Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1903-06-27


When the ecgie weds the beaver
New York Sun
Death Of Major-Gen. Reynolds
Ben, it did it's work; you may come
down now"
Nearly forty years ago on the morn
ing of the first day of July, 1863, these
words were spoken by a Confederate
officer, and a lanky, beardless youth
clambered down from his perch in the
top branches of a cherry tree, with a
rife still smoking in his hands.
simultaneously, and only 900 yards
away, a gallant Union general, an
army corps leader, on whose shoulders
fell from his horse with bullet hole
in his head, and he died before his
aids could reach his side
This is the story of the death of
Major-Gen. Reynolds. Pennsylvania
beloved soldier son, at the opening of
the first days battle at Gettysburg,
told by the sharpshooter who had laid
him low, and now published for the
first time. The incident has been hith-
erto almost unvoiced, for the man who
when only a boy of 16 years fired the
fatal shot has bitterly repented of it,
His name is Benjamin Thorpe, and
he is now, at the age of Sc, what he
was in the war, the crack shot of
North Carolina, and he still lives on
his ancestral acres just outside the
village of Satterwhite.
Ben Thorpe is not proud of his
achievement and only to his more in
innate friends will he talk of the shot
fired from the treetop that July morn
ing years ago. When he does speak
of it there is poisnant regret in his
tone. He regretted it the day he
learned who the distinguished target
which his bullet struck was, and he
has never ceased to regret it,
Lonely he lives upon his big planta-
ltion, his only companions, except for
Northern visitors. being a half score
of negro hands and twenty gaunt and
ferocious looking deerhounds. He has
never married.
All day on the 30th of June, 1863.
the legions of Lee, Longstreet and Hill
had been sweeping up from the South
ern plains in the direction of Gettys-
burg intent upon destroying the Union
army of Hooker and Meade and open
ing up the fairest and richest valleys
and most populous cities of the North
to pillage.
In the van were the Confederate
brigands of Pettigrew and Archer, of
Heath's division, Hills corps, and
swinging up the Chambersburg road
this force, on the morning of July 1,
had taken up commanding position
just below Seminary Ridge. In Nc
Pherson's woods and about an old
farm house which stood just beyond
them lay the Twenty-sixth North Car
olina infantry, each man sharpshoot-
er, trained by long practice to pick
squirrel from the top of a tall tree.
And a hundred or more of these
sharpshooters lay snugly hidden in the
tops of the trees under orders to sin
gle out Union officers as their quarry.
Facing them and holding a command
ing position on the crest of Seminary
Ridge were the Union artillery and
cavalry under Buford.
Thus matters stood at 9 O'Clock on
the morning of July 1. when Gen.
Reynolds. then commanding the First
Army Corps and holding the left of
the Union line. came galloping along
the Emmetsburg road from his head
quarters in advance of Wadsworth's
division, in which were included the
Fifty sixth Pennsylvania regiment and
the Second Wisconsin, the famed
Iron" brigade; quickly he formed his
plan of battle, and as soon as the Sec
ond Wisconsin arrived upon the field
west of the Seminary he ordered them
to charge the northern end of McPher-
sons woods, where Archer's Confed-
crate brigade lay hidden, and capture
the position.
They obeyed and carried out the
order given. but some idea of the cost
may be gained from the fact that the
Second Wisconsin left 2S3 dead in the
woods The death roll of the Twenty
sixth North Carolina in that same
bloody ARRAY was 5Ss-
Gen. Reynolds sat upon his horse on
a small eminence near the northern
end of the woods issuing orders to his
aides for the movements of other
troops. He had just turned his head
to look for his supporting columns and
hasten them on when a rifle ball
struck him in the back of the head
Freed from the firm hand upon the
rein, his horse plunged few rods
forward before it's stricken rider fell
to the ground dead.
And. 900 yards away. the Confeder-
ate ofncer seeing him fall. lowered the
glasses he had held to his eye and
grimiy said. Ben, 1t did its work"
Ben Thorpe had been one of the
hundred sharpshocters selected from
the TWenty-sfxth North Carolina de-