The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1907-12-26

always reminds me of the last week of
December, 1862. Our division was
camped with others of the Army of the
Cumberland near Nashville, and we
were having a good time. In the can
vas city about Nashville there were
nearly $4,000 soldiers taking advantage
Of the concentration to do a good deal
Of visiting and sightseeing.
1.-THE day before Christmas an Eng
Iishnan in our company walked ten
miles to get goose for our Christmas
| dinner. The markets of Nashville were
open to US. but our Englishman wanted
goose, and he went beyond our We
| iette line to get it. He cooked it for
hours, but seemed to be little upset.
In answer to my questions he said: L
saw Old Rosey out in front, and 1 dis
covered that this whole army will move
forward the day after Christmas
II did not believe the story then, but
that night received orders to have the
company ready for marching on the
morning of December 26, and / learned
that the same order had gone to all the
company commanders in the division.
We had goose for dinner on Christmas,
cooked by an Englishman in the good
old English way, but have never cared
for goose since l PROBABLY ate too
much. At all events, l dreamed that
we started for the front, the whole
army in Indian file led by our tough old
goose, and that we wound in a graceful
way into the very center of the rebel
camp.
When 1 awoke the company was
formed, and In half an hour 10000
men were moving southwark from
Nashville on half dozen different
roads, and before night were driving
the enemy back. Only three days more
Of Christmas week passed, and we were
engaged in the battle OF Stone River.
| never think Of that struggle but what
I think of Blaine's words, Battles such
as established ScOtt's fame in the Mag
ara campaign. of Jaekson's at New Or
leans, or Taylor's at Buena Vista, were
In magnitude repeated hundred times
during the civil conflict under COM
manders whose namss are absolutely
forgotten by the public
| I'VE who were at Stone River, or
| Gettysburg or Chickamauga, know this
Is true. A single corps of the Army of
the Cumberland or the Army Of the Po-
tomac contained a larger number of
troops than Taylor or Jackson ever
saw mustered. There were in the I'm
lon army LOO reg ments of infantry,
270 regiments Of cavalry, and 900 bat
teries of artillery. And it was an
whether it fought at Shiloh or Stone
River, or Antietam or Gettysburg"
Just So" said the Corporal, "but
there were times when a fellow was not
at all proud. For example, saw Gen
e-al Richard W. Johnson at Stone
River, when we were proud of each
other, and he saw me on one occasion
when 1 was not looking for him and
DIDN'T care to see him. AS Sergeant
Brown, of our battery Ct, Second ILL
nois, L. A., would say, me and the
General had both been on duty, / on
picket and he looking after his lines.
was Juggling a goose to camp when
met the General face TO face. 1 ought
to explain that a good forager would
begin ON chicken and run down the
scale Of ham, fresh pork, duck, sweet
potatoes, cabbage and sorghum to goose
ITO see forager headed for camp
with a goose, was, in effect, notice to
the outbound foragar that the supplies
were exhausted, and the country in
front depleted and abandoned in a for
aging sense And yet there is to me no
more toOthsome morsel than goose
served with onions. General johnson
probably did not share my views on this
question, as he looked in q contemptu-
Gus way at the goose. l made the best
Of difficult situation. saluted and was
passing on with a smile when the Cen
eral halted me.
HE asked. looking at the goose, how
Tar l had been to the front, asked about
the roads, the location Of the farm
houses, and the people residing in them.
As l answered he looked me squarely
N the eyes with a casual glance now
and then at the goose. / OWNED that
his mind was busy with some problem
and my mind l know YVES busy trying
to arrange an alibi for the goose. FL
nally the strained situation was re-
lieyed by the General saying: Thank
yOu,' and riding back to the rear and
right. He turned, however, to say :
Corporal, keep straight ahead to camp.
suppose you are hungry 1 didn't
quite understand whether this was a
reflection on me or the goose, but |
went TO camp"
AT Stone River" said the Captain,
"Crittenden A. Cox, of the Thirty Fifth
OHIO, had fought everything out of
sight in his immediate front and was
posing at a rest with his legs wide
apart, leaning forward on his musket
Colonel Boynto., in passing, noticed the
unsoldierly position. and said TO Cox
Why are you standing there with your
legs so Wide apart! NhatS the mat
ter with your Cox replied: Colonel
the rebs at the battery over there are
sending their cannon balls over here
In very reckless way, and don't pro-
pose to take any chances on losing both
my legs
Cox's theory was that If he kept his
legs apart a cannon ball might go be
tween them, but that with his legs wide
apart, no cannon ball was large enough
to take both of them off. The Colonel
looked Cox oye.' as he listened to his ex.
PLANTATION, and then ordered, Close VI
those legs A cannon ball will never
touch you Cox Strengthened up
brought his heels together, and, al
though the Thirty-Fifth had hot work
that day, Cox came out Of the battle
unscarred and came home with both