HISTOEY 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT 
 
 ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS, 
 
 DURING THE 
 
 WAR OF THE REBELLION, 
 
 L. G. BENNETT AND WM. M. HAIGH. 
 
 AURORA, ILL.; 
 
 KNICKERBOCKER <5^ H ODDER, PRINTERS AND BINDERS. 
 1876. 
 
5 
 
 & 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 In the presentation of our History of the Thirty-Sixth Reg 
 iment, Illinois Volunteers, to the public, we have no apologies 
 to offer for what may seem an intrusion, in adding another vol 
 ume to the already overburdened "literature of the war." The 
 survivors of the " Old Thirty-Sixth" have long felt the want of 
 such a work, for one among many other reasons, to correct the 
 errors and to supply the omissions of the general historian. 
 They, many years ago, inaugurated measures looking to the col 
 lection of the annals of the Regiment, and their publication. A 
 historian was appointed, and committees from each company 
 selected to assist in the collection of material, and to collate arid 
 prepare it for the press. But little progress was made, and as 
 the years passed by and the work was not accomplished, or even 
 fairly commenced, other appointments were made, but without 
 satisfactory results. At the annual reunion of the surviving 
 comrades in 1875, another historian was selected, new auxil 
 iary committees created, and an impetus given which promised 
 success. The new historian early associated with him the former 
 one, and dividing the work between them, the result has been the 
 present volume. 
 
 Few persons can comprehend the great labor and difficulties 
 attending the preparation of a work of this kind. At the very 
 outset, those who were expected to contribute materials were 
 scattered oy.er much of the Western Hemisphere, and to reach 
 
 M176660 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PAGH. 
 
 Introductory, Io 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 Camp Hammond, _. I j 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 Roster of the Regiment, -,8 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 Oft for the Wars, _ 55 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 Rolla, 6 4 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 Expedition to Houston, ^ 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Still at Rolla, 7Q 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 Rolla to Pea Ridge, on 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 Bentonville, 127 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 Pea Ridge, 140 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 Battle of Pea Ridge First Day, 144 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Battle of Pea Ridge Second Day, 163 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 The Pursuit and Battle-field, x6 9 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 Conrad s Expedition Recuperating, 17^ 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 From Keitsville to Cape Girardeau, 187 
 
CONTENTS. VII. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 Cape Girardeau to Rienzi 2QI 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 Rienzi to Louisville, 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 Advance into Kentucky, 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 Battle of Perryville, 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Afterthe Battle 6 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 Perryville to Nashville, 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 Battle of Stone River, _ _ _ 6 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 Battle of Stone River, Continued, _g 7 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 Prison Life in the South, 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 Murfreesboro. .. 
 
 ,_... 407 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 Murfreesboro, Continued, 
 
 .421 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 On to the Tennessee, , 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 Battle of Chickamauga, /- 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 Chattanooga, g 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 Mission Ridge, / 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 East Tennessee, _ _ 6 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 Re-enlistment and Furlough, 54 g 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIIT. 
 To the Front, 62 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 Dalton and Resaca, 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 Adairsville 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 Dallas, 
 
 - 592 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVII. 
 Kenesaw, ^ 
 
VIII. CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVIII. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 Atlanta, .612 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIX. 
 
 Atlanta to Columbia, 621 
 
 CHAPTER XL. 
 
 Spring Hill 63 1 
 
 CHAPTER XLI. 
 
 Battle of Franklin 646 
 
 CHAPTER XLII. 
 Battle of Nashville, .667 
 
 CHAPTER XLIII. 
 Pursuit of Hood, 693 
 
 CHAPTER XLIV. 
 Huntsville, East Tennessee and New Orleans, 704 
 
 CHAPTER XLV. 
 Company A Cavalry - 7 2 
 
 CHAPTER XLVI. 
 
 Company B Cavalry, - 75 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 John A. Porter, 79 2 
 
 Lieut. Elliott s Narrative, - - - - 792 
 
 Fourteen Months in Rebel Prisons, 800 
 
 PORTRAITS. 
 
 Col. N. Greusel, 
 
 Major Gen. S. R. Curtis, 99 
 
 Major Gen. Franz Sigel 186 
 
 Rev. Wm. M. Haigh, 290 
 
 Gen. Phil. H.Sheridan, --343 
 
 Col. Silas Miller,. 434 
 
 Gen. Wm. H. Lytle 480 
 
 Lieut. Col. Porter C.Olson, 654 
 
 Major Gen. H. Thomas 667 
 
 Major S. B. Sherer, 75 
 
H I S T O E Y 
 
 OF THE 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 [WENTY YEARS of ceaseless agitation of the 
 " Slavery Question," engendered sectional ani 
 mosities, which, intensified with each succeed 
 ing political campaign, and each fresh triumph 
 of the anti-slavery party, eventually culmin 
 ated in the election of Abraham Lincoln as 
 Chief Magistrate of the Republic. This event served to embit 
 ter the pro-slavery faction beyond the bounds ot reason, and 
 was used by them as a pretext for breaking into pieces the gov 
 ernment of which they for a long series of years had held 
 absolute control. The result of that election was hardly known, 
 when South Carolina fulminated her Ordinance of Secession 
 amidst a wild storm of enthusiasm which swept over the whole 
 South. State after State seceded and rapidly wheeled into 
 line with Carolina. For months before the inauguration of the 
 
10 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 incoming administration, the "sacred soil of secessia" echoed 
 the tread of armies and the din of preparation. 
 
 Government forts and arsenals were seized, arms distributed 
 among the people, debts due Northern creditors repudiated, and 
 citizens of the free States forcibly ejected from her borders. 
 Outrage succeeded outrage in such rapid succession and unpar 
 alleled audacity, as even a state of savage warfare would scarcely 
 justify. Backed by a people eager for the onset, the whole 
 South, from the rivers to the gulf, glittered with bayonets and 
 glowed with martial fires. 
 
 Those who remained true to the constitution and flag of the 
 country, and unshaken in their allegiance to the Republic, were, 
 with few exceptions, reserved and silent. Southern conventions 
 with their accompaniments of bombast a,nd folly, arid Southern 
 orators with their frothy gasconade, were heard with supreme 
 indifference or profound contempt. For, had not the same 
 things been witnessed before ? Had not the same orators often 
 deluged the country with denunciation and menace when defeat at 
 the polls had only been feared ? Now, when they had suffered a 
 crushing defeat at a fair election, which all their mad efforts had 
 not been able to prevent, their resolutions and threats were 
 regarded as the insane ravings of lunatics, or the harmless 
 thunder of disappointed politicians, rather than the deliberate 
 action of cool headed, reflecting men. Even their ordinances of 
 secession, and the establishment of insurgent governments, were 
 common laughing stocks at the North, and regarded rather as a 
 stupendous game of intimidation than the preliminary steps to 
 rebellion and war. 
 
 With the bombardment and fall of Sumpter, the eyes of the 
 nation opened, and indignation flashed through the astonished 
 land, arousing the loyal men of the nation from their stupor. 
 
THE PRESIDENT S FIRST CALL. 11 
 
 The rebound was tremendous, breaking the calm placidity of the 
 people. The whole North quivered with a new emotion. The 
 strong lines of party were snapped asunder, and forgetful of 
 past political differences, each regarded the other as a fellow 
 citizen of one common country, animated with kindred feelings 
 and purposes, and disposed to bury personal strifes for the sake 
 of home and country. Patriotism, which had so long been 
 spurned by politicians and at best regarded as a pleasant myth, 
 
 sprang to life in a single day and blossomed into fruitfulness 
 
 that fruit, a stern resolve to sacrifice position, life and all in 
 defence of the Republic. 
 
 Mingling with the doleful reverberations from Sumpter, was 
 heard the President s call for seventy-five thousand men, to meet 
 and combat the oncoming hosts of rebellion. Before a single 
 day had passed the lightnings had flashed back to the Capitol 
 that twice that number were ready to march at the tap of the 
 drum, and that thousands were then on their way to rescue and 
 to save. Never was summons to arms more promptly responded 
 to. In a single day the hum of manufactories and of the peace 
 ful occupation of laborers in the fields was drowned by the 
 tramp of hurrying thousands thronging to the designated places 
 of rendezvous. 
 
 Under that first call for seventy-five thousand men, six regi 
 ments was the quota allotted for Illinois to furnish. In the war 
 with Mexico the State had contributed six regiments, every one 
 of which returned covered with glory as well as honored scars. 
 Each had won laurels distinctively its own, and in order not to 
 mingle their achievements with the deeds of other regiments 
 bearing the same numbers, and to leave the survivors in undis 
 turbed possession of the glory attached to the numbers of the 
 regiments to which their bravery had given eclat, it was thought 
 
12 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 best to leave these numbers undisturbed. Thus the first regiment 
 mustered into service from Illinois in the war to suppress the 
 Rebellion, was the Seventh, which heads the list of the one hun 
 dred and seventy regiments of all arms furnished by the State. 
 Thousands who sought service in the ranks of these six regi 
 ments were refused. Recruiting offices were closed and eager 
 applicants turned away with the comforting assurance that the 
 "Rebellion would be over in sixty days." So thought public 
 men, and so thought the mass of the people. And yet each day 
 the rebellion grew more powerful and more difficult to suppress. 
 
 At length the disaster at Bull Run opened the eyes of the 
 people to the magnitude of the contest into which the country 
 had been reluctantly drawn, and to the imminent danger which 
 imperilled and threatened the existence of the Republic. Fol 
 lowing upon this defeat of the undisciplined militia of the North, 
 came a second uprising of the people, and other calls for troops. 
 Again the fires of patriotism burned afresh. The enlistment, 
 mustering and arming of volunteer regiments went on with 
 astonishing celerity, and from these at last was evoked an army 
 of soldiers, whose swelling cohorts were crowded to the front and 
 hurled upon an over confident and vaunting foe. 
 
 The Fox River Valley was all ablaze with enthusiasm. The 
 stalwart sons of its people were eager to grasp their firelocks and 
 press forward to the fray. A meeting of parties interested in 
 the formation of a "Fox River Regiment" was held at Geneva 
 on the 29th day of July, 1861, and preliminary steps taken for 
 its organization. Fifteen companies, either complete or in an 
 advanced state of formation, were represented and tendered for 
 acceptance, twelve of which were selected, including two cav 
 alry companies. The Aurora Beacon and other newspapers in 
 the District aided the project by stirring appeals to the patriot- 
 
BIOGRAPHY OF COL. GREUSEL. 13 
 
 ism of the people. In furtherance of this object Mr. George S. 
 Bangs, D. W. Young and others applied to the War Depart 
 ment, as well as to the State authorities, for permission to pro 
 ceed with the organization, which was speedily granted. Major 
 Nicholas Greusel, of the Seventh Illinois Volunteers, then on 
 duty at Cairo, was designated to take charge of its organization 
 and equipment for the field. In compliance with orders from 
 Governor Yates, he proceeded to Aurora and assumed the direc 
 tion of all matters pertaining to the enlistment, the discipline, 
 the equipment and supplies necessary for so large a body. In 
 short, he assumed the entire command and led it to its designated 
 field of action. The order assigning him to the command is as 
 follows : 
 
 " GENERAL HEADQUARTERS STATE OF ILLINOIS, ) 
 ADJUTANT GENERAL S OFFICE, I 
 
 SPRINGFIELD, AUG. 14TH, 1861. j 
 GENERAL ORDER, No. 139. 
 
 Lieut. Col. N. Greusel, of the 7th Illinois Volunteers is 
 hereby promoted to the Colonelcy of the Fox River Regiment, 
 111. Vols., and as such is to be respected and obeyed. 
 By order of the Commander in Chief. 
 
 THOMAS L. MATHER, Adjutant General." 
 This order was all the commission or authority which any 
 officer, except one Lieutenant, received in connection with the 
 36th, until after eight months of hard service. 
 
 COL. NICHOLAS GREUSEL was born in Bavaria, Germany, July 
 4th, 1817, and was forty -four years of age on assuming the com 
 mand of the Regiment. He received a fair education in French 
 and German in the schools in his native city of Blieskastle. The 
 Greusels, consisting of father, mother, and nine brothers and sis 
 ters, emigrated to the United States in the summer of 1834. and 
 on arriving at the City of New York, strangers and penniless, the 
 larger boys were told by their father that they were now in a 
 
14 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 free country; that he had nothing more than a parent s blessing 
 to bestow, and that they must commence the battle of life 
 for themselves, but that in case of sickness or misfortune such a 
 home as he might be in possession of should be theirs. 
 
 Without knowing a word of the English language, the future 
 to these poor lads looked dark and gloomy. The boy Nicholas 
 wandered over the city for hours in search of employment, when, 
 after many failures and rebuffs, a lady of benevolent and kindly 
 mien admitted him to a sheltering roof and gave him work. 
 The lady who at this dark hour proved an angel of mercy to 
 him was the mother of Hamilton Fish, once Senator from New 
 York, and now President Grant s Secretary of State. 
 
 Here Nicholas remained a year, when the whole family 
 removed to the then wilderness territory of Michigan, reach 
 ing Detroit by canal and steamer, November 1st, 1835. At first 
 such odd jobs as could be found were resorted to fora livelihood, 
 such as driving team, gathering ashes, etc., but in the spring he 
 obtained a permanent situation in the firm of Rice, Coffin & Co., 
 in the business of lumbering, and remained in their employ for 
 eleven years, until the breaking out of the Mexican war. Prior 
 to this he had served as Captain of the "Scott Guards," a local 
 military company, and subsequently as Major of the "Frontier 
 Guards," and was nominally on duty during the "Patriot Rebel 
 lion " in Canada. At the municipal election in Detroit in 1844 
 he was elected Alderman of the 4th Ward on the Whig ticket, 
 and served in that capacity two years. On the breaking out of 
 the Mexican war he recruited a company for service and was 
 elected its Captain, being Co. D., 1st Regt. Michigan Vols. 
 On setting out for their campaign they marched on foot to 
 Springfield, Ohio, thence by rail to Cincinnati, and by steamer to 
 New Orleans and Vera Cruz, which place was reached ten days 
 after its surrender to General Scott. 
 
BIOGRAPHY OP COL. GREUSEL. 15 
 
 In the march upon the city of Mexico the Michigan Volun 
 teers were attached to the Division of General Bankhead, which 
 marched through Cordova and Orizaba some distance south of 
 the National Road to the Mexican Capitol. Their progress 
 through the country was almost a continuous battle with bands 
 of "guerillas" and bodies of Mexican soldiery who swarmed 
 from the mountain fastnesses. In their encounters with the 
 enemy the Michigan Volunteers acquitted themselves nobly, per 
 forming successfully and well every duty assigned them. 
 
 The war having been brought to a close in the summer of 
 1847, the regiment returned home, arriving at Detroit July 12th. 
 At the outset Captain Greusel s Company numbered one hun 
 dred and five men, and he returned with eighty-five, having been 
 better cared for and in better health than any of the other com 
 panies in the Regiment. Under his economical management 
 about $300 Company money was saved, with which he purchased 
 new shirts, shoes, blacking, and such articles of clothing and 
 accoutrements as were lacking, and when within a few hours 
 ride from Detroit, directed his men to shave, wash, and dress in 
 the new outfit provided for them. The other officers were aston- 
 tonished and somewhat chagrined to find that his company 
 were clean and well dressed while theirs were walking bundles 
 of dirty rags. On landing, Col. Williams placed Company D. 
 in the advance in marching through the city ; while the news 
 papers were filled with articles eulogistic of Captain Greusel and 
 the fine appearance of his veteran company. The day succeeding 
 his discharge and muster out of the service, found him back in 
 his old position in the lumber yard of Rice, Coffin & Co., attend 
 ing to business as of yore. 
 
 Subsequently he was elected Captain of the City Guards and 
 then Lieut. Colonel of the first battalion ; was appointed Super- 
 
16 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS 
 
 intendent of the City Water Works in 1847, and Inspector Gen 
 eral of lumber for the State of Michigan in 1848, which office 
 he held two years. An unfortunate investment stripped him of 
 the hard earnings of a life time, and he again commenced at the 
 lowest round of the ladder of life to win his way to a competency 
 and to fame. He next turned his attention to railroading and 
 found continuous employment, first upon the Michigan Cen 
 tral and then the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, in 
 whose employ the Rebellion found him. A company recruited by 
 him at Aurora was among the first to respond to the President s 
 call for troops, and on the organization of the Tth Regiment he 
 was appointed its Major, where the opening chapter of our story 
 finds him. His whole career is replete with incidents of indom 
 itable perseverance, and triumphs over discouragements, indicat 
 ing a determination to accomplish whatever he should undertake. 
 It was quite generally conceded that in the appointment of a 
 leader, the right man was found for the place. 
 
 EDWARD S. JOSLYN, the Lieut. Colonel of the regiment, at this 
 time was about thirty-four years of age. He was born in Nunda, 
 Alleghany County, N. Y., but for the last twenty-five years had 
 been a resident of Kane and McHenry counties. A lawyer by 
 profession, his brilliant talents had won for him a high position 
 at the bar. He was among the first who sprang to arms ere the 
 thunders from Sumpter had ceased to reverberate through the 
 land. He was appointed Captain of Company A of the first 
 regiment formed in the State. Fearless and outspoken, none 
 who knew T him doubted his patriotism or courage. The whole 
 regiment was devoted in their attachment to him, and confident 
 that in the trials which awaited them he would acquit himself 
 with honor and distinction. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 CAMP HAMMOND. 
 
 T FIRST the point selected for the place of rendez 
 vous was on the east side of Fox River, in a grov 
 opposite the village of Montgomery ; but the owner 
 of the land, with more selfishness than patriotism, 
 would not allow the location of a camp on his prem 
 ises without an exorbitant consideration. Another 
 site was selected on the west side of the river, a half mile above 
 Montgomery and two miles from Aurora, on high ground overlook 
 ing and adjoining the track of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy 
 Railroad. A fine spring of clear, cold water near at hand burst 
 out from the foot of the bluff, and, with the exception of a forest 
 shade, this location was fully as pleasant and far more dry and 
 healthful than the proposed camp in the woods, and possessed 
 the additional advantage of easy access to the railroad. 
 
 Col. Hammond, the efficient Superintendent of the Chicago, 
 Burlington & Quincy Railroad, took a warm interest in the 
 organization and welfare of the regiment from its first inception, 
 as was attested by the presentation of a fine flag-staff, from 
 which gracefully waved the stars and stripes, doubly consecrated 
 
18 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 in the affections of the men since the attempt of traitors to 
 trample it in the dust. For this, as well as many other favors, 
 were both officers and men under obligation to Col. Hammond, 
 and it was in his honor- that this first encampment was called 
 "Camp Hammond," which for many days was a point of absorb 
 ing interest to the good people of Kane and Kendall counties 
 and of the surrounding region. 
 
 The Young America Guards arrived upon the ground Satur 
 day, August 18th, 1861, being the first company in camp. 
 They were a fine body of athletic men, as ready to grapple with 
 the hardships of campaigning as to go to their accustomed duties 
 in field or shop. They were commanded by Capt. E. B. Bald 
 win, and their quarters were selected, their tents arranged, and 
 were apparently well settled for housekeeping on the arrival of 
 the other companies. 
 
 The Bristol Company, from Kendall County, composed of 
 recruits from the towns of Bristol and Little Rock, was next in 
 the order of its arrival, and went into camp August 20th, Cap 
 tain Baldwin and the Guards forming in line and according the 
 men from Kendall County as gallant a reception as the circum 
 stances would allow. This Company, composed almost exclu- 
 sivelv of farmers sons, was made up of as sterling material as 
 ever wielded musket or sabre. The citizens of Bristol and 
 neighborhood with commendable zeal turned out as to a political 
 mass meeting to escort their boys to camp. Later in the day, 
 Captain Pierce s Company from Lisbon, the "Wayne Rifles," 
 the " Oswego Rifles," and the "Elgin Guards" put in an appear 
 ance, each preceded by the squeaking of fifes, the clangor of 
 drums, the shout and hurrah of citizens, and accompanied by 
 little less than a brigade of anxious mothers, staid and sober 
 fathers, devoted wives, fidgety sisters and forlorn looking sweet 
 hearts. 
 
FIRST NIGHT IN CAMP. 19 
 
 But this, like all days, had an end, and as the declining sun 
 began to throw a halo of glory over camp and field, painful 
 good byes were said, and many a mother s heart throbbed with 
 sorrowing yet tender thoughts as she wended her way homeward. 
 The men set to work with a will : tents went up as if by magic ; 
 a limited number of blankets were distributed ; a meagre sup 
 ply of straw procured for bedding ; and rations, consisting 
 of bread, beef, bacon and coffee, were issued to the men, 
 who essayed, man fashion, to cook and eat their first meal in 
 camp. The way some of the poor fellows went at it was a sight 
 so supremely ludicrous as to excite the laughter of anything 
 capable of appreciating superlative awkwardness. Some of the 
 beef passed through the trying ordeal of cooking, much after 
 the manner and as safely as those Israelitish worthies, Sha- 
 drach, Meshech and Abednego, passed through the fiery furnace, 
 with little of the smell of fire about it, while the huge slices of 
 others were shriveled and burned to a crisp ; but whether raw 
 or roasted, it finally went the way of all victuals, seasoned with 
 some honest growls, but with few expressions of entire satis 
 faction. 
 
 This first night in camp will doubtless long be remembered by 
 many. But few of the men had ever before experienced the 
 luxury of a couch of straw, or the thrilling pleasure of reclin 
 ing upon the bare bosom of Mother Earth, with a coat, a carpet 
 sack or block of wood to serve as a pillow. To some, with whom 
 the experiment was wholly new, the long hours of the night 
 wore away dull and melancholy. Notwithstanding the scores of 
 people in close proximity to them, it seemed lonely with but a 
 thin sheet of cotton cloth between them and the great blue sky, 
 flecked with stars, arching around and over them. Some were 
 thinking of the homes they had just left, and many were the 
 
20 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 tender thoughts and loving wishes that were wafted thitherward. 
 But the few who lay down to quiet rest and pleasant dreams 
 were cruelly defrauded out of so laudable a purpose by the many 
 who, unrestrained, gave full vent to their joyous hilarity and 
 ceaseless mischief, deluging the camp with fun and noises the 
 most hideous and unearthly, as if a new Pandemonium had at 
 once broken loose. At times, profound silence would reign 
 throughout the camp for the lengthened period of a minute and 
 a-half, when some "rough" from an obscure corner would give a 
 tremendous "Baa!" Another from an adjoining tent would 
 respond, then the chorus would be taken up along the line of 
 tents from all parts of camp, and in ten seconds from the first 
 yelp the whole crowd would be "baaing" with the force of a 
 thousand calf power. 
 
 Again the lonely bark of a dog, faintly heard from some dis 
 tant farm-house, would start some human hound or poodle in 
 camp to bark response, and then the whole pack would take up 
 the refrain until they had barked themselves hoarse. Then there 
 were cat voices, sheep voices, turkey gobblings and cock crow- 
 ings ad libitum. So it went until daylight. But few slept, 
 some laughed a very little, others swore a very great deal, and 
 thus the night wore away. 
 
 On the 22d three more companies arrived. In the afternoon, 
 Captain Webb, a United States mustering officer, appeared and 
 administered the following oath to the companies then in camp : 
 
 " I do solemnly swear that I will bear true allegiance to the 
 " United States of America. That I will serve them honestly 
 " and faithfully against all enemies and opposers whatever. 
 "That I will obey the orders of the President of the United 
 " States and all officers appointed over me, according to the rules 
 "of the Army of the United States, so help me God!" 
 
 Before the oath was administered the men were drawn up in 
 line of companies in their respective quarters, and after baring 
 
TAKING THE OATH. 21 
 
 their heads, each right hand went eagerly up, and at its conclu 
 sion many fervently joined the solemn invocation, "So help me 
 God!" It was a grand sight to see company after company 
 with hands uplifted to heaven solemnly consecrate themselves to 
 the protection and preservation of the country. No cat squalls 
 or cock crowing then. This was casting the die in which their 
 honor, their all, even life itself was at stake. The company 
 from Newark arrived at Aurora in the 4 p. m. train, and were 
 deployed in line upon the platform of the railroad station, and 
 the same oath administered before proceeding to camp. 
 
 Before the week had expired, every company, comprising ten 
 of infantry and two of cavalry, were on the ground diligently 
 at work drilling and "preserving rations," which were supplied 
 in bountiful abundance, at which all acquired commendable pro 
 ficiency. 
 
 The company from Elgin was particularly admired for the 
 soldierly bearing and generally fine appearance of the men. 
 Though, as raw material, not excelling many of the others, yet 
 they had been upon the parade ground before under the super 
 vision of an officer read up in "Hardee," and were compara 
 tively well drilled, and had already acquired that stiffness of 
 vertebra which the others had yet to learn. They were likewise 
 partly armed and uniformed, not very uniformly, tis true, but 
 with enough of the soldier s paraphernalia mingled with " store 
 clothes" and citizen s gear to inspire awe and attract attention. 
 One or two, whose limbs sported in the ample folds of the red 
 legged " Zoo Zoo," were special objects of curiosity. Their 
 arms were old fashioned and rusty muskets, a sort of a cross 
 between a cannon and liberty pole, that had been plundered from 
 the armory of some half disbanded or wholly defunct militia 
 company that once had a butterfly existence somewhere within 
 
THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the bounds of Kane County, and which they came lugging into 
 camp very much after the fashion a person would carry a fence 
 rail or crowbar. These blunderbusses excited intense disgust in 
 the minds of the raw recruits, who had been fondly dreaming 
 of Sharp s or Henry rifles with sabre bayonets. And it was 
 quite generally remarked that if these were a sample of what 
 was to be our armament, our arrival in Dixie would be hailed 
 with delight by the "Johnnie Rebs," as the only parties who 
 would be in any kind of danger would be those who unfortu 
 nately happened to be placed behind them, for it was reported 
 and believed by some that those guns would kick further than 
 they would shoot, and were infinitely more dangerous to friend 
 than foe. 
 
 To insure promptness in the delivery of supplies of food, 
 clothing, camp equipage and necessary stores, and to see that 
 there was no lack either in quality or quantity, required Colonel 
 Greusel s personal attention, and for a few days he was necessa 
 rily absent a part of the time. With no instructions and few 
 correct ideas how the thing should be done, the work of arrang 
 ing tents as they should be was only accomplished after infinite 
 difficulty and innumerable failures. At first tents were scattered 
 promiscuously over the prairie as if shot out of a siege gun or 
 pitched together with a hay fork. But the Colonel suddenly 
 terminated this unmilitary jumble by referring us to Hardee for 
 full instructions in the mysteries of camp arrangement. The 
 tents were again taken down and put up as directed by that fas 
 cinating writer, in which position they remained as long as Camp 
 Hammond was occupied. It may seem strange that so brilliant 
 an idea had not flashed across our benighted understandings at 
 an earlier stage of camp life, for some of the companies had 
 taken down their tents and re-arranged them at least a half dozen 
 
FIRST EXPERIENCES IN CAMP. 23 
 
 times before a satisfactory result was obtained. The habitations 
 provided were square wall tents, large and airy, and in marked 
 contrast to the dog kennels which succeeded their demise. They 
 numbered more than one hundred and fifty, and when finally 
 arranged presented a romantic appearance, like some well laid 
 out rural village, with pointed gables and Avhitewashed cottages, 
 nestling like a flock of swans upon the green prairie. 
 
 The details of camp life were full of interest to the men. 
 The new uniforms which the officers began to don, the evolutions 
 of a thousand men on drill or parade, the silvery music of the 
 band at reveille or tattoo borne upon the stillness of the even 
 ing air, were all calculated to make them fall in love with a 
 vocation apparently so full of varied charms. After a time the 
 incessant drill, and standing guard beneath a broiling sun or in 
 a drenching rain storm, washing greasy dishes, scouring rusty 
 knives, cooking and eating stale beef, and at night wallowing 
 down to sleep ten in a tent these and a hundred other like 
 enjoyments, pretty effectually in after times took the romance out 
 of camp life and left it, like many other of the more laborious 
 duties, a very plain, drudging and stupid reality. But this was 
 not fully realized at Camp Hammond. Only the bright side of 
 the picture with its roseate tints were contemplated. Every day 
 brought with it some fresh excitement, some pleasant amusement, 
 some substantial and touching evidence of the wealth of affec 
 tion lavished upon the men by loving friends or doting parents 
 at home. 
 
 One source of fun, however, occurred occasionally from 
 attempts to "run the guard." Absences from roll call were not 
 unfrequent. and several drunks and disorderlies had been reported 
 and disposed of not in accordance with the "statutes of Wil 
 liam and Mary," when stringent orders were issued to allow no 
 
24 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 soldier to pass out of camp except at the gate near the guard 
 tent, and not then without a pass from head-quarters. To enforce 
 this order a cordon of guards were placed at short intervals 
 around the whole camp, armed and equipped with the guns 
 brought from Elgin. Now and then some untamed specimen of 
 the genus homo, impatient of restraint, would watch a favorable 
 opportunity when the sentinel s back was turned, quietly slip 
 down into the gravel pit, and hugging closely its precipitous and 
 protecting sides, walk off undiscovered ; or, if discovered and 
 called back, instead of heeding the call, would break for some 
 cornfield. The sentinel shouted for the " Corporal of the Guard," 
 when that important functionary, with two or three privates, 
 whose pride and official standing were involved in the result, 
 seized their muskets and were away in hot pursuit. Through 
 the gravel pit and across the fields went pursuers and pursued, 
 until, after a long and exciting chase, they overhauled the culprit, 
 and bringing him triumphantly back to camp, dumped him into 
 the litter and dirt of the guard tent. Some ran the gauntlet 
 successfully, and for a while enjoyed the sweets of stolen liberty. 
 The announcement that the guards would be supplied with ball 
 cartridges at length put a stop to this species of fun, for those 
 disposed to participate in it began to realize that a two ounce 
 slug of lead in pursuit of a man was quite a different affair from 
 being chased by a heavy-sided, ungainly recruit, depending solely 
 upon suppleness of limb and length of breath for success. Some 
 of the fellows thus caught were put in charge of a guard, and 
 were observed sweeping and otherwise clearing up the parade 
 ground, looking very sheepish the while. 
 
 This species of fun being suppressed, Hiram, of Big Rock, 
 in lieu of it opened a boxing gymnasium. This, with base ball, 
 filled up the intervals between meal time and drill. At night, 
 
LIFE AT CAMP HAMMOND. 25 
 
 the " Star Spangled Banner," the "Red, White and Blue," rang 
 out clear and sweet from the throats of a glee club made up from 
 the members of the Morris Company, who almost every evening 
 favored us with well sung and spirited choruses. Thanks for 
 music in an encampment of soldiers it is the crucible in which 
 a thousand diversities of taste, purpose and ambition are fused 
 to man s infinite advantage, harmonizing petty jealousies, assim 
 ilating diverse sentiments, forming and cementing friendships 
 which would never have been effected by any other process. 
 Besides the glee club, there were plenty of other musical aspir 
 ants who sang in good English and bad English, in Dutch, 
 Chinese, and other dialects too numerous to mention. In other 
 portions of the camp would be heard the grinding squeal of a 
 fiddle, shrill and sharp as a rapier, around which a quadrille 
 would be quickly extemporized, and numbers whirled in the 
 giddy mazes of the dance. Then came jokes, both fresh and 
 stale, and "sells" and stories ad infinitum. 
 
 The utmost cleanliness existed throughout the camp. Liquor 
 was prohibited, by order of the Colonel, which will everlastingly 
 redound to his honor and credit ; and every precaution was taken 
 to insure the health of the men. 
 
 Food was abundant, and in many instances the regular allow 
 ance was increased by contributions from the well stored larders 
 and productions from the fields of the large-hearted farmers of 
 the country. Scarcely a day passed in which there were not 
 heavily laden wagons driven into the quarters, with potatoes, 
 squashes, onions, fruits and vegetables, butter, eggs, milk, &c., 
 &c. substantial evidences of the generous and patriotic impulses 
 of the citizens of the surrounding region. The "Young Amer 
 ica Guards," who were at too great a distance from home to be 
 often remembered by their friends, generally had a good time 
 
 3 
 
26 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 watching with watery mouths all such arrivals ; but not long had 
 they to watch and wait, for selfishness was a trait of character 
 not often indulged in by the men, and generally all shared equally 
 in the good things showered upon us ; in fact, all the companies 
 " lived high" while at Camp Hammond. 
 
 The military duties at Camp Hammond were about the same 
 each day, excepting that the lines were gradually drawn closer, 
 and more strictness and severity of discipline observed. To 
 give the details of one day would answer for a week, a month, 
 or a whole campaign. At five o clock a. m., when the first 
 blushes of the early morning were stealing up and over the 
 heavens, and the eastern sky was glowing with tints of purple 
 and gold, and at a time when the aches and pains, the joys and 
 sorrows of the men were forgotten in deep and refreshing slum 
 bers, and when each tent was musical with a duet of unearthly 
 snores, was sounded the "drummers call," a signal for the 
 drummers to assemble, fifteen minutes thereafter, and perform a 
 fife and sheep skin chorus, called reveille, which consisted, sim 
 ply, of a half dozen tunes played up and down the parade ground, 
 and along the line of tents. This was the signal for sleepy and 
 sleeping soldiers to cease snoring, come out from Dreamland, 
 pick the straws from their hair, carefully fold their blankets, don 
 their wardrobe and generally awaken to active life. Those 
 detailed for that purpose set about preparing breakfast, while, as 
 an appetizer, the balance of the Company were divided into 
 squads, and under charge of Sergeants, marched to the parade 
 ground, and put through all the evolutions laid down by Hardee 
 or Hoyle, or prescribed by the U. S. Regulations. When break 
 fast was announced, a double quick to the tables and a charge 
 upon the viands smoking from the pot, and the day s work was 
 fairly inaugurated. 
 
DAILY DUTIES IN CAMP. 27 
 
 At six o clock a. m. was "Police Call," at which every straw, 
 chicken bone, hen s feather, quid of tobacco, scrap of paper, 
 &c., &c., were gathered up and carried beyond the confines of 
 the camp. At seven o clock was another drum beat, called the 
 " Surgeon s Call," at which all the sick, lame and lazy were 
 marched to the surgeon s quarters for examination and treatment 
 for their varied ailments. At half-past seven o clock another 
 rub-a-dub-dub diffused the information that it was time for drill, 
 when at it they went, tramp, tramp, march, march, rush, rush, 
 from two to four hours, as if their very salvation was depending 
 on it, when seething, sweating and panting they were marched 
 to their quarters and allowed a brief interval to cool off. 
 
 At nine o clock was guard mounting, when the new guards, 
 made up of squads detailed for that purpose from each company, 
 proceeded to head-quarters, and after being inspected, divided 
 into reliefs numbered One, Two and Three, and receiving their 
 orders, proceeded to relieve the guards of the previous twenty- 
 four hours. The post of each sentinel or guard was numbered, 
 and if disorders or violations of military etiquette occurred 
 which required regulating, near any particular station, the sen 
 tinel at that post called for the "Corporal of the Guard," add 
 ing the number of the post, which call, after being passed from 
 post to post, and repeated by each successive sentinel, reached 
 the guard tent, when a Corporal and file of men, known as a 
 "Corporal s Guard," seized their arms, rushed to the point of 
 danger or from whence the call proceeded. Guard duty became 
 not only exceedingly wearisome, but was very generally regarded 
 as an intolerable nuisance. 
 
 At twelve o clock was "Dinner Call," the most welcome and 
 the most eagerly responded to of any of the almost innumerable 
 calls which were squeaked and pounded out of the bowels of fife 
 
28 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and drum. A bevy of country lasses, generally young and 
 handsome, were usually on hand to share the noonday meal, but 
 none of them were very heavy gormandizers of baked beans, 
 fried pork, muddy coffee arid bread without butter. " My 
 sakes !" says one, "No cream for your coffee? How can you 
 drink it? Why does the Government subject its soldiers to such 
 privations ?" And when the shocking fact was made known 
 that the "boys " were not even provided with ice cream, sponge 
 cake, "blanc mange," and a hundred other like articles, their 
 horror at the "hardships" and "deprivations" to which the 
 "poor boys " were subjected, knew no bounds. 
 
 At six o clock in the afternoon was " Assembly," at the sound 
 of which each company fell into line, in front of camp. And 
 then came the most prominent feature of the day, " Dress 
 Parade," when the whole regiment was drawn up in line, number 
 ing at least one thousand men, making a very fine appearance. 
 The band played a march and quickstep along the line and back 
 again, and then they were marshalled by Adjutant Willis and 
 turned over to the Colonel, who put them through a series of post 
 ures and facings ; after which the Orderly Sergeants marched to 
 the front and reported. Then the commissioned officers proceeded 
 to the center ; faced to the front ; proceeded in line to the Colonel ; 
 saluted him ; were either complimented or criticised, and then dis 
 missed; while the different companies were marched to their quar 
 ters by the Orderlies. 
 
 At nine p. m., while the carnp was bubbling over with mirth, 
 song and story, and all seemed to be in a furor of discordant con 
 versation and laughter, was heard "Tattoo," the finest effort of 
 music during the day, consisting of a wild outburst or medley of 
 several pieces played by the full band, which had a peculiarly 
 magnificent and exhilarating effect in combination with the dark- 
 
CORPORAL OF THE GUARD. 29 
 
 ness and solemnities of the night. This was succeeded by roll 
 call, and then the men were expected to go to their quarters ; and 
 at " taps," which consisted of a few beats of the drum at the head 
 of each company quarters, lights were extinguished. The hum of 
 voices gradually subsided as one and another retired to rest, clos 
 ing their eyes in brief oblivion of the world, its cares, its toils, 
 its joys and sorrows. Thus were the duties incident to camp life 
 performed with the regularity and certainty of a clock. 
 
 About the most important personage at Camp Hammond was 
 that ubiquitous dignitary known as the " Corporal of the Guard," 
 before whom the ordinary "high private" might be considered as 
 a mere serf kneeling before his imperial footstool. It was per 
 fectly astonishing how high a little brief authority raised some 
 men in their own estimation. When in the course of human 
 events these great men condescended to perform their share of 
 the duties pertaining to camp, their dignified air and tone of 
 authority at once proclaimed a consciousness of their own impor 
 tance. One would think, to see them blustering and domineer 
 ing through camp, that not only the existence of the Regiment, 
 but the eternal welfare of the country depended upon them 
 alone, and that their creation was the only work of any conse 
 quence performed by an all-wise and beneficent Creator. No 
 men in any other position, if they should try a lifetime, could 
 succeed so well in making donkeys of themselves. 
 
 At length, after days and weeks of anxious watching and 
 weary waiting, the uniforms arrived on the 23d of September. 
 "Fall in, men," was the Captain s order, which was quickly 
 responded to. Each company being formed in line before that 
 officer s tent, the roll was called, and each man in response to 
 his name went forward and soon returned with drawers, pants, 
 coat and cap hanging on his arm, and looking proud over his 
 
30 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 newly acquired treasures. In expectation of the speedy arrival 
 of the regulation blue, the men had left their " store clothes " at 
 home, and had come to camp with their half worn out toggery, 
 thinking there would be a speedy change for other and more 
 appropriate costumes ; but a strike among seamstresses or other 
 unavoidable circumstances caused delay, until many had become 
 fit material for scarecrows, and the whole outfit in the matter of 
 clothing had become a burlesque upon neatness and gentility. 
 But after these caricature representation of clothes had been 
 shucked, and each man had donned a brand new uniform, the 
 transformation was so complete that one would scarcely recognize 
 his neighbor or bunk-mate; while the piles of scraps, shreds, 
 cast-off rags, and the mountains of old hats, caps, boots and 
 shoes which graced the grounds were perfectly astonishing. 
 
 The new uniforms fitted admirably, excepting say fifty or sixty 
 to a company. Here would be seen a tall, lank, ungainly man, 
 as slim as a whipstalk, the unhappy possessor of a pair of 
 unmentionables as loose and baggy as a gunny-sack large 
 enough for Daniel Lambert, and what was still more remarkable, 
 the excess expended in breadth of beam was lacking in length, 
 and when once enveloping its ungainly possessor, several inches, 
 more or less, of naked legs would be discovered protruding from 
 below the voluminous folds of cloth. Some of the shorter ones 
 were able to button their waistbands around their necks, and 
 then have from six inches to a foot of cloth to spare at the bot 
 toms; but this defect was easily remedied by rolling them up or 
 chopping them off with a broadaxe. The pockets of some were 
 too shallow to hold a jack-knife, while others were so deep as to 
 suggest the idea of taking off the pants entirely to enable one 
 to reach the bottom, and large enough to hold a blanket, a shirt, 
 
UNIFORMING THE REGIMENT. 31 
 
 or even a side of bacon, if necessary. Some were so tight as to 
 suggest cholera morbus or heaves. 
 
 The coats fitted beautifully, almost as well, in fact, as the 
 pants. A third of them were too large around the waist ; as 
 many were too small around the chest ; but then these slight 
 drawbacks admirably offset each other. The collars of some 
 were but a trifle above the small of the wearer s back, while the 
 collars of others were several inches above the heads of their 
 owners. The sleeves, too, had here and there a fault. Some 
 were so tight under the arms as to nearly lift the possessor from 
 the ground ; others large enough for a small sized boy to crawl 
 through ; as for length, some did not stop until the distance of 
 several inches beyond the tips of the fingers had been attained, 
 while the career of others terminated at or near the elbows. 
 With these trifling exceptions the uniforms fitted admirably, and 
 the men were universally pleased as well as proud at the change 
 from jeans and satinets to the garb of soldiers of the United 
 States of America. 
 
 The early autumn days Avere soft and mellow, with just enough 
 haze to give the sky a dreamy appearance, and the weather was 
 generally even tempered. Now and then the rays of the sun 
 poured down with a fierceness which rendered the performance 
 of camp duties anything but a pleasant recreation. Not always, 
 however, were the days bright and the breezes balmy. For 
 instance, on the afternoon of September 1st, a rain storm, accom 
 panied with heavy thunder and wind, swept the camp. The 
 tents flapped and swayed before the blast and the men expected 
 every moment to see their canvas roofs go flying over the prairie, 
 but for two hours they stood the test and not a man received a 
 wetting. At sunset the dense clouds had passed over and 
 gathered in the east, while patches of clear sky betokened that 
 
32 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 this storm was over. But in the west another black cloud arose 
 in heavy masses. The faint gleams of lightning illuminating 
 the deep recesses of the clouds, together with the unusual still 
 ness in the air, told of another and severer storm about to burst 
 upon us. It came at length, and at midnight the wind was 
 shrieking among the tents and the water poured down in resist 
 less fury. The rain drove through the canvas as though it were 
 fish nets or mosquito bars, and men awoke from dreams of home 
 and other luxuries to find themselves wetter than if they had 
 just emerged from the neighboring mill pond. Here and there 
 a tent would careen and then tumble in dripping ruins about the 
 heads of the amazed inmates, who, in inordinate haste, gathered 
 up what could be found of their scattered wardrobe and fled in 
 their scanty apparel to other and safer quarters. The wind soon 
 was over, but the rain continued to fall in torrents. The poor 
 sentinels experienced all its fury. Imagine one in all the loneli 
 ness of such a night, plunging blindly through the savage storm, 
 staggering into some muddy rut or hollow and breasting a blast 
 of wind nearly sufficient in force to blow an iron siege gun or 
 an elephant into space. 
 
