The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1904-01-27

dragged me TO the rear, out of the
way Of immediate harm.
care you hurt, capiain?' asked
one.
81 told him [ couldn't tell. That
was the extent Of my information.
HE tore open my coat and vest.
My shirt was white, and save for
powder stains and the general CRIME
of battle it was white still. Not a
drop of blood reddencd it. ] held
up my left boot.
"Pull off that boot I said
"The boot, high cavalry sort,
came off. Not twinge of pain, not
color Of blood.
cat this point broke into per-
spiration. A fcar seized me, the like
of witch has never overcome me
since. Had tainted away in the
midst of battle and in view of two
armies? l felt no Wound, was torn
by no pain. 1t came over me like
some dream Of horror that l was
unhurt and had tainted, and that
in the sequel Of the story I would
be branded coward from one end
of the war to the other wherever
soldiers built campfire.
81 held up the right boot to DO
removed. A cupful of blood ran
out. l was never so glad to see any
thing in my life. l would not havo
taken gold for single drop of it,
such was the relief it brought. |
had been pierced through the ankle
by a rifle ball.
"When night fell, while we still
held our lines, we were whipped. 1t
had begun to rain, with sad, hope
less drizzle tlat took the heart out
of man. l was lying on some
blankets in one corner of a negro
cabin. Over in another corner, un-
der blanket, lay my dearest friend,
dead. All about were wounded men.
The doctors had turned the place
into hospital. At last q doctor
whom I knew came in.
Never while Pm alive re-
piled. I'm too young to talk about
going through life on one Leg
"Then he told me the army
would have to retreat that night;
that he had no ambulanccs, no
means Of transportation. The
wounded, including myself, would
have to be left behind. They would
be prisoners to the Yankees.
Cali at once, like landslide. I
thought of Butler and that news
paper account of my firing on the
gunboat after it had surrendered.
I made sure Butler would hang mo
like dog, once he got hands on
me. 1t was at this iuncture when 1
determined he shouldn't get me. I
was as strenuously against hanging
as against amputation.
eve were on an old sugar plan
tation. Before the fight I'd seen
some rough, two wheeled sugar
carts. I made them hustle about
and get me a mule, negro and q
sugar cart. They bandaged my leg
and put me in. The last thing the
doctor did was to give me a two
ounce bottle Of morphine and show
me how to take it. Then he said
'Goodby,' and 1 could see that he
thought it was forever. He proba-
bly, figured that if tla Yankees did
not kill me the morphine would.
"All that night, all the next day,
all the next night that rough cart
jolted on through the rain. For a
whole thirty-six hours L lived on
morphine. At last we got to Shreve-
port. When [ was lifted out of the
cart my ankle was swollen to ele-
phantine size. But 1 escaped But
ler, and 1 had not tainted away in
battle, and these two reliefs almost
::,ade the rest easy. 1 got back into
Teas and at last was we'll again.
IS soon as l could sit in a saddle
was back with my battery again
in time te take part in campaign
against General Canby-who was
afterward killed by the liodoc Cap
tain Jack-in New Mexico. We left
Texas with over 5000 men, and on
our return eight months later mus
tered fewer than 1000"