Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1894-01-18

bursting every instant / suddenly
noted a gap on my left, but was not
even grazed by the shell. which killed
and wounded five men. We were not
over four minutes crossing the field.
but the time seemed five times as long.
We reached the fence just as the guns
changed to grape ard canister, and as I
swung a leg over the top rail was
covered with dirt and dust plowed up
by a charge striking the earth thirty
feet away. Here for the first time /
heard the officers behind us shouting
orders and the screams of men as they
were hit. What the orders were no
one seemed to understand, but we
dashed over the highway, tumbled in
TO and out of the ditch on the west side,
and swarmed over the tence.
We were 100 low for the artillery to
reach Us now, bat lines OF men who
seemed almost within reach suddenly
rose and poured volley after volley Of
musketry into Ms As we waited for the
laggards 10 come up and get Cur lines
in some sort of shape for the anal
effort One would have thought that
that fire would arnihilate us, but ONLY
one fell here and there. The top rails
OF the fence were somewhat decayed
and as the bullets struck them the
spinters flew in showers. We could
not hear the orders, but the lines
dressed, a great cheer ran from rigl1t
to left, and away we went up the slope.
The guns were being hauled off, and
between us and them were five hundred
infantry. We did not halt to deliver
volley, but went at them with the
bayonet | saw their feet and ankles
under the smoke as they fired a volley
into our faces, and the next instant we
were among them. No man could tell
you just what happened for the next
four or five minutes. There was shoot
ing shouting, cheering, cursing, and
hand-to-hand fighting, and all of sud
den we emerged from the smoke and
made rush at two pieces of artillery
which had been delayed by losing some
Of the horses. We ran right over them,
jabbing with the bayonet and using the
muslet as a club, and they were ours
inside of two minutes.
Like the stroke of bell daylight
vanished, and darkness fell upon the
battlefield. wondered greatly, for
had thought it was only midafternoon.
All the sounds of battle died out with
in a few seconds, and / was puzzled
about it. l remember of thinking there
might be a flag of truce and a surren-
der, and ! felt like cheering at the
idea. Then a feeling of drowsiness
crept over me, and said to myself that
it would be all right to go to sleep for
an hour or two and then help get the
guns away.
"Oh, he's all right and will be about
again in few days. Just got his head
smashed with the butt of musket"
1t was ten o'clock at night. ! was in
the field hospital, and it was one of
the surgeons who was speaking had
been struck down at three o'clock and
picked up at seven. The blow had rem
dered me unconscious for seven hours
and it was seven hours Of the
sweetest sleep ! ever had in my
life. A man had seized his musket by
the bayonet, raised it aloft with both
hands, and brought it down on my
head, and yet he had only stunned me
did we hold the guns and the hill?"
| asked of wounded man beside me
you bet"' he chucllled And then
fell asleep again and did not awake I'M
| til morning. Chicago Times