Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-04-07

tied ourselves in comfortable camps
among the wooded hills. enjoyed better
rations than We ever got again, grad
ualy collected horses, recruits, con-
scripts and returning sick and wounded,
and altogether we felt about as well sat
isfied with the situation and prospect as
We had ever done before
The enjoyment of our pleasant camps
and still pleasanter rest was suddenly
broken September Q by orders for Hoods
and McLaws' divisions Of Longstreet's
corps. about II 900 strong, with my bat
talon of artillery, twenty three guns to
go. under the personal command Of Gen.
Longstreet. to reinforce Bragg in
Georgia. The same day Rosecrans. in
his campaign against Bragg, entered
Chattanooga, having accomplished his OBJ
ject of maneuvering his opponent there
from.
1t was clear now. however, that our
adversary, the Army of the Potomac.
could not resume the offensive for some
months, and there would be ample time
to send this force out to enable Bragg
TO crush Rosecrans. and bring 1t back to
Virginia before 1t would be needed there.
1t was the only occasion during the war,
believe, when the Confederates availed
themselves of the possession Of the In
terror and shorter lines, and transferred
a force of any magnitude rapidly from
the eastern to the western army to meet
an emergency. and then to return.
The orders were received September Q.
1853. and the troops were put in motion
Immediately for Petersburg, whence we
were to have railroad transportation to
the vicinity of Chattanooga via Whining
ton n. c., and Augusta and Atlanta, Ga.
This line at the time was the only one
open from Virginia to Georgia, the East
Tennessee line, the only other then exist
ing. being held by the enemy at Knox
Vile, Tenn. Consequently 1t was taxed
with the entire business OF the Confed-
eracy between those states. and that 1t
managed to do 1t at all has always
seemed to me a feat in railroad manage
ment deserving great praise
The roads had had but small busi-
ness before the war, and their equip
ment and motive power were light,
not uniform, and often the tracks OF
connecting roads were Joined through
the cities only by lines of drays. and
there was no interchange Of cars There
was no mandatory of locomotives
I'm the south. and but one small rolling
mill, at Atlanta. that could make a
rail Yet, in spite OF all these draw
backs and the enormous business sud
denly thrown upon them. and frequent
raids by the enemy, destroying bridges.
tearing up tracks, burning ties and
bending and twisting rails. the rail-
roads always came up again smiling,
and stuck to the contest as faithfully
as did the army.
My battalion brought up the rear.
leaving Petersburg September II. and
arriving at Ringgold. Ga. the railroad
terminus near Chickamauga, the 25th.
Three days before. Bragg having de-
feated Rosecrans at Chickamauga on
the 18th and Goth, the Union army had
Withdrawn to Chattanooga, and by the
25th it was besieged by Bragg
Our ARTILLERY was distributed about
our lines. the station Of my own
battalion being on Lookout mountain,
whence we threw shells over the
enemys territory, and fought daily
with vicious little battery in Moe
casin Bend. almost directly under US.
This battery had nearly buried itself
in the ground under high parapets.
and fred up at US like a man shooting
at squirrel in tree. We propped
our trails high up in the air to depress
the muZzles, and tried to mash our
opponents into the earth with solid
shot and percussion shells, but we
hurt