The National tribune., 1903-08-13
Another comrade Wrong.

EDITOR NATIONAL TRIBUNE: COmrade
J. NJ William, Sth Wis. in your issue of
May 1. 1903. is mistaken as to the General
who commanded the division of L. S.
troops ut Pennington. Miss, as well as
the date. Instead of May s. 1862, it was
the 9th. U. s. Official Records quote
'.Farmington, Miss, May 3, 0, % and 2S,
1862
Gen. Payne. an Illinois man. command
ed the division, and Gen. John NJ. Palmer,
one of the brigades, and probably Brig
Gen. Charles S. Hamilton the other. al
though | do not recall Gen. HamiltOn's
presence until about July or August. 1862.
] was serving in Hescock's S Battery &c,
1st Mo. l.. Al and do not now recall any
other artillery attempting to reach the
front except two 20-pounder PARROTS
under Capt. Williams. of the siege train,
formerly the guns of Battery |. 1st Mo.
l.. A., and who got fast in the swamp in
attempting to reverse.
Gen. Palmer had ordered them back, as
we'll as HescOck's Battery, before the I'd
Iowa Cav. charged. but HeScock only sent
back the caissOns and four 1O-pounder Par
rott rifle guns, keeping the two 12-pound-
er howitzers. loaded with double canister.
The 22d and 42d Ill. were his support-the
42d to our left under ridge or on low
ground near the swamp. the I'D covering
our front Ill Il Dit OF TIMBER He;lr lHe COT
ton -gin-and when Prices army struck
us in flank as well as in front the ODD
held the woods until nearly surrounded,
and then fell back to the swamp just in
rear of Hescock's guns. | heard them say,
Here is n good place to make Il stand"
A brigade of rebel infantry came to 4
halt facing east. Our guns pointing south.
and less than 30 yards from Their left
flank. fired both pieces, causing great
slaughter to part of two regiments, and
at once limbered up and escaped along the
edge of the swamp to the corduroy road
and across the swamp in the direction Of
Hamburg Landing. / took to the swamp,
mounted on powerful horse. but returned
to high ground before reaching the road
way, in front of which the I'd Iowa Cav.
were forming for the charge. Having got
ten over my scare, and believing my seq
ton safe, followed the cavalry charge just
in their rear until they began saberins the
artillerymen of two rebel batteries just
east of the strip of timber near the cotton
gin, and when the rebel infantry opened
on our cavalry | got scared again and
broke for the swamp read, passing the
42d ILL.,. under Col. Roberts, lying down
under the bank. facing west. their right
near the swamp road, waiting chance to
give Pap Prices rehS volley. Lying at
their right front, dead, was the rebel Cen
well in the old army, and whom the right
company of the 42d had killed, together
with his mount. large gray.
AS to Comrade James y. Bird, 2l Iowa
Cav. in same issue, the finest view of bat
tie the writer had the honor of watching
from high ground. after placing eight bat
teries of the Fourth Corps, was Nush-
vile, Dec. u and 16. 1864, the 10000 cav
airy under Gen. Wilson on the right. His
view could not compare with mirc. as he
was in the swim. | could see the forts
taken in quick succession by cavalry,
something seldom heard of in battle.
The colored brothers on the left, under
Gen. Steedman. were the first to break
over the rebel works on the Cumberland
River, the cavalry next, then the Sixteenth
Corps, the Fourth and the Twenty-third
Corps closely following. We followed the
ting rebels to EastpOrt. Miss. on
the Tennessee River, capturing all their
artillery except two guns that Forests
cavalry escaped with, the worst breakup
of an army since Waterloo, and such re-
suit as would have occurred to Lee after
Gettysburg had Meade pushed Lee as he
should, as he Uee) was nearly out of am
munitiOn.-L. d. IMMELL, st. Louis, Mo.