The National tribune., 1899-03-30

my old friend Charles Smith. He had along
bottle of appleiack. They were all citi-
zens, but some Of them had rebel proclivi-
ties 1t was desired that all such should
take the oath of allegiance to the United
States, and that 1 shouM give them safe
guards. Those men stood around in ring,
one of the boys holding sp our regimental
flag over them, and administered to them
the oath of allegiance. Onr eyes were all
wet with tears. 1 made out and signed
proper safeguards, and gave one to each.
They kept their obligations
In the morning we set out for Morristown,
and arrived there in the afternoon. Gen.
Foster and the other regiments soon arrived.
He also had battery Of artillery. We spent
the evening in getting everything in order
each regiment its proper place in the line of
march.
When morning came we set out for our
work Of destruction, the boys all singing
"Rally Round the Flag" In due time
We arrived at Bristol, in Virginia, on the line
Of the East Tennessee & Georgia Railroad
and there our work Of destruction was to
begin. went out q few miles north of
Bristol to burn the railroad bridge over the
Watauga River. /, with my own hands, set
the bridge on fro. After it had been COM
pletely destroyed we returned to Bristol,
and then started down the railroad track,
tearing it up and burning bridges until we
reached near Greenville.
Here we were startled by reports that the
Union army had been cut to pieces and
routed at Chickamauga. We had orders to
at once proceed to Knoxville. On arriving
we found Gen. Burnside ready to move with
every available man to Loudon, in lower East
Tennessee, to drive back the rebel hosts under
Longstreet.
At Loudon Burnside soon found that Long
streets forces were too much for us. We fell
back to Campbell's Station, where Burnside
made stand and gave the rebels square
fight, but failed to repulse them.
We fell back into Knoxville, and began to
fortify it. For 81 days we kept the rebels
at bay. Our rati0ns were about exhausted.
Our sources of supply were cut of. Our only
hope was the success of the Union army at
Chattanooga. Grant sent instructions to
Gen. Burnside to hold Knoxville at all
hazards. On the night of the 21st day of
the siege our heroic scout in the still hours of
the night safely arrived from Chattanooga,
bringing dispatch from Grant that the Union
army had defeated the rebel army, and that
Sherman with sufficient force was on his way
to relieve Knoxville.
Longstreet failed in his attack on Fort
Sanders, and marched away in the direction
of Virginia. Sherman came, and East Ten
nessee was now redeemed from the thral-
dom OF her rebel oppressors.
wish it were possible for me in this story
to give proper honor to my comrades person.
ally. and do justice to the memory of all those
noble patriots who lost their lives in the
defense of the flag of their country. My
heart swells with pride when look back
upon my footprints in my ever-beIoved East
Tennessee. venerate her rock-ribbed mount-
aims, her ripping and sparkling streams, her
yurgling springs of pure water, and last, but
not least her noble and patriotic, loyal women.
who faithfully stood with US to the last in our
struggle for the preservation of our glorious
Union.