Polk County news. [volume] (Benton, Tenn.) 191?-1983, 1921-06-23
CIVIL WAR EXPERIENCES :
OF |. B. NORMAN
Written BY James II. williamson


securely fastened to each bank.
Then they have boxes or boats
tied to the rope. These boxes are
water tight, and sllls are laid on
them and on the sills the bridge
floor is laid. A pontoon bridge
can be made very quickly. Then
the army can pass over on the
bridge, If too much weight IS put
on it the boxa or boats will sink
and the bridge give way. Or ifthe
large rope breaks it will turn the
bridge loose and it will wreck
| The bridge was loaded until the
boxes were almost ready to fill
with water The big rope was
streached as tight as it could be.
l looked for it to break any min
ute. l could not make the guard
hear me and he filed the bridge.
Then we all got scared. They got
the stalled wagon out of the way
and unloaded the bridge. | lived
an age while that team was stalled.
After that jam we only let three
wagons on the bridge at a time
If the bridge had not stood the
strain have no doubt but what
would have perished in the waters
of Tennessee river at Loudon,
Tenn.
While we were. at Loudon we
came near causing a big excite
ment. Co. l stationed near us
claimed to be good booking men.
They got,to bragglrg about it. One
night they were: taking things IN
down below us, in social way,
with the fairsex. Goodson Flemal-
ling and about tensor fifteen Of us
Iasniesi otirs.ss'9Ess Es With rock and
|iron weights We went down
where the rumpus was going on.
At the command of Goodson, we
pulled loose and you never heard
such noise as those rock and
iron weights made. Company |
made a hasty retreat. When an al
arm was given we ran to our beds
and when armed soldiers arrived
no one could be found who knew
anything about it. Company /
knew they had been bombarded,
but by whom? We all pretended to
be asleep and had not heard or
seen anything unusual. The mat
ter closed and no one knew but US
who had done it.
while in the Virginia campaign
was sent to StoteWall Jackson's
Headquarters with a message from
our army. Jack q Neal was sent
with me. We delivered the mess
age. 1t took ut all night to go and
Come. The next morning we tried
to get breakfast at many houses. lt
told lack we would get breakfas
at the next house, which looked
prosperous, asked the old man if
we could have breakfast and he
said, "No.' said, i am going
o eat" and went to the kitchen,
and took two pones .ol bread aud
some cooked beef and put it i'll
NV haversack. A Negro cook said,
Seems lack 81 massa stands a
pore hack here dis mornn' We
got the key to the spring house
and found milk, cider and butter,
and after eating heartily we went
back.
At the battle of Piedmont, | saw
Huse O'Neal's hat shot oil his
head and his clothing punctured
lin many places. le was on the
Iskirmish line and fell between the
! FIRE of both armies. How he coul d
lescape | cannot explain unless he
bore a charmed life,
John Morgan was flag bearer
and there was no braver man than
he was. | saw his flag shot down
but he always put it back up. 1t
dib not matter how thick the
bullets were comicg They shot
his flag pole to pieces but he raised
the flag on the bayonet of his gun.
| His flag bad to stay up