The National tribune., 1903-06-11
ENTERING vIcKSBURG.
An Indiana Comrade Replies to D. L. Well.
man.

An indiana Comrade Replies to D. L. Well
EDITOR NATIONAL TRIBUNE: With your
permission, l would like to say few
words and ask several questions on diff
ferent subjects that l have been thinking
about for some time.
First, would like to ask why nearly
all the comrades. in speaking of batteries
in action, use the expression grape and
canister? | do not remember ever hear
ing an artilleryman make use of the ex-
preston, but among our general and field
officers it appears to be almost universal.
l think they must have caught the disease
from old Rough and Ready"
During my four years of service, the
most of which was in conjunction with
the gunboats, l saw thousands of stands
Of grape, but l never saw single stand
for field guns. / do not think there is-or
was-anythins of the kind for light ar
tillery.
Another thing 1 frequently see is some
remark about such n gun being a 12-
FOUNDER and another n 24-pounder or a
32-pounder Parrot. My impression was
and is that they always run even. or, in
other words, were either 10. 20, 80 and
on up. l have seen these calibers and 100
Founders and have read that the Swamp
Angel was 30O-pounder Parrott. Now,
if l am wrong on these two points / want
some one who knows to set me right.
am after information.
Next, l wish to review Comrade d. L.
Wellman's article in the issue OF Feb 3.
think the comrade is stickler for
points; that so far he has failed to make
good. He reviews that portion Of Gen.
Leggetts report which refers to his
brigade entering the city, and inserts
words to give it a different meaning from
that evidently intended by the General
The 45th Ill. was the first regiment to
enter the garrison-outer works-and
their flag to float over the conquered
city," oil that ras inside the norks. The
words in italics are Comrade Wellman's.
Does the cOmrade wish to convey the i'm
preston that there was any part Of the
city outside the works, or that there was
still another line of works inside of what
he calls the outer works and between Gen.
Leggett's Brigade and the city? II not,
will he do us the kindness to explain just
exactly what he does mean, as Gen. Leg
getts report specifically states that his
brigade, led by the 45th ILL.,. was the first
to enter Vicksburg and their flag to float
over the conquered city, and as neither
Gen. Smith nor Col. Sanborn made q re-
port covering this or any other portion of
their division or brigade service during
the campaign, and as Comrade Wellman
has offered nothing better than letters
written from memory 40 years after the
events, think the verdict of the majority
Of the readers, especially those who are
not ''close readers" will be that Gen. Leg
gett's report must stand. and that his
brigade, led by the 45th ILL.,. was the first
to enter Nicksburg, and their flag to float
over the conquered city. Continuing, Com
rade Wellman says: Il made the claim
as a matter of history, and living wit
nesses are good authority on disputed
points. l should not have
made the claim that the 4th NIinn. was the
first into the city if 1 had not known it
to be a historical fact that could not be
knocked out by any published records, but
could be substantiated as fact by living
witnesses" All right, comrade, living wit
nesses will do if You have nothing better
to offer; but the published records are very
stubborn things for even Giving wit
nesses" to buck against. What is his
torical fact, comrade? Something, take
it, that you can prove by history. Lay
the testimony of your Giving witnesses"
aside, comrade, and produce yonr history.
That will settle the matter without any
further testimony. 1 am perfectly willing
to accord the honor Of being the first to
enter Vicksburg to the 4th MINI. if Com
prove it.
"SOme statements are self-evident,
others can be proven, while still others
must be taken on the faith of another"
Evidently Comrade Wellman expects us
to accept his statements and those of his
Giving witnesses" on the faith We have
in his living witnesses, but l fail to see
wherein their testimony is any better than
my own or any other comrades, written
40 years later and entirely from memory,
and especially when it runs counter to
the published records. Let us take up the
points inversely, or, in other words, let us
see how it came that Brig. Gen. John D.
Stevensons Brigade, of Logan's Third Di-
vision, Seventeenth Corps, and Col. John
b. SanbOrn's First Brigade, of Quinby' s
Seventh Division, same corps, were select
ed for this honor. Col. SanbOrn says:
"On the evening of the Sd Of July Gen.
Mcpherson came to me in person and said
that my own brigade and John D. Steven
sons Brigade, of Logan's Division. were
designated to take possession of Vicksburg
for the reason that they had
fought the hardest and suffered the most
in the campaign" l will say just here
while it is fresh in my mind. that our
corps commanders. especially Mcpherson,
had habit of carrying their own orders
instead Of sending them by an Aid or
Orderly, and l often wondered why Gen.
Grant permitted it, as it was n very per-
nicious habit and tended to lower the NOR
ale of the entire army. Again Col. San
born says: ''As ordered by Gen. McPher-
son. led the column that marched into
Vicksburg, and the 4th MINI. band and
regiment led my brigade" 1 see the
Colonel remembers the band. 1t would
have been Il sorry triumphal entry into
the conquered city without the band.
wonder if it was not owing to the fact
that he had no band that led Gen. Steven
son to camp out on the Jackson road and
let Col. Sanborn's Brigade have the honor
of taking the lead from that point. So it
appears, from what Col. Sanborn says. that
these two brigades were given the post of
honor because they were Fighters from
away back" and suffered the most in the
campaign" Stick pin here, comrades.
and we will refer to it again shortly. w.
II. Clark, Adjutant General, Seventeenth
Corps, another Of Comrade Wellman's
living witnesses. says: During the terri
BILE assault on Ficksburg the ODD of May,
1868, the Seventh Division, Seventeenth
Corps, suffered more severely than any
other command. . The loss was
100 men in 40 minutes. Remembering
your conduct and that of your splendid
troops, Gen. Mcpherson gave you the right
Of the line on our triumphant entry into
Vicksburg" There seems to be a slight
discrepancy between the two here. but as
they agree on the main point. viz, that
they gained the post of honor through
their superior fighting qualities and their
severe loss during the campaign or in the