The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-04-09
AS BEEN By A CHILD.


the distant boom boom bOoml OF the guns.
Ny father. two uncles and many cousins
were in the battle. their rank ranging from
general down 10 private. The next day was
quiet, and hearing no news my mother
could stand it no longer, 30 an uncle, who was
clergyman, took my older brother and
myself in the carriage and we drove up to
see about them. How wildly the ride and
the incidents come home to me-Lhe clear,
frosty morning on which We set out; the
strangeness of the new country into which
our road led but six miles from home; the
delight of the midday meal by the side of
the fire built IN the fence corner then mud,
mud; then the evidences that we we're APP
preaching the seat OF war; struggling
soldiers afoot or on horseback: fence rows
without fences; roads cut into the fields,
wagons. ambulances; then more mud, deeper
mud, bottomless mud. in which our horses,
splashed to their eartips, tugged and toiled.
w . crossed the little tributary streams, the
Mat, the Ia, the Pc and the Nj, which
flowing together make Mattaponi; and, fol-
lowing the road. along which, as l remem-
Der, our uncle told US he and my mother
used to be sent in the carriage to school up
In the valley when they were children just
our age, we soon arrived on the outskirts Of
the great army which for two days had
been battling for the salvation Of the south.
How vividly it all came 20 me, ana yet
comes, and how different from what / had
pictured it. First Of all, mud mud every
where, then small encampments scattered
about in the woods and by the sides OF the
roads, the camp fires burning brightly, then
more camp fires, then as darkness settled
down camp fires every where lighting up the
horizon with their glow till il looked as IL
day were breaking. We were In search of
the headquarters OF the chief of the artil-
lery. Every one knew just where they we're.
hHaE ~ = a..
20 the left on a hill the next was sure it
was ten miles TO the right in bottom. At
length we found it, neithsr to the right nor
left, but straight ahead some five miles
not far from the road
remember the scene as we drove up. We
were now in the heart of the army and
could scarcely get through for the Gangs,
camp equipsge and campfires. One thing
struck me forciblY-the amount Of PRAYING
that was going on. Time and time again
we passed fires around which a prayer
meeting was going on. AT one a gray
bearded man was preaching or speaking
earnestly to an attentive audience; at an
other a young fellow was reading aloud
from little Bible; at another, one neither
old nor young was kneeling offering up O
prayer " hich was certainly not lacking in
fervor amid group on whose bowed heads
the flames were throwing "A rich glow, while
the distant sounds Of hymns came from the
hills above. 1t was a solemn time. There
was not a regiment or battalion which had
not in the last two days battles lost dearly
priced comrades, ana none knew what his
fate might be next day.
NOW SOLDIER OF THE CROSS
When we reached my uncle's camp
though my fathers was half mile further
on was too tired to wait longer All
recall is the blue light of the camp FIRE and
a general greeting from smiling faces, some
OF which l knew and some of which were
unknown to me, and when l became cou-
scious again it was next morning, and l was
in my uncle's cot, and he was Just rising
from his blanket on the floor Of the tent,
which was Of split oak ssplings. The next
day we rode over the battle fields In COM
pany with my uncle and his staff while the
dead were being buried under a flag Of truce.
recall. however, that while we were at
breakfast the reports Of two cannon follow
ing each other in rapid succession came
booming from toward the town, and
after a brief discussion as to what
it might mean, my uncle ordered a
young staff officer to ride at once and
see what il was. He had not sat down to
breakfast, which was good one, for we
had brought up boxes the day before, but
he rose Immediately and in a minute was
on at full galiop. He is now the right rev.
erend bishop OF West Virginia, but always
think of him as be Ralloped away so bravely
In uniform that morning. " hen he re-
turned be reported that Burn
side was taking up his pontoons. l shall
never forget our ride that day, and the
picture OF the battle field and the town is
one which l shall never lose: the roads filed
with refugees ahoat as well as in every con-
ceivabIe vehicle, their families and house
hold gear packed together indiscriminately:
the roads almost bottomless and Uttered up
with stuff dropped or thrown out in the ex-
odus of the past few days; fragments Of
vehicles. household furniture, books, wear
ing apparel, playing cards, everything.
Iremember my brother and l were both
on a sorrel horse belonging TO my uncle,
Col. Nelson, riding behind, and on top of
bank coming suddenly on a dead horse
and soldier lying as they had been shot in
the bushes, he SHE'D down the bank and
dumped us both off We were soon UP
again, however. not mindinR the fall, but
little shaky over the CHASTITY sight in the
path above our heads. This, however, was
nothing to what we were to see The dead
men had nearly all been taken up, and were
buried In long trench or trenches stretch
ing across sort of common. But saw
more dead horses than l had ever seen alive.
and as we rode along the places where the
fight had ragged fiercest we had abundant
evidence Of what had been there. l remem-
Der at MarY'S hlghts seeing the fragments
of the gun which had exploded while Gen.
Lee stood close by it. At the foot of the
nights seventeen men OF Meagher's brigade
had fallen in five minutes l remember
that railroad cut along which the road
was said to have lain In the direct line of
fire and TO have been almost filled with
dead. A little orchard was whipped into
fragments, and plank fence behind which
a line had lain was shivered into spluters
from one end to the other.
SCENES OF CARNAGE.
Unless 1 had seen it would not have
believed that men could bleed 80 much IL
looked as il barrels Of blood had been
poured upon the ground along that fence.
AS we rode into town the scene beggared
description. Esrthworks and barbados
had been thrown up by the union troops to
shelter themselves from the rolling fire
which poured from the nights above them.
L remember children were at work with fire
shovels filling up the trenches, and on one
earthwor6 a tiny confederate flag was
planted, and the youngsters mounted on the
red embankment chez ed us as We rode by.
The houses were riddled and battered by
bullet and shot, and the church steeple had
several cannon balls through it.
Not long ago heard story which ex-
planned these shots. A gentleman told how
he had charge Of detachment at a gun on
the hill just across the river, with orders to
keep up a fire at intervals during the night.
He became annoyed by the clock in the
town, which struck the hours with calm