night Of the 81, then the wri-
ter'5 regiment did not reach there until the
night Of the 2d.
The Way He Knows II.
s. r Cole 9Th Ind, Holiday, Kan, writes
that COmrade Moody, in correcting Comrade
Young about the organization Of the Army Of
the Potomac is considerably mistaken when
he says that the three years men Of the 9TH
Ind. were discharged in April, 1868, with the
exception Of veterans and few recruits. who
were consolidated into one company and put
in the 18th I>~i. The writer enlisted at In
dianapolis in September, l-Gl, but did not en-
list as a veteran and he knows that all the 10
companies retained their organization up 70
the 4th or 9Th Of September 1851, and were re-
leyed from the front line on the above date,
went home and were discharged at IudiaUapO-
lis Sept IS, 1854 What few veterans and re-
cruitS that remained were transferred TO some
other regiment: but ID was in September, 1851,
instead Of April. 1868. The 7th was in the
battle Of the Wilderness as a regiment May
and 6, 1864 under Col. Grover in Cutters Bril-
gafe, Wadsworth's Division, Fifth Corps. The
writer knows this from personal experience, as
he was with the regiment from the battle OF
| Winchester, March %, lS62, and the engage
ments at Bull Run, Autictam, Fredericksburg,
Gettysburg, and the Wilderness, in all Of which
battles the regiment did their share of the
fighting rs they did clear up to Petersburg.
The regiment did not do il all, but tho writer
will say that they saved the Union with the
assistance Of all the other troops.
The Rebs Had Hard Time.
Lewis Fountain, Co. l.. 9th Mich. Cav, Clover
dale. Mich, did not take Fort Gregg because
he did not know where il was, but if he had
known he would have been there with his little
flag and planted IT, if hc had 20 borrow 10 for the
occasion. His hair is growing gray thinking
about those poor JOhnnies and the hard time
they must have had in repusing the entire
Union army. He used TO wonder ut the saying
all quiet along the Potomac" but nc now
knows that Mcclellan and Pope with Farragut
and Porter were concentrating their forces Tor
an attack on poor old Fort Gregg. He has Tead
accounts OF other forts, but he thinks they must
have been fiction, as the strength Of the Union
army was evidently concentrated around this
fort The only thing the writer ever took was a
pig but he got caught at it, and has been honest
ever since. The writer thinks that lie can pro-
duee the oldest son of veteran in the country.
His name is Peter Grant, whose father was in
a Michigan regiment, and was killed at the
Wilderness He is 20 years old and is six feet
five inches in hight. He wants some one 10
beat this and quit beating the poor little rebels
in Fort Gregg.
Al Mission Ridge
G. w. Miller, Co. ]. 3lst Ohio, Burns. Mo,
says that at the battle Of Mission Ridge, the
First Brigade Ofthe Third Division, Fourteenth
Corps, after crossing Lookout Greek, charged
across quarter of a mile of open ground in
plain view of the Ridge, where the rebs had
three batteries of Is or 20 guns, which they
kept playing on the brigade until they reached
the foot Of the Ridge, where the rebel cannon
| could not be depressed enough 10 reach them.
| The first line Of works az the foot Of the Ridge
was deserted, the rebels having retreated to the
| top, where they had heavy breastwOrl. The
men did not stop long at this line but COM
menced the ascent amidst the shower of flying
| bullets On the right the 18th Ohio gained a
perpendicular bluff near the top of the Ridge,
/ when the rebels came TO the edge of the bluff
/ and shot down at them. The brigade charged