 In the morning eight tents were in ruins, others shattered, 
 and the ground plastered with mud anywhere from three inches 
 to three feet in depth. The Colonel s quarters, as the printer 
 would have it, were badly "pied," flattened in the mud and 
 bountifully sprinkled with the blackest prairie soil. A detail of 
 men took it to the river and attempted to wash it, but that Head 
 quarters tent never after assumed the white and spotless purity 
 of its primeval state. Then there were other days, when 
 
 " There was a gloom on the sky, and its shadow 
 
 Lay chill on the morning s pure breast ; 
 When the sunshine was hid from the meadows, 
 And nature with tears was oppressed." 
 
THE GOOD TREATMENT RECEIVED. 83 
 
 When the clouds would shed their tear drops as if in mourning, 
 from morning till night, and during the succeeding hours of 
 darkness the unceasing drizzle would continue its sonorous patter 
 upon the tent flies. 
 
 The Companies all received superb treatment from their friends 
 at home. Almost every day they were the recipients of boun 
 teous favors; were " wined," dined, and pic-nicked to an extent 
 never experienced before. Calico, muslins, ribbons and para 
 sols gleamed like wild flowers hither and thither in ever throng 
 ing numbers to greet their soldier friends. At one time eleven 
 passenger coaches, filled to repletion with people from Elgin and 
 Woodstock, came down to see and feast their brave boys in the 
 tented field, and as a token of their regard and an evidence of 
 good sense they brought along huge baskets and boxes of all the 
 good things their ingenuity could invent or their pantries yield. 
 Truly did they appreciate the fact that the avenue to a soldier s 
 heart ran through his stomach, and as the Regimental rhymer 
 
 has it : 
 
 " Tis a curious thing that people should cram 
 Mutton and beef, chicken and ham, 
 Cake, salmon, salad, pickles and dace, 
 All through a hole in the front of the face." 
 
 Never went up cheers more hearty and blessings more benign 
 than were showered upon the good dames of Elgin when the 
 boys caught sight of that dinner. 
 
 The "Young Americas" were also pic-nicked, by the ladies of 
 Montgomery and Bristol providing a feast of fat things, in a 
 beautiful grove east of the village. The " Guards," and a throng 
 of invited guests, fell into line and marched three-quarters of a 
 mile to the tables, which were loaded down with every substan 
 tial and delicacy known to the season, presenting a scene of 
 magnificence rivaling the famed and fabled feasts of the gods. 
 
34 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Groups of ladies, the grace, goodness and beauty of the place, 
 detailed for that purpose, were at each table to wait on the sol 
 diers, which pleasing duty they did in a style satisfactory in the 
 highest degree. After hundreds had filled their inordinate 
 capacities almost too full for utterance, there was still enough 
 food left to feed as many more. " May heaven strew their paths 
 with blessings," was the universal benison accorded these fair 
 hostesses, as the men retired with grateful hearts and in good 
 order from the contest. 
 
 An unfortunate difference arose between Colonel Greusel and 
 Lieut. Walker, of the " Oswego Rifles." This Company was 
 among the first upon the ground, and had largely been recruited 
 through the efforts of Walker. Its Captain, S. C. Camp, a law 
 yer by profession, was better versed in Blackstone than Hardee, 
 and much of the drilling of the men and more laborious duties 
 devolved upon Lieut. Walker. An auctioneer by profession, he 
 could not readily divest himself of his buying and selling ways 
 of life, and his duties were performed in "just a going, gentle 
 men, going going gone " sort of a way, exciting the laugh 
 ter of some and the disgust of others. About this time, 0. B. 
 Merrill, a member of the 13th Regiment, then on duty in Mis 
 souri, came to Aurora on a furlough. His brief military exper 
 ience, in the opinion of some, had eminently fitted him for pro 
 motion, and he sought a commission in the Fox River Regiment. 
 And here let us remark, what a great pity it is that some plan 
 was not devised whereby all enlisted men could be made Briga 
 diers, Colonels, or at least something that wore shoulder straps. 
 Such a plan, it must be readily perceived, would have resulted 
 in the most delightful harmony and efficiency of an army, beside 
 being particularly gratifying to the vanity of a majority of the 
 men. 
 
FIRST LIEUTENANCY OF COMPANY I. 35 
 
 To give Merrill a place among the officers, a vacancy was nec 
 essary, and as in the recruiting of the 36th the offices were 
 most eagerly sought after and soonest filled, unfortunately such 
 vacancy did not exist. The Surgeon was called upon to decide 
 the physical qualifications of candidates for official honors. 
 Walker was alone found wanting, and thereupon rejected, when 
 Merrill at once succeeded to the position. This arrangement 
 was not at all satisfactory to Walker, who strenuously objected 
 to being so summarily disposed of; for, however much he 
 delighted in auctioneering off the goods, chattels and wares of 
 others, the rule when applied to himself was not so delightful, and 
 he entered his protest against such a going going gone pro 
 cedure. Walker hastened to Chicago and was examined by 
 other medical magnates, who pronounced him physically sound, 
 or at least sound enough for the performance of military duty. 
 
 In the meantime Major Brackett had mustered the whole Reg 
 iment and accepted it for service, including 0. B. Merrill as 
 Lieutenant of Co. I., and on Walker s return to camp, backed 
 by his medical certificate, he found Lieut. Merrill fully installed 
 and in the performance of the duties of the much coveted position. 
 Walker claimed his position of 1st Lieutenant and demanded 
 his reinstatement and recognition as such. The Colonel was in 
 a towering rage, and ordered Walker to leave the camp instantly, 
 and set about measures to enforce the order ; whereupon Walker, 
 thinking discretion the better part of valor, went. We would 
 gladly strike this page from our story, but, as an impartial his 
 torian, there is no other resource than to treat the good and bad 
 alike. This is our apology for giving details of an occurence 
 which, more than all other causes combined, carried with it the 
 seeds of acrimony and dissension. 
 
36 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 It cannot be denied that for one reason or another a great 
 many " poor sticks " managed at the outset to get into positions, 
 for which they were in a greater or less degree unfitted. Many 
 a Company, and Regiment even, made up of most excellent 
 material, have been rendered comparatively useless by having at 
 its head an inefficient leader. If there was one lesson well 
 learned during the first years of the war, it was the absolute 
 necessity of having men for officers ! Men, in the broad sense 
 of the term, who had some respect for themselves as well as for 
 others. Men to stand firm, self-possessed, elevated and strength 
 ened by a high sense of honor, of patriotic duty to their country, 
 to their subordinates, and to the cause in which they were 
 engaged. Imagine a whining incapable, leading a body of men 
 upon a desperate bayonet charge ! 
 
 The very first element of success and of discipline is the 
 respect of men for their officers, and only true men can thus 
 command their respect. Let such a one be found and the rest 
 becomes easy, whether he is wanted for a General, a Colonel or 
 a Lieutenant. The 13th Regiment, or even West Point with all 
 its training in camp or field, could not manufacture first-rate 
 officers if the iridispensible ingredients of self-respect, honor, 
 temperance, manliness and reserved force of character are lack 
 ing. When war and battles are resorted to in the settlement of 
 difficulties, it should be no child s play, but the desperate exer 
 cise of all the higher qualities of manhood; for unless troops 
 are under the control of true men, defeat is inevitable. 
 
 On the 12th of September Col. Brackett appeared, and in his 
 official capacity as United States Mustering Officer, inspected 
 and mustered the Regiment as a whole. Each Company in 
 single file was slowly marched between a Board of Surgeons, 
 and if a limp was detected or a man wore a cadaverous cast of 
 
A FEW REFUSE TO BE SWORN. 37 
 
 countenance, he was requested to stand aside and afterwards 
 subjected to an ante mortem Coroner s inquest, called Medical 
 Examination. A few were rejected, and, notwithstanding their 
 protestations of general good health and appeals to remain, they 
 were obliged to take up their traps and walk. The examination 
 over, the oath was administered to the whole Regiment, which 
 was for the first time designated the THIRTY-SIXTH, and as such 
 was booked for three years service in the employ of that stu 
 pendous individual, Uncle Sam. 
 
 A few refused to be sworn in and comply with the conditions 
 attached to the service ; whereupon Col. Joslyn jerked them out 
 of the ranks, and presenting each a note of hand with the toe 
 of his boot, sent them howling beyond the confines of camp 
 a mode of mustering out not laid down in the books, and calcu 
 lated to awaken a remembrance of so lively an event to the 
 latest hours of life. Among these were two Germans from 
 Co. E., whose courage oozing out at this supreme moment, they 
 refused to take the prescribed oath. They were followed a half 
 mile from camp by half a hundred madly excited men and 
 remorselessly kicked and hustled about, and as a parting token 
 of remembrance a horse whip was unmercifully administered to 
 their backs. Their piteous cries for mercy awakened but little 
 sympathy from their late and now infuriated comrades. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 ROSTER OF THE REGIMENT. 
 
 OLLOWING is the Roster of the 36th Regi 
 ment, on its final muster and acceptance into 
 the service of the United States, and at the 
 period of its departure from Camp Ham 
 mond to Missouri. 
 
 NICHOLAS GREUSEL, 
 EDWARD S. JOSLYN, - 
 ALONZO H. BARRY, 
 GEORGE A. WILLIS, - 
 ISAAC N. BUCK, 
 DELOS W. YOUNG, 
 SIDNEY W. HAWLEY, 
 JETHRO A. HATCH, - 
 GEORGE G. LYON, - 
 
 Colonel. 
 
 Lieut. Colonel. 
 
 Major. 
 
 Adjutant. 
 
 Quartermaster. 
 
 Surgeon. 
 
 1st Assistant Surgeon. 
 
 2d Assistant Surgeon. 
 
 - Chaplain. 
 
 COMPANY A. 
 MELVIN B. BALDWIN, Captain. 
 EDWARD S. CHAPPEL, 1st Lieutenant. 
 WILLIAM S. SMITH, 2d Lieutenant. 
 
ROSTER OF THE REGIMENT. 
 
 39 
 
 ENLISTED MEN, 
 
 George D. Sherman. 1st Sergeant. 
 Franklin J. Thwing, Sergeant. 
 Alexander C. Lynd, Sergeant. 
 Sanford H. Wakeman, Sergeant. 
 Alexander Robinson, Sergeant. 
 Walter J. Ordway, Corporal. 
 Leslie P. Ticknor, Corporal. 
 John W. Aldrich, Corporal. 
 Benj. D. C. Roland, Corporal. 
 Leroy Salisbury, Corporal. 
 William H Mitchell, Corporal. 
 John S. Long, Corporal. 
 Frank B. Perkins Corporal. 
 Charles B. Styles, Musician. 
 Bray man Loveless, Musician. 
 Albert Andrews. 
 Bernan N. Adams. 
 Charles A. Brown. 
 Daniel W. Brown. 
 Patrick Brannon. 
 Fred. H. Birmaster. 
 Christopher P. Baker. 
 John B. Burr. 
 Elijah Buck. 
 Leman Bartholomew. 
 John Bluckman. 
 Buel M. Chapman- 
 Charles G. Cox. 
 Henry Clayson. 
 Alexander Chambers. 
 Hugh Duffee. 
 Cyrus F. Dean. 
 William Dade. 
 Freeman S. Dunkler. 
 Jeptha C. Dennison. 
 Thomas Fenner. 
 John Flood. 
 John Faulkner. 
 Henry Ford. 
 Charles H. Gales. 
 Patrick Gibbons. 
 Moses T. Gibbs. 
 
 COMPANY A. 
 
 Charles A. Holsie. 
 James Halberton. 
 David F. Jayne. 
 George M. Johnson. 
 Leverett M. Kelley. 
 Frederick Krahan. 
 Addison A Keyes. 
 George M. Lake. 
 James H. Moore. 
 Isaac N. Miner. 
 Leonard W . Nann. 
 Edward Nute. 
 John O Connell. 
 Chandler Preston. 
 Edmund H. Robinson 
 Charles B. Rapp. 
 William F. Sylla. 
 Michael Seisloff. 
 George H. Kimball. 
 Romane Kilburn. 
 George H. Knowles. 
 Peter Little. 
 Alex Manahan. 
 Tobias Miller. 
 Lewis F. Miller. 
 Dorus Murus. 
 Fenelon J. Nicholas. 
 Charles Olesyeski 
 George L. Peeler. 
 Augustus Ritze. 
 Timothy Ring. 
 Fred. A Raymond. 
 Duporral Sampson. 
 Tolmus Stan ton. 
 Adelbert Shaw. 
 Lewis H. Severine. 
 Charles L. Themer. 
 Milton S. Townsend. 
 James M. Vining. 
 John A. White. 
 Homer H. Wilcox. 
 Joseph N. Yerkers. 
 
40 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN COMPANY A. 
 
 Alonzo S Harpeuding. 
 Louis B. Householder. 
 Jeremiah C. Hall. 
 Daniel B. Hoxie. 
 Alex. F. Henderson. 
 Henry Howe. 
 John A. Hewett. 
 Frank W. Raymond. 
 
 Ninety-nine officers and enlisted men. 
 
 Merrill H. Sabin. 
 Clarence H. Truax. 
 A. Byron Thomas. 
 John B. F. Taylor. 
 Arzotus White. 
 Ebson J. Wickwire. 
 Jeremiah Whitford. 
 
 COMPANY B. 
 
 SILAS MILLER, Captain. 
 
 JOSEPH M. WALKER, 1st Lieutenant. 
 
 BENJ. F. CAMPBELL, 2d Lieutenant. 
 
 ENLISTED 
 
 George P. Douglas, 1st Sergeant. 
 Samuel Hitchcock, Sergeant. 
 Abner Field, Sergeant. 
 French Brownlee, Sergeant. 
 Charles W. Rhodes, Sergeant. 
 Win. F. Blakeslee, Corporal. 
 Emery D. Haselton, Corporal. 
 Thomas Flinn, Corporal. 
 William Warner, Corporal. 
 Ezra W. Parker, Corporal. 
 Owen Hughes, Corporal. 
 Jno. H. Gronberg, Corporal. 
 Wm H. Dugan, Corporal. 
 George Brewer, Musician. 
 Willard Pettengill, Musician. 
 John F. Lilley, Wagoner. 
 Henry Alcott. 
 Charles G. Ayers. 
 Thomas Boyd. 
 Rudolph Brager. 
 Christian Brunnemeyer. 
 Arba Camp. 
 James B. Campbell. 
 William L. Campbell. 
 Thomas Cowan. 
 
 MEN. 
 
 Nathaniel P. McCutcheon. 
 Jno. C. Donnell. 
 Frank Dugan. 
 Jno. W. Edwards. 
 Jno. Eddy. 
 Jno. W. Evans. 
 Leasonton Galloway. 
 Charles M. Harvey. 
 Charles G. Hemze . 
 David T. Hogue. 
 William Jackson. 
 Sidney E . Kendall. 
 Franklin Leet. 
 Robert Logan. 
 Elihu Mahew. 
 Thomas McConnell. 
 Joseph McGee. 
 George W. Miller. 
 Nathaniel M. Moore. 
 William Ott. 
 VanWyck Race. 
 Henry Reitz. 
 George Reitz. 
 Daniel B. Roberts. 
 William Scheffer. 
 
ROSTER OF THE REGIMENT. 
 
 41 
 
 Ernst Ansorge. 
 George Berger. 
 William H. Brandon. 
 Oliver F. Brownlee. 
 George H. Burns. 
 Adam R. Campbell. 
 Sylvester Campbell. 
 Thomas Clark. 
 Daniel Davis. 
 Thomas Donnell. 
 Robert Drane. 
 Carl Eckhart. 
 James Eddy. 
 Frederick Emde. 
 Jno Fife. 
 
 William H. Hartless. 
 Frederick Heine. 
 Dow Hodges. 
 Thomas E. Hornby. 
 Jno. H Karle. 
 Henry B Latham. 
 Henry Levoy. 
 Brayton Loyd. 
 David McClurg. 
 
 Ninety-eight officers 
 
 ENLISTED MEN, COMPANY B. 
 
 Fritz Stevens. 
 William A. Tobey. 
 Frank Thompson 
 Charles W. Travis. 
 William Waterman. 
 Joel J. Wilder. 
 Elanthan S. Weeden. 
 Fritz Wokersein. 
 Jno. Ott. 
 Peter Pelican. 
 Edward Pierce. 
 Jefferson Reed. 
 Adam Rietz. 
 Henry L. Ribby. 
 Charles W. Sears. 
 Thomas W. Sedgwick. 
 Charles E. Strong. 
 Daniel Terry. 
 Robert N. Thompson. 
 William Van Ohlin. 
 Alfred J. West. 
 Jacob Winn. 
 James H. Woodard. 
 Christian Zimmer. 
 and enlisted men. 
 
 COMPANY C. 
 ELIAS B. BALDWIN, Captain. 
 JAMES B. McNEiL, 1st Lieutenant. 
 JOHN M. TURNBULL, 2d Lieutenant. 
 
 ENLISTED 
 
 Jacob Sands, Sergeant. 
 John A. Porter, Sergeant. 
 Ebenezer A. Crawford, Sergeant. 
 Scott Brownlee, Sergeant. 
 David S. Irwin, Sergeant. 
 George N. Mercer, Corporal. 
 David B. Brownlee, Corporal. 
 Robert Gilmore, Corporal. 
 James J. Wilson, Corporal. 
 
 MEN. 
 
 William M. Gibson. 
 Hugh W. Harper. 
 William Haitzell. 
 Ferdinand Hercher. 
 Huston Henderson. 
 Oscar Jennie. 
 Warren Kintzey. 
 Henry H. Lord. 
 John W. McCoy. 
 
42 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN, COMPANY C. 
 
 Jacob A . Pearce, Corporal. 
 
 James M. Pollock, Corporal. 
 
 William Ward, Corporal. 
 
 Wm. Kingsland, Corporal. 
 
 James L. Dryden, Musician. 
 
 Joseph E. Young, Musician. 
 
 Elisha L. Atkins. 
 
 Wm. S. Allen. 
 
 Joseph W. Arthurs. 
 
 Wm. C. Azdel. 
 
 Valentine Angles. 
 
 Wm. T. Arthurs. 
 
 James Armstrong. 
 
 Charles B. Bailey. 
 
 Joseph Baxter. 
 
 Franklin Beck. 
 
 Thomas G. Barton. 
 
 Isaiah Baughman. 
 
 Isaac Carson . 
 
 Isaac N. Carey. 
 
 George Dowell. 
 
 James Davis. 
 
 James Elder. 
 
 William Fisher. 
 
 John Q. Graham, 
 
 Robert Gillmore. 
 
 Orlando Hayes. 
 
 John F. Henderson. 
 
 John H. Harris. 
 
 Lafayette Butt. 
 
 Nathaniel T. Baird. 
 
 Daniel P. Baldwin. 
 
 Huston Buchanan. 
 
 John G. Cavis. 
 
 William P. Criswell. 
 
 Enos Constant. 
 
 Harvey P. Donnell. 
 
 Albert Eckelson. 
 
 John B. Edgar. 
 
 Richard Godfrey. 
 
 One hundred and one officers 
 
 Frank McClanahan. 
 Joseph McGregor. 
 William C. McElroy. 
 Jacob W. Moss. 
 Ezra E. Munson. 
 George W. Nichols 
 Lafayette M. Pike. 
 James Ralston. 
 Carvasso Reeder. 
 Jacob Stewart. 
 Benjamin W. Sawins. 
 Hugh Shearer. 
 Ethan Keck. 
 Thomas Leggett. 
 George Monroe. 
 Stephen W. Mattison. 
 James C. McPherin. 
 Jno. K. McMullin. 
 William A. Mitchell. 
 Ralph Miller. 
 George Nelson. 
 Samuel Paxton. 
 William Patterson 
 Walter V. Reeder. 
 Orestes A. Spickerman. 
 John Shook. 
 William Shearer. 
 John H. Smith. 
 Ezra Schotts. 
 Isaac Stewart. 
 John P. Tice. 
 Henry Way staff. 
 Samuel N. Wilson. 
 Ezekiel Wimmer. 
 Abraham Stewart. 
 William R. Toll. 
 George W. Thompson. 
 John H. Ward. 
 John Wilson. 
 Gamble S. Wright, 
 and enlisted men . 
 
ROSTER OF THE REGIMENT. 
 
 43 
 
 COMPANY D. 
 
 WILLIAM P. PIERCE, Captain. 
 JOHN VAN?ELT, 1st Lieutenant. 
 GEORGE D. PARKER, 2d Lieutenant. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN. 
 
 Edward P . Cass, Sergeant. 
 Mercelon B. Gaylord, Sergeant. 
 Alexander Stickles, Sergeant. 
 Joseph C. Thompson, Sergeant. 
 Isaac N. Beebe, Sergeant. 
 Clinton Lloyd, Corporal. 
 David Sutherland, Corporal. 
 William T. Maycroft, Corporal. 
 William C. Benedict, Corporal. 
 John C. Taylor, Corporal. 
 William Stewart, Corporal. 
 Thomas Dillon, Corporal. 
 Andrew L. Scofield, Corporal. 
 Henry T. Kellom, Musician. 
 VV illiam P. Birgess, Musician . 
 Newton J. Abbott. 
 Joseph Apley. 
 Sidney M. Abbott. 
 Lyndon K. Bannister. 
 Henry F. Birch. 
 Jacob M. Burgess. 
 Joseph Bushnell. 
 Rensler Carpenter. 
 Seth Darling. 
 Clark W. Edwards. 
 Nelson Erickson. 
 Alfred H. Gaylord. 
 Allen M. Alvord. 
 Louis P. Boyd. 
 James A. Baker. 
 Allen Brown. 
 Benjamin F. Burgess. 
 Charles H. Bissell. 
 William B. Cady. 
 William Duckworth. 
 Oliver Edniond. 
 
 John Menley. 
 Miles Murray. 
 William T . Pyle. 
 John A. Paige. 
 Nelson Peck. 
 Luther Gates. 
 John Graham. 
 Thomas Harrop. 
 Joseph W. Hinsdale. 
 Thomas Jones. 
 Peter A. Johnson. 
 William C. Knox. 
 Charles G. Langdon. 
 John Larking. 
 Edward Lars. 
 John Miller. 
 Aaron Mills. 
 Ole N. Oleson . 
 Francis Phelps. 
 William Peck. 
 Aspin Peterson. 
 Joseph Phipps. 
 Joseph A Smith. 
 Louis R. Seymour. 
 Phillip Stage. 
 Charles Seymour. 
 Thor. Thorson. 
 Samuel Tucker. 
 Ezra Taylor. 
 George Thumb. 
 Thomas Vernon. 
 Thomas Welch. 
 Chester F. Wright. 
 Andrew T. Wilsey. 
 John Wilson. 
 George W. Raymond. 
 
44 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN, COMPANY D. 
 
 George Goodwin. Dana Sherrill. 
 
 Willard W. Gifford. Thomas Shaw. 
 
 Remington F. Gilmore. Edward Seymour. 
 
 Eben Gates. Joseph Shaw. 
 
 James Hurst. George S. Tompkins. 
 
 Frank Henning. James Thorp. 
 
 John Hyer. Ole H. Thompson. 
 
 Ole H. Johnson. Garrett G. Vreeland. 
 
 Andrew Johnson. Jno. E. Williams. 
 
 Harvey Kimball. Joseph Whitham. 
 
 William Lloyd. Wright F Washburn. 
 
 James M. Leach. George W. Woods. 
 
 David Mellor. Samuel Young. 
 One hundred and one officers and enlisted men. 
 
 COMPANY E. 
 
 CHARLES D. FISH, Captain. 
 ALBERT M. HOBBS, 1st Lieutenant. 
 WILLIAM H. CLARK, 2d Lieutenant. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN. 
 
 George S. Bartlett, Sergeant. Charles T. Etchell. 
 
 Lucian F. Heminway, Sergeant. Uriah Foster. 
 
 William Hall, Sergeant. Oscar S. Howe. 
 
 Orson Smith, Sergeant. Judson W. Hanson. 
 
 Robert B. Ralston, Sergeant. James Harrel. 
 
 David G. Cromwell, Corporal. William Hunter . 
 
 Daniel Whitney, Corporal. Joseph Howard. 
 
 Hiram Wagner, Corporal. Henry J. Hodge. 
 
 Stanley Bushnell, Corporal. Peter Johnson. 
 
 William J. Willett, Corporal. Gilbert Ketchum. 
 
 Lyman G. Bennett, Corporal. Elisha E. Lloyd . 
 
 Thomas P. Hill, Corporal. George E. Lownsberry. 
 
 Herbert Dewey, Corporal. George Lanigan. 
 
 Peter Schryver, Musician. Henry Mullen. 
 
 William Todd, Musician. James E. Moss. 
 
 John W. Alston. George W. Matthews. 
 
 James II. Alston. Amos Norton. 
 
 Comfort Brace. Reuben W. Perrin. 
 
 James N. Baird. Oscar Pecoy. 
 
 George W. Beane. Melancton Rose. 
 
 Christopher M. Baker. Charles H. Scofield. 
 
ROSTER OF THE REGIMENT. 
 
 45 
 
 Henry C. Baxter. 
 Frederick Beier. 
 Delmar Burnside. 
 Eugene Benoit. 
 Alfred Bullard. 
 James Brown. 
 Mat Blu. 
 Milton Cornell. 
 James Carlin. 
 Edgar S. Case. 
 Charles W. Doane. 
 Aaron Darnell. 
 Bradley W. Doane. 
 Ira O. Fuller. 
 Amasa Gage. 
 Henry Haigh. 
 Holvar Hanson. 
 Erastus Beecher. 
 Christ Batterman. 
 John Bush. 
 John Brace. 
 William Burgess. 
 Hobert D. Carr. 
 Patrick Connor. 
 Henry Collman. 
 Silas F . Dyer. 
 Charles W. Doty. 
 Daniel J. Darnell. 
 One hundred officers 
 
 ENLISTED MEN, COMPANY E. 
 
 James S. Hatch. 
 Henry Hanness. 
 Thomas Ives. 
 Sylvester M. Jay. 
 Augustus Kasten. 
 Hamlet Livens. 
 James A. Lanigan. 
 Silas T. Marlette. 
 Edwin J McMullen. 
 Nicholas Meehan. 
 George Merrill. 
 John Pfensteil. 
 Cyrus Perry. 
 John Ray. 
 Walter S Ralston. 
 Benjamin Sayers. 
 Lewis Schafer. 
 Thomas P. Titlow. 
 William Woolen weber. 
 Joel Wagner. 
 Barney Wheeler. 
 William W. Zellar. 
 Henry Smith. 
 Stephen Winans. 
 Jacob Wolf. 
 Carlton D. Ward. 
 Edward R. Zellar. 
 
 and enlisted men. 
 
 COMPANY F. 
 
 PORTER C. OLSON, Captain. 
 GEORGE F. STONAX, 1st Lieutenant. 
 MARTIN C. WILSON, 2d Lieutenant. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN. 
 
 George G. Biddolph, Sergeant- 
 Richard H. Watson, Sergeant. 
 George K. Waun, Sergeant. 
 LaRue P. Southworth, Sergeant. 
 Thomas L. Bowen, Sergeant. 
 George W. Mossman, Corporal. 
 
 John Olson. 
 James W. Olson. 
 Oren II . Price. 
 Sweet A. Peterson. 
 Peter Philljps. 
 William G. Hnggett. 
 
46 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN, 
 
 Loren L. Olson, Corporal. 
 
 Bergo Thompson, Corporal. 
 
 Ole O. Brevick, Corporal. 
 
 George Neff, Corporal. 
 
 Michael Boomer, Corporal. 
 
 William Eyebond, Corporal. 
 
 William II. Mossman, Corporal. 
 
 Samuel Brimhall, Musician. 
 
 Norman C. Dean, Musician. 
 
 Erasmus Anderson. 
 
 Michael W. Bastian, 
 
 James R. Biddolph. 
 
 George A. Cummins. 
 
 Stephen C. Cummins. 
 
 William Curtis. 
 
 William H. Cotlew. 
 
 George W. Dessalet. 
 
 Theodore P. French. 
 
 John Green. 
 
 Luther Haskins. 
 
 John J. Hamilton. 
 
 William Browning. 
 
 Lewis E. Beldin. 
 
 Christian Christiansen. 
 
 William Coltrip. 
 
 Aben Christophersou. 
 
 Edwin Dopp. 
 
 William II. Eastman. 
 
 James S. Foster. 
 
 Gunner Gunnerson. 
 
 Oscar P. Hobbs. 
 
 William D. Hibbard. 
 
 Raynard Holverson. 
 
 James H. Hall. 
 
 Jno. T. Johnson. 
 
 Canute K. Johnson. 
 
 Ira M. Johnson. 
 
 Ira Larson. 
 
 Christ Lind. 
 
 John Lamb. 
 
 Warren C. Massey. 
 
 Henry J. Metabach. 
 
 Francis A. Mossman. 
 
 One hundred officers and enlisted men 
 
 COMPANY F. 
 
 John J. Jordan. 
 Ferriss Johnson. 
 Alfred Johnson 
 William E. Jackson. 
 Lars L arson % 
 Alexander Lipsky . 
 Alfred Melton. 
 Anton Myer. 
 William McClary. 
 Nels L. Ndson. 
 Lewis Olson . 
 Thomas Orstad. 
 Canute Phillips. 
 William J. Pletch. 
 Walter E. Patridge. 
 George F. Roots. 
 Charles N. Ralph. 
 Emra Strait. 
 Reuben Sweetland. 
 Richard Spraddling. 
 Henry M. Seymour. 
 James Sifleet. 
 Paul Stevenson. 
 Alfred Toinlin. 
 Thomas Thompson. 
 Augustus P. VanOrder. 
 Thomas J. Wilson. 
 Daniel Warden. 
 Charles Wangler. 
 John H. Roots. 
 Alfred Riggs. 
 Frederick W. Sly . 
 Cornelius Seward. 
 Simeon L. Smith. 
 Charles F. Sweetland. 
 Benjamin Stevenson. 
 John Thompson. 
 William Thompson. 
 Andrew L. Turner. 
 Jno. Howard Whitney. 
 Albert H Wulff. 
 Henry Waldsinith. 
 
ROSTER OF THE REGIMENT. 
 
 47 
 
 COMPANY a. 
 
 IRVING W. PARKHURST, Captain. 
 ABEL LONGWORTH, 1st Lieutenant. 
 ROBERT N. DENNING, 2d Lieutenant. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN. 
 
 Linus J. Austin, Sergeant. 
 Jno. A. Dispennet, Sergeant. 
 Jno. S. Fairman, Sergeant. 
 Herman J. Barstow, Sergeant. 
 Thomas W. Chandler, Sergeant. 
 Henry J. Ray, Corporal. 
 Abiah R. Jordan, Corporal. 
 Cyrus S. Brayton, Corporal. 
 Edward Collins, Corporal. 
 Peter Bradt, Corporal. 
 William E. Hunt, Corporal. 
 Robert R. Bradshaw, Corporal. 
 William Britt Corporal. 
 Frank Mallory, Musician. 
 Zeroy P. Hotchkiss, Musician. 
 Charles A. Browning. 
 Peter Buchanan. 
 Jesse H . Brown. 
 George M. Birdsell. 
 David Bardwell. 
 Robert Briarly. 
 David Boyer. 
 Francis M. Bradshaw. 
 Dyer O. Clark. 
 Isaac Corson. 
 Charles H. Chandler. 
 Nathaniel G. Curry. 
 Jno. Corkins. 
 Wallace Ellis. 
 William R. Foulk. 
 William S. Gibson. 
 William Galloway. 
 Eber Hulser. 
 Joseph Hebert. 
 Daniel Hart. 
 Edward Hume 
 
 James Halkyard. 
 Robert B. Howie. 
 George W. Hulse 
 William H. Irons. 
 Lewis Jones. 
 William H. Jones. 
 Daniel Kennedy 
 Edward Lyons. 
 James S Lear. 
 Adam Mills. 
 Thomas Malcomb. 
 Sylvester Meecham. 
 Ansel F. Norton. 
 Andrew Nevill. 
 Charles Pratt. 
 New in an Perkins. 
 Wilbur F. Roseman. 
 Daniel D. Radabaugh. 
 James Royds. 
 Seth Slyter. 
 William F. Severns. 
 William Kerns. 
 Cyrus E. Libby. 
 Charles Landon . 
 George W. Moody. 
 George B. Munger. 
 James Meecham. 
 Henry C. Miles. 
 Harvey D. Norton. 
 Thomas Olson. 
 Charles L. Perry. 
 Abijah Prouty. 
 James Roseman. 
 McClure Rowan. 
 William Rolley. 
 Benjamin Stephens. 
 
48 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN, COMPANY G. 
 
 T rons - Joseph F. Saunders. 
 
 Robert Jordan. William M gtitt 
 
 Michael Corcoran. Henry Spellman. 
 
 William H. Chamberlain. Wilson Small 
 
 Beriah Clark - Samuel Sattniarsh 
 
 Daniel Graver. Job Whybrow 
 
 Patrick Corkins. Milton G Yarnell 
 
 Lewis B. Dawson. Alexander M. Stitt 
 
 Evin Edwards. Martin gmer , 
 
 Joseph Fogt. Franklin Small. 
 
 William Gould. David M . V andentan. 
 
 Aquilla Hart. Asa Wine!ni , ler 
 
 Zalmon F. Hulser. Nicholas Zimm ^ r 
 One hundred and one officers and enlisted men. 
 
 COMPANY H. 
 
 MERRIT L. JOSLYN, Captain. 
 ALFRED H. SELLERS, 1st Lieutenant. 
 CHARLES F. DYKE, 2d Lieutenant. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN. 
 
 Augustus L. Patterson, Sergeant. Edward E. Kapple 
 
 Morris Briggs, Sergeant. Wi i son Lawson 
 
 Theodore L. Griffin. Sergeant. Albert S. Moore 
 
 renry H. Hayde.i, Sergeant. Jame8 McDargh 
 
 Horace N. Chittenden, Corporal. Harrison Montgomery 
 
 Henry F. Baldwin, Corporal. Henry O. Murray 
 
 Myron A. Smith, Corporal. Orlando W. Nash 
 
 Oscar H. Ford, Corporal. Jno . Nemire. 
 
 Akin S. Bunker, Corporal. J am es K. Perkins. 
 
 N. B Sherwood, Corporal. George D. Greenleaf 
 
 Myron D. Kent, Corporal. David Hartman. 
 
 Day Elmore, Musician Jno Holderman 
 
 Lillibrun B. Agnew. M yron Harris. 
 
 Elijah Adams. Calvin F Joneg 
 
 Hobcrt Archibald. Q G Jackson 
 
 Orrin II. Benson Casius Ki ljn 
 
 Samuel Z. Carver. Lorenzo D. Keys 
 
 Jackson Conroe. Ebenezer B. Lamb. 
 
 Dailiel Clark Robert Morton. 
 
 Charles E.Dygert. Thomas Miller. 
 
ROSTER OF THE REGIMENT. 49 
 
 ENLISTED MEN, COMPANY H. 
 
 Thomas Finlayson. Frederick Marcus. 
 
 Jno. P. Floyd. Cyrus Merrick. 
 
 Jerome C. Ford. Andrew Nelson. 
 
 Jno. G. Fitch. Charles E. Owels. 
 
 Madison W. Gould. Allen Picket. 
 
 Benjamin Allen. Orrin Picket. 
 
 Samuel Archibald. Lorenzo D. Pease. 
 
 Wallace Benson, Jno. H. Sackett. 
 
 Morris Cain. Dennis K. Smith. 
 
 Charles B Crawford. Benjamin H. Sedgwick. 
 
 William Carl. Gilbert Traves. 
 
 Hovey R. Chittenden. Madison M. Throop. 
 
 Joseph Duggan. Banent Van Ness. 
 
 Washington M. Floyd. Jno. H. Ward. 
 
 William W. Floyd. Julius H . Wilbur. 
 
 Henry B. Ford. Jno. A. Powell. 
 
 Samuel M. Foster. Philo E. Bobbins. 
 
 Andrew J. Guiliford. Andrew J. Simonds. 
 
 Stephen Gates. Frederick Smith. 
 
 Franklin Griffin. Lavern Stanton. 
 
 William Hutchins. Charles G. Thomas. 
 
 James A. Hutchins. Cornelius Van Ness. 
 
 Charles W. Irish. David L. Wilcox. 
 
 William H. Jones. Jno. C. Wolf. 
 
 Robert Keys. David Warnick. 
 Ninety-three officers and enlisted men. 
 
 COMPANY 1. 
 
 SAMUEL C. CAMP, (Japtain. 
 ORVILLE B. MERRILL, 1st Lieutenant. 
 WILLIAM F. SUTHERLAND, 2nd Lieutenant. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN. 
 
 Charles F. Case, Sergeant. Frederick Miller. 
 
 David E. Shaw, Sergeant. David W. McKay. 
 
 Abram Wormley, Sergeant. Antoine Miller. 
 
 Gustave Voss, Sergeant. Lawrence O Brien. 
 
 James Ferris, Sergeant. Jno. Roth. 
 
 Hiram Lowry, Corporal. Kimball Smith. 
 
 Joseph W. Halstead, Corporak Benedict Stall. 
 
 Jno. Lonegan, Corporal. Henry Schell. 
 
50 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN, 
 
 Dwight Smith, orporal. 
 
 B. J. Van Valkeuberg, Corporal 
 
 Andrew Turner, Corporal. 
 
 Orrin Dickey, Corporal. 
 
 Henry Hirse, Corporal. 
 
 Jacob J. Snell, Musician. 
 
 Levi Cowan, Musician. 
 
 George A very. 
 
 Samuel N. Bartlett. 
 
 Jacob Earth. 
 
 Henry H. Barber. 
 
 Dwight G. Cowan. 
 
 Jno. Cook. 
 
 Jno. H. Denton. 
 
 Andrew Elecker. 
 
 William Freeze. 
 
 George Beck. 
 
 Samuel J. Brownell. 
 
 E. W. Brundage. 
 
 Michael Cligitt. 
 
 William Daley. 
 
 Hobart Doctor. 
 
 Leander A. Ellis 
 
 Ferdinand Gaur. 
 
 Jno. Grinnel. 
 
 William lliuchman. 
 
 Nathan Hunt. 
 
 Coonrod Learnichel. 
 
 Jno. Leuthard. 
 
 Seventy -six oflQcers and enlisted men. 
 
 COMPANY I. 
 
 Frederick Shanget. 
 Charles Snyder. 
 Elbert M.Saxton. 
 Vincent Gentsenberg 
 Joseph Hummell. 
 Lewis Ketzel. 
 Peter Lannier. 
 Samuel Mall. 
 Stephen Minard. 
 Nicholas Moletor. 
 Jno. Nolenburg. 
 Lewis Power. 
 Martin Rinehart. 
 Jno. B. Sage. 
 Henry Schroider. 
 Benedict Stamphley. 
 Frederick Shulingburgh. 
 James Scully. 
 Nicholas Swickhart. 
 Christopher Thake. 
 William Varuer. 
 Peter Wittman. 
 Frederick Witzkey. 
 Thomas Wild. 
 Harvey Tooley 
 Christ Wentz. 
 Harvey Webb. 
 James Wicks. 
 
 COMPANY K. 
 
 JOHN Q. ADAMS, Captain. 
 JAMES FOLEY, 1st Lieutenant. 
 AARON C. HOLDEN, 2nd Lieutenant. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN. 
 
 Jno. F. Elliott, Sergeant. Francis Judtl. 
 
 Eldridge Adams, Sergeant. Joseph Levican. 
 
 Matthew J. Hammond, Sergeant. Abram Long. 
 
 Romaiii A. Smith, Sergeant George B. Lenhart 
 
ROSTER OF THE REGIMENT. 
 
 51 
 
 ENLISTED MEN, COMPANY K. 
 
 diaries Hazelhurst, Sergeant. 
 
 Theodore A. Folson, Corporal. 
 
 Robert H. Starr, Corporal. 
 
 David H. Dickenson, Corporal. 
 
 Abram J. Ketchum, Corporal. 
 
 William B. Giles, Corporal. 
 
 Eugene P. Albro, Corporal. 
 
 Edward Reeder, Corporal. 
 
 Aseph J. Adams, Corporal. 
 
 George W. Henimingway, Musician. 
 
 James Hazelhurst, Musician. 
 
 Henry C. Allen. 
 
 William Adams. 
 
 Seneca Birdsell. 
 
 Peter Burnett. 
 
 Edward Clark. 
 
 James Delany. 
 
 Solomon Emberlin. 
 
 Samuel Grundy. 
 
 Thomas Glove. 
 
 Frederick Hazelhurst. 
 
 Burton Honey. 
 
 James H. Hogue. 
 
 James C. Hogue. 
 
 William C. Hall. 
 
 Allen Burroughs. 
 
 Harrison W. Blank. 
 
 John Clark. 
 
 John P. Clark. 
 
 James Downey. 
 
 John M. Gordon. 
 
 George W. Gates. 
 
 Michael Hillard. 
 
 Daniel Hammond. 
 
 James M. Hogue. 
 
 James Henry Hogue. 
 
 John Hodgson. 
 
 George S. Hall. 
 
 Eighty-seven officers and enlisted men. 
 
 Charles Mongerson. 
 Jno. C. Minkler. 
 Edward H. Mayberry. 
 George Monroe. 
 Edward J. Millay. 
 William S. Moore. 
 Emery W. Piatt. 
 George R. Pollock. 
 Jno. Peterson. 
 Benjamin W. Simmons. 
 Francis Samson 
 Harlan Sanders. 
 Jno. H. Johnson. 
 George Lake. 
 George G. Lyon. 
 Jno. B Lenhart. 
 Thomas P. Matteson. 
 Thomas Moffett. 
 Charles J. Minor. 
 Edwin E. Monroe. 
 James McCray. 
 Samuel H. McCartney. 
 Simeon Parsons. 
 John Paul. 
 Harrison Skinner. 
 George M. Scales. 
 Charles Steines. 
 Henry P. Sype. 
 James Stevenson. 
 Charles A. Tucker. 
 John H. Underwood. 
 George W. Vail. 
 John F. Weekes. 
 Francis Turkesbury. 
 Cyrus W. Underwood. 
 Paul I. Vanwickland. 
 Orrin Wood. 
 Sydney O. Wagoner. 
 
THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 COMPANY A CAVALRY. 
 
 ALBERT JEXKS, Captain. 
 
 SAMUEL B. SHERER, 1st Lieutenant. 
 
 AZARIAH C. FERRE, 2nd Lieutenant. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN. 
 
 Albert Collins, 1st Sergeant. 
 
 Francis E. Reynolds, Q. M. Sergeant. 
 
 Fletcher J. Snow, Sergeant. 
 
 James J. Johnson, Sergeant. 
 
 Fred O. White, Sergeant 
 
 Daniel Dynan, Sergeant. 
 
 George Stewart, Corporal 
 
 Jerome B Marlett, Corporal. 
 
 Henry B. Douglas, Corporal. 
 
 George W. Haydom, Corporal. 
 
 James Sirby, Corporal. 
 
 David Hill, jr., Corporal. 
 
 Isaac Rice, Corporal. 
 
 James T. White, Corporal. 
 
 George A. Carson, Farrier. 
 
 James J. Hume, Saddler. 
 
 James Allen. 
 
 Charles Angell. 
 
 Smith D, Avery. 
 
 Simeon Baily. 
 
 James S. Barber. 
 
 Henry Beebe. 
 
 John Beebe. 
 
 Irwin M. Benton 
 
 Joseph Burley. 
 
 Caleb B. Beers. 
 
 Hope S. Chapin. 
 
 Able Colyer. 
 
 Joseph Carle 
 
 Samuel W, Clark. 
 
 Charles O. Dorr. 
 
 Edward F. Dorr. 
 
 George L. Dorr. 
 
 Nathaniel Duff. 
 
 Henry C. Davis. 
 
 Frederick Elderkin. 
 
