Custer County Republican. (Broken Bow, Neb.) 1882-1921, 1902-05-29
SOLDIERS AT HOME.
THEY TELL SOME INTERESTING
ANECDOTES OF THE WAR.
How the Boys of Both Armies Whiled
Away Life In COMPROMISING Ex-
periences. Tiresome MaTshes-Thrii-

81 was in Crooks division at Apo
mattoX." said Capt. Henry, land when
ev..r the 9th OF April comes around the
scenes OF the week before the surrcn.
der come up wildly before me- We
were twenty-five miles away when a
scout brought an intercepted dispatch
from Lees commssary general order
ing four train loads of provisions to
AppomattoX depot. This gave Sheri-
dan the information he wanted, and
soon the divisions of Custer. Crook and
Merritt were galloping toward Apo
mattox.
The trains were captured but what
| most clearly remember Is the scene
that followed the capture. Locomo-
tive engineers jumped from the saddles
in our division and took charge OF The
locomotives deserted by the rebels ami
| ran the trains back aud forth through
| the great masses of cavalry lining both
sides of the track. They footed the
| whistles, rang the engine bells. while
the cavalrymen yelled and the horses
| pranced and neighed. 1t was wild
scene and | have never witnessed an
other like IT,
| 1--WE knew that at last we were
| across Lees line of retreat, and looking
at the heavy columns of cavalry NOV
ing into line, | thought we could check
the enemy. no matter how strong.
felt different during the night, but was
! treasured when the infantry came up
| at a double-quick and formed behind
us in the woods. When the heavy line
of Confederate infantry advanced on
the morning Of the 9th TO brush Sheri-
| dams cavalry aside. great double
line OF infantry in blue arose to meet
them.
Some one saw an old towel on
| stick and the word went down our
line, A flag Of truce: don't fire. But
| Sheridan said to those about him: Is
this makeshift to gain time? | have
lost too many men this morning to be
put off by any game. Gen. Gordon
and other Confederate officers explain
ell that Gen. Lee was In correspon-
dence with Gen. Grant as to s,rren-
| der. and they asked a suspension of
J hostilities. In minute ii seemed to
| me the cavalry dismOuuted and the in
| fantl.y lay down in line of battle. The
men had marched all night. but their
eyes Were bright and their faces eager
and eXpectant. 1t was Sabbath day
and the end had come. And while the
| commanders talked thousands of the
men doze and slept in contentment."
After the surrender" said the Ser
geant "A comrade and myself went
over into the camp of Walkers dlvis-
ion to see how the men of the old
Stonewall brigade took the surrender
The regiments marched out, stacked
| arms. and We're moving off quietly in
splendid order when their brigade band
| struck up, Amt | Glad I'm Out of the
| Wilderness, and all stopped to listen
Then the band played Dixie but there
was no cheering. Later came Home
| Sweet Home, and a cheer swelled
around the Confederate lines and was
carried into and around the Union
lines. 1t was not a cheer of exultation
but of common sympathy and rejoic-
ing.
Il have carried from that day to this
a square inch of the apple tree Of APP
pomattoX, which came to me In this
way: There was general impression
that Grant and Lee met under an apple
tree for their first informal talk over
the terms of surrender. and the partic-
ular tree was guarded by both Union
lists and Confederates. But, as soldiers
! passed. twig after twig was broken Off,
and finally cavalrymen broke off large
limbs as they rode by. AT this june
ture squad of cavalry rode down on
the crowd about the tree, dismounled,
| and two men proceeded TO cut it down,
the chips flying out among the men
who stood near. One of these chips |
put in my pocket, and | have it YET.
When the tree had been cut down
the caYalrymen cut 1t in sections. and,
mounting their horses, carried all of
toward headquarters In five minutes
every chip and scrap had disappeared.
and the next day there was great
, | hole where the tree had stood. the
relic hunters digging down to get even
the smallest root branch. And, after
= | all, Lee did not surrender under the
, ree but rested under it while waiting
, TO hear from Grant, and was met there
| by Marshall and Babcock. Who carried
! | Grants message to him.
, II was standing near the famous ap-
, | pie tree when Jenkins rebel artillery,
moving to the point where the guns
We're to he parked, stuck in the mud.
While the men We're striving to eXtri-
| cate the guns | asked Capt jenkins
, how he felt. He said: am like nv
battery. stalled, stuck. | am like the
lower side of one of those wheels, as
low a. | can get, and am waiting. Ii
the Yankees come along and pull IN,
: gun up hill or down, the part OF the
wheel now ON the ground is bound 10
roll up, So | am bound to roll toward
the top, no matter what happens. Any
] change Of position will be for the bet
$ ter, And most of the Johnnies seem.
"A | oil to