The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1904-02-11
CLOSING DAYS OF THE WAR.
What New York Heavy Battery Contributed the Finish and
How Endured
By A. VENT, Co. A. 18th N. Y. II. A.
How II Endured.

On July 81 the camp was left in charge
of few guards. l was one of them,
and did not participate in this battle.
will only mention that our regiment took
the lead All of the Color Sergeants eight
were killed or wounded. The flag fell.
Lieut.. Hartley. who was mustered as
Lieutenant "a hours before, snatched it,
and while on the wall of the fort, was hit
with ball and flag and man fell into the
fort-the Lieutenant dead, the flag lost.
1t was no capture. The regiment cap
tured a rebel flag on the same day. In
the forenoon was allowed to go to the
battlefield, and while there Henry j..
Ormsby, of Co. A, ventured to escape
into our lines, although dozens of bullets
followed him. In the afternoon | wept
when / saw the little squad Of the 14th
n. Y. III. A.. with Capt. Jones, 20. IL.
ut the head. | do not think they numbered
over 400 men, that returned to camp. On
Aug. > / made the morning report. Present
for duty were First Lieut.. William X.
Helms. commanding Co. A; Orlo Cheever.
Corporal, and four privates-six men in
all-with exception of dozen or 50 on
detached service, mostly in filling up the
quotas of light artillery batteries. Thus.
$50 officers and men. in three months and
three days, dwindled to n dozen Or so.
From this time on we did not move SO
much. but guard and picket duty was
onerous in the extreme, and nearly every
day we lost men.
TOSSED A LIVING SHELL.
Here it was where one day an unex-
ploded round shell dropped into our line.
and Private Alex Mckinnon. Co. A,
quickly grabbed it, and threw it over the
breastworks, where it exploded. 1t was
a daring deed, and no doubt saved some
lives There was a good-siZed tree
standing about eight or 10 feet from the
breastworks. inside, under which Serg't
Nelson l.. Trussell, Co. A, had built
small bunk of pine boughs. One after
noon he lay on it. and talked with US.
when a musket ball struck a limb in the
tree, glanced downward, and struck Trus
sell in the fleshy part of the hip. and
stuck there. None of us thought it any
serious wound, hut the man suffered for
three months. and several times NORTH
cation or gangrene set in, and all but
took his life.
Our regiment during this month was
stationed a few miles south. rs the line
was extended, and lay near Fort He'll"
as the boys called it. The coltending
lines were here in full sight of each other
and only few hundred yards apart, but
as there was firing, there was no dan
ger. About Aug. 10. we were ordered on
the move, and quite early in the day. The
Sixth Corps had on the previous day sue
ceeded in reaching and destroying the
Petersburg and Weldon Railroad Ifear
Blck's Station. and during the night
scouts reported q movement to retake the
same. When a few miles out We were
hurried faster. and the last mile and a
half we double-quicked and ont of breath.
We formed in n small ravine facing north.
and as we advanced we met a rebel line
about to make left wheel move to take
the Sixth Corps and its wagon train from
the rear. We met them, and the meeting
WAS terrible. We advanced a quarter of
a mile to the seam of q woods, iuto which
We drove the enemy. After the battle
/ went up to the dead body of a rebel
Third Lieutenant and found on him pass
to Petersburg. and good report of him.
III" looked like an honest, good-hearted
man.
WATCHING A SUNDAY BATTLE.
We found the south side of James
River more level. and south of Peters
burg n very pretty country, though de-
stroyed by war. l was back on hill on
Sunday, the 21st of August. and while in
fun view of the battlefield of Friday, !
saw the rebels make most persistent
attack on the Sixth Corps, facing
west: but it was too late, the strong
works behind which this corps now
fought could not be retaken After
an hours fight the enemy with
drew. On Wednesday, the Oath, another
attack was made upon our extreme left.
east of Ream's Station, where by this
time the Second Corps was stationed, and
with good success. as they took some bat
teries and the Second Corps sustained
cutie loss. However, nothing. was
gained toward the main object-t0 retake
the railroad from Petersburg south. We
lay here until Sept. 80. when we moved
npon Gen. Pesram's farm and Poplar
Grove Church. The fight was skirmist.
ing and manuvering. The rebels did not
seem to wish to come too near us, and
our line was extended westward along the
Petersburg Southside Railroad, which now
became the bone of contention. We moved
about, extending and fortifying the ex.
IRENE left OF the line. until Oct f. During
these four days we had no time to dry oul