 Jesse Hollenback. 
 Nicholas Hittinger. 
 Joseph Ingham. 
 Ira Jacobs. 
 Oliver H. Judd. 
 James M. Kennedy. 
 James E. Kirkpatrick. 
 William Laws. 
 Ole C. Langland. 
 Richard Larkin. 
 Truman Lillie. 
 Christian Logan. 
 Joseph R. Loomis. 
 George H. McCabe. 
 Joseph F. McCroskey. 
 James McMullen. 
 George W. Moon. 
 Allen Mowry. 
 Andrew Nortrip. 
 Elias Nortrip. 
 Eugene Newell. 
 Charles H. Oderkirk. 
 Eugene D Odell. 
 Aaron Prickett. 
 William Pride. 
 Joshua Rathbone. 
 Patrick W. Rigney. 
 Thomas B. Robinson. 
 Royal S. Rutherford. 
 John A. Radley. 
 Orrin Squires. 
 Arnold Starbrock. 
 Thomas J. Slosson. 
 CassiusP. Snook. 
 Edward W. Stewart. 
 Oliver C. Switzer. 
 
ROSTER OF THE REGIMENT. 
 
 53 
 
 ENLISTED MEN, 
 
 John W. Everts. 
 
 Robert Frailick. 
 
 Clark L. Furguson. 
 
 William II. Fox. 
 
 George Gunter. 
 
 Martin Glenn. 
 
 Robert Hascall. 
 
 Thomas Hampson. 
 
 Gilbert Heath. 
 
 Chauncy Hollenback. 
 
 Ninety-five officers and privates. 
 
 COMPANY A CAVALRY. 
 
 Lawrence S. Tucker. 
 Albert Tubbs. 
 Abijah Tarble. 
 Harlow M. Tuttle. 
 Eleazer Todd. 
 John Vangorder. 
 Charles Weaver. 
 Orrin Y. Whitford. 
 Charles F. Winans. 
 Darius D. Williams. 
 
 COMPANY B CAVALRY. 
 
 HENRY A. SMITH, Captain. 
 SAMUEL CHAPMAN, 1st Lieutenant. 
 JOHN S. DURAN, 2d Lieutenant. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN. 
 
 Edward M. Barnard, 1st Sergeant. 
 Henry C. Paddleford, Sergeant. 
 Vernon 0. Wilcox, Sergeant. 
 John Lovell, Sergeant. 
 George W. Archer, Sergeant. 
 John W. Davis, Sergeant. 
 John McQueen, Corporal. 
 Henry Weigh tman, Corporal. 
 Henry C. Scott, Corporal. 
 Nathan Lakin, Corporal. 
 William Duncan, Corporal. 
 Eugene M. Griggs, Corporal. 
 John Baker, Corporal. 
 Schuyler Rue. jr., Corporal. 
 Wallace S. Clark, Bugler. 
 John M. Paddleford, Farrier. 
 William Donivan, Blacksmith. 
 Russell C. Fowler, Saddler. 
 Julius C. Pratt, Wagoner. 
 Myron J. Ainick. 
 John Archer. 
 Henry Ball. 
 Nathaniel Brown. 
 
 Charles F. Holmes. 
 Charles P. Kennedy. 
 John M. Kingsley. 
 Christopher Kingsley. 
 James Knox. 
 Abijah A. Lee. 
 Eben Lowder. 
 Lloyd T. Lathrop. 
 William M. Love. 
 William Mehan. 
 John Muldoon. 
 Eugene Mann. 
 Henry Nelson. 
 Thomas C. Pennington, 
 Peter D. Porchet. 
 Marquis L. Perry. 
 David Peterson. 
 Isaac Peterson. 
 Willibm H. Pease. 
 Abner A. Pease. 
 George Perkins. 
 Jeremiah Phelan. 
 John D. Pringle. 
 
54 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ENLISTED MEN, 
 
 Mortimer C. Briggs. 
 
 Edwin E. Balch. 
 
 Ephriam M. Gardner. 
 
 Robert Collins. 
 
 William J. Christy. 
 
 George Cox. 
 
 Rnbert N. Chrysler. 
 
 Isaiah B. Curtis. 
 
 Charles Collins. 
 
 George. W. Campbell. 
 
 Charles Cooley. 
 
 Harrison Eaton. 
 
 Edwin F. Evarts. 
 
 John Fraser. 
 
 William PI. Fletcher. 
 
 Patrick Glennon. 
 
 Robert Gallagher. 
 
 John Gilbert. 
 
 Norton N. Harger. 
 
 Oliver Hanagan. 
 
 Jerry Hickey. 
 
 Ninety-one officers and privates. 
 
 COMPANY B CAVALRY. 
 
 George Pettingill. 
 Daniel Rettis. 
 Daniel Reynolds. 
 Earl Robinson. 
 Abraham Rumsey. 
 Henry J. Rogers. 
 William E. Satterfield. 
 Jnstus J. Stringer. 
 Amos D. Scott. 
 Abijah L. Strang. 
 Charles L. Seward. 
 Henry M. Sawyer. 
 James Shed don. 
 Clark Tucker. 
 John B. Thompson. 
 George M. Winchester. 
 Wallace Wettenpaugh. 
 Martin F. Wettinpaugh 
 Noah VTalice. 
 John Wagoner. 
 Benjamin Weaver. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 OFF FOR THE WARS. 
 
 TUESDAY, September 24th, the long expected 
 and much wished for day of departure from 
 Camp Hammond dawned. Before day the 
 men were astir, the camp alive and buzzing 
 like a huge bee hive. Hurrahs would break 
 out from some unexpected quarter, which 
 were followed by scattering hurrahs all over camp. Animation 
 beamed from every countenance, and soon after sunrise people 
 from, the country came crowding into the camp by the thousand. 
 They came on foot, on horseback, and in every conceivable 
 kind of vehicle from a lumber wagon to a chaise. Gaily dressed 
 women, fair-faced country lasses, hardy countrymen, over-dressed 
 fops and substantial farmers, making up a "tremendous big 
 crowd." were on hand, rendering the scene animated and pictu 
 resque beyond description. A larger assemblage . never before 
 gathered on the banks of the glistening Fox ; and never went 
 soldiers to fields of glory bearing kinder wishes for their welfare, 
 or more heartfelt adieus at their departure. Eyes unused to 
 weeping were dimmed with mistiness, and hearts throbbed heavily 
 with painful thoughts as the order was given to strike tents, and 
 
56 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 in ten minutes the prairie which had been flecked with snowy 
 canvass was littered with heaps of straw, old clothes, hats, bun 
 dles of rags, fire places, boards arid ruined bunks. 
 
 At 4 P. M. the column was formed, and headed by the band, 
 we bade adieu to Camp Hammond forever ; marched to Aurora 
 and embarked in a long train of passenger coaches which awaited 
 us, and amidst the deafening shout of thousands the train moved 
 away. Scarcely a sad face was seen in the regiment, and if 
 flashing eyes and loud huzzahs were an index of the feelings 
 within, all departed with joy and gladness. On the line of 
 railroad our departure had been heralded in advance, and it 
 seemed as if the whole population were out, lining the track to 
 bid us God speed. Bonfires blazed, guns were fired, and the 
 evening air was stirred with shouting as we passed swiftly through 
 the villages which dotted the country. At Arlington, in Bureau 
 County, where we stopped a few minutes for water, crowds of 
 ladies flocked to the train to welcome and shake the hands of 
 their gallant defenders. At Galesburg the citizens thronged 
 the station, and were profuse in complimenting the fine appear 
 ance of the men. A group of cavalrymen, with Major Barry in 
 their midst, while standing on the platform at the depot with 
 their overcoats and clean uniforms on, attracted the attention of 
 a citizen, who remarked, while looking at the squad, "They have 
 a fine looking set of field officers." Whether the Major alone 
 appropriated the compliment, or regarded it as a drive at the 
 officers, was not ascertained. We reached Quincy at 3 P. M., 
 September 25th, and soon the work of transferring cavalry horses, 
 tents and regimental stores to the steamer Warsaw commenced. 
 Those of the men not detailed for that purpose found quarters in 
 an empty warehouse; many, however, remained in the cars, and 
 doubling up like jack-knives, sought repose in the seats. 
 
RETURN OF COL. MULLIGAN S MEN. 57 
 
 A thousand or more of Mulligan s men had arrived at Quincy 
 from their defeat at Lexington, and each had his story of 
 adventures, of hardship and suffering to tell. They were a 
 brawny set of Irishmen, who had fought well and deserved much 
 of their country, which up to that time had paid them nothing. 
 As our destination was Missouri, and the probabilities were that 
 we would have the same enemy upon our hands, some pains were 
 taken to ascertain the character and numbers of the rebels, and 
 the particulars of the late battle at Lexington. 
 
 Previous to September a small force of the 1st Illinois Cavalry 
 and a body of Home Guards had been posted at Lexington to pro 
 tect the Union people of that place. This force being menaced by 
 superior numbers, Col. Mulligan was dispatched from Jefferson 
 City with his regiment as a reinforcement, marching a distance of 
 150 miles on foot. Entrenchments were thrown up around the 
 Masonic college building, which served as a magazine and store 
 house. The Union forces at this time numbered 2500 men. The 
 next day the enemy s advance, 6,000 strong, under Gen. Rains, 
 made their appearance. Col. Mulligan, finding himself threat 
 ened by a greatly superior force, sent urgently for reinforcements, 
 while the command speedily set to work with pick and shovel 
 to strengthen their defences. On the 12th of September the 
 siege began. By the 17th the enemy were in force and had 
 entirely surrounded Mulligan s position with 20,000 men. The 
 battle continued .night and day with both cannon and musketry, 
 but every charge was repulsed with heavy loss to the enemy. At 
 length they constructed breast works of hemp bales, from behind 
 which they kept up a continuous fire while rolling them towards 
 the federal position. Sorties were made upon these works and the 
 enemy driven away, but lacking sufficient support to hold them 
 the advantages gained were temporary. During one of these 
 
58 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 charges Col. Mulligan was wounded and Col. White, of the 1st 
 Illinois Cavalry, killed. Upon the death of Col. White a panic 
 seized the Home Guards, who, without orders, raised .a flag of 
 truce, which Col. Mulligan caused to be torn down, and the com 
 bat continued. At length the ammunition having given out, and 
 the men being completely exhausted, the Home Guards again 
 raised a white flag, which this time was not torn down. Terms 
 of surrender were agreed upon, the men were paroled and per 
 mitted to proceed to Quincy. Everything except clothing and 
 officers side arms were given up. Col. Mulligan wept when he 
 found he must abandon a contest which he had gallantly main 
 tained for eight days. Gen. Price complimented the command 
 by saying that "these Irishmen were the hardest set to capture 
 he had ever seen," and certainly their looks in this respect did 
 not belie them. Many of these men were ready to violate 
 their parol, and proceeded to St. Louis with us, persisting in 
 their determination to join our command and fight the "rebs" 
 on sight. 
 
 The next morning all the men and equipage were transferred 
 to the Warsaw, and as she steamed out into the river, turned her 
 prow from the city and went cutting the spray southward, a thous 
 and cheers were interchanged between boat and shore. The 
 shrill notes of the band and loud beating of drums echoed from 
 the woody banks and from each negro cabin a shout went up 
 and a fluttering handkerchief or apron waved us a kind God 
 speed. But two nights and a day s absence from home had 
 afforded ample time for a little of the enthusiasm to cool, and 
 when the men began to realize that they were dissevered from old 
 familiar land marks, it might be for months possibly, alas, for 
 ever! many faces were measurably lengthened, contrasting 
 strangely with the animation of the day before. At night, the 
 
EN ROUTE TO ROLLA. 59 
 
 twinkling stars were suggestive of sad thoughts ; even the notes 
 from the band became mournful as a funeral dirge, and its strains 
 seemed to echo only tearful and melancholy farewells. Some 
 eyes were observed terribly red resulting from the wind, of 
 course. 
 
 The trip was made with scarcely a stop, except when stranded 
 on a sand bar, where for twenty minutes the men were kept on a 
 double quick from bow to stern until the craft worked its way 
 over and was again cleaving the waves. No incident worthy of 
 record occurred to those on board, but everybody on shore, as we 
 rapidly steamed by, came out and gazed at the great steamer 
 plowing through the water, crowded with 1,200 soldiers, who 
 swarmed from texas to boiler deck. The men were generally in 
 good spirits, and but few complained of illness until it became 
 known that the sick were to occupy the cabin, when an epidemic 
 for state rooms suddenly broke out, and Surgeon Young was 
 much surprised at the numbers responding at sick call, all requir 
 ing immediate attention and removal to the cabin. 
 
 Daylight on the morning of the 27th found us safely moored 
 at a landing in front of the city of St. Louis. Col. Greusel 
 immediately proceeded to the headquarters of Gen. Fremont, 
 reported the arrival of the Regiment, and asked for arms. His 
 requisition was at once granted, and at 9 o clock A. M. the War 
 saw dropped down to the United States Arsenal. Arrived 
 within its stone walls, arms and accoutrements were quickly dis 
 tributed. Companies A and B were fortunate in securing Minnie 
 and Enfield rifles, while Springfield muskets of an old pattern, 
 remodeled, were dealt out to the balance of the Regiment. The 
 Colonel was indignant, the men were disappointed, but no amount 
 of expostulation could secure different arms, from the simple fact 
 that they were not to be had. 
 
60 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Lieut. Clark, who by unanimous consent had been appointed 
 regimental wag, was heard discoursing thus: "Heaven forgive 
 "us all our sins if we are to be sent among these rampageous, 
 " half horse, half alligator, border ruffians with these old muskets 
 u and triangular bayonets. If we are not kicked over the borders 
 "at the first discharge it will be through the special interposi 
 tion of a kind Providence. Or it will be through the same 
 " merciful influence if we are not all dead in three weeks from 
 " lugging so much rusty iron among the black jacks and rocky 
 "fastnesses of Missouri. We shall be equally in danger from 
 "the muzzles of squirrel rifles and the breeches of our own mus- 
 "kets; and caught thus like a rat in a trap between muzzle and 
 "breech, what possible earthly chance can there be for us?" 
 
 When the "Wayne Rifles" were humorously requested to 
 walk up and take their muskets, with a look of injured innocence 
 they peremptorily refused, and left the arsenal grounds in a huff 
 and without a single gun. Re-embarked upon the Warsaw we 
 steamed back to the city and passed another night upon the boat. 
 A train of freight cars were shoved down to the levee to which 
 the regimental stores were transferred, and at about 5 P. M. the 
 Regiment was marched through the city with rattling drums and 
 colors flying, to the depot of the Missouri Pacific Railroad, 
 where we embarked for Rolla, then the terminus of the South 
 western Branch. There being no equipments nor sufficient trans 
 portation for the cavalry, they were sent to Benton Barracks, a 
 beautiful location north-west of the city limits, where at that time 
 10,000 men were under the military instruction of Gen. Curtis, 
 who was in command. 
 
 After eight of the infantry companies had taken their places 
 in the cars, word came from the railroad officials that, for lack of 
 transportation, two of the companies would be obliged to remain 
 
COL. JOSLYN AND THE kAILROAD OFFICIALS. 61 
 
 in St. Louis until the next day. Preparations were being mad6 
 to proceed in accordance with this arrangement, when Col. Jos- 
 lyn, having ascertained that there were cars enough upon the 
 tracks, concluded that the two cavalry companies were enough to 
 leave at that time, and proceeding to the engine, pulled the pin 
 connecting it with the train, and with revolver in hand declared 
 the train should not leave St. Louis until cars sufficient for the 
 transportation of the infantry were furnished. The altercation 
 became rather boisterous, and one of the railroad men threatened 
 to thrash him. The Colonel doubted his ability to make the 
 threat good, and reiterated the demand for more cars, which, after 
 some delay, were forthcoming the plucky Lieut. Colonel of the 
 Thirty-sixth coming off victorious in the first campaign in 
 Missouri. 
 
 At Franklin we were switched on the South-west Branch, over 
 which we ran at little more than cart horse speed, affording 
 abundant opportunity to speculate upon the dangers and trials of 
 the future and wonder what fate had in reserve for us. The 
 South-west Branch cannot easily be forgotten by those who in 
 war times had the excruciating pleasure of riding over it. The 
 men were penned in box cars like drovers stock on its way to the 
 slaughter pen. Every foot of space was occupied, and 
 there was not a square inch of muscle that was not as tender as 
 an ulcerated tooth at the termination of that ride. Passing 
 through a rough, almost mountainous region, with its frequent 
 intervals of steep grades, to a nervous man the speed was pain 
 fully slow; but when the heights were gained, and the down 
 grades reached, a rate of speed was at times attained calculated 
 to lead to the suspicion that at that rate and over such a track 
 we would soon be landed in a country of sultry climate, where 
 secession had its birthplace and where, we hoped, it was destined 
 
62 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 soon to have its burial. Then we would go up, up, winding 
 around mountain gorges until one would have to watch the trees 
 closely to determine if we moved at all. 
 
 The hills were usually covered with low, scrubby black jack ; 
 the soil for the most part poor and thin, and scarcely worth the 
 blood already shed in its defense. With an occasional clearing, 
 comprising a few acres of sickly weeds, a log cabin with mud 
 chimneys entirely outside, with now and then a dilapidated " but 
 ternut ;" a smoke begrimmed, dejected woman and a swarm of half- 
 clothed urchins, with unkempt, yellow heads protruding through 
 the chinks, watching, with a vacant stare, the passing train, served 
 to fill up the details of this picture of the region passed through. 
 The bulk of native Missourians we saw were long, gaunt men 
 and women, put together well enough, perhaps, originally, but now 
 quite shaken to pieces with fever and ague, or trembling with 
 terror and apprehension, in view of the speedy occupation of the 
 country by federal troops and retribution which might at any 
 time overtake them for participation in rebellion. As a rule, the 
 houses of the country were small, dirty and dilapidated; 
 each establishment worthy of its proprietor. Of thrift, comfort, 
 and good farming, we saw none ; the people barely existed did 
 not live. One meets many just such dwellings and just such 
 people over the South. Men who lie around loose rather than 
 stand erect on God s green earth; men who seem to have no her 
 itage of ideas or manly aspirations, but manage in a very preca 
 rious way to keep body and soul together. Labor is degrading, 
 so of course, they are idle ; a slave or two becoming the " hewers 
 of wood, the drawers of water," the scape goat of their master s 
 idleness, and the occasional victims of their vindictive wrath. 
 Men fresh from the busy scenes of the enterprising North had 
 hard work to suppress a feeling of contempt for these, the worst 
 
ARRIVAL AT ROLLA. 68 
 
 victims of slavery, stigmatized by the haughty slaveholders and by 
 plantation negroes as "poor white trash." The beautiful South 
 lies sterile and her people semi-barbarous at the feet of her evil 
 genius, Slavery, but will grow young, powerful and strong, and 
 occupy a proud position by the side of the sister States of the 
 North only after this race of do nothings is gone, when free labor 
 comes to touch with new magic the springs of intelligence, enter 
 prise and industry. 
 
 Finally, after surviving the perils of "riding on a rail," and 
 after being jolted and pounded in the closely packed box cars 
 until every joint from toe to crown was as "stiff as a poker," we 
 reached Holla shortly after noon of September 29th. We pro 
 ceeded to the recently vacated camp of the 13th 111., and pitch 
 ing our tents, were at home again. It required but a short time 
 to understand that the pic-nic days of Camp Hammond were 
 over, that playing soldier was played out. and that now we were 
 to come dow r n to genuine hard work. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 ROLL A. 
 
 
 
 jOLLA, the county seat of Phelps County, Missouri, 
 at that time the terminus of the railroad, was an 
 insignificant gathering of tumble down shanties, 
 built of logs and boards, scattered here and there 
 in the brush as though they happened there by 
 chance, and might have been very appropriately classed with those 
 institutions so common in the South-west, known as "one horse 
 towns." Every other shanty was a whisky shop, from whence 
 proceeded every form of loathsome disease and death which pre 
 vailed to an alarming extent among some of the regiments sta 
 tioned there. The Court House, a large, brick structure, was 
 used as a hospital. Of its two hundred sick and suffering inmates, 
 three-quarters were Missourians, who were not considered in 
 their normal condition unless saturated with whisky. One might 
 pick up any of those lank, three-story-and-an-attic specimens of 
 the genus Missouri, wring him out, and whisky would ooze from 
 every pore. It was apparent that to a greater or less extent their 
 example was contagious among the northern regiments, 
 and exerted a powerful influence in persuading many to pat 
 ronize the hospitals and graveyard, as well as those dead falls 
 
OUR FIRST EXPEDITION. 65 
 
 labelled saloons. This was the main cause of so great a per 
 centage of sickness and mortality among those who were sup 
 posed to be acclimated to the country, and to modes of life which 
 on the distant frontier much resemble that of a soldier in camp. 
 
 On Col. Greusel devolved the command of the Post. The first 
 measure inaugurated by him, and the first expedition in which the 
 36th participated, was a demonstration in force against the whisky 
 dens. The Colonel commanded the expedition in person, and 
 with a detachment from the 36th, headed the charge, seized and 
 emptied all the liquors they could find. Very little of the extract 
 of corn remained in Rolla at the close of that campaign. 
 
 Previous to the occupation of the town and the establishment 
 of a military post at Rolla, trees and brushwood covered the 
 slopes and cumbered the streets, or more properly, bridle paths. 
 Situated in the midst of a scantily settled country a silent, 
 sleepy region, but little troubled with Yankee. enterprise or mod 
 ern agricultural improvements, and as a business center scarcely 
 producing a ripple upon the dull monotony of the region there 
 were no inducements for building. But in time the groves were 
 cut down, the land cleared and leveled for parade grounds, and 
 the hills denuded of their foliage for purposes of fuel. War, 
 with its wonder-working power, wrought a great change in the 
 appearance of this sleepy town. White-walled, canvass villages 
 sprang up and crowned the hill sides ; sentries paced up and 
 down its once quiet walks ; and army wagons, soldiers, mounted 
 officers, and orderlies hurrying from camp to camp over rough, 
 forest ways, gave it an air of business, activity and bustle, quite 
 in contrast with the primitive days of the town. The population 
 was largely made up of apple women, mustang ponies, fugitives 
 from the outskirts of civilization, mules, contraband negroes, 
 with now and then a secessionist not smart enough to run away, 
 
66 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and too worthless to be hung. Such was Rolla as we found it: 
 a conglomeration of military camps, of small traders, attracted 
 by the hopes of gain from unsuspecting soldiers, and a "right 
 smart sprinkle" of native Missourians, all of which constituted 
 the peculiar make up of the place. 
 
 In a few days the 13th Illinois and 4th Iowa Regiments 
 returned from a brief and fruitless expedition and encamped in 
 close proximity to the 36th, and as the former had been recruited 
 in the same region of country with ours, a close intimacy and 
 generous rivalry sprang up between them. 
 
 In the meantime drilling proceeded almost incessantly, lasting 
 some days from six to nine hours, and such rapid progress was 
 made in our military education as to attract the attention of 
 officers of other commands. Col. Wyman was a frequent visitor 
 and at times conducted the Dress Parades, and the 13th, the 
 hitherto crack regiment of the State, betrayed some anxiety 
 about retaining their well merited and so far uncontested laurels. 
 The severity of the day s drill and other duties required of the 
 men had a tendency to send them early to bed, when quiet reigned 
 over camp until the little drum major would arouse them to 
 activity at five o clock in the morning. 
 
 Col. Greusel was a strict disciplinarian, and looked sharply 
 after the peccadillos of the men. Realizing from former experi 
 ence that it was not the bullet or shell which most menaced the 
 lives of soldiers, but that habits of idleness, license and dissipa 
 tion engendered diseases infinitely more fatal than Dahlgren or 
 Columbiad ; his orders were stringent in regard to drunkenness, 
 frequenting saloons and disreputable houses, and also very definite 
 in relation to plundering from citizens. All convicted of diso 
 beying orders were made examples of, and dealt with severely. 
 As a result, the general good conduct and exemplary behavior of 
 
THE MISSOURI PIE-VENDERS. 67 
 
 the men of the 36th was commented on, and led some to suppose 
 they were all members in good standing of some orthodox church, 
 while their deportment won for them the credit of being gentle 
 men as well as soldiers. One night a corporal while concealed 
 in the bushes and darkness near the post of a sentinel, overheard 
 the countersign as it was given to a relief, and persuading some 
 of his comrades to accompany him, they left camp and raided 
 heavily onthe gardens and hen roosts of citizens, and brought 
 their ill gotten plunder to their quarters. The affair reached 
 the ears of Col. Greusel. Their arrest and speedy court-martial 
 followed, resulting in the decrease of the number of corporals in 
 that Company, and a corresponding accession to the numbers of 
 high privates, while the whole party were sentenced to ten days 
 confinement within the vermin-haunted walls of the jail. 
 
 An institution somewhat aboriginal, and yet peculiarly Missou- 
 rian, was the pie and cake venders, generally skinny old women, 
 who nocked in from the country with immense burdens of leather 
 apron pies and black lumps of ginger bread or molasses cake 
 a mixture of flour, bacon grease and sorghum molasses the color 
 of which suggested tar instead of syrup. The venders of 
 these villainous articles would hang about the confines of camp, 
 hawking their wares with voices as unmusical and unfeminine as 
 horse fiddles. The men of the 36th were liberal patrons of these 
 institutions, and at all times groups of soldiers might be found 
 gathered around these native hucksters, voraciously devouring 
 their conglomerate mixtures. It was absolutely marvelous to 
 see the quantities which an average sized thirty-sixer could hold. 
 A ft.er gorging themselves with pies, hunks of black gingerbread 
 enough, one would think, to founder a horse the information 
 would be vouchsafed that they had eaten just enough to pro 
 voke an appetite, and then another half dozen pies or cards of 
 
68 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 cake were purchased to be sandwiched between a course of baked 
 beans and hard tack. It was a continued source of wonder how 
 men could endure such a surfeit of leather and molasses, beans 
 and bacon with which they tormented their digestive organs, and 
 survive ; and it could only be accounted for on the theory that 
 with the change from civil to military life, their stomachs, like 
 their costumes, had undergone a wonderful transformation ; per 
 haps were lined with gutta purcha and riveted to a diaphragm of 
 boiler iron. Yet they lived ; and like Jeshurun of old, waxed 
 fat, and would tumble out of their quarters on a keen, frosty 
 morning as nimble as crickets, ready for duty at the drop of the 
 hat. The demand for this indigestible native pastry was occa 
 sioned by the poor quality of the rations at this time served to 
 the troops. Some of the early issues of hard bread were old and 
 worm eaten. When soaked in coffee, more or less dead worms 
 were found among the dregs. The members of the Band at one 
 time had issued to them a barrel of it, infinitely worse than any 
 they had hitherto received. They determined to bury it, and the 
 whole musical corps of the regiment marched in solemn proces 
 sion to a spot selected outside of camp, and the rites of sepulture 
 were gone through with. Dutch Charley, the bass drummer, 
 suggested that an epitaph be written upon the headboard, and on 
 being asked what it should be, replied : 
 
 Here lies von mans, his name s hard pred, 
 He shmels she pad dot he ish deat. 
 Sthranger stheps lightly o er dish sot, 
 Or de vorms vill eat you ups, mein Got ! 
 
 As Rolla at this time was the extreme outpost occupied by 
 federal troops, it was the point to which refugees and fugitives, 
 fleeing from the relentless conscription of the rebels, came for 
 protection and aid. The 25th Missouri, commanded by Col. 
 Phelps, was largely composed of this element. They came singly 
 
UNION REFUGEES FLEEING TO CAMP. 69 
 
 or in squads of from two to fifty ; on foot, on horseback and in 
 any and all ways to escape the fury and hate of their enemies. 
 Weary and footsore they presented themselves to the pickets and 
 from thence wended their toilsome way to the camps. One arrival 
 of seventy-five mountaineers from the chert hills of Douglas 
 County, on the borders of Arkansas, for a while was the center 
 of attraction. To the "boys from America," a queerer conglom 
 eration of human oddities and natural curiosities were scarcely 
 ever raked together. No mortal man could picture a more strange, 
 ragged and dirty assemblage in the form of human beings. Most 
 of them were tall, sallow, cadavarous and leathery fellows, as 
 uncouth as was ever represented in David Crockett s comic 
 almanac. Others were short and brawny, and stalked through 
 the crowd with a reckless, independent swagger. All of them 
 were squalid, travel-worn and tattered to the last degree. Talk 
 of scarecrows ! Why, the yards of dirty linen hanging out like 
 fluttering banners from the rear, and the patches and shreds of 
 Old coats and garments dangling from their limbs, would be suffi 
 cient to scare the crows and all other "varmints" in terror from 
 the country. Some were barefooted, others had an apology for 
 shoes that would excite the profoundest contempt from the seediest 
 street beggar that ever haunted the gutter for bones. And as for 
 hats, words could scarcely do the subject justice. Hunt up all 
 the old hats that ever plugged the windows of poverty s dirtiest 
 kennels ; select a score or more of the poorest and worst, and an 
 approximate idea might be formed of the head-gear of these 
 native mountaineers. 
 
 As Union men they had been persecuted, plundered, driven 
 from their homes, and hunted like wild animals by hordes of 
 secession "blood hounds" from Arkansas arid the Southern bor 
 der. Many were caught and hung ; others had their ears cut off, 
 
70 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and some were shot down like dogs. For mutual protection they 
 finally banded together, determined to die, rather than submit to 
 further exactions and barbarities. A party of these men on the 
 3d of October encountered two hundred secessionists on Bryant s 
 Fork, about two and a-half miles south of Vera Cruz, the county 
 seat of Douglas County ; and, after a lively fight of fifteen min 
 utes, the enemy fled, leaving fifteen dead and ten wounded upon 
 the field. But one of the Union men was wounded, and he but 
 slightly. Two days after, another party of secessionists were met 
 and put to flight, leaving one killed and three wounded, while the 
 others fled as rapidly as possible to Arkansas. Rumors of the 
 return of their enemies in larger force, together with want of pro 
 visions and ammunition, determined them to come to Rolla. On 
 the way they had encountered a detachment from McBride s 
 rebel regiment, and captured them all, including a Lieutenant and 
 a dozen privates, who were brought to camp and sent from thence 
 to St. Louis for confinement in the Gratiot prison. One of the 
 refugees, Samuel Collins, was seventy-five years old. A son 
 had been hung by the southern miscreants, and he had been 
 forced to live for months in the woods. He had fought with 
 Jackson at New Orleans, and was ready again to face the storm 
 of shot and shell in defence of the same old flag. He was enrolled 
 with the others, and as a member of Phelps Regiment, mustered 
 into the service of the United States. 
 
 Near to and adjoining the camp of the 36th was a battalion of 
 Cavalry, called "Kansas Rangers," under the command of Major 
 Wood. Nearly the whole of his command were recruited in 
 Missouri and from citizens of the State, arid why they were called 
 " Kansas Rangers was not satisfactorily explainer!. Detachments 
 from this battalion were constantly scouring the country ; hunting 
 out secessionists ; collecting information of their movements ; now 
 
EXPLOITS OF THE RANGERS. 71 
 
 and then stinging them like wasps and stirring them up right 
 lively. Shortly after our arrival, a squad of twenty-five pro 
 ceeded thirty miles to the south-west of Rolla, and quartered 
 themselves in a house for the night. A negro quietly informed 
 them of the near approach of a company of Confederates, under 
 one Freeman, who, aware of their movements and situation, with 
 superior numbers was preparing to surprise and capture them. 
 They at once mounted their horses and hurried away in such haste 
 as to leave two of their number asleep, and their absence was not 
 noticed for some time. Soon after the house was surrounded and 
 a volley poured in at the windows. One of the sleeping troopers 
 was severely wounded and captured ; but the other, though fired 
 upon and having an arm broken and a finger shot away, reached 
 his horse and made his escape. At another time a detachment 
 from the same battalion scoured the valley of the Big Piney, 
 capturing several noted secessionists who were at home on furlough. 
 
 Hearing that one Pitcock, a leader among them, was at home, 
 Sergeant Adams with four men was sent across the country to 
 arrest him. As they approached the house in the night they were 
 greeted w T ith a fusilade from eighteen shot guns, that were handled 
 by an equal number of brawny butternuts." So warm a recep 
 tion was not expected. The Rangers, however, pitched in, kicked 
 the door from its hinges, and revolvers in hand, charged among 
 their dismayed antagonists, arid soon that mountain cabin looked 
 more like a slaughter pen than the abode of human beings. A 
 few escaped, but nine were killed outright and four brought away 
 as prisoners. It was said that some were shot after their surren 
 der. Sergeant Adams was quite severely wounded in the breast, 
 being the only injured man of the Rangers. The battalion, com 
 posed almost entirely of Missourians men without a particle of 
 cowardice or the more redeeming virtue of mercy, each having 
 
72 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 an old grudge or private wrong to avenge and neglecting no 
 opportunity for the speedy settlement of these personal griev 
 ances, was the terror of the country. 
 
 Such occurrences had but slight influence upon the general 
 result of the contest, and were of no particular moment to the 
 36th. Yet the recital of these adventures served to enliven the 
 dull routine of camp duty, and furnished food for conversation 
 and material to write about in the hundreds of letters winging 
 their way back to the firesides left behind. 
 
 The two Cavalry Companies remained much longer at Benton 
 Barracks than was anticipated, on account of there being no arms 
 for them at St. Louis. Other cavalry detachments were in pre 
 cisely the same situation, some of which had been waiting months 
 for their equipments. Little did the people realize at the com 
 mencement of the war the utter poverty of the nation in the 
 essentials for carrying it on. The administration shrunk from 
 proclaiming its needs, and struggled on, endeavoring to supply 
 deficiencies in the best manner possible, and because of its inabil 
 ity to arm a half million men at once, without a musket in the 
 depleted northern arsenals, and without money in the National 
 Treasury, it Avas abused without stint. But while thus waiting, 
 the cavalry was not idle. The horses as well as men were famil 
 iarized with the movements so necessary to be learned. 
 
 At length marching orders were received, and on their arrival 
 at Rolla the troopers were greeted by the infantry with a hearty 
 welcome. They were speedily armed with sabres, breech-loading 
 carbines and revolvers. The battalion, with their clean uniforms 
 and new armament, made a gallant appearance, and for a time 
 the " 86th Riding Company " created a sensation among the 
 natives. 
 
 The first death and burial after the Regiment arrived at Rolla 
 occurred October 7th, being that of a member of Company B. 
 
DEATH OF LIEUT. CIIAPPEL. 73 
 
 Cavalry, named Logan. The whole Regiment, except those on 
 duty, formed in line and followed the body to the grave, where it 
 was buried with military honors. 
 
 On the 16th, Lieut. Chappel, of Company A., died, being the 
 second death which occurred at Rolla. His body was placed in a 
 coffin, draped with the National flag, and forwarded to friends at 
 Elgin, for burial. The Regiment was drawn up in two lines, in 
 open order, extending from camp to the railroad station, between 
 which Company A. with reversed arms followed the coffin, which 
 was preceded by the band, playing a funeral dirge, the solemn 
 cadences of which added a mournful solemnity to the sadness of 
 the hour. Captain Baldwin took charge of the body and pro 
 ceeded with it to Elgin. 
 
 On the 10th of October all the troops, except the 36th, the 4th 
 Iowa and Phelps Missourians, left Rolla and marched to the 
 south-west, to co-operate with General Fremont in his movement 
 from Sedalia upon Springfield. Colonel Dodge, of the 4th Iowa, 
 being the senior officer, was placed in command of the post, and 
 with characteristic vigor set about placing it in such a condi 
 tion for defense as to render it secure against assault from the 
 enemy. Work was resumed on Fort Wyman, which had been 
 left for weeks in a half-finished condition. This defensive work, 
 situated on a hill three-fourths of a mile south of town, over 
 looked and commanded the surrounding country. It had been 
 planned and commenced under the direction of Captain Totten, 
 and about half completed by the 13th Illinois. Engineers to 
 take charge of the work were detailed from the 36th, for there 
 was no trade or profession, but had representatives in its ranks. 
 Large details of men were made from each regiment at the post ; 
 picks and shovels provided, and the gravel was soon flying in a 
 way which insured the speedy completion of the fort and the 
 erection of block houses at opposite angles. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 EXPEDITION TO HOUSTON. 
 
 THE meantime a wail of distress came up from 
 Texas, Dent and other counties south and west of 
 Rolla. Each day bands of fleeing refugees repeated 
 their stories of destitution and suffering resulting 
 from the depredations of guerrilla bands that 
 patrolled the country, enforcing the relentless con 
 scription laws of the Confederate Congress, and plundering the 
 Union people of their sustenance, often adding murder to the 
 long catalogue of other crimes, McBride, Freeman and Haw 
 thorn were filling these localities with terror, and sweeping the 
 country as with the besom of destruction. Fields were laid 
 waste, and swept of cattle, hogs and horses, and the smoke of burn 
 ing houses marked the path of these miscreants. 
 
 An expedition to Houston was resolved upon and Colonel Greu- 
 sel put in command. It was made up of detachments from the 
 two Cavalry Companies of the 36th, commanded by Lieut. 
 Sherer, of Company A ; Companies B and E of the Infantry, 
 and two hundred men from the 4th Iowa Infantry, consisting 
 altogether of about five hundred men. It was believed that at 
 Houston a considerable force of "Bushwhackers" and the odd 
 
THE FIRST MARCH. 75 
 
 ends of several rebel commands were collected, from whence they 
 radiated and ranged over the surrounding country committing 
 their depredations and fiendish barbarities. 
 
 At four P. M. all were in readiness ; the men fell into line, each 
 with knapsack containing blankets, extra ammunition and three 
 or four days marching rations. The Companies wheeled into 
 column ; the drums beat an exhilarating air ; the rattle of sabres, 
 the clinking of horses shoes over the stony road, and the meas 
 ured tread of the infantry as it filed over the hills, presented a 
 more warlike aspect than anything the 36th had yet been accus 
 tomed to. Cheer on cheer rent the air. The men, inexperienced 
 as they were in campaign life, and eager for a change, were 
 wrought up to a high pitch of enthusiasm. The troops marched 
 well, and twilight was descending, wrapping glade and moun 
 tain in the garb of night ere they had wended their way over 
 the hills and were fairly out of sight. After marching eight 
 miles, one of the teams gave out, and was taken back to Rolla, 
 and a six mule government team sent in its stead, escorted 
 by eight men from Company C. The night was intensely dark ; 
 dense clouds shut out the starlight and left the command to grope 
 its way over a rough unfrequented road that led through a coun 
 try more rough and rugged than the Illinoisians had before 
 experienced. Now they went toiling up steep hills seemingly 
 interminable ; then plunging down the precipitous slopes of others, 
 into some deep and dark ravine. Rough strata of rock cropped 
 out at every step, stumps and boulders littered the road, against 
 which the men came in rough and unexpected contact, lacerating 
 their limbs and bruising their feet. Streams were reached and 
 forded, the troopers horses plashing through the swift flowing 
 water, their iron shoes grinding its pebbly bed, the infantry cau 
 tiously wading through and then marching on in silence, broken 
 
76 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 only by a savage expletive as some one tumbled over a rock or 
 into a hole. After marching twelve miles, mostly in the darkness, 
 they bivouacked near the banks of a stream. Pickets were 
 thrown out, the horses tied to the black-jacks, and then the men 
 sought repose on the cold ground, but wrapped in their blankets. 
 At daybreak the next morning the men prepared their coffee, 
 cooked a scanty breakfast, and then the column was again in 
 motion, but not marching with that precision and order observed 
 upon the parade ground. " Rank step and arms at will," was the 
 order, and each man took the gait which suited him, provided he 
 kept closed up with the company, while his musket described 
 every possible angle but the right one. This plodding on through 
 a wild, rough country had very little of military romance about 
 it. On the contrary, it was downright hard work, especially for 
 most of the men detached from the 36th, who were unaccustomed 
 to such service. 
 
 Straggling was not allowed, but all sorts of excuses were 
 resorted to, to go to the wayside cabins for milk and "garden 
 truck." What astonishing spasms of hunger or thirst attack 
 soldiers on sight of an attractive farm house, and what sad stories 
 of privation they have to tell when once they gain the ear of the 
 proprietor or his family. A pretty close observer of all the 
 phases of a soldier s life has stated that positively no soldier under 
 such circumstances was ever known to have had anything to eat 
 for the two previous days, though his haversack may even then 
 be crammed to corpulency with "hard tack." And the pleas 
 these mousing stragglers put in when caught with plunder are 
 sublime in their audacity. 
 
 Major English, of the 4th Iowa, observed a soldier staggering 
 along with a great swelling under his blanket which, from every 
 indication, he judged to be a dead pig whom he hailed with : 
 " Hello, my man, where did you get that pig?" 
 
PECULIAR FORAGING PROPENSITIES. 77 
 
 " It isn t a pig, sir, it s tomatoes. You don t know, sir, how 
 "hard it is to tell pigs from tomatoes in this blasted country." 
 
 The Major re-adjusted his spectacles, took another look, but 
 refrained from pressing his inquiries further. 
 
 At each halt during the day the inevitable tin cup was in req 
 uisition, boiling coffee at impromptu camp fires. Nothing seems 
 to refresh troops when on a march so much as a cup of coffee. 
 
 At night the command encamped on Crow Creek, within five 
 miles of Licking, which place was reached the next day, and 
 occupied by the infantry for four days, while Col. Greusel with 
 the cavalry scouted the neighboring country, capturing some 
 noted secessionists and bringing them to camp. The hamlet was 
 nearly deserted, as the former residents, who were Union people, 
 had been plundered and then driven from their homes, and only 
 a few forlorn "war widders," faded damsels and yellow haired, 
 dirty faced children now remained. The troops found quarters 
 in empty houses, and during the time the place was occupied 
 detachments scoured the country and stripped it of "secesh" 
 horses, mules, cattle and wheat. 
 
 Col. Greusel with the cavalry proceeded to Houston, chasing 
 from thence a squad of ghostly "butternuts," with whom a few 
 shots were exchanged, but at too great a distance to be effective. 
 On being pressed by the cavalry, they took to the brush and 
 escaped. A secession flag was floating from the Court House, 
 which was hauled down and the stars and stripes ran up in its 
 stead. Notice was given to sympathizers and the aiders and 
 abettors of treason that if the flag was hauled down or insulted, 
 the troops would return and inflict summary vengeance upon 
 those who did it. Fourteen prisoners were captured, including 
 an Inspector General, Quarter-Master, Sergeant Major, and an 
 Orderly Sergeant, who, on the return of the expedition, were 
 
78 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 confined within the precincts of Fort Wyman, and with others 
 set to work with pick and shovel upon the fortifications. The 
 prisoners strenuously objected to being obliged to work, and as 
 an ordinary rule prisoners of war are exempt from such service 
 to their captors ; but when we take into consideration that these 
 men were the authors of much of the distress and suffering 
 endured by Union families, followed in many cases by house 
 burning and assassination, humanity towards them almost ceased 
 to be a virtue. The graves of their victims send forth bloody 
 witnesses, and the tears and agony of widows and orphans who 
 owe their grief to these miscreants testify against them, and to 
 labor in chains all their days would be an insufficient recompense 
 for the fearful consequences to the country of their accursed 
 treason. 
 
