The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1896-05-16
DISCIPLINE IN THE NICK OF TIME.
A War story with a Moral For the Sew
enth New York Heavy Artiliery.

A War Story with a Moral For the Sew
enth New York Heavy Artillery.
1t was the majors turn to make
a talk" He bit at the end Of his
mustache for a few minutes while
the assembled company impatiently
murmured. Come. major" cried
one Of the younger officers. "Some-
thing about the war that came under
your own experience"
1--WE were lying before Deep Bot.
tom, and the rain WAS <.Hing in
torrents" said the major, sin
all my campaigning experience 1
never saw the equal of that down.
pour. And, what was the worst of it,
there was no way of avoiding or
lodging it. We had to stand out in
the open and take it. Some of the
command, however, had procured in
the manner known only to veteran
troops several shelter tents and had
rugged them in position by sticking
their muskets in the ground for
poles. / was then detached from the
regiment and was acting as assistant
adjutant general on the staff of the
brigade commander. I happened to
pass just about the time when the
troops were making themselves
comfortable. The enemy was pretty
near us, and we at headquarters
were looking for a brush, so I made
bold to direct the attention of the
regiment commander to this serious
breach of discipline.
"'It will eve do to permit those
guns to remain in that position I
said. If the Johnnies make a dash,
they will gobble us all"
But, observed the colonel,
there will be tho devil to pay if I
order those guns taken up
est is in violation Of regulations
to permit them to remain where
they are I observed.
"'You are right declared the
colonel. He gave the command for
the regiment to fall in--taking posi-.
ton behind an old breastworks, &
little to left and front. The
.drenching rain was heavy enough,
but it was gentle compared with the
food of profanity that broke loose
as soon as the troops heard the COLO
nel's order. AS they were forming /
went up to the men Of my old JON.
pany and said that they ought to be
ashamed of themselves, that they
did not know how soon they would
be summoned before their Maker,
that they knew perfectly we'll they
were violating regulations, and that
they e in the presence of the
enemy.
"Well, gentlemen, my words of
reprobation were hardly out of my
mouth when we heard a few scatter
ing shots directly in our front from
our pickets, and then, before the
command to load could be given, we
got as lively a volley from a Confed.
crate regiment as ever I heard. The
Johnnies had expected that the ruin
would drive us to shelter, and had
arranged this dash across an open
field Immediately in our front in the
ex expectation of catching us mapping.
The forming Of our regiment at
this most opportune time, however,
upset their calculations, for before
they could get away we fred two
rafting volleys into them, which
drove them hack faster than they
cams.
Had the muskets of the regi.
ment been stuck in the ground when
the Johnnies made their dash the
entire command would have been
surprised and captured. As it turned
out, no casualties occurred, as our
troops were protected by the breast.
works. But the lesson was not lost
on the regiment. 1t carried a whole.
some moral, for I seldom after that
heard profanity from the Seventh
New York Heavy artillery. New
York Sun.