The semi-weekly messenger., 1900-10-26
A SKETCH OF THE EIGHTEENTH
NORTH CAROLINA INFANTRY.


I. M'LAURIN. ADJUTANT.
thirty-six hours During this time
Company h. that was to remain on
Zeke's Island, kept its water-craft
busy crossing the inlet. and offered all
sorts of inducements % any company
To exchange places. but no proposition
would be entertained by esther COM
pany or any individual to remain We
had acquired the soldier habit OF COM
planning that We Were not supplied
with camp necessities. but In the hight
of after experiences our baggage and
kitchen equipment was simply i'm
menSe.
II is safe to say that our nine compa-
MES had more cooking utensils than A.
p. Hills corps. to which we afterward
belonged. had at any time In 1852
S4-65.
AT Wilmington we were again de-
layed a day. also at Charleston. s. c.
Here we heard OF the downfall OF
Beaufort Our disappointment was
great Enthusiastic expectation chang
ed to abject despair. Would the war
really close before we got a chance at
battle? Alas, no.
We disembarked at Pocotaligo. mid
way between Charleston and Savannah
and spent the winter at Camp Ste
phens, on Haquerius farm. drilling and
guarding the lagoons of the coast be-
low the Coosahatchie. assisted by Tr'en-
holms battery and Colonel John G.
Calhoun'S regiment of cavalry. a part
OF the time under the command or
Brigadier General Robert Z. Lee, with
headquarters two or three miles dis
tant
The amateur talent of the regiment
relieved the monotony Of camp life
with entertainments charade,
burlesque. Especially enjoyable was
Review of the Army" in which our
Irish wit, Ned Stanton, riding on an
ass colt" easily took rank as the bur-
lesque reviewer of the war.
Altogether, we spent a pleasant win
ter, playing soldier in that genial chine,
though greatly disappointed several
times by the cavalry making false
alarms Of the Yankees landing, and
pillaging the coast plantations.
Colonel Radcliffe put a stop to these
I alarms by sending Lieutenant Colonel
| Meares down the coast with three
| companies and a weeks rations
The first night Corporal w. II. Nc
! Laurin> was in charge of the outpost at
| a landing. near Donkey Island, which
| outpost was reached by dam across
| the marsh. and hundred yards or more
| from high land. About 10 o'clock the
| "yanks'' began assembling at the is
| land. The cavalryman, who was on
| duty to act as courier. explained their
| tactics, and the position of the differ
| ent landings. Splash Splash,
Splash Their oars are distinctly
| heard coming our way
Let me go for the reserve. plead the
| cavalryman. Wait till we see some
| thing was replied. There was lull in
the caring, which was accounted for
by him as landing a part below US.
| when a part would go to a landing
| above, and capture all of us. This ap-
| peared to be true-the caring began
! again, nearly all the boats taking a
| different channel from the one we were
| on.
The cavalryman started for his horse,
| on the mainland, to go for the compa-
| mics, and was so persistent that we
| had to threaten to shoot him to get
| him back. The men were arranged so
} as to receive them. warmly, at the
landing. We all Law fiat on our corn
| tops. taken from a nearby corn field,
| and arranged behind an embankment
to keep us out of the mud. only one
| head above the bank as an outlook.
The caring again ceased. The lan-lan-
| landing! le-le-let me go mister, The
| reply was in equally jerky tones. Sta
sta-stay right there. 4 death like 81
lence reigned around. except that the
| loose ends of the cornStalkS. from some
cause. rustled like a cane-break in a
storm. Scared, but determined, We lay
awaiting the landing of the raiders a
minute seemed an hour-the tension is
at last relieved. Splash., Splash!
Splash!, A school of poipoises rose in
front of our landing, and went merrily
on their way.
We welcomed our midnight relief
laughed heartily at the cavalry and had
no more alarms.
In March, 1862, Major George TAFT re
signed and Capt. Forney George, Co
C, was promoted major Lieutenant
C. c. Gore became captain of Compa-
ny c.
On the 14th day of March orders
| came for the regiment to go to New
Bern, n. c., and in few hours every
thing was on the cars. and speeding
for that Inflated Athens of North Car
olina- At Wilmington we heard Of its
fall. Here we were Joined by Captain
T. ]. Purdie, with Company K, from
Zeke's Island The regiment proceed
ed to Kinston. where the New BerT
garrison was encamped. under com
mand of General L. OBJ. Branch
These troops with the reinforcements
sent them were formed into two bri-
gades the last days of March, the F,irs
brigade commanded by General Rober
Ransom and the Second by Genera
Branch The latter was composed o
the Seventh, Eighteenth. Twenty
eighth, Thirty-third and Thirty-sev
enth North Carolina regiments, from
| tnat time TO the close or the war.
On the oath of April. 1862 the reg
ment was reorganized. with almost ar
entire change of officers. Leutenan
Colonel Robert II. Cowan. of the Thirt
North Carolina, was elected colonel
Captain Thomas j. Purdie. Company
K, was elected lieutenant colonel an<
Major Forney George was reelected.
Lieutenant Samuel 3. WatterS. of tn.
Third North Carolina. was appointed
| a01utdnt. CaDtain A ID CaZauy re-
manned as quartermaster. ex-Captaii
Robert TAFT was appointed A. c. s., DIR
James A. Miller. remained surgeon
, with former assistants Chaplain Colil
Shaw became chaplain to the Sixty
i. | First North Carolina negiment
Private Thomas w. Brown, Compan!
j, was elected captain of Company 4
Lieutenant Willie ]. Skies. Company b
elected captain; Lieutenant W. X
j Core was elected cantain Of Gonna