Year: 1876

trees and frightened away the birds
just singing their morning songs. We
crouched down beside a fence, and
saw a heavy line of gray come over
the hill and half way across the open
field, and then death took command.
We staggered their line and as it
bent back and twisted about like a
huge serpent in its death struggles,
we cheered until the forest leaves
danced and quivered. The line
Strengthened, and with its answering
cheer came forward-five hundred
muskets to eighty-eight. And yet
we held our own and let them come,
men fought hand to hand over the
the fence. with dubbed muskets and
blood bayonets. Each rail
had its stain or blood; each corner
bad its burden Of dead and wounded.
They hurled us back. and the general
battle opened all around us.


was first sergeant then, and when
we fell back I was in command.
Along the fence where death had
struck them down, lay captain, both
lieutenants and thirteen OF the rank
and fle-sixteen out of the rank and
file. The fifty-two retreated behind
the line of battle, joined our regi-
ment, and again and again before
nightfall we gave Jackson's veterans
shot after shot 1t was, TO be, and
when night fell the brave fifty-two
were living and unharmed r...a


After Manassas they filled us up to
eighty five, but somehow we went on
counting fiftytwo, and felt as if the
strangers were intruders. My COM
mission Of captain came one day, and
the two lieutenants were men who
had bravely won their shoulder
straps fN I'f


At Sharpsburg we numbered forty
nine forty nine old veterans mean.
The other three had been killed on
picket AS we deployed to the left
of the pike, and filed across the fields,
/ wondered IL the new men would do
us credit We were eighty strong as
a company, and over thirty Of the
men had never been under fire. Lees
artillery was pounding at our col
umns half an hour before our brigade
got the order to move. Meadows,
fields, groves, knolls, fences and a
creek-and we knew that Lee was
standing on the defensive and had q
strong position. When the word
came / could see that some OF the
men trembled, but the old forty nine
took up their .knapsacks and fell into
line as IL we were breaking camp.
Down across the field we went, fol-
lowing the line of the skirmishers
and at last we struck the enemy. He
had fence. long ditch, and line
of willows, and he did not yield until
we crushed him by weight OF numbers.
AS he retired we followed, men fall
ing dead every moment. Unknown
to US weak three thousand men
pierced Lees line. He saw his dan
ger, and battery wheeled into the
gap,opened on,us and the leftand cen
ter of our brigand swung back under
the fearful rain of grapeshot and
shell. The right caught tho order
to retreat and go forward. Some
fell back: others leaped the ditch
with wild cheer and charged the bat
terry. Company G.. led. Half the
way to the guns we left the recruits
behind. and only forty-nine kept on.
Men could pause and retreat from
that charge and no one could call
them towards. $50 olf
Il The smoke and the flame hid us for
a moment, and then we reached the
guns. Leaping over them, we crawied
under them, shot, stabbed, shouted
and hurrahed. The whole battery
was ourst We seized the guns to
drag them of, when heavy line OF
battle came down through the gap,
closed it up. and men fought hand-to-
hand over the cannon, over the cais-
sons, over the great heap OF dead on
the grass. Less than three hundred
Federals were fighting Ave thousand
Confederates. 'i' ''''''


1t could not last long. After mo-
ment we were driven back, over the
ditch beyond the fence, into the Fed
eral line of battle. ~. " '' '''' =.


@Pretty hot work in there, cap
taini" shouted a brigadier, as the
torn and mangled remnant halted to
reform.


Pretty hotl My Godl it was the
work of fiends and devilsl' Forty
nine OF the bronzed old. fighters in
Company G.. had dashed at, the can
non; only twenty-four came back
Twenty-Five were lying dead under
the guns, heaped up so they blocked
the heavy wheelsi


The recruits were there to answer
"ayeD at the next roll call. No one
thought i'll OF them; men cannot turn
to devils at once. We still had a
strong company-stronger than some
but we went on counting twenty-four
counting only those who would
stand until touched by the flames OF
death. Both lieutenants were gone,
and they gave men from the
ranks.


We looked down upon the placid
river from the north bank in front OF
Fredericksburg, and when the blue
column crossed we were near the
front. We were still twenty-four
Death had taken some of the new
men but the old ones had been spared
On through the curious old town, on
through the valley behind it, and
then the line Of battle followed the
Iline OF skirmishers on to the low
stone walls behind which Lees vet
Grams were painting for the word fire
Their sheets Of flame almost scorched
our faces The battle line melted