The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-06-03
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every discharge. He thought of the
people, at Round Hill and he thought
of his duty, and the disgrace of stop
ping behind seemed more dreadful
than death in the corn Geld, and all
the time he knew his cowardly legs
would refuse TO do their work He
knew they were getting ready to serve
him a Scurvy trick in the midst of the
charge. He felt cold chills in his hair
and cold sweat on his body, but he
was determined to do his duty, In his
misery, he called the captain and beg
ged him to detail two sergeants to
CORY him in, of necessary, and the
sergeant rushed him along so fast in
the glare and roar and excitement,
that he was the first officer to arrive
in the battery, blinded and uncon-
scious from loss of blood, and actual
ly received the confederate captain s
sword in his nerveless hand. 1t was
believed by all but three men in the
regiment that Lieutenant Peck had
been wounded at the start, and he left
for home the next day in a blaze of
glory, a hero and major by brevet.
After the departure of the major,
captain Ross resigned his commission
in the infantry to join the cavalry.
The dash and excitement of the
mounted service was more in his way.
He had no taste for plodding along
on foot and going into battle behind
line of muSkets. He rose rapidly in
rank. In less than a year he was lieu
tenant-colonel, and at the battle of
ChoncellorSville, he was in command
of his regiment, which moved out in
columns of tours on the plank road
until it was ordered to halt. The thick
woods closed in on the right and left,
and the smoke of the skirmishers
drifted out of the thicket and lay like
thin, blue fog across the open fields
in front. The bullets from the enemy
beyond Kissed overhead, and now and
then brought down a man or a horse.
The leutenanJ-colonel, in command
was eager and impatient, but he sat
still in the hot sun, waiting orders.
Stra gglers and wounded men came
drifting bask in twos and threes on the
road. The bullets came thicker and
hotter through the leaves of the trees.
Then the infantry came in crowds, fall
ing back through the thicket. He
could stand the strain no longer. He
turned sharply in his saddle and or
dered the bugles TO blow forward"
Down the road went the regiment at
a trot, and canteens and carbines rat
Ting and jirgling above the clatter
of the horses hoofs on the planks,
and the lieutenant-colonel rode at the
head of the column. Nobody heard the
kissing bullets. When they were in
open past the thanking woods, the regi-
ment deployed into line at the COM
mand of the bugles, galloping to right
and left. A moment they halted to
dress on the center. There were flashes
of fire through the smoke, just as if
the smoke had been darkness and
where it drifted aside gray figures of
men could be seen. Then at the
blast of the bugles the regiment swept
down the field al charge, the sabers
cleaning in the sunlight above the
dark line of horses-into the smoke
riding down the opposite side of the
sulphurous fog. The advance of the
enemy was checked. Valuable time
was gained. but the Northumberland
was severely wCunded. He kept his
horse and presence of mind, and
brought his regiment, what remained
of it. back through the woods. He was
mentioned in general orders as Brevet-
Colonel Rose; but it was the coIoners
last battle.
On the day when the general order
reached Lieutenant Bissell, he was bat
terry officer. He read his order to his
men at evening parade and they gave