Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1913-05-20
SLEPT DURING THE BATTLE

MINNESOTA are dlSO uOlIS SClcUlillC
work along these lines.
SLEPT DURING THE BATTLE
When Massachusetts, Veteran Awoke
He Found His Regiment Had Gone.
The boys in blue in the civil war did
not always face the enemy without
turning tail, thus illustrating the old
saying, He who fights and runs away
will live to fight another day." and one
of the local veterans tells remarkable
story of his own experiences in this re-
spect at the battle Of Williamsburg on
May s, 1862.
Orders were given to advance early
on the morning Of May s. and the army
reached point before Williamsburg at
about o'clock, Hooker's division being
directly in front Of Ft. Magruder, the
principal fortress in the outer line Of
Richmond's defense. The fort was
thanked by line of redoubts extending
across the peninsula from the James
river to York river. "The ground in
front of the fort" says the Springfield
man, was open and level, but further
to the front It was heavily wooded.
This timber had been slashed down to
impede the progress of the Union troops
and Hookers division formed in line Of
battle in this fallen timber and then
advanced to the edge of the open ground
within range Of the enemy's artillery,
but out of range Of their musketry.
Our artillery was posted just beyond
the edge of the timber and opened fire
with the infantry supporting 1t imme-
diately in the rear.
Soon the enemy's shells were hurt
ling among the fallen timber, and we
were ordered to lie down and cover
ourselves behind tree trunks as well as
we could. 1t thus happened that only
a general line was preserved, although
all were ready to fall in at q moments
warning. selected q particularly large
tree trunk for my cover, some ten or
fifteen Yards In advance Of the general
line, and behind this lay down, TAX
ing off my knapsark and using 1t for
a pillow. I was not fully recovered
from my wound Of the year before, and
was exhausted from the twenty-four
hours duty and the long march with
the heavy load, and after an hour or
two I fell asleep. although the battle
was raging.
'T never knew how long I slept, but
II must have been an hour or two.
When I awoke stood up and looked
about me. The rain had ceased, and a
heavy fog mingled with the smoke
hung over the field; but, curiously, 1t
did not quite extend to the ground, and
by STOPPING could see under 1t. None
of my regiment nor any other was In
sight, but out In front about fifty yards
of was the battery which we had been
supporting, several guns dismounted.
carriages and caissons wrecked and a
great number of horses lying dead on
the ground. Scattered about among
the wreckage were about twenty men
with muskets in their hands and gray
overcoats on.
Now, my regiment and another
regiment in the same brigade were
wearing gray overcoats, and 1t never
occurred to me for moment that the
men were not of these two regiments,
So I shouted to them, Do you belong
to the - regiment? and greatly to
my surprise their muskets went up to
their shoulders and they yelled, Come
in here, you Yankee AS have said.
was only three months out Of Libby
prison, and the only thing I thought Of
was the dread Of going back there, so
grabbed my musket in one hand and
my knapsack in the other and started
to run for the rear.
IF the way had been open probably
would have run In IL straight line,
but in the timber I zigZagged about,
jumping over, crawling under or run
ming around fallen logs, so that when
they fired at me not a bullet touched
me. But 1 thought I heard a million
Of them about my ears. I was scared
into a panic. let go my knapsack.
but hung to my musket, and with my
wet overcoat fiaping about my legs
continued to run, utterly demoralized
and with only one thought-to get
away. If the enemy had had breech-
loading or magazine rifles they would
have fired again, and probably would
have got me. But as they were armed
with only muzzle leaders II took time
to load again, and this was my saliva
ton.
1 did not realize that had got into
zone Of safety and kept on a half mile
more, when I ran into line Of cavalry
deployed in the rear of our line to drive
up stragglers, of which there were
great number, as always happens with
an army-men who had fallen out be-
fore getting to the front and others
who had skulked behind and still 9TH
ers who had gone back to help the
wounded. 1t seems that the battery
which we had been supporting had been
put out of action and that the enemy
had turned the flank Of Hooker's divi-
sion, and my regiment and brigade
had been hurried over to re-enforce
the left, so that when 1 awoke was
alone.
Officers of the cavalfy had rallied
about 1000 men, and after getting into
an open space organized them into a
regiment under officers of the cavalry
and noncommissioned officers among
the stragglers. An officer harrangued
them for a few minutes, instilling en-
thusiasm into them, and then we went
forward to the battle line and there we
fought until darkness cane and ended
the battle. I spent the greater part OF
pf0 hunting a ahn1f irving find