 On the 6th, Capt. Wood with the cavalry started for Spring 
 Valley, thirty miles distant, in pursuit of Col. Freeman, against 
 whom the expedition was principally directed. He could not be 
 drawn into a battle, and by his perfect knowledge of the country 
 eluded all efforts for his capture, and only straggling shots at 
 long range were exchanged. The property taken and brought to 
 Rolla was valued at $15,000, which was turned over to the Quar 
 ter-Master and Commissary Departments. Among the trophies 
 was a drum made from a hollow log, looking much like a north 
 ern bee gum, with sheep skins stretched over either end, and 
 when beaten sent forth a lugubrious murmur unlike anything ever 
 heard before in connection with military organization, outside the 
 jungles of Ethiopia. The flag taken at Houston was a primitive 
 affair, displaying artistic skill in its make up about on a par with 
 the drum, and covered with cabalistic signs and hieroglyphics 
 about as intelligible as Hebrew or Greek to a backwoods Indiana 
 Hoosier. This campaign had its advantages in accustoming the 
 men to long marches and unceasing vigilance. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 STILL AT HOLLA. 
 
 [OLONEL WYMAISPS expedition to the south-west 
 showed results in the long lines of prisoners of 
 war which were sent by him under guard to Rolla. 
 The jail and fort were gradually filled with them, 
 and guards detailed from the different regiments at 
 the post were required to prevent their escape. 
 The 36th contributed its share in the entertainment and preserv 
 ation from harm of these highly honored guests. 
 
 Though the 36th did not participate in this campaign, yet a 
 short synopsis of the incidents connected with it may not be out 
 of place, as they served for many days to keep the men on the 
 qui vive, and awakened nearly as intense an interest as if they 
 were active participants. 
 
 The first day out from Rolla the expedition marched twenty- 
 four miles to the Big Piney, through a drizzling rain storm, over 
 mortar-mixed roads neither safe nor agreeable. On the 12th, the 
 command went into camp within four miles of Wet Glaze, not 
 far from Lebanon, in LaClede County, The pickets were fired 
 upon during the night, which apprised Col. Wyman of the near 
 ness of the enemy, and soon after reliable information was 
 
80 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 obtained of the position and strength of a considerable force. 
 Four companies of cavalry under Major Wright, and four com 
 panies of the 13th Infantry, set out at daylight to make the 
 attack, while the balance of the command were to follow closely 
 in their support. 
 
 Col. Turner, the Confederate commander, took up a position 
 at Wet Glaze, on the side of a hill overlooking and commanding 
 the road over which our forces were expected to approach, that 
 led up through a ravine and along the sinuous windings of a 
 range of hills. The whole country was diversified with chert 
 ridges, cut by deep ravines and densely covered with bushes and 
 scattering black-jack, in every way favorable to the mode of 
 "fire and run" bush fighting adopted by the enemy, who, sup 
 posing that their presence was wholly unknown to Wyman, had 
 taken their position among the bushes and trees, partly conceal 
 ing them, and awaited our approach. Just then several ambu 
 lances, with some of the convalescents from Springfield, left there 
 after the battle of Wilson s Creek, approached, and were com 
 pelled to halt before entering the ravine, and in this position 
 remained more than an hour, awaiting the result of the expected 
 battle. They were frequently jeered by the secessionists, and 
 told that they would soon have another batch of wounded feds to 
 carry along with them to Holla. Such was the condition ol 
 affairs, when suddenly two companies of cavalry under Captains 
 Switzler and Montgomery, who were in advance, charged over the 
 hill and swooped down upon the left Hank and rear of the aston 
 ished enemy, arid poured a destructive fire from their carbines 
 into the now wavering ranks; then charging with their sabres 
 they scattered them like chaff before the wind. The cavalry 
 pursued, and each singling his man, overtook and sabred him to 
 the ground. In a few minutes the fighting was over ; the enemy 
 
SUCCESSFUL CAVALRY RAID. 81 
 
 throwing away guns and everything that could impede their 
 flight, took to the woods and ravines in a perfect rout. They 
 were so completely surprised and terrified that but few shots were 
 fired by them, and only one of Capt. Montgomery s men was 
 wounded. It was a dash a shout a gleam of death from our 
 side, and a wild and frightened scamper for life on the part of 
 the enemy. When our cavalry and the ambulances met, three 
 rousing cheers went up and echoed through the glades. 
 
 The force engaged on our part was the cavalry advance, num 
 bering scarcely one hundred men. The infantry hearing the 
 firing, double-quicked to the spot, panting and out of breath, but 
 were only in time to assist in gathering up the wrecks that strewed 
 the ground. Sixty-three of the enemy s dead were found, thir 
 teen wounded were scattered over the hill side, and forty prison 
 ers captured. 
 
 Many were the incidents of personal daring related to the 
 eager, gaping crowds of the 36th which thronged around the 
 ambulances and prisoners escort as they came filing into town. 
 One negro with Capt. Montgomery, in the capacity of cook and 
 general drudge, fearlessly rode in advance of the command, 
 blazing away at the first butternut in sight, and the first of the 
 enemy to fall was shot by him. The prisoners were a sorry look 
 ing set of vagabonds, and in their dress and deportment much 
 resembled the Douglas County refugees. 
 
 From Wet Glaze, Wymari marched to Linn Creek and cap 
 tured thirty other prisoners, who were likewise brought to Holla 
 for safe keeping and to experience the hospitalities of the 36th. 
 In retaliation for the plunder of McClurg s store at Linn Creek 
 some time previous, the 13th was allowed to confiscate the con 
 tents of stores and shops belonging to active rebels and their 
 sympathizers. It is needless to add that the work was thoroughly 
 done, and a second visit for that purpose rendered unnecessary. 
 
82 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 During the absence of the expedition, each day, and nearly 
 each hour, came laden with reports of battles lost or won ; of ene 
 mies thronging around in countless thousands, together with hun 
 dreds of other wild reports, too incredible for any but the easily 
 gulled to believe. One morning Price was reported within five 
 miles of the Post with ten thousand men at his heels, fully bent 
 upon its capture and the slaughter of its defenders. And great 
 was the astonishment and indignation of the men at the apparent 
 apathy and indifference of the officers, who made no call to arms 
 and no preparation for defence. During the day this report was 
 considerably modified the numbers of the enemy reduced to five 
 thousand and their distance twenty miles away. When stripped 
 of exaggeration their numbers amounted to twenty furloughed 
 or fugitive secessionists, skulking about their homes twenty-five 
 miles away. But Wood s cavalry thoroughly scoured that neigh 
 borhood, caught four of the skulkers, brought them prisoners to 
 Rolla and forever settled the story of the three black crows. 
 
 There is no community on earth so frequently the sport of 
 rumors wild and strange as a camp of raw recruits contiguous to 
 an enemy. For stories the wildest, strangest and most unbeliev 
 able, of the near approach of enemies, of army movements, of 
 impending battles, &c., &c., commend me to a camp of soldiers 
 with little to do. The novice hears of fighting, of victories or 
 disasters, in advance of experienced commanders aided by their 
 trusty scouts and appliances for gaining information, and acting 
 on his implicit belief in the truth of these rumors, his knapsack 
 is packed and he sleeps with his sword or musket by his side. 
 All this was gone through with a dozen times in the camp of the 
 36th. A little experience soon teaches men to get over this, 
 until an order to march at a moment s notice or to charge an 
 enemy s position is received with entire equanimity. 
 
FAILURE OF FREMONT S CAMPAIGN. 83 
 
 News of the capture and occupation of Springfield by Gen. 
 Fremont was followed by a requisition for supplies from Holla. 
 Most of the cavalry at the Post, including a detachment from 
 Company A, of the 36th, was sent as escort to a large train laden 
 with army stores to the front, with Lieut. Col. Joslyn in com 
 mand. Judge Sample Orr, with a long cavalcade of Union refu 
 gees from the southwest, joined the command, hoping under the 
 protecting care of the escort to be able to reach their homes and 
 remain in peace and safety under the shadow of the stars and 
 stripes, borne by Fremont s victorious legions, who, it was reported, 
 had swept the country of secessionists, and sent them skurrying in 
 inordinate haste and terror to the wilds of Arkansas. 
 
 Fremont s southwestern campaign, from which grand achieve 
 ments were earnestly hoped for and confidently expected by the 
 country, proved to be a stupendous failure ; and that officer was 
 superseded in the command of the Department by General Hal- 
 leek, who signalized his accession to power by relieving Fremont 
 from the command of the Army while in full career of triumph, 
 placing Gen. Hunter in charge and recalling the expedition. 
 The troops which a few days before had marched from Sedalia 
 and Rolla so sanguine of success, rejoicing that the period of inac 
 tivity was broken and that at length they were to come down to 
 work ; that work the sweeping of secession forever beyond the 
 borders of Missouri, contributing to the final termination and 
 entire overthrow of rebellion, alas, was changed to a dispiriting 
 retreat. Not a retreat with shattered ranks, torn by shot, before 
 a proud, victorious foe, and as broken wrecks from some disas 
 trous conflict ; but with full ranks, flying banners, unsoiled uni 
 forms, as free from smoke and smell of gunpowder as if at 
 home in the North, quietly at work in shop or field. 
 
 Among the troops that returned to Rolla from Springfield was 
 the splendid 13th 111., with Wyman s Brigade, also the Divisions 
 
84 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 of Sigel and Asboth. Sigel was regarded as the lion of the hour, 
 and his appearance in the camps was the signal for an ovation. 
 Small of stature, but lithe and active, his conversation somewhat 
 broken, he had not that stolid sluggishness which characterizes 
 the average u lager beer " German. Not his dress, nor his quick, 
 jerky conversation, revealed the general and superior commander 
 so much as a fiery, restless eye, which at once attracts, fascinates 
 and pleases. He was a man of battles, accustomed to the roar 
 the smoke and carnage of deadly conflict, with a name and fame 
 already historic, who considered the putting down of rebellion a 
 religious duty. The men were enthusiastic to "fight mit Sigel." 
 But enough of adulation ; we shall know him better by and by 
 when we have marched with him through the lanes of death. 
 
 Gen. Asboth also visited the camp of the 36th. He appeared 
 as rigid and stern as an iron statue. A grim son of War, he had 
 not that magnetic influence over men, arousing their enthusiasm, 
 like Sigel. Asboth, after a review and dress parade conducted 
 by himself, pronounced the 36th the finest appearing and best 
 drilled in the manual of arms of any regiment in the service ; a 
 compliment of no mean significance when we consider the high 
 source from whence it emanated. 
 
 We had now fairly settled down in camp and fully embarked 
 in housekeeping, when the wives of Col. Greusel, Capt. Pearce 
 and Capt. Baldwin came and took up their abode with us, dis 
 tributing rays of glorious sunshine, and reminding us of social 
 life in America. The presence of these truly magnificent women 
 was the cause of their husbands being subjects of envy all over 
 the regiment. Never before had the men so fully appreciated 
 the value of a yard of calico the shimmer of bright eyes, the 
 sheen of a tress, or the flutter of a ribbon, as now. To men who 
 for weeks had hardly seen a woman s face radiant with smiles 
 
APPRECIATION OF THE LADIES. 85 
 
 arid beaming with intelligence, the presence of these ladies awa 
 kened fresh memories of home and the well remembered associa 
 tions of other days ; kindled anew the love for wives, mothers, 
 sisters and sweethearts, and endeared every adjunct of femininity 
 left behind. The roughest soldier in the ranks was chastened 
 into propriety, behaved better, aye, and fought better, from the 
 presence of true, loyal and lovely women among them. An influ 
 ence for good pervaded the camp from their being in it. Their 
 visits to the hospital and ministrations to the suffering ones gave 
 life and hope where else would have been despair and death. 
 
 Mrs. Greusel knew what it is to be the wife of a sol 
 dier, and the patient endurance of long months of separation, 
 with the care of children on her hands, while the husband is 
 away in his country s service. . She had passed through it all 
 while her husband was fighting the country s battles on the 
 plains of Mexico. Truly the country owes much to its heroic 
 daughters as well as to its brave sons. 
 
 Mrs. Pearce was a superb horsewoman, an easy, graceful rider, 
 and flashed over the hills and valleys like a ray of light, and often 
 alone, as free and fearless as a trooper. 
 
 Pay-day came at last we had begun to despair of ever seeing 
 its bright dawning and the regiment was made happy by the 
 appearance of Major Kinney with his money bags. That night 
 the men retired to their bunks rejoicing in the possession of their 
 hard earned shekels. Many thousands of it were sent home to 
 gladden the hearts of wives and children, while other thousands 
 changed hands by the shuffle of the cards, and by all the tricks 
 and devices which camp followers and camp leeches could invent 
 to wring the hard earned cash from the pockets of their fellows. 
 Not the least in expressions of satisfaction at the appearance 
 of this auspicious day was the sutler. He did an enormous busi 
 ness at an enormous profit, and at night his establishment was as 
 
86 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 empty of eatables and articles of prime necessity as though a rebel 
 army corps had gone through it. 
 
 But if pay-day was fraught with blessings to some, it brought 
 its curse upon others. I doubt if twelve hundred men can be 
 promiscuously brought together, but that some will be found with 
 a constitutional thirst for intoxicating liquors. Men who were 
 thought to be exemplary in their habits were now found in that 
 soggy condition which induces the hugging of telegraph poles in 
 the laudable endeavor of steadying the world. Notwithstanding 
 stringent orders against its introduction, somehow "tarantula" 
 found its way to Holla. 
 
 A trooper belonging to Company B Cavalry, who had suffered 
 for two whole months without a glass of whisky, nay, without so 
 much as a smell of it, found means for getting out of camp and 
 soon was drunk drunk all over ; he continued so for three days, 
 and of course for that period was absent from roll-call. After 
 sobering up he returned to camp, reported his absence and the 
 cause of it to the Colonel, who reproved him sharply, but as this 
 was his first offense he concluded not to punish him, making him 
 promise, however, to keep sober in the future. On reporting to 
 Capt. Smith for duty, that officer caused his immediate arrest, 
 personally assisted in tying his hands, gagging him by passing a 
 rope through his mouth, and then jerked the poor fellow about 
 the Company quarters until his mouth and tongue were badly 
 lacerated and bleeding ; then, just for the fun of the thing, 
 kicked him brutally as he lay helpless on the ground. This was 
 too much for average human nature to endure, and the men inter 
 fered and rescued their comrade from further violence. Ascer 
 taining the extent of his injuries, a simultaneous rush was made 
 for the Captain, with the avowed intention of putting an eternal 
 quietus to his kicking and gagging propensities. The uproar 
 
DISMISSAL OF CAPT. SMITH. 87 
 
 caused by these summary proceedings attracted the attention of 
 the officer of the day, who called out the camp guard for the Cap 
 tain s protection, but he had to leave camp and sought refuge in 
 a house in the outskirts of the town, where he lay concealed dur 
 ing the night and succeeding day. The next night he was secretly 
 conducted to Dillon, a station six miles from Rolla, on the rail 
 road, and when the next train passed he went with it to St. Louis. 
 He was afterward cashiered and dismissed from the service. 
 Such brutality might be appreciated among Camanche savages, 
 but the army of the United States, particularly that branch of it 
 to which by some unfortunate circumstance he had been attached, 
 could very w r ell dispense with his services. He was succeeded in 
 the command of the Company by SAMUEL B. SHERER, of 
 Aurora. 
 
 The weather during these days of patient waiting at Rolla was 
 for the most part delightful. Never was there a more favorable 
 time for marching, and that we were to advance very soon was 
 taken for granted. Whither and when, were questions which 
 ruled the hour. Squads of prisoners, reports of skirmishes and 
 occasional mutterings of battle from the south-west, where Fre 
 mont was driving all before him, gave rise to conjectures as to a 
 time in the near future when we should receive orders to march 
 to our first baptism of blood. Rumors as usual often fixed the 
 hour, but day succeeded day and weeks followed in quiet succes 
 sion, and we did not move. It was not for subordinates unac 
 quainted with all the reasons for delay to trouble themselves on 
 this point, so we made the best of it, gradually settling down to 
 bear with cheerful philosophy the monotony of camp life. 
 Abundance of food was served to the men ; Joe, the sutler, was 
 always ready to add to the government ration his supplementary 
 trash, and the pie and cake women still found a ready market for 
 
88 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 their leathery wares. So passed September, October and Novem 
 ber; the hills, fields and woodland basking in glorious sunshine. 
 We realized in its rich fulness the appropriateness of the term, 
 "The sunny South." 
 
 There were times when the south-west winds would come rush 
 ing through camp rather too briskly for comfort; when clouds of 
 dust would roll up from the parade ground ; hats, shingles and 
 clothing hung out to air would be caught in the breeze and go 
 skurrying eastward. At such times the principal occupation of 
 the men on returning from drill would be to dig the sand and 
 gravel from their eyes, the dust from their ears, and with soap 
 and towel proceed to remove the strata "of Missouri soil which 
 masked their faces and was sprinkled in superlative nastiness 
 over their clothing and person. 
 
 By the last of November the air became crisp and frosty. 
 The winds changed to the north, and men wrapped in their over 
 coats and mufflers went shivering to their posts of duty. The 
 skies became overcast with dark, heavy clouds, giving notice of 
 the approach of winter. Then came the rain; not in gentle 
 showers to lay the dust, usually more refreshing than disagree 
 able, but a cold, driving storm, mixed with sleet, which, aided by 
 the wind, sought every nook and cranny about the camp ; through 
 every opening into the tents ; penetrating the clothing and cutting 
 the faces of such as were compelled by duty to endure it. Canals 
 and ditches for drainage purposes were dug and means adopted 
 for preventing the deluging of the quarters, or the winds from 
 eddying under and through the canvas-walled habitations. The 
 weather accomplished what the wishes of the men had failed to 
 effect, and the daily drills for a time were suspended. 
 
 For hours the patient cooks sought to work out the difficult 
 problem of how to make a fire from green wood, in a puddle and 
 
COOKING UNDER DIFFICULTIES. 89 
 
 midst the driving rain. Fire and water were brought into fierce 
 conflict, fire finally triumphing, and a pale, sickly flame flickered 
 up through the dark smoke-wreaths ; not enough for warmth, but 
 sufficient to simmer the coffee and soften the beans, which, together 
 with hard tack, eaten in the tents, were the luxuries we thrived 
 upon. The trails cut through the brush, which by some misno 
 mer were called roads, were changed to quagmires, through which 
 the army wagons sent out for wood were with difficulty dragged. 
 Little mud holes became miniature lakes. Unless duty impera 
 tively required it, the men remained quietly in camp. A trip to 
 the outposts was like an aquatic excursion, better performed by 
 web-footed horses and men. 
 
 This season of alternate rain and snow, of u sailing through 
 muddy seas," lasted but a few days, when again from a rift in 
 the clouds the sun looked smilingly down and greeted us. Such 
 was the winter of 1861-2 in Missouri; alternating from sleet to 
 sunshine, from roads as hard as pavements, to seas of plastic 
 mud. Without ice and with little snow, and hills not frozen to 
 adamant, like the stern-visaged Winter of the North. 
 
 With the abandonment of the southwest and return of the army 
 to Rolla, came vast crowds of refugees, fleeing not only from rebel 
 outrage, but from starvation and death. Their few remaining 
 goods, chattels and effects spared by the plundering hordes of 
 Price and the guerrilla bands which everywhere ranged the coun 
 try for spoil, were tumbled promiscuously into dilapidated ox-carts 
 or squeaking wagons drawn by jaded oxen or horses, as lean 
 and starved as Pharaoh s kine. Each convoy was accompa 
 nied by a pack of lank, wolfish dogs and swarms of ragged, sun 
 burned children on foot, often without shoes. They took their 
 sorrowful journey as outcasts from the homes which had sheltered 
 them, and with the North Star as their cynosure they fled to the 
 
90 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 line of the Union armies for protection. Family after family 
 thronged to Rolla as the " Mecca" of their hopes. The father, 
 careworn and dejected, trudged along the dusty road; the moth 
 er, anxious, yet patient ; the children, with a curious mixture of 
 wonder and excitement that served to buoy up rather than depress, 
 and all in the lowest stages of destitution. Their houses had 
 been burned, their cattle driven away, their farms devastated and 
 themselves cast out upon a cold and cheerless world. One could not 
 contemplate without horror the thousands of families brutally 
 driven from their homes, wending their way over the mountain, 
 and with blood-stained feet crowding to Rolla and begging for the 
 bread which their own fellow countrymen in the ranks of seces 
 sion had deprived them of. Many had fathers, sons, or husbands 
 in the ranks of the federal army and were now bearing northward 
 mute testimonials of their devotion and sacrifices. From this 
 heterogeneous mass of human beings Col. Phelps derived many 
 recruits, for from the fires of persecution patriots arose, as Christ 
 ians arise from the blood of martyrs. 
 
 There were now about ten thousand men gathered in the vari 
 ous camps in and about Rolla. Each separate regiment or com 
 mand, like the 36th, had little or nothing to do. In the calm, 
 beautiful evenings groups of officers would stroll from camp to 
 camp to chat with old acquaintances or new found friends, and 
 thus pass the hours in the interchange of friendly courtesies. A 
 favorite resort at such times was Fort Wyman, which commanded 
 a view for many miles over the surrounding country. Far away 
 jn every direction flashed a thousand camp fires, each tent illu 
 minated, and a little aid from the imagination would change the 
 lovely scene to a stately city with its broad avenues, replete with 
 life and the hum of business. Then would come the reflection 
 that these were not the peaceful residences and happy firesides of 
 
CAMP FIRE EXPERIENCES. 91 
 
 quiet citizens, but the temporary shelter of those who, far away 
 from loved ones, had taken their lives in their hands in defence 
 of home and fatherland. 
 
 Near at hand were the sheltering tents and blazing camp-fires 
 of Col. Phelps; southwest along the valley of Beaver Creek, and 
 following the sinuosities of its course for miles, the camp-fires of 
 Wyrnan, Sigel and Asboth s Divisions presented long avenues of 
 flame for before each tent was blazing a pile of black-jack logs- 
 vieing with each other in the grandeur of the illumination. The 
 exact location of each could be distinctly traced by the bright 
 lights marked and reflected from the heavens above. 
 
 At the foot of the hill the 36th and 4th Iowa were located 
 nearly under our feet, and one might almost fancy what the men 
 were talking about, as around each ripple of flame they were seen 
 grouped in conversation, or engaged in various occupations. 
 Some, of course, were boiling the inevitable coffee pot, for it mat 
 ters not what the hour, no camp-fire was ever without a soldier 
 making coffee ; some are reading, some playing cards and others 
 simply keeping warm. 
 
 At the Fort, guards and prisoners were on equal terms of social 
 intercourse and sat promiscuously about the fire, smoking pipes 
 and telling yarns. One Corporal Baughman, from Phelps regi 
 ment, was a genius in his odd, Missouri way. Talking of mos 
 quitoes the old fellow remarked, " That reminds me of Arkansaw, 
 whar thar s a right smart sprinkle of them kind of varmints thar. 
 Thar is whar a man can hold his arm extended in the air for a 
 minute and then by suddenly hauling it in, leave a hole in the 
 air just the size and shape of his arm." 
 
 And then followed some of his experience as a pioneer in the 
 south-west. In the early settlement of Springfield, neighbors, 
 like angels visits, were few and far between. For his first year s 
 
92 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 provisions he raised a patch of buckwheat, and taking it to a mill 
 for grinding, the miller, a South Carolinian, thought he would 
 like some, and purchased a quantity for his own use. His wife, 
 entirely ignorant of the manner of its preparation, undertook to 
 make light bread of it, but after two or three trials and failures, 
 threw the* stuff away, declaring "old Baughman a fraud and 
 cheat," and a candidate for a " licking on sight." 
 
 And this one on Harrison, of the 36th, came out. While on 
 duty at the Fort he patronized a Missouri woman for milk. One 
 morning he was early after his accustomed ration of the lacteal, 
 and found the good dame "palling the cow." Being a Yankee, 
 he could not wait in silence but plied the woman with questions, 
 among which was the enquiry if her cow was a good one for milk. 
 "Mighty good/ was the reply. "She dont give a very peart 
 flow now, yet I reckon she gives a right smart sprinkle." 
 
 And Lieut. Pritchard gave a chapter of his experience among 
 the "Pukes." At one time on his way from Rolla to Salem, he 
 called at a cabin for water. The family were at dinner, and 
 when the mother arose to procure a gourd full of the aqua pura 
 for the stranger, two stripling girls monopolized the sorghum 
 dish, and went for its contents their level best, by dipping their 
 corn bread into the molasses and then getting outside of the 
 smeared and dripping morsels as greedily and speedily as possi 
 ble. One. not entirely satsified with the share she was able to 
 secure, called out to the mother on her return from the spring : 
 "Mam ! Mam ! Sal dips twice into the deep to my once in the 
 "shaller, and you know lasses is scarce." 
 
 The following was also told and vouched for as a fact: Among 
 the secluded hills somewhere in Missouri, one of the "natives" 
 had in the course of years, by hard labor and economy, saved up 
 his shekels, and in addition to broad acres had an abundance of 
 
MISSOURI GIRLS DINING OUT. 93 
 
 gold and silver. Business called him to St. Louis, and lie took 
 
 
 
 his daughters along, who flashed like full blown hollyhocks in 
 ribbons and calico. While at dinner at the Planters , a guest at 
 the opposite side of the table was observed to dip his bread into 
 the syrup dish and proceed to its mastication. One of the daugh 
 ters observing this, plunged her corn bread into the same dish in 
 backwoods style, at the same time calling out to her sister: 
 " Sail ! Sail ! Why dont you wallup yer dodger into the sop ? 
 " Pap s got as much money as enny on em, I reckon." 
 
 But it is nine o clock. Tattoo is sounding from bugle, fife, 
 drum and horn, and twenty regimental bands take up the refrain 
 and a wilderness of sweet sounds and swelling notes come welling 
 up like some strong fountain upheaving its wealth of sparkling 
 foam and seething waters. Thanks for the regimental bands, and 
 thrice grateful for the rich harmonies which come floating up 
 from their silvery horns. Then wending our way slowly and 
 thoughtfully through the various camps to our quarters, the 
 thought impresses itself upon our minds that there is not one in 
 all this great camp of many thousands of sleepers, who has not 
 left some one to mourn his absence ; not one so poor and mean 
 as to be without some tie binding him to others, arid liable at any 
 time to be broken by the rude touch of war. 
 
 The large army gathered about Rolla did not altogether pine 
 in inglorious inaction or rust with idleness. Predatory bands 
 followed up the retreat from the south-west, and infested the 
 country outside our picket lines. The cavalry were constantly 
 on the wing, gathering up stray parties who ventured too near 
 our lines, and frequently dealing telling blows, giving the " but 
 ternuts" a foretaste of what was in store for them when once 
 the dogs of war were let loose. Wood s Kansas Rangers filled 
 them with terror, and Wright, Montgomery, Switzler and Bowen 
 haunted them like ghosts of the departed. 
 
94 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 November 30th, Major Bowen proceeded with a detachment 
 from his batallion to Salem, the county seat of Dent County, 
 about thirty miles distant. The weather was stormy and the 
 roads fearfully muddy, and on his arrival after dark, weary and 
 wet, finding no enemy, he quartered his command in the vacant 
 houses scattered in various parts of the town. Not appre 
 hending danger, pickets were not posted, as should have been 
 done. In the night they were surprised by Col. Freeman and 
 Col. Turner s rebel bands ; were fired upon through the windows 
 and a number killed and wounded. Bowen soon rallied his ter 
 rified men around the Court House, and after a hotly contested 
 engagement repulsed the enemy with some loss. 
 
 Captains Switzer and Montgomery were sent to Bowen s relief, 
 and the united commands set out in pursuit of Freeman, pressing 
 him so closely down the valley of Currant river that he was 
 obliged to leave it for the mountains. Our cavalry continued 
 their march some distance beyond until night, and then struck 
 across the country to head off their wary, as well as wily, foe. 
 Coming to an open country, they descried the enemy s camp-fires 
 at a distance, and proceeded in silence until in close proximity 
 to their camp, when, at the word of command, a volley from our 
 carbines went crashing among the surprised and bewildered 
 foe, who started up and fled in every direction, without firing a 
 gun. The rebel loss was not known, except in prisoners, fifty of 
 whom were taken and graced the triumphant return of the expe 
 dition to Rolla. 
 
 Captain Jenks, witli a detachment from Co. A of the 86th cav 
 alry, led an expedition in the direction of Crawford County, and, 
 though no collision at arms with the enemy occurred, a large 
 number of sympathisers and active secessionists were apprehended; 
 brought to Rolla and incarcerated at the Fort, where they enjoyed 
 a season of rest from their predatory meanderings. 
 
CAMP WYMAN FILLED WITH PRISONERS. 95 
 
 Thus were the ranks of copper-bottomed prisoners rapidly 
 recruited, until the narrow limits of Fort Wyman could not con 
 tain them. Among them w T ere Lieut. Col. Somers, Captains 
 Worsham and Bohannon, together with other officers of lesser 
 note. Numbers were sent to St. Louis for confinement in the 
 Gratiot prison ; some renounced their faith in secession, express 
 ing a willingness to enlist in the Federal service, and there 
 upon were released, joining some of the Missouri regiments. 
 One of the prisoners, a boy eighteen years of age, Avas visited by 
 his mother and sisters, who urged him to renounce secession, 
 swear allegiance to the Government of the United States and 
 return home with them. Their appeal was in vain. On their 
 knees, with streaming eyes and swelling hearts, they implored 
 him to give up the heresy of secession, but he, with firmness 
 and a self-reliance and composure far beyond his years, declared 
 that he would rot in prison before he would take the hated oath 
 or violate his obligation to the Confederate Government an 
 exhibition of firmness and independence of character which in a 
 righteous cause would have been admired and commended. 
 
 The scouting parties which penetrated the enemy s country, 
 yielding a rich harvest of prisoners, were almost exclusively com 
 posed of cavalry, while the infantry remained in the camps of 
 instruction or in the performance of Post duty, sometimes at 
 other stations than Rolla. Capt. Miller, with Company B, in 
 the month of December occupied St. Clair, a small station on the 
 railroad, fifty miles east of Rolla, holding it as a Post for several 
 days ; but guard duty was light, and the troops both at Rolla arid 
 along the railroad were comparatively idle. As yet the weather 
 was too delightful to permit the thought of winter quarters, and 
 it was impossible for the troops to divest themselves of the belief 
 that to-morrow, or next day, or the day after, they would cer- 
 
96 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 tainly move to fields of more exciting interest than the dull routine 
 of the camp. this interminable waiting ! Nothing so demor 
 alizes men, so dilutes their manhood, so corrodes their patriotism, 
 destroys their enthusiasm, steals away their cheerfulness and 
 impairs their health, as to pen them up in camp and condemn 
 them to weeks and months of listless do-nothingism. Card play 
 ing, at first resorted to as an occasional pastime, eventually degen 
 erates into gambling, out of which grow quarrels and the acqui 
 sition of bad habits not easily overcome. In time the intelligent 
 and refined become rough and brutal, a result traced directly to 
 the enervating influence of idle hours. Crimination and recrim- 
 mination among officers, followed by charges and courts martial, 
 are the inevitable fruit of idleness. For those who are constantly 
 busy, either physically or mentally, have not time to indulge in 
 wrangles, or share in the rivalries and jealousies which spring up 
 among those ambitious of position and restive under restraint. 
 
 The equanimity of camp was disturbed by the appearance 
 of Lieut. Walker of Company I, armed with a commission 
 from Gov. Yates and backed by orders from the Depart 
 ment Commander. Walker s friends in the Company greeted 
 him warmlv, but a hurricane or an earthquake could riot have 
 produced more consternation to his enemies than his untimely 
 apparition among them. Walker promptly reported himself for 
 duty, and at dress parades he and Lieut. Merrill stood side 
 by side, neither yielding an inch, while Walker s Commission, 
 (the only one in the regiment), and orders from Department head 
 quarters secured his person from violence, but could not smother 
 the rage and infinite disgust of his enemies. The whole camp 
 was in a ferment, and, however much men desired it, it was next 
 to impossible to remain in a state of neutrality. Dissensions 
 between regimental officers arose in regard to the course to be 
 
LIEUT. WALKER PREFERS CHARGES. 97 
 
 pursued towards Walker. Days passed, and still the Colonel 
 remained firm and steadfastly refused to officially recognize 
 Walker s claims to the position of First Lieutenant. 
 
 This finally culminated in charges preferred by Walker against 
 Col. Greusel, Capt. Camp and Lieut. Merrill, the substance of 
 which charges were to the effect that Col. Greusel refused to 
 recognize the Commission of the Governor of the State of Illi 
 nois; that together with Capt. Camp he had resisted with force 
 and arms his reinstatement in his position in the Company. Their 
 arrest and suspension from duty soon followed, and Lieut. Walker- 
 was placed in command of the Company. Shortly after, while 
 absent as officer of the day, an effigy was hung in a tree upon 
 which was written, u I ve got my posish!" which attracted large 
 crowds from every part of the Regiment. Lieut. Col. Jos- 
 lyn caused its removal and administered a scathing rebuke to the 
 officer of the guard for allowing such an outrage to be perpetrated 
 within the confines of the camp. Weeks passed and matters 
 remained in statu quo, no commission being appointed to try 
 the charges until January, after Gen. Curtis had assumed the 
 command of the "Army of the Southwest," when G. M. DODGE, 
 Col. 4th Iowa Vol., C. B. HOLLAND, Lieut. Col. 25th Missouri 
 Vol., arid Major ENGLISH, 4th Iowa Vol., were appointed a Court 
 Martial to investigate the charges and try the cases. 
 
 At the time of the organization of the Court the regiment was 
 on the march to the southwest and Walker absent in command of 
 the Company. Col. Brackett, as mustering officer of the regi 
 ment, was the only witness examined, and testified to the muster 
 of Capt. Camp and Lieut. Merrill as officers of the Company, that 
 Walker was not present and was not mustered in any position in 
 the Company. In five minutes after the case was closed, the offi 
 cers were released from arrest and ordered to the regiment for duty. 
 
98 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Col. Greusel joined the regiment on the Big Piney Creek and 
 assumed command. He was received with a perfect storm of 
 cheers from the men and welcomed back to his old position. 
 Poor Walker, professing to have had enough of mud and march 
 ing for that campaign, returned forlorn and dejected to Rolla, 
 resigned his commission, and ever after from Company I and the 
 36th Regiment was going going gone ! 
 
 Though rid of Walker, the Regiment was not rid of dissen 
 sions growing out of his case, that were too deep seated to be 
 summarily disposed of, and which for a long time impaired the 
 harmonious, half family relations which should exist between 
 officers of the same regiment or command. Had Lieut. Merrill 
 been as early and as easily disposed of as Walker, he would have 
 escaped a humiliating record which for all time must be a blot 
 upon his military career. 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 ROLLA TO PEA RIDGE. 
 
 ARLY IN January, Brig. Genl. SAMUEL R. 
 CURTIS was appointed to the Command of the 
 "Array of the South West," and proceeding to 
 Rolla assumed directions of military matters 
 in that quarter. Gen. Curtis was born in Ohio, 
 and at that time was fifty-six years of age. He 
 was educated at West Point, from which institution he graduated 
 with honor in 1831. After nearly two years service in the 
 infantry branch of the regular army, he resigned his commission, 
 studied and practiced law for a while. Having a natural taste 
 for engineering, and his acquirements fitting him for that pro 
 fession, he gave up the practice of law r and was for some time 
 employed as chief engineer on various public works. At the 
 breaking out of the Mexican war he volunteered his services, was 
 appointed Colonel, and served under Gen. Taylor throughout his 
 campaigns. He was for a time Military Governor of the City of 
 Monterey, and in the performance of the duties of this position 
 displayed superior tact and rare administrative ability. After 
 his return, he resumed the pursuit of engineering, and took an 
 active part in many of the public improvements which opened up 
 
100 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and served to develop with amazing rapidity the young and grow 
 ing West. 
 
 He removed from Ohio to Iowa, and settled at Keokuk, where 
 he was twice elected to represent his District in Congress. Upon 
 the announcement of the fall of Sumpter, which event set the coun 
 try in a fever of excitement, he hastened to Washington, entering 
 the city with the renowned 7th New York Regiment, riding 
 through Pennsylvania Avenue at its head. He at once tendered 
 his services to President Lincoln, which were accepted ; resigning 
 his seat in Congress, and armed with the necessary authority he 
 proceeded to Iowa and recruited the 2nd Regiment Iowa Volun 
 teers, which was the first in the field from that State. Through his 
 exertions and promptness Northern Missouri was protected in its 
 loyalty, and all efforts of secessionists to gain a foothold there 
 were successfully repelled. He was soon after promoted to the 
 rank of Brigadier General and appointed to the command of 
 Benton Barracks and the District of St. Louis, under Gen. Fre 
 mont. The raw, undisciplined regiments which were thrown into 
 Missouri were thoroughly drilled and rendered efficient troops. 
 Under the administration of Gen. Halleck, when sweeping 
 changes were made in the commanders of troops operating in his 
 department, to Gen. Curtis was assigned the command of the 
 forces collected at Rolla, which was designated the " Army of 
 the South-west." 
 
 Immediately on his assumption of the command a different 
 atmosphere pervaded the camps and made itself apparent in the 
 administration of military affairs. The men were not long in 
 doubt as to the question of an early advance or of continuing to 
 moulder in winter quarters at Rolla. A rapid transition from a 
 state of aimless expectancy to busy preparation commenced with 
 his arrival, pointing unmistakably to a speedy movement upon 
 
RECONNOITRING THE COUNTRY. 101 
 
 the enemy in force. The condition and wants of each regiment 
 with a. view to active service was enquired into, and all their 
 needs supplied. Arms were inspected and put in order, ordi 
 nance stores, provisions and transportation were accumulated in 
 lavish abundance. Everything of a superfluous character was 
 dispensed with, including the muster out of the Regimental 
 bands, a measure, considered by many, of doubtful utility. The 
 fine band of the 36th were thus sent home, and henceforth we 
 missed their splendid serenades, their musical entertainments, 
 and the enlivening influence diffused throughout the camps 
 through the stirring airs of martial bands. 
 
 A thorough reconnoissance of the country as far as Lebanon 
 wa,s resolved upon, and all the cavalry at Rolla, including Com 
 panies A and B of the 36th, was detailed for that purpose and 
 placed under the command of Col. Carr, of the 3rd Illinois Cav 
 alry. The expedition was to start at sunrise of the morning of 
 the 29th of December. The 36th was at the appointed rendez 
 vous on time, being the first to report for duty, and was assigned 
 to the batallioTi of Major Morse. Other detachments soon after 
 arrived, arid forming in line the command was reviewed by Gen. 
 Curtis, who looked every inch the soldier and high-toned gentle 
 man. Assuming a position in front of the line, he praised the 
 unusual fine appearance of the troops, and receiving the usual 
 salutations from officers, he gave the command. "By companies 
 Right Wheel March," and the expedition was on its way. The 
 sun shone brightly on the glistening sabres, the horses were fresh 
 and restless, trying the strength of their riders muscles in main 
 taining their position in the ranks. 
 
 On the second day the 36th Cavalry was detailed as rear guard, 
 a position always slow, tiresome and disagreeable, and on this 
 occasion made doublv so on account of bad roads and mules, 
 
102 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 many of which had never before been harnessed. The trains 
 were dragged with difficulty over hills and through almost bot 
 tomless ruts, into which the wagons plunged, many being cap 
 sized and broken, while mules were injured and some killed out 
 right. The third day from Rolla the command made better 
 progress, passing through Waynesville, crossing the Gasconade 
 and camping several miles beyond that stream. 
 
 Various rumors of the movement of rebel bands came to the 
 ears of Col. Carr, and he decided to fall back with the main 
 command to the Gasconade, but ordered Major Morse with his 
 batallion, including the 36th, to scout the country thoroughly. 
 A wide extent of country was visited, straggling bands of seces 
 sionists pursued, but none were overtaken. It rained the succeed 
 ing night, but froze a,s fast as it fell, covering their saddles, their 
 blankets and the earth with ice, while the men s clothing was 
 completely saturated. During the day, Capt. Lewis with another 
 detachment routed a band of fifty confederate soldiers, and cap 
 tured a herd of sixty cattle which was being driven to Price s 
 army. 
 
 From this time until the middle of January, when the main 
 army arrived from Rolla, the cavalry were engaged in scouting 
 the country, reconnoitring the enemy, now and then capturing 
 bands of secessionists who were making their way to Price, and 
 gaining information that was of infinite service in the sub 
 sequent advance of our army. The school was a severe one, 
 but much was gained in habituating the men to campaign life, 
 perfecting them in their profession of arms, and, in short, making 
 them cool and careful soldiers ; and though this advance was bar 
 ren of achievements at arms, it gave the men an insight into the 
 practical affairs of army life, and eminently fitted them for the 
 duties and trials of the succeeding campaign. 
 
MARCHING ORDERS RECEIVED. 103 
 
 To test the condition of the infantry and their military abili 
 ties, the regiment marched many miles over the country and 
 through the various camps, fully armed, with knapsacks filled, 
 and with all the accoutrements pertainfng to a first-class soldier 
 of the Republic. A day was thus spent in marching, and on 
 the return to camp the men were not entirely unanimous in 
 expressions of confidence in their ability to keep up the same 
 performance day after day, when, in addition to their gun and 
 ammunition, they should be burdened with an amount of dry 
 goods and soldiers gear sufficient to stall a pack mule or burden 
 an elephant. 
 
 On the 14th of January marching orders were received. The 
 keen, frosty air and cutting wind sweeping down from the north 
 caused a chill, in contemplation of the weather they were to 
 encounter, and the discomforts attendant upon a cold winter s 
 march; but did not abate a whit of the enthusiasm with which 
 the order to " Fall in Men " was received and welcomed 
 Tents were struck in a trice and packed in the wagons, together 
 with other stores. The mass of rubbish which had accumulated 
 in camp during the long stay at Holla was fearful to contemplate. 
 Every man was burdened with old letters, keepsakes, trinkets, 
 curiosities, extra clothing, blankets, etc., in number and amount 
 sufficient to set up an " ole clo " dealer in business. After pack 
 ing as many of these as the knapsacks would possibly hold, an 
 indiscriminate destruction of the remainder ensued. Letters 
 which had extracted a million pleasant emotions, or solaced many 
 a lonely, homesick hour and others over which tears had 
 been shed, were ruthlessly cast into the fire and the cherished 
 writings of many a Jerusha, Julia and Mary Ann helped to swell 
 the wreaths of flame from huge bon-fires, their names and mem 
 ories all forgotten in the hurry, the bustle and excitement of prepa 
 ration for the march. Two o clock came ere tents and baggage 
 
104 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 were disposed of and the column formed and headed " Dixieward." 
 A march of five miles was made, when a halt was ordered, the 
 camp formed, tents pitched in the snow, and cold and supperless 
 (for the provision wagons had not come up), the men retired to 
 sleep off the excitement and fatigue of the day. 
 
 The correspondent of the St. Louis Democrat, in his observa 
 tions on this occasion, which were published in the issue of the 
 16th, contained the following notice of the march of the troops 
 from Holla : 
 
 "A Brigade composed of four Regiments of Infantry and two 
 " batteries under the command of General Osterhaus have moved 
 <fc west from this place. The troops were in excellent spirits and 
 " were as follows : The 36th, 35th and 44th Illinois and the 25th 
 " Missouri. The splendid appearance of the 36th Illinois, twelve 
 u hundred strong, in their march out of town received the unqual 
 ified and unanimous admiration of the spectators." 
 
 This was not an unmerited compliment. The 36th at that 
 time, in discipline, in perfection of drill, soldiery bearing and in 
 all the essentials which enter into the make up of a superior com 
 mand, was not equaled by any other regiment or body of men in 
 the Army of the Southwest, and we shall see that at a subsequent 
 period they maintained the same splendid character as fighters 
 that they did as gentlemen and soldiers. 
 
