The National tribune., 1904-07-28
ther. Elisha Harrison. had a grandsons

were soldiers i'm the Union armeS-four
enlisting in 1861. in Col 8. NJ. Barnes's
Sth Ky. namely. ii. H.. NJ. j.. l.. &. and
T. h. Gabbard r. r. was killed al Stone
River. in January. 1862: NJ. j. and Ii. Ii.
were discharged for disability. after Stone
River battle; l.. {. veteranized in the 4tll
Ky. and served till 1860. In July. 1863.
Elisha. John III. and l volunteered in Co.
Il, 41th Ky. and served till mustered out
by reason of close OF the war. ii. Ii. and
NJ j.: also reenlisted in the same regi-
ment."
THE CNBURNED BRIDGE AT PORT RE-
PUBLIC.
p. Ray. Co. G. 9th WA. writes: I'm is
writes from Dudley. w. Va: In your is
SHE of June =. Comrade +. NJ. Canning
ham. Co. III. LIST Va. Cav. corrects com
rade Stafford concerning the bridge at
Port Republic that was not burned. |
was there. on the north side of the river.
We were then commanded by Col. John l..
Liegler. We reached a point some distance
from the bridge on June :. late in the
evening. and had brush with Stonewall
Jackson. On our side of the river it was
expected that we would have warm
June 3, for we understood that Shields
was on the south side of the river and
| that it was proposed to take the Stone
wall down and take it in. | believe Com
rade Cunningham is correct. Comrade
Dunkle. 1st w. Va. Cav. has told me that
he was on the bridge. and knew that there
were orders to burn it. but that it was not
burned. Hence. Jackson escaped. l would
Ike to hear from my old comrades. The
9th w. Va. has record to be proud of"
CHRISTMAS. 1864
Comrade ]. c. True. Co. G, 10th Mo-,
writes from Kansas: In one of
your recent issues one of the old boys re-
lates what befel him on Christmas in the
army, and invites others to recall what
they found in their stocking. Well, Christ
mas Eve, 1864, found our command in
pursuit of Hoods army down in sunny 90
Tennessee. We went into camp about dark.
and shortly it began to snow furiously.
Near our camp was q small house, with a
porch, and in due course of time my special
partner and cautiously appropriated that
porch: The cold, gray dawn of Christmas
morning slowly approached; we lay
be good for US to remain. Sud
denly gust of smoke belched
over us, and a report like fieldpiece rang
out. That blanket. and the snow that COW
cred us us with a garment flew into the
air, two boys who suddenly realized that it
was long way to daddy's barn hurriedly
came to ready Did we look into the
bronzed faces of Hoods Veterans? No.
\ little ragged negro boy. waving an
abandoned and most d ssolute looking old
musket, shouted Chrismus! Chrismus,
he-a-h May that ragged little mig of 1864
have his full rations of 'possum and 'taters
in 1904"
TURNED OVER TO THE ENEMY
Comrade Leander Gilbert writes from
Virginia: When the rebellion came
my people were all loyal, and l left Vir-
ginia, went 10 Kentucky. and enlisted in
Go. |, 41th Ky, and continued i'm the serv-
m ha Loci oh,1
laid down its arms. l was but p years
Old when | enlisted; it was a dark day
for me when | left my aged mother, with
her eight little children. that | might de-
fend my country on the battlefield; but it
was duty that | felt | ought not to shirk
or shrink from. however severely it might
try my own heart or the hearts of those
whom loved-and who loved me SO that
when l suffered they suffered yet more
than /.
I'm 1SG2the rebels killed my father. and
my mother was left with only her own
labor to support her little ones-too fee
BILE in their infancy and childhood to help
support themselves.
After the war married l am now re-
ceIvlns small pension. For IL years l
have been unable to work. For four years
l have been totally disabled. My wife
mas to devote her entire time to wait on
me. l live in a Democratic neighborhood.
Here it is almost impossible to get a med
ical board that will, if it can be evaded,
permit a Union soldier or a Republican to
get a pension. The doctors are against the
men who fought the Confederacy, and will
not give him a fair and impartial examina-
ton on his application for a pension 1t
seems to me that the Government owes the
soldiers at least a chance to be examined
by men who are loyal and whom he did not
have to fight when fighting for the life of
the Nation. When he is now ordered be-
fore these men he is ordered to submit his
claims to the enemy for judgment 1t is
not right
THE RECAPTURE. OF FORT sTEDMAN.
A. ]. Jenkins, Co. +, 2Ojth Pa. writes
WHO took Fort Stedman! 1t was recapt-
ured by Hartranft's Brigade. 1t had been
taken earlier in the night. from the 18th y.
I. The brigade consisted of 2OOth, 2O5th.
2O1th Pa, which, at 3 o'clock in the morn
ing were called out and marched on double
quick to a ravine near the fort. In front
of the fort was the 2O5th with the 2OOth
on the right and Goth on the left. At