The Republican journal., 1898-09-08
"BoNEs," NoN-COMBATANT.

| as q tedmSttr, ana Is very useful ana
necessary adjunct OF an army, but yet,
when the fight is on, and you think of his
| beino safe in the rear, there is a feeling
AGAINST linn. SO with the hospital staff
| and others. We had other reasons for being
down on "Bones,' however. In addition
TO being out of the row, he was the man
WHO examined us at sick call half the
time. or when the regimental surgeon had
an excuse for being absent. There is
program about sick CALL" and it was
| only one variation when the hospital stew :
ard is the man YOU run out your tongue at.
When the hugles sound the call, the ailing
form in line and march up to be examined.
So do the shi1l1ers. There are generally
three shirkers to one sick man. There is
a widespread idea that neither the regi-
mental surgeon nor the hospital steward
is on to this fact. but that is one of the
first things they discover. When we came
up before Bones the program was:
''Sick, eh?'
''1e s. Sir.
'What's the matter?'
Had fever all night and was out of
my head "
Kun out your tongue.
es, sir
Take three of these.
The looks of the tongue settled it,
About one IN SIX was excused from duty
for the day, the rest were pronounced fit
for drill and work. 1t was because we
couldn beat Bones that We called him
| bones. Ii was because he saw through
our iittle game that we would have made
MS daily life mlse1abie II we mad known
now, 1t was because the regulations OF
war put 'bones 10 the rear "hen a light
/ -, /, i 1...11 !
was % mat we hoped stray bullet would
search MN olt some Gay. IN une bones
came to reallze mat he had no friends in
tue RANK ana me OF the 1lth' out must
~ nun inc justice TO aga mat IL made no
dllIelenee with nm he neither prescn0-
Ell I'll ne nor less physic-nelther excused
more bor less men from DUTY. lie went
right along DONG his DUTY by the Y mted
states aho looking serious ana consclen-
tloUs over II. and tins was another cause
tor complaint or our part.
By ana W, when We an We're hating
Bones WIFI Az our heart, and things
hao grown So bad that the sight of him
set men g yelling, we marched away to
OUTLAWS Jackson, as Ne had outtianked
rope At MANASSAS. Ii was sharp hghtlng
along the mont nom the start, ana after
Aard inalcn ol Two dayS, our corps went
Illo olll'e-iIAe one morning ana we knew
tAdt lleIe was most OF the enemy IN our
II 34I u pIl&3"e WAS uetached 10 recon
noi1e re woods 20 0ul Ieit, and Nttr ON
oUf ttAIil MI was detached 20 depIoE as
ski ul!'''VIS ana "taN ONT the concealed
St'lLStL ~ tAT enemy. Away we went
WYE Ael.' 4i'u ~ " HI # AZ last, ana It
"4Sn I've minutes oelote men began to
IAN we pushed up To- tHe WonuN, 0ioNe
'Ae Sid SCI ihlSlltls oack. ana then mass
81 ol ene atGTle 10 Aola zap between the
b'lIS. f"HpS We're moving up to support
us ana bola lhe ground We had gained,
Nileh lay enemy G. me sWalming out Then
ior Ten minutes me Gig seventeenth made
us t val lecoId' we helu fuIl brigade.
g Hlu even better than that-we repulsed
lhiFe uetelIAlhed assaults hy tour times
"Nl hulnoel, and we kliled and wounded
almost as many men as we had IN the
RANKS
b'iI Ihefe was nlhndel somewhere.
our supports 1tli uack, the enemy was re-
thiofced' ana we were lett there to be
a"cHncea. mere was a panlc-no retreat.
II was slhply lhat the lone regiment, real
izin9 that 1t mad been abandoned, broke
up into detaehments and fought almost
without leaders and each man for himself.
Again Whole brigade moved up against
~ WI 4ANAi
dred now, we poured IN such a cool and
deadly IRE that the advance wavered-
halted-oroke pack and lett Us to wave
our caps ana cheer. We might have re
treated then, but no one gave the word.
In llNe minutes Il was TOO late. regi-
ihehl 70 an army is as 1ly TO horse Our
resistance SIMPLY annoyed. Wesiw force
gathering III the edge the woods be-
ye4ot ana every man felt that it was the
enc those battIe-llnes would walk right
over US next time We looked back to the
fedelal lines but no reinforcements We're
on the}l way IL we rose ~ TO retreat
we sh'uio DE swept by the grape and can
MISTER OF the guns IN battery and waiting.
III our last h9ht, called man to man,
as we 4ugged closer to the earth and drew
d Ioh9 ofeath,
ia front OF us lay cur reglmental flag,
with malt dozen dead men beside it, and
colonel, MAJOR, and half the company cap
laihs We're doWn' oead OF wounded. The
gray lines mad Just begun to move when
shout OF Zones. Bones. NJ rang along our
INES. 1t was the hospital steward, sure
enough. VI all the thousands OF Federal
soldlels IN our rear he alone had made his
way across the 1lelds to die with us. He
had lost ms cap on the way, but men knew
hlm by his eyeglasses and long hair and
halchet lace. lie came on the run, and