 Reveille was sounded at four o clock in the morning and after 
 a scanty breakfast of bacon and hard tack the march was resumed 
 down the valley of Beaver and Little Piney creeks, which were 
 forded thirteen times during the day. Fifteen miles were accom 
 plished, when the command halted where former camps had 
 existed, from the debris of which, boards and other materials suf 
 ficient to keep them from the frozen ground while sleeping were 
 collected, and by the light and warmth of blazing camp-fires they 
 passed the night in comparative comfort. 
 
DISPOSAL OF BAGGAGE ON THE MARCH. 105 
 
 The third and fourth days out from Holla the weather moder 
 ated somewhat, and frost and snow gave way to mud, thin, sticky, 
 Missouri mud, through which the men splashed and plunged, as 
 jovial as ducks in a thunder shower, and with little anxiety about 
 avoiding it. The first plunge settled the matter, and after their 
 feet were once thoroughly wet they traversed the road regardless 
 of mud for the rest of the day, out of which they came looking 
 more like statues " done in clay " than human beings. High, 
 steep hills were encountered, over which the long blue line of men 
 curved, waved and threaded their slow and toilsome way. Heavier 
 and heavier weighed the knapsacks and accoutrements, more and 
 more tedious the marching, and more frequent the halts. These 
 halts were usually for the adjustment and lightening of knapsacks, 
 and many were the articles, sometimes of intrinsic value, which 
 strewed the wayside. Packages of letters, over which the pos 
 sessor would shed a tear or two, and then with many compunc 
 tions of conscience cast away ; extra shirts and half worn-out 
 apparel marked the line of march for miles, presenting an appear 
 ance calculated to awaken an impression among those who should 
 follow after, that the army was fleeing from the wrath to come, 
 rather than wading on to glory. Thus lightened of their bur 
 dens, the men manifested their sense of relief by mirth and song, 
 where before was heard the growl of discomfort. Anon came 
 
 the voice of singing : 
 
 " John Brown s body lies a mouldering in the grave," 
 
 wafted on the air from a choir of marching singers. Thus hour 
 after hour they plodded on, through a rough and heavily timbered 
 country, with scarcely a single evidence of cultivation until they 
 reached the Big Piney. 
 
 The winter storms had raised this rapidly flowing stream so 
 high as to render fording difficult and dangerous. A bridge of 
 
106 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 wagons was constructed, over which the infantry passed dry 
 shod, while the cavalry plunged through the cold, seething water, 
 which reached their horses bodies. Reaching their bivouac for 
 the night, arms were stacked, the men went blithely to work gath 
 ering boughs and leaves for a couch, camp fires were lighted, and 
 the evening meal was in process of cooking when the sun looked 
 down a good-night glance at parting ; and then sleep was the order 
 of the night, which we may well suppose was made a business of. 
 
 Waynesville was reached on the 17th, and the regiment encamped 
 near the Big Spring, where the waters of the Roubidoux come 
 welling up from deep cavities in the rock at the rate of many 
 hundred barrels per minute, sufficient at least, if properly 
 improved, to supply valuable mill sites, and furnish water pow 
 er for manufacturing purposes generally. The waters are clear, 
 cold and limpid, and have their source far up in Texas County, 
 where, after being gathered in a large stream, finally are lost 
 in sink-holes and subterranean caverns, and after meandering 
 for miles through dark, unknown passages, again break forth 
 to the day through rocky crevices, forming this immense spring. 
 
 Here the command remained in camp four days, during which 
 time the men limbered up their joints, healed the great blisters 
 on their feet, and in the meantime grew as impatient of the ennui 
 of resting as they were on their arrival of the fatigue of marching. 
 
 There was not an over supply of army stores brought along 
 with the command, but the soldiers, by methods soon acquired 
 and practised by all, managed to supply their commissariat by 
 other ways than the mode prescribed by the United States Army 
 Regulations. In their perambulations about the country, chick 
 ens often mysteriously found their way into haversacks ; and 
 wo to the inconsiderate sheep, calf or porker who disported him 
 self wi thin rifle range ! Of course, when discovered, the experienced 
 
MUTTON AND VEAL IN CAMP. 107 
 
 soldier is never at a loss for excuses, some of which are as droll as 
 they are impossible. 
 
 A private, for example, is seen skulking through the brush on 
 his way to camp, with a gun on one shoulder and a slaughtered 
 sheep on the other. Being detected and obliged to account for 
 so unmilitary an accoutrement, with as demure a countenance as 
 he would assume at the funeral of a friend, he protests his inno 
 cence of any intentional wrong ; that he was compelled to kill 
 the sheep in self defence; that having had permission to leave 
 camp "just to fill his canteen," he was met by this pugilistic sheep, 
 who, on seeing his federal uniform, charged upon him in great 
 fury, and as one or the other had to die, he concluded it might 
 just as well be the sheep ; so very reluctantly he was compelled 
 to shoot it. The absurdity of his plea very often enables him to 
 get off without punishment, and proceeding to his quarters he 
 divides his plunder among his comrades and feasts upon delicious 
 mutton at the noon-day meal or at the evening camp-fire. 
 
 It was while encamped at Waynesville that privates Cornell and 
 Dyer, from Company E, were caught, by the enraged owner 
 thereof, in the act of skinning a fat yearling. The boys were 
 quite willing to pay almost any price for the animal to get out of 
 the predicament in which they found themselves, but an examina 
 tion of their pocket-books revealed the unpleasant fact that they 
 had only about half enough money between them to satisfy the 
 rapacious demand of the owner. The provost guard was called, 
 and they were marched with lugubrious countenances and with 
 fear and trembling, into the presence of the Colonel, to whom 
 the enormity of their offence was stated. The Colonel appeased 
 the citizen s wrath by assuring him that the pay-master was 
 expected in a day or two, that when the boys had drawn their 
 pay he should be fully recompensed for his calf. But unfortu- 
 
108 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 nately for the owner of flocks and herds, the pay-master did not 
 arrive when expected and sudden marching orders rendered it 
 impossible to satisfy the indebtedness. 
 
 The march was resumed, the Gasconade crossed as was the 
 Big Piney, on a bridge of army wagons, and after a weary march 
 over rough, muddy roads, the command reached Lebanon on the 
 24th of January. The 36th marched directly through the pleas 
 antly situated town and encamped on the edge of a prairie a mile 
 beyond. 
 
 Meanwhile troops were converging from all points to Lebanon, 
 and every day witnessed the arrival of some fresh command. Gen. 
 Jeff. C. Davis, with a division from Sedalia, composed mostly of 
 Indiana and Ohio troops, marched by way of Linn Creek and 
 reached Lebanon on the fourth of February ; Generals Sigel and 
 Asboth arrived from Holla with their divisions on the 6th, leaving 
 that Post denuded of troops, except the 13th Illinois. Col. Van- 
 devere with his splendid regiment, the 9th Iowa, soon after 
 arrived, raising the number of the forces collected there to some 
 fifteen thousand men, enough to transform the quiet, sleepy town 
 into a busy, thriving city. 
 
 On the arrival of Gen. Curtis, the work of organizing the army 
 into Divisions, the assignment of officers to the command of each, 
 and the detailing of subordinates for staff duty, was proceeded with, 
 and order was evoked from the seeming confusion of military 
 commands and priority of rank. Realizing that before offensive 
 operations could be attempted with an assurance of success, every 
 arm of the service should be made as efficient as it were worthy, the 
 splendid material of which the army was composed was classified, 
 the position and duties of each defined, and the places so allotted 
 that the glories as well as the hardships of future campaigns 
 should be borne and shared alike. 
 
ORGANIZING INTO DIVISIONS. 109 
 
 The First Division was made up of the 36th, the 25th and 44th 
 Illinois, the 3d, 12th and 17th Missouri, two battalions of the 
 Benton Hussars (cavalry), two companies of the 36th cavalry, the 
 4th Missouri Cavalry, Welfley and Hoffman s Batteries, of six 
 guns each, under the command of Brig. Gen. (then Colonel) 
 Osterhaus. 
 
 The Second Division was composed of the 2d and 15th Mis 
 souri Infantry, the 6th and a batallion of the 4th Missouri Cav 
 alry, and two batteries of six guns each, under the command of 
 Brig. Gen. Asboth. 
 
 The Third Division, under the command of Col. Jeff. C. Davis, 
 was composed of the 8th, 18th and 22d Indiana, the 37th Illi 
 nois and 9th Missouri Infantry, the 1st Missouri Cavalry, and 
 two batteries, one of four and another of six guns. 
 
 The Fourth Division, composed of the 4th and 9th Iowa ; 
 35th Illinois and 25th Missouri Infantry ; the 3d Iowa and 3d 
 Illinois Cavalry ; two batteries of six guns each and one of four 
 guns Bowen s batallion of cavalry on escort duty was also 
 attached to this Division under the command of Col. Carr. 
 
 The second Brigade of the first Division was composed of the 
 36th Illinois, the 12th and 17th Missouri Infantry and Welfley s 
 Battery, commanded by Col, Greusel, of the 36th. 
 
 Gen. Sigel was second in command, and the First and Second 
 Divisions were particularly under his charge. Only a few of 
 the regiments were full ; large numbers of sick, and details were 
 left at the various posts where they had been formerly stationed 
 for garrison duty, and to guard the long line of communication 
 from Rolla. 
 
 We were now in such close proximity to the enemy s lines that 
 collisions between, the cavalry patrols of either army were of 
 frequent occurence. The head quarters of Gen. Price was at 
 
110 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Springfield, fifty-five miles distant, to which place bands of 
 recruits and detachments of irregular commands were rallying 
 in such force as to induce Gen. Curtis to believe that his inten 
 tion was to hold his position and offer battle there. Springfield 
 is situated in the midst of a superior agricultural district, and 
 by retaining his position there during the fall and winter, he 
 had obtained abundant supplies from the granaries of the coun 
 try, had gained a good supply of clothing for his troops, and 
 been re inforced by five thousand fresh recruits from various por 
 tions of the State. 
 
 After the organization of the army and assignment of each 
 regiment and command to its own proper division and brigade, 
 the reviews and drills were frequent, that movements might be 
 accomplished with the least possible amount of friction and to 
 accustom officers to handle large bodies of men to advantage. 
 The weather was as variable as the capricious temper of a luna 
 tic, from heat to cold, rain to snow, but always with more or less 
 mud. 
 
 On the 9th, the regiments were paid, the money lightening 
 rather than adding additional burdens, and imparting a spirit of 
 cheerfulness calculated to sustain them through the trials of the 
 coining campaign. All were ready to move at the word of com 
 mand, which came soon thereafter, and daylight on the 10th of 
 February found the column in motion, the men of the 36th leav 
 ing camp with a shout and on the double quick. Beyond Leb 
 anon the country was less broken, but previous rains had saturated 
 the ground, and in two hours the deep cut roads became quag 
 mires through which artillery arid wagon trains were with diffi 
 culty dragged, rendering marching for the foot soldiers anything 
 but the agreeable pastime imagination had fondly pictured. The 
 crooked roads of the country winding among the woods and hills 
 
REBELS ENCOUNTERED AND DISPERSED. Ill 
 
 were crowded with troops and heavily loaded trains, which in 
 the half fluid condition in which they were found necessitated 
 frequent halts. These halts were not bona fide rests, wherein a 
 soldier could take his ease and unsling his knapsack for a given 
 period; but uncertain stoppages, which might last three minutes 
 or half an hour, and kept every one in a state of expectant 
 preparation. Still the consciousness of marching against the 
 enemy, who at any time might be encountered, was a solace for 
 all the discomforts of the march, and, under the most adverse 
 circumstances, the men were always jolly. 
 
 Rebel videttes, like shadowy apparitions flitting through the 
 woods, were first seen at Marshfield, but no opposition was made 
 to our advance, and few if any shots were exchanged. Some of 
 the German troops fired the vacant houses in the outskirts of 
 the town, which were consumed. Stringent orders were issued 
 against a repetition of such vandalism, and during the remainder 
 of the pursuit the way was not marked by the smoke of burning- 
 buildings by day or lighted by incendiary fires at night. 
 
 In the evening, rebel pickets in strong force were encountered 
 at Pierson s Greek, within ten miles of Springfield, and a lively 
 firing with our advance maintained. The troops were drawn up 
 in line of battle, the light mountain howitzers sent to the front, 
 and soon the gloom of the twilight hour was illuminated by the 
 light of blazing shells winging their weird flight through the air. 
 Carefully the line of infantry advanced, guided through the som 
 bre shades of evening by the flash of guns and the music of light 
 artillery ; but before the supports could be brought up to render 
 efficient aid, a brilliant cavalry charge had scattered the opposing 
 forces and sent them in hurried flight towards Springfield, leav 
 ing a few of their dead and dying and a number of prisoners in 
 our hands. To effect the charge a high intervening rail fence 
 
112 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 was removed in the teeth of the enemy s fire, and then with a 
 wild hurrah, after them went our boys, through the fields, accom 
 panied with the music of carbines and the rattle of sabres, until 
 the last rebel horseman had vanished in the gathering twilight. 
 
 The army lay upon its arms, without blankets or shelter of 
 any kind, and shivered the long night through. The firing was 
 heard at Springfield, and when the bleeding, panting fugitives 
 from Pearson s Creek arrived, the enemy was filled with alarm. 
 Price, knowing his position to be untenable, at 9 o clock p. M. 
 gave the order for retreat. He had remained until the last 
 moment, expecting reinforcements from Ben. McCulloch s army 
 in Arkansas, but not receiving that support he abandoned all 
 hope of successful resistance and hurriedly fled towards Arkan 
 sas, leaving Springfield in the night. 
 
 Before daylight of the 13th our army resumed its march in 
 line of battle, Companies A and B of the 86th thrown well for 
 ward as skirmishers, the cavalry in rear of infantry. Batteries 
 were in readiness, at the first note of conflict, to mingle in the 
 fray and hurl their screaming shells upon the ranks of the enemy. 
 Reaching the prairie the whole vast line was deployed, and 
 moved in battle array toward Springfield. At sight of this the rear 
 guard of the enemy disappeared in the direction of Wilson s 
 Creek, their leave-taking being more hurried than formal. Soon 
 the stars and stripes Avere floating in triumph from the dome of 
 the Court House, no more to be taken thence until the last armed 
 foe had surrendered, the sun of peace gilded the whole land, and 
 lighted the return of our armies from fields of glory. 
 
 That the enemy s departure was hurried was evidenced by the 
 large quantity of stores and camp equipage abandoned by them, 
 and which fell into our hands ; as well as from the fact that over 
 six hundred of their sick were left in hospital. During this and 
 
HAZARDOUS CAVALRY SERVICE. US 
 
 the succeeding day, squads of confederates on their way to join 
 the command of Price, and ignorant of the occupation of Spring 
 field, unwittingly fell into our hands to the number of 400 men, 
 including Brig. Gen. Edward Price, the son of the confederate 
 commander, and Col. Freeman, the indefatigable partizan who 
 had rendered it so lively for our scouts and pickets about Rolla 
 during the previous months. 
 
 The service performed by the cavalry in scouting, escort, 
 picket and other duties during this campaign was severe, and 
 at times extra hazardous. Being almost constantly in the sad 
 dle, men as well as horses were pretty much used up. Particu 
 larly was this the case in the advance upon Springfield, and sub 
 sequent pursuit of the enemy into Arkansas. The cavalry of 
 the 36th shared in all the dangers, hardships and fatigue of the 
 campaign; it was the first to enter Springfield and hurry the 
 exit of the vanishing rear-guard of Price s undisciplined and 
 ragged knights of the shot-gun and chapparel. For a life of 
 wild adventure, for examples of fortitude and endurance in storm 
 or in sunshine, commend us to the cavalry arm of military 
 service. 
 
 A little nocturnal adventure of Sergt. F. 0. White, of Com 
 pany A, with a squad of eight men, detailed from Companies A 
 and B, might very appropriately be related here, to illustrate the 
 miscellaneous, hap-hazard, night and day, duty which the cavalry 
 were liable at any time to be called upon to perform. News was 
 wanted at Springfield as to the position of Jeff. C. Davis s divis 
 ion, and what (if anything) was going on in front. Sergt. White 
 was selected to head the detail in search of the desired informa 
 tion. Though nearly worn out with cold and fatigue, the men 
 turned out uncomplainingly and faced the keen northwestern 
 blast. The moon shone brightly, but the ground was white with 
 
114 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 snow and the night intensely cold. Davis s camp was off the 
 main road and was missed by the Sergeant, who proceeded eight 
 or nine miles and came up with a detachment of the 3d Illinois 
 Cavalry in the extreme advance, which had struck the enemy s 
 rear, and after a lively skirmish, captured a number of prisoners 
 and wagons belonging to the rebel commissary train, and then 
 halted to await daylight before continuing the pursuit. The 
 desired information having been obtained, Sergt. White returned 
 to within a few miles of Springfield, and, in accordance with orders, 
 established a picket post near a cabin, where those oft duty found 
 shelter and rest; private Ingham meanwhile being sent to 
 Springfield with such news as had been gained. 
 
 Towards morning a vidette came hurriedly in and whispered 
 that u a detachment of secesh were in the hollow not far away." 
 An examination revealed a body of twenty-five horsemen, deployed 
 as skirmishers, coming directly towards the house where the 
 squad had been comfortably quartered. The horses were quickly 
 mounted and then three of the men dashed out of the yard and 
 broke for Springfield at a rate of speed which it was supposed 
 their nearly fagged out steeds could never attain, followed by a 
 scattered volley from the now fast approaching squadron. Escape 
 being impracticable, Sergt. White formed the remainder of his 
 squad for battle, determined, that if necessary, a fight should pre 
 cede a foot-race. The squadron proved to be federal troopers, 
 instead of mounted "graybacks," and those who were in chase 
 of the three flying 36th boys were, after considerable exertion, 
 recalled. One, a Dutchman, strongly insisted upon following 
 up the adventure to the point of blood-letting, saying : " Vhy 
 dhey no sthops ven I say hollit ?" The detachment was from 
 the 3d Illinois Cavalry ; one of their number had been shot while 
 on picket, and these were looking for the assassins, but in their 
 
ON THE MARCH IN EARNEST. 115 
 
 search came near massacring the squad from the 36th. A hard 
 ride was necessary to reach Springfield in time to prevent the 
 three fugitives from spreading a needless alarm through the 
 camp. 
 
 No halt, except for a night encampment, was made at 
 Springfield, and on the 14th the pursuit of Price com 
 menced. Colonel Carr, with the cavalry, supported by a 
 section of light howitzers packed upon the backs of mules, 
 which when wanted could be taken from the pack-saddles and 
 placed in battery as readily and in as short a period of time as 
 an ordinary field battery could be unlimbered and set to work, 
 followed down the telegraph road directly in the enemy s rear; 
 while the Second Brigade, including the 36th Illinois, together 
 with the Divisions of Osterhaus and Asboth, under the command 
 of Gen. Sigel, took the right hand road over a rolling prairie 
 country via Little York. The direct road to Fayetteville, over 
 which the main command advanced, led through a more broken 
 and timbered region. 
 
 Slowly and cautiously the column pressed its way, expecting 
 at any moment to encounter the enemy occupying in force some 
 strong position, and prepared to dispute our further progress. 
 But no hostile force was seen, only stragglers and recruits com 
 ing in to swell the ranks of the now rapidly flying foe, many of 
 whom fell into our hands, and were passed under guard to the 
 rear. It became evident that Price would no longer dispute our 
 progress by making a stand in force for battle. The pursuit on 
 the 16th was rapid, the infantry marching thirty miles and over 
 taking the enemy s rear at Crane Creek, where, in considerable 
 numbers, they endeavored to delay our advance and gain time 
 for their main force to get away. 
 
116 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 It had been Gen. Curtis design not to press the enemy too 
 closely and hurry his flight, but to enable Sigel to pass his right, 
 and gaining the front to cut oft further retreat southward. But 
 Col. Ellis, who led the advance with cavalry, either mistaking, 
 or ignorant of the plans of his commander, commenced a spirited 
 engagement. The howitzers were unpacked and mounted, and 
 shot after shot plunged into the rebel rear, creating considerable 
 disorder ; seeing which Col. Ellis ordered a charge, and the 
 wavering rebels were sent whirling in rapid retreat towards Cass- 
 ville. About a dozen were killed and large numbers of prison 
 ers taken. 
 
 The want of forethought and the inordinate haste of Col. 
 Ellis quickened the enemy s march, and thwarted Sigel in his 
 design of getting past and cutting off Price s retreat. From 
 thence the road over which they passed was strewn with arms, 
 clothing, accoutrements and broken down wagons, which, in the 
 hurry and confusion, were cast away to facilitate escape. The 
 36th, with the division to which it was attached, marched thirty 
 miles that day, testing to the utmost the endurance of the men, 
 whose spirits were buoyed up by the inspiring boom of howitzers 
 firing into the enemy s rear and hurrying their precipitate 
 retreat. 
 
 At Flat Creek the cavalry and howitzers again bore down 
 heavily upon the retreating column. A few loud words in the 
 form of cannon shot were exchanged between the contending 
 parties in this interesting foot race, and again the enemy broke 
 and fled before the impetuous charges of the federal cavalry. 
 Then the swelling tide of war continued to roll down the valley 
 of Flat Creek, through the towns of Cassville and Keitsville, 
 into and through the narrow gorge of Cross Timbers Hollow, out 
 of Missouri into Arkansas, a continuous stream of men and 
 
IN PURSUIT OF PRICE. 117 
 
 horses, of pursuers and pursued, the advance of the one min 
 gling with the rear of the other in fierce and maddening conflict. 
 The long line of pursuers, heralded by the music of cannon and 
 carbine in exultant triumph, while broken down wagons, worn 
 out horses, saddles, arms, with now and then the pale faces of 
 the dead, marked the line of confederate retreat. Thus onward 
 surged the battle, met by a counter current of prisoners sent to 
 the rear. These, worn out and dejected, contrasted strangely 
 with our victorious troops, with flashing eyes and countenances 
 expressive of the enthusiasm which animated them. 
 
 While on the march in pursuit of Price down the " Telegraph 
 road," the main column passed through the little town of Cass- 
 ville. Some of the passing throng broke into a drug store and 
 appropriated such of its contents as their needs or inclinations 
 suggested. One of the Sergeants of Company A Cavalry, dis 
 covered a package of white powder, which he conceived to be 
 saleratus, and at once confiscated it for the use of the Sergeant s 
 mess. Not being quite sure of the chemical properties of his 
 plunder, he submitted the stuff to comrade Judd who had at 
 one time officiated as a druggist s clerk for his opinion. Judd 
 pronounced it "saleratus, and no mistake." That night the 
 cavalry companies encamped on a hill near Sugar Creek, and 
 though tired, were jubilant over the prospect of raised cakes 
 for supper, in place of the usual cold water " slap jacks." The 
 fires were soon fiercely blazing, the cakes mixed, and a liberal 
 quantity of "saleratus" sprinkled in. 
 
 It was fun to cook pan-cakes in the army : A little flour, salt 
 and water, a good fire, a long handled skillet, a little grease, and 
 one is ready for business. Warm the pan, pour in the grease, 
 douse in the dough, let it sizzle a while, then give it a shake, a 
 
118 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 twitch and a flop, and over it goes, just as easy as falling off a 
 log if one only knows how. 
 
 On this occasion the cakes were soon cooked, and the large- 
 hearted, generous Sergeants of Company A cheerfully shared 
 their good fortune with Lieuts. Sherer, Ferre and Reynolds, who 
 composed the officers mess. That was a delightful repast, 
 heartily eaten and praised by nearly all. One or two of the 
 boys, however, remarked the cakes did not appear much lighter 
 than those made without saleratus. Supper over, the men com 
 posing the mess stood around the camp fire talking over the 
 events of the day and prospects of the morrow, satisfied with 
 their surroundings, and even jolly. In a few moments there was 
 a lull in the conversation, the boys were less blithesome and 
 more uncomfortable than usual; a deathly pallor was observed in 
 the faces of some, which but a moment before were wreathed in 
 smiles. Sergeant Snow was seen retreating into the woods, and 
 Sergeant White stole silently away in another direction, followed 
 soon after by Collins, Dynan. Sherer and the balance, and such 
 another entertainment, consisting entirely of vomiting, was sel 
 dom ever gotten up on short notice. Oh, the k hee-ups" and 
 "hoo-ups," the tears and groans of that sick crowd will very 
 likely never be forgotten. It was the event of the campaign in 
 the line of gastronomic achievements. It was good bye to sup 
 per and to much of the inner mechanism of the mortal corpor- 
 osity. After a time u the show," like all things else, had an 
 end, and when the performers were restored to their usual equa 
 nimity, the question was anxiously asked, " What made those 
 cakes rise at that particular time? and what made them rise so 
 high ? Could it be the saleratus ? and if so, why ?" A quantity 
 of the material was taken to Surgeon Young for examination, 
 who kindly informed the boys they had been raising their cakes 
 
FIGHT AT SUGAR CREEK. 119 
 
 with tartar emetic! Ever after Sergt. Judd was known in his 
 Company as, "The Apothecary." 
 
 On the 17th our advance reached Sugar Creek and found the 
 enemy in a strong position and in battle array crowning the 
 bluffs on the south side of the valley. Price, being strengthened 
 by reinforcements from Ben. McCulloch s army, determined to 
 make a stand here, and endeavor to stem the tide which had 
 swept him on its tumultuous waves out of Missouri. When, 
 therefore, late in the afternoon, the head of the pursuing column 
 struck his rear-guard, instead of a promiscuous throng of terror 
 stricken fugitives, they found a well appointed army in battle 
 array, supported by batteries of artillery, with solid ranks in 
 readiness to give a warm reception to any who should venture 
 across the valley with hostile intent. Batteries were brought up, 
 and from favorable positions on the northern hills opened upon 
 the opposing force with shell, which went wailing over the valley 
 into the thickening ranks which blocked the way, prepared to 
 dispute our further progress. For an hour brisk cannonading 
 was maintained and as fiercely returned ; shot answering shot, 
 with no signs of break or waver in the opposing ranks. A 
 charge was finally ordered, and Col. Ellis, with detachments 
 from the Missouri cavalry regiments and from the Third Illinois, 
 dashed across the creek and up the opposite slopes in the face of 
 a rattling fire of musketry, charging right into the midst of their 
 thronging ranks. Had a meteor fallen among them they could 
 not have been more thoroughly stai tied. Still they fought bravely, 
 contesting the ground inch by inch, teaching their fierce assail 
 ants that there were blows to give as well as to receive. Saddles 
 were emptied, and the dead and wounded of both assailants and 
 assailed lay commingled and scattered over the blood besprinkled 
 field. But there was no resisting the impetuous charges of our 
 
120 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 gallant troopers when once their blood was up, and with carbine 
 and sabre they dealt destruction to the now demoralized and dis 
 heartened foe. Their ranks were broken, their artillery in dan 
 ger of being captured, when they hurriedly left the field in a wild, 
 tumultuous scamper for Cross Hollow, twelve miles away, where 
 McCulloch, with fresh troops, prepared for a renewal of the 
 conflict. Our losses in this engagement were fourteen men 
 killed, nine wounded, and forty-six horses. Among the wounded 
 were Major Bo wen, Major McKinney, of Gen. Curtis staff, and 
 Captain Switzler, while fifty-three confederate dead or mortally 
 wounded were left upon the field. 
 
 These rapid movements had left the infantry far in the rear, 
 and this engagement, amounting to little more than a lively skir 
 mish, was participated in only by the cavalry and light howitzer 
 battery. The cannonading was, however, heard distinctly, and 
 for a time diverted the attention of the infantry from their weary, 
 aching limbs and added a fresh glow to their animated counte 
 nances. Nothing but the excitement and expectancy of battle 
 could sustain them in this hurried and fatiguing march. The 
 roar of cannon to the front would at any time arouse their droop 
 ing spirits and quicken their lagging pace, as they pressed for 
 ward to the combat momentarily expected and eagerly hoped for. 
 
 In this long, fatiguing race through Missouri, the baggage arid 
 provision trains were left far in the rear, and with starvation 
 now menacing his exhausted command, Gen. Curtis found him 
 self reduced to the necessity of discontinuing the pursuit. 
 Accordingly Davis Division went into camp at Sugar Creek, 
 while the Division of Carr proceeded to Cross Hollow. The 
 long, slender line of communication with Holla, liable at any 
 time to be broken, necessitated heavy details for its protection. 
 At frequent intervals stations were established and garrisons 
 
SUBSISTING ON THE COUNTRY. 121 
 
 left to hold and occupy the country. Supplies being nearly 
 exhausted, subsisting off the country became a matter of nec 
 essity, which in a thinly populated region rendered this a rather 
 doubtful resource. Foraging expeditions rapidly gathered the 
 grain stored in the granaries ; mills were set to grinding it. A 
 wide range of country was occupied, extending from the War 
 Eagle Mills on White River west to beyond Bentonville, pre 
 senting a front of sixty miles in extent, which, unless sufficient 
 previous notice was given to afford time for rapid concentration, 
 was liable at any time to be penetrated and broken. 
 
 Our cavalry advanced to Fayetteville, arid found the town a 
 mass of smoking ruins burned by the orders of Ben. McCul- 
 loch, one of the confederate generals. Fayetteville had been the 
 last stronghold of the opponents of secession in Arkansas. 
 When South Carolina seceded, the act was nowhere more severely 
 reprobated than in north-western Arkansas. From first to last 
 a majority of the citizens had steadily and persistently opposed 
 secession. Their opposition to the insane measures of Southern 
 leaders was so pronounced as to excite McCulloch s fiercest indig 
 nation, and on his way northward to re-inforce Price, he declared 
 that, should he be compelled to return, he would burn as he 
 went. He kept faith with his threat. After their discomfiture 
 at Sugar Creek, and as the whole confederate army was retreat 
 ing precipitately through the town to the Boston Mountains, the 
 Arkansas College, the Fayetteville Female Seminary, a large 
 steam flouring mill, four brick warehouses, the Court House and 
 numerous private residences, were fired and sacrificed to his rage. 
 North-western Arkansas will long remember the irascible Texan, 
 not for the brilliancy of his genius, but for the brightness of his 
 fires. 
 
 Gen. Curtis, with Carr s Division, established his headquar 
 ters at Cross Hollow on the 22nd, within eighteen miles of Fay- 
 
122 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 etteville, from which position he watched his rapidly accumulat 
 ing enemy, prepared to strike such blows as opportunities might 
 offer or circumstances justify. This position in itself was natur 
 ally strong, and offered peculiar facilities for defence against a 
 direct attack ; but it could be easily turned, and in such case 
 would be practically worthless. 
 
 Jeff. C. Davis remained at Sugar Creek in charge of the 
 remaining stores and army transportation. To that point the 
 trains came with such stores as could be hauled over the long 
 road from Rolla. Col. Vandevere, with the 9th Iowa and a 
 detachment of cavalry, proceeded to the War Eagle Mills, situ 
 ated on White River, forty -two miles east of Sugar Creek. These 
 mills were run night and day in the manufacture of flour for the 
 use of the army. 
 
 Sigel, with the Divisions of Asboth and Osterhaus, encamped 
 first at Osage Springs, near Cross Hollow, and subsequently at 
 McKissock s farm, four miles west of Bentonville, subsistence in 
 a great measure being obtained from the granaries and corn cribs 
 found in the country. 
 
 While the troops were thus eking out a precarious existence, 
 " living off the country " on scanty gleanings from fields where 
 Price and McCulloch had previously reaped an ample harvest, an 
 important seizure of confederate flour and salt was effected by 
 Corporal Bennett, of Company E of the 36th, at Neutonia, in 
 Missouri. He had been on duty in the topographical o-ffice at 
 Department Headquarters, and was not relieved and allowed to 
 proceed to the regiment until it was far on its way to Arkansas. 
 Hastening through Missouri to join his command, he was 
 requested by Lieut. Col. Holland, commanding the post at Cass- 
 ville, to lead a party to Neutonia to capture stores, which Price, 
 in his inordinate haste, had allowed to remain under the watch 
 ful surveillance of sympathizing citizens. Detachments from the 
 
CAPTURE OF FLOUR AND SALT. 123 
 
 garrison at Cassville were scattered over the country guarding 
 mills and points which were of interest to hold, until there was 
 not a commissioned officer or a dozen men remaining for duty at 
 the post, and no one whatever with whom he could entrust such 
 an undertaking. 
 
 Private Edwards, of Company D, also on his way to join the com 
 mand, was induced to accompany the expedition, which, with a 
 squad of a dozen "Home Guards," constituted the escort for the 
 train of ten wagons, which reached Neutonia in one day from 
 Cassville, a distance of forty miles. These wagons with eleven 
 others pressed from citizens, were loaded with flour and salt, 
 amounting to more than thirty tons, and in two days thereafter 
 the whole was brought in safety to Cassville. This helped mate 
 rially to relieve the pressing needs of the army. 
 
 It now became apparent that the rumors which for some days 
 had been afloat in the air, that we were environed with swarms 
 of mounted confederates, who secretly ranged the country to pick 
 up stragglers, attack unsupported detachments and watch the 
 movements of the federal army, were strictly true. 
 
 A mounted Texan regiment, eluding the vigilance of patrols, 
 gained the rear of our army, and on the night of the 25th of 
 February attacked the post at Keitsville, which was garrisoned 
 by a squadron of the 1st Missouri Cavalry under the command 
 of Capt. Montgomery. It was a complete surprise. But one or 
 two pickets were out, and they were stationed at points too far 
 distant to give the alarm. The first intimation of the presence 
 of a hostile force in their midst, was the loud report of musketry 
 and the crash of balls, as volley after volley was poured into the 
 buildings among the sleeping men. A half dozen were killed 
 and a number wounded at the first discharge. The men, thus 
 suddenly aroused from their slumbers, hastily seized their arms, 
 
124 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and, without waiting to clothe themselves, returned the enemy s 
 fire. The night was dark, and the position of the contending 
 parties could be determined only by the flash of fire arms. 
 Montgomery, finding the avenues of escape cut off, fought bravely 
 and with telling effect, and a number of the Texans were made 
 to bite the dust. The first panic over, the troopers, from sheltered 
 positions within the buildings, saluted the enemy with so galling 
 a fire that they finally withdrew, taking with them seventy of 
 Montgomery s horses. 
 
 His command was badly demoralized, and as soon as the enemy 
 departed and the way was clear, those who had horses hastily 
 mounted them and made all speed for safer quarters ; others, 
 trusting to the agility of the natural man, made their way on 
 foot. All night long the panting fugitives came trooping into 
 Cassville, singly or by twos, without hats or coats and many 
 without shoes. A commissary train on its way to Sugar Creek 
 was encamped for the night within a mile of Keitsville. They 
 were aroused by the heavy discharges of musketry, and hastily 
 harnessing their teams to the wagons, went thundering over the 
 rocky road to Cassville. 
 
 Couriers and squads of troops passing to and from the differ 
 ent posts were often waylaid and fired upon from the brush. The 
 whole country in the rear of the federal army was filled with 
 roving bands of reckless men, so that communication with those 
 places occupied by troops was what insurance brokers would deem 
 "extra hazardous." 
 
 An artillery man was captured by Texan Rangers in the imme 
 diate vicinity of a picket station, and almost within the confines 
 of camp. No patrol or movement of troops could be made with 
 out coming in sight of, and sometimes in contact with, these roving 
 knights of the shot gun, dressed in a garb that vied with the soil 
 
RETRIBUTION AT BENTONVILLE. 125 
 
 in color. The business of dispersing these well nigh ubiquitous 
 denizens of the woods mainly devolved upon the cavalry, but 
 from their imperfect knowledge of the country they seldom met 
 with success. 
 
 Prior to these events, a portion of the town of Bentonville, 
 the county seat of Benton County, Arkansas, was burned by a 
 detachment of the Benton Hussars. The town had frequently 
 been visited by troops, both of cavalry and infantry, and a part 
 of the time occupied as a post. Apparently a kindly feeling- 
 existed between the citizens and soldiers, and intercourse between 
 them was uninterrupted. Their property was protected from 
 injury, their persons from violence and insult, and nothing for 
 some time occurred that betrayed the duplicity of the people. 
 On this occasion liquor was set out, of which the Huzzars drank 
 rather freely, but no disturbance resulted or other incident to mar 
 the convivial occasion, or to reveal the intense hatred of the citi 
 zens toward their "federal invaders." Soon after mounting 
 their horses and departing for camp, one of their number was 
 seized with a sudden spasm of thirstiness which could not be 
 appeased without liquor, and he announced his intention of return 
 ing for another drink. His comrades could not dissuade him 
 from his purpose, and he left them with the intention of soon 
 returning, but this was the last they ever saw of him alive. Not 
 rejoining them when expected, the detachment returned to town, 
 but could learn nothing of the whereabouts of their associate. 
 A search was instituted, and after some time his mutilated remains 
 were found in a vault, his skull cleft with a blow from an axe 
 which had been buried in his quivering brain. Just enough 
 liquor had been drank to arouse all the vengeful feelings within 
 the breasts of the Huzzars. The proprietor of the drinking 
 establishment was shot, his building fired, and the torch applied 
 
126 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 to a number of the business houses in the heart of the town, 
 which, together with their contents, were consumed. A swift 
 and terrible retribution for an outrage as unprovoked as it was 
 criminal. But such is war a kaleidoscope of horrors, of brutal 
 atrocities and fiendish barbarities. 
 
 A rumor, with sufficient foundation for belief in its truth, was 
 afloat through the camps, to the effect that a large confederate 
 force was passing up into Missouri by the "line road," which ran 
 along the borders of Arkansas and the Indian Territory, with a 
 view to cutting oif our communications with Springfield and 
 Rolla. To ascertain its truth, as well as to menace and skirmish 
 with any such force, Major Conrad, of the 3rd Missouri Cav 
 alry, was placed in command of an expedition of five hundred 
 men, including six companies of infantry, a squadron of cavalry, 
 and two guns from Welfley s battery, with orders to reconnoitre 
 the country, arid if an enemy was encountered, to ascertain their 
 strength and intentions and report the result of his observations 
 as soon as practicable. Among the infantry detailed with this 
 expedition was Company F of the 36th. The command left the 
 camp near Bentonville on the morning of the 5th of March. 
 The adventures, long marches and hair-breadth escapes of this 
 detachment will hereafter be fully related. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 BENTONVILLE. 
 
 RICE continued his retreat to the Boston Moun 
 tains, occupying a strong position fifteen miles 
 south of Fayetteville, where, being joined and 
 strengthened by the army of Ben. McCulloch, 
 composed of Texans, Louisianans and Arkansans, 
 he awaited the approach and invited the attack 
 of Curtis. For some days it was known that the enemy was 
 concentrating a large force in these mountain fastnesses, prepar 
 atory to swooping down upon the handful of federals menacing 
 them, and with one fell blow terminate the campaign and decide 
 the fate of Missouri and the South-west. A force of two thou 
 sand Indians from the scattered tribes inhabiting the territory 
 west of Arkansas, composed principally of Creeks, Cherokees 
 and Chocktaws, commanded by Albert Pike who, as a reward 
 for his labors in attaching the Indians to the Confederate cause, 
 was commissioned a Brigadier General -joined the forces of Price 
 and McCulloch, and were by them armed and became a part of 
 the army, which was now in numbers assuming formidable pro 
 portions. Both Price and McCulloch held separate commands, 
 and generally, unless occasion required their combined action, 
 
128 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 were independent of each other. A bitter feud had for some 
 time existed between them, and to such an extent were these 
 personal differences indulged, that the Confederate authorities were 
 apprehensive that individual enmities might be carried so far as 
 to imperil the bright prospects of success which they confidently 
 believed were now about to be realized. 
 
 To guard against misunderstandings which were at any time 
 liable to break out between these two commanders, Gen. Earl 
 Van Dorn was designated as Commander-in-Chief, and immedi 
 ately proceeded to the camp in the Boston Mountains and assumed 
 control of the forces gathered there. Several fresh batallions 
 from the East came with this commander, which raised the num 
 ber of the Confederate forces to about twenty-five thousand men. 
 Van Dorn arrived at the camp March 2nd, and on the 4th his 
 columns were in motion. 
 
 Gen. Curtis was apprised of this change of commanders, and 
 well aware that he had nothing to hope from any differences which 
 might arise from diversity of opinions among officers, and that stub 
 born fighting would alone decide the issues between the opposing 
 forces. The Confederate advance was so rapid through a broken, 
 mountainous and sparsely settled country, well calculated to con 
 ceal their movements, as nearly to surprise the federal com 
 mander, and required the utmost dispatch to concentrate our 
 widely scattered forces. On the 5th a foraging party was driven 
 back in hot haste, with loss of wagons and horses, simultaneous 
 with the arrival of a trusty scout, who reported the near approach 
 of the enemy in force, and that his advance guard was even then 
 menacing our outlying pickets. An express was sent to Col. 
 Vandevere at the War Eagle Mills, near White River, to march 
 his detachment of nine hundred men at once to Sugar Creek. 
 The march of forty-two miles was accomplished in fifteen hours, 
 arriving in time to. participate in the battlo of the 7th. 
 
A MIDNIGHT START. 129 
 
 Sigel s Division was fourteen miles away in camp near Benton- 
 ville, and to him also the nearness of the enemy was made known 
 by the timely arrival of scouts, as well as a dispatch and orders 
 from Cross Hollow, directing him to march at once for Sugar 
 Creek. This dispatch was brought by the hands of George 
 B. Raymond, a private in Company D of the 36th Illinois, who 
 at that time was acting Orderly for Gen. Curtis. It was known 
 that nearly every road and by-path was picketed by confederates 
 thrown out from their advance, and that such a trip was attended 
 with danger and difficulty, requiring presence of mind and nerve 
 to accomplish successfully. A citizen, on whose fidelity the Gen 
 eral could rely, and who knew the country perfectly, was sent 
 with Raymond. They set out in the darkness, threading their 
 way through the long forest aisles, frequently within sight of the 
 enemy s camp fires, and were rapidly approaching Sigel s camp 
 where they were first hailed and then fired upon by a rebel picket, 
 when the guide fell, shot dead, from his horse. Raymond dashed 
 into the adjoining thicket, and making a wide detour, reached 
 camp and delivered his message. Orders were issued at once to 
 the various regiments and commands to prepare at midnight, to 
 march at two o clock A. M. The men, who had quite generally 
 retired to rest, could not conjecture the cause for so untimely a 
 movement. Some supposed it was for the purpose of accustom 
 ing them to sudden emergencies and night marching ; while oth 
 ers, with an air of mystery, remarked, "there s something up," 
 but what that something was, the rank and file of the army had 
 no means of knowing. It was not their province to ask ques 
 tions, but to obey orders. 
 
 The sharp notes of a bugle sounding clear and shrill upon the 
 midnight air proclaimed the hour, and soon the various camps 
 were instinct with life and busy with preparations for moving. 
 
130 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Tents were struck and stowed away in the baggage wagons. 
 Men gathered around the camp fires to cook a scanty breakfast 
 or brew their cup of coifee, all of which in due time was drank 
 or eaten, fulfilling its inevitable destiny of fortifying the inner 
 man against the chilling blasts which came sweeping in gusts 
 through the camp and sighing a mournful requiem among the 
 leafless forest trees. 
 
 The 36th was ready to march at the prescribed hour of two, 
 but the narrow roads were cumbered with artillery and army 
 wagons, each in the way of the other, and mingled in what 
 appeared hopeless and inextricable confusion. The column was 
 finally formed and for an hour vainly essayed to march, at the 
 end of which period the rear companies were yet within the con 
 fines of the camp we were vainly endeavoring to leave. The 
 night was intensely dark. The wind increased to a gale, bring 
 ing on its wings icy snowflakes, which pierced and chilled the 
 men to the bone. Then came an order to break ranks and wait 
 for the appearance of daylight, which order was obeyed with 
 alarcity, and soon great piles of rails and logs were fiercely blaz 
 ing, while around each pyramid of flame the benumbed and shiv 
 ering men gathered with their blankets wrapped around them, 
 and speculated as to the reason for so unwonted and at the pres 
 ent time seemingly so unreasonable a movement. 
 
