Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1893-08-09
AFTER A SCORE OF YEARS.
A Confederate Commander Learns the Re.
suit of a Clever Shot.

QUIZ VI q OlOfOl CtUUt
When the Washington artillery was
at Morgan City on the 18th Of July there
were many striking incidents that
sprung out of the ceremonies of defeat
ing Fort Star and of practising with
solid shot. The whole day the war and
it's memories were kept before the peo-
| pie, but it was not a reaWakening in
which the bloody shirt had any play,
but more of thoughtful retrospection,
in which the recalling of battles was
not with bitterness but with an impair
tial sadness. Among all the happen
ings of the day none were more singu-
lar and noteworthy than one which oc-
cured to Col. Richardson, the COM
mander Of the battalion.
! 1t was during the time when the bat
teries were firing shells at the two tar
gets, which looked like tiny handker-
chiefs on the water, they were SO far
| away. A good shot was fired, and the
spectators were applauding the excel
! lent craftsmanship, and the colonel
! stepped up to the gun to commend the
gunner, when without cause or without
knowing why. the memory of similar
shot which had been fired twenty-nine
years ago, almost to the very day,
flashed into his mind, when he had
stepped up to gunner and comph-
mented him in much the same style.
1t was when he was in Fort Malone at
the siege of Petersburg, which was
known as Fort 'Damnation, when the
shot tWenty-nine years before had been
| fired, and the Fourth of July was almost
the anniversary of the very day. In
stead of white targets for a mark it had
been the tops of Sibley tents, which
| peeped over the ramparts of Fort
| HELL" just opposite Fort 'Damna-
ton" They were the tents of the
| Federal officers, says the New Orleans
| Tmes-Democrat. He knew that from a
deserter, who had informed him also
that the officers of the whole command
held daily consultation there, and that
he could tell the time from the fact that
| they hitched their horses around the
tents Col. Richardson was then cap
tain in the Washington Artillery and he
| conceived the idea of scoring point on
the Federals by firing on the tents Just
at the time OF the daily consultation.
| He selected the best gunner in his COM
mand and told him what he wanted
| him to do, and that was to load and pre-
| pare the guns for d special shot which he
was going to direct them to make the en-
suing day. The young captain was sure
| that he had gunners he could depend
upon, and to make his triumph COM
p1ete he asked Gen. Malone to be pres
| ent when the shots were to be fired.
| 1t was noon the next day when the
| horses of the Federal officers were seen
| collected around the two tents. The
| gunnerS were told to train their guns
| upon them and to be certain to make
! their shots tell. Those two shots were
made the center of the interest in Fort
| ''Damnation" for that day, for the word
was passed around that the destruction
of the officers tents was to be attempted
| After a deal of preliminary arrange
ments the two shots were fired and the
tops Of the two Sibley tents disappeared
| like card houses in a gale of wind. The
surcess of the shots was the signal for
| cheering on the part of the Confeder-
ates. Gen. Malone complimented the
accuracy OF the artillerymen, and it
was then that the captain stepped to
the gunner and expressed his approba-
| ton in much the same was that he used
to the one who had made the good shot
at Morgan City. But there had always
been a tinge of dissatisfaction about
that shot at the Federal tents, and that
was that he had never ascertained
| whether anyone had been hurt ia the
tents, and for the twenty-nine inter
venlng years that one thought had per-
Vaded the whole incident.
With these thoughts in his mind, Col
/ Richardson turned away from the gun
ner at Morgan City, and at that moment
one Of Morgan City's prominent citi-
zens, Mr.. Gray, stepped to the Colonel's
side and said:
Isn't this Col. Richardson 90
eyes"
"Well, [ have been wanting to meet
you for many years, ever since | heard
that you had been in Fort 'Damnation'
at the same time that / was an Fort
| He'll >"
'sYes?" said the colonel, "and when
were you at Fort Hell p
I'm July, 1864; in fact just twenty
nine years ago to-day" answered Mr.
| Gray.
The colonel instantly thought of those
| two shots and wondered if his curiosity
was to be satisfied do you remem-
Der day, while you were opposite me
| in Fort He'll when the tents of the
officers were taken down by two shots
which were almost Simultaneous ?'
The stranger did not reply for a full
minute. A shadow seemed to fall over
| him, his eyes grew dark and he stepped
| back and surveyed the colonel from
head to foot Then he broke out feel
ingly: On you. I shall never for
get those shots. They swept away the
| flower OF my corps. My first lieutenant
was killed and one leg of my second
lieutenant was shot off, and five others
were killed. And did you fire that
shot ?"
The deep feeling Of the man was evil
dent, but a moment later he said:
''WelI, colonel, you are now teaching
your young soldiers to serve the flag for
which my officers laid down their lives.
1t is Kismet''