Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1904-08-20

my glasses, looked for himself, and
then handed them to Gen. Sherman.
who confiscated them on the spot. &
have never yet recovered them, This
is by way of diversion, however.)
Our troops were repulsed, but Grant
had achieved his object in compelling
Bragg to weaken his center, and he
hurled Thomas army of the Cumber
land at the heights and broke Bragg
in two.
1 published an account of this stone
throwing scene in letter dated Nov.
&c, 1863, using these words among
others: The enemy put into execu-
ton a system of warfare worthy of
the ancients. They began throwing
stones" and then I went on to de-
scribe the new style of bombardment-
The publication was received with in
credulity. 1 was most numerically
ridiculed by papers all over the coun-
try for the fertility of my magma
ton, and some said very plainly that
l was an incorrigib1e liar who was de-
flaming the Union troops by represent
ing that they had been whipped by
Confederates throwing stones at them.
firmation of my story. The first from
the Confederate side found in a cap
tured letter which now lies before
me. 1t was dated Camp near Dali
| ton, Ca, Dec. 4th, 1854" is addressed
My Dear Sister, and is signed
Ned" the writer being Lieut.. Ed
ward Spurrier, Fiftieth Tennessee In
| fantry.
His whole letter is absorbingly as
we'll as historically interesting as de-
| picting the desperate fortunes and
| terrible sufferings of Bragg's troops
during the winter of 1864. But l
quote now only this part which refers
to the stone-throwing episode:
"Maney's brigade fought upon the
! right and acquitted themselves with
| great credit, resisting every charge
: that was made against us. We fought
them at twenty PAGES for over half an
| hour.
MANY of our guns becoming so
| fouled as to be rendered unservice-
able, the men threw them down and
| fought with rocks. Our colonel
| knocked the colOrs out of Yankees
| hands with a rock
1t may be necessary to state that
| in the southern dialect rock is equiv
| alent to stone in northern parlance.
| 1t is not necessary, however, at this
late date to explain that the term
| Yankees" as applied to the union
| troops was not used in derision any
| more than was that of Johnny Rebs,
as our troops called the Confederates.
When the pickets met, which was
not infrequently, to exchange tobacco
and papers for coffee and quinine, they
alluded to each other as you Yanks''
| and you rebS" without offending each
other. They were familiar addresses,
not opprobrius epithets. The women
and children, with more Of hate than
| fight in them, used to call us Yankee
| gorillas" in response to our official
| declaration that unenlisted southern
ers caught with guns in their hands
should be regarded as "guerrillas, -
using the term in the Spanish sense.
The second confirmation of this
miracle of war; 1 got in 1884 from
Gen. George Nancy when he was a
guest of the Fifth Avenue hotel dur
ing the Blaine campaign. He com
manded the right brigade of Bragg's
army, which threw the stones.
George Alfred Townsend and 1 hap
| pened to meet Gen. Nancy at the
hotel, and in the course of the CONVEX
sation l alluded to the fight, to my de
scription of it, and of the stone-throw
| ing episode and to Lieut.. Spurrier's
letter. Nancy said he personally knew
Spurrier and that he certainly took
part in the stone-throwing. He added
that not only were the muskets fouled
but that Ewing's troops got so close
to the summit of the hill he was de
Tending that his artillery could nc
longer be depressed sufficiently to fire
on the advanced brigade, which they
had to fight hand-to-hand.
So much for that miracle" which
1 am not certain my friend accepted
in good faith or as better attesued
than what he calls the alleged rails
ing of Lazarus from the dead"
don't suppose he will credit the sec
ond instance, in support of the Times
correspondents story of the destruc
tiCn of the artillery at Vafangow, since
| l, in order to tell similar instance
| had myself to rise after being in
terred!-New York Times.
Production of Icebergs.