The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1913-05-29
SLEPT DURING THE BATTLE.
When Massachusetts Veteran AwOke
He Found Regiment Had Gone.

| did not always face the enemy with
out 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 a
| remarkable story of his own expert
ence in this respect at the battle of
Williamsburg on May 5, 1862.
Orders were given to advance early
on the morning of May 5, and the
army reached a point before Will
iamsburg at about 7 O'Clock, Hook
er's division being directly in front
of Ft. Magruder, the principal fort
ress IN the outer line of Richmond's
defense. The fort was flanked by a
line of redoubts extending across the
peninsular 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 in
fantry supporting it Immediately in
the rear.
"Soon the enemy's shells were
hurtling among the fallen timber,
and we were ordered to lie down and
cover ourselves behind tree trunks as
we'll as we could. 1t thus happened
that only general line was preserv-
ed, although all were ready to fall In
at q moments warning. l selected
a particularly large tree trunk for my
cover, some ten or fifteen yards in
advance of the general line, and be-
hind this l lay down, taking off my
knapsack and using it for pillow.
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 heav! load, and after an hour or
two l fell asleep, although the battle
was raging.
Il never knew how long slept,
but it must have been an hour or two.
When I awoke I stood up and looked
about me. The rain had ceased, and
a heavy fog mingled with the smoke
hung over the field; but, curiously, it
did not quite extend to the ground,
and by STOPPING 1 could see under it.
None of my regiment or any other
was in sight, but out in front about
fifty yards off 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 mus
kets in their hands and gray over
coats on.
'Now, my regiment and another
roeiment in the same brigade were
wearing gray overcoats, and it never
occurred to me for moment that the
men were not of these two regiments.
So 1 shouted to them, DO you be-
long to the regiment?' and
greatly to my surprise their muskets
went up to their shoulders and they
yelled, Come in here, you Yankee.
AS I have said, l was only three
months out of Libby prison, and the
only thing l thought of was the dread
of going back there, so I grabbed my
musket in one hand and my knapsack
in the other and started to run foA
the rear.
''If the way had been open prop
erly l would have run in a straight
line, but in the timber | zlgzagged
about, jumping over, crawling under
or running around fallen logs, so that
when they fired at me not a bullet
touched me. But l thought l heard
million of them about my ears. l
was scared into a panic. let go my
knapsack but hung to my musket,
and with my wet overcoat Tapping
about my legs continued to run, ut
terly demoralized and with only one
thought-to get away, If the enemy
had had breechloading or magazine
rifles they probably would have got
me. But as they were armed with
only muzzle leaders it took time to
load again, and this was my saliva
ton.
81 did not realize that had got
into a zone of safety and kept on
half mile more, when I ran into line
~