Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-07-27
VETERAN DRIVES
FROM OKLAHOMA |: | |. | H | !.
Carrying Wound from Petersburg
Corporal De Hass Com !'
pIetes Hard Trip.
RODE THREE 4 thousand MILES
seventy Years Young and Erect as. an
indian He Rides Into Town With g
His Wife and Son. 8

His Wife and Son. y
| Carrying his seventy years as erect
as he did when he shouldered his
musket in 80 j. W. De Hass stood
proudly by his wagon in Pterpont
street this morning and pointed TO ~ y
as the vehicle which had carried
him, his wife and MS son all the way.
from Oklahoma city to this city that
he might attend the Forty-third en-
canlpment OF the Grand Army of the
Republlc--and 1t was a Journey or
some three thousand miles in all kinds
of weather from April until August.
+ Corporal De Hass, accompanied by
Mrs. De Hass and their youngest son
arrived here this morning IN thelH
wagon entering the city after u rae
last night through .Parleys canyon. ~. ~
members of the little party are well
and the veteran of 81 with smile
told a News report erH this mornlne
of their trip to this city IN.
We started from Oklahoma CITY
April j 8 and arrived in this valley
this morning. The horses are pls
peaked but aside from that we anu an.
Our animals are we'll and HAPPY. we
have had a mighty hard trip, for az
the start high water made roads bad !.
fording streams almost impossible
and delayed us just at the time .We
hoped to make our best speed. we w,
made camp all along the way Carried
our own Kitchen and everything else
we needed except food. w 5poubS.
our f,ot' as we went along ana se ssLlks
that haven't forgotten now e
I. ,l fSIyast n
wanted ali the way. The last fishing
II did, BY the way, was in Weber
canyon and, BY hockey, 1t was a!5 S,r'I y,
4 Z inches long that dallsleu5
from the end Of my line. Our first stop
at "a big town was in Denver and from
there We made Laramie in wyoming
then Saratoga ana then back into COZ
doubled back into Wyoming TO Wan an
setta on the Union Pacific. We fol-
lowed the u. P. q 10 Rock Springs and
then to Green River, hitting through
Echo canyon and over to Coalvtile ana Z
Park City. From there we Went down
the canyon and came out this morning
and drove into the city. 93
FACED MANY =HARDsHIPs.
e we have had a pile OF hardshlps e
face, but we of Oklahoma have been
used to that and we don't mind IT
much. The wife and boy had the
mountain fever but the old soldier
stuck 1t out all the way through with
nothing important the matter with
him.. And he smiled as he said IT.,
and then the memory of the old days
must have returned, for he began tell
ing Of his service with the c : u
II was In Co. f of the 149th P ,eAli
sylvnrlia serving In the First and tho
Fifth corps. II was mustered IN Aug.
1862. and was mustered out j uly 4, $780, 40
II was a corporal, but not until they
made me take 1t. I didn't want any
Office, but the rebels gave 1t to us 4 SO
heavy that when there were so few or
us left some body had TO he corporais
fvania infantry regiment was In the
.thlckest5 of the war and came out with
its ranks mighty thin. There are few
of us left and i haven't seen any OF my
comrades at any of the encampments
initiate years. hope I will see some
Of the boys this time, though.
WOUNDED IN ACTION.
Ell f eve fought our first fight at Gettys-4
burg under Gen. Reynolds, who was
killed In the action. i served under
Gen. Doubleday until the same fall.
when Con. Warren took command of
the corps. I fought through the Get
atysburg campaign, through all the Bat
ties OF the Wilderness and through the
siege of Petersburg until February OF
t65. when / was shot in the left arm
and nut out of action until the war
was over And the old veteran Of 50
many enga gements showed an ugly
flirrow in his left arm. beginning at the
wrist and continuing Its crooked course
we'll up to the elbow. It was an ugly
wound, he said, and caused him much
suffering; not all of 1t because OF the
pain Of the wound itself, but too, the
thought OF being disabled and out of the
action in which his comrades Of so
many hardShips were participating.
HOPES no SEE OLD OFFICERS.
1--WE had several company command
.ers for the toll of death was large In
our regiment. The last captain was
Amos Row and Amos Little was first
lieutenant and r. A.. Mitchell was sec,
.ond lieutenant Lieut., Mitchell is still
living. / believe The last letter / had
from him was While he was in Indiana
and i believe he is still there. l hope
he comes to the encainpment here, for
L would love to see some of the OLD
soldiers of the One Hundred and Forty
ninth Pennsylvania. The last enca m p
mert attended was three years ago
Minnesota. s
Corp. De Hass and NJ De Hass were
trail blazers in Oklahoma, taking up a
homestead 10 miles east Of what Is
now Oklahoma City. They rtved on it
until within a few years ago, when the
aged veteran was forced to give up
hard labor. They have raised a family
of II children, Who are living, and one
son fell into mine in California and
was killed in the accident. When the
party of three started out from Okla
ihonla. a new wagon. harness and fresh
horses were purchased with which To
make the trip. Only one breakdown
occurred to delay them, and that was
a split in the doubletree, which the
veteran repaired and after a short stop
the party moved on After Its trip Of
5000 miles the wagon looks not bit
like a new one. but 1t still will stand
considerable service, AS the corporal
says, the horses look a 'bit peaked
hut With good rest they look as Il
they will be able to make the rest cfi