The Coeur d'Alene press. (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho) 1906-1907, 1906-09-20
On the Battlefield
IorIginall

ing my hip. Not knowing that / was
badly wounded, attempted TO rise.
As did so / was knocked senseless
by more lead striking my skull.
When regained consciousness was
In the center of a battlefield. have
been exposed to shot and shell coming
from one direction, but this was the
only time In my life was obliged to
endure hot fire coming from two OPP
poslte points of the compass. l could
not rise to run away If would, and
lad risen would not have bettered
my condition. In the one case would
have been shot down at once; In the
other must take the risk Of some mis-
slie either striking the ground where 1
lay or bursting near me. Round shot
coming from one direction passed sar
above me, shells burst beside me, while
the air was alive with the songs OF bull
lets, sweetIy terrible. Something fell
on my chest ana rolled of on to the
ground. grasped 1t. II was a lump
Of half melted lead. Two bullets had
met above me and been fused by the
impact. The din of lncessant thunder,
shrieklng iron missiles, yells, groans,
can only be described by one word
hell.
The fire instead of lessenlng grew
fiercer. must do something to get
out OF 1t or be killed sooner or later,
since no one could live long In such
tempest. raised myself on my elbow
to look about me- On my right was a
line of bushes. They indicated a wa
ter course, If could drag myself
there and find 1t what supposed,
might get down into the water, where
would be comparatively safe. The
desired line was several hundred yards
away. Nevertheless / determined to
make the effort.
/ was obliged to pull with my arms
and push with one leg. The wounded
hip seemed like a load Of stone that l
was obliged to drag with me, to say
nothing of the excruclating pain com
ing with the slightest movement.
While was working through dead
and wouDded-always 1t seemed In my
way-I was stunned by an explosion
not ten feet above me, and for a mo-
ment half conscious l supposed the end
had come. 1t was a bursting shell.
Had 1t exploded just before 1t reached
me should have undoubtedly been hit
by Its fragments. Bursting directly
over me, Its motion carried them be-
You'd me,
l heard the thunder of horses hoofs
and knew that II denoted a cavalry
charge. The sound was far to my
right and to my left. looked and saw
them coming, They would pass over
me. ! would be crushed. They were
not In column fortunately, but In
line, On they game like a troop of
flends, here and there man falling
from the saddle, horse rearing and
plunglng forward or dropping dead in
his tracks. | saw the Confederate
gray, but II made no difference to me
whether they were friends or foes.
Their mpd ride had nothing to do with
mercy; It was to destroy. A lieutenant
was riding directly for me. With an
effort almost superhuman l raised my
self. He saw me. but only In time to
jump his horse over me. OF the first
Ole behind him two men saw his horse
jump and, suspecting some pltfall,
passed on either side OF me-. In the
second nle. q loose line, one. horse
jumped me; no other came within q
Llke d storm rack they had sud shiy
doomed: like d hurricane they had
passed, ana as . reeSdink tempest WIN
draw, the wind In its trail they drew
the Eire. ~ as
For a time. relieved Of the danger, OF
lead and iron. lay exhausted. Here
and there came a grOap from those who
had fallen while the, cavalry was pass-
Ing: then the Ore grew hot again, and ]
dragged myself on. It was that las,
hundred feet which came near prevent.
ing my reaching the goal. / was half
an hour doing It, But at last got "a
the bushes and, pulling myself through
them, looked over the bank OF q
stream. The current set against tbs
bank was on. and l saw that the
water was beyond my depth. SEEKING
a bush. let myself down and. buoyed
by the water. hoated immersed to my
waist.
oh. the blessed relief from pair
caused by that cool current about my
wound!
In an hour the firing suddenly ceased
Then l bethought myself of getting OIL
dry land. pulled myself part way
up by the bush held when | founC
Il was loosening at the root. II
bore my whole weight ON II, 1t woult
give way, | was la no condition I,
swim anu should drown, was n,
longer between two fires. was sus
pended by fratl support over Il wa
terry grave
/ heard movement above me an,
looked up. \ FACET seemed to be
long to eorpse-appearcd over tn
edge OF the bank IL was the face o
wounded Confederate who Ia,
dragged himself 10 the bank either 70
& tHa gausn fRrftaaa I had ny IN 4attnnpl