The National tribune., 1897-04-29
RoGERS'S BOLD ACT.
Arrested q Brigadier-General on the Fiels
of Battle.

Arrested q Brigadier- General on the Field
of Battle.
EDITOR NATIONAL TRIBUNE: Clayton E.
Rogers who 10 . candidate for Department
Com mander Of this Department. is said to
be the man who saved the day at Gettys-
burg. The information on this is in the
shape of letter from Col. Rufus K. Dawes,
9th Wis, afterwards commander of the
Iron Brigade, written to Gen. George G.
Ginty, IN which he says:
Clayton +. Rogers was selected by Gen.
James /. Wadsw0rth to serve on his staff.
Wadsworth was keen judge of merit IN
men. He wanted courage, fathfulness, and
executive ability in the officers of his staff.
His selection of Rogers and the great conf
dencs he showed in him are evidences Of the
best kind as to Rogers's high qualities as
soldier.
at was the fortune of Lieut. Rogers to
render his country at Gettysburg a service
of iDcalcnlable value. The desperate fight
| ing of the First Corps on July 1, 1863, gained
time for the army to march to Gettysburg
| and take position on that famed line that
enabled it to defeat the enemy and save the
Union.
Lieut. Rogers had carried orders for Gen.
Wadsworih throughout the battle. For four
hours of most deadly fighting of the war he
had traversed the battIe-lne intrusted with
the most important orders.
He gave 10 me, as commander OF . regi-
ment every order that received throughout
| the day. But when the awful struggle ended
in inevitable retreat then was the crisis Of The
battle. Our men were now conscious Of de-
most dead with thirst.
| n. H., 4 .r
them 200 had been shot The enemy were
all around us and closing in, firing and yell
ing. History now shows us that the whole
| fate of the battle turned on rallying these
troops on Cemetery Hill and Culp's HILL and
| forming them at once in lne-of- battle.
when / got my regiment to the hill
found everything in disorder. Panic was
| impending over the exhausted soldiers. IL
was a confused rabble Of disorganized regi-
ments Of infantry and crippled batteries
ITO add 10 the confusion and peril Brig
| Gen. RowIey, who was in command Of a di-
vision. had become positively insane. He
was raving and stormiDg and giving wild,
crazy orders. Cool, courageous, and efficient
men, at that supreme crisis In the history
OF our country, brought order out of chaos.
In the midst of this Clayton Rogers rode
mp and boldly placed Gen. Rowlty under
arrest, AMI called on me for bayonets TO en-
force the order. This was perhaps the only
instance IN the war where First Lieutenant
| fore bly, arrested a Brigadier-G General on the
field of battle.
saw all that happened during the half
hour OF confusion. Rogers, who was we'll
mounted, by his COOL cear-headed actions
did more than any other man to get the
troops in line-of-battle. IT Gen. Wadsworth
was alive he would confirm this opinion
Certainly his arrest Of Gen. Rowley was
an act essential to success, and it was done
at once when necessity required. The
Major-General commanding the corps in
dorsed the action after the fight.
History leaves MS in no doubt as to the
value OF the service, for Gen. Lee says: The
appearance Of strong ~line-of-battle on
Calps Hull caused me TO withhold the
attack This was Wadsworth's Division"
j. III. HELwEG; Co. G, 35lh Iowa. Hay
ward, Wis.