The National tribune., 1899-10-19
FIGHTING THEM OVER.
What the Veterans Have TO Say
About Their Campaigns.
A DARING MOVEMENT.
So an Illinois Veteran Calls Rosecrans' S
March-Spoiled by Misunderstanding

1
| battle.
| To go back Il little, on the night of Aug.
| 10 the rebels burned the bridge across the
! Tennessee River at Bridgeport Ala,
leaving us with no way TO cross unless we
| built a bridge. 1t was reported i'll camp
that Gen Rosecrans's Chief Engineer said
he could build a bridge across the river
| i'll two weeks.
! Work commenced in a few days by get
ting out the timber in the woods. and on
sept. the troops commenced to cross the
new bridge, which spanned the Tennessee
about quarter of Il mile below the rall.
road bridge. Our brigade Uytle's) crossed
at noon. and campcd three miles from the
river. at the foot of Sand Mountain. On
the I'd we remained in camp. Ncglcy' s
| Division went up the mountaiI. Our
brigade went up the mountain i'll the after
noon of the next day. The infantry had
TO help haul the artillery up the mountain,
using long rope, with 100 men to each
| cannon. 1t reminded me of Napolcofi
crossing the Alps.
We marched Il few miles TO the east and
campcd on the mountain. The close of
Sept 10 saw us campcd Oh Lookout Mount
ain.
At daylight of the 18th We were march
ing on top of the mountain in the dire ctIO..
of Chattanooga. Away off to the east Il
dozen miles OF more three columns OF dust
could be seen rising high above the tree
tops, This was Bragg's array OF the way
| TO Chattanooga. Now w2s the race TO
see who would get there first. We de-
sccnded the mountain on the east. and
camped in the valley at sandown having
marched % miles that day. We were now
l6 miles from Chickamauga; not so or 80,
as Corp'l Fleming stated.
| On the 18th we marched two miles to the
north and formed line of battle: remained
in line until noon, moved forward a mile,
| formed again, and our regiment was de
ployed rs skirmishccs or pickets.
- At p. m. we We're called in and resumed
the march towards Chickamauga. This
| was the night march the member of the IL til
| rear guard; we were in the rear of the
wagon-train. After dragging along for
eight miles. which took nearly half the
night, we went into camp.
Cannonadlng i'll front began early in
the morning. AT II o'clock we were order
ed to the front. The first four miles was at
q quick-stcp, the last mile doublc-quick
We formed for battle 80 feet north of Lee
IL Gordon's Mill, on the bank of the Chick
amauga Creek and remained there q few
minutes. Hard fighting going on half a
mile to our left, we Were ordered in that
direction.
Our troops being driven back, reinforce.
ments came up and passed us. We We're
again ordered to the right. The enemy
WAS checked Our troops drove them
back thrcc-quartcrs of a milo before dark
and captured a few prisoners. Some of
these stated that they had not been off
the cars two hours. and only three days
since they had left the Potomac River
Our regiment was not engaged, and went
on picket at Lee e. Gordon's Mill
During the night Bragg moved his army
to the north, or to his right and our left.
Our division moved two miles north at
daylight, and formed lir@ Of battle. Hard
fighting commenced on our left at 10 a. IN.
We could see rebel troops across a corn,
field i'll our front moving north.
About noon We were ordered to double
quick up the road north. We had gone
about quarter of a mile as hard as We
could rum when we were halted and ordered
to right face. Looking up on a hill 30 or DO
rods away We saw a battery unlimbering.
The underbrush was SO thick we could not
see which way the guns were pointing;
they had bay horses, the same as the 18th
Ind, so we supposed it was our battery.
and were going up to support it. What fur
| Grams, McCook, and Crittenden came
| riding right down from the direction of
| the battery, and We're not more than 10
or - rods from it when it went into position
ROsccrans rode through our regiment.
and came up to the rear of our colors |
was 50 close to him | could have put my
| hand on his horse. yet some Of our papers
| say he was in Chattanooga during the
| battle. He gave the command in person
| to our regiment TO charge. / remember
| just how he looked and how his voice rang
| out.
ble-quick-Chargci" the lire
moved forward i'll fine shape. When we
| got within about 10 rods Of the battery it
opened on us with grape and canister
| We We're hurled back. and on reaching the
road the bugle sounded the halt, the line
was again formed, and again we were
| ordered to charge, only to be driven back
again.
This WAS repeated about four times.
The last charge every man seemed to be
determined to take that battery, and |
believe we would have done 50; but when
We had gotten within four or five rods of
| it line of infantry opened on us. They
were lying in front Of tie cannon. our
men fcl like grain tesore the sickle. Our
beloved Gen. Lytle, commanding our hri.
gade, fell mortally wounded.
What was LETT of our regiment fell back
across the road and up on the ridge to the
west.
Halfway up the ridge I saw many men
tugging at rope, trying to pull cannon.
They had run against a dead tree, with
the tree between the gun and the wheel.
caught hold Of the wheel with several
| others, and tried to back it up. We called
to the men hold of the rope to slack ND. but
made to understand, and kept on pulling.
We clung to the wheels until the reEs
Were within 100 feet of us, continually
firing at u.s. several balls struck the wheel
| had hold of. We abandoned the gun, and
it was captured.
On reaching the top of the ridge we began
to form a new line. Rosccrans came
riding up the ridge from the south, and
cried:
Form line. Don't fall back. Make
stand here. Hold this ridge for Gen.
Sheridan's sake"
He rode on north along the ridge and
We began and had formed nearly our whole
regiment i'll line when Sheridan came up
on his black horse, from the south, the
same as Gen. Rosccrans had, and said:
had seen off to the left north of us, what
Gen. Rosecrans could not have seen Is
minutes before, because they We're not there
then, in an open field, not more than a
quarter of a mile away, 15,O00 or 10000
rebel troops marching 70 cut lis off. 1t was
a grand sight, Il score of battle-fags float
ing triumphantly ,on, the breeze. This
was Longstreet's Corps, flushed with vic
tory. They were marching rapidly to the
west. Ten or 20 minutes more, and the
right wing would have been captured.
We fell back tO1ths road. halted, and
reorganizcd our division. 1t took some
time to get into shape. We started then
to join Thomas on the left, having to march
around by the way df Rossvlle. When we
came up in the rear sof Thomas's right
wing 1t was away after dark, and we were
ordered into camp at Rossvile about mid.
night.
Our loss in the charge on the battery
WAS HplVV- p1rtto,Ila -,