The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1898-09-17

Let US pause Tor little Walle Just mere,
that we may take view of the terrible
carnage OF war, 1t was our first view, and
how some of our young legs did quake
with awful fear, and I DO know of one
heart which sympathized with it's tremu-
lous under pinning that it almost per-
suaded the cowardly shakers to take ''go
as you please back, - back all the way, to
the city of dear old Abe.
The swollen and blackened dead OF both
armies had bean dragged to either side OF
the road, so the marching troops, artillery,
cavalry and wagon trains could pass up the
mount without passing over the already
mapgled bodies of the dead. The wounded
troops had been removed, hut the crippled
horses poor suffering brutes--were aban-
doned to famish on the barren mount, but
such was cruel war.
Seel That once superb charger, lying
midway of the main vista, his beautiful
glossy side is all crimsoned with his life's
blood, and his noble head has been swung
around to his bloody side, and the great
Gaping wound which was caused by f
bursting shell, and from which his life's
blood is still gently oozing tells why his
head is on that side.
We pass up South Mountain and near
the summit, we see another live horse, but
this one is on three of its legs for one Of
I l,l III 10 =
over in the bushes about twenty PAGES from
the road He utters shrll whnny and
know for what he is calling. 1t is just
what every wounded soldier calls for first,
after he wounded, and continues to call till
his voice grows fainter and still fainter, and
the very last gasp is water, water, oh
waterW
How we pitied the suffering BRUTE but
could not give it drink, for had none
Just then for myself, and so we passed on to
the summit, and soon we began our descent
of South Mountain. There is one pecu
liarity Just here, and shall linger for
short time to explain. While ascending
the mountain we noticed that our army
had lost two to one in fighting up she
mount, but on the descent it was the
obvious, but for fear that some younger
heads may not catch on, we will proceed to
explain. The cause is this, on the first
side of the mount, the CoDfederates were
on higher ground all the way to the sum-
NIT of the mountain, and that is one of the
greatest advantages in modern warfare, and
that is why we noticed two blue coats to
one gray in passing up The tables were
turned at the summit and the Yankees
had the advantage all the way to the base
below, and if the Ianks out-fought them |
going up, they more than "dd" them
going down on the other side.
All the horses, both dead and wounded, |
which we had seen on the ascent were
branded with gu. S." but on the descent
they were marked with &C. s." and the
casualties Of both sides were very much
greater. We pass down on the Southern
side Of the mount mid the difgured dead,
and this being the 18th Of the month,
one day after the Battle of South Mountain
OF course all those who had been mortally
wounded had long since passed into the
unknown world beyond, and their heart
rending calls for "water, water, OH watern
had been hushed near about the lonely
watch Of midnight before, and the strange
and awful silence of the occasion was weird
in the extreme.
We marched out into the open farm lands
beyond. There had been nothing more
than skirmishing out here and we could
only see q dead blue coat or gray coat at
long intervals. After marching several
miles we turned off into a field and
bivouaoed for the night. At this hour the
heavens threatened a downpour of rain,
and as T. H. Gatchell one Of Company rs
wits put it, everything was as "black as a
nigger's pocket"
will say right here that no part OF the
Confederate army was ever any nearer
starved to death than was the bloody Fifth
on this occasion. Some time in the night
the storm burst forth with such fury that
the camp-ground was deluged to such an
extent that we had to get to our feet to
keep from being drowned outright, and
soon the boys were wandering through the
impenetrable darkness in search of higher
ground.
Now, it is not my purpose to try to des-
cribe the greater events Of this terrible
campaign, which ended with the most
wonderful battle ever fought under the
canopy Of heaven, but it is to give the
minor events, many of which have never
seen the light of day up to this writing.
because they were below the dignity of all
the classic pens, and consequently we are |
filling in to make history more complete.
The next morning which was the 10Th, |
and just one day before the opening Of the
great human slaughter pen on the banks OF
the renowned Antetam, all hungry, foot |
sore and drenched, and some of us fright
ened nearly to death. weplodded on toward
the lurid hell beyond. The rain was still
tumbling in torrents, and the mud was