The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-08-22
BATTLE OF SPANISH FORT AT MOBILE IS
 TOLD ANEW BY PIPER
Main Point Brought Out Is the Fact That Confederate Prisoners Were Guarded
 By Negro Soldiers


 Montgomery, August 21.-(Speclal. The battle of Spanish Fort, on Mo- bile bay, in 1865 was told anew to the state in a letter received today by Judge c. F. Mccall. chairman of the state pension board, from Asa M. Piper, now a farmer of Thorsby, Chiffon county, who enlisted in the Confederate army at the age of 17 and who was taken a prisoner after being wounded in the battle. Mir. Piper told an interesting story of the battle, but he showed chief interest in the fact that he and his asso- ciates, after being taken prisoners were placed under the guard of ne- gro soldiers, who had joined the that their freedom would be one re- suit of victory over Confederate arms.
 Mir, Piper was member of Com pany C, Sixty-second regiment of Alabama Volunteers. which was or ganised in Shelby county.
 This company was made up by J. W. Pitts and W. w Wallace, ST. of Shelby county" said Mir. Piper in his letter to Judge Mccall. We were sworn into service at Wilsonville No- vember 3, 1863. The company was made up from shelby, Talladega and Coosa counties. But few were over 17Ia years old at this time J. W. Pitts was elected captain and w. w. Wallace, ST, first lieutenant; A. H. Ballard, second lieutenant; J. Morris, third lieutenant; George o. Butler, first sergeant, and R. NJ, Honeycutt, second sergeant.
 At COosa Bridge
 We were sent to Coosa river rail- road bridge for guard duty and drill. and remained there until July IL, 1864. We were at that time armed with Mississippi rifles. We were or dered to Mobile and stopped in Selma for five days, then carried to Mobile on a boat. landing there July 20. when we were given Enfield rifles in place of our short rifles. Enfield rifles were i,oo0-yard guns and good ones, too. We marched three miles out to Battery c that night and placed on guard duty the next morn ing.
 The regiment was formed at that time with 10 companies, about 1,200 young men and boys. We elected Daniel Hugee colonel, Dr. Davidson, lieutenant colonel; B. Yniestre, ma jor; T. G. Bush, adjutant. l have forgotten the sergeant majors names. Dr. Davidson resigned on account of bad health, then Yniestre was elected lieutenant colonel and J. w. Pitts was elected major. w. W. Wallace
 
 Lieutenant Ballard before this had transferred back to Wheeler cav airy, and remained there the remain der of the war. J. Morris was pro- noted to first lieutenant of CompanJ
 c and R. A. Sterrett second lieuten- ant.
 Moved to Mobile
 This regiment remained on guard duty on the line of battery until January, 1885, and then we moved down into the city of Mobile and were on provost duty for a short time (about four weeks), and then we went across the bay to Blakely and struck camp at Saludia Hill On March Is we were ordered to Spanish Fort and Company c, my company, was placed on picket duty along the coast at the mouth of Fish river, about two miles from the fort. On March 26 we were driven into the ditches about 8 a. m. and the battle of Spanish Fort opened with good and heavy cannonading from both sides. Our regiment was about the center of the line. On the night of April 1 our regiment and one other were drawn out for rest, and we went up to Fort Blakely on April about o'clock in the morning, and were ordered to the ditches at Blakely Company c was on the extreme right of the line supporting Culpepper's battery and Company A, of which Ward was captain, supported 1t on the left Company B was the next company to him.
 Negroes Charge
 "On April g the United states troops charged our thin line with ne- groes first and we slaughtered them fast, some 1000 being killed in few minutes with ground torpedoes ana by shot and shell from the breast works. Then we were charged py five lines of battle and captured on the evening of the 9th. On the loth we were put on boats and started Tor Ship Island prison, where we ianoeo on the 18th about o'clock in the morning.
 we were guarded by negro troops most of them being from the south. They cursed us and called us all vul- gar names they could think of, ana we had to take it or be shot. we had to carry wood on our shoulders from four to seven miles to cook our grub with. They fed us quarter oI a pound of salt horse and hall pint of yellow mush, only one meal or tnis per day. On the morning of May early. abovt daylight. they began .o load us on two dismounted gunboats' the Biz Merrimack and the Lt.ie Merrimack, and we travelled on these to New Orleans, and there we we put on smaller boats up to Vickspurs. There we landed about o'clock on the morning of May 5. There the good southern women and old men req us all we could eat-good grub too
 Given Paroles
 we were carried out to Big Black on freight cars and the next morning we were given our paroles and started home We walked to Jackson o" miles, and there got transportation to Selma, and on Friday. the l2th, l ar rived home, five miles east of Colum- biana. My father arrived home rom virginian Wednesday noon, the lo'n. My father was. blacksmith anu woodworker He made the first anu last pontoon boat Uron) that was ever made in Richmond, and put in the las. oontoon bridge. I think 1t was at Drury's Bluff. on the James river.
 Mir. Piper inclosed a copy of sons which he and former Gov. Tom Seay wrote while they were held prisoners: He said he remembered every woro or it as well as the roll of his company