The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1914-02-26
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RHRa1NIS5c9tE{5sS 5Es
AT SPANISH FORT, ALABAMA
Exciting Incidents Attending Capture
Of "Towser," a Confederate Gun
That Did Much Damage.

Reading the account of the curious
behavior Of wild SHE'LL" by H. II.
Cole, brought TO mind quite vividly the
experience that | and a squad Of my
comrades had before Spanish Fort,
Ala, April 8, 1865, during the bonn
bardment toward the close Of that
day
In the beginning Of the investment
the confederate gunners had a decid-
ed advantage over ours, having heavy
ordnance and an accurate range Of
all available places suitable for plant
Ing battery. Consequently when one
of our little 'popgun" batteries went
into position and started to do busi-
ness the fort would turn loose and
knock off the top of the hill, together
with that battery, writes A. E. Clan
vile of Poe, Kan, in the National Tri-
bune. Finally we got supply of heavy
siege guns, after which we could do
little laughing, too.
There was one gun in particular In
the fort we called "Towser," which
threw a projectile some six inches in
diameter by 16 long. 1t was located
in front Of our brigade (McMillan's)
and bothered us considerably. But
Its position we failed to discover un-
til the eve of the day we took the
fort. 1t was during the height of the
bombardment that my regiment filed
into the last parallel to relieve those
that had preceded them, while under
the fierce concentrated fire Of 100 or
more guns of all caliber. Their deaf
ening roar, together with the de-
moniac shrek of the passing shells,
gave one a shock that expanded ones
internal fixings and nearly jerked
ones ribs loose every second. Just
where the sap entered the parallel
greater width of dirt had been re-
moved for greater convenience and to
avoid congestion. Shortly after the
boys had got down to business in
passing that spot my attention was
called by one of them to his discov-
cry of "TowserS" embrasure. 1t was
| equipped with a shield, or port stop
per, and during the haze of a fusillade
Of small arms the gun was run out
and fired, the yecoil closing the en-
brasure. On reporting the matter to
Col. Jennison / was directed to take
squad and post them in its front
and deliver our fire into that embras-
ure when it would do the most good.
| am not able to state the full effect
OF our fire, but the projectiles from
"Towser" went away over our heads
into the back country after that.
During the siege the enemy kept
pelting us with hand grenades, fired
at first from small petards, but later,
when we got close up to their works,
they could be thrown by hand. They
did but little damage, and if one were
on the lookout they could be easily
lodged.
On this occasion they we're drop
ping them pretty lively in the trench,
and as our attention was fully occu-
pied with "Towser" one of our squad
was given the job of watching for
them and giving warning. Shortly
afterward an unusually sharp Look
QUIT" and we dropped to the ground
at about the same instant large
bomb struck the ground and burst in
our midst into hundreds of diamond.
shaped pieces, which filled the sides
of the trench about waist-high, COW
ering us with dirt and filling the
trench with sitting sulphurous fumes.
We were pretty we'll stunned, but as
soon as we could pull ourselves to-
gether and shake the dirt off we found
none hurt, and all resumed their at
tention to "Towser."