Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1909-01-08

Green Flag In Battle.

|
mental or state flag carried with the
colors of the stars and stripes was solid
blue. The Irish regiments, from some
of the states at least, carried green
flags instead Of blue, and it always
made my heart swell with pride to see
that the green flags in the charging
line never Jagged behind. Nearly every
Irish regiment in the Union army
made good record, and I have always
been sorry that so many Of the anec-
dotes Of every day experience have not
found a permanent place in the war
literature
"For example, there was an Irish
man of the Thirty-sixth Indiana who
while on the skirmish line at Dallas,
saw a good chance to capture a rebel.
He availed himself of the opportunity
captured his man, and was passing to
the rear with his prisoner, when one
Of the boys called out to him, Pat let
me have that man. / will take him
over to General Gross, our brigade
commander 'Niver mind, me boy re-
Piled Pat, 7 left a million back over
the hill there. Go yourself and fetch
one Of the lads over and take him to
General Gross
"a member of the Chicago Irish reg
iment which at the time was in the
Fifteen corps, became very much excit-
ed because he couldn't force cartridge
into his musket, fouled by continuous
firing. He tried and tried again, and
at last called out to his Colonel ex-
planning why he could not load. 1t was
in the midst Of a furious engagement,
and the colonel advised him to try
again. Pat tried again, failed, and
then facing the enemy, came to an
order of arms and stood like a statue.
The colonel asked him what he meant,
and Pat replied, Sure, I'm jist waitin'
for a Johnny to come up till I can
knock his brains out with me musket.
am waitih' for him. and in the midst
Of the hottest possible fire, he waited
until the regiment charged forward"
II remember a case," said the cap
Casey a little mite CT a man, dis
tinguished himself at Bull Run. After
everybody had been withdrawn from
our line, Casey remained loading and
firing, unconscious Of the fact that the
regiment had retired and that he alone
was holding the advanced line. Final
ly he was surrounded, and rebel Crap
pied with him, ordering him to sur
render. Casey caught his man, and
shouted back to the regiment reform
ing In the rear, Colonel, OF have a
prisoner here, but he won't let me bring
him in. Casey was rescued, but he
lost his prisoner.
"We had in our regiment a captain
who had served his time in railway
building, and who had risen from a day
laborer to the position Of subcontractor
and boss. He was often severe with
his men, but many a time I have seen
him in the midst of hot engagement
when 1t became necessary to throw up
intrenchments, throw off his sword belt
and blouse, take up spade or shovel,
and do as much work as three or four
men. On one occasion the colonel,
dashing along the line, discovered the
captain in the trenches and ordered
him out. The captain declined to come
saying, good-humoredly, There are
times, Colonel, when the shovel Is
mightier than the sword. This is one
Of the times
81 remember that on that famous
day at Kenesaw when the burial
parties were sent out to take care of
the dead, between the lines, General
J. D. Morgan, of Davis division, work
ed, shovel in hand, aiding the men to
bury the dead. There were a dozen or
more rebel officers in the immediate vi
cinity, and not one Of them recognized
the general, dressed, as he was, in
common soldiers blouse, trousers, and
cap. He paid no attention to General
Cheatham or any Of the other rebel
officers on the ground, but continued to
the last to work with his men, person
ally directing every detail I saw at
that time General D. S. Stanley of the
Fourth corps sitting quietly on his own
intrenchments, smoking his pipe and
watching with an amused smile the
rebels in his immediate front. He re-
ceived many an admiring glance but no
one seemed to notice General Morgan"
Chicago Inter-Ocean.
From Corporal to Sergeant.
A number Of war stories had been
told at the last meeting Of the Old Sol
diers' club when the veteran announced
that Sergeant Spriggins would for the
first time explain the real circum-
stances which resulted in his winning
his chevrons, and the sergeant, says the
Detroit Free Press, coughed once or
twice, blushed a bit and began.
"It was at one Of them fights in the
Wilderness" he said, zone Of them hot
ones that comes up every now and
then, but don't get much Of show in
hi