Charlevoix county herald. (East Jordan, Mich.) 189?-1953, 1918-02-22
aETs SWORD AFTER
- A HALF CENTURY

Maine Captain, In Gloom or Last Dag
Of Civil War. Now Happy At 90.
Lewiston Maine-For the first time
in fifty one years Capt. Albert May
field, 80 years old has the {. sword
which he carried In the civil war, first
ss lieutenant and then as q captain In
the 18th Maine Volunteer Infantry.
The sword was lost on the last day of
the war-the day that Lee surrender.
cd to Grant at Appomattox.
Captain Maxfield's regiment he said,
was instrumental In stopping Lees
famous charge at Appomattox on
April 8, 1855, the day Of the surrender.
The nth Maine infantry was In he
rear OF the Federal cavalry. which
was being pushed back. so that when
Lees charge came the 18th was
entirely surrounded on the top Of
hill The soldiers sought to avoid cap.
ture by fleeing. and Captain Maxfield
leaped over nearby cence. sword In
hand, landed In the open arms OF q
Confederate cavalryman and was
made prisoner.
The sword disappeared In the con
fusion OF the capture. The brigade OF
Lees cavalry which made that charge
did not surrender, but on the surren-
der Of Lee disbanded and went home.
and Captain Maxfield was set at LIB
erty. He went to the scene OF the cav
airy charge and searched for the
sword, but failed to find II
He reached field hospital at Farm
vile, Va, and when he saw men lying
there who had lost an arm OF a leg or
I'm eye he said to himself. What's the
loss of a swordT and gave uS the
search for 1t. There was q certain
amount of sentiment attached 10 II,
however, for he had used 1t during the
campaign Of 1864 and 1865 and with II
had saluted Lincoln and Grant
The sword had solingen blade
made by Claude Clauberg, the German
sword maker and was mounted by
Schuyler, Hartley and Graham. En-
graved on the inside of the handle was
the following:
"Lt. A. Maxfield. Eleventh Maine
Volunteer Infantry"
A few weeks ago an item appeared
in Philadelphia newspaper about .
sword belonging to N. A. MaXfield.
which had been taken from q Federal
officer on the field at Appomattox aud
had been hanging over q manteI Mt
the home Of John Davis Arbuckle near
Lewisburg. w. Va, ever since. .
The item was clipped from the pa
per and sent to Mrs. Ella Moore Of
Lewiston, Maine. by relatives who
knew that Mrs. Moore had relatives
OF the name of Maxfield. They thought
she might know of Captain Maxf!eld's
whereabouts, but she did not. Mrs.
Moore had an article about the sword
published In a Lewiston paper, and
1t was from this that Capt. Maxfield
learned about it.
He got into communication with Mr..
Arbuckle and the latter invited him
to West Virginia for visit. Captain
Maxfield could not go, SO Mr.. Ar
buckle sent him the sword by parcel
pos..
The item which led to the recovery
OF the sword and which appeared In
the Philadelphia paper read as fol.
lows:
"Lewisburg, w. va.-John Davis Ar.
buckle. who fought in the Confederate
ranks during the civil war, has been
waiting fifty years to return a sword
which he captured from bluecoat
during the late unpleasantness. Mr.
Arbuckle took the sword from IAN.
kee officer in General Lees last
charge at Appomatto1, April 8. 1865.
The name engraved on the weapon 10
N. A.. Maxfield, Eleventh Maine Vol.
unteers." 49,
The engraving of Lit" had become
60 worn Captain Maxfield found on
recovering the sword. that 1t looked
like an engraved IN"