The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1897-06-02
SOLDIERS BUDGET.
Praying Soldiers.

The life of an army chaplain is pecu-
liar in many respects. In the days of
active service he touched the men of
the ranks on the plane OF their deeper
sentiments, said Bishop Fallows to a
reporter of the Chicago Euening Post
But quite as frequently be encountered
incidents which were the height of the
ludicrous.
"SJmt times chaplain is tempted,
under the extreme and peculiar ex-
element of duty on the battlefield, to
forget the dignity of his sacred calling
and give away to languare and emo
tions that would be utterly foreign to
him under normal circumstances.
never knew better illustration of this
Cured Just after the battle of Pittsburg
Landing. The chaplain of an Ohio
regiment, son of one of the most dis.
tinguished ministers of the Methodist
Episcopal church, was present at this
engagement. The first night there
was scarcely any help for the wounded
and dying on that terrible field. Men
were every where moaning and crying
for water, and this chaplain was one of
the few who worked all night on the
field to relieve the suffering soldiers.
Early in the morning the chaplain
of another regiment appeared on the
scene. The weary Ohio chaplain had
found some straw with which he was
constructing rude beds for the wounded
boye. No sooner did he note the ar
rival of his fe low chaplain than he in
formed the latter as to the location of
the straw stack and babe him join in
the work of improvsing beds for the
wounded. Immediately after enlisting
the new conner in this good work he
was called to another part of the field.
Returning few minutes later, he was
astonished, not to say angered, to find
the other chaplain excitedly watching
the distant engagement and mutter-
ing:
"'There, that's our battery, 1
knowl"
"The Ohio chaplain was utterly ex-
hausted and scarcely responsible for
what he said. Snatching from his
pocket revolver he aimed it at his
dilatory and absent-minded brother and
exclaimed:
"' Battery h-ll I'll blow.syour head
off if you don't go after the straw
mighty quick tool"
sit is needless to say that the de-
linquent chaplain was Immediately
aroused 10 a keen sense of duty and
made wild dash in the direction of
the straw stack. After the tremendous
excitement of the engagement was
over and the Ohio chaplain had oppor-
tunity to reflect upon his hasty conduct
he was utterly overcome with shame
and remorse, and to this day he can
scarcely relate the incident without
tears of penitence.
81 heard Colonel Granville Moody,
one of the most prominent Methodist
ministers of Ohio and colonel of a
splendid regiment from that state. re-
late an incident much in the same line.
Just IS his regiment was going into
action Colonel Moody drew up before
his men and shouted, in tones that
could be heard far down the line,
Now, boys, give them HI!
81 have Colonel Moody's own word
for it that the unfinished portion of the
sentence was Hail Columbia but the
latter fragment of his exclamation was
drowned by the roar of battle. After
the engagement was over he was re-
quested to report at division headquar-
tiers, where he encountered sedate
and distinguished assemblage of gener-
ais, colonies and other officers.
"Colonel Moody said the general
of the division, am sure that you un-
derstand that the regulations of this
army forbid swearing. l have learned
that, as your regiment was about to go
Tito action, you made use of very en-
phatic language, which might possibly
come under that clause of our regula-
tons
"There were several moments of pro-
found silence before the general con-
tinued.
&C But, colonel, your boys obeyed
your command so gloriously that for
give you, army regulations or no army
regulations, and congratulate you on
having such splendid regiment
" But must tell you story of Chap
lain Hagerty's first experience of soldier
life. 1t is one which he never tires OF
repeating. His regiment was from
Missouri and was stationed alongside
the Thirty second Wisconsin, of which
l was chaplain, while we were in camp
at Memphis. Both regiments were
new in service, but the Thirty second
was little greener II anything. The
encampment contained at that time
nearly so, 900 troops, with General Sher'
man in command.
"For the first time the Thirty-second
was called upon to furnish pickets along
Sherman's line. The boys managed tC
get through the night all right, but a:
they were returning to camp they were
ordered to go into ravine near a
hand and discharge their muskets. IL
stead of firing them simultaneously in a
single volley, as they should have done
one soldier started the discharge
another quickly followed suit, and ther
the entire detail broke into haphazar(
fusilade.
Suddenly the long roll was sounded
by Hagerty's regiment, and was theI
taken up in turn by every regiment il
camp, until every corps was drumming
for dear life. Next the alarm gun a
Fort Pickering Numbered out its warn
ing. General officers with their staff
began dashing hither and thither il
the hottest haste. General Sherman
xyoo ;potaptlu IN tho onoua apd haoo,