Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1905-05-27
THE FIELD OF BATTLE
INCIDENTS AND ANECDOTES OF
THE WAR.
The Veterans of the Rebellion Tell Of
whistling Bullets, Bright Bayonetar
Bursting Bombs, Bloody BattIe@
Camp Fire, Festive Bugs, Etc, Rtc.


that the newspapers didn't give more
attention to Field Marshal 0yama's
characterization of the modern Jap
anese army. After explaining that
under the old rule military service
was limited TO the hereditary fighting
or soldier class, the general pointed
to the result of breaking away from
the old rule and calling men of all
classes into the army He insisted that
an army Including all classes had
finer national spirit and fought better
than the old army made up exclusive
ly of professional fighters.
This interested me greatly, because
it called to mind experiences in the
Union army of the civil war which H.
Illustrated the processes by which the
average man of patriotic impulse was
transformed into soldier 1t ls Inn
possible for the present generation to
understand how utterly ignorant the
men Of 1861 were of the simplest de-
tails of military service. There were
then very few military companies out
side of the large cities, and the mem
bers Of the few carried themselves as
superior beings.
when Fort Sumter was fired on the
members of the military companies in
the country towns constituted a sort
of fighting caste, and they became the
drill masters OF the thousands of pa
fFfnfta Of Nh
could come TO an about face. l re-
member well when a hundred OF our
best Young men organized a military
company. They sent to Captain
Branch in the nearest city, asking
him 70 send one of his crack company
out to drill us. A private in the com
pany donned lieutenant's uniform
and came out to act as instructor nj s.
an hour and he lorded II over a hun
dred as earnest and Intelligent men as
ever lived.
80 anxious were we to learn, ana
so much respect had we for a man
who knew military things that we bore
with the autocratic impcrtinences of
the drill master and conceded Hi he
demanded In the way Of Difference to
himself He seemed to us a great man.
although we discovered later that he
taught MS very little We went for
ward rapidly, however, after he left us,
and were soon at the front, where we
learned In a few months more than
any crack holiday soldier could teach
US After several campaigns we were
with Buells advance to Shiloh, and
as we climbed the bank Of the river
where thousands of stragglers were
gathered. | heard a voice that knew
THE men OF the company had been
in service nearly a year. They con
stituted the crack company of fight
ing regiment They were going up the
river bank into battle, and they We're
ready and eager to meet the enemy.
Imagine their surprise when they saw
their pOmpous little drill master OF the
previous April standing among the
stragglers declaiming to the newcom-
ers about the glory and death that
awaited them in front.
The captain, who had been among
the humblest OF the learners, In Aprll.
1861, and was in April, 1862, one Of
the most resOurceful officers In the
regiment, looked at the declaimer in
wonder. The orderly, who had been
roundly abused because he could not
hold his hands still, said quietly to the
shouting straggler: If you want to
go to the front and glory fall in at the
rear of the company Then came the
marching men, whose swing into line
and soldierly bearing silenced the man
who had lorded 1t over them for s.
an hour less than year before. They
had become fighting soldiers, while he
had stood still at $13 n month.
There had been surprises and dis
appointments in the company. Of
course. In the first forced march five
of the strongest and finest looking men
fell by the way, and three Of them did
not recover their health for several
years. Slender young fellows, given
three months TO break down. stood
that march and ali others well. Men
of refinement and education had come
into close fellowship with men who
could not write their names, and the
bodcarrier had become the comrade Of
his old employer. but the thinning out
and leveling processes had made de
pendable soldiers of all"
Il remember" said the captain. "onc
tine looking fellow who enlisted after
we had started to the front. He
carried himself well In all things and
all went well with him untll he came
to signing the pay roll, when he
baked and declined to sign. / saw
embarrassment In the fellows eyes
and did not press the point Later ]
called him to my tent and showed him
that several Of the men had made their
marks, but If he didn't want to make
his mark | would teach him to write
his ffa mo aud rx-atf tt,,tsT d