The Hocking sentinel. [volume] (Logan, Ohio) 1871-1906, 1898-12-29

inu ndl HURRIED On tUNifu kiuSSUlu
10y way of Graysville. The road, as we
heared Graysville. went through acres
ana acres of high weeds. ana here one
battalion of our regiment WAS surround
ed by Confederate cavairy aud fifty
men captured.
The others scattered TO tie weeds,
made their way, Oh soldier instinct, 10
a point on higher ground, reformed,
and proceeded OH their way 10 Ring
| gold. In those days it wasn't the
marching that troubled us. The dscom-
! forts saudanuoyances came from tile fel-
lows in gray, bent Oh preventing US
from doing what we were ordered 10
do. We moved from Ringgold under or
ders that landed us finally at Lee and
| Gordon's Mills, on the CiiickamauSa,
| but before we came to that point our
| regiment had prowled through tile
| woods in so many directions that the
mills seemed Il hundred miles from
Chattanooga. The truth was. we were
nearer Chattanooga than when we left
Ringgold.
I'VE carried no knapsacks then and
had no company wagons. Each man
carried a blanket, one-half of shelter
tent, Il well-filled liaversack, sixty
rounds of cartridges Gorty in his car
fridge box and two lunches in his hay
| crsack), Il little tin bucket for coffee,
half OF Il cantcen used as 4 fryinG-pan,
| and tin cup. The men were not divid-
ed into mcsscs except for drawing ra-
TONS but trained in pairs, each couple
doing its own cooking. There was no
falling out Of ranks, and no Struggling.
The boys didn't believe for Il minute
that there was going TO be battle, and
were greatly surprised to learn that for
several days our corps hac been isolat-
ed and in danger of attack by the
whole Confederate army"
III 90 4 quarter you didn't throw
away any hardtack," put in the Major.
"One of the Qucerest things about new
troops is the prejudice against army
crackers. They all get over it in time,
and come 10 understand that the sol
ders stomach has no standby like
hard-tack. Our company had this ten
derfoot notion that fresh or dry bread
is better than crackers for soldiers on
the march. On one occasion we loaded
up with bread TO last for three days.
The second day most of it was sour,
and the third day it was worse. Before
we returned TO camp we were crazy
for crackers, and we never went back
on them after that. They are good
whole or in crumbs, wet or dry, and are
just us good when they are three
months old as when fresh from the
oven.
I'VE learned to appreciate hardtack
on the forced march from Southern
Tennessee to Louisville in 1862. tegu-
lar rations ran out and -four was issued
instead of crackers. This didn't seem
Objectionable at first. But when we
had to march all day and got our ra-
tions of flour ut midnight. with orders
TO move at ) Il. H., the heavy swearcrs
came into action. There was no time
TO cook even Dapjacks or sinkers, and
if you attempted TO carry flour in the
rain you came out at night with a bag
of paste. \ cast-iron stomach could not
stand such messeS as the soldiers made
of the flour. They made dough and
baked or half baked it ia asses, or Oh
dirty hot STONES, and ate so-called bis
cults with the soft, unbakcd centcrs
burning lips and threats, and after
they were swallowed resting like
Jumps of lead in not ovcrstrony stom-
achS. The whole division checred like
wild men when we struck the cracker
line ct West Point, on the Ohio.
zone of our boys out foraging came
across Il great pile Of cracker boxes
near West Point, and after eating his
supposed the regiment would 20 into
camp. He carried the heavy box about
two miles and came on his company
reveling in a landslide Of crackers and
ham. When the boys whooped and
laughed Boney lowered his cracker box
with succeed remarks to the effect
that it was the most outrageous case
of ingratitude recorded in history
William Sooy Saith, by the way. was
in that cracker Jubilee. He was then
commanding our division, and as the
half-starvcd men came up he simply
told them TO take what they wanted"
Did you ever ask General John NJ
Palmer" said the Captain, ''about his
hot weather operations in fresh pork?
The boys of his old command tell the
story Oh him ut every reunion, but 50
far as know there never has been an
official report on Palmer's corner in
pork On the hard marches of the
Tullahoma campaign the men foraged
more than Palmer thought was good
for the service, and he issued strict or
ders against struggling or firing at wild
game or hogs. One warm day. as the
division was going into camp, there
were heard musket shots in the woods |
DiyininS that the men were shooting
hogs, Palmer ordered that every man
who came to the picket line with hog
or any part of one be brought under
guard 10 his headquarters.
This disturbed the officers and men
in all the regiments. because there had |
been quiet understanding that forag-
crs should be passed. On this day all !
the men carrying hogs or parts of hogs |
were sent to division headquarters. |
Palmer was very angry when dozen |
stalwart soldiers with six dressed hogs !
lined up in front of his tent. He was /
amazed when there were twenty-five. |
and began to be amused when the num- |
Der reached fifty. By this time his staff |
and other officers began to chaff him !
about cornering the pork market. FL !
nally, the old General told the men to ,
clear out to their quarters and take !
their blamed pork with them. The |
weather was too warm for wholesale !
operations.
The hottest march Of my experience !