The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-06-02
LOST MAINE SOLDIERS.
Trouble in Tracing Some of the Veterans
of the War.

oilO L irsU maine heavy ATUlllefy Is nav
ing lot of trouble in finding some of
the members of the regiment who are
presumably alive and in good health.
The committee has been at work for five
years, and there are dozen men still
missing The regiment contained 1890
men when it left Maine for the front in
1862, and nearly as many more joined its
ranks to fill vacancies made at the front.
The strange part of this hunt is that,
While the committee can account for eve
ry man killed or taken in battle, and has
monument over every one of the 623
boys who fell in the charge at Petersburg
on June II, 1864, it cannot find all of
those who survived and went into bust
ness at the close of the war
One of the strangest cases met with by
the committee is that of Sergeant John
Carberry, of Company E, whose place of
residence has just been discovered. Car
berry, according to his story, was born in
Kentucky and enlisted in the Confederate
army at the beginning of the war. He
was a reckless soldier, and was frequent
ly placed under guard for foolhardy con-
duct. At Shiloh he dashed among regi-
ment of Federal troops, captured the reg
mental colors, disabling three men be.
fore he got what he wanted, and carried
his trophy safely back to the Confederate
lines. For this piece of work he was sent
to the guardhouse for a month, and then
ordered to Port Hudson, where he stayed
until the place was encompassed by the
United States forces. During the siege
he made two foolhardy attempts to take
other colors and was severely wounded in
addition to getting placed under guard
again. Soon after his recovery he went
on picket, and the very first night out he
stole two stands of colors from Confeder-
ate regiments and deserted to the Union
side.
After this he seemed to go insane on
the subject of taking colors, and pestered
the Federal offers with his endeavors to
get employment as a flag stealer. On
account of his cranky notions he was not
allowed to enlist, but found employment
as a teamster. No sooner had he earned
money enough to pay his way North than
he gave up his job and went to Virginia,
First Maine Heavy Artillery. A week
after he was mustered in he stole out
from camp one night and returned be-
fore daylight bearing set of Confederate
colors. Instead of being arrested he was
commended for bravery and promoted to
the rank of corporal. A few days later
he broke out of the ranks and dashed
through the enemy's lines for similar
purpose, but was disabled before he could
reach the color bearer. During Lees re-
treat to Appomattox, the day before the
surrender Carberry again quit his regi-
met and jumped among squad of fleeing
Confederates, killing the color bearer,
wounding two others, and finally getting
back to his own lines, bearing the colors
upon his shoulders.
For time after the war he worked in
meat market in Baltimore and wrote
several letters from there to his old COM
rades in Maine. After the election of
Grant as President in 1868, Carberry left
Baltimore and disappeared. The hun
for his whereabouts was begun ten years
ago. when Congress voted him medal
for bravery. Later, the regimental asso-
citation joined in the search, which was
continued without avail until this
spring. A few weeks ago, a veteran of
the war seeking health in Southern Cali
fornia, found board at cattle ranch
among the hills. On learning that the in
valid was an ex-soldier, the ranch owner
grew talkative, and told the visitor that
he had seen service on both sides. The
story which the ranchman told impressed
the visitor so that he repeated it when he
returned home. Letters We're sent; and
in few weeks John Carberry had estab-
Gshed his identity and secured his medal.
He had been on the ranch since 1870. AS
he is well-to-do he has never asked for a
pension.
Another case, not so heroic, but more
pathetic, than Carberry's, is that of a
soldier who broke his leg while building
earthworks near Washington, and was
discharged from the service before the
regiment went to the front. The COM
mlttee hunted for this man several years.
At last young man from the same town
and bearing the same name came to the
legislature as a representative, and the
committee called upon him expecting to
learn what it wanted to know. Though
the representative had been born in the
same town, he did not know an ex .
soldier by that name, and he had never
heard of such a person. Two years later
another person of that name from the
same county Was elected to the Senate.
He was also ignorant about the ex soldier,
and had never heard that there was such
a person. This whetted the curiosity of
the committee so much that man was
sent to the town in question to hunt up
the veteran. 1t was learned that the
wounded soldier had lost his leg after
coming home, but had stayed in town
until about ten years before, when he had
engaged in fight with a neighbour and
caused his death. Though the veteran
had committed murder the jury took
pity on him and found him insane. He
had been an inmate of the Augusta in
sane asylum for eight years and the rep
resentative and senator who had never
heard of such person turned out to be
his sons. When the facts in the case were
made known the two aspiring politicians
made haste to retire to private life
where they are likely to remain for some
years.
The case of Private John Stevens
of Company L, was mystery for a
number of years. He answered to roll call
the morning before the fatal charge at
Petersburg, and was no doubt among tn e
men who fell but though the grave of
every other soldier was plainly marked
with name, rank and name of company
there was no board to show where
Private John Stevins was buried Six
years ago the regimental association pur-
chased the "blOOdy triangle at Peters