St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1896-04-18
BILL ARP ON WARS.
Talks About the Rough Expert
ences Of the Sixties.
Eeme Scenes Described-Lee's Army Cross
Ing the Shenandoah by Torchlight-
Stories Told by the Soldiers
Who Survive.

Who Survive.
/ One pleasant morning we were talk
ing about war--war with England, wal
with Spairl-and, IS usual with old sol
diers, our conversation drifted back t<
our late civil war. We call it late,
reckon, because it is the last war WI
had, but it is not SO very late. Almost
everybody down south who was en-
gagged in it is dead. A generation dies
out in 80 years, and it has been IS years
since that war began. But there art
a few of us left, and we were talking
abotit the war like we used to talk
around the camp fires, and was asked
what scene or battle or event had left
its most vivid impression upon my mind
and memory. / knew very well, but
can go back to scenes and events that
have lasted longer and been more per.
sonal. remember when I had fight
at camp meeting on Sunday and got
whipped by country boy and my Sun
and my father whipped me that night
and the teacher got ready to whip me
next morning and showed him the red
whelps ON my legs and he let me off
with a Calvinistie lecture on the sin
Of breaking the Sabbath day. Well, the
way of it was, had got up ON the huh
OF watermelon wagon to look at the
tempting fruit and the country boy
pulled my foot off so as to get my place
and | bounced him, but he was bigger
and stronger and had country boys to
sick him on,and they didu' t like my ruff
fled town shirt, and he got me down
and nobody wouldent part us, and
got the worst of it, and my Sunday
clothes were all soi1ed and my face
scratched and < had no friends and it
grieved me for month that had been
imposed on and whipped me besides. I
watched for that boy to come to town,
and at last he did come. spied him
on the other side OF the square, and
got George Lester to back me, and I
eveflas stingly licked him and my father
never knew anything about it, but
told my mother that / had licked Tom
Fountain, and she hhgged me and
kissed me and told me that it was
wrong to fight, but somehow or other
kenw she was glad that had whipped
him. remember yet how the big tears
came in my mothers eyes when she
pulled up my pants and saw the marks
on my legs that my father had made,
and | laid my head in her lap and cried.
Well, you see that was war-a big
ger war than ever found afterwards.
and has left a deeper impression.
But about the late war said that the
most vivid and lasting impression ON
my mind was the midnight scene of our
army crossing the Shenandoah by
torchlight, when we were going from
Winchester to fight the. first battle of
Manassas. I stood on the bank and
saw 1900 men ford that river. The
water was about breast deep to most
of the soldiers and they held their guns
and cartridges up high and it strained
the little fellows like McOsker and Jim
Smith and Zach Hargrove powerfully to
keep their footing and the water out of
their mouths and not wet their ammu-
milton. 1t was the nth day of July,
1861, and next morning the boys all
laid down on the hillside near Paris
and went to sleep in their wet clothes
and by noon resumed the march to
Manassas. They had had good wet
ting, if not a good washing. The army
left Winchester just at twilight. Not
drum was heard-not a camp fire
put outr-not an alarm of any sort.
.They folded their tents like the Arabs
and silently stole away" The enemy
was left at Martinsburg preparing for
to-morrow's battle and they never
knew where we were until after the
battle of Manassas was fought and
won. It was old Joe Johnston's first
military strategy. But the crossing OF
that river was the most historic and
graphic scene that had witnessed
and brought vividly before me pic.
ture had seen when a boy OF Bona
parte crossing the Rhine. 1t was d
wild, weird sight and had never seen
SO many men at once in all my life.
It seemed to me there were enough to
whip all creation, and they were eager
to do it.
Another one Of the party said:
swell, was in that same battle. and
saw the killed and wounded around
me, but it was not till next day that
came to myself and had to command
a squad that was detailed to dig the
trenches and to bury the dead. Ishall
never forget the field where the New
York Zouaves lay dead, nor how thick
they were upon the ground. They were
dressed like Turks and had on turbans
and wide, loose pants and CATERS.
They were large men to start on, and
during the night had swollen up and
their faces turned almost black, and 1t
took about four of us to roll one into
the ditch. Their faces were distorted,
their clothing bloody. and never re-
allied the horrors of war until then.
We dident give them q full length
apiece, but put the head of one be-
tween the feet of another and covered
them about IS inches Deep"
1.-THE most horrid sight ever saw"
said another coDrade, was the battle
field of Malvern Hill. Mimic balls don't
mangle up the boys like shell and
canister. Our boys were awfully torn
up ON the last days fight by the shot
and shell from the gunboats. The
next morning after the fight I walked
over the field, and there was hardly a
complete man to be found among the
dead. Legs and arms and hands and