The National tribune., 1907-06-20
PICKET SHOTS
From Alert Comrades Along the Whole
Line.
The Amusing Side Better.

The Amusing Side Better.
A. Harris, Co. b, 1880 Pa, Clifford.
Pa. is very much interested in the
Picket Shots and short sketches he
sees in The National Tribune, which
paper he considers the old soldiers
true friend, yet he often wonders if
the witty description of some COM
rade's experience, which frequently
borders on the ludicrOus. does not pro-
duce better state of feeling than the
sketches OF personal bravery and hero
ism, or the attempt of some comrade
to straighten out the error of another
due generally to faulty memory. often
While following reminiScence of the
comrades has he seen with his minds
eye the old boys plodding along
hardly able to swing one foot before
the other or keep awake. when sud-
denly. like a shot from the enemy, the
whole company would be convulsed
with laughter caused by the prank of
some practical joker. and the next
mile would be marched with far
lighter step and brighter eye He is
reminded Of an incident which proved
amusing to his company when to be
amused was rare. On the morning of
July 4. 1863, at Gettysburg, his regi-
ment was withdrawn from the front
and placed close to and along a road
over which ambulances were passing
from the field to the hospital. For "a
dying, wounded soldiers. some of them
hours they passed. filed with yelling,
screaming, singing. cursing. praying
calling for mother or other loved ones.
and all delirious. In the company was
young man of Welsh extraction. who,
with an expression of horror On his
face. got up from where he Rad been
lying and said My God, boys, l
can't stand this" and went off towards
! Il house used as a hospital. When he
came back he told us he had found a
very intelligent rebel Sergeant down
there who was wounded. and with
whom he had been chatting He told
the Johnny that he believed our army
averaged larger men than his. and the
reb said, You uns may be larger men,
but I'll bet you we have got the tall
est man." and he gave the name of
| this man and the Georgia battalion
20 which he belonged At the rear of
Funkstowr, Md, we We're told to throw
up works to protect the line from
sharpshooters. When they had lain
there long enough to let the rebs cross
the Potomac at Wiliamsport, our skir-
mish line advanced and captured fine
rebe! sacrifices, among whom was q
very tall man. He came over our
works with a pair of our No. pants
on. which were about to his knees.
The Welshman saw him and sprang
to his feet saying, There goes my
man now" and. sure enough. he was
the identical fellow described by the
rebel Sergeant
Missouri Troops mt Shiloh.
John Watkins, 18th Mo-. Eagle
Point, Ore, on the 45th anniversary of
Shiloh was full of memories of that
awful battle. He is proud that it has
been said that there were more men
from Missouri on that bloody field than
from any other State; that it suffered
more loss, had more Colonels and
other officers killed The Colonel of
every Missouri regiment was either
killed, wounded, or captured, and
many brave Missouri boy answered
to The last rOll-call on that bright Sab
bath morning. His regiment was
about the first of the troops attacked,
and during the first half hour of the
battle six of his company We're killed
and twice as many wounded 1t seemed
at first to him that it would be no
trouble to lick the rebels. but when the
retreat began with the mimic balls
plowing up the ground on his right
and left, men falling on every side, and
the Eroans of the wounded heard ev-
erywhere, he began to realize his sit
uation. Reaching some timber they
took to stumps, logs, and trees for pro-
lection, but 1t was no use; on the rebs
came. After they had retreated about
a mile he looked back towards Pitts
burg Landing and saw four battle
lines of Johnnies approaching in bat
tie array. and as they came on he could
hear them calling at the top of their
voices: Pull Run, you Yankee -
- -" However. the next day
the tables We're turned, and the rebs
were on the retreat. with the Union
BOYS after them calling: Fort Dom
elson, you rebel sons of Jeff Davis"
Comrade Watkins remembers walking
over the battlefield when all was over
and. oh. the horror of it. Broken cais-
sons. dismounted cannon, dead men
and horses. all heaped together. The
rebs received just as good a burial as
our boys got. He is very proud of the
part old Missouri took in the war. and
if he could only take the Oregon eli
mate with him would go back and end
his days there. If any of the 18th
Mo. should see this. he wishes them
all long and happy life. and advises
all those who have any idea of chang
ing their place of residence to come
to the Peach Blossom Valley of the
Rogue River, where they have the
and juiciest peaches of any In the
world
The 24th Mich.
o"iHeS r. IieSS, veterans Home.
California. wishes to point out few
inaccuracies in the regimental history
OF the gath Mich, published some
time ago. He says: THE 24th Mich
is reported to have entered the
battle of Gettysburg with 4O8 men and
2S officers. and to have lost there a
total of 316 men. Records and news
paper reports at the time show that
the total number reporting for duty
at the close of July 1.-THE first day,
was less than 100. The history
closes with the record of the first days
battle. The discrepancy can be ac-
counted for only by the failure of SO
men to report at the subsequent roll
calls. The history does not pretend
to account for these 81 men. 1t claims
that the cath Mich, at the battle of
the Wilderness. captured the colors of
the 48th Va. The fact is that the
regiment captured no colors. The flag
named was capured, unassisted, by
me. 1 was about $50 feet in advance
OF our regimental line when 1 sprang
forward and grasped the 1ag-bearer
and brought him and the flag thru our
line to where LiLeut-COl Edwards was