The Hocking sentinel. [volume] (Logan, Ohio) 1871-1906, 1899-08-24
SOLDIERS AT HOME.
THEY TELL SOME INTERESTING
ANECDOTES OF THE WAR.
How the Boys of Both Armies Wkiled
Away Life In Iamp-FOraginE Ex-
periences, Tiresome Marches-Thril.
ling Scenes Oh the Battlefield.

pSTiSuSeSp ifreSOme MarChc9- HTii-
ling Scenes on the Battlefield.
S7N the summer of 1861 General
Rosecrans, who had been promoted
from the colonelcy of our Twenty
third Ohio Regiment to brigadier gen
eral, after General Mcclellan had been
ordered to Washington, organized a lit
tie army to attack the Confederate
forces of West Virginia, under General
John b. Floyd, eXSecretary of War
under President Buchanan. Floyd had
fortified n rocky bluff of the Gauley
River ut CarnifeX Ferry.
General Jacob ID. Cox was advanc-
ing up the Kanawha Valley to get the
road in Floyd's rear that led over
Sewell Mountain to the railroads OF
Virginia. General Rosecrans moved out
promptly from Sutton, on the beauti-
full Elk River, marching across the Big
Birch Mountain, striking the enemy S
pickets at Summerville, Va. The army
of eight thousand men were in good
cheer; McCook and his Bully Dutch
llltI, as iLcN NtiC tuiiNh, AO' S'NN-
brigade; the Tenth Ohio were all sturdy
Irishmcn and good singers; Captain
Mack had battery of howitZers Win
mules; then there was squadron OF
Chicago cavalry, or dragons, COM
manded by Captain Fred Schambeck,
expert swOrdsmen and well drilled,
who could capture ducks, geese and
chickens without dismOunting; Gener-
al T.. Parker ScammOn, an instructor
from West Point and an aid on General
ScOtt's staff in Mexico; the fine-looking
Colonel Stanley Matthews, cool as a
cucumber under fire; the modest Major
Rutherford B. Hayes, a lion in battle,
just out of his law office in CINCINNATI;
plump-faced boy Billy Mckinley,
private and commissary sergeant,
ready for duty, his feet getting so sore
in marching that some of the regiment
took pity on the ''plucky boy and let
him ride horseback awhile; host OF
youths fresh from the farms, shops
and schools, marching rapidly after
their indomitable leader. ROsecrans.
De HtSt DdHS- bdHS. bhh,' VI '"N
pickets set us all In tremulOusness and
anxiety, made us think of home,
friends, school-a thousand thoughts;
1t was a lovely September day; one
year before Mr. Garfield had dismissed
school to allow the students to see the
Inauguration of the Perry monument at
Cleveland and sham battle on Lake
Erie. Now it was in earnest. We look
ed closely at the faces of our command
ers-ScammOn, who knew about battle
in Mexico; Hayes and Matthews had
families and We're rising lawyers in
full vigor of anhood-surely, if these
gallant men could risk being hit with
bullets we boys could. The First Brig
ade had pitched in with much fury; the
firing was the biggest FOurth-o of-July
noise ever heard Colonel McCook and
his Dutchmen We're yelling and getting
ready to go right over those breast
works" General Rosecrans rode along
our line, after we had marched through
the enemy's camps, where beef was
cooking, biscuits baking in old-fashion-
ed bake ovens, everything in camp hur-
riedly left rs the First Brigade attack
ed, and directed the left wing under
Major X. B. Hayes to scout around the
base of the bluff and see if the ferry
could not be reached.
Hayes started out lively through the
woods toward the river. Soon he was
underneath the bluff on which the Con-
federates were fortified. Some of the
men climbed the trees and could hear
the Confederates talk and see our shells
coming from the front Of the line. Pre-
cipitous rocks and the rapid river pre-
vented getting to the ferry that way.
General RosecranS must know about
the matter at once, and Hayes hasten
ed to return. A rivulet daShing down
the hill gave the men chance to fill
canteens of water, a rustling in the
bushes gave an alarm that somebody
was at the spring after water. Hayes
drew his revolver and with four or five
men advanced ready to fire.
who are you?' called out Hayes.
"Who are you, or l fire?'
NJ duSNtl put lUe
bushes, and revolver could be seen
pointed at them through the bushes.
Hayes advanced. 'Halt"' All were
about to fire when peeping through the
leaves Hayes shouted: Rogers. you
here! l left you in our law office in
Cincinnati" 1t was his law partner.
Rogers said: You came near getting
shot, but l was not going to stay in
our law Office when every man should
be fighting for the Union" All took a
drink from the bubbling spring and
Rogers gave the rubber drinking cup
to Hayes as a mementO of their re-
markable meeting. .sboth ready to fire on
each other.-E. E. H., in Chicago Times
Herald.
Naval Rattle nv, n P;x,a.