The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1905-11-16
ADVENTURE BY sHaKpsHooTERs
a Squad From the 44th n. " HELPED
Along the End OF the War.

ADVENTURE BY SHARPSHOOTERS.
A Squad From the 44th n. Y. Helped
| Along the End OF the War.
| Editor National Tribune: In the lat
ter part of the Summer of 1864, when
orders were issued authorizing the
| formation of a battalion Of sharp
shooters i'm each of certain divisions of
| the Army of the Potomac, a battalion
was organized in the First Division Of
the Fifth Corps. Maj. Rufus Jacklin,
of the 18th Mich, commanded this bat
| talon, which was composed of men
from different regiments of the division
armed with rifles selected by the men
who used them each for himself and
paid for out Of the wealth he had
amassed during his previous condition
of servitude in the army. AS result
| there was want of uniformity. Every
variety Of rifle was represented. The
heavy muzzle-loader with globe and
peed-sights; false muzzle and starter:
telescope sights, breech-loaders of all
sorts then known; no make was friend
| less. But there was one little fault most
| OF these guns had: they weighed any,
where from 10 to 20 pounds, and on
| the march this was cause of deep sor-
row and much unseemly language, COM
pensated only by the genuine respect
shown them by the enemy when they
were planted and trained on our err
ing BROTHER
In the front Of some of the corps.
when the lines had become established,
as at petersburg, picket firing was OBJ
served more as an occasional recrea-
ton than steady business; but the
capture of the Weldon Railroad seemed
fS 1rpS {nf h1 Ix~1<,
became d1scourteous, and for a long
time kept up such a racket that 1t
was almost impossible for our pickcts
to put in a full nights sleep. When
the sharpshooters came down in the
morning, however, and opened on our
recreant kinsmen they seemed to lose
their appetite for war, and the infan-
try boys could get chance to take
their rations.
One morning a squad of sharpshoot-
ers from the 44th -. Y. came down to
the pits, but were told by the infantry
pickets that there were no rebs in their
front, though half a mile down the
track, toward Petersburg, there were
plenty, crossing and recrossing the rail-
road.
They found that even at that distance
they could stir up the rebels, but three
of the boys, Beckwith. Adams and an
other whose name has escaped me. de-
cided that If they should go down to the
railroad, which was about 40 rods from
the picket line. they would have bet.
ter shooting and be able to suppress the
rebels quicker
They found a pile Of ties near the
track and could see soon after they be-
gan firing that they had been correct
In their idea about Fastening the close
Of the war. Obliterate the warriors
and you eliminate the war;
The slope from our lines down to the
railroad was quite steep, and covered
with standing corn. For some reason
the third man soon returned to the
picket line, leaving only Beckwith and
Adams to pursue their recreation and
they were enjoying themselves as can
only those who unite, duty with pleas
ure, when little shower Of bullets cut
short their fun and drove them to
cover. The worm had turned; 80 Of
him were coming out of tract of
woods 60 rods across the track, and fir
ing rapidly as they advanced. The bull
lets flew over and around and through
the ties; one cut through the sleeve of
ISeckwith's blouse, taking strip Of
skin as souvenir with 1t.
With useful presence of mind the
Sergeant decided to save the rest of
his cuticle for future use and by zig
tagging through the corn and hail of
bullets, reached the line with the re-
mainder Of his skin where he thought
IL Woulu 10 the most good.
Adams was left alone to meet the en-
envy. They came up to the opposite
side OF the railroad and poured q regu-
lar storm of bullets into the inoffensiye
ties, inviting, entreating and adjuring
the Corporal to cross and visit them.
Our boys used to think that the reb-
els were somewhat ignorant Of the
American language: but no one could
have listened to that squad of rebs as
they urged Adams to come out and sur
render, without knowing at once that
there must be among them descendants
OF convicts who had at their tongues
end all the Billingsgate ever known
TO their ancestors. added to all foul
phrases subsequently acquired or in
vented, or thought into existence. They
evidently feared some Yankee trap, for
they failed to cross the track and bag
their man; and after shooting the ties
with guns and the man with words for
what seemed to Adams long enough for
him to turn gray. a squad of five with
It's Corporal, moved slowly back to-
ward the woods. This was followed by
another squad and another, until all
had retired. When the last squad was
well under way the Corporal raised up,
felt OF his face to discover If he had got
to be an old, wrinkled man. took DELHI
crate aim at the last man. fired, and
was soon in our lines shaking hands
with Beckwith and the others.
After the article about CorpI Adams's
adventure at Bethesda Church, the
writer received many letters from COM
rades concerning that and comrades OF
Co. G, and now, IL The National Trih-
une prints this, would like to add
something about the squad OF sharp
shooters that had been members of the
44th N. Y. When the 44th, which had
not veteranized, came home in Septem-
Der. '64. the re-enlisted veterans and
recruits were transferred to the 14Oth
and 146th N. Y. First Brigade, Second
Division, Fifth Corps. The sharpshoot-
ers were attached to Brigade Head
quarters and remained until after APP
pomattox, when they with others OF
the 44th, were transferred to the 5th
N. Y. Serg't Ferris, of Co. E, was in
command Of the detachment until he
was killed at White Oak Road. other
members Of the detachment were:
Serg'ts Powell and ~Ackley, Of Co. C;
Beckwith, Corp'l Adams, Hibbard,
Westcott, Wing, Of Co. C; then there
were Herrick, Cozine, Schweickhardt,
and others whose names have forgot
ten. Adams and Hubbard have been
dead many years; iWestcott and Powell
are somewhere in the West; Ackley is
at Penn Yam, N. ". Herrick at Buffalo,
N. Y: Wing at Mendon. Mfch.-W T.