The National tribune., 1902-01-30

of truce, proposing an armistice of 81
hours for the purpose of hurylng thel
dead and ours lying between the lines. l
was accepted on our part, and the frini
in our front ceased, but was continued
right and left of our division.
IL was my privilege to walk out upol
the neutral ground within Il few steps q
the Confederate works, which were line,
with those men in gray who had made l
warm for us not many hours before
Their guns We're stacked on top of th'
works, and our works We're also lnet
with men in blue, also armed, but be
tween the lines no arms were allowed
and blue and gray mingled together ii
friendly conversation. i sat down on {
log with a Confederate Lieutenant and
chatted pleasantly.
Presently Gems Cheatham and Hind
man came out of their works with then
staff officers ana met party of our Off
GERS. A Confederate Colonel did the hon
orS of introduction, and after bowling very
politely the party sat down on the ground
within six feet of me, and talked pleas
antly for an hour. Chcatham looked very
unlike n Major General, attired as he was
in coarse gray pants tucked into unp"i-
ished boots. A blue flannel shirt and
rough felt hat completed his dress, as lie
had neither coat. vest or any insignia of
rank. He expressed deep regret that so
many brave men on both sides should be
slaughtered on the battlefield. and re
marked: 1t is useless on your part. We
do not expect to whip you, and you can
not whip MS: yOu will get tired Of the
war after awhile and let us alone"
Gen. Hindman was the reverse in ap-
pearance. being well dressed and well or
namented with a prOfusiOn of gold lace
and cords. His handsome cOuntenance
wore a gOOd-natured smile while he con-
versed. He. too, appeared sincerely re-
gretful of the bloody warfare, and said
that ha Two +ria Tp tho
harsh features of war by kind treatment
of prisoners falling into his hands and
by caring for the wounded.
While thus engaged in the pleasing
amenities of war we might have forgot
ten its hideOus features, had we not
looked about us upon hundreds of dead
bodies thickly strewn in front of the Con
federate works, and, worst of all, we
could see how many poor wounded
wretches had vainly tried to pull the grass
10 protect their mUtilatcd bodies from the
slowly creeping fire, which, as we could
see, at last found its way to their woolen
suits of blue TO roast the victims slowly
but surely. Burial parties were busily en-
gagged in hiding these frightful spectacles
under the sod, and when their work was
completed the neutral ground was cleared.
the white flags taken down, and blue and
gray dropped behind their works to re-
sume their murderOus musketry.
At dark three of our companies were
sent out TO dig intrenchments in front of
our main line at Il point where an angle |
in the enemy's line left a considerable
space. They reached the spot and stack |
ing arms began work with pick and
shovel.
A NIGHT ATTACK.
Sentinels were posted a few yards in |
advance, but the thick underbrush al |
lowed them but very limited view of
their surroundings, and enabled the en-
envy TO steal upon them ar 3 o'clock the |
morning of June so and deliver q vOley
before their presence was discovered. The
attack was made with loud yells, which |
In the darkness were certainly very de-
mOraliZirg. Our men, who went TO dig, |
and not expecting a fight, were complete
ly surprised and scarcely had time to
drop their tools and seize their arms for
hasty retreat amid a shower of bullets
which, fortunately, flew too high, owing
20 the darkness. They reached our works
with two men seriously wounded. Need
less to say, they left their nights work
behind them. |
The firing which started here rolled
along the contending lines until the en-
tire front of our division and the one ad-
joining were engaged. The artillery Joined
in, and altogether the heavens were light
ed with a lurid glare. Random bullets
reached the camp of our regiment and
|
One Of our men was wounded and several
tents perforated. This uprOar continued
half an hour and then subsided.
The night Of June 80 our regiment re-
lleved the 9Sth Ohio, in the front line Of
works Shortly after getting safely into
the trenches the COnfederates opened fire
from their works and received a suitable
answer from us. 1t extended the entire
front Of our division. We are at such
close range that neither of US dare raise
our heads above the works. We both fire
through a narrow space under headlOgs.
One of our men was severely wounded in
the arm while curiOusly peeping through
a portfolio to see what the other side was
doing
At one point Of our lines, where there
was : wider interval between the lines,
our men pushed their line much closer by
rolling barrels, filed with earth, ahead Of
them.
There was a little change Of program
on July 2. We made all the noise and
the enemy remained quiet. \ great num-
ber of men were placed on the skiI1nish
line with orders to fire rapidly and con
tinuously, aiming at the lower edge of
the enemy's headlogs. Our main line also
was instructed TO assist, and altogether
three regiments Of our brigade made il
warm for the other side that not a
shot did we receive in reply.
The evening Of July two cannon away
on our right began to throw shells paral-
lei to our intrenchments, and several I
burst very close TO US. One Of our men
had his tent demolished few minutes af {
ter he had come out of il.
We noticed curious fact that we
could scarcely hear the gun, but the
whstling or bursting of the shell was pain
fully obvious.
REBELS EvACUATE WORKS.
Another evacuation. Our neighbors
have slipped away. Their sBirmishers left
our front at / o'clock July 3. Pursuit
soon began. Our regiment moved at s.
a. m, and walked unmolested into the
Notifications which we assaulted In vain
five days previous, and for possession Of
which hundreds Of lives were uselessly
sacrificed. We halted near Marietta at
the Military Institute, located on an emf
nence commanding fine view of the sur
rounding country for many miles.
From the top Of the building one could
see the outline of Stone Mountain away
10 the east of Atlanta and the Smoky
Mountains on the border Of North Caro-
lima and Tennessee.
On the road toward Atlanta we could
see the bursting OF shells above the tree
tops, where the advance of our column
was crowding on the heels of the retreat
Ing enemy. After dinner we moved slow
ly along q well-beaten road until four and
a half miles beyond Marietta, when we
filed into the dense underbrush TO the left
OF the road and formed our line. We were
told that a battery planted directly In
front had done much injury TO q portion