The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1897-01-14
PICKET SHOTS
From Alert Comrades All Along the
Line.
For Their Country's GOOD.

For Their Country's GOOD.
Alfred Turner, Sand Hill, w. Va, says:
81 heartily indorse Comrade X. B. McRaes
article ON the ex-prisoners of war, for we
know of no class of comrades more deserving
of our Government than they. was
| member of the Cd battalion, Co. G, 9th N. \.
H. A. A part of our battalion was put on
picket along the banks of Cedar Creek on
the 18th of October, 1854 and all went well
| until just little before break Of day on the
10Th, when our squad heard quite noise
| between us and our camp, SO concluded TO
go and investigate the cause.
Eat double-quick part of our squad went
toward our camp, when all of sudden we
found ourselves in the midst of Gen. Early's
army, who, quicker than lightning, gobbled
us up.
"Now, to try to describe the sufferings
that my poor, starved-to.death comrades
went through is impossible. They died by
the hundreds daily in that horrid death-pen,
Salisbury Bastile; for from about Nov. 1,
1864, to Feb. %, 1865, no less than 5000 OF
as true and noble boys in blue as ever dom
ned the blue were starved to death.
ut took a fOur-hOrse team, going the
whole day long, to take out our poor, emac1-
ated dead comrades, to be dumped into the
shallow trenches prepared for them.
"Strange, is it not, how the scenes that
revolt us cling to our recOllections? Would
that could Danish forever from my mind
what / saw in that horrid place, but one
wave of the magic wand of memory brings
it all back in panoramic review. hardly
ever sit down to q good dinner without drop
| ping silent tear for my starved-tO-dea.h
| comrades, whose emaciated bodies were 80
unceremoniously dumped into the shallow
trenches outside the st0ckade without either
Christian rites or funeral dirges other than
the signing Of the wind as it passed through
the branches of the pines, which was natures
requiem for our departed dead"
A Three-Months Man.
J. II. Showalter, Corporal, Co. G, 46th
Ohio, Lewis Center, O., writes: :" enlisted
in Fairfield County, O., in Co. F, 18th Ohio.
for three months; was mustered into the
State service April 81, 1861. was then
| mustered into the United States service,
April 81, at Lancaster. served under Gen.
Rosecrans in the Western Virginia campaign,
and was mustered out Aug. Is. Then re-
| enlisted at New Salem, in Co. C, 10Th Ohio,
| for three years; was mustered into the U. s.
service, Sept. 81, 1861. The 46th Ohio was
| assigned to Gen. Sherman's Division at
| Paducah, KY, and was with him at Shiloh,
Corinth, Memphis, Vicksburg, Big Black
and Jackson, Lookout Mountain and Mission
Ridge.
"On Dec. 81, 1863, veteranized for the
war; was with Sherman to Atlanta and to
the sea; and through the Carolina cam
| paign from Raleigh to Richmond, thence to
Washington City participated in the grand
review; thence on to Louisville, KY, where
| was mustered out Of the service on July
| 81, 1865. have been totally blind for over
10 years."
Grab Root.
R. Fl. Bell, Co. B. 18th Mich, Adamsville,
| O., says: saw an article Dec. 81 as to how
| the term Grab Root originated. was
member of Co. B, 10Th Mich. When our
regiment first went there we were camped
on Brights Hill. After we came back from
| Iuka, Miss, think it was in September,
| 1862 we moved a little nearer Bolivar. We
| were then brigaded with the 61st, 43d and
| 18th Ill. There was q German Sergeant in
the 61st. He was appointed Adjutant to
inspect the pickets before they went to their
posts. Sometimes he would take us out
some two miles and over One time he was
riding his pony. The pony stopped, and the
Adjutant said: get down and grab der
root And we deviled that poor fellow UNI
| mercifully afterward."
The Helena Affair.
Riley Jessup, Captain, Co. d, 33d Iowa.
says: "Serg't DuPuy, 28th Wis, still insists
that the 2Sth Wis, LIST Ind. Cav. and Hay
| denis Iowa) battery saved Helena from
being captured on July A, 1863. Now, Ser
geant, stand right up and tell Us how it
| happened that only two of you fellows got
killed and four wounded while you were
killing 400 rebels and capturing over 1000
prisoners. You either did not know or for
got that there were three Iowa regiments
there at that time, and the one least exposed
| (being stationed at Battery Az lost two
killed, the same as the 20th Wis., The
losses of the other two were: 29th Iowa, 81
killed and wounded; 33d Iowa, n killed,
wounded and taken prisoners.
"DO not seek to hide behind any sup
posed defects in my memory when you
| make the assertion that because you say
was mistaken as to the letter of the bat
terry taken, therefore all your statements are
to be accepted as true and mine as doubtful.
All the statements I have made on any
material point In this correspondence have
been matters Of record"
The Cabinet.
Miles NJ. Knapp Co. G, 1st Berdan Sharp
| SOOOtcTS, IIOSS0Is 1SCU.S tAiuA0 tu0G I 1cSi"
dent Mckinley should certainly have some
private soldiers in his Cabinet and soldier
at the head of the Pension Bureau.
Scattering.
Comrade FL. Goodman, Kingston, O., has
collection of choice California relics, made
by himself, that he desires to sell.
A. W. Hendry, Wauchula, Fla, writes:
81 wish to say to comrades that I am pre-
| pared to show the orange groves of Florida
to anyone wishing to buy, and will do so
with pleasure Let me hear from you. can
sell you a small or large grove, and such
| one as will suit yOu."
J. Fl. Powell, Co. K, 10th, and Co. A,
18th Tenn, Bertram, Tex, thinks that it is
an outrage that such lying stuff in regard to
pensions as appeared in the New York
World should be tolerated. He went to
Texas one year ago, and found but two Re-
publicans in his precinct. He boosted the
portraits of Mckinley and Hobart after
their nomination, and argued with his