The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1903-04-15
WAR STORIES.


have chosen for my subject tie rri-
vate soldier Of tho Confederate army.
[ must confess, however, that ! APP
proach my theme with no small de-
gree Of %pcrplexing embarrassment,
thinking perhaps might be infring-
ing upon consccratcd grounds.
You no doubt are all well aware Of
the fact that the Atlanta Journal for
a year or more has been running in
it's Saturday issues a number Of series
OF articles under the caption Of close
calls: these "reminiscences are quite
amusing and somewhat instructive.
Were | a stranger to the operations Of
the COS with no other source of in
formation, l would at oncc come to
the conclusion that there was no other
command engaged in the war between
the states but "Tige Anderson's Bri-
gade,' and all the fighting was con-
fined to the soil Of Virginia, with
Tige's command always in the Lad.
[ would not for o moment be under
stood as dctracting one single laurel
from the brow of that gallant com
mander, or his brave followers; at the
same time, I would have these knights
of the quill to understand that as
brave and heroic an army as ever the
sun shone upon were h~avingno picnic in
other fields, far remote from the classic
grounds Of the cold Dominion" and
led on to the conflict by such noble
ard chivalrous spirits as Forrest, Joe
Wheeler, Morgan, Joe johnson, Har-
zee, Frank Cheatham, Pat Clcburne
and q host Of others, as dashing, brave
and gallant knights as ever stepped
upon the arena Of war. Their opera
tions extended from the borders of
the Mississippi to tho banks of the
Chattahoocbee, embracing q scope Of
coun'-7 covering q half a score Of
States. AS an evidence Of their
indomitable skill and determined
bravery, one has but to traverse the
route from Nashville to Atlanta, where
they are hardlyout of sight of the thous.
ands Of tombstones which mark tho
last Nesting place Of tho invading foe.
l have somewhat diverged from Tho
theme of my sketch, for it is Of the
private soldier l wish to speak. Never
in the worlds history has an army
been made up of just such material as
composes that heroic band, which
went forth to battle fc5 the South.
They were not recruited from the
slums of great cities, with no other
object in view but the monthly pay.
Far from it. They came forth at the
call Of their country from every walk
in life and every line Of pursuit, the
rural home, the work shop, the Off
ces, schools and colleges; all plunged
into the f TO battle for home and
loved ones, without the thought Of
cmo!uments or position.
In the ranks beside the college-bred
man stood His moro hardy comradc
from the handles Of the pillow. TLous-
ands had left p~alatial homes OF cul-
ture and refinement for tho hardships
Of the field and camp. This noble
band Of southern youth, made Up of
the best blood Of the South, went forth
battle without hope Of recompense,
devoted to the cause Of
and virtue, leaving tho Preside
Of plenty, with the tear Of love upon
cheek" and the light of courage
upon the determined face.
In order to illustrate more clearly !
the status Of the private soldier in
our Southern army. I will relate by
an incident which occurred
near the close OF the war.
Just afte. che roundup of Stone
man and his raiders near Macon, a
of his command, about 400,
slipped off with a view Of making their
way back to the federal lines. When
this was ascertained o brigade of
cavalry under the command Of General
W. G. P. Breckenridge was sent in
We came up with the gang
about daybrcak in the morning near q
little place called "Jug Tavern" A
was ordered, and we captured
the whole outfit with but slight loss. |
We marched tho prisoners to Athens, |
as that was the nearest point we could
get transportation for thom. We
the prisoners inside the col
lege campus and threw a guard around
them.
The citizens Of the little city were
in a great state Of commotion, for
these were the first Yankee soldiers
they had seen, and they Were render
Cd harmless from the litf'e ~escapade