Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1901-01-17
THE BATTLE-FIELDS.
DID SOLDIERS TALK OVER
I ARMY EXPERIENCES
The Bine and the Gray Review 1nci-
denfs Of the Late War, and In q
Graphic and Interesting Manner
T.1, NJ c.mp. March and Battle.

Tell Oh lamp N18ESA GM~s $4,000.
"On the night OF the second days bat
tie at Gettysburg, said the Major, II
was in command of Company g OF the
One Hundred and Fifty-ffth Pennsyi-
yania regiment. After dark | was or
dered to take my company and advance
our lines across Plum Rum When !
came to the creek I knew we were al
most in contact with the rebel lines.
halted my company and with my ser
geant crept forward, instructlng the
boys to await my signal to come up. AS
/ crawled up the opposite bank OF the
creek rebel sergeant got the drop on
me, grappled with me, and dragged me
into their lines, and the signal was
never given.
Later, as the sergeant was taking
me back a prisoner, he said he felt
sorry for me. He thought would have
a hard time In Richmond, for comforts
were at premium in front and in rear.
He said that he wished might escape,
but he could not let me go; that he was
Ill tear anu uOuDl do " III" oONA 49,
would be prisoner himself. | said to
him that IL got back to my command
and he was unfortunate enough to De
captured and he would hunt me up
would treat him right. In little while
saw my opportunity, crawled back
down the banks of Plum run, and in
good time rejoined my own company.
81 found my regiment on Little
Round Top. The lieutenant of Com
pany d was sound asleep, and
crawled in under his blanket, Struggled
up to him, and went to sleep without
any explanation or remark. When the
lieutenant woke up in the morning of
the third day and found me alive and
well he was the most astounded man in
the regiment, for when our boys came
back they reported me captured and in
the rebel lines. The lieutenant's COM
ment, as he looked me over after he had
rubbed his eyes wide open, was to the
effect that if I was ever wounded he
would bet dollars to doughnuts that it
would be by some DANCED mule.
"My company was the skirmishing
company of the regiment, and that day
we charged Devils run and captured
thirty-two out of thirty three sharp
shooters posted in one of the caves In
the rocks at the foot of Little Round
Top. Then we had comfort again, and
as night closed down on us the noise of
the battle of the third day ceased and
we began to think of rest and something
to eat. My negro servant was in the
rear, supposed to be engaged in proyid-
ing something for my table, but he had
been SO worried about my reported cap
ture, and was so rejoiced ATTENDING me
alive that he forgot to provide rations
except hunk of fresh beef which he
said he had stolen from butcher back
on the Baltimore pike. We hung
blanket up between two big boulders
to screen the light from the enemy, built
a fire, and put the beef on to boil.
"A cavalryman with a supply of
bareback in his haversack came along
and / gave him $40 in greenbacks for
four crackers. which 1 put in with the
beef and boiled the whole together. A
lieutenant of one of the other companies
furnished salt, and we had a feast to
fit the occasion. Later in the night a
surgeon came along hunting up the
and we borrowed a candle |
from him. My darky cook produced two
more. One of the officers said it was
a pity to let so much light waste. and
proposed game of poker. remarking at |
the same time that the lucky winner |
would certainly lose his luck and be |
killed on the morrow, the fourth dav |
Of the battle. Then the loser could re- |
coup himself By relieving the unfor |
tunate winner of the whole wad. The
lieutenant's theory was that it would
be phenomenal luck for the winner TO |
20 through the coming days battle I'M
scathed, as on the first second and
third days,
However, was lucky from start to
lnlsh; was captured once and escaDed.
was wounded three Tins and am alive
to-day, one Of the five survivors of nv
company. Of course there will be peo- /
Die to say that for soldiers to play poker
n the face of death was almost a crime
Ind indicated sort of desperation on
he part of the players. It did nothing
# the kind. 1t relieved the men from
he strain. It diverted them from the
hangers of the situation and kept their
nerves steady for the hard fighting
which we were then sure would come
With the sound of the bugle next morn
ng. We believed we would be the vic
ors. In fact, we were then the yictors
.hough we didn't know it. A poker
game at the very crisis of the Gettvs-
'urg battle illustrated the saving quail
ty In the typical Union soldier. He
iidn't worry. He accepted whatever
iYQf.Sinrl ha& /