Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1895-09-07
A WAR STORY.

Deli DltitI anu \ 4tltt IL tllC lOta4lAla
of the capitol, " remarked Mr.. Sayers,
chairman of the appropriations COM
mittee of the last house, TO Star writer
one day, 1.-THE last time I saw him 1t
was not long before the old generals
death, and the occasion, if remember
correctly, was some appearance Ire had
to make before the supreme court in the
ease of the Chicago anarchists. As /
rhook the old mans hand my memory
travelled back to time when Buffers
name was the one liked the least and
Buffers hands the last ones into which
/ cared to fall
81 was rather young, mere boy, Ill
Texas when the war broke like a storm.
Naturally, with my geography, l went
with the Confedelacy. was in the ar
tillery One day we captured a battery
of three brass guns. 1t was given to me
to command, and the day got that bat
terry was the proudest day in my life.
Then as l look back it still seems to me
that those six brass field guns We're the
most beautiful things that ever saw.
"Of course was full Of artor. I
burned to do something with my bat
terry. Such was my anxiety to get into
, trouble with those guns that / dragged
couple over to the Mississippi-we
were in Louisiana at the time-and
pulled on fight with stray gunbcat
belonging to the Yankees which found
prowling around. We had sharp, spit
fire time Of it for a few moments, when
lucky shot from one of my guns tore a
hole in her in such fashion that it let
the river in, and she filed and sank. /
was excessively proud Of the achieve
ment.
''Butler had New Orleans at the time,
and, among other things, was running
the papers. Later l read an account of
my brush with the gunboat in one Of
Buffers journals 1t could not be called
an unbiased statement. 1t reyiled me as
most abandoned and bloodthirsty char
acter and declared that even after the
gunboat surrendered l kept on pouring
shot into her as if my one purpose in
life was wholesale murder OF course
this was not so. Iwouldn have fired on
anybody after he had hauled his flag
down, and besides that ldldn nave the
ammunition to waste.
after | rejoined the rest of my bat
terry following the exploit of the gun
boat hunted trouble with the Yankees
more zealously than ever. One day |
was fully gratlfied- We We're still III
Louisiana. The sun came up one morn
ing and found some lo,Ooo OF us facing
largely superior force OF Yankees. we
couldn t have crawled out OF light even
were we SO disposed, but no one suggest
ed any retreat The TACT was we felt
quite cocky and were fuH OF behef
that we could whip the invaders. The
hight began, and soon mad my heart s
wish. was III peck OF trouble with
the Yankees, l and my battery. had
succeeded in attracting the attention and
getting hearing, as IL We're, from three
Yankee batteries all at once. Ihey were
reasonably Disk ontnt' and IL ohdn
take them q minute 10 geo my range.
Then 1t began to ram sorrow ana nall
despair Tor my battery.
10 snow you now not those YANKEES
made 1t one only need to say that they
wounded or hlled 40 OF my % men and
dlsmounted two OF my brass beauties III
~ minutes You might nave planted
corn Where my battery STOOD Whea they
got through, 1t was SO plowed and mar
rowed by the Yankee lre.
Il was III the thick OF the battle. l
was standing near the no. gun. a
man OF tne name OF thompson was
stepping forward win shot III ms
hands 10 load. Without WORD OF cry ne
suddenly fell forward on the gun ana
then slpped 10 the ground, !iilp as a
wet towel a cannon pan mao TORN
through MS chest
ordered man TO ms pace, BEFORE
ne was there moment q fragment Oh
smell from out OF the SKY STRUCK hihl on
Top Oh nus heaa' ana ne zen desta ny tie
Slde OF thompson, lt was such q Whlri
ol siaohe ana foar tnae l eouiul Ten
what was going on at the other guns,
much less III other parts OF the neld. l
had peen ordered I'd hold my posItIoh
ana had mace up my hilho 10 hold II
WINE gun ana d min Oh my pat'ery
nelo together, l oruereu anoener 10 take
the placeo 1he second 1ylhs elead uhaer