Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1915-08-27
Civil War "reminiscences
Jackson Defended BY Trench Line.
LBY DAN McLEoD.

on forced march, the men were
falling by the way side exhausted
with thirst and heat. Our company
being in the rear, had hard time
of it trying to keep the men up.
| finally came upon Forest and
Collins sitting on log by the road
side, two Of the men who had to
mark time at Jackson for getting on
little tear. couldn't move them
bv begging or any way. They said
you know how we were treated at
Jackson ard we SAID then that we
would not fire another gun at the
blues, unless we were located so
that we couldn't help ourselves.
They Gold me goodbye with a hearty
hand shake and tears in their eyes.
saw Forest in Mobile some years
after the war aud he said Collins was
there also and if | would get on his
watermelon cart that we would go
and hunt Collins and some of the
other irish boys and paint the town
red at their expense. | thanked
him very cleverlv but refused to go.
a good irishmau has some Of as tine
qualities as any race IN existence but
something like the scotch il they are
mean, satan can't heat them.
We arrived at Jackson at about
Esundown with only eight men Of our
company present, but they nearly
| all made it in sometime in the night.
For day or two we had peace
and rest. Our men were put to work
on trenches around Jackson from
Pearl river at 0ve to Pearl river be-
low SO that all of the town would BE-
hedged in completely. About twelve
or fifteen field guns were placed all
the way around on the works, SO
that we could give the blues fits if
they tackled us. We were hearing
of the blues every day. Cavalry
scouts were watching them day and
night and Ike sping the officers post
ed. am not sure who was general
in charge but | think Gen. Bragg
was in command of the whole army.
Dav by day TIL blues were get
ting nearer our works but we were
in good shape to give them trouble if
they tackled us. The only serious
trouble was that they might put
pontoons above and below Jackson
and get in on our rear and capture
the whole army as we didn't have
men enough to guard our rear. 1t
was but short time till the blues
were getting ready for attack and
we were ordered in the bitches
Our regiment was loo ated
near the river south of Jackson ana
such was a good thing for US. be-
cause fine stream of clear water
flowing out of gully in the rear of
our company but water had to be
hauled from Pearl river in barrels
for half mile or more to get it to
the soldiers, while we had a strong
stream of cold water right by US and
another trou BILE was that the blues
shelled the water wagons when they
got sight of them. One time three
of our men crawled out of the ditch |
down the bluff to the spring spoken
of to cool off and drink. While there
shell from field piece, feled
shell between our bitches and our
water hole which rolled down the |
bluff among these three soldiers;
sparks squirting from one end like |
a fire.cracker Two of the soldiers
tried to scramble up the bluff, but
the other fellow took hold of the
shell and threw it ia the water and
it died before YOU could say scat.
The fellows were in three or four
feet of the waters edge when the
sparks were drowned out and if the
soldiers had been dead they couldn t
Lave looked any deader.
We had four cannons at our end of
the line and they were giving the
blues a great deal of trouble at times.
One of these was placed across the
ditch in four or five feet of my loca-
ton only two bales of cotton be-
tween myself and the cannon. A
bout mile in front of our location
was an open view and we could see
wagons trains. officers ON hnrsns |