 At length the opaline tints of morning began to tinge the east 
 ern sky. Then we were up, and after many a vexatious halt, 
 were away for good, the column headed to the north and east, 
 and after it was once fully drawn out we proceeded without fur 
 ther hinderance. The sun was just peeping over the horizon as 
 we passed through the half ruined town of Bentonville. Away 
 across the prairie, to our right and south of town, a mile or more 
 away, dense masses of men were observed in motion, but the 
 
MISFORTUNE TO COMPANY B. 1B1 
 
 haze of the early morning so shrouded them in its misty sheen 
 that it was quite difficult to determine if they were friends or 
 foes. Few thought or cared anything about it. Gen. Sigel, 
 with a group of officers, was observed intently watching through 
 his field glass the gathering hosts that were deploying upon and 
 darkening the prairie with their advancing squadrons. The 36th, 
 together with the whole column, composed of alternate bodies of 
 infantry, cavalry and artillery, marched slowly but steadily and 
 in perfect order through the town and entered the woods and 
 thickets beyond, which arched and shadowed the road to Sugar 
 Creek, in blissful ignorance that within the tangled recesses of 
 the forest there lurked a concealed but dangerous foe. 
 
 An accident to the regimental ammunition wagon, in a narrow 
 part of the road about a mile from Bentonville, caused a short 
 delay. Company B was left to repair damages and guard its 
 valued stores, while the balance of the regiment marched on. 
 The rear files had but just passed and disappeared around an 
 angle in the crooked road, when five hundred Confederate cavalry 
 burst suddenly from the thicket, surprised the guards and arrested 
 Company B in its work of repairing the wagon. They swarmed 
 around like hornets and summoned the men to surrender. They 
 were surrounded ; help nowhere appeared ; resistance seemed 
 impossible, and to be shot down and die like dogs not to be 
 thought of. Very reluctantly they stacked their arms and sur 
 rendered. 
 
 Just then the 12th Missouri came up, and encountering the 
 enemy poured a sharp and destructive fire into their ranks, scat 
 tering and driving them back into the thickets from whence they 
 came, recapturing the wagon and carrying away its contents in 
 safety. While the attention of the enemy was diverted by the 
 lively firing from the 12th Missouri, many of their prisoners 
 
132 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 escaped, and making their way through the woods joined the 
 column as it was descending a ravine into the valley of Sugar 
 Creek. 
 
 We heard the heavy booming of artillery at Bentonville, the 
 rattle of musketry resounding through the forest in our rear, and 
 from file to file the word was passed, " Sigel is practicing with his 
 guns on the prairie/ He was, indeed ! his target, human beings, 
 that went down beneath his hurtling shot. Few, if any, supposed 
 that the incessant roar of artillery, awakening answering echoes 
 from the hills, valleys and surrounding forests, were voices from 
 the impending conflict, telling of the desperate struggle of Sigel 
 in cutting his way through the swarming enemy, or that the music 
 from his cannon was the reveille ushering in a day of battle, car 
 nage and blood. 
 
 We had just passed over the ground. We had seen no enemy 
 or indications of a hostile force so near at hand, and it required 
 other assurances than the booming of cannon to convince us that 
 a fierce battle was then pending but a short mile away in our rear. 
 
 While pressing forward in this state of doubt and uncertainty, 
 some of the men from Company B, who had escaped, came up, 
 without hats or coats, in a perfect ooze of prespiration and fever 
 of excitement, and told of the fighting at Bentonville, "that their 
 Company had been cut to pieces, and they alone had escaped to 
 tell the tale." No announcement could have been more startling. 
 Then the appearance of a few wounded stragglers from the 12th 
 Missouri, pale, faint and bleeding, whose injuries being slight, 
 permitted them to walk until their wounds could be bandaged and 
 ambulances found for their transportation. These, together with 
 the continuous uproar of guns, and smoke clouds leaping in sud 
 den gusts or rising lazily up over the trees, was all we could see 
 of the pending strife, but was sufficient to remove all doubts. 
 
EAGER FOR THE CONFLICT. 133 
 
 Nowhere was there a single symptom of panic among our officers 
 and men. The only thought which found expression in words 
 was, " When shall we, too, mingle in the conflict, witness its hor 
 rors, share its vicissitudes and glories?" 
 
 Col. Greusel was a mile or more in advance, at the head of his 
 brigade, ignorant of the turmoil of battle in his rear; and with 
 out orders or information that the regiment was needed, Lieut. 
 Col. Joslyn would not halt or turn back the column. We moved 
 lazily along down a ravine in the outlying hills, into and across 
 the valley, the men indignant that we were not faced about and 
 allowed to share the golden harvest of glory being gathered by 
 Sigel s batallions in the rear. Capt. Miller was furious at the 
 misfortune which had overtaken his Company and left him with 
 but a shadowy remnant of his command. 
 
 The rapid riding of aids to the front soon brought Col. Greusel 
 back, and when he thundered out the order, u About Face ! 
 Double Quick! March!" it was received with cheer upon cheer, 
 and instantly the column was in motion, retracing its steps. The 
 men were never more jubilant, urging each other forward to what 
 was supposed to be their first pitched battle. It may not be out 
 of place to make the passing remark that this enthusiasm of 
 unfledged warriors, like the measles, chicken pox and other kin 
 dred diseases, is not apt to attack a man violently more than once. 
 It is not true, as a rule, that after a battle or two men grow care 
 less as to its perils or regardless of its possibilities. The experi 
 ence of those who have stood unflinchingly the storm of a dozen 
 battles attests the contrary. Familiarity with the tragic scenes 
 of battle usually gives men self-reliance and coolness, and renders 
 them less liable to panic; but at the same time it tempers their 
 former eagerness and causes them to regard a battle as about the 
 most serious business in which they can engage. 
 
134 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 The music of artillery became more audible, and the mingling 
 patter of musketry more distinct as we approached the hills bor 
 dering the southern confines of the valley, and over the tree tops 
 we could see smoke wreaths from bursting shell and hear their 
 wailing through the air. Now and then stray rebel shot fell and 
 ricocheted in close proximity to the moving column. It soon 
 became apparent that the tide of battle was moving toward us, 
 and that its turbulent waves would dash its spray of balls over 
 the ground we then occupied. A halt was ordered, skirmishers 
 thrown out, and the regiment formed in line of battle, partially 
 protected behind the banks of a shallow ravine. The different 
 regiments composing the brigade turned off from the road into 
 the fields or thick underbrush on either hand, and in this position 
 the men rested on their arms until the gathering storm should 
 burst upon them. 
 
 Soon the regiments and squadrons participating in the engage 
 ment filed down the ravine into the valley, and slowly marching 
 along the road in perfect order, passed the position occupied by the 
 36th. Then came the artillery with its smoke begrimmed cannon 
 eers, and Generals Asboth and Sigel as cool and smiling as if on 
 dress parade. Then the cavalry, guarding well the rear. A 
 squadron of Confederate horsemen appeared at the mouth of the 
 ravine, with the supposed intention of charging down upon the 
 rear guard. Two guns were taken back, and a half dozen shells 
 in quick succession planted in their midst. A dozen steeds 
 bounded madly and riderless away, an example which the remain 
 ing riders, by the vigorous application of spur and gun barrel to 
 their horses, were not slow in following. In a few minutes the 
 Confederate horsemen that came pouring down the hill, disap 
 peared at a rate of speed which outdid their efforts in coming 
 but as long as there remained a "butternut," a horse or a straw 
 
END OF THE BATTLE OF BENTONVILLE. 135 
 
 hat in sight, the shower of iron was rained among them. Sub 
 sequently in passing over this ground, nine Confederate graves 
 told the result of the unerring aim of Hoffman s guns, at this 
 the final repulse of the enemy. 
 
 We saw them in vast numbers swarming over the bluffs over 
 looking the valley of Sugar Creek, scanning the blue line of 
 infantry stretching away in the distance with its myriad of glis 
 tening bayonets, but they did not venture within the range of 
 Sigel s terrible guns, for thinned ranks attested the severity of 
 the iron hail. 
 
 Thus ended the battle of Bentonville, which all authorities con 
 sulted have treated as a part of the subsequent action at Pea 
 Ridge, which was fought more than ten miles away. Without 
 further molestation the command resumed its march up the valley 
 of Sugar Creek, and at four o clock joined the Division of Gen. 
 Davis already in position. 
 
 An inquiry among those who participated in the engagement 
 elicited the following facts in regard to the incidents of the day. 
 The long column of troops, composing Sigel s Division, with its 
 supply trains and transportation, fairly on the march, extended 
 over many miles, winding over narrow and rough roads, mostly 
 through a hilly and heavily timbered country. The rear guard, 
 composed of Companies A and B of the 36th Cavalry and a 
 few squadrons of the Benton Huzzars, on arriving at Benton 
 ville were ordered to halt until the pickets which had been 
 called in and all the stragglers had come up. The troopers 
 unbridled their horses and were in the act of feeding when 
 the steadily increasing force at first noticed on the southern 
 boundary of the prairie began to advance rapidly towards town. 
 The soldiers took it for granted that these were Curtis troops on 
 their march from Cross Hollow, until the advancing lines broke 
 
136 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 to the right and left, with the evident intention of surrounding 
 the little detachment of cavalry. Three-fourths of the command 
 had passed through Bentonville and entered the forest, which 
 commences at its suburbs, when the practiced eye of Sigel dis 
 covered the enemy blackening the prairie south of the town and 
 closing rapidly in upon him, enveloping his rear batallions, evi 
 dently aiming to force that portion of the command to surrender. 
 Information of the disaster at the ammunition wagon was received 
 when he saw that he was nearly surrounded with enemies in 
 front, flank and rear, and that to effect a junction with that por 
 tion of the division in advance he must cut his way through 
 vastly superior numbers. Hurridly ordering the cavalry to 
 mount, he turned to Capt. Jenks, and said. " Captain, the rebels 
 are in our front, on either side and all around us," and raising 
 his hand and bringing it down with vehemence by way of empha 
 sis, he continued, "We must advance; we must cut our way 
 through we shall cut our way through!" The enemy halted 
 for a moment and displaying a Confederate flag, all doubts of their 
 true character were removed. It was estimated that they num 
 bered at least ten thousand, while Sigel had but eight hundred 
 cavalry, infantry and artillery under his control. As the troops 
 moved out of the east side of town, the rebels entered from the 
 west. They had proceeded but a short distance when the timber 
 on either side the road was observed to be filled with Confeder 
 ates, and across an opening in front others were observed in strong 
 force barring their further progress. Sigel s batteries, which had 
 been concealed by the cavalry, were brought into position, the 
 guns unlimbered, and a storm of shot and shell sent crashing 
 through their ranks, scattering them like chaff before the wind, 
 and the way opened for his advance. The enemy hung upon his 
 rear, and confident in their ascendency in numbers pressed forward 
 
SIGBL S MASTERLY RETREAT. 137 
 
 to the charge, but many falling under the cooly delivered and 
 rapid fire of the guns, they wavered and finally fell back under 
 cover of the woods and natural inequalities of the ground. 
 
 Again the march was resumed, but the enemy being continu 
 ally reinforced, pressed eagerly forward, curled around their flanks, 
 and threatened with annihilation the hundreds who were holding 
 their ground against thousands. Grape shot and shell were 
 hurled into their thickening ranks, but no sooner had one column 
 been dispersed and driven back, than a fresh one appeared in rear 
 or flank, which in turn served as food for our hissing missiles, 
 every one of which marked its course by fallen men and writhing 
 steeds and riders. This charge, like the former, was quickly 
 repulsed, and the shattered ranks of the enemy fled for shelter 
 under cover of the timber they had just left. The column 
 entered the ravine leading down from the plateau to the valley of 
 Sugar Creek, when the timbered bluffs on either side were found 
 covered with the enemy, against whom the artillery could not be 
 used with effect. A portion of the cavalry were dismounted as 
 skirmishers, and charging up the bluffs kept them at bay while 
 the command passed down the ravine. Discovering the small 
 numbers of those holding them in check, the enemy were on the 
 point of rushing down and overwhelming the skirmishers, when 
 a detachment of infantry, engaged in another part of the field, 
 brought their muskets to a right oblique, and emptying the con 
 tents into their ranks, forced them back. 
 
 In this manner, alternately fighting and retreating, and at all 
 times more or less closely pressed by superior numbers, Sigel 
 made his slow and toilsome way, and extricating himself from 
 their folds, reached the valley and joined the command, as has 
 already been related. But for Sigel s admirable skill displayed 
 
 10 
 
138 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 in this retreat from Bentonville, availing himself of every advan 
 tage which the nature of the ground afforded for the use of 
 artillery against the crowded ranks of a foe with arms of lighter 
 caliber, he must have been cut off, his trains and artillery cap 
 tured, and the whole federal army placed in a position of great 
 peril. But one or two lighter pieces of the enemy s artillery 
 could be brought up in time to be of service to them in the action, 
 while our long ranged rifled guns kept them at such a distance as 
 only at unfrequent intervals to subject our men to the fire of 
 small arms. The enemy was severely punished, losing heavily in 
 killed and wounded, but not in prisoners, only fifteen or twenty 
 being taken, while the losses on our part amounted to sixteen 
 killed, thirty wounded, and twenty-six prisoners, all but two being 
 from Company B of the 36th Illinois. 
 
 As before related, a junction was effected late in the afternoon 
 with the main army, and a position on the right of Davis Divis 
 ion, upon the hills to the north of, and overlooking the val 
 ley of Sugar Creek. Davis batteries were planted and tempor 
 ary earth works thrown up for their protection, and trees felled 
 in such a manner as to afford partial shelter to his men. 
 
 Lieut. B. F. Campbell, as officer of the guard, had charge of 
 a portion of the picket line thrown out a considerable distance in 
 advance. When Sigel marched to Sugar Creek, from some inad 
 vertence the Lieutenant was not notified of the movement. Sub 
 sequently learning that the enemy was moving upon Bentonville 
 in force, he hastily withdrew the pickets, except four who were 
 captured before he could reach them, and started for camp. He 
 found the whole country swarming with enemies, and every avenue 
 of escape closed. Taking a circuitous route, and pretending to 
 be Price s body guard, he passed innumerable squads of the 
 enemy, borrowing pistols and a,mmunition of them, giving them 
 
NIGHT MOVEMENT OF THE MAIN COMMAND. 139 
 
 orders, and finally bringing his little detachment in safety to our 
 lines. 
 
 Gen. Curtis, on receiving definite information of the enemy s 
 advance, moved the main command from Cross Hollow during 
 the night to the heights on Davis s left, taking up a strong posi 
 tion along the telegraph road. Thus at the close of the day the 
 whole army of the South-west, except details for guarding the 
 long line of communication, and Company F from the 36th Illi 
 nois, who were on an expedition to McDonald and Newton Coun 
 ties in Missouri, were in position on the heights of Pea Ridge, 
 overlooking the valley of Sugar Creek, prepared for action, and 
 numbering all told a little less than ten thousand men. 
 
 A few Confederates were seen at intervals flitting among the 
 brush and trees which crowned the opposite heights, but not a 
 shot saluted us, and as the shades of night gathered around, the 
 woods, the fields, the rocks and hills were voiceless and still. 
 Within the camps the hum of conversation was kept up around 
 the smouldering fires until a late hour. Groups of men gathered 
 to hear the story of some participant in the contest at Benton- 
 ville, listening with intense interest to the details of the day s 
 adventures; others were discussing earnestly the probabilities 
 and possibilities of to-morrow s conflict. Some were withdrawing 
 rusty charges from their guns or cleaning their pieces for future 
 contingencies. At the camp fires cups of coffee were being 
 brewed, for with campaigners, both old and young, no matter of 
 business can be transacted or victory won, without first being forti 
 fied arid saturated with that fragrant beverage "that Heavenly 
 compound which cheers but not inebriates." Then all but watch 
 ful sentinels and anxious officers wrap up in their blankets, seek 
 a leafy couch, and retire to peaceful slumbers and pleasant dreams. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 PEA RIDGE. 
 
 EFORE proceeding with the details of the sanguinary 
 fighting on the now historic field of Pea Ridge, it 
 may be well to notice the character of the country 
 occupied by the forces participating in the engagement ; 
 particularly that portion of it rendered memorable 
 by the storm of battle which swept its slopes, and known in the 
 nomenclature of the country as Pea Ridge. 
 
 From the center of Missouri to its southern and south-western 
 border, a range of irregular hills traverse the State, known as 
 the Ozarks. Their rugged slopes once surmounted, a high 
 plateau, diversified with hill and dale, forest and prairie, is pre 
 sented to the eye. The northern counties of the State of Arkan 
 sas are intersected by a similar yet more lofty range, known as 
 the Boston Mountains. These two series of hills unite in the 
 north-western counties of Arkansas and form an acute triangle, 
 and from thence gradually slope away by a series of slight ascents 
 and waves of hills until they finally disappear in the Indian 
 country beyond the western confines of Arkansas. It is at the 
 junction of these hills just below the southern border of Mis 
 souri, in the north-western county of Arkansas, that the events 
 about to be related occurred. 
 
DESCRIPTION OF THE VICINITY OF PEA RIDGE. 141 
 
 While a considerable portion of this elevated region is arable 
 land, yielding a rich reward to the cultivators of its soil, by far 
 the larger part is cut and seamed by gorges or furrowed by rocky 
 ridges and steep ascents. The stage and telegraph-road from 
 Springfield, Missouri, to Fayetteville, Arkansas, passes over the 
 highest elevations of the Ozark range until within five miles of 
 the south line of the State, near the town of Keitsville, where it 
 plunges into a deep gorge which has passed into history as " Cross 
 Timbers Hollow," from the following circumstance. In 
 the flight of Ben. McCulloch and Price from Springfield, at the 
 time of Fremont s advance in November, 1861, believing that a 
 rapid pursuit was intended, trees were felled across the road and 
 hollow, to obstruct the march of Fremont s troops. Afterwards 
 Price was obliged to remove this fallen timber for the passage of 
 his own troops and supplies, on his return and re-occupation of 
 Springfield. The subsequent retreat of Price down this hollow 
 when followed by Gen. Curtis, was too hurried and our fire too 
 hot to allow these obstructions being again placed in the way. 
 
 Just before the State line is reached, the creek which courses 
 its whole length, known as the middle branch of Sugar Creek, 
 turns to the west, while the road continuing south, up a lateral 
 ravine, and surmounting a steep ascent, debouches upon the 
 elevated plateau of Pea Ridge, near the Elk-Horn Tavern. 
 South of the State line in Arkansas, and two miles distant, a high 
 range of hills take their rise near the Elk Horn and stretch away 
 in irregular outline many miles to the west. The southern face 
 of these hills are precipitous and rocky, but their northern slopes 
 are more regular and undulating. At the foot of the southern 
 escarpments of rock were cultivated fields, now covered with 
 white and withered cornstalks, stretching away to the west from 
 two to three miles. Along the base of these cliffs a road passes 
 
142 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 westward to Bentonville with a lateral branch to Lee Town, a 
 hamlet of a dozen houses crowning the ridge, near the western 
 extremity of the corn fields. 
 
 From the foot of this rocky range southward, the surface of 
 the country slopes away in undulating waves to the bluffs which 
 border the deep valley of Sugar Creek, the waters of which flow 
 westward, and, uniting with other streams, finally enter the 
 Indian Country, near the south-west corner of Missouri. Pea 
 Ridge comprises the elevated plateau between the middle and 
 south branches of this stream and occupies a surface of many 
 square miles in extent. Copious springs and shining rivulets 
 have their source at the foot of the rocky range of hills, meander 
 ing across the fields and through the forests, at length mingling 
 their soft, murmuring waters with those of Sugar Creek. The 
 valleys of these streams are narrow, while the hills which border 
 and confine them are rocky and precipitous. 
 
 The general aspect of the country may be summed up as being 
 composed of alternate undulations of field and woodland and of 
 rocky acclivities. First commencing at the Elk-Horn Tavern, 
 and stretching indefinitely away to the westward, rises the apex 
 of the ridge, with its sharp abutments of rock worn and jagged 
 bv the winds and storms of centuries. At their southern base a 
 succession of cultivated fields, averaging more than a half mile 
 in breadth, reaching two or three miles westward with more or 
 less irregularity of outline, and occasional projecting points of 
 timber. Then succeeds a belt of timber a mile or more in extent, 
 covering the heights which overlook the valley. 
 
 On the evening of the 6th of March all the troops were in 
 position. They occupied the heights to the north of and over 
 looking the Sugar Creek valley. The left resting upon the tele 
 graph road, the right upon a lateral ravine at right angles with 
 
POSITIONS OF THE ARMY. 143 
 
 the main valley, while two miles to the rear at the Elk-Horn were 
 parked the trains and miscellaneous stores pertaining to the army, 
 guarded by the 25th Missouri and a detachment from the 3rd 
 Illinois Cavalry. 
 
 Sigel s two Divisions, commanded by Asboth and Osterhaus 
 respectively, occupied the right, Jeff. C. Davis held the center, 
 while Carr was posted on the left ; the line as thus formed front 
 ing south, from whence the Confederate attack was expected. 
 Such was the disposition of our forces on the morning of the 7th ; 
 the regiments well in hand, the men burning with eagerness ; for 
 the enthusiasm of military novices as yet had not been toned 
 down by experience. 
 
CHAPTER XL 
 
 BATTLE OF PEA RIDGE FIRST DAY. 
 
 ^ 
 
 JAYLIGHT on the morning of the 7th found the 
 camp astir. Soldiers cooked an impromptu meal 
 with arms in their hands, discussing the while the 
 probabilities of the day. Cavalry horses munched 
 their corn, and the dark-mouthed engines of 
 destruction remained in battery precisely where planted the 
 evening before, as yet silent, but to the imaginative who conjure 
 up phantoms of horror from the smoke wreaths of expected bat 
 tle, these silent watch-dogs were thinking of the part each were 
 to take in awakening the thunders of the coming hours. The 
 sun arose lazily yet smiling above the smoky horizon, shedding 
 rays of light and heat around and over the scene as if the busi 
 ness in which men were about to engage was not of that charac 
 ter at which it should veil its face. 
 
 Very soon staff officers were seen riding rapidly from brigade 
 to brigade, their horses reeking with sweat. Hurried messages 
 were delivered. Officers were seen in brief consultation ; their 
 horses were saddled, harnessed and attached to the guns, and 
 throughout the camps all were in a state of readiness and silent 
 expectancy. Soon it was whispered that the enemy declining to 
 
A FLANK MOVEMENT. 145 
 
 attack in front, had turned the right and was rapidly gaining 
 the rear of our position. Believing that only the intervening tim 
 ber and underbrush obscured their movements, we expected them 
 upon us immediately. 
 
 By this flank movement, what was our front became the rear 
 and the right flank of the army became its left. Soon came 
 the order, shrill and loud, "Fall in, men," when a line was 
 formed, fronting to the northwest, and, advancing a short dis 
 tance in the wood, we took a position overlooking a ravine. The 
 underbrush was cleared and obstructions to movements in line or 
 column removed, that when the expected attack should come, 
 nothing might prevent a close, rapid and deadly fire. In this 
 position we remained a half hour, straining our eyes through the 
 deep openings in the wood and over the summits of distant ridges, 
 watching for an approaching force but we looked and listened 
 in vain. Not a movement or sound disturbed the calm repose of 
 the morning. Then came an order to march, when the column 
 was headed to the north-east, reaching the telegraph road, which 
 was packed with a moving mass of wagons, horses, mules and 
 men, slowly drifting from the Elk-Horn Tavern to the shelter of 
 the woods and ravines near the position we had just left. 
 
 The Third Iowa Cavalry, and detachments from various Mis 
 souri cavalry regiments, came from the northeast and filed towards 
 the left, followed by a section of artillery. Then came Jeff. C. 
 Davis, with his Indiana regiments, moving to the positions 
 assigned them. As yet no hostile battalions disputed our pro 
 gress, or arrested the disposition that was being made of the 
 forces. We saw no cannon crouching open-mouthed and look 
 ing threateningly down upon us. Except the continuous sound 
 of slowly moving columns, the grinding of artillery wheels over 
 the gravel-strewed paths, the braying of mules and the sharp 
 
146 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 notes of command, all was peaceful and calm. Hills, fields and 
 forests basked in the morning sunshine, or were gently swept by 
 the shadows of passing clouds. 
 
 But at that moment of forboding calm, when everybody was 
 listening for the stern summons to battle bang ! bang ! bang ! 
 burst forth, a mile away to our right, telling us that the carnival 
 had begun. 
 
 After the Indiana regiments had passed, the 36th fell in and 
 marched northeasterly, threading the crooked forest trail until 
 the extreme left of Davis s position was attained. It seemed as 
 if we were marching away from where the roar of cannon indi 
 cated that the harvest of death had commenced. Entering a little 
 clearing, we discovered the yellow hospital flags, fluttering from 
 the gables of every house in the hamlet of Leetown, and the 
 surgeons busy with the sad, yet humane task which it was theirs 
 to perform. And now just ahead of us is heard the rattle of 
 musketry, the cheers and yells of opposing forces, the whirr of 
 shrieking bullets and all the awful din of battle. Passing through 
 a narrow belt of timber and reaching the field beyond, the column 
 was being formed in line, when " Look out for the cavalry !" was 
 heard from the advance ; then from out the babel of noise and 
 fire, which but just now was heard in front, there rushed a dozen 
 maddened and riderless steeds, and after them came tearing 
 through the fields and brush with headlong speed, down along 
 the marching column, squadrons of terrified cavalry, without hats 
 or arms, in the utmost confusion and dismay. Some shouted 
 as they passed, " Turn back ! Turn back ! They ll give you 
 hell : But unmindful of this admonition, the regiment moved 
 on, gained the open field, rapidly completed its line and was 
 ready for the fierce onslaught which now menaced them. 
 
VICISSITUDES OF THE BATTLE. 147 
 
 The cavalry disappeared in the woods to the rear, and nothing 
 interposed between us and the long gray lines of the enemy form 
 ing in the woods which shadowed the northern side of the clear 
 ing. Their skirmishers occupied the field on our arrival, and 
 were seen skulking through the dry and deadened cornstalks back 
 to their lines, and many of their numbers were brought down by 
 the unerring aim of our marksmen, and never left that field alive. 
 The coolness and fearless stand of the 36th restored the confi 
 dence of the disordered command preceding it, which was upon 
 the point of flying. Our batteries were planted, Hoifman s 
 on the left, and Welfley s three guns, all he had remaining, sup 
 ported by Company E of the 36th, on the right. The line of 
 infantry slowly retired to the timber in their rear, forming behind 
 the fence which partially protected them from rebel shot. The 
 enemy, thinking we were retreating, showed themselves on the 
 opposite side and threw down the fence, with the apparent intention 
 of charging upon us. At once our batteries opened and rained 
 upon their exposed ranks a tempest of shot and shell. We saw 
 their lines waver as great gaps were made in their quivering 
 ranks. Their dead and dying thickly strewed the field, while 
 some in sudden panic hurried to the rear. Then the opposite 
 forest became vocal with the thunder of artillery, and rebel 
 batteries sent back a responsive tempest of shot. The greater 
 part of the rebel fire was concentrated upon the batteries and 
 supporting infantry, including Company E. of the 36th, who 
 stood exposed to the pitiless storm upon that unprotected field. 
 The men lay down and closely hugged the earth while shell went 
 shrieking over their heads into the woods beyond, some, indeed, 
 striking uncomfortably near, causing a little excitement among 
 those under fire for the first time. 
 
 A shell killed John H. Harris and tore an arm from William 
 Gibson, both of Company C. He started to find the hospital 
 
148 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 alone, and when asked by Col. Greusel if he should not send 
 some one to help him along, heroically replied, " No, Colonel, 
 the men are needed here; I can find my way alone," and pale 
 and bleeding he tottered to the rear to seek the surgeon s aid. A 
 shell shattered a leg from Ira Fuller, of Company E, and in a 
 dying condition he was borne off the field. Not a soldier 
 flinched. The ranks of the brave closed up, and still the rending 
 storm went on. 
 
 But if their shot flew fast and furious, our batteries hurled an 
 answering response of grape, shell and shot, which mowed down 
 their ranks as with a whirlwind of fire. What could they do but 
 bend beneath the storm and finally melt away before it, with 
 drawing their wavering ranks to the cover of sheltering woods V 
 After their batteries had been silenced, and their menacing lines 
 were no longer visible, Companies B and G were sent across the 
 field and into the brush beyond to discover the enemy s position, 
 and, if possible, their intentions. 
 
 A squad from Company B when near the fence saw a mounted 
 officer making his way through the brush and coming towards 
 them. When near by, they fired, and the Confederate officer fell 
 dead from his horse. The skirmishers sprang over the fence, and 
 Peter Pelican secured the gold watch found upon the dead body 
 of the officer. Another of the boys was in the act of securing 
 his belt and pistols, when a volley was poured upon them, and 
 they fled back to the field and assumed their position in the line 
 of skirmishers. The officer whom they had shot proved to be the 
 Confederate General, Ben. McCulloch. 
 
 Our skirmishers found a number of Texas and Louisiana regi 
 ments in ambush behind the fence, with whom a lively contest 
 was maintained for fifteen minutes. The fence seemed actually 
 fringed with fire ; every length of it concealed a score of sharp 
 
THE THIRTY-SIXTH DISPERSES THE ENEMY. 149 
 
 shooters, safely protected behind rails and logs, and able to select 
 their living target, take deliberate aim and send their shot with 
 fatal effect. Protected as they were, scarcely a federal bullet 
 harmed them. Already many a wounded hero sprinkled Arkan 
 sas soil with his blood. To remain beneath that withering fire was 
 but to perish, and to fall back became a necessity. But the 
 overwhelming numbers and concentrated fire of the enemy had 
 told heavily upon the thin line of skirmishers, and they retired, 
 fighting, to their first position with the regiment, having twenty 
 killed and wounded. 
 
 A charge from the enemy was looked for and guarded against, 
 and then our batteries opened upon them with thunder bolts of 
 wrath launched with unerring precision and merciless fury into 
 their devoted ranks. 
 
 With fixed bayonets the 86th advanced across the field in 
 splendid order, no flinching or falling out of line. The storm 
 which howled about their heads might destroy but could not stop 
 them. But the enemy did not wait their coming. They fled in 
 a disorderly rout into the recesses of the forests. No enemy 
 again appeared in force in this portion of the field during the 
 remainder of the day. Occasionally a puff of smoke might be 
 seen among the distant trees, followed by the muffled roar of 
 cannon and the shriek of a projectile, to be met by an instant 
 reply from Hoffman and Welfley. 
 
 There being no longer an enemy in our front, the attention of 
 the batteries were called to a high elevation in the line of hills 
 west from the Elk-Horn and more than a mile distant, from which 
 position the whole field of widely scattered and contending forces 
 could be overlooked. It was believed that the Confederate com 
 manders were there, superintending the battle and directing the 
 movement of troops to points most needing their presence. The 
 
150 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 hill was fairly black with Confederates, when Lieut. Beneca, of 
 Welfley s battery, elevating his guns, dropped three shells in 
 quick succession right in their midst. Numbers were observed 
 to fall, while the living scattered like frightened sheep. We saw 
 a white steed and its rider lifted into the air as a shell exploded 
 underneath. That hill was quickly vacated, except by the 
 mangled remains of the enemy s dead and dying. During the 
 afternoon small numbers ventured to occupy its crest, but one or 
 two shells exploded upon its summit was sufficient to clear it 
 instantly of rebels. 
 
 About three o clock P. M. a strong column of the enemy made 
 a furious onset upon Jeff. C. Davis s Division, which was posted 
 on the right of Osterhaus. Soon the contending forces were 
 hotly engaged. Volleys of musketry mingled their sharp tones 
 in the grand concert, while there was an incessant crashing of 
 guns uniting their voices in one sublime chorus that reverberated 
 through the forest and among the hills. Wave after wave of 
 rebel infantry bore down upon our thin lines, and a half mile of 
 flame and smoke leaped from their serried ranks. The men of 
 Indiana fell like leaves before an autumn blast, and the 18th and 
 22nd Indiana were forced to recede from their positions. 
 
 Davison s Peoria battery next engaged the attention of the 
 enemy, when from out the belt of timber to our right solid gray 
 lines of troops came surging over the field and thronged in dense 
 masses over and around the battery, while from their lines flashed 
 volley after volley of sulphurous flame. The artillerymen stood 
 by their guns until pierced by shot they fell, or faint and bleeding 
 moved slowly from the field. The guns were captured, their 
 brave defenders with decimated ranks falling back to the timber 
 adjacent to Leetown. 
 
GOOD EXECUTION BY THE ARTILLERY. 151 
 
 Onward across the field surged the rebel hosts, when Welfley s 
 guns poured in a deadly fire which cleft great openings in their 
 ranks, covering the ground with winrow r s of dead and wounded, 
 causing them to falter, but by the exertion of officers they closed 
 up again, and like a huge tidal wave moved majestically on. 
 Welfley and Company E were in retreat, but firing as they ran. 
 The battery was then withdrawn to the timber near Leetown. 
 The 12th and 17th Missouri with portions of the 86th met the 
 thronging host, greeting them with a terrific shower of lead, 
 which staid the advancing tide until Welfley returned again to 
 the field. His guns rained grape and canister into the now 
 wavering Confederate ranks, and they broke and fled in dismay. 
 Company E drove those away who were holding Davison s guns, 
 the battery was recaptured and returned to its rightful possessors, 
 and thus ended the conflict on the left. 
 
 The cavalry, though not in the front line of battle, did good 
 service in reconnoitering and picking up stragglers from their 
 main command, who, making their way unperceived through the 
 thick brush, annoyed our flanks and rear. Company B while 
 guarding the flank, encountered a straggling detachment of 
 Louisianans, and captured thirty-eight prisoners, including Col. 
 Herbert and five other commissioned officers. A part of this 
 Company, under Lieut. Chapman, supported a battery at Sugar 
 Creek, and did not participate in this day s engagement. 
 
 During the contest in which Davis infantry was engaged, a 
 Lieutenant from one of the Indiana regiments had a finger shot 
 off by a stray bullet. He ordered two of his company a ser 
 geant and a private to accompany him to the hospitals in the 
 rear. Col. Greusel meeting him and seeing how slight was his 
 wound, asked why he required two attendants, when men were so 
 much needed in front, adding that if each man who should be 
 
152 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 grazed with a bullet required so many attendants to conduct them 
 to the rear, there soon would be none left in front to carry on the 
 fight. The Lieutenant halted, and while in the act of giving his 
 reasons for such a proceeding, a solid shot came crashing through 
 the brains of his attendants and struck him in the breast, pass 
 ing through his body, hurling all three to the earth, a mangled 
 mass of blood, of shattered bones and quivering flesh. At such 
 a time there was more danger in leaving the ranks and crossing 
 the fields, which were swept with a deluge of iron and lead, than 
 to remain and face the storm. 
 
 Away to the right, all day long the roar of battle was terrible 
 and continuous. Our forces there were hard pressed, and, after 
 urgent appeals for aid and an order from head quarters, Asboth s 
 Division filed across the fields, which were deserted and still, 
 except by the moans of the dying, and marched towards the Elk 
 Horn, to aid Can* in the stubborn fight he was maintaining on 
 the right. The conflict was over on the left ; the enemy driven 
 in confusion and with heavy loss from the field. Night came on, 
 with its veil of darkness, to hide the bloody scene. 
 
 The incidents occurring along the line of an extended field of 
 battle cannot be viewed from a single point of observation. Par 
 ticularly is this the case when the country is diversified with hill 
 and valley, field and woodland. We can hear the distant roar of 
 guns and see the thin, vapory clouds of smoke arising from differ 
 ent portions of the field, under whose sulphurous sheen tragedies 
 are being enacted, which the imagination alone can fill with hor 
 rors and color the picture with dark and fearful shadings. That 
 portion of the battle in which the 36th Illinois participated during 
 the conflict of March 7th, has been detailed. A survey of the 
 whole field and an outline of the extended operations of the forces 
 engaged, will give a more intelligible idea of the magnitude of the 
 
CHANGING THE POSITIONS OF THE ARMY. 153 
 
 contest, and the bearing which the operations of each separate 
 regiment, brigade, or division had upon the general result. 
 
 The very difficult, and often dangerous, movement of changing 
 front to the rear was executed, and new positions occupied, 
 as soon as information of the enemy s movements was ob 
 tained. Our left rested upon the margin of the fields adjoin 
 ing Leetown ; our right extending into the woods at and beyond 
 the-Elk Horn tavern, presenting a front to the northwest and at 
 least two miles in extent. While this change of base was being 
 effected. Gen. Osterhaus sent forward a part of the Third Iowa 
 and detachments from various Missouri cavalry regiments, with 
 two guns from Wefley s battery, to feel the enemy, ascertain his 
 strength, his position and intentions. Clear and shrill the bugles 
 sounded the advance, and the squadrons crossed the fields and 
 entered the dense timber and underbrush on the north, which was 
 crowded with masses of the foe, concealed from sight. A 
 dash was made upon a force discovered in front ; a portentous 
 silence pervaded the thickets on the left, which masked the hosts 
 preparing to spring upon our devoted band. On goes the charg 
 ing column, not seeing, or at least unmindful, of the danger lurk 
 ing near. Suddenly, like a blast from the infernal regions, out 
 of the quiet thickets flashed volley after volley into the passing 
 squadrons, while a body of mounted Confederates charged upon 
 the flanks of our column of cavalry and broke it in two. Officers 
 and gallant soldiers fell like leaves in Autumn, their blood dyeing 
 the woodland with its sanguinary hue. Horses and riders, in 
 ever increasing numbers, thickly strewed the field, while every 
 horse attached to the guns was killed. So sudden a transition 
 from a tilt on horseback, to the position of targets for rebel marks 
 men, concealed in the dense underbrush, against whose withering 
 fire no effective resistance could be made, was anything but 
 
154 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 agreeable. For an instant the column paused in uncertainty ; 
 then suddenly from out the bloody covert swarmed thousands of 
 Confederate soldiers, who overwhelmed both cavalry and artillery, 
 and swept their disordered ranks from existence. The dismounted 
 Federals dashed into the brush for safety and were met by the 
 deadly rifle, the uplifted tomahawk and flashing scalping knife, 
 in the hands of savage Indians, who spared none that fell within 
 their merciless grasp. Others threw away their arms, spurred 
 their horses through the ranks of their enemies, and, plung 
 ing madly across the field in a disordered flight, imparted a 
 sensation of terror to the infantry, which was just being formed 
 in line along the northern boundary of the cornfield. The inspir 
 ing words or stern commands of officers dispelled the panic which 
 was seizing them, as the terror stricken fugitives fled to the rear. 
 Of the three hundred men who entered that volcano of death, 
 half were either killed outright, made prisoners, or left writhing 
 in agony upon the field. In less than five minutes from the time 
 they entered the timber with flaunting pennons, their ranks were 
 broken, and a wild stream of frightened fugitives returned with 
 headlong haste, and in dire confusion disappeared to the rear. 
 The Indians who had taken service in the ranks of treason ranged 
 the field for plunder, and subsequently thirty dead heroes of the 
 3rd Iowa Cavalry were found divested of their scalps. Our two 
 guns remained in the enemy s hands, but without horses they 
 could not be used or taken away through the underbrush. 
 
 Lieut. Col. Joslyn, as cool as if at a Fourth of July celebra 
 tion, by word and example did much to maintain the courage and 
 confidence of the infantry, and forming them in line of battle 
 advanced to meet the yelling savages and their brutal white com 
 panions with a withering fire which sent them howling back again 
 to the cover of the woods, where the rapid and destructive play of 
 
GETTING A DECIDED ADVANTAGE. 155 
 
 artillery kept them until after the fall of their leader, Ben. Mc- 
 Culloch, when they abandoned this portion of the field and the 
 left was clear of enemies. In the midst of the artillery duel 
 which succeeded the operations of the morning, skirmishers 
 advanced to the scene of disaster and in the face of a rattling fire 
 of musketry, brought off the captured guns which had been 
 abandoned, and dragging them across the field, they were restored 
 to Capt. Welfley, and soon hotly engaged in wiping out the dis 
 grace of the morning, by hurling shell into the cowering ranks 
 of the foe. 
 
 While Sigel s guns were thus holding the enemy in check and 
 preserving his own lines intact, a column of rebel infantry was 
 hurled with irresistible fury upon Jeff. C. Davis lines in the 
 center. Desperately the men of Indiana and Illinois stood side 
 by side fighting to maintain their position. Wave after wave of 
 of gray infantry were met and rolled back among the hills, only 
 to return again with augmented numbers and persistent obsti 
 nacy, before which our brave boys bent beneath the murderous 
 rush of bullets which howled about them as a storm howls through 
 the harvest fields in autumn. The wounded creep to the rear, 
 while some of the best and bravest lie dead upon this fatal field. 
 Slowly our troops fall back a few yards to a less exposed position, 
 where under cover of timber and sheltering inequalities of ground 
 no amount of hostile lead and iron can move them. Before our 
 solid ranks and galling fire the enemy faltered, then filing 
 obliquely to the right, enveloped Davison s Peoria-battery, and 
 for a brief period hold it. They swept on towards the left when 
 a hot, enfilading fire from Osterhaus Division and from Welfley s 
 and Hoffman s guns checked their further progress. Attacked 
 in flank, in front and rear, they could not stand, and the dark 
 masses of the enemy were broken and melted away in a disorderly 
 
156 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 retreat. The Peoria-battery was retaken by the men of Com 
 pany E of the 36th Illinois, and was soon in full play upon the 
 now rapidly vanishing enemy. The center recovered its former 
 position, and the left and center remained unbroken in the place 
 first occupied, interrupted only by the occasional wail of a shell 
 as it came arching over their heads, its salutation being responded 
 to by our batteries with terrible emphasis. 
 
 These demonstrations upon the left and center were in the 
 main mere feints on their part to divert attention from the right, 
 which was their main object of attack. Sheltered by the range 
 of hills west of the Elk-Horn, and hidden from sight by the 
 dense timber which covered them, they pressed steadily on to 
 the telegraph road, silently gaining our rear and cutting off all 
 retreat northward. About nine o ciock in the morning their 
 advance encountered Col. Phelps 25th Missouri Regiment, 
 whose term of service had expired, and who were guarding the 
 stores which had been hastily removed to the Elk-Horn. The 
 25th interposed a stubborn resistance, maintaining their ground 
 until the transportation, and many of the stores were removed 
 to a place of greater safety. At length by mere weight of num 
 bers the enemy succeeded in dislodging the gallant 25th from 
 the heights, but not until a quarter of its numbers were left on 
 the slopes to attest its heroic devotion. The remainder of Carr s 
 Division was hurried to the scene of threatened danger, and 
 while pressing through the deadened cornfields, which lay at the 
 foot of the cliifs, it came in contact with masses of the enemy 
 posted at the foot and upon the rocky heights, who received them 
 with an iron shotted salute from deep-mouthed, rebel guns, planted 
 on elevations commanding all the approaches, which launched 
 their deadly missiles upon Carr s advancing columns. A line of 
 battle was quickly formed in the woods and fields adjoining the 
 
BRAVEEY OP THE IOWA TROOPS. 157 
 
 Elk-Horn, the right, under Col. Dodge, occupying a position on 
 slight elevations east of the road, overlooking a ravine which opened 
 into Cross Timbers Hollow. The enemy soon came thronging 
 up this ravine to the attack, but Dodge s artillery held them in 
 check for several hours. The enemy dragged several pieces up 
 the slopes of the opposite acclivities and responded, while bodies 
 of infantry pushed their way through the broken ascents and 
 tangled underbrush towards our batteries, and soon all were 
 hotly^ engaged. Volley answered volley in close and deadly con 
 flict, but without definite results or material advantages on either 
 side. The men of Iowa, brave and determined, maintained their 
 ground, giving not an inch, though the attacking force was 
 greatly their superior in numbers. Col. Dodge was everywhere 
 present, rallying and encouraging his men, and though wounded, 
 refused to quit the field. His ranks, exposed to an enfilading 
 fire, were terribly thinned, yet firm and undaunted his troops 
 tenaciously held their position until late in the afternoon, when, 
 failing to receive support and the brigades to his left having been 
 forced back, he relinquished the ground, consecrated by the best 
 blood of Iowa. 
 
