The Portland daily press., 1892-05-14

lack of enemies to
overcome would
have spoiled the
occupation Of those doughty fellows who
were expected to hew a way through liv-
ing breastworlzs straight from the Poto-
mac and the Big Sandy to the Gulf. But
it is the fortune of war that all cannot be
great. 10 the majority the bubble repllta-
ton breaks and is gone before eager hands
can toss it in the air to be seen of all men.
Those who built great hopes on the Sixty
ninth New York volunteers, however, never
had cause to regret their enthusiasm.
The Sixty-ninth volunteers sprang from
that old Sixty ninth militia, which fell into
dlsgrace for refusing to parade at the
Prince OF Wales reception in 1853 Irish to
the backbone in their hatred of England.
but not less SO in their love for their
adopted country, when Lincoln called for
militia troops in April, 1861, they asked to
be purged of contempt for characterization
in order that they might march to the de-
tense OF Washington. On April 20 the
charges against their colonel, Michael
Corcoran, were dismissed, and three DAYS
later the regiment with OVERLOOKING ranks
started for the capital. The order for
transportation called for 1000 men, but
over l,SO0 were borne on the rolls, and the
display they made marching down Broad
way was unique even for those days. The
city was carried away with excitement,
and their line of march was almost car
peted with bouquets flung at them from
windows, balconies, pavements and even
housetops. The column was headed by a
banner drawn by four horses, bearing the
motto: 'Sixty-ninthl Remember Fon-
tenoy."
Soon after the regiment reached Virginia
it was joined by company of boy Zouaves,
known as the ''Meagher Guards" and led
by the famous Irish patriot, Thomas Fran
els Meagher. The Sixty-ninth made a
spirited charge at Bull Rnn-the men inn
petuously stripping off their knapsacks in
order to have free swing, and came out
minus the colonel captured, the lieutenant
colonel killed. and a loss altogether of 1872
The killed outright were IS, the second
highest in the battle Capt. Meagher led
the regiment home, and was the hero of
the hour. His Zouave company, in bright
red uniform, had been conspicuous at Bull
Run, and one of his men, John D. Keefe,
had brought off the green flag after the
first bearer had been shot down Keefe
was himself wounded while defending the
banner. After his musket had been torn
from his hands he shot down two assail-
ants with a revolver and made another one
| prisoner.
After Bull Run the floodgates of eulogy
and adulation were again opened, and the
new Sixty-ninth. formed from nucleus of
the militia regiment took the field handi-
capped with, reputation that only the
fiercest heat of battle could. bring to a
proper temper. 1t was the current notion
that that three commands had done the
execution at Bull Run-the Black Horse
cavalry and the Louisiana Tigers on the
southern side and the Irish Sixty-ninth on
the northern. Meagher became colonel of
the regiment, and in accepting its services
for three years the war department. sug-
| gested the formation of aibrigade composed
entirely of Irishmen. The idea spread like
wilddre; recruiting began in New York,
| Massachusetts,, Pennsylvania and the west,
and in few weeks the Sixty-ninth volun-
teers, $50 strong, marched down Broadway
| under span new banner of green, bearing
Erin's well known symbols-the harp, the
sunburst apd the shamrock.
The vanguard of numberless battalions
of Irish heroes, the new regiment was des-
tined not only to lead that fighting
race IN the contest for glory upon Ameri
can battlefeldS, but to stand number
one among SO regiments sent out by the
Empire State when the roll of honor should
be made up from an actual count of the
killed in battle. Needless to say that hot
place would be reserved for the alien band
with the challenging battle cry, "Remem-
Der FontenoyP
The SiXty-ninth was soon followed by
the Sixty-third and the Eighty -eighth New
York, the three constituting the Irish
brigade with Meagher as brigadier gen.
eral After few trifing encounters,
southern heads and Irish sticks came to
dead issue at Malvern Hill, on the PENN
sula, July l, 1852. The brigade was in
Richardson's division of Summers Second
corps. On Malvern Heights Meagher was
sent in as support to Butterfeld's division
of the Fifth corps, which was getting the
worst of it in fight with some of Lees
crack brigades under Gems. Armistead,
Garnett and Wright.
The Sixty -ninth led the column and re-
lieved the Ninth Massachusetts, volunteers.
that had been cut to pieces and was passing
sickening procession of its dead and man
gled to the rear. The Irishmen took their
stand coolly and fired with such rapidity
that their guns became overheated and
they soon had to retire. The Eighty-eighth
repeated the maneuver and the Sixty. ninth
again moved to the front and was at last
relieved for want of ammunition. Two
color bearers had fallen, and II men killed
outright, no wounded and 2S missing-155
in all-was the dole exacted for rallying
around the sunburst on Malvern Heights
in one brief twilight hour.
The regiment had done other work on the
Peninsula and at the close of the campaign
in August numbered 800 rank and file. It
went to the field of Antietam with a fight
ing strength Of 317. Still in Richardson's
division it was in the reserve line until the
battle waxed warm, and then led the bri-
gade in the attack on the famous Sunken
Road, near bunker church. Meagher was
at the head of the Sixty-ninth with its
commander. Lieut.. Col James kelley. The