The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-05-30

Many Vagaries, Dolu.
sions and Freaks of
Human Nature Re.
called by Veteran Of
Civil War

fighting men are often hystcri.al in
battle. If you think hysteria is an in.
dication of womanliness in n ..liier
just try to taunt one with such az I.r.r.
sion at the moment he is undr. fro
You'll be disabused Of the notion II,
double quick time. I've seen men cry and
sob and snarl and talk to Themselves
petulantly as the bullets flew around
Each IN according to his nature v,sa
human being apart from his fellows.
I've seen them do all Of these s,raupe
things and yet behave like brave men
should behave. Some I've seen arbt
with n sort of a whine for every time
they loaded their gun. They'd declare
they knew they were going to get th,-s'
and fire their muskets in the miI., -
their prediction.
Just as there is lots Of hys',,.a. 50
there is lots of d%eviltry among soldiers.
I mean sheer prankishness in the midst
of the greatest danger.
Il have in mind in particular George
Davis Of the IO2d New York, Who was
SO young that he should have been
beating a drum instead Of carry.nra
musket. He was the head and centre
Of more deviltry than Satan himself
could have planned for a body @. men
under arms.
HE capped the climax when We we're
in camp at Stevenson, Ala. just before
Sherman began his march to the ~,a.
nn. ,;.,ht ;,gt hac,r, ~ .f.1.-I 81
tire camp was almost thrown from its
tents by a terrific explosion. our rori-
ment was under arms in a few moments
and the alarm spread through the cn-
tire brigade. Soon Generals were
aroused and the rumor spread that the
enemy a short distance away on the
Tennessee River had begun an attack.
$50 we waited a~nAiously FIVE minutes,
ten minutes, half an hour, and an hour,
but not another gun was heard We
kept keyed up oil night. but nothing
more happened. At dawn W" began
to investigate. We found in an open -,io4
between the sentry line and the main
camp the evidences of an cNi,u-on.
Bits Of iron and parts Of tin boNr, vrre
picked up. Part of the hunt dr,ui,,i
on me. After thinking it over f'um
various angles | concluded it was Davis.
/ discovered he had made himself Hr.'o
friendly with the men attached 20 'he
ordnance department. Then ! found
through casual inquiry that he ha! or"it
into his tent shortly before the ">i .o-
sion.
Il sent for Davis and without wasting
time in third degree preliminarics started
to laugh and said: George, wh"i.d y"I
get that POWDER He was tickled might
lily at the light way l appeared 10 harI."
the matter and answered PROM 'ly.
Over at the ordnance department,
Major, and wasn't it a corkcr We'll,
it seems he had stolen several cans
Of powder. and heaping up what mad"
quite a number of pounds had ruN d
slow fuse, lit it and ESCAPED from ''"
scene. We disciplined him ~.iD" hy
tying him TO a post in camp and t..'S
him he would be tried and hdulri Ir-
yond all doubt, Strange TO say. / ..'i
afterward that he had really .'.l
hanged somewhere out West. la Do"
was a sample Of what a soldier N. d"
between battles or right on thu '.. q
battle. I've seen Davis under fire.. .Hi
you'd wonder what he was lau.lH' u.
for he'd place a cartridge in his m....'
laughing. ram it down the barr. .e
ing, aim and fire it laughing ana 'r
repeat the operation with all the '-'.
signs of thinking it quite a joke