Connecticut western news., 1895-12-19

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 maintain. So her drum throbbed wildly for other ears and rushed into the field some of the sturdi-. est bands of fighters of purely American blood mustered in either army. For this reason the hearty handshaking between the blue and the gray. which was a feature of the G. A. R. encampment at Louisville, has a significance. There was no politics in it, neither forced nor morbid sentimentality in the demon stration.. In social and public sense the Union veterans were the guests of the men who fought them 80 years ago. Not that Kentucky was one sided in the conflict. Her sons served in both armies i; the horrors of civil! war, families and neighbors pitted against one another, made the contest for them one of terri ble fierceness. iEsssat TT
 For Kentuckians fought each other face to face. On the field of Shiloh ia ther belonging to the Sixth Kentucky, Union, lay dead facing the body of his son, belonging to the Fourth Kentucky of the other side. Upon that bloody spot Kentuckians contended with Kentuck- ians with all the fierceness of their race. Trabue's Confederate brigade, con- taining four Kentucky regiments and two Kentucky batteries, stood in the pathway of Hazen's Union brigade as it led Nelson's column in the grand ad. vance the second day. Hazen charged up to the muzzles of the guns and captured two of them after fierce struggle with the carinoneers and Trabne s infantry. Trabue's Kentuckians were of the Third, Fourth, Fifth and Sixth regiments; ]; Hazen's of the Sixth. The Union Sixth and the Confederate Sixth met in the struggle over Cobb's guns. Two of the guns were taken, but over third most terrible combat was waged between Kentuckians only. During the melee Private Young of Company A, Sixth Union regiment. spiked the third piece when he saw that his comrades were not able to hold it. The Confederate Ken tucksans rallied to defend it and finally gained control. Private Irving, also of Company A., Union Sixth. killed five of the enemy. Colonel Whitaker of that regiment seized a bowie knife from the hands of Confederate Kentuckian and cut down one of Cobb's cannoneers. Lieutenant Chiffon of the same regiment was taken prisoner by six Kentuckians in gray. Two of his comrades rushed to h;o o;d op1 1sxbo <r;Ds L;11ad all ,of ifyI,;1 ton 8 captors, he himself dispatching one with a revolver. The Fifth Kentucky, Confederate, lost four color .corporals killed and three wounded during that light and color sergeant killed. Cobb's battery lost 37 men killed and wounded In that same remarkable combat the Confederate governor (provisional) of Kentucky, George w. Johnson, was killed. Realizing the desperate nature of the southern cause when the battle opened that morning. with heavy odds ro contend against, he took musket in his hands and joined the ranks of I Trabue. He fell in the struggle over the guns, where the ground was three times lost and won again by Trabue's men, only to be surrendered at last.
 It was at Stone River that Trabue's Kentuckians next met with antagonists from the blue grass country. Meanwhile Kentucky valor had displayed itself on the Union side at Perryville One of the regiments in Rousseau's division in the terrible fight on Chaplin hills was the Fifteenth Kentucky. organized and led by Curran Pope, West Point grad uate. It is matter of history that the Union line that day was caught mapping and literally run down by overwhelm- | ing numbers of Confederates exulting ln their easy success. Without mo- ment's warning the enemy broke from cover on charge and opened fire upon Rousseaq's men, most of whom were away from their gun stacks, getting water from creek between the lines An officer of the Fifteenth, describing the fight, says: "The regiment was ly- ing on the side of a road in rear of a rail fence with stone fence short distance in front. A barn of logs and boards partly sheltered the position. The enemy advanced to the stone fence and took shelter behind it. Here the battle ragged from 1 o'clock until dark the rail fence was almost demolished by the eEemy's artillery and the barn
 ,et on fire Notwithstanding the Eff teenth held it's ground The color guard, comprising nine corporals and sergeants,
 was cnt to pieces. As each successive color bearer was shot down his comrade
 took the standard The fight was SC
 ierce and continuous that the colors were
 completely riddled and the flagstaff shot
 n two As the staff was severed and
 the colors fell Captain James B. For
 man of Company o grasped them. Int
 ,taff had been cut of 90 short that tht
 banner could not be made visible, ant
 ne mounted the rail fence, waving Ii
 and cheering the men to continued re
 sistance.
 At almost the first shot Colone
 Pope's horse was killed under him. Int
 colonel immediately moved along thu
 line batting the men on the back, cheer
 ing them and encouraging them to agh
 to the end. He received wound t.
 which he paid no attention at the time
 hnt which cost him his Nfe.,"
 l Both the lieutenant colonel and majo,
 were killed on the e1ield and Pope refused
 to abandon his command. The regimen
 lost S2 killed and IA wounded. I Gallant Captain Forman was pro
 noted to lead these fighting Ken
 tuckians. He was only 21 years old ant
 was known in the army as the "bo. l.colonel.'' His enjoyment of the uniqu idistinction was briet however, for tw, moHths later he was Killed in the blood,
 "cedar brakes" at Stone River. "Ol
 that field the Fifteenth again played tn