The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-11-30
HELPED OPEN THE WAR.
WHEAT LOADED THE FIRST CART
RIDGE FIRED AT SUMTER.
Most Memorable Outing of His Life
and the Part He Took In Starting
the Civil War-A Soldiers Death
and Resurrection.

New York Sun: Rome, Ga.-Six feet
of mountain manhood with an eye like an
eagle. peering out from under his bushy
hrows, stood Thomas W. Wheat, the man
who loaded the first cartridge fired al
Fort Sumpter He is in his 5Gth year, but
does not look over 40. He had just come
in from his farm on the Oostanaula river,
nine miles from Rome. where he has
llNed since the war. He wore an old over
coat OF confederate gray, which was get
unS 10 be pretty badly frayed about the
mem, and showed the effects of hard
usage. He wore il, not because he was
not able TO afford better, for he IS q
FARMER In very good circumstances, buc
core.
He was q years of age on Christmas
day, 1860. and like a great many other
countrybred youths. ne wanted TO see a
little of the word. So he went down to
Augusta from his home in Middle Georgia
ana started out for holiday of fro!,c.
II proved TO be the most memorable out
ing OF his life.
The boys" said he, got after me to
go with crowd of them down TO
nothing against the Yankees, but 1 was
in for anything that promised a little
sport, and l agreed 10 go with them
Il was a Strapping youngSter, anu the
recruiting officer took my name very
readily and l was attached 10 a South
Carolina battery and stationed on Sui
livans Island. l heard a good deal of
talk about the war, but Bob Toombs and
other fireeaters had taught US to believe
that the war would not be more than
breakfast spell and that we would whip
the Yankees SO easily that if a fellow
did not keep right at the front he would
not get a chance to share in the fun
Il found out better later on. After The
Star OF the West affair we knew that
there was some movement on foot, and
were not surprised when the long roll
sounded just after midnight on the morn
ing of April Is, 1861, and we were ordered
to take our places at the guns;
1T was my business to load the first
cartridge for the ten-inch mortar, and
while our commander, Captain Hallen-
ouist, took his station near the gun,
measured out the powder, loaded the
growing light and the fog hung heavy
on the water between our position and
Fort Sumter. We could see the dim out
lines of the old fort, and back TO the
landward,- as the mist Trimmed, we could
see the figures moving TO and fro along
the battery in Charleston IL was the
crowd gathering TO witness the attack
Suddenly the signal was given just
an the fog lifted and revealed the out
lines of the fort, and sDringing back
ward, Captain Hallenquist pulled the
lanyard. Boom, the shot rang out and
was echoed and re-echoed from shore to
shore. 1t was like a clap of thunder from
= clear sky, but in a moment the wild
was borne across the water.
My blood was up, and in a twinklinS
another charge was r2mmed down the
black throat of the old mortar and 1 was
permitted to fire the second shot Had
l known all that il meant then l might
not have been so eager for the honor. but
l was young and my blood was hot and
was ready for anything.
The firing, of course. became general,
and the guns from old Sumter answered
our challenge, and the deep baying of the
war dogs soon became continuous roar.
! was kept so busy working the guns
that l paid little heed to what was going
on until the order came to cease hiring
Then l saw the officers in the boat be-
ing rowed across to the fort to complete
the articles of surrender.
"A detachment, including myself, was
sent over TO the fort, and we witnessed
the entire proceedings. OF course, that
tragedy connected with the surrender
that / have never seen mentioned IN any
OF the accounts. When Anderson got
ready 10 leave he fired a salute of IL
guns. as you know. He had planted a
number of hand grenadeS along the ram
parts, and the grass catching fire. caused
one of them to explode, killing one of his
men.
He was buried near the walls of the
fort, and his grave was marked so that
the body could be removed afterward, |
suppose. Well l witnessed the burial,
and, in 1862, when the Federals lombard
ed the fort in their turn. l witnessed his
resurrection in a most unexpected man
ner. The spot where he was buried was
exposed to the federal fire. and suddenly
SOa-pound Parrot shell went screaming
through the air and fell plump on the
soldiers grave and exploded 1t tore
hole in the soft earth as big as small
house. smashed the coffin into a thousand
fragments. and scattered the remains OF
the POOR fellow to the four winds of
heaven.
o.,
ana escaped without a scratch and with
out being captured. until we reached sal
isbury, N c.. in 1865, when We surren-
dered to the Fifteenth Pennsylvania reg
imsnt Captain Waggoner was in COM
mand and the boys played sort OF joke
on me, telling him that I had fired the
first shot at Fort Sumter and was re-
sponsible for the whole trouble
- So said he. you are the cause of all
this trouble. Why did you fire that shot
at Fort SUMTER
"'Because we wanted to capture It,
said |. trying to brave it out, for 1 had
a horror of being sent TO prison, and l
thought that the best plan was to put
a bold face on the matter
- Well said he. SEEMING TO consider the
question a little, if l give you parole
will you promise to so nome ana not
bear arms against the United States any
more?' 49,, -.
bows do. captain I replied. If they are
ready to quit, l am, but If they set INTO
it again shall have to help them out
''Captain Waggoner seemed to be
clever SORT of a fellow, for he gave me
nv parole and a ham and sent me BACK
to my command. We came nome ana
settled down here. and have been trying
to make a living ever since. But nave
had the honor of drinking a glass of wine
with Beauregard, who compllmenteu me-
on being the man who opened the ball at
Fort Sumter
-~"
yFII.IInNAIRES.