The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1895-07-18

and enormous sacrifices OF one Such regl-
ment is page from official records.
The Thirty first Maine volunteers march
ed out Of Augusta to the tune OF "Ihe
Girl Left Behind Me- ON April Is, 1864.
1t was differed by soldiers who had serN-
ed from one to shree years at tbs front,
and ms for the ranks, had the raw recruits
all repcnted of their war enthusiasm at
the last moment mud ilunked, there would
have still remained in line body of men,
all veterans, equal in numbers TO the aver
age field regiment on going INTO battle' IL
was next to impossible in 1864 to enlist
fresh volunteers unless they knew they
were to be led 10y veterans, and every vet
eran officer appointed in n new organiza-
ton rallied around him scores of former
comrades ready to try it over again under
leadership which had been tested.
There were "a field and line officers in
the Thirty-hrst when it entered the Will
derness, April 9, 1864, and in less than w
DAYS, or before the close OF July, II OF
them were struck dead in battle The
strength of the ranks was 0O5. Ont of that
| identical roster 1853 were killed and over
| 400 wounded before their one year of field
service ended, and nearly so per cent OF
those casualties were made in the first
three months. Another noticeable thing
about this record is that it is that OF n
Ninth corps regiment, not OF the solld
Sixth, not of the brilliant Fifth nor the
fighting Second. but of the Ninth. AT the
Wilderness on the morning of May @,
when General Warren, with the Fifth and
Sixth corps, and Hancock, with the sec
ond, were struggling ahead on the Orange
Plank road and Turnpike the Thirty-iirst
marched out in General 5. G.. Griffin
brigade. of General Il. b. Potter's Second
division. Potter had been ordered to cut
through the enemy's line between those
two roads They continued ON until they
ran into force Of the enemy posted across
their pathway, with guns in position,
General Potter was preparing to leao
the Thirty-first and two companion regi'
ments in q charge upon the battery wher
he was overtaken by an aid with impera
tive orders to move bis whole division t.
the left and support Hancock's Secont
corps on the Plank road. As soon ms thu
new field was reached the column charged
through the dense swampy thicket up
and over the Confederate rifle pits. The!
were driven out, but twice renewed tn
attack with the same result. The battl
b. of the Wilderness was decided on tina
ground. Hancock tried to open the Planl
road again and again and failed, yet tn
4 glory of it all is given to his corps, and O
= the shame of failure and of the losses tn
men of the Ninth received more than
share The Thirty first got out with loss q
80, among them Captain a. II. Packard an
!. Lieutenant A. J. Snow, killed outright.
General Potter's division marched fror
the Wilderness to Spottsylvania ON rout
opened up by the Ninth corps, but on al
r irving at the new field its line becam
o. only an attenuation of Hancock = Secon
corps line. On the morning of the 18th {
May. when Hancock assaulted the famou
bloody angle, the Thirty-flrst entered I'll
" charge at O'Clock a. m. The enemy mt
: the shock in n ravine oufside of his II
trenchments but was drlN back beyon
his breastworks, which were entered an
held, guns and all, until General Han
cocks line on the right gave way, ALLOW
ing the Confederates to flank Potter
= men. The Thirty-iirst retired few rod
intrenched II line close to the enemy
works, and held on under fire for six day
On the 18th the assaults were taken I
again and repeated three times with az
full slaughter and without result. III
regiment lost lO5, killed and wounde
Captain \. X. P.Wallace ana 10 men we
killed outright, and : men died of wound
The last charge at Spottsylvania, whit
was on the line at the McCool house, WI
made just one month after the regimen
marched out of Augusta. During tn
month over one-seventh of its men ht
fallen in battle. On the march fro
Spottsylvania toward Richmond the re
iment fought at the North Anna and
Topotsmoy. Lieutenant w. o. Tibbet
and four men were killed.
The day which the survivors of the T'hi
ty-first recall with deepest pride is June
1t was then that they won their first con
plimentary order in the field, in n sectic
of the Cold Harbor battle known as b
thesda Church. The Ninth corps was d
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