The National tribune., 1894-08-09

camp, the town and whole surrounding
country, and that it was only through
an act Of Providence that there were
boats enough lying at the landing below
the town to receive us and carry u;
away.
| | remember that when the last load
of tents came to the landing that the
wagons were hub-deep in water, and
that when we sailed away down the
river that the water was up to the win
dows of the houses. | remember motto
inc a beautiful little church with tall
spire standing in water half way up its
door and windows. -
| do not now remember Just where
we went TO from Lake Providence, but
we landed and were put to work build
ing corduroy roads somewhere along the
Louisiana side OF the Mississippi between
the two heels of the great Horseshoe
Bend opposite Vicksburg.
We worked here until the night of
the last of april, when we broke camp,
marched down the levee on the Louisi-
ana side, and the morning of May 1
found us at Bruinsburg, about 20 miles
below Nicksburg. The gunboats had
safely passed the blockade of batteries
at Vieksburg, and were riding at anchor
at Grand Gulf, just above Bruinsburg.
l remember that an Irish regiment
from about st. Louis, called the 9TH
Mo-, went through the Vicksburg block
ade on a small stern-wheel steamboat
along with the gunboats, and thus inn
mortalized themselves, especially in their
own estimation. And ever afterward
when member Of that regiment was
asked to what regiment he belonged, his
prompt and proud response was Sivinth
Mezure, be Jasusl" And this reply
became somewhat generally used by all
regiments that understood it. No differ
ence what regiment YOU would ask, the
reply would be "Sivinth Mezure, be
Jasus."
Our first introduction to Joe Johnston
and his Johnnies, with whom we after
ward maintained such close and lasting
relations, was at Port Gibson, after we
had crossed over to the Mississippi side,
/ think about the I'd or Sd of May.
We had brush with his rear-guard as
it left the town. Here, at Port Gibson,
we captured several bales of unsigned
Confederate scrip or paper money,
mostly fractional currency below one
dollar. | remember how it
sTREwED THE ROAD,
Uttered the camps and was in every
body's hands. | sent a lot of it home,
and carried some of it with me until it
wore out. / don't know whether or not
it was printed at Port Gibson, or what
it was doing there.
Picketfghting, skirmishing, and cam
nonading became the order of the day.
| remember that one evening, about the
Sth or 9th of May, after a hard DAYS
marching and skirmishing, our regiment
camped at ford or crossing place on
the Little Black River somewhere be- |
tweed Port Gibson and Raymond, Miss,
and it fell to the lot of my company to |
60 on picket that night at the ford. The
enemy had just crossed before us, and
do doubt eamped only short distance
beyond, and it was understood that
picket duty here meant business.
The river had run down, and was low.
| remember there was long stretch of
white sand from the top Of the bank
down to the water, and that clump
of brushy pitch-pines stood in this white
sand between the bank and the water.
Three or four men at time were kept
three hours at time on picket in this
clump of brush, while the balance of the
spread their blankets and lay
in the brush up on the bank, ready to
fall in when duty called.
But all remained quiet until the fourth
watch had gone on, between 3 and 4 in
the morning, when volley, apparently
from cavalry, was fired into us from
across the river Two shots took effect,
killing one comrade and severely wound
ing another on the same post In the
bushes with me.
The comrade killed was Johnny
Murphy. The ball entered his neck,
severing the jugular vein, and be bIed
10 death. The wounded man was James
H. Wright. He got well, and for all |
know is living yet.
Johnny Murphy was my most init
mate friend my mess-mate and bed-feL-
low. therefore took from his BODY the
contents of his pockets, and sent them
home to his mother. On the inside of
bis coat was pocket containing the
picture Of his best girl, together with
some letters from her. / wrote to her
about Johnny's death, and sent back her
old letters, but asked permission to keep
her picture till | came home. After the
fall Of Vicksburg got a 30-days' fur
lough, and made a bee-line for Terre
Haute, Ind, where l had the pleasure of
meeting my girl.
" Lsrge streams from little fountains flow.
Tail estis from little acorns grow
contains as much truth as poetry, and /
have heard it said that there is a place
somewhere on the Alps Mountains where
three large rivers take their rise and set
out In different directions through
Europe for the ocean. MELTING snow