The National tribune., 1902-09-11

The most trying days of the whole CAM
paign came, while, for nearly week, the
Fourteenth Corps, comprising one-fourth
of the army, was maddeningly held back
by the turbulent current of the Catawba
River.
Everybody was raging impotently. Gen.
Sherman was burning with impotence
to get forward to Cheraw and catch Gen.
Hariee as he reached there with all the
stores and supplies he had run out OF
Charleston. IL he could do this, prevent
Hardee's junction with Beauregard, de-
stroy his army, and capture his stores
great would be the result toward sue
cessful ending Of the campaign. But all
haste was necessary.
Three great creeks-Little Lynch's, Big
Lynch's and Black-almost as large as
rivers, and swollen far beyond their banks,
lay across the road to Cheraw.
On the extreme right Gen. John A.
Logan, with the Fifteenth Corps, whose
legs were always very long when there
was chance of q fight ahead, pushed
forward until be had the crossing Of Black
Greek, the last creek, and was within 10
or Is miles of Cheraw, when Sherman
nervously halted him, for fear he would
get out of reach Of support.
Gen. l.. z. Blair, with the Seventeenth
| Corps, was pressing forward with equal
| cager,,ess on the more direct road through
Jefferson and Chester, when he had to be
halted, until the army could close up.
! Farther to the north and left, the
Twentieth Corps-Gen. A S. Williams
was impatientiy marking time" SO as to
not open up gap, and allow Beauregard
to rush in between the Fourteenth Corps
and the rest of the army.
Still further to the left Fitzpatrick was
fuming and fretting, kicking up all sorts
of bobberies on the Charlotte and Monroe
roads, to convince Wade Hampton that
the army was going in that direction, but
impatiently waiting for the Fourteenth
Corps to get across the river. relieve his
cavalry Of the duty of protecting its TANKS,
aid set it free for other work.
Everybody was blaming the Fourteenth
Corps for tagging behind and delaying the
march. I'VE We're able to cross the river
on time; why couldn't those Acorn fel-
lcws? They've always been slow. Caught
it from old Pap Thomas
The Fourteenth Corps men knew all
this, and were half-frantic. Saturnine
Jef. G.. Davis, the Corps Commander,
who, whatever other defects he may have
had, was never behind hand, became SIM
ply u.llpprOachable. Whoever yentured
in range of his caustic tongue carried away
blisters. q! J
Apparently there was profanity enough
flying loose MT all times TO have dried up
the Catawba,' bat no curse loud or deep
would throw a bridge that would hold
across the torrent, and there was nothing
to do but towaib for the water to run out.
In the meantime ratiOns were very
scarce, and getting scarcer. The brigade
which Col McGilhcuddy temporarily com
manded had been lucky enough to have
couple of wagons on the bridge when 1t
broke the last time, and these to be so
near the bank TINT they were saved. These,
being leading wasOns, were lightly loaded,
and carried nothing but coffee, sugar and
salt. The beavier-laden wagons, with the
pork and hagdtaek, were habitually IN the
near of the trains, as q reserve, for emer-
SencieS. -; 2 4. y.s---s,...
or course, while sugar and coffee are
unsurpassed in their way, soldiers can live
but n few hours on them alone, and 81
was hurried out with his squad TO find the
more necessary elements OF the daily pro-
yender.
1t was hard work foraging through that
poor piney country, but they managed to
gather up euOgh corn, stock-peas and
rangy cattle to give the brigade something
to eat. There was very little meal to be
found anywhere, as the people only had
ground what they wanted from week to
week. The high water had stopped all
the mills, so that no grinding was possi-
BILE, but fortunately the soldiers were
Western men, who knew all about lye-
hominy. They made lye from the hard
wood ashes of their camp-fres, soaked the
corn in this, and had tolerably appetiz-
ing and satisfying substitute for bread.
81 had to forage farther and farther each
day. and found himself mingling with Kill
patrick's men, on the farthest wavering
line held by the cavalry.
Around the camp-fres in the evening
were stories told of foragers found muir
dered during the day, some lying by the
roadside with their throats cut. and
pinned to their breasts, and some hanged
up to trees with the same inscription.
Officers and men grew intensely bitter
over the evidences that this was not the
work of murderous bushwhackers, but Of
regular Confederate soldiers, directed by
their officers.
While Fitzpatrick and his principal com
manders ragged wildly, his men, with their
Lieutenants and Captains, who would be
supposed to be most interested, said very
little, and seemed almost Indifferent.
"Aint bothering us nOne," said signifl-
cantly to 81 boy Lieutenant OF an Hi.
nois regiment, who had been promoted
from the ranks. "If Mr.. Johnny Reb
wants to play the game that way were
entirely agreeable. He won't have no kick
coming to him if he suffers by it, as he's
dead sure to. We've captured at least
three prisoners to their one since we've
crossed the Savanny, and il shooting pris-
oners is the game, let them look out. Old
Xii can blow, and threaten, and send let
ters by flags of truce, and old Sherman
may issue orders, but / guess we'll con-
tinue to have the first and last say
whether we'll take man prisoner, and
send him back to camp, or write his name
Dennis with a chunk of lead. Him and
his friends are blamed sight more in
terested, take it, in what wen do to him
than we are in what they'll do to us.
That's the way the thing seems to me
to'ye been running since We left Atlanty.
l guess we'll continue to keep our end
up." 'sScF
As 81 reported to Col. McGillicuddy one
morning for 0ndefs, an Aid rode up and,
after delivering his message. remarked:
IL had to GO over to the Seventeenth
Corps yesterday, and saw something that
l shall remember. Gen. Frank p. Blair
was hot over the murder Of one of his
foragers, and when Blair gets hot q fur
mace isn't in it, He wanted to shoot about
1G prisoners he had in retaliation, but
finally was persuaded to allow them t.
draw lots for one victim. They were so
alarmed lest he, shoot all Of them that
they seemed relieved at this proposition.
The fellow who drew the black bean, Or
whatever it wasG took his medicine like a