The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1905-03-16
THE BATTLE-FIELDS.
OLD 6OLDIERS TALK OVER
ARMY EXPERIENCES.
The Blue and the Gray Review Incl.
dents Of the Late War, and In Q
Graphic and Interesting Manner
Tell Of Camp, March and Battle.

Green was appointed Brigadler-Gen-
eral of the Secession forces in the
First Congressional District of Mis-
souri,, and he gathered up 1900 men
to stamp out Unionism in that section,
and particularly to wipe off the earth
Col. David Moore, and his First
Northeastern Missouri Infantry"
which were stationed at Athens, Mo.
DR.. ]. L. Norris, now a prominent
Green's band. "tne flower Of the land"
Is the Secession papers described them,
and gives this account Of the battle:
Our men got off their horses and
tied them to trees and fence posts.
They were armed with snotguns and
squirrel rifles that would shoot posi-
bly, from rs to 100 yards. Then we
had two cannon, a six and a nine
FOUNDER.
"The Federals lined up in the form
of an L. Our cannon were unlimber-
ed and the gunners went to work To
me 1t looked homicidal to point those
grim monsters at human beings. Re-
member, none of use knew any more
Of war beyond what we had read in
the books.
THE cannoneers applied their
matches. l shuddered and turned my
head. Two awful detonations follow
ed-and the balls lit in Iowa. They
graciously Travelled about 300 feet
above the enemy, who jeered us.
For two hours the battle ragged
on TANKS and center. Word came to
us that the Des Moines River was
almost choked with the corpses Of the
Federals. 1t was said the river was
becoming a rich carmine hue. We
cheered and started forward. Then
we made a disagreeable discovery
the enemy's muskets would shoot
more than twice as far as our hunting
guns. We might just as well have
been shooting in the air, for all the
good we were doing.
"Of course, the thing to have done
on learning Of the superior range Of
their guns was to charge 'em. There
were enough of US to have gathered
in the whole crowd, brass buttons and
all. But their guns could outshoot
ours, and it was as easy as adding two
and two to figure out that they must
necessarily be able to lick us. Every
blessed Confederate turned himself
into lightning calculator to work out
the result, and then made break for
his horse.
"Did 1 run. too? You bet 1 did. 1t
seems funny enough now, but 1
thought had fine reason for it then.
In spite Of the Des Moines River be-
ing damned by dead biuecoats, we felt
certain there were enough left to
reach US with those terrible long
range muskets.
You never saw such a mix-up as
when the fugitives tried to unhitch
their horses. Few waited to unite
them. Some slashed the brides with
knife; others tried to jerk them loose
by main force The horses imbibed
the terror of their masters and jumped
around frantically. Many broke loose
and rushed wildly across the field. add
ing to the uproar. Some of the ex-
cited soldiers struck out across the
country without taking time to get
their horses. The cannon-those ter
rible engines designed to terrify the
enemy-were dragged off the field and
hidden in some hazel brush.
The rout didn't stop until the Con-
federates got back to their homes in
Marion, Lewis, Shelby, Scotland,
Knox and Schuyler Counties. You
never saw men so homesick in all
your life. During all this panic and
confusion there was no attempt by
the enemy to pursue. While COL
Moore's soldiers could outshoot us.
they couldn't outrun us-not that day.
after the excitement had worn off
bit, and the boys had rested, they
met and recognized. Every man said
he wasn't scared up there at Athens;
he Just wanted to get away They
laughed over their display of panic,
but were grimly determined it should
never occur again.
Those men who ran the hardest de-
veloped into the finest soldiers you
ever saw. They joined the regular
Confederate army. and many of them
atoned with their lifeblood for their
scare at Athens. Inconsequential as
the battle was, 1T gave them in after
days the equipoise of veterans and
taught them how to stand and be shot
1t without nching."-American Trib-
une.
The Yates Pha1anx of 1861.
1.-The Yates phalanx," said the Cap
tain, had q hard time getting into
the service and a hard time getting
out I remember well that we began
to organize the phalanx as soon as the
II, r.