Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1902-10-10
HATS AND CAPS IN THE ARMY.
"Reminiscences of a Civil War Vet
ernn, in which the Former Fig
ure the More FavornbIy.

MY granddaughter" said the SER
geant, in the Chicago Inter Ocean,
asked me the other day if l
wore hat or a cap in the army. 1
wore both. but just when / wore the
one and when the other couldn't re-
member at first. But / remembered
a day on the long march from Tennes-
see to Louisville in 1852. when | car
ried water in my hat to battle the face
of an exhausted comrade. / remem-
bered that at Stone river | slept with
my hat over my face one night. and
that when ! came to lie down the next
night there were three holes in the
crown of the hat / wore and a piece
out of the rim. and thought some of
the boys had taken my hat and left
ragged one in its place.
"My memory was little hazy in
the matter of hats at Chickamauga,
but | remembered that while we were
at work on the forts in front of Chat
tanooga two days later the rebel
sharpshooters put two bullets
through the upper part of the hat 1
wore. without my knowing it. and that
crowns of their hats up to their full
! height. l remember that when the
pontoon bridge at Bridgeport broke,
and | went into the water, my hat
I foated and was not two feet from me
when l came up from my journey to
the bottom.
II remember that in starvation
/ times at Chattanooga one of the boys
| brought in about a peck of shelled
corn in his hat. | remember that just
before the battle of Stone river ! rode
into Nashville and wore a cap. But
/ remembered also that on the first
day Of hard fighting at Stone river
/ | clapped my hat down over a squirrel
which. crazed by fear, ran over me
two or three times trying to get into
my pockets. l remember that lost
my hat going up Missionary ridge,
and that the colonel called me down
week later for wearing an officers
! cap. ! remember that on the night of
the big snow in May, SEA, at Ooltewah
| slept in comfort with my hat over my
face. In fact. | must have worn
hat a good deal of the time"
"A hat" said Fourteenth Ken
lucky man, was serviceable in more
ways than cap. 1t was better in
the rain. and more protection against
the sun. 1t could be jammed and
beaten into many shapes. and could
be used in disguses to better advan-
tage than a cap. \ fellow could break
guard with a high-peaked hat, and
change it in minute to low-crOwned
| fedora-like headpiece. \ prisoner
could wear his hat jauntily faring
over his face one hour. and make his
escape the next with hat slouched
| like an old farmers and when it was
| necessary to deceive the enemy as to
| reenforcements or as to the strength
| of a defensive line a few deft pats
and bangs at the hats Of a squad or
company made great change in the APP
pearance of men.
"In August. 1862 our brigade. COM
posed of the Thirty-third Indiana
Forty-second Ohio and Fourteenth
Kentucky. and commanded by Gen.
John F. De Courcy. was stationed at
Tazewell courthouse. Tennessee.
When Gen. f. Kirby Smith advanced
to Richmond. KY, and moved toward
Frankfort with intent to inaugurate
Richard HAYES governor of the state,
our brigade fought Gen. Stevens on's
| division al Tazewell The instructions
were to hold Stevenson as long as
possible and Gen. De Courcy proceed
ed to do it in his own way.
THE Forty-second Ohio and the
Fourteenth Kentucky formed the line
of battle to resist Stevenson's advance.
| and while we were diminishing with
the enemy Gen. De Courcy would
march the Thirty-third Indiana quiet
ly around our flank and then noisily
in on the Bulls Gap. or Cumberland
Gap, road, with drums beating and