The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-06-25
ADMIRAL EVANS NERVE.
How He Killed an Antagonist at Bat
tie of Fort Fisher.
Chicago News.)

Admiral Evans description Of the at
tack on Fort Fisher during the civil
war runs as follows: AT this moment
1 saw Colonel Lamb, the confederate
commander, calamity standing out on
the parapet and calling on his men to
get up and shoot the Yankees. l con-
sidered him within easy range of re-
Volver, so took a deliberate shot at him.
AS l fired a bullet ripped through the
front of my coat across my breast,
turning me completely around. l felt
burning sensation, like a hot IRON
over my heart, and saw something red
coming out of the hole in my coat
which l took for blood 1 knew, Of
course, that if a bullet had gone
through this portion of my body l was
done for, but that was no place tO stop,
so l went on at the head of my COM
pany. AS we approached the remains Of
the stockade / was aware that one par
ticular sharpshOOter was shooting at
me, and when we were 100 yards away
he hit me in the left leg, about three
inches below the knee. The force of the
blow was so great that l landed on my
face in the sand. l got a silk handker-
chief out of my pocket and, with the
kind assistance of my classmate, HO-
ban Sands. soon stopped the blood and
went again to the front as fast as
could.
About this time the men were STUN
bling over wires, which they cut with
their knives-they proved to be wires
To tOrpedOes over which we had
charged, but they failed to explode. My
left leg seemed asleep, but / was able
to use it. The stockade, or what re-
manned of it, was very near, and l de-
termined to lead my company by a
flank through a break in it, and then
charge over the angle of the fort, which
now looked very difficult TO climb.
managed TO get through the stOckade
with seven others, when my sharp
shooter friend sent a bullet through my
right knee. and l realized that my
chance of going was settled. l tried to
stand up, but il was no use; my legs
would not hold me, and besides this |
was bleeding dreadfully, and / knew
that was a matter which had TO be
looked to.
when 1 received the wound in my
right knee l began at once to try 70
stop the flow of blood. l used for the
purpose one of the half-doZen silk
handkerchiefs with which | had pro-
vided myself, but 1 was so tired and
weak from loss of blood that l was
I
meantime my sharpshOoter friend
about thirty-five yards away, cOntin-
ued to shoot at me, at the same time
addressing me in very forcible but I'M
complimentary language. AT the fifth
shot, I think it was. he hit me again,
taking off my shoe and wrenching my
ankle dreadfully. / thought the bullet
had gone through my ankle, the pain
was so intense.
| For some reason, I don't know why
/ this shot made me unreasOnably angry
and, rolling over in the sand so as tC
| face my antagonist. l addressed a few
| brief remarks to him; and then, just
as some one handed him a freshly
| loaded musket, I fired aiming at his
| breast. / knew all the time that
/ should kill him if l shot at him, but
/ had not intended to do so until he shot
me in the toe. My bullet went little
/ high. striking the poor chap in the
throat and passing out of the back OF
/ his neck. He staggered around, after
/ dropping his gun, and finally pitched
over the parapet and rolled down neal
me, where he lay dead. 1 could see his
| feet as they projected over a pile OF
sand, and from their position knew that
he had fought his last fight"