Kansas City daily journal., 1895-04-14
FIRED ON BY TWO ARMIES.
Captain Torsch Says His Experience In Cal
tured Rlhe Pits Was q Joke.

| Captain John W. Torsch, of Baltimore
has good reasons to keep green in his mem
ory. what might have been serious frs.
Thirty years ago he was In command OF
F., the Second Maryland battalion. in General
| McComb's brigade. lying below Peters
burg. The Confederate army. composed OF
| General a. p. Hills corps. had been lying
m winter quarters, faced short distance
| away by the Union line.
| Late in March number of rife pits in
front OF General Cooks brigade, In the
comb had 'tc;i been CAPTURED and an s Occupied by by
the Union forces. At midnight. March 81,
1860, courier rode up to Captain Torsch' S
headquarters with an order which, when
| obeyed, seemed TO have been inspired as
an April fool Joke.
The saI sap@iP sun has the innocsn. look
| Headquarters McComb's Brigade
Captain:
You will report with your battalion under
arms at once at the chapel of General
| Cooks brigade. BY command,
BRlGADlER GENERAL WM. MCABE.
MI 10 G,Sa SSaptain Torseh. commanding Second
CAPTAIN Torsch thus tells the story Of
the result OF his obeyinG the order;
| sissippl commands the Second Maryland
was was expected to recapture a line OF rifle
was rather tough work on dark night,
as we had never becn over the ground be-
fore ! was reminded OF the story of
IN
| catch q black cat in a dark cellar
We followed behind out line OF breast
TofKs T Tita uniti we reached point opposite
we crawled forward a hundred Yards or
more and rested to await the signal TO at
cannon.
Just before daybreak the signal was
gwen. we dashed forward and In a very
driving out the enemy and occupying the
PTS. PTS, only Two men were wounded in this
we awaited daylight before making a
further move. When the light came the
Joke also dawned when we saw the curious
predtcament In which we had been placed
Evidently anticipating a move OF This sort
the enemy had constructed a new line Of
1pits, some Of them not hfty feet from our
u The firing commenced as soon as It was
nsb ~ r. sne8usR e. Tor US to be seen. In addition
20 20 ne ne nn nre from the front. every time one
works in the rear, The Confederate forces
Nnew wa wore rS'hbinS OF our attack and supposed
,,, 1T was certain death to move from one
wrapped about bullet, which wash Was thrown owl,
from pit to pit for the men 10 save their
eRnraa smmun'jSa cbaTlo and prepare to receive
were In constant dread OF one.
m Lee Goldsborough, now captain in
crawl back to the breastworkts ana retur1 r1
WIN additional ammunition, as ours was
nearly Hscu up. The intervening ground
was covered VII h tree stumps, where a for
est had been cleared away, and these of
Tered some little protection for this daring
venture. We were also able to get word To-
the rear to have our own soldiers stop FIR
ing. Ivy 80
80 our April fool Joke consisted of lyin.
IN The rifle pits all day long. The hot sun
poured down on US. We were without ra
lions, could get no water and could make
no move to the rear until after dusk
Anxious for further orders and to see
what had become of those who had been
eXeGted 10 support us in the advance. i
crawled back 10 the breastworks Ieav-
ing trail behind me like thar OF n mole.
only mine was, depression in the soft
Cheers and congratulations met me and i
as given orders to withdraw the line. with
some Of the vim taken out of me by that
days experience, ] took advantage OF INV
prerogatlye and sent n Junior officer who
had been on picket duty, TO carry out the |
order. BY that time 10 was darker and The |
men had no great difficulty in retiring from
their perilous position.
"Afterward We learned that Major C;ener- |
al Heath, in whose division we were. had |
taken means TO protect the Second MARY
land. As soon as he heard of the position |
In which we had been placed, he placed an |
a charge from the front.
altogether II was a very warm 1st of
April for us.'-Baltimore Sun.