The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-09-24
A Veteran S
Yarn
BY DANIEL CLAYBOURNE.

getting old For half century they
have been telling stories of their ex
periences in the great struggle, which
were literally true when the veterans
first told them, but the old chaps have
gradually forgotten much of them
which they have been obliged to supply
by invention. These invented parts
after much telling. have gradually be
come impressed on the minds of the
story tellerss as truth. That the story
shouldn't lose any of its original in.
terest the invented parts have been a
trifie more Munchauseny than the real
parts.
The consequence Is that now and
then a pretty lively yarn is got of
by some old septuagenarian which be
has grown up in the way have men.
toned. This is one of them.
II was In at our victory at Chicka-
mauga," the Union veteran began
when he was not headed off.
II thought we were knocked into a
cooked hat at Chickamauga," said a
man only forty years old.
'MebbS you was there and wasn't
growled the veteran. Reckon you
wasn't born then, you kid. Well, as
| was saying, / was at Chickamauga.
and If you don't believe me look at
this stump of an arm. ! was first lieu.
tenant OF a battery. and the cap'n
being killed. succeeded to the com
mand.
MY battery was stationed with
General Thomas corps around a hill
that wIthstood the whole of Bragg's
army.
"They were pumpin' shot and shell
into us and we was givin' it back
to 'em when l began to be conscious
OF number of mimic bullets singin'
about my ears. For while was so
intent on hammerin' the Johnnies that
/ didn't think much about the waspy
things. but suddenly II came to me that
a sharpshooter was tryin' to pick me
Off.
II tell you that wasn't a comforting
surmise. Not by any means. The
night before we had cut down all the
trees In front OF us in order to give
sweep to our guns, and just beyond the
clearing was the edge Of a wood.
where the Confederates we're at work
on us.
II looked up at these green trees just
in time to see little puff of smoke in
the branches of one of 'em, and at the
same moment a ball seemed TO Craze
my ear put up my hand expectin' 10
feel blood, but ! didn't; the ear was
still there.
II had a telescope pointer on my
gun that had been invented by sci
entific officer, and l thought I'd try
and get that fellow with one Of our
percussion. shells. l had TO aim quick,
for / knew he was reloading for an
other shot. Fortunately one of the
guns was just ready TO be fired and,
laying the telescope on it, / sighted
the gun. The glass enabled me to see
the man in the tree, and he had just
rammed another bullet home when l
got bead on him and fred.
THE smoke that followed prevented
my seeing exactly where the shot
struck, but l saw my man come tum-
bling down. The tree stood apparently
unframed. Whether the sharpshooter
had been killed by my shot or dropped
by the conclusion of the shell striking
the tree, 1 couldn't tell. What puzzled
me was that | couldn't see any smoke /
from the explosion.
81 soon forgot all about the matter in
the work | was dom, but after the /
fight | got curious about what had
dropped the man in the tree and what
had become of the shell had fred at
him.
81 couldn't go to examine the |
place. for was busy till we left the
ground on which we had been fightin'
But the thing troubled me, and | took !
the first opportunity after the close of /
the war to go down there and find out |
about it.
THAT was about the time when 1
they were laying out the National park,
and | met number of ex-Union and I
soldiers there / found !
the tree l wanted to examine and as | |
1t saw man looking up at
It's branches. When l reached him / 1
asked him what he was lookin' for. He
said that during the battle he was up
In the tree as sharpshooter. and, see
Ing en- officer workin' a Union battery
effectively, he had tried to pick him off.
he had fired and missed several times
and was ready for another shot when