 Col. Vandevere, with the 9th Iowa and Dubuque battery, 
 occupied the road a little to the north of the Elk-Horn Tavern. 
 Here, hour after hour the battle raged furiously, the enemy con 
 stantly augmenting their attacking columns, arid plunging a 
 tornado of shot from numerous batteries crowning the heights to 
 the left and front. Here Price and Van Dorn in person 
 watched the progress of the conflict, and concentrated their 
 heaviest efforts. The rattle of musketry was terrible and con 
 tinuous ; the air seemed full of lead, yet the cruel music of these 
 missiles disturbed not the equinimity of our men. From every 
 elevation on the circuit of hills rebel batteries rained their thun- 
 
158 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 derbolts in a perfect deluge into our ranks or went shrieking 
 like fiends over the heads of the men who bravely clung to their 
 position. Backward and forward the battle raged as temporary 
 victory or defeat crowned the efforts of the opposing armies. 
 Lieut. Col. Herron, of the 9th Iowa, was wounded, and taken pris 
 oner. A strong rebel column forced its way up the road, and 
 notwithstanding great gaps were made in their ranks, they 
 charged upon the Dubuque battery and captured some of its 
 guns. The balance were withdrawn and occupied another posi 
 tion, from whence they hurled defiance at the advancing foe. 
 While the guns were being withdrawn, a caisson filled with 
 ammunition was disabled and about being abandoned, when an 
 artilleryman threw a burning quilt into the ammunition chest, 
 which in a few minutes exploded in the midst of the enemy with 
 a thundering crash, as though all the explosive elements of 
 earth and air were collected there. Bloody clothing and mutil 
 ated remains of men were tossed high in the air, and hung in 
 gory shreds from the tree tops, or were scattered mangled and 
 bleeding over the ground. It was reported that fifty men were 
 either wounded or killed outright at this point. 
 
 When Col. Carr found he had the main Confederate army on 
 his hands, he speedily notified Gen. Curtis of the fact and 
 importuned him for reinforcements. Detachments not other 
 wise engaged were dispatched to his assistance, and even 
 the General s body guard and light howitzers were hurried for 
 ward to assist in holding the enemy in check until reinforcements 
 could be brought over from the left, where the contest had vir 
 tually ceased. Desperate charges were made, followed by hand 
 to hand fighting at close range and with the bayonet, in which 
 the enemy lost nearly all the ground he had won. Though 
 temporarily defeated, they were speedily reinforced by regiment 
 
VARIED FORTUNES OF THE DAY. 159 
 
 after regiment, and returned to the assault in overpowering num 
 bers, threatening to surround and annihilate the handful of brave 
 men who stubbornly contested their advance. Carr looked on his 
 thinned division with gloomy forebodings as he continued to fall 
 back towards his camp of the morning. Messengers were hur 
 rying from head-quarters to the different division commanders 
 for aid, but at that time Davis was too closely pressed to spare a 
 single regiment or gun. Sigel, after the death of McCulloch, 
 was confronted only by light detachments, but was fearful of 
 another attack, and hesitated to weaken his line by sending 
 troops to the right until peremptorily ordered to do so by Gen. 
 Curtis. Asboth, with the greater portion of his division, 
 marched to Carr s assistance, arriving in time to partici 
 pate in a charge in which the enemy was forced back a half mile 
 to the Elk-Horn, and much of the ground lost by Carr was 
 recovered. It was a fierce conflict, in which both sides fought 
 desperately for the mastery, and the losses sustained by each 
 were severe. Among the wounded was Gen. Asboth, who, 
 though severely hurt, remained upon the field in command of 
 his division. At a later period, the conflict having ceased in the 
 center, Jeff. C. Davis sent the 2nd Ohio battery to Carr s assist 
 ance, which rendered good service until darkness put an end to 
 the conflict, this battery firing the last shot of the day. 
 
 For eleven hours, from nine o clock in the morning until eight 
 at night, the conflict raged on the right without interruption. 
 From our position we could see nothing ; a dense cloud of smoke 
 enveloped the field, from whence rolled up to us the awful din 
 of battle. Beneath that smoke enwrapped landscape we knew 
 our brothers loyal and true, were fighting for the good cause, but 
 no lines of gray or blue uniformed men could be seen or move 
 ments of troops as the battle surged to and fro, and positions 
 
160 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 were either lost or won. Long after darkness had canopied the 
 earth the bloody tournament continued ; the flashing of guns as 
 vivid as lightning, the deafening war reverberating among the 
 hills, formed a panorama of sights and sounds never to be for 
 gotten. 
 
 The sun was sinking below the horizon when the 36th was 
 ordered to the right to support the bleeding columns that were 
 maintaining the desperate conflict. We marched to a cornfield 
 contiguous to the enemy s position, and remained there until one 
 o clock in the morning. No fires were lighted, for we knew the 
 enemy was near in unknown numbers, and the glimmer of the 
 feeblest spire of flame might light us on to destruction. We 
 heard the tread of their sentries and the low hum of conversation 
 but a few yards away, and subsequently learned that five Con 
 federate regiments were bivouacked not twenty yards distant. 
 The weary men lay down upon the damp ground, with no cover 
 ing except the hazy sky, and slept soundly, though chilled by the 
 frosty night air. On the left a glorious victory had been 
 achieved. The right, though shattered and driven a half mile 
 back from their position in the morning, were not disheartened, 
 and with a lew regiments to aid their stroke might be able to 
 inflict a blow that would be fatal to rebel hopes of victory. But 
 a few hundred yards intervened between the two armies as they 
 lay down to rest, or made fresh preparations for renewing the 
 struggle in the morning. The dead and many of the wounded 
 were left where they fell. Some of the regiments were terribly 
 reduced in numbers, and many in Carr s division, where the 
 conflict had" been more severe, were oppressed with doubts as to 
 the final result. The night was rendered more sombre by the 
 pitiful braying of mules and horses, which for twenty-four hours 
 had been without forage or water. Neither had the men tasted 
 
MIDNIGHT AFTER THE BATTLE. 161 
 
 food or water since the early morning, and between hunger, cold 
 and fatigue were not in exuberant spirits. 
 
 At midnight the division commanders assembled at the Com 
 manding General s quarters, and reported the condition and 
 strength of their respective commands, together with such opin 
 ions and advice as to future operations as their present condition 
 and previous experience suggested. Carr and Asboth, in view 
 of their thinned ranks and the rude treatment they had received, 
 were filled with gloomy forebodings, while Davis, Sigel and Oster- 
 haus, whose losses had been small, were hopeful and confident. 
 From the verbal reports of his subordinates, Gen. Curtis was 
 able to grasp the whole situation, and believed that by a contrac 
 tion of his lines and a combined effort of the whole army upon 
 the heights about the Elk-Horn, the contest would no longer be 
 a doubtful one, but that victory would speedily result. In pur 
 suance of this object all the troops were called in and new posi 
 tions assigned which embraced a line of battle of less than half 
 the extent of that of the preceding day. 
 
 Accordingly at 1 o clock A. M. the order was passed in whis 
 pers to proceed to the telegraph road, and we silently left our 
 position in the field, groping our way among the deadened corn 
 stalks, clambering over fences, meandering through woods, falling 
 over logs, ascending steep hills and crossing ravines, until after 
 an hour s painful marching we reached the road, near where a 
 muddy rivulet trickled by. We rushed to the banks, and, lying 
 prostrate upon the earth, quaffed great draughts of the precious 
 beverage and found refreshment and vigor in its cooling waters, 
 the whole brigade brightening up under its invigorating influ 
 ence. 
 
 Soon little impromptu camp fires were blazing in the hollows ; 
 frying pans and bake kettles, borrowed from other commands, 
 
162 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 were brought into requisition, and a few hastily and half-baked 
 flap-jacks, made of flour and water, were the first morsels of 
 food which had passed our lips for nearly twenty-four hours. 
 This, in a measure, appeased our ravenous hunger, after which 
 a craving for rest was gratified by an hour s sleep upon the 
 muddy ground. The damp, cold air, and a want of blankets 
 and sufficient clothing, rendered this a most chilly and restless 
 affair. This dumping down by the roadside is not suggestive of 
 special comfort, but we were thoroughly tired out, and had 
 reached a point where sleep, however uncomfortable, was a 
 necessity. 
 
 No one removed his sword or separated himself from his gun. 
 Horses stood saddled, ready for instant service. The mules 
 continued their braying. Pickets stood with eyes and ears open, 
 ready to give warning should a night attack be attempted. 
 Such as could not readily close their eyes in sleep, looked up 
 through the branching tree tops to the sky arching over all, and 
 the stars moving calmly on their appointed way, and thought of 
 the utter absurdity and wickedness of this whole game of war. 
 Within an area of two square miles lay thirty-five thousand men ; 
 some stiff and stark, looking with visionless eyes up into the 
 pitying heavens ; some tossing in agony on hospital beds or 
 lying maimed and bleeding under the trees, while yet other 
 thousands were hugging in their sleep the weapons with which 
 to-morrow they were to renew the work of death. Bound up 
 with the lives and safety of these thousands was that of other 
 thousands at the home firesides, and far beyond and over all the 
 fate of our country. And here comes in the moral and patriotic 
 elements of war, to which animal passions, strength and skill 
 must be subservient. Looking at the subject in this light, no 
 doubts disturb us as to our duty to stand up and fight it out to 
 
SECOND DAY OF THE BATTLE. 163 
 
 the bitter end; and, notwithstanding our contempt and horror 
 of war, we must, in view of all the mighty interests at stake, 
 feel that we were in the right place on this blood-stained battle 
 field. With such thoughts crowding upon the brain, sleep comes 
 at length, and another long day was over. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 BATTLE OP PEA RIDGE SECOND DAY. 
 
 THE morning of the 8th, before it was fully 
 light, we were aroused and homeopathic doses 
 of flap-jacks served to the men, who then pro 
 ceeded to make ready for whatever hardship, 
 trial and endurance the day should demand. 
 The smoke of yesterday s conflict hung in 
 drapery folds over field, woodland and mountain, and there being 
 no breeze to drive it away, the sun appeared dim and red, and 
 shone with a mellow radiance through the drifting sheen. 
 
 While sitting around the camp-fires, and, like Tantalus of the 
 classic myth, looking and longing for a more substantial break 
 fast than the one which had been meted out to us, suddenly from 
 out the smoky mist came the report of a cannon, followed by a 
 bursting thunderbolt, and so near as to seem within the pre 
 cincts of the camp. Then followed explosion after explosion in 
 quick succession, while whizzing balls and fiery shell winged 
 
164 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 their doleful way through the air, clipping the leafless twigs 
 from the trees just over our heads and striking a hundred yards 
 beyond. Our batteries galloped up the road, the guns were 
 unlimbered, the horses brought back fifty paces to the rear, and 
 in an instant roared forth an answer to the morning salutation 
 accorded us. Shot answered shot, and battery after battery 
 mingled in the thunders of the hour. 
 
 Their guns lowered, their range and shot were dropping within 
 the bounds of camp, too uncomfortably near to render our posi 
 tion one of entire safety. A shell exploded in the midst of a 
 camp-fire, around which a score of the men of Company K were 
 sitting, and flaming brands, earth and ashes were scattered pro 
 miscuously over the dismayed and startled group, who sud 
 denly recollected that they had urgent business in other portions 
 of the wood. 
 
 Swiftly from regiment to regiment the order was passed to 
 advance. The men sprang to their feet, grasped their muskets 
 and fell into the moving lines. Field officers, worn out by 
 fatigue, roused themselves, were soon in the saddle, at the head 
 of columns with which the woods seemed alive, all moving in 
 perfect order towards, and not away from the enemy. 
 
 The Second Brigade, including the 36th Illinois, formed by 
 the roadside; its field officers lead the way, and hurrying up the 
 road it neared the sulphurous field where the continuous roll of 
 cannon told us that no idle hands were at the work. Leaving 
 the road, we filed to the left and passed close along the rear of 
 batteries planted in the edge of the fields and pouring a respons 
 ive fire to the guns of the enemy, which from the heights looked 
 frowningly down upon us. Behind the batteries and iu the edge 
 of the timber large bodies of troops were forming in line of bat 
 tle, and as we rushed past them at a double quick, cheer upon 
 
COOLNESS OF GENERAL SIGEL. 165 
 
 cheer greeted and encouraged us. We moved up a wooded slope, 
 while on galloped the batteries to the top of the ascent ; then 
 wheeling to the north we entered the field, and advancing in 
 line over the rough ground a hundred yards or more, the 
 guns were un limbered and added their thunders to the volcano 
 of noise, causing the very earth to tremble. Our line was 
 formed on the left of those already on the ground ; regiment 
 after regiment arrived arid were added to the blue line of infantry 
 stretching away to the left, while at frequent intervals batteries 
 were planted, and at once it seemed as if a mile of sheeted 
 lightning was leaping from black-mouthed cannon and a murder 
 ous rush of hissing missiles hurled into the dense masses of the 
 enemy who were now in plain sight before us. Never were guns 
 more admirably handled than those which all along the line were 
 shaking the earth with one continuous and tremendous peal that 
 seemed the prolonged howl of a hundred thunder storms mingled 
 into one There were moments when the firing would slacken, 
 when, perhaps, a single gun away off to the right or left would 
 be heard ; then the roar of half a dozen in succession, so quick 
 that each succeeding wave of sound lapped on the preceding one. 
 Then the lapping would become indistinguishable, and the whole 
 forty guns would be wreathed in volumes of smoke and flame, 
 the thunders of each merged in one terrific volume. 
 
 In this sulphurous atmosphere Sigel was perfectly at hotae, 
 and utterly regardless of the balls which were hailing around 
 him, he rode from battery to battery, encouraging the men and 
 giving his directions as coolly as if on parade. Dismounting 
 from his horse, he personally sighted the pieces, directed where 
 to fire, and by his example induced the gunners to redouble 
 their efforts, thus sweeping the ground with such an incessant 
 
166 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 storm of iron that the enemy dared not advance in a decisive 
 charge across the open fields. 
 
 But our batteries had not an entire monopoly of the awful 
 thunders of the day. The fatal precision with which the enemy s 
 shot came tearing through our ranks told us that the opposing 
 batteries were not handled by novices in the art of war. The 
 infantry were ordered to lie down on their arms a few yards in 
 rear of the artillery; and while lying thus upon their faces, 
 closely hugging the ground in vain endeavors to escape the storm 
 of shot which was raining around, a solid shot ricochets over 
 the field and through the dry corn stalks, and passing within a 
 few inches of Col. Greusel s bead, for a moment paralyzed and 
 forced him half way to the earth; then with a dull thud it 
 plunged in the midst of Company E, and was buried a foot 
 beneath the surface, in its passage killing private Ray instantly. 
 
 It soon became evident that the rebel lines were shaken by 
 the superior accuracy of our fire, and save an occasional shot, 
 one after another of their batteries were silenced. One, how 
 ever, situated in front of a belt of timber near the Elk-Horn, 
 persistently kept up the cannonade, with scarcely a moment s 
 intermission for three hours, directing its fire upon the right of 
 our line, firing shell and round shot with immense rapidity and 
 such good aim that most of the casualties in this part of the 
 field were caused by this, Woodworth s Arkansas battery. 
 
 As the enemy s fire began to slacken, skirmishers were sent 
 out, and the whole line advanced until the now wavering ranks 
 of the enemy were within close range, when the batteries again 
 opened upon them with terrible effect. They abandoned the 
 fields and swarmed up the heights to the rear of the first position, 
 which was fairly blackened with their batallions, pouring a 
 heavy fire of musketry down upon the unprotected heads of our 
 
FLIGHT OF THE CONFEDERATE ARMY. 167 
 
 skirmishers as they advanced gallantly to the foot of the rocky 
 battlements in splendid order, their long ranged, rifled minnies 
 doing fearful execution at a distance which the squirrel-rifles 
 and double-barreled shot-guns of the enemy could not reach. 
 At 10 o clock A. M. the Confederate forces seemed to be breaking 
 up and scattering in every direction, and whenever a flying 
 squadron could be detected within range, a few shells launched 
 in their midst would give an additional impetus to their flight, 
 while cheer upon cheer went up from our ranks as we saw them 
 wildly scatter on receipt of a message from the guns. 
 
 A rocky and almost inaccessible point three-fourths of a mile 
 in front was persistently held against all efforts of the skirmish 
 ers to dislodge them. Then the guns were elevated and screaming 
 shells bursting in their midst scattered masses of earth and rock 
 mingled with the shattered remains of men and horses which 
 were tossed in the air and lodged in the branches of the trees. 
 Not long could they stand the storm which swept them as with 
 the besom of destruction, arid those who survived the wholesale 
 massacre sought shelter from the deadly effect of the guns by 
 retreating into the woods and down the opposite slopes. We 
 were told that at this point two shells bursting in the center of 
 a compact mass of human beings, killed and wounded sixty of 
 their number. The line then rapidly advanced, cheering as they 
 went, the whole army wild with a delirium of joy. Our right 
 encountered a scattering fire of musketry which rather acceler 
 ated than impeded the charge, and then the last remains of the 
 rebel army were put to flight. Battle flags, guns and prisoners 
 were taken, but not a hostile shot broke in upon the shouting 
 which rent the air. 
 
 The 36th Illinois reached the foot of the rocky parapet, -the 
 last strong-hold occupied by the enemy, its precipitous sides pre- 
 
168 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 senting an impassible barrier. But to the left a narrow passage 
 was found by which the cliffs were scaled and their summits 
 reached. Great God ! what a scene was there presented ! The 
 mangled trunks of men lay thickly scattered around, and so close 
 as to require the utmost care to avoid stepping on their cold 
 remains. From each tree or sheltering nook the groans of the 
 wounded arose, w r hile muskets, saddles, horses, blankets, hats and 
 clothes, hung in shreds from every bush or in gory masses cum 
 bered the ground. Then ten thousand wild cheers from valley 
 and hill-top, from field and wood-land, proclaimed the victory 
 ours. 
 
 As we moved down the northern slopes of the ridge we found 
 the smouldering camp-fires, remains of half eaten breakfasts, 
 sacks of flour, sides of bacon, blankets, old hats, guns, and other 
 paraphernalia pertaining to soldiers, scattered about the woods in 
 wild confusion. What remained of the evening s repast was 
 devoured by our hungry men, who, seizing upon everything eat 
 able, greedily crammed it down their throats as they marched 
 along. Reaching the telegraph road, the two wings of the army 
 met at the head of Cross Hollows, and officers and men shouted 
 themselves hoarse. Gladness beamed from every countenance ; 
 all were feeling well. Sigel s eye had a less nervous and more 
 joyous twinkle than when, an hour ago, he was sighting the guns 
 which had caused the wrecks lying all around us. Asboth s stoic 
 face for once was wreathed with smiles ; and Osterhaus, never 
 more jolly or at home than on the battlefield, was overflowing 
 with encomiums upon " der prave poys," and expressions of 
 entire satisfaction with the result ; while towering over all was 
 the massive brow and stalwart form of noble Curtis, who, in sten 
 torian tones, congratulated the army upon the glorious victory it 
 had achieved, and ordered a swift pursuit of the flying enemy. 
 
THE PURSUIT AND BATTLE FIELD. 169 
 
 In the gladness which ruled the hour, the wrecks of humanity 
 thickly scattered in field and wood were not neglected ; and Federal 
 soldiers shared the contents of their canteens with thirsty wounded 
 Confederates. The fierce passions which animated them an hour 
 before, while panting for each other s blood, had subsided, and 
 pity for the maimed supplanted the feelings of hate and fury. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 THE PURSUIT AND BATTLE-FIELD. 
 
 if 
 
 /jlHORT were the moments allowed for congratula 
 tion, for Sigel was ordered to continue the pur 
 suit on the Keitsville road, up which a consid 
 erable force, with that portion of their artillery 
 which the enemy had succeeded in saving, were 
 in full retreat. At every side ravine and forest 
 path little detachments filtered away from the demoralized rabble 
 surging in terror through Cross Timbers Hollow, leaving by the 
 wayside muskets, blankets, and every possible article which could 
 encumber their flight, so that on their arrival and passage through 
 Keitsville scarcely enough men remained to drive the horses 
 attached to the guns. 
 
 12 
 
170 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Three days of constant fighting, the weary watches of the 
 succeeding nights, the heat, dust, fatigue, and above all, the hun 
 ger of the men composing the pursuing column, rendered the 
 forced march of twelve miles extremely tiresome and depressing ; 
 and with all the efforts we were able to put forth, the retreating 
 squadrons of the Confederate army could not be overtaken. 
 Night coming on. we bivouacked in the valley a short distance 
 below Keitsville. and hungry, cross and supperless, stretched our 
 weary limbs upon the ground and slept soundly. 
 
 The march was resumed the next morning and continued to 
 Keitsville; the 36th having in charge three or four hundred 
 rebel prisoners who had been captured at various periods in the 
 progress of the battle. Among them was Col. Hebard, of the 
 3rd Louisiana, and Billy Price, a nephew of the Confederate 
 general, then a member of the so-called Confederate Congress. 
 His answers to the multitude of questions with which his captors, 
 Yankee like, assailed him, were sharp, intelligent, and as keen 
 as a rapier. By this time all hopes of overtaking the enemy 
 were abandoned. The prisoners were sent to Springfield under 
 guard, while the command retraced its steps to the valley and 
 halted during a severe rain storm, which saturated our clothing, 
 filled the rivulets to overflowing, and changed the road to a 
 quagmire. 
 
 We were here joined by Major Conrad, with his detachment, 
 which had left Cassville in the morning, Company F again taking 
 its position in the regiment. The arrival of a provision train 
 under their escort was most opportune, and it was good to see 
 with what thorough zest and enjoyment the half famished soldiers 
 devoured their hardtack and bacon. After the storm had sub 
 sided, we proceeded to Pea Ridge and encamped in the woods on 
 
BURYING THE DEAD. 171 
 
 the banks of a rivulet, the -cooling waters of which had satiated 
 our thirst on the night of the 7th. 
 
 How it was possible for the whole vast Confederate army to 
 slip so completely through our fingers with the capture of only a 
 few hundred stragglers, was a matter of surprise to all, for at the 
 time the last gun was fired, vast numbers were observed scatter 
 ing in every direction and vanishing among the hills. Although 
 the pursuit was instantaneous, no considerable numbers were 
 afterward seen, and from seven to eight hundred comprised all 
 the prisoners captured during the engagement, not including the 
 wounded who were left in our hands. 
 
 Meanwhile burial parties were detailed from the various regi 
 ments, who traversed the length and breadth of the late battle 
 field, to its remotest corners and where the hottest fury of 
 man s wrath had expended itself, gathering up the remains of 
 the dead and putting them quietly away to rest side by side in 
 common and nameless graves. Along the position occupied by 
 Dodge s brigade, and all through the cornfields about the Elk- 
 Horn, where Carr had so long maintained the fearful contest, 
 thickly lay the defaced and broken human caskets, emptied of all 
 that made them manlike, and so blackened, repulsive and dis 
 torted as scarcely to retain a semblance of humanity. 
 
 The ground was thickly strewn with arms, knapsacks, cartridge 
 boxes, clothing, the carcasses of horses, and thousands of shot 
 and shell. Go where you would, through field, wood, ravine or 
 over mountain, the walk would be amid the debris of battle and 
 the dead, until the heart grew sick and faint with horror. Here 
 was a lifeless trunk, the head of which had been blown entirely 
 away ; the limbs of some were torn from the bodies, while others 
 were perforated with shot. So ended the career of hundreds, 
 the beloved of many a sad and breaking heart, who were buried 
 
172 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 with no headstones to mark the place where rest their sleeping 
 ashes. 
 
 Climbing the rocky citadel behind the Elk-Horn, where our 
 broadsides swept their ranks with destruction, scores of Confed 
 erate dead lay in every conceivable attitude ; some grasping their 
 muskets with a look of stern defiance indelibly stamped upon 
 their faces, while the features of others told of the horror and 
 despair which filled their souls when the fatal missile struck them. 
 Some lay in positions of calm repose, the expression of their 
 countenances calling forth words of tenderness and respect from 
 the burial parties, who knew that away off yonder in some South 
 ern home the heart of wife or mother was wrung with anguish 
 over the sad results of this fearful game of war. Not for these 
 mangled forms need we reserve our pity, but for the broken home 
 circles, of which the cold remains before us once formed a valued 
 link. The widow, the orphan, the lover, these claim our pity, 
 sorrow and tears. 
 
 Aside from the dead, the whole plateau bore fearful evidences 
 of the severity of the strife. In the wood every tree was pierced 
 with shot or cut with bullets, gashed and scarred as if riven by 
 the fiercest lightning. Some were bereft of branches, and the 
 trunks of others, more than two feet in diameter, penetrated 
 through and through. Not a fence remained, not a building, but 
 was wrenched from its foundation with bursting shell, or scarred 
 and battered with bullets; not a field but that been plowed with 
 artillery, its soil moistened with the life-blood of heroes, or trod 
 den by armed and desperate men no spot but that carried its 
 mute testimonial of the awful conflict which for two days raged 
 over the now historic field of Pea Ridge. 
 
 Soon after the termination of the conflict a flag of truce was 
 received from Van Dorn, accompanied by a burial party, asking 
 
A COMPLETE SURPRISE. 173 
 
 permission to collect and bury their dead, and the request was 
 granted a task, which, from the rugged nature of the country, 
 the wide range of the conflict, and the dense thickets where 
 many had crawled away to die, was rendered particularly difficult. 
 
 Our pursuing columns had not yet returned, and but few knew 
 of the presence of this party. The next day, while numbers of 
 men, by permission, were ranging the fields and woodland in 
 search of lost comrades, or to gratify an inordinate curiosity and 
 collect mementoes of their first battle, they came suddenly upon 
 the Confederate burial party ; mistaking them for the advance 
 guard of an armed force, they broke for camp, franticly shouting 
 as they ran that the Rebels were upon us in countless numbers. 
 Quickly the alarm spread to other parties, and soon the whole 
 vast concourse of stragglers were madly rushing through the 
 cornfields and brush from every quarter toward their respective 
 camps. The bugles sounded the alarm ; drums beat to arms ; 
 lines of battle were formed ; batteries wheeled into position ; 
 cavalry horses saddled ready for instant use, and officers with 
 field glasses galloped hither and thither to reconnoitre the coun 
 try and determine the strength of the approaching force. 
 
 No surprise was ever more complete than that which came over 
 our terrified men whose imaginations magnified the numbers of 
 the peaceable burial party in the quiet performance of their 
 humane task, into countless thousands of infuriated enemies, 
 thirsting for Federal blood. This ripple of excitement having 
 passed away, the equinimity of the men was restored, and they 
 proceeded quietly to the performance of their respective duties. 
 
 Hospital tents were erected in eligible positions convenient to 
 wood and water, where the wounded were collected and their 
 sores began to heal under the assiduous attention of the Surgeons. 
 The wounded of the 36th were gathered at Leetown, some in 
 
174 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 tents, others in a vacant storehouse, and volunteer nurses from 
 every company watched over and ministered to their wants. 
 
 Our losses in the series of engagements at Bentonville and 
 Pea Ridge numbered 1351 men, of which 203 were killed. 
 Among the wounded were Gen. Asboth and Col. Dodge, while 
 Cols. Chandler and Herron were wounded and taken prisoners. 
 
 The enemy s loss in killed, according to the reports of the 
 burial parties, was about 600. Many, however, of their severely 
 wounded, who crawled to secluded corners in the thickets and 
 died, were not found, and for weeks their festering corpses tainted 
 the air and furnished food for birds and beasts of prey. Among 
 their unburied dead were seventy Indians, whose atrocities on the 
 field of battle were too keenly remembered for us to administer 
 the rites of sepulture, and as their white allies did not do it, their 
 flesh served as food for crow s, their bones scattered and left to 
 whiten in the sun. 
 
 Among their dead were Generals McCulloch, Mclntosh, 
 Clarkson and Slack, and many officers of lesser note. 
 
 The following comprised the killed and wounded of the 36th 
 Illinois. 
 
 COMPANY A. 
 
 Charles G. Cox, shot in the thigh. 
 
 COMPANY B. 
 
 Ernest Ansorg, wounded. C. M. Kemble, wounded. 
 
 George Miller, wounded. Wm. L. Campbell, wounded. 
 
 James Eddy, wounded. Robert N. Thompson, wounded. 
 
 Thomas Boyd, wounded. Oliver Brownlee, wounded. 
 Wm. Van Ohlen, wounded. 
 
 COMPANY C. 
 
 John H. Harris, killed. William P. Criswell, arm, slightly. 
 
 William M. Gibson, arm shot off. 
 
 COMPANY D. 
 
 Andrew Scofield, arm, severely. 
 
 COMPANY E. 
 
 Ira Fuller, killed. John Ray, killed. 
 
LIST OF KILLED AND WOUNDED. 175 
 
 COMPANY F. 
 
 Paul Stevenson, killed. Abel Christopherson, shot in leg 
 
 Walter E. Partridge, shot in arm. 
 
 COMPANY G. 
 
 Sergt. J. A. Dispennet, shot in leg. Thomas Olson, killed. 
 
 Corp. Win. M. Stitt, shot in ankle. Lewis Jones, shot in leg. 
 
 David Bard well, shot in thigh. Charles Pratt, shot in arm. 
 
 Alexander Stitt, shot in lungs. Seth Slyter, shot in heel. 
 
 Edward Lyon, shot in leg. Franklin Small, shot in arm. 
 
 Thomas Malcolm, shot in hand. John Corkins, shot in arm. 
 Dison Clark, shot in ankle and arm. 
 
 COMPANY H. 
 
 Orrin Pickett, killed. Alviu Bunker, wounded in thigh. 
 
 Cornelius Kimplin, killed Jackson Conroe, wounded in 
 
 Charles E. Owels, wounded in foot. shoulder. 
 
 COMPANY 1. 
 
 Frederick Witzkie, wounded. Michael Manning, wounded. 
 
 COMPANY K. 
 
 Sam l McCartney, wounded in head. Henry Holmes, wounded in arm. 
 Benj. Simmons, wounded in arm. Frances Sampson, wounded in leg. 
 Jas. McCrarey, wounded in side. Edw d May berry, wounded in leg. 
 Total, six killed and thirty-two wounded. 
 
 The following extract from the report of Col. Greusel, com 
 manding the Second Brigade, gives a complete summary of the 
 part taken by the 36th Illinois in connection with the other reg 
 iments participating in the actions of Bentonville and Pea Ridge, 
 which was dated at Pea Ridge March 12th, 1862, and directed 
 to Col. Osterhaus, commanding the First Division. 
 COL. GREUSEL S REPORT. 
 
 MARCH 6TH. I received your order to march the brigade back 
 to your assistance from Sugar Creek about 2 o clock in the after 
 noon, and immediately halted the regiments and batteries on the 
 road and marched them back on the double quick about three 
 miles, where I found you hotly pursued by the cavalry and 
 artillery of the enemy. I formed the 36th Illinois regiment in 
 line of battle until you gave the order to fall back slowly for a 
 mile, where I reformed four companies in ambush and marched 
 the other six companies one mile east and formed them in line. 
 
176 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 The enemy having given up the pursuit, I re-formed the regiment 
 and marched to camp on Sugar Creek, the 12th Missouri Vol 
 unteers bringing up the rear, under Major Wanglin, whose horse 
 was wounded in the retreat. 
 
 MARCH TTH. I received your orders at 8 o clock A. M., and 
 marched two regiments of infantry, Capt. Hoffman s battery and 
 three twelve-pound howitzers of Capt. Welfley s battery in an 
 open field or farm a little north of Leetown, where I formed the 
 36th Illinois regiment on the left, Hoffman s battery next on the 
 right, the 12th Missouri on the right of Hoffman s .battery. 
 Three pieces of Welfley s battery supported by Company E of 
 the 36th Illinois. 
 
 Previous to the arrival of my command on the field, the 3rd 
 Iowa, the 1st Missouri cavalry and the Benton Huzzars, with two 
 pieces of Welfley s battery, had charged the cavalry and infantry 
 of the enemy in a cleared field about half a mile from our posi 
 tion. Just as the 36th Illinois Volunteers got into line, and 
 while the 12th Missouri was forming, the cavalry commenced a 
 precipitate and disorderly retreat which threatened a general 
 stampede. It was a critical moment, and on the courage and 
 firmness of the infantry depended our success. The officers, by 
 their good example, inspired confidence in the men, the 36th 
 Illinois and 12th Missouri standing their ground like veteran 
 soldiers and preventing a disgraceful rout. Two pieces of artillery 
 arid one of Welfley s howitzers were left on the field, but Capt. 
 Welfley succeeded in spiking them before he retired. These 
 pieces were afterwards recovered by Company E of the 36th 
 Illinois Volunteers. 
 
 It is to be regretted that the men attached to these guns were 
 compelled to leave them by our own cavalry, who rode down, 
 indiscriminately, men and horses, eight of Welfley s men having 
 been severely injured by them. At the moment the last of our 
 cavalry left the field, I opened a brisk fire of shell and shot in 
 the bushes occupied by the enemy, which prevented them from 
 following up the retreat of the cavalry. This fire was kept up 
 for an hour and returned by them. 
 
COL. GREUSEL S REPORT. 177 
 
 At this time my attention was directed to a high and steep 
 hill on my right and about a mile distant from our line. I 
 believed it to be the place selected by the Confederate command 
 ers from which to direct the movements of their troops and to 
 reconnoitre ours. I directed Lieut. Beneca s section of Wel- 
 fley s battery to shell that point, causing them to disperse in 
 double quick time. 
 
 My attention was now called to several regiments of infantry 
 in our front and immediately opposite the 36th Illinois Volun 
 teers, whereupon I threw out Companies B and G of that regi 
 ment as skirmishers. These companies crossed the field, and on 
 entering the timber discovered the enemy in ambush three reg 
 iments drawn up in line and others formed in square, evidently 
 expecting another attack from our cavalry. A rapid fire was 
 opened up by the enemy and returned by the skirmishers, which 
 was kept up for fifteen minutes. Finding that they were wasting 
 ammunition to but little purpose, the skirmishers retired in good 
 order, with a loss of twenty wounded thirteen in Company G 
 and seven in Company B. 
 
 It was during this skirmish that an officer on horseback, who 
 afterwards was found to be Gen. Ben. McCulloch, was shot dead 
 by Peter Pelican, of Company B of the 36th Illinois Volunteers. 
 The dress worn by the officer was a black velvet coat, vest and 
 pants, long boots and white felt hat. 
 
 After the skirmishers retired I ordered shot and shell to be 
 sent among the ambushed enemy, and then moved the 36th Illi 
 nois Volunteers forward, but the enemy retreated to a fence and 
 thick underbrush, from whence they were shelled and scattered 
 in great confusion. After the enemy fled I returned with the 
 command to its first position. 
 
 At this time the 37th Illinois Volunteers, which were formed 
 to my right, was attacked with great fury, and a heavy fire of 
 musketry poured into the ranks of the 18th and 22nd Indiana 
 regiments. This fire was returned by them in conjunction with 
 the 12th Missouri, which did good execution and at last forced 
 the enemy to retire with great loss. The 36th Illinois and 12th 
 
178 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Missouri then skirmished the woods and fields over an area of a 
 mile square, taking several prisoners, after which, in accordance 
 with your orders, I removed my command to a field about two 
 miles in advance of our position of the morning, where we 
 remained until midnight, when your orders were received to 
 inarch to the Keitsville road, where we remained until the next 
 morning. My command having had nothing to eat or drink for 
 near twenty-four hours, and neither shelter or blankets during 
 the night, suffered greatly from fatigue and exposure. 
 
 MARCH STH. At 7 o clock A. M., the enemy having com 
 menced firing shot and shell, I received your orders to "fall in," 
 and marched to an open field about a mile in advance, where I 
 formed my command in the following order: Welfley s battery 
 on the right, joined by the 12th Missouri ; Hoffman s battery 
 and the 36th Illinois on the left, in close column, by divisions. 
 Having been informed that a cavalry attack would be made upon 
 us, we were prepared at any moment to form a square. 
 
 The enemy fired shot and shell while we were forming, and 
 kept up a heavy fire for about two hours, which was briskly 
 returned by our batteries until the rebel guns were silenced or 
 ceased firing. After this I discovered several regiments of the 
 enemy s infantry on the high hills in advance, and directed two 
 companies from the 12th Missouri and from the 36th Illinois, 
 which I increased to four from each of these regiments, to skir 
 mish the fields and hill slopes. The skirmishers advanced in 
 splendid style and drove the enemy before them, those of the 
 12th Missouri capturing three guns and a very fine silk Confed 
 erate flag from the Dallas battery. 
 
 At this time (10 o clock A. M.) the 17th Missouri joined the 
 brigade and the whole command moved forward, skirmishing to 
 the telegraph road, repulsing the enemy, taking a number of 
 prisoners and guns, a quantity of ammunition, flour and salt. 
 From this advanced point, in accordance with your order, we 
 followed up the repulsed and retreating rebel army rapidly for 
 eight or ten miles, when we went into camp for the night. After 
 this we saw no more of the rebel army, they having dispersed in 
 all directions as they fled before our victorious columns. 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 CONRAD S EXPEDITION RECUPERATING. 
 
 OR A number of days prior to the advance of 
 the main Confederate army, roving mounted 
 bands of reckless men traversed the country 
 and showed great activity in their predatory 
 incursions. Now they were hovering about 
 our flanks, menacing the camps, harassing 
 foraging parties, picking up stragglers, and perhaps the succeed 
 ing day or night the same bands would be heard from far in our 
 rear, vexing the posts or trains and interfering with our com 
 munications. A thousand rumors were rife of an intended 
 advance in force, but the report which gained most credence was 
 to the effect that large numbers of Price s followers were drifting 
 back into Missouri, passing our flank along the State line road 
 for the purpose of demonstrating on our line of communication. 
 The night attack upon Keitsville, the acts of lawlessness and of 
 murder in the neighborhood of Cassville, together with the appar 
 ent ease with which these marauders traversed the woods, hills 
 and valleys in the perpetration of their outrages, strengthened 
 and gave color to such a belief. 
 
180 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 To gain definite information of these reported movements, 
 Major Conrad, of the 3rd Missouri Cavalry, was placed in com 
 mand of a reconnoitering expedition, with a force of six companies 
 of infantry, a section of artillery and sixty cavalry. They pro 
 ceeded from the camp near Bentonville on the morning of the 
 5th of March. Among the troops detailed for the expedition 
 was Company F of the 36th Illinois Volunteers. 
 
 The weather was just cold enough for comfortable marching, 
 the roads in excellent condition and the men in fine spirits. The 
 first day s march of twenty-five miles was accomplished without 
 fatigue or hardship. The general course pursued was south 
 westerly and west, and on the second day they reached the line 
 road between Arkansas and the Indian Country, which they fol 
 lowed to Marysville, a straggling border village of some note, 
 inhabited by a mixture of whites and Cherokee Indians. The 
 fine prairies of this region was a welcome sight to the men from 
 Illinois, who were reminded of their homes in their own loved 
 prairie State. 
 
 Little squads of mounted horsemen, the outlying pickets of 
 the rebel advance, were observed skurrying over the country, 
 like the mist which heralds the storm, and was the occasion of 
 some lively little cavalry chases, resulting in the capture of six 
 prisoners during the day. But no information was gained of 
 the movement then going on, until the arrival of a messenger 
 from Sigel, telling them of the danger which menaced them, and 
 ordering a rapid return to Bentonville. In attempting to execute 
 that order the command suddenly found themselves nearly sur 
 rounded by largely superior numbers, but favored by the woods 
 and inequalities of the country they finally succeeded in extri 
 cating themselves from the trap into which they had unwittingly 
 entered. 
 
MAJOR CONRAD S EXPEDITION IN DANGER. 181 
 
 A rapid retreat into Missouri was now their only chance for 
 escape, and by making wide detours through the woods, follow 
 ing unfrequented paths and winding among the hills, they man 
 aged to elude the enemy who ranged the country on the outskirts 
 of the battle-field, where a fierce contest was raging within hear 
 ing and almost within sight of their line of retreat. All attempts 
 at reaching the command being thwarted, the expedition directed 
 its march towards Keitsville. All day of the 7th the thunder 
 of cannon was wafted to their ears, and although they were but 
 a few miles away from where the conflict was raging, the whole 
 rebel army lay between them and their comrades, which it was 
 madness to attempt to pass through. Learning something of 
 the strength of the enemy and position of the combatants from 
 the inhabitants of the country, the command reluctantly retired 
 to Keitsville and ultimately to Cassville. The arrival of trains 
 with stores for the army, accompanied by strong escorts, swelled 
 the force at Cassville to one thousand men, a majority of whom 
 were clamorous to be led against the enemy and force their way 
 to the main command. 
 
 Later in the day a slight demonstration was made upon the 
 pickets and one of them killed, which somewhat cooled the ardor 
 of those madcaps, who in -the morning professed to be "spoiling 
 for a fight." Other parties were seen at a distance, and it was 
 thought quite possible that those who wished to exercise their 
 shooting propensities could be gratified without leaving Cassville. 
 The muttering of cannon at Pea Ridge, which was distinctly 
 heard, intensified the excitement, while the absence of news from 
 the scene of conflict caused a state of feverish anxiety and sus 
 pense nearly as trying to the mind and body as though mingling 
 in the dread realities of the battle-field. Rumors of a Federal 
 victory reached Cassville during the night, which were confirmed 
 
182 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 in the morning ; when the command set out for Sugar Creek 
 in charge of the provision trains, joining Sigel s column at Cross 
 Timbers, the whole proceeded to Pea Ridge; the detachment 
 having marched one hundred and fifty miles in five days, without 
 the loss of a man or gun. 
 
 The unwholesome atmosphere at Pea Ridge, caused by the 
 putrefying remains of hundreds of dead horses, induced Gen. 
 Curtis to remove head-quarters as well as the whole army to 
 Camp Stevens, in the valley of Sugar Creek, while Bentonville 
 was occupied by a portion of Davis s Division. Our cavalry 
 penetrated to Fayetteville without opposition, and without seeing 
 a hostile face or hearing an unfriendly word. Foraging parties 
 ranged and partially ravaged the country westward to the Cher 
 okee line, and north to Pineville and beyond, without in a single 
 instance being molested. The late Confederate hosts had melted 
 away like frost before the sunshine, had abandoned the country, 
 while their leaders, gloomy and dejected, had tied. Price to Fort 
 Smith, and Van Dorn to Batesville and Jacksonport, with only 
 shadowy remnants of their once confiding but now despondent 
 followers. Rebellion had received a stunning blow, and for the 
 time being all surface indications proclaimed the sudden collapse 
 of treason in Missouri and North-western Arkansas. 
 
 Arrangements for an exchange of prisoners were effected, by 
 which means Lieut. Walker and twenty-six enlisted men of Com 
 pany B returned to duty. They reported that from the officers 
 and many of the men they received courteous and kindly treat 
 ment, while others heaped upon them the most violent abuse. 
 
