The Windham County reformer. (Battleboro, Vt.) 1876-1897, 1895-08-23

W. q there seems to b.
~ AZ Z. the shadow of
t"nx5E!x, ;HsG[ chance to get ont
* Stonewall Jack
son surrounded the Union post at Har
per's Ferry Sept. II, 1862 He had go,
O0O men The garrison OF Harper
Ferry numbered over 5000 troops o.
all arms.
The officers Of the bcsicged garrison
as is usual under the circumstances
were divided IN opinion as to what had
| best be done to save the post, or at least
/ to get ont If the trap with the men and
! their small arms. The commandment,
/ Colonel Dixon s. Miles, urged on his
part that fighting would simply he a
waste of life, and that he had no ali
thoritv to abandon the place, having
been ordered TO hold it What 6mc u
/ the gallant officers and men under HIM
thought of the situation End the duty Of
the hour is told by one Of the partlci
pants in the following spirited nara
tive. The particulars have never before
been made public:
1.-The Ninth Vermont regiment, i'll,
fantry, Colonel George j. Stannard com
handing, was one of the unfortunate
commands that We're surrendered by
Colonel Dixon s. Miles, an old officer
of tho United States army, at Harper
Ferry, Va, on the mc~uing of Sept. 10.
1862.
1.-The Ninth regiment was mustered
int In Tnit Vt11 4
1862, and III little over two months
its members were paroled prisoners OF
war. The surrender of the Union troops
at Harper's Ferry has been Il subject Of
much comment since the war. The inn
becility of the post commander or his
lack of patriotism WAS the cause of this
great disaster to the Union arms
1.-The Union troops We're located on
Bolivar heights, i'll Harper's Ferry, and
also across the Potomac on Mary land
heights There Were no Union troops
ON Loudon heights i'll Virginia After
slight resistance our people on Maryland
heights Withdrew to Harper's Ferry
and the Confederates between the 1lth
of September and the morning of the
don heights and completely surrounded
the Union troops. The Ninth Vermont !
regiment ON the afternoon of Sept. II,
Sunday, lay on Bolivar heights under
the fire Of three batteries. At sundown
of the same day it WARS sent to re-enforCe
the right Of the Union line, which was
formed to the left of the Charleston
IL,
advance of \. p. Hills Confederate di-
vision. They fired some go rounds and
drove back the leading Confederate
brigade Midnight Saturday. Sent. 10,
Colonel Miles allowed the Union cav
airy to cut its way out of Harper's
Ferry.
1.-The colonel of the Ninth regiment
asked permission to 80 with the cavalry,
as he and all his men felt that the next
day would see a terrible surrender of the
troops left at Harper's Ferry. Miles re-
fused TO let The Ninth regiment go-in
fact, lie hardly recognized their COM
for on previous occasions Stan
uard had had alterations with him in
regard to the situation before the en-
vironment of Harper's Ferry by the
forces. Stannard had offer
ed to take his regiment ON to Lpudon
heights and hold them. He also stated
hat Maryland heights should be held at
all hazards, and that there was no use
Of staying i'll Harper's Ferry, insisting
n strongest terms that both of these
places must be held or disaster would
iollow.
''Stannard also asked permission to
AXE possession of the picket line with
lis own men and was ready to take his
'hances of getting ont Miles became ex-
'ited and used very strong language;
wung his saber in the air and ended all
heir discussion by saying that he had
been 40 years i'll the army and did not
are to be lectured to by one who had
oeen Il soldier but few months.
AT daylight ON Monday, Sept. Is,
he Confederates opened with artillery
rom all quarters and pressed forward
heir infantry, closing as rapidly as pos n
lble, and for two long hours the Ninth +
eSiment lay in line of battle under a a
re of not less than 30 guns As soon as n
he rebel batteries got the range on the T
egiment Colonel Stannard would E,
barge the position, and in this way the +,
zen were preserved from heavy loss. O
About 8 o'clock Colonel Miles gave \
p the contest and rode up to a promi- Il
ent place at the extreme right of Boil RI
ar heights, nearly mile away from w
lie troops, and then rode toward the O,
1T along the crest with his staff, way |.
~ the white flag When word reached >,
re soldiers of this regiment that the q
hlte flag had gone up, Colonel stan II
ard jumped up and swore that he !,
ould never surrender without struy !,
e. Al his command his men spranr r,
TO line and rushed at double Quick
'wn the ravine TO the river road and
owed rapidly toward Harper's Ferry.
= AT the junction of the rocky road de- III
ending from Bolivar heights IN tho =,