The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1895-12-31
The Last christmas Dinner.
In the Union Army.

New York Mail and Express.
The last Christmas dinner I had
during the war between the States
might be properly said to have been
conspicuous by its absence" for it
consisted of hasty bites taken in the
midst OF the roar of cannon on board
the flagship Malvern while we Law
off Fort Fisher, which Admiral Por-
ter had selected as a eChristmas gift
for his fleet, and which, in my opin-
ion, we should have had on that day
had it not been for the hardness
and lack of dash on the part of Gen.
Butler.
1t will be remembered that Christ
mas, In the year 1865, fell upon a
Sunday, and usually in the navy that
day is marked by unusual efforts to
make Hthe mess" attractive, but in
the grim, closing days Of the civil
war, Sunday was like any weekday,
and even the double holiday Of
Christmas and Sunday was not con-
sidered in the effort which was made
to secure, by means of war, "peace
on earth" for these United States.
The scene on board a ship in ac-
ton, so far as such a dinner is con-
cerned, can not be described, the
imagination must picture it. The
men are not only themselves in dan
ger, but the whole object of their
lives for each moment is to drive the
enemy from their "coign of van
tage," and the excitement is intense.
In the actual combat one loses con-
troll of all senses save the one sole
idea of conquering. AS l look back
on my Christmas dinner in this par
ticular yearit was completely merged
III the struggle in which we were
engaged, and my own share of the
meal was the meager rations which
had been served to us every day for
months previous, seasoned by the de-
tonationEof guns and the prospect of
q possible immediate victory.
My diary at this time is that Of a
boy and just thirty years ago, less
four days, l find this entry: GAIL
ready to start for Wilmington" Of
course, ven at this time we felt that
the ultimate victory was with the
North and the movements of the
8 various Union bodies, under their
generals, were certainly constructing
: the Confederate fo-ces SO as to ulti,
!, mately crush them. But Sherman
/ has left in a letter a record of the
s haste which was necessary to bring
the war to a close, and he says thai
he arrived in Savannah on Christmas
day and stopped only long enough te
provision his troops before they pro
ceeded on their way to "the sea-"
My record of these times is scan
enough and boyish. Had l been
e few years older should have know,
better and have elaborated the brie
e notes that 1 find in my diary int,
t somewhat that would have furnished
material for history. But, even a
it is, my entries may revive tn
memories of the last Christmas tn
y Union men saw before the creates
. conflict of modern times was brough
to a close.
e 1t had been decided, as I hay
t said before, to attack Fort Fisher OF
II christmas day and in my iourna
under date of December i2,'I fnt
u this: Gall ready for sea-; sent two of
ficers ashore in a boat to keep tn,
men from talking about the spowde
t. ship This powder ship was al
h idea of Gen. Buffers and was both il
conception and in effect ridiculous
a 1t was q source of much discussion
e at the time and the expectation wa.
that it would do much damage. A,
e a matter of fact, when it was finall,
touched off by means of electricity i
did as little harm as an ordinar,
r cannon and made about as much O;
n an audible report. 1t was, never
v theless, q subject of discussion ant
e wonder, as the pages of my %journa
. disclose.
f | find this record of the 18th
e HThree frigates, four sloops of war
t three side-wheel steamers and the
new lronsides sailed from Hampton
d Roads at a p. m. for Beaufort" Or
t the next day we passed the fleet of
t Hatteras and the Monadnock, Canon.
| icus and the new Ironsides.
} The 18th finds this entry: oar.
e rived at Beaufort early in the morn
/ ing; found quite a fleet in port; YES
: sells arriving every hour"
just one week before Christmas
eve the entire body of vessels sailed
for Wilmington, and two days later
the first intimation of the "great
|. gale" is recorded briefly in the words
Glowing hard"
This great blow CREASED no end of
a sensation ia. the Nortl, and in
many Of the chGsehes prayers for
those at sea" were sent up by fer
vent souls who saw their dear ones
threatened, not only with the CHANCES
OF war, but with those of the ele-
ments. And Christmas was at this
time only six days off? On the
Tuesday preceding Christmas the
little diary, which is my guide, reads.
"Blowing a gale of wind so that We
cannot do anything; still at anchor,
within twelve miles of the shore.