The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-05-31

A forward movement daily was ex-
pected. The battery, anxious to do
its duty and get back home as quick
as might be- grumb1ed at the delay
which kept it lying idle in camp. Let
ter writing and reading became one
of the principal occupations of the
day. And under these circum-
stances a member of the battery sat
down and wrote a letter which now,
nearly a half century later, when all
but seventy-five out of the total of
248 men who made up the famous
organization have passed away,
comes forth like ghost of the past
to bring up a vivid picture of that
spring so long ago.
Hunting through the garnet OF an
old Illinois farmhouse, the letter was
brought to light by a Chicago man,
who turned it over to the Sunday
Tribune. 1t was written on letter
head of the "The Chicago Board of
Trade Battery and an effort was
made to identify the writer. "H. B"
Captain J. A Nourse, secretary of
the Board of Trade Battery associa-
ton, when appealed to, dug into the
muster rolls with interest.
"'H. b." he unused as he scanned
the list of boys who went to war with
him. There were two of the boys in
the battery that might have signed
There was Homer Baker and Henry
Bennett. Now, Homer had his folks
over in Canada some place, I remem-
Der, and a letter from him would hard
house. Let's see-Ah. Homer Baker:
Taken prisoner January "a, 1853. Elk
changed June 25.' It couldn't be
Baker, because he was in southern
prison at the time the letter was writ
| ten. He has since died.
| 'tHere it is: Henry Bennett, enlist
ed at Chicago That must be the man
Bennett was a carpenter at the time of
| his enlistment and had folks down
state. He enlisted as a private, but in
1863, when that letter was written, he
was a lieutenant Is he living? He
certainly is. He's general contractor
in Topeka, Kan, and if nothing goes
wrong he'll be in Chicago to attend the
battery associations annual banquet at
| the Union League club.
1.-THE movement of troops of which he
speaks in the postscript probably was
| one of the tentative movements that
| tie which he predicts did not occur I'M
| til the latter part of June, when the
battery, in common with the rest of
| the division, moved forward in pursuit
cumstances quite well. The boys were
tired of id1eness and wanted action.
Well, they got 1t during the next two
years, got 1t in plenty. They're most
| of them gone now, and the rest are
going fast. And here comes this old
letter. which probably will last longer
than the man who wrote it. Bennett
must be the man: it couldn't be any one
else"
Further investigation led to the dis
covery Of another letter in the same
handwriting signed H. Bennett "
which fixes the authorship on Lieut.
Henry Bennett. The letter itself. on
the request of Capt. Nourse, goes to
join the collection of intimate history
of the Chicago Board of Trade battery
another reminder of the great strug-
gle
LEST WE FORGET
Following is the letter printed by the
Tribune:
In Camp. Murfreesboro, Tenn,
| May 2, 1863.
Dear Grandfather: Your letter dat
| ed April 25 received with much pleas
ure and was glad to hear that grand
| mother was some better and that the
rest of the family was in good health.
Am sorry that you are suffering SO
much from rheumatism, but hope the
warm weather will bring you out all
right. 1t is very warm here at pres
ent and everything goes smoothly
and agreeably. The whole army is
now living in shelter tents, by orders
from Washington. They are a nice
thing in dry weather, but in wet
weather they are a trife better than