The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-07-04
GLORIOUS FEAT OF ARMS
THE RIDE OF THE SIX HUNDRED
OCTDONE AT GETTYSBURG.
Heroic Charge of the First Minnesota
a Record Unparalleled in the
Annals of Modern Wars.

A Record Unparalleled in the
Annals of Modern Wars.
Gettysburg Letter in New York Sun.
we ought to have a Gettysburg day in
our national calendar of patriotic feasts,
said a veteran New York officer while
strollng along Hancock avenue, pointing
out the sights for a party of pilgrims TO
the battlefield. New England has her
Bunker Hill day all right. though the bat
tie of Bunker Hill was only a starter in
the revolution. Gettysburg was fnisher
in the war OF the rebellion.
Why there are object lessons to stir
American pride and patriotism at every
turn of this classic field. For instance,
there, to our left is the scene OF the deed
commemorated by that inscription you
have just paused over on the monument to
the dead heroes of the First Minnesota:
All time is the millennium of your glory
You thought, as have Others that those
words were placed upon enduring marble
through an outburst of extravagant hyper
bole. What I could not make clear to you
before I hope to now in telling you upon
the spot where it was enacted on July ,.
annals of modern wars.
For nearly half a century all the world
has wondered, just as Tennyson meant it
should. over the picturesque ride Of the Six
Hundred
Into the jaws of death,
Into the mouth of hell.
at BalavIava. am not a rabid lingo. ordi-
narily. but it does make my American
heart beat faster than its wont when l
must listen to the rhapsOdes of the crowd
over the charge of the Light Brigade, as
though that incident made Balaklava
field to date from in summing up deeds
of martial valor. Frankly the ride of the
Six Hundred down the valley of death isn't
in this contest by forty-fve points, all of
them scored on American battlehelds dur
ing the civil war.
The little block of marble you would
have stumbled over back there in the
shadow of the grand national pile but for
its catchy inscription is placed above the
graves of fifty-sx Mnnesotans who were
killed outright in a charge made by pha-
lanx of only 262 men. There were nineteen
MORALLY wounded and buried elsewhere
and 140 wounded who recovered leaving
forty-seyen survivors out of 262, loss OF
81 per cent.
Now. the Light Brigade had 247 killed
fight. loss of about 81 per cent. little
elementary mathematics shows a gap con-
fronting the Britishers of forty-tive stub
born units, and that gap was brldged, point
for point. on the battlefelds of the civil
war, all the way up to eighty-two, the high
est on record in all the worlds showing.
Wen come back to the figures and COM
PARSONS later, if you bear with me while
tell what they are all about, deed of
which General Hancock said: There is
none sublimer recorded in the pages of his
tory My figures say there is none so sub
lime, counting the gains on. the bloody in
VeStment.
STORY OF AN EYEWITNESS.
ct saw it with it's prelude and it's sequel,
for I stood upon this ridge that afternoon
when General Sickles's Third Corps was
overwhelmed out there on that high ground
in our front This long ridge upon which
we are now standing was held by Han
cocks corps, and the defeat of Sickles
threatened disaster to this flank of Meade's
army, for that rocky mountain here on the
left, Little Round Top. had not yet been
seized by our troops. Hancock stripped ali
this ground of infantry to send to the aid
of Sickles, leaving only his batteries to de-
fend Cemetery Ridge. The movement of
these troops from HancOcks line away to
the left could be seen by the Confederates
on our front, and they were suddenly in
spired to rush forward and pierce the in
terval between Sickles and Hancock. Han
cock remained near herr the point of dan
ger and he saw through a rift in the clouds
of battle smoke that lowered over the field
a column of the enemy, marching boldly
with flying colOrs, within a few rods or his
line If left alone they would strike Bat
terry G, Fourth United States ST Artillery
the First Minnesota. There were no other
federal troops in sight. Reinforcements
were on the way from the extreme right
flank away on the other side of the ridge
but it would take time to get them here
Looking over the little phalanx of a couple
of hundred or SO, Hancock exclaimed:
What regiment is this"
Its leader answered, The First Mime
sofa
Some who were near Hancock at the
time say that he also exclaimed, Great
God Is this all the men we have here!
Then with sweep of his eye toward the
advancing Confederates and their menacing
battle flags of red, he shouted to the COM
mander of the First:
Colonel Colville, charge and take those
"Others say that he said simply, Charge
those lines Others still say that he ex-
and take themr But the strict wording of
the order is iTnmaterial; the idea was car
ried out to the letter.
'"Fhere was no blunder about this forlorn
hope. What followed was magnificent and
it was war. The men knew the terrible
situation all about them just as we'll as
their leaders. They arose with Will and
advanced quickly down the slope toward
the plain this side of Emmittsburg road
first at lope, then at double quick-mus-
k6ts at right shoulder-shift-then into
run at their utmost speed.
A DESPERATE STRUGGLE.
"There were exactly 262 officers and men
in the First Minnesota that day, and the
Confederates were a whole division led by
WiIcox's brigade. Shot and shell from the
Confederate cannon tore over the field, and
hundreds Of the sharpshooters' muskets
were sending their bullets across the plains
to clear the ground for Wilcox's advance.
At every step some Minnesotans fell, but
their comrades CALAMITY held their fire,
finally leveling their bayonets for close en-
counter At the signal which was given
when within fifty yards of the enemy, they
sprang forward with a cheer. They seized
the brigade colors, Wilcoxs men giving
way around them so that for moment
the little phalanX was actually swallowed
up in the ranks of the enemy, exactly as
when at Balaklava, Scarlett's Three Hun
dred Heavies rode into the solid SQuadronS
OF 1000 Russian cavalry. The Confederates
were brought to a halt by sheer aston
ishment at the Valor of the little band of
bluecoats. The Minnesotans gave the
enemy their first volley at arm length,
and in recoiling from that and hating 10
close ranks the impetus of wilcox line
was fatally broken.
Before Wilcox could rally his men Han
cocks fresh batteries on the right and the
lie, them His