The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1915-01-06
Christmas at Nashville,
Tenn, Fifty Years Ago
Member Of The Seuenth Minnesota Recalls DAYS
When Hood and Thomas Faced Each Other
for Famous Last Battle at Nashville
SUNNY SOUTH NOT SO SUNNY
Soldier Lads Enjoy Dinner Of Stolen Mutton
and Goose After Days of Battle
and Hardship
SUNNY SOUTH NOT SO SUNNY
DEAR GAZETTE:

just fifty years ago Gas you
may have heard) a certain mem
Der of Uncle Sans family who
had become disgruntled by some
of the old mans methods in rum
ming the old plantation, and had
gone off mad" so to speak, and
had remained far from the fold''
for quite a time, took it into his
head to journey back towards
the old home, and incidentally
to take his Christmas dinner at
Nashville, Tenn, on his way,
spending the holiday and gaay-
be the winter in that vicinity,
as from a distance it looked pref
ty good to him.
This recreant brother of ours
was Major General Hood, G. S.
A., and in his absence of sew
eral years he had gathered about
him quite a large following of
his huffy friends and neighbors,
who also thought a Christmas
feast at Nashville would be a
pretty good proposition, seeing
their larder was running rather
low. Their former friends and
relatives, who were keeping
house at Nashville, and were
quite comfortably fixed, got word
that they might be expected at
about that time, and not know
ing but that the number of the
guests might be greater than
they could entertain properly
and in a manner suitable to the
occasion, called in some of the
nearby members Of the family
to assist at the entertainment.
Among those within reasonably
easy reach were the four regi-
ments of our Minnesota boys,
who were for a few days enjoy
ing a much needed rest after a
very severe fall and winter cam
paign. These four regiments
were the 9Th, 7th, 9th and 10th
of Minnesota, and all belonging
to the 18th Army Corps, Gen
eral A. j. Smith in command.
Obeying orders promptly they
reached the vicinity of Nashville
at about the same time and the
first day of December 1864 found
our favorite Pap" Thomas, ably
assisted by old A. j. as we called
him, pretty well prepared to re-
ceive the visitors. But things
didn't look very propitious for
"a real sociable Christmas, though
it might be merry enough.
Cousin Hood had 100000 in his
crowd and a day or two before
we got on the scene, had had a
little unpleasantness down at
Franklin, Tenn, and guns were
used and men were hurt on both
sides, and bad blood was stirred
up.
Well! Hood, came up to Nash
vile, or as close as he thought
to be polite and in good taste
under the circumstances and
limited that he'd like to bring
the boys in for all night or So
maybe for Christmas. But we
could hardly see it, most toe
big a crowd, and then after the
way they had been acting up
down the road Franklin way
they didn't look so cousinly tc
us as they would have us be.
lieve. Besides we Minnesota
boys all had to sleep out doors
and camp out Of doors, and the
weather was getting to be gosh
blamest you ever saw; rainy
snowy and freezing up. MUD
knee deep one day and next
morning we'd find our old thin
blankets frozen in solid, so we
had to tear them all to pieces
to get them out. The people
down there called all Minnesota
boys the "snow diggers" and we
thought we were pretty tough
but we were not proof against
the discomfort of sleeping out
Of doors all those rainy, freez-
ing nights. So we settled down
in our trenches facing the Hood
crowd and told them they'd bet
ter get back south.
The result is well known. The
second battle of Nashville fol
lowed, and it was "some battle, !
lasted three days and ended in
the couplete rout of Hoods ar
my and destroying all hope Of
rebel reorganization in the west.
But it is not my purpose to write
a history Of the last battle of
Nashville" as it was known at
that time, but rather to call UP