Milford chronicle., 1901-09-06
CIVIL WAR CHARGES.
THE ASSAULTS AT GETTYSBURG AND
KENESAW MOUNTAIN.


A Veterans Opinion of the Two Brill
liant and Daring Dashes-A Lieu
tenants Report on Tired Mules
with RavenOus Appetites.
shortly after the battle of Chicka-
mauga," said Captain Fitch, Il was APP
pointed chief quartermaster of the sig
nal corps of the department Of the
Cumberland, stationed at Chattanooga.
On taking account of the quartermas-
prs stores found that l was in need
Jf some light wagons to be used in the
mountainous country, and the only
way to get them was to go to Nash
vile and have them made, so l went TO
Nashville and had five light wagons
made by the quartermaster's depart
ment. When I got back to Chattanoo-
ga with the wagons, l put a citizen
/ leamster in charge of the wagons ana
mules.
"The teamster, being a green hand
/ lid not know that mules would eat
lnythlng within their reach and limo
rently tied them to the wheels OF the
wagons. Not long after that l got an
order to be ready to march, and on go
ing out to inspect my outfit l found
that the mules had eaten the spokes OF
the wheels nearly off, so that the wag-
Dns were ready to fall down Of their
own accord. AS l could not use them
[ had no recourse but to drop them
from my returns, and, being obliged to
assign reason for so dropping them,
rave the true one-viz, Eaten by
mules
shortly afterward I got a letter
from the quartermaster general sarcas-
ticalIy inquiring If Lieutenant Fitch
! had observed whether the mules had
raten the tires or not. replied that
! presumed they had, as they seemed to
be thoroughly tired the next day. The
uuartermaster general wrote back,
ANY further trifing with this depart
ment on the part of Lieutenant Fitch
) will probably result in his being retired
to private life ThereupOn | dropped
: the subject, but my first report was
Z correct"
"At Chickamauga," said the major,
3 ''I.Ongstreet's men ran over our head
? quarters teams. Every mule in one of
the teams went down, and the wagon
4 stood an obstruction In the road. Five
0 minutes later every mule was on its
7 feet. and a wounded teamster yelled at
0 them to pull out. They started without
= more ado, swept along the road after
o our broken regiments and. turning at
: lust the right point, came into our new
q lines and stopped where the headquar
Y ters flag had been stuck in the ground
i The driver reported later and drove IN
y to Chattanooga.
o zone of these mules the night before
Is had pulled the blanket off our division
commander, had run over the lines O.
= soldiers sleeping in close battle order
i had raided the Confederate pickets an'
had returned to our bivouac under
n furious fire. The men Of the brigad
ia took a solemn vow to shoot the mis-
chievous mule at daylight, but whel
daylight came they had other things t
~ shoot at, and the mule was forgotte
k until he came in at the head of th
" team attached to the headquarters
ia wagon. Then the boys who had wi
g. messed the charge and the escape of til
~ driverless team counted the mules deV
9. iltry as nothing"
d "That charge of Longstreet, by Ii
n. way" said the colonel. was one of I'll
We great charges Of the war, and it was Q
successful as any as breaker of line
28 OF course we think of Pickett's charg
e. at Gettysburg in a class to itself, but
~ have often wondered whether Il
or Union assault on the Confederate pos
a, ton at Kenesaw mountain June 2
1864, should not be put in the list wit
nd the Confederate charge at Gettysbur
at Picketts charge was of course Il
IS more spectacular, and the assaultiI
force was more compact but while
~ broke the Union line at one point
W was driven back in disastrous retreat
AZ "The direct assault on the fortifit
ir- line on Kenesaw was made by thr
We brigades, no better troops than Pic
4 ett's Vlrginians, but it must be remel
bered that while they failed to pier
the Confederate line they held their I
. sition and did not retreat. Their 10
i, was correspondingly as heavy as Pic
etts at Gettsburg. Sherman's idea W
In to show his own army as well as t
Confederate army that he could ma
50 q frontal attack. If the assault b
- been made and the assaulting colur
% had retired, as did Pickett's column
~ Gettysburg. the effect on the arr
O6 would not have been as it was VIII
% the regiments that led the assault clu
A. to their position not more than 30 pa,
q from the Confederate parapets.
u "The attack failed except in that
10 was an Illustration of the spirit of
o. Union troops in assault. Lees purp
81 at Gettysburg was undoubtedly
ans drive Pickett's 10000 men like a wee
nm. through the Union lines. The fail
rth. Of the attempt led to the retreat of
M. whole Confederate army. Sherma
- purpose at Kenesaw was to capt
5 II the Confederate Notifications. The
3 3 ~ ", tack let to the retreat not of ShermG
2 81 army, but Of the Confederate ar
: daS and have always held that the groi
2 80 over which the Union regiments
z - y that day swept forward ought to be
2 Is precious 20 the men of McCook's. {
2 ~ ker's and Mitchelrs brigades as is
/ s. ground at Gettysburg TO the men
o. Pickett's brigades." = Chicago Il
/ ~ Ocean.
Iger Their Loyal Answer.
- On one of Queen Victoria's earl
visits to London she observed to
friend. the then Earl of Albemafle