The National tribune., 1900-05-17
FIGHTING THEM OVER.
What the Veterans Have TO Say
About Their Campaigns.
REGULARS AT CHAMPIONS HILL.

REGULARS AT CHAMPIONS HILL.
Some Sharp Work for the First Battalion.
18th U. 8.
EDITOR NATIONAL TRIBUNE: Your
issue of the 18th instant contains the fol-
lowing: "B. Rushton, 18th Iowa, Union
Corps was engaged at Champions Hill on
May 16, 1868"
This is a mistake, and il the comrade
will look into Gen. Shermans Memoirs,
Vol. /, Page $780, he will find the following:
During that day, May 16, 1853, the battle
of Champions, Hill was fought by Nc
Clernands and McPherson's Corps, aided
by one division of mine-Blair's."
In Gen. Grants Memoirs, Vol. 1, pages
SIT and 51S are also noted some facts re-
lating to this battle and the forces engaged
and in which he scores Gen. McClernand
for not rendering assistance TO Gen. Hovey,
who bore the brunt of the battle. The
Corps had been attached to the Thirteenth
Corps, McClernand's, during the engage
ment and while not heavily engaged took
part in the battle of the 18th all the same.
There appears to have been n general
mix-up and detachment of the troops of the
Fifteenth Corps. Blair's Division had
brought up the rear of the army, having
been the last division of the Fifteenth Corps
to leave Milliken's Bend, and at this time
was on the left Of the army. The balance
of the corps had gone on to Jackson or was
scattered out on the way; even the 5rigades
and regiments appear to have been divided
and detached to suit the emergency. My
organization, LIST battalion, 18th U. S.,
was divided and had not all come up. Co.
ii was detached and had gone with Sher-
mans Headquarters to jackson, but Joined
us the next day, the 18th, at Bridgeport
Co. b was somewhere in the rear, and
joined us few days later in rear of Vicks-
burg. So there We're but six companies of
this battalion that took part at Cham
pion's Hill.
There are some features of this engage
ment most thoroughly impressed on my
memory. On the morning of the 18th, be-
fore deploying for action, and while in line,
Capt. p. G. Washington, who commanded
the battalion, made the first and last speech,
or rather talk, that he ever made to u.s.
This talk was to the effect that as we were
Regulars, much was expected of us in alb
solute obedience of orders, and that our con-
duct should be above rcproach. We were
thoroughly drilled and disciplined, had
passed through the several campaigns of
Grant and Sherman of the year previous
with credit, were attached to the First Bri-
gade, Second Division, Fifteenth Corps,
and were the only battalion of Regulars
attached to that immediate command, and
were very small fraction of the fighting
force of the gallant old Fifteenth Corps,
having but eight companies and at no
time possibly mustered an average of 60
men to the company.
That little talk OF the morning Of the 18th
bore fruit. Washington was killed at the
assault on the rebel works of Vicksburg
and the balance of the little battalion was
almost annihilated on the 10th, three days
later.
On the morning of the 10th at Cham
pion's Hill We We're deployed and sent
forward and in a short time encountered
the enemy in heavy skirmish-line. All
the time OF encounter we were in an open
cornfield, where the corn was several inches
in hight, and the rebS were behind the rail
fence ON the opposite side.
The engagement was commenced by
several savage rounds of canister from the
enemy on our left flank, which made the
dust in that field fly in every direction, but
did no damage. We then encountered the
rebs at the fence, which afforded us good
mark, and after a few rounds drove them
back. Here we found two dead and some
wounded lying behind the rails at the place
where we crossed over.
We followed into the thick woods
and underbrush, and drove them steadily
all day and until late at night, capturing
number; at one place in large sink-hole
oyergroWn with briars and rubbish we
found eight of them; they were fully equip
ped and ready for business, and | believe
were the biggest Johnnies ever saw.
This sink-hole came almost in my line
of march, and | proposed to pass around
it, when one of the officers ordered me to
go down and see what was there. / got
part way in and on making the discovery
yelled to the boys that they were there,
and forthwith got out of that hole much
quicker than can write of it. Itook refuge
behind a tree and lay down, and every man
in reach followed suit, with his head towards
that sink-hole.
We yelled at them to come out, and they
yelled back: Don't shootp We sent them
to the rear, after breaking TIE guns over a
log or stump. Late in the afternoon we
ran onto a number Of abandoned caissons.
The tow in two of them had been fired and
the lids closed down. One Of these cais,
sons exploded when our line was but few
rods away; so fierce was this explosion that
it threw many of the men to the ground
among them the writer, and for a few
minutes | could scarcely conceive what had
happened. This was about as cowardly a
trick as we had known Of the rebs up to
that time.
After dark that night we encountered
them again. We were halted, and later
drawn back to the main line, where we
remained till morning. The enemy had
then fled, and bright and early we were on
the march towards Bridgeport crossing,
on the Big Black, which is 16 or Is miles
above the Black River bridge.
Here we found other troops Of the Fif-
teenth Corps. We also found the rebs in
charge OF the crossing, snugly tucked
away in q line of earthworks on the opposite
shore, and to get them out of the way Gen.
Blair proposed to mount number of men
of the 18th Regulars on horseback and ford
or swim the stream and drive them away.
Artillery horses, bare backed, were selected
and my company, G, was selected for the
task and duly mounted and lined up in the
road, after having disposed of our little
worldly effects by throwing them down in
the corners of the fence. never expected
to see these worldly effects again; they were
not much, to be sure-an old battered
canteen, haversack, poncho and blanket
but all that possessed under the sun, and
hated to part with them. However, it
was some consolation to know that under
ordinary circumstances none of us would
ever need them again. The black waters
of the river were swift and deep. No horse
with rider could possibly have landed,
and we would all have gone to "Davy
Jones's locker" and had we been fortunate
enough to land, we would have been in no
condition to fight, and the rebs would have
taken us in, and in either event good-by.
Fortunately at this stage of the game
Grant and Sherman rode up and the pro-
gram was changed, much to our Satisfac-
ton. We gave up our horses and returned
to our command, and artillery promptly
shelled the rebs into submission and sur