The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1898-12-08

We tarried but short time Gather
ing up the spoils as quickly as possible,
we pushed on, filing to the right to
Bardstown, Gen. Buell. passing our rear
towards Louisville.
At Bardstown we rested several DAYS,
the first rest we had for nearly four weeks.
This was my first long march. Being a
little weak, from my spell of typhoid
fever, on the start, | gained strength
every day, going 10 to % miles per day
on half-rations of four-bread and bacon.
The bread we had TO cook at night after
reaching camp, which was seldom earlier
than midnight when we were in the rear,
and starting at 5 a. m. when we hap
pened to be in front The bacon we
always ate raw, as it was too precious
to waste any part of it in cooking, and
| cannot remember any time during the
campaign that | could not have eaten
days rations at one meal.
THE BATTLE OF PERRYvILLE.
Our next point of any interest after leaving
Bardstown was Perryville, where we arrived
on Oct Z, and on the next day, while
Gen. Bragg was at Frankfort inaugurating"
q Confederate Governor. the booming of the
guns cut short the ceremony, and the battle
of Perryville was on. This was hard-fought
little battle. ] say little battle. 1t was COM
pared with others which were fought after
wards But 1T seemed to me ut the time to be
most tremendous affair, and was certainly
1alnn INvt tfan fplc
alties in our little company, which, having
been reduced from one cause and another to
80 men, suffered loss of Is III killed and
wounded.
On our part of the line the battle began
about noon. We were subjected to most
merciess shelling for about two hours, when
we were ordered forward, and advancing
within 200 or 800 yards of the enemy, spread
ourselves on the ground and the following
two hours had fair, open field fight, with
the exception that the enemy had some adj
vantage of position on hill, in scattering
timber, which afforded them some protection,
while we were exposed in the open field.
With nothing to obstruct the view. it was
a grand though horrible spectacle, when the
dense smoke was lifted by passing breeze.
to witness the surging of the columns of gray
and blue, which could be plainly seen dis
tance of more than mile TO the right.
The firing was incessant, and nothing but
continuous roar could be heard. If any
commands were given they could not be dis !
tinguished above the DIN, so when it became |
necessary 10 move forward the Colonel had |
to ride down the line and give the command
TO each Captain separately to - Fix bayonets; |
forward-marchir
TERRIBLE LOSSES.
Up to this time our loss had been compara- l
lively light, but when we raised the rebel l
yell and started in a double-quck through
the fields, it was then that our bows were
moved down by the bullets of the Indianans
on top of the hill.
Almost every mounted officer in the bri-
gade was killed or disabled in the char.e.
and our line was perceptibly thinned before
we reached the foot of the hill: but we
pressed on and up until within 30 yards of
the, enemy. Casually glancing TO the right, |,
hardly respectable skirmish-line could /
see. To- the left il was the same. The query
suggested itself: "Are they all