The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1913-07-24
PRINTED ON WALL PAPER.
Veteran Suggests Reprint of Queer
Newspaper.

was a member of Company G, 9th
Illinois infantry volunteers, was with
Gen Grants army in the rear OF
Vicksburg, and was in the rifle pits
On July 3, near the place where Gen.
Grant met the Confederate general,
Pemberton, to discuss the conditions
upon which Vicksburg and its gar
rison were to be surrendered. The
actual surrender occurred about 10
o'clock on the morning of July 4,
1863, and soon after the Confeder-
ates had marched out of their works
and stacked their guns, permission
was given to a part of the army to
20 into the city, and this we did,
with our haversacks we'll filed with
hard bread, which was freely dis
tributed, as long as it lasted, to those
against whom we had been aiming
cur bullets for forty-nine, days.
One reason for this unseemly haste
in entering the city was because the
division of the army to which be-
longed was ordered to join Gen Sher-
mans command and march against
the Confederate general, Joe E. John
ston's forces, who were in our imme-
date rear, and the start was to be
made early on the morning of July
5, and unless we were permitted to
enter the city on the 4th we might
never see inside the Notifications that
we had struggled 50 long to capture.
In our rambles through the city of
Vicksburg we found a little printing
office, equipped with a Franklin
hand-power printing press, and on 1t
was a four column form dated July 2,
1863. One other and myself in our
little party, had had some experience
in printing Offices, before we entered
the army, and as there was a little
pile of wall paper in the corner of the
room that had been wet down
(dampened so that it would take the
ink,) we decided that We would make
q few pennies and at the same time
supply those who wanted it with
souvenir in the shape of a newspaper
published on wall paper. Some one
wrote a short paragraph, dating it
July 4, and while it was being set up
the others got things in readiness so
as to insert the new paragraph. The
ink was not of the best, but We sue
ceeded in distributing it. on stone,
with a hand roller, from which it
was transferred to the face of the
type. I did the press work, and while
the result was not sucn as would be
entitled to first prize in contest,
yet we succeeded in using up the wall
paper and found ready sale for the
edition of perhaps, 200 or 800 copies.
1 sent one copy to my mother, which
uOW III LILY Po0SSooASAA'
From the time Gen. Grants forces
first invested the city of Vicksburg
until its surrender, there were some
thing near 10000 Union soldiers who
Participated either in its reduction or
in defending our rear from attack bJ
the forces under command of the
Confederate general, Joe E. Johnston,
and on the Confederate side, includ-
ing the $4,000 that were surrender
ed, and those composing Gen John;
ston's command, who were engage
in trying to raise the seige, there
were, perhaps, all told, about 6C,OOO,
and it has occurred to me that on
this semi-centennial of that occasion
a reproduction of this paper would
he priced, not only by those who par.
ticipated in that struggle, but also by
their descendants and by many Others
who might wish to possess copy as
4 curiosity, and that quite a sum
might be realized by it's sale.
The author does not wish person
ally to profit by this reproduction
but desires that every dollar which
can be realized over and above the
actual expenses incurred shall be
equally divided among the needy vet.
Grams of the cival war, one-half to be
turned over to U. S. Grant Post, NO.
e27, of New York, to be spent by it
in it's charitable work, and the other
half to go 10 some Confederate as
sociation, to be spent in a like man
ner.-Cor. of Brooklyn Eagle.