The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-05-04
BULLETS DODGED HIM.
ALL THROUGH THE WAR HE BORE =
CHARMED LIFE.
But lie Fell with the Last shot Fired
on the Field Of Appomattoz.

ON the Field Of APPROXIMATIONS.
From the Philadelphia Press.
The Grand Army veterans had been cell
CHEATING in the spring OF 1888 their VIC
f tories. defeats and comradeship in Wash
ington. and considerable company OF
officers who won distinction met with
them. Mcclellan was there. the last
time. 7 think. that he ever met in for
. NAL ceremonial his old companions of
I the field. Rosecrans was there. "a grizzly
/ Old veteran OF simple manner and no sug-
I eestion OF the military ability which he
displayed in battle: and Sherman. an I'M
assuming and joyous as the youngest Of
+ the soldiers. and Joe Hawley. whose
I voice was very mel0dious as he sang the
army songs.
I With some OF the veterans I rode 10
I Arlington. and it was almost pathetic
/ to listen 10 the softened voice and watch
/ the tender expressions with which these
I heroes of the war approached that city
I of the dead. Perhaps 1t was due TO an
I association of ideas that one Of the Off
/ GERS. II I remember right, by Gen. Wal
kerr then superintendent Of the census,
said that while il had been determined
with accuracy whose blood was first shed
in the conflict, yet there was no record,
so far as he could learn. Of the soldier
| who received the last baptism Of blood.
That suggestion led to many anecdotes
relating 10 the course of the deadly bullet
in a battle; how strange condolences had
happened; how weird were some Of the
fatalities; how superstition or Indifference
affected different men. Gen. Walker. if
am correct in my remembrance. told
a story Of a young aid scarcely more
than a lad, who served with him in the
early part of the war The boy was, I
think, of Maine birth, and in the camp,
on the march, before the battle was OF
such gentlel quiet disposition that II
seemed almost a sin to place him amid
such rough circumstances.
But with the first impact Of battle. the
first forming into line, the first booming
Of artillery or rattle of musketry, the ma
ture of this lad seemed changed. so, that
he appeared Ike one possessed Of frenzy,
and yet frenzy controlled by judgment. He
knew no fear, nor did he seem to take
heed, when men were dropping all about
him, Of danger.
Said the general to him after the battle
Of Fredericksburg:
Captain you ought not to expose your
self needlessly. | saw you standing right
in the line of the most dangerous fire,
men going down all about you, and you
| seemed to be encouraging the men and raj
| lying them Are you utterly without fear
Il don't know that have any fear, gen
| eraL certainly did not in this battle. 1
| knew, don't know why, that / should not
/ be hurt.
The general looked queerly at the
I young officer, not knowing whether his
| temperament was of the kind which can
not be called courageous. because of in
| capacity to fright, or whether he DOS
| sessed an unusual moral and physical
| bravery but all that he said to him was:
1t Is no part of a soldiers duty to ex-
| pose himself unnecessarily. IF 1T is done
| IhOughteSsly 1t deserves Censure. If it is
| done Intentionally, il is mere bravado"
a few months later the battle Of Chan
! celiorsvlle began, with splendid assur-
D nj ~ 10 Al v.aea "a
| routs and utter defeat In that battle the
young captain seemed to bear an invisible
/ coat of mail. He went everywhere, amidst
| a very rain Of bullets, not one hitting
| him, although men were moved down by
/ MS side as though with a sheet of flame
| After the battle was over the general
| Captain, / never expected to see You
aHVe. How you lived through that dead
| ~ hre | cannot understand"
| We'll, il didn't take much courage gen
| erai l knew perfectly well that | would
1 not be even scratched. l don't know why
| but / was as perfectly assured of il az
am now That ! was not hurt D."
! Wen, DO YOU expect to expose your
| self in this way throughout the war and
| escape without any injury?"
NO, general. there will come a battle
| by and by in which / shall be hit, but |
| shall never know It. l shall only know
| when ! enter 1t that il is my last The shot
/ that strikes me win strike so swiftly and
| in vital part that / shall be dead before
| | have chance to think"
| with this statement of the young officer
| and then he was convinced that the youth
| had courage Of the highest kind since he
! was persuaded that sooner or later he
| would die upon the field of battle, and vet
| that knowledge seemed to give him no
! concern.
Was It superstition? Was it some strange
| monitor2 Was 1t some supernatural whis-
| pering that convinced the youth? Or was
there to be unusual coincidence so that
! the death OF the young man upon the
! battle field should occur exactly in the
| manner that he had predicted? Thus the
| general pOniered. He saw the young Of
! ticer in many a fight after that-at Get
! tysburg, in the Wilderness, and though
/ the young man was in the thickest Of
stray splinter grazed his body. on even
| camp sickness took him from his duty n
single Gay. After the earlier campaign
| of him because he was transferred to an
| other division, the general, believe, GO
| ing himself to one of the western armies.
| although IT may be said he was COM
| PEELED to resign from the service on ac-
| count of severe wounds
After the general had told this anec-
! dote he looked far away across the Vir-
| ginia hills in the direction whence the
/ panic-stricken army of Mcdowell came
after the first Bull Run. And 1t seemed
| as though he was calling up the vivid
| ness of perfect recollection the scenes
of that terrible day. If he was he made
no mention of his memories, but simply
| said:
Il have often wondered what became of
lNdI young captain. ana as nave never
| heard of him l am persuaded that he
died exactly in accordance with his proph-
| ecy."
/ 4 year or two later the opportunity
1 came to visit the historic field of Apo
| mattOx. and 1t was my good fortune to
| meet there two of the citizens who were
| in that town the day Of the mythical but
| traditional apple tree" One of these
! citizens, a tavern keeper named Ifix
took me across the Appomattox stream
| TO the field where Gen. Lee rested in adj
| vance of his army. 1t was an apple or
! chard. and Mr.. Hix then spoke of the
simple incident out of which grew one
| of the romances of the war He took me
| a little into the field, and then standing
| by the side of a depression as though
of a sunken we'll partially filled with
| earth, said:
Here is the place where the tree stood
| which they say sheltered Grant and Lee
when they met 1t did nothing of the
| kind.
Grant and Lee met in that pasture lot
Up on the slope on the other side of the
| AppOmattoX. | saw them. I also saw
| Gem and his when tbay mo