 The flight of the Confederates after the battle was as rapid 
 arid tumultuous as their consternation and dismay could make 
 it. All broke for the woods, over the hills and through thickets, 
 avoiding the roads and each other as much as possible. It 
 
ARRIVAL Of REINFORCEMENTS. 183 
 
 seemed like a wild scamper, each endeavoring to reach Van 
 Buren first. While the prisoners were being hurried along, a 
 squad of fugitives rushed by, when one of our boys cried out, 
 " Hello, stranger ; Bull Run number two, aint it?" " No, sir, 
 by G this is A number one," was the response. 
 
 In a few days many of the slightly wounded returned to 
 duty, while those more seriously hurt were removed to Cassville, 
 and when sufficiently recovered to stand the journey, conveyed 
 in ambulances to Rolla, and from thence to their homes with an 
 honorable furlough. Others languished upon beds of pain and 
 were brought very near to the gates of death, % perhaps, after 
 months of intense agony, to be turned out upon the world broken 
 a-nd maimed, a mere wreck of former manhood. 
 
 Among the reinforcements which came to supply the losses of 
 battle and the waste of the campaign, was the 18th Illinois Vol 
 unteers and the 3rd Missouri Infantry, altogether adding to our 
 numbers more than sufficient to repair the losses we had sustained. 
 
 An advance into Arkansas from our present position was for a 
 time contemplated and preparations made accordingly, but the 
 spring rains setting in, the roads became fearfully cut up, ren 
 dering it next to impossible to move the trains. To transport 
 supplies and maintain the long, slender line of communication for 
 any greater distance from our base at Rolla into a country already 
 exhausted, was too hazardous to attempt. Added to this, rumors 
 were current of the concentration of a Confederate force at 
 Pocahontas for the invasion of South-eastern Missouri, which 
 induced Gen. Curtis to withdraw the command into Missouri, to 
 a position favorable for movements in any direction. Accord 
 ingly head-quarters were removed to Cross Timbers, the different 
 regiments dotting the country with their camps from Keitsville 
 to the Arkansas line. 
 
184 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 During the few days of quiet which succeeded the fatigue and 
 excitement of the battle, the most extravagant and untruthful 
 reports prejudicial to officers were circulated through the camps 
 and became topics of common conversation. One which origin 
 ated among the German soldiers was to the effect that, at the 
 close of the second day s fighting, after Carr had been forced 
 back, Gen. Curtis became despondent, and at the subsequent 
 meeting of officers, at midnight, announced his determination to 
 surrender. That it required all the influence of Sigel to dissuade 
 him from that purpose. That thereupon Gen. Curtis turned over 
 the command ,to Sigel, and it was under his supervision and 
 leadership that victory was snatched from an apparent defeat. 
 This report was readily believed by many in the army, was pub 
 lished in the newspapers and scattered broadcast over the country. 
 So general was the belief in the truth of the report, that Col. 
 Vandevere, a personal friend of Gen. Curtis, who knew the utter 
 absurdity and want of truth in the story, directed a letter of 
 enquiry to Gen. Sigel, who promptly responded, as follows : 
 
 HEAD-QUARTERS IST AND 2ND DIVISIONS, 1 
 KEITSVILLE, Mo., MARCH 27, 1862. j 
 
 GENERAL : It is with great displeasure that I have read the 
 letter of Col. Vandevere to Capt. Curtis, your A. A. G., and I 
 will do all in my power to find out the author of an assertion 
 which is, as far as I know, untrue. You did never give the com 
 mand of the army to me, and I regard it as a calumny if it is 
 said that you spoke in my presence about surrendering. This 
 I declare on my honor, and hope that the officers and soldiers of 
 this army will do what they can to preserve the mutual good 
 feeling and good understanding amongst us, instead of creating 
 animosities by forwardness and misrepresentation. 
 
 I am, General, with the greatest respect, yours truly, 
 
 F. SIGEL, Brig. Gen. 
 Major Gen. S. R. CURTIS, 
 
 Commanding army of S. W. 
 
RUNNING FLOUR MILLS FOR THE ARMY. 185 
 
 Now that all personal animosities have subsided, and the object 
 of these calumnies is dead and gone to his reward, we feel sure 
 that before the impartial tribunal of history, the verdict of a 
 grateful people will be that Gen. S. R. Curtis was not found 
 wanting in courage and patriotism in the hour of trial. 
 
 Considerable quantities of grain yet remained in the country, 
 which was taken to the mills and ground for the subsistence of 
 the troops. It was necessary to guard these mills to prevent 
 maraudering bands from interrupting our sources of supply. 
 For this purpose Companies A and C, with detachments from 
 other regiments, under the command of Lieut. Col. Joslyn, 
 were sent to Gadfly, where extensive mills were situated, which 
 were kept running night and day. 
 
 A scouting party from Gadfly penetrated the country to Granby, 
 the center of lead mining operations, where had been produced 
 vast quantities of lead for the use of the Confederate army. 
 The people were known to be intensely hostile, but not an 
 adult male was found at home. Of women and children there 
 were no lack, who represented that the town was inhabited entirely 
 by war widows and orphans, who with mournful pathos repeated 
 the story of their bereavement. One of the soldiers, of an 
 inquiring turn of mind, while peering around the mines for min 
 eral specimens, or for contraband articles of war, accidently cast 
 a stone into one of the shafts, that fell to the bottom with a dull 
 dead thud, as if striking a softer substance than solid rock. 
 Immediately a howl of distress and pain came up from the 
 dark depths of the mine. In answer to a summons to come forth, 
 a gaunt, long-haired Missourian emerged from the earth. The 
 hillsides were honeycombed with mineral shafts, and by probing 
 them with rocks they were made to yield up the mortal remains 
 of the husbands of many of Granby s fair widows, who had not 
 
 13 
 
186 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 so much as a " thank you, sir," for restoring their once dead, now 
 living husbands to their arms. In this way a number of the 
 aiders and abettors of treason were hunted from the holes and 
 marched as prisoners to the Federal lines. 
 
 The hardships of the campaign told fearfully upon the health 
 of many of the officers, who were granted leaves of absence "and 
 returned for a short period to their homes. Among these were 
 Gen. Sigel and Col. Dodge, whose slight, physical frames were 
 riot proof against the excitement of mind and privation of body 
 they had been subjected to. These officers for their gallant deeds 
 were promoted to higher grades of rank, and subsequently 
 assigned to more important fields of action. Indeed, Pea Ridge 
 was a harvest field of honors to meritorious officers, and the 
 mails came laden with promotions and commissions for those 
 whose fame had been trumpeted to the War Department at Wash 
 ington. 
 
 Gen. Curtis was raised from Brigadier to the rank of Major 
 General of Volunteers. Likewise Gen. Sigel, who was assigned 
 to an important command in West Virginia. Those promoted 
 to Brigadiers were Cols. Dodge, Osterhaus, Heron. Benton, 
 Jeff. C. Davis and Carr. Among the officers of the 36th Illi 
 nois who had had enough of war, was Capt. Camp, of Company 
 I and Lieut. Wilson, of Company F, who resigned their commis 
 sions and left the service forever, their places being filled by 0. 
 B. Merrill to the vacant Captaincy, and George G. Biddolph to 
 the position of Lieutenant. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 FROM KBITS VILLE TO CAPE GIRARDEAU. 
 
 HE long, tedious march of the army of the 
 South-west through Southern Missouri and to 
 Batesville in Arkansas, commenced April 5th, 
 the 36th Illinois being among the first to break 
 camp and push on with the advance, reaching 
 Cassville at 11 A. M. and proceeding nearly 
 due east from thence, through a sparsely settled and mountainous 
 country among the spurs of the Ozarks, reaching Flat Creek and 
 camping on its banks near its junction with the James river on 
 the evening of the 6th. The streams were all high and rapid, 
 their waters cold, and clear as crystal. Flat Creek was crossed 
 on a bridge of wagons at Cape Fair, as was the James at Galena, 
 late on the evening of the 7th. Companies A and C marching 
 from Gadfly, overtook and joined the regiment on the 7th. 
 
 The people inhabiting this gloomy and forebidding region of 
 chert hills and pine forests were mostly loyal and Union-loving 
 men, who had contributed generously to the ranks of the loyal 
 Missouri regiments. In the dark dayt< of rebel domination, 
 when the whole South-west was overrun with McCulloch s des 
 peradoes and Price s maraudering hordes, the Union men of 
 
188 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Stone and Barry Counties combined their forces and successfully 
 resisted all attempts to coerce them into the heresy of secession. 
 The skin clad mountaineers, who almost from the cradle had been 
 taught the use of fire arms, hesitated not to use them when the 
 hated minions of secession penetrated their narrow valleys for 
 conscription, plunder or mischief. Some of our most daring 
 scouts and trusty guides were from the poor but loyal inhabitants 
 of this mountain region, pre-eminent among which was Charles 
 Galloway, subsequently Major in the 1st Arkansas Cavalry. 
 
 The first sight which greeted the eyes of Gen. Curtis upon 
 his arrival at Galena, the county seat of Stone County, was a 
 cloud of smoke and crackling flames from a burning building 
 belonging to a loyal Union man, that had been fired by some 
 of the German troops in Osterhaus Division, who were in the 
 advance. The General was indignant at such a wanton and 
 unprovoked outrage, and, notwithstanding it was nearly night 
 and a cold storm setting in, he ordered the division to cross 
 the river, where they were at liberty to indulge their house burn 
 ing propensities upon the grim forest trees. The 36th being 
 attached to this division was included in the order, and as might 
 have been expected there was some grumbling and many hard 
 things said of "Old Curtis" as they crossed the ice cold stream 
 in the darkness, exposed to the pelting of rain and sleet ; and it 
 was ten o clock before the tents were pitched and the men shel 
 tered from the storm. 
 
 The army reached Forsyth, the county seat of Taney County, 
 situated on the north bank of White river, April 10th. The 
 line of march from Cassville was through a country of the 
 most weird and uninviting character, generally over the crests of 
 mountains, now winding along stupendous ridges, skirting ravines 
 of dizzy depths, then up abrupt ascents or between vast heights 
 
CAVALRY SCOUTING FOR DESPERADOES. 189 
 
 and along the rocky channels of mountain torrents, the towering 
 hills scantily clothed with a scraggy growth of oak or crowned 
 by scattering pines, which moaned in the wind like the sad notes 
 of a funeral anthem. From the summits of some of the higher 
 elevations a vast panorama of mountain waves, valleys, streams, 
 rocks and woodland was presented to the enraptured view. 
 
 The arrival of Col. Hassendible, of the 17th Missouri, was 
 the cause of Col. Greusel being relieved from the command of 
 the 2nd Brigade, that officer outranking the latter. The unso 
 phisticated volunteer unacquainted with military etiquette could 
 scarcely reconcile with his ideas of right, the sweeping changes 
 which were sometimes made, by which officers who had led in 
 fatiguing marches and commanded in desperate engagements, 
 gave place to those whose distinguishing traits were absence 
 from places of danger and the sterner duties of the campaign. 
 
 During the occupation of Forsyth the cavalry were engaged 
 in scouting the country and ferreting out bands of desperadoes 
 that were wont to call themselves " Price s men," who depredated 
 upon the surrounding country with a degree of malignity unpar 
 alleled in the annals of crime. A detachment of the 3rd Illinois 
 Cavalry, under Lieut. Col. McCrellis, proceeded to Talbot s 
 ferry, near the mouth of the north fork of White river in 
 Arkansas, and destroyed the saltpetre works in that neighbor 
 hood. Every boat had been removed and secreted in such a 
 manner that only a small dismounted detachment was able to 
 cross the river in a " dug out ;" they dispersed the Rebel guard, 
 broke up the steam engine, kettles and other property, and then 
 fired the buildings, making a complete wreck of everything per 
 taining to the works, without a single casualty or mishap to the 
 command. 
 
190 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 A part of the 4th Iowa Cavalry proceeded down White river 
 in the direction of Yellville, breaking up the ferries and other 
 appliances for crossing the stream ; in the execution of this a 
 number of sharp encounters occurred with the enemy, in one of 
 which a Lieutenant was shot, and in a day or two died. His 
 comrades buried the remains on the crest of a hill, in the midst 
 of a pine forest in Douglas County, Missouri. 
 
 Heavy provision trains came lumbering over the mountains 
 from Springfield, together with reinforcements of troops, which 
 joined the command at Forsyth; among them was the 4th Iowa 
 Cavalry, a full and well equipped regiment of twelve hundred 
 men. 
 
 On the 16th of April the march was resumed in the midst of 
 a rain storm, the column headed eastward, through Tariey. Ozark 
 and Douglas Counties, to West Plains in Ilowell County. Day 
 after Jay the rain came pouring down in unmeasured quantities. 
 The country Avas deluged, the streams filled to overflowing, ren 
 dering a detour necessary, far up among the hills towards their 
 sources, to enable the army to cross the roaring torrents. The 
 passing of men, horses arid vehicles over the execrable roads 
 soon mixed the spongy soil into mortar, through which plashed 
 the slow moving columns of mud-incased horses and men at the 
 rate of less than a mile an hour. A march of ten miles a day 
 was all that could be accomplished by the light armed troops, 
 while batteries were with difficulty dragged along by doubling 
 up their usual teams, and came plowing up the mud in the rear, 
 often not reaching camp until late at night. 
 
 While storrn -bound in one of these camps, an old man, bowed 
 with the weight of years, accompanied with two buxom daugh 
 ters, entered the camp on horseback, with the enquiry : 
 
 ;i Whar s the Gineral ?" 
 
AN OLD PATRIOT IN CAMP. 191 
 
 Being directed to head-quarters the old man dismounted, and 
 grasping the hand of Gen. Curtis he thus addressed him : 
 
 " Gineral, I ve rid twelve miles to see yer. I fit with old 
 Jackson at Orleans, an it does my old eyes good to see yer 
 " follerin arter the bravest man that ever fout, an a holdin up 
 the old flag as he did. My name s William J. Dotson, an I m 
 . " risin of eighty-five years old, but I can give as ginuine a hur- 
 " raa for the kentry as when I was a youngster. We ve had it 
 mighty tough down here ; them secession cusses hev stole 
 " mighty nigh all we ve got, drat em, an the} r ve been ravin an 
 " a tearing around right smart. They ve threatened to shoot 
 "me, but as I m already too old to hev any business above sod, 
 " I tell em to shoot and be dogond. They hung Jack, and they 
 druv Sam away from hum, but the gals are with me yit ; and 
 " when the dogoned secession skunks pull down the flag that I 
 " always keeps a wavin from my cabin, I hev the gals sew 
 <4 another one together an set it flyin agin. But now I ve seen 
 you ons I can go hum and die contented. 
 
 And thus the old patriarch beguiled a pleasant hour with 
 the General in detailing his experience with the " dogoned 
 secesh." The whole staff was impressed with the venerable 
 appearance of the old man, and began to think that these 
 rocks, hills and barren wastes might after all be worth fighting 
 for, as long as such sterling patriots were left to cheer and bless 
 our efforts. 
 
 The 36th Regiment remained for a number of days encamped 
 at Lyon s Mill, the owner of which, being a Union man, gladly 
 allowed his mill to be run in the interest of his country. By 
 this delay they escaped much of the rain and bad roads which 
 the advance divisions encountered, and in three days time 
 marched as far as the other divisions had in ten, overtaking the 
 
192 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 main command^at the crossing of the north fork of White river. 
 While on the march, winding through the deep valleys and 
 traversing the pine clad hills, universally prevalent in this 
 poverty stricken country, a private of Company I, named 
 Martin Rinehart, sickened and died, and was buried by the road 
 side in the depths of the gloomy forest, away from the sight of 
 man, with nothing but the wailing pine to stand guard and watch 
 over his lonely forest grave. 
 
 A halt of two days was made at Salem, the county seat of 
 Fulton County, Arkansas, to rest and recover from the fatigues 
 of the previous march. The little town of Salem nestled 
 romantically among the verdure-clad hills of Northern Arkan 
 sas, smiling in the unfolding beauties of spring. An isolated 
 peak to the north of the village, called Pilot Hill, arose like a 
 sugar loaf to the height of five hundred feet. A view from its 
 summit, over an undulating region of hills, vales, blooming prai 
 ries and smiling woodland, amply repaid for the fatigue of the 
 ascent. The climate was delightful ; the weather warm and 
 spring-like, the sky clear and bright, and the groves were vocal 
 with the melody of a thousand songsters. Overcoats were no 
 longer needed, and the men were permitted to turn them over, 
 together with all superfluous clothing, to the Quarter-Master, a 
 privilege which many gladly availed themselves of. Our pres 
 ence aroused quite a latent Union sentiment, which had until 
 now been forced into silence, and many were the congratulations 
 which greeted our march through the country. 
 
 A detachment under Gen. Asboth, composed mostly of cav 
 alry, with a battery of light artillery and a few regiments of 
 infantry, among which was the 36th Illinois, left Salem at three 
 p. M. May 1st, and pushed rapidly forward towards Batesville, 
 with the intention of surprising and capturing a Rebel force 
 
DISPERSAL OF COLEMAN S MAURAUDERS. 193 
 
 reported to be there, under the command of the notorious Col. 
 Coleman. Gen. Curtis accompanied the expedition, while the 
 remainder of the army were to follow, the succeeding day, 
 in a more leisurely manner. The advance entered Batesville 
 and took quiet possession of the town on the morning of the 3rd 
 of May, capturing a half dozen Confederates, who were not 
 apprised of our presence until summoned to surrender. A large 
 amount of sugar, rice and other stores fell into our hands. 
 
 Col. Coleman was encamped on the opposite side of the river, 
 and a few of his men were seen, as the cavalry came sweeping 
 through town, who took to their heels and imparted infor 
 mation of our presence to their commander. Coleman soon 
 made his appearance with one or two hundred ragged brigands 
 at his heels, who, posting themselves behind trees, logs and an 
 old store house, opened a rapid fire from the opposite side of the 
 river, but at too long a range to be effective. A howitzer was 
 brought up and Bowen tossed over a few shell, which sent them 
 flying. They were observed to carry away four of their 
 number, either killed or wounded, while no one was injured on 
 our side. 
 
 Batesville was by far the most important town that had as yet 
 fallen into our hands. The streets were wide and airy, with 
 good sidewalks, and well built up with substantial business blocks 
 of brick, and scattered here and there were tasty residences, 
 embowered in trees, and from gardens the perfume of roses, then 
 in full bloom, burdened the air. A college building, together 
 with three or four churches with spires pointing heavenward, 
 looked homelike, and to men who for months had been wallow 
 ing in camps or wandering over the fag-ends of creation, it 
 seemed a paradise. The people were well dressed, generally well 
 behaved and intelligent, and for once, had the fates so ordered 
 
194 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 it, the men composing the 36th Illinois would have been con 
 tent in the performance of garrison duty at Batesville. 
 
 People came flocking in scores from the surrounding country 
 to take the oath of allegiance, and obtain protection papers 
 which would secure their persons from insult and their property 
 from confiscation. Many, no doubt, were sincere in their pro 
 fessions of loyalty ; others were heartily tired of war and its 
 attendant woes, and willing to purchase immunity from its 
 dread consequences at any cost. Some who had been the most 
 active aiders and abettors of secession, had stirred up mobs and 
 persecuted Union men with the utmost malignity, were the first 
 to come in with professions of a "change of heart/ and to claim 
 protection from personal harm, immunity from arrest, from a 
 just retribution for past acts of license, rapine and murder, and 
 exemption of their property from confiscation. 
 
 Among those on whose fidelity the General could rely, who 
 never wavered under the most trying circumstances in devo 
 tion to their country, were Judge Elisha Baxter, afterward Gov 
 ernor of the State; C. C. Bliss and Reuben Harpham, of 
 Batesville, and the venerable Isaac Murphy, of Huntsville, who, 
 when the waves of secession broke with fury over the State, 
 carrying away on its eddying tide those on whom the people 
 most depended to stay the rolling flood, had the moral courage 
 and heroism to stand up alone before the seething multitude 
 which thronged the halls and corridors of the convention and 
 steadfastly vote No ! on the passage arid adoption of the ordi 
 nance of secession. A grateful people remembered this grand, 
 heroic act, and subsequently elected him the first Governor of 
 free and reconstructed Arkansas. Then there was Col. James 
 M. Johnson, who for his outspoken Union sentiments became an 
 outcast from his home, but afterwards took an active and prom- 
 
APPROPRIATION OF REBEL MANSIONS. 195 
 
 inent part in the military and political affairs of the State. We 
 might mention many others, but these stood out pre-eminently 
 as honest men, as heroes, statesmen and patriots. 
 
 Some of the spacious but now untenanted mansions, once 
 doubtless the abode of genial hospitality, were unceremoniously 
 seized upon for offices and officers quarters. Empty ware-houses 
 were likewise appropriated for the storage of ordinance or pro 
 visions. It was evident that this profanation of Rebel mansions 
 by the u miserable Yankees" created a ripple of excitement in 
 Rebel circles; but never a word of remonstrance was uttered, 
 only volleys of indignant looks and contemptuous gestures 
 showed that the equanimity of the neighborhood, if not of the 
 now slumbering household gods, was disturbed at the intrusion. 
 As we walked through the streets it was evident that all whom 
 we met were not friends. Somehow a feeling of hatred to 
 wards the North would manifest itself in a thousand different 
 ways. If a flag floated over a sidewalk, some fair dame would 
 sweep out into the street to avoid walking under it. If a comely 
 face at an open window attracted attention, a sudden slamming 
 of window-blinds would ensue ; but as none of the masculine 
 portion of the inhabitants joined in these petty demonstrations, 
 the young men of the 36th put on their best looks and smiled 
 blandly upon the fair daughters of Secessia, while those who had 
 wives at home enjoyed heartily these dashes of Rebel pepper as 
 giving pungency to their experiences. 
 
 While lying lazily in camp at Batesville, the men were inde 
 fatigable in their explorations among the vegetable gardens and 
 poultry yards for means to refurnish their depleted larder. 
 Many articles of prime necessity in the provision department 
 were wanting, and to their credit it may be added they 
 usually returned successful in the object of their reconnoisance. 
 
196 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 By certain mysterious winks and vague hints thrown out by 
 those who were in the secret and understood only by the initiated, 
 it was whispered among those noted for their bibulous proclivi 
 ties, that in the cellar of a certain business house there was 
 secreted a number of suspicious casks, from whence might be 
 extracted a genuine article of corn-juice. Soldiers were seen 
 skulking from camp with empty canteens, and if challenged, 
 were "only just going over to a neighboring farm house for 
 milk." On their return, a suspicious swelling under their 
 shirts announced their success in securing the so-called lacteal 
 fluid. Then came marching orders for the enusing day, and a 
 consequent run upon the source of supply of the precious 
 extract. Among those who were always constitutionally thirsty 
 was Todd, the Drum Major of the 36th, who on this occasion 
 found himself one of a clamorous crowd of thirsty souls col 
 lected around an open window, through which empty canteens 
 and greenback dollars were passed in, and then passed back 
 minus the dollars, but filled with tarantala. Todd was known 
 and addressed as "Major" by the crowd, who at this time 
 was getting numerous as well as boisterous on account of 
 not being served fast enough, and threatened to pull down the 
 shanty about the proprietor s head. He appealed to the "Major" 
 for protection, and thinking the broadness of the stripes deco 
 rating his sleeves was emblematic of highness of rank and a 
 guaranty of integrity, admitted him into his place of business as 
 a precaution against threatened violence. But the "Major s" 
 efforts to placate the crowd were ineffectual, and he advised the 
 proprietor to go to the Provost Marshal for a guard, while he 
 would remain and preserve his goods, chatties and effects from 
 pillage and harm. No sooner was his back turned than a lively 
 sale of the fluid commenced. Todd was busily engaged in pock- 
 
BREAK IN THE WHISKY TKADE. 197 
 
 eting greenbacks when the proprietor returned, accompanied by 
 a genuine Major and a file of soldiers to disperse the noisy rabble. 
 At once the whisky trade was broken. Consternation seized 
 our knight of the drumstick as he saw the shadow of a German 
 Major darkening the door, and in imagination he saw the guard 
 house, a drum head court martial, and a little shooting affair at 
 sunrise. He instantly broke for the rear of the store, sprang 
 through a window and landed fifteen feet in the back yard below, 
 the German Major the while shouting " halt ! halt !" But 
 Todd could not wait. Important business called him away. 
 Every moment he expected a battery of a hundred guns to open 
 upon him, and picking himself up he ran like a deer through 
 back yards, clearing ditches and fences at a bound, until he found 
 himself in his tent, buried from sight, trembling with fear and 
 sweltering beneath a ponderous mass of blankets, knapsacks, etc. 
 
 Meanwhile, at Col. Greusel s request, the 36th was transferred 
 from Osterhaus Division to that of Gen. Asboth. One reason 
 for this change was that the 36th, being the only regiment 
 in the division composed of native Americans, the other troops 
 being Germans, united in charging all the peccadilloes of the 
 division upon the 36th, a proceeding which all were beginning 
 to be heartily tired of. 
 
 A ferry-boat having been constructed and everything in 
 readiness for a forward move upon Little Rock, Asboth s and 
 Osterhaus Divisions crossed White river on the 7th of May, the 
 36th being the first regiment over, and encamped on the south bank 
 of the stream. The regiment had marched about fifteen miles when 
 an order was received to turn back. A requisition had been 
 made upon Gen. Curtis for ten of his best regiments to reinforce 
 the army of the Tennessee, then investing Corinth. The order 
 was imperative and the General reluctantly complied, which so 
 
198 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 reduced the numbers of the army of the South-west that the 
 expedition to Little Rock, which had commenced under such 
 flattering circumstances, was necessarily abandoned. 
 
 The long, fatiguing march of Asboth s and Davis s columns 
 to Cape Girardeau commenced on the llth of May from Bates- 
 ville. For a day or two some little delay was occasioned in 
 shoeing horses, making repairs and generally overhauling and 
 re-arranging the stores. At eleven o clock on the night of the 
 13th the drums and bugles aroused the men, and at midnight 
 the command left its camp on the Strawberry river. Then 
 commenced a march, the character of which has but few parallels 
 in the records of the war. At three o clock on the morning of 
 the 14th, before the sun had begun to purple the east, the column 
 passed through Smith ville. a straggling south-western town, the 
 first met with after leaving Batesville. It was nearly deserted ; 
 the houses were empty, and only a few terror stricken women 
 and children peered out into the darkness at the fleeting shadows 
 of men and horses, wagons and artillery passing by. The 
 day dawned and passed without a cloud ; the sun poured down 
 its fiercest rays, raising the temperature to fever heat, under 
 which man and beast suffered intensely. All that hot forenoon 
 the column pushed bravely on. amidst clouds of dust, crossing 
 Spring river at eight A. M., reaching Eleven-Points river a little 
 before noon, which was crossed, and the regiment went into 
 camp on its eastern banks at one P. M. Not a third of the 
 troops were able to keep up with the marching column. 
 They fell out of the ranks by scores, and each shady nook by 
 the wayside was monopolized by squads of exhausted, dust 
 covered men, who all day long wearily dragged their way to 
 camp. 
 
 Many horses gave out, and about eleven o clock a wagon con 
 taining hospital stores broke down too badly to be repaired. To 
 
SUCCESSFUL SEARCH FOR A WAGON. 199 
 
 abandon the stores was not to be thought of; not a spare wagon 
 pertained to the command, and one must be had from some source. 
 J. C. Dennison and Ralph Miller volunteered to hunt one, and 
 ranged the country over fifteen miles alone, in the midst of a 
 hostile population, in what bid fair to be a fruitless search, look 
 ing through barnyards and out of the way places where it was 
 thought possible a wagon could be secreted. At length one was 
 found, but the hearts of the boys almost failed them before the 
 pleading remonstrance and tears of the lady proprietor. It was 
 all the vehicle she possessed, had cost two hundred arid twenty- 
 five dollars in gold, and " shame on the men who would rob them 
 of it. A fine looking young lady united her supplication with 
 that of her mother, which nearly overcame the susceptible hearts 
 of the young men. But no, the necessities of the case were 
 urgent, and with many misgivings and heartily ashamed of 
 themselves they took the wagon, in spite of the tears of the 
 matron and the blandishments of youth and beauty, reaching 
 the regimental camp at two o clock in the morning. 
 
 The next day the regiment inarched to Current river, a deep 
 and rapid stream. The ferryboat at the place of crossing was 
 small, and much time was consumed in passing over. Some of 
 the advance regiments had crossed in safety, when the boat cap 
 sized, and eight or ten of the men belonging to the 15th Mis 
 souri Infantry were drowned. Eiforts to resuscitate them were 
 unavailing, and their death and burial on the banks of the stream 
 caused a chill of sadness to pervade the army. 
 
 It being impracticable to ferry the remainder of the command 
 at this point, the 36th marched up the river five miles arid 
 crossed at a deep and dangerous ford. The rapid current swept 
 many of the mule teams from their feet and some were drowned, 
 but the men and stores were got safely over. The Black river 
 
200 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 was reached and crossed on the 18th and the St. Francis on the 
 19th, at the town of Greenville, through which the army marched 
 by platoons, with flying banners, the rattle of drums and the 
 shrill blast of bugles. 
 
 The two succeeding days it rained incessantly, but through 
 the mud and storm the column plunged at the rate of from 
 twenty to thirty miles a day, notwithstanding the country was 
 broken, the roads rough and badly washed by storms, being 
 in many places nearly impassible. 
 
 After crossing the White- Water river at Dallas, the road to 
 Cape Girardeau was in fine condition, and no delays by 
 exhausted teams or broken wagons interrupted the march. 
 Though worn with fatigue and foot sore, the men were in good 
 spirits, for another day would end their ceaseless tramp, tramp, 
 tramp, and give them a chance for much needed rest. At 
 two o clock P. M. of the 22nd of May the city of Cape Girard 
 eau was reached, proceeding to the banks of the Mississippi, 
 and gazing across its turbid waters to their own loved prairie 
 State, some gave vent to their exuberance of spirits by giving 
 three hearty cheers, while from the fortifications loud peeled the 
 cannon in a joyful salute in honor of the ai rival of the heroes 
 of Pea Ridge and of a march of one thousand miles. 
 
 Physically, aside from fatigue which would soon wear off, the 
 men were robust, sunburnt and healthy, but their clothing was 
 in a complete state of demoralization their whole appearance 
 like a crowd of vagabonds chased from the borders of civiliza 
 tion. The 36th was made up of men of education and refine 
 ment, but rags, dirt and fatigue had taken much of their manly 
 pride away, and in the dilapidated condition which they entered 
 Cape Girardeau it is doubtful if they would have led an assault 
 or charged a battery with the spirit and confidence of well dressed 
 
END OF THE SOUTHWEST CAMPAIGN. 201 
 
 soldiers, knowing that in doing so, if they were killed they were 
 too ragged and dirty to be thought worthy of a decent burial. 
 Thus terminated this campaign in the South-west. Henceforth 
 the regiment was destined to gather rich garlands of glory in 
 other fields east of the " Father of Waters," which it crossed as 
 an organized body for the last time. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 CAPE GIRARDEAU TO RIENZI. 
 
 \r+* 
 
 EN. JEFF. C. DAVIS Division preceded that of 
 Gen. Asboth s some days, and on the arrival of the 
 latter at Cape Girardeau, Davis troops were just 
 embarking tor Tennessee. Food, raiment and rest 
 were absolutely required before Asboth s command 
 would be in condition to follow. The soles of the shoes supplied 
 at Batesville were largely composed of oak-wood, chips, and frag 
 ments of felt colored on the outside, or covered with thin pieces 
 of leather. The furnishing of these shoes was one of the many 
 gigantic frauds perpetrated by contractors upon the Quarter-Mas 
 ter s Department, the common soldiers, in almost every instance, 
 being the victims. A few days marching served to use up these 
 shoes, and on entering Cape Girardeau many men were bare 
 footed, their feet so lacerated and swollen as scarcely to be able 
 
202 THIRTY- SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 to hobble along. Had the contractor who perpetrated the swindle 
 at that time been so unfortunate as to have fallen into the hands 
 of his enraged victims, a halter and limb would have been resorted 
 to as a most efficient means of cancelling his shoe contracts for 
 ever. 
 
 The next morning a supply of clothing was obtained, and the 
 persons and wardrobe of the men were thoroughly renovated. 
 One night s sleep and two "straight meals" rested and restored 
 them to their average fighting calibre. In twenty-four hours 
 the aches and fatigues which days of hard marching through heat 
 and dust, the want of food and rest had produced, were in a 
 measure forgotten. Those who by sickness were incapacitated 
 from active service, were removed to the city hospitals, and sub 
 sequently when restored to health, rejoined the command at 
 Rienzi. 
 
 The camps were thronged with peddling " lazaroni " from the 
 city, composed of slovenly, dirty-faced girls, ugly old women, 
 dilapidated men and thieving boys, with their ceaseless impor 
 tunities to buy their peanuts, fruit, jack-knives and gingerbread. 
 The soldiers were liberal patrons of the pie and cake venders, 
 whose stock in trade disappeared like frost before the warm sun 
 shine. Rank smelling haversacks, that for months had been the 
 receptacles of only foul-looking slices of the flesh of that long 
 snouted incarnation of uncleanliness. known as the hog, suddenly 
 grew plethoric with gingerbread and turnovers. When the 
 order was given to cook four days rations, but few fires were 
 kindled and few camp kettles simmered with their usual contents 
 of bacon and beans. 
 
 At four P. M. of the 23rd the infantry portion of the regiment 
 embarked upon the steamer Planet, and within an hour the boat 
 was headed down the Mississippi, plowing its way through the 
 
ON THE MARCH FOR CORINTH. 203 
 
 turbid waters, arriving at Cairo at ten o clock in the evening. 
 While laying at Cairo, a member of Company G accidentally fell 
 into the river. He was fished out with difficulty, and barely 
 saved from drowning. The rain poured down in torrents, but 
 the men had become too well accustomed to aquatic habits of life 
 to mind an ordinary rain-storm. By spreading tarpauling over 
 the bulwarks and decks they were in a measure shielded from the 
 aqueous drippings from the clouds, 
 
 The trip up the river to Paducah was almost a continuous 
 ovation. Steamers thickly crowded the Ohio in passing to and 
 fro, and from each, cheer upon cheer went up when it became 
 known that the troops thronging the Planet, from pilot-house to 
 deck, were the heroes of Pea Ridge. At Paducah the boat was 
 detained several hours for coal. Numbers of contraband Afri 
 cans, fleeing from the plantations, had congregated there ready 
 to do any and all odd jobs necessary in helping along the good 
 cause. They readily found employment, and worked like beavers 
 in the dust and hot sunshine, soon accomplishing the task of 
 coaling, and the Planet was enabled to proceed up the Tennessee. 
 Major Kenney came on board at Paducah and made the men 
 happy by the payment of three months wages. Otherwise the 
 trip to Hamburg was accomplished without incident worthy of 
 notice. 
 
 Companies A and B Cavalry left Cape Girardeau on the 24th 
 in the steamer Minnehaha, reaching Hamburg and joining the 
 regiment on the 27th of May. The long marches, numerous 
 scouts, and vast amount of extra duty required of them in Mis 
 souri and Arkansas, had used up many of their horses, but these 
 were replaced with fresli ones before proceeding to the front. 
 
 The 86th encamped a half mile from the river, remaining there 
 until the afternoon of the 28th, when Asboth s Division took up 
 
204 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 its line of march to join the large army under Gen. Hallock, 
 then investing Corinth. The afternoon was oppressively warm, 
 and wearily the column plodded on, over roads that were mere 
 forest trails, through a thickly wooded and brushy country with 
 few evidences of cultivation, and winding over low rocky ridges, 
 succeeded by swamps through which the roads were corduroyed, 
 now pitching into hollows washed by recent rains, and then up a 
 short but steep ascent to the level of the surrounding country. 
 At every bad place (and Southern highways were full of them) 
 accidents to artillery or wagons caused uncertain halts and weari 
 some delays. Such was the character of this, which, like all 
 marches, over rough roads in new and sparsely settled countries, 
 was anything but pleasant. 
 
 Passing over a portion of the battle-field of Shiloh, every tree, 
 field and building attested the severity of the conflict. Trees 
 were pierced by shot and shattered by shell ; fields were plowed 
 by cannon balls, and the ground everywhere littered with 
 broken muskets, fragments of knapsacks, cartridge boxes and 
 articles of clothing, while the stench arising from the festering 
 carcasses of horses poisoned the air and sickened the passing 
 soldiers. Now and then the sound of distant cannonading in 
 the direction of Corinth was borne to the ears of the soldiers, 
 awakening conjecture and brief comments; but this music had 
 become too common, and the day was too intensely hot to arouse 
 the dormant energies of the troops or quicken their march. It 
 was painful to see many poor fellows sink down by the wayside, 
 overcome by the heat. Three or four being nearly exhausted and 
 too sick to proceed, were left behind. 
 
 The declining sun was followed by the evening twilight, and 
 twilight deepened into darkness ; still the column pushed on 
 until eleven o clock at night before a halt was ordered, and the 
 
DILATORY MOVEMENTS OF GEN. HALLOCK. 205 
 
 troops went into camp, having marched sixteen miles. With very 
 little food in their haversacks, there was nothing for the men to 
 do but roll themselves in their blankets, and lay down upon the 
 damp ground, without tents to shield them from the heavy dew, 
 and no pillow but the earth. The provision and hospital trains 
 were many miles in the rear, slowly plodding along, surmounting 
 the rough ascents or floundering through swamps all night, only 
 reaching the command at daylight, after the column was formed 
 and ready to resume the march. 
 
 On the 29th the division reached Farmington, reporting to 
 Gen. Pope to whose command it was attached. From thence it 
 quickly moved into position in rear and in support of the line of 
 earth works, where noisy batteries, posted at every available 
 position, were pounding away at the batteries and entrenchments 
 of the enemy, and heavy supporting bodies of blue infantry 
 lined the works, the opposing forces grimly facing each other in 
 expectation of a bloody encounter at any hour. 
 
 Gen. Hallock, who held the chief command, had assembled a 
 splendid army around Corinth of more than one hundred thou 
 sand western troops. He had spent more than a month in dila 
 tory movements, creeping snail-like from Shiloh, fortifying each 
 step of the way, even when there was not a Rebel picket guard 
 to menace or endanger the safety of his vast army. As he 
 gradually neared Corinth, sharp and bloody skirmishes between 
 pickets and detachments thrown out in advance, were matters 
 of every day occurrence. During this time but two or three 
 engagements had occurred that arose to the dignity of pitched 
 battles, and these were barren of results. Gen. Pope, who com 
 manded the left wing, had encountered the enemy in strong force 
 at or near Farmington, resulting in a number of fierce conflicts ; 
 and more recently, Gen. Sherman, who commanded the right, 
 
206 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 had taken a strong advanced position at Russells, after a short 
 but sharp contest, in which both sides suffered considerable loss. 
 
 On the 28th the whole line was advanced, entrenchments 
 thrown up, artillery brought into position, and on the arrival of 
 the Pea Ridge Divisions, arrangements were matured for a com 
 bined attack of the whole army on the following day. A heavy 
 and incessant cannonade was kept up, sweeping the intervening 
 space between the opposing hosts with an iron torrent. Shells 
 went screaming over the parapets, bursting near the advance, 
 while not a few projectiles reached the line of reserves; but as 
 no damage was done in the immediate vicinity of the 36th, the 
 whizzing of round shot and the shrieking of shell lost their power 
 to charm, and the regiment remained quietly in its position, 
 wholly unmindful of the storm of war raging in the advance. 
 
 The 6th Wisconsin battery was assigned to Gen. Asboth, and 
 such changes made as were necessary to promote the efficiency of 
 the division and put it in the best fighting trim. The trains were 
 not allowed to come up to the position occupied by the regiment, 
 and the men, who had had but little to eat fo*r twenty -four hours, 
 were obliged to send some distance to the rear for rations and 
 cooking utensils. 
 
 That night, in the intervals between the roar of cannon, the 
 shriek of locomotive whistles and the rumbling of railroad cars, 
 indicated an important movement going on within the enemy s 
 lines. At daylight a succession of loud explosions, followed by 
 dense clouds of smoke arose from the town ; at once it flashed 
 upon the minds of all that the enemy were blowing up their 
 works preparatory to abandoning Corinth. Skirmishers were 
 thrown out to feel the enemy and learn the cause of so unusual 
 a commotion, who, finding the defences abandoned, reported the 
 fact to their commanders. At once all the advance divisions 
 
SURRENDER OF CORINTH. 207 
 
 pressed forward, pouring over the abandoned earthworks with 
 tumultuous shouts which rent the very air, and entered the now 
 nearly deserted and silent town. The Mayor, under a flag of 
 truce, met the advance and formally surrendered the place. 
 Beauregard had effected his escape in comparative safety with a 
 small loss of arms and munitions of war. Many prisoners were 
 captured, and deserters thronged to our lines in such numbers as 
 to become a nuisance. Large quantities of corn and commissary 
 stores fell into our hands, with locomotives, cars and valuable 
 railroad property. Thus fell Corinth without a struggle, after 
 every preparation had been made to capture the place by storm. 
 
 Gen. Pope, being nearest their line of retreat, at once com 
 menced a vigorous pursuit, and in the afternoon Asboth joined 
 in rear of the pursuing column. The roads were narrow and 
 badly obstructed as well as crowded with troops, and but little 
 progress was made. Many Confederate soldiers, who had strag 
 gled from their commands, were captured, and hundreds volunta 
 rily surrendered without an effort to escape. A counter-current 
 of soldiers in Confederate gray set in towards Corinth, where 
 they were parolled and allowed to depart wherever they liked. 
 
 The country was intersected with marshes and sluggish streams, 
 the bridges crossing them being destroyed ; added to which, on 
 the first, second and third days of June, rain fell in torrents, and 
 the thousands of horses, wagons and men thronging the roads 
 reduced them to the half fluid condition of mortar-beds. 
 
 The 36th being in the rear, made only such progress as the 
 crowded state of the roads would allow. To advance or retreat 
 with celerity over wretched highways, through a half submerged 
 country, was an utter impossibility. The occasional muttering 
 of cannon far to the front, faintly heard through the mist laden 
 air, indicated the course to pursue, and onward toiled the troops, 
 
208 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 plunging along through the mud, their knapsacks and accoutre 
 ments dripping with rain, their clothing thickly encased with 
 Mississippi soil. The wagons rolled slowly along, sinking to the 
 hubs ; or, striking an apparently bottomless rut, turned completely 
 over, scattering camp kettles, tents, and the contents of broken 
 boxes over the storm-swept earth. Officers and men were alike 
 exposed to the pitiless fury of the storm, and compelled to bivouac 
 without tents, often without blankets, lying promiscuously about 
 upon the saturated ground in vain efforts to sleep. 
 
 The command reached Boonville, thirty miles distant from 
 Corinth, on the 6th of June, and encamped on the line of the 
 Mobile & Ohio railroad, near a spring of excellent water. Gen. 
 Pope s advance had here encountered the Confederate rear in 
 force, and sharp skirmishing ensued with considerable loss on 
 both sides, but they were worsted and reluctantly continued their 
 retreat to Tupelo and Okalona. The pursuit was then discon 
 tinned, and for some days the army lay quietly in their camps. 
 
 It was at Boonville that Col. Elliott, during the last days of 
 the siege, with two regiments of cavalry, had destroyed a portion 
 of the railroad track, a number of engines and cars laden with 
 arms, ammunition and army supplies. He captured one hundred 
 prisoners, burned the buildings, including passenger-depot, store 
 houses, water-tanks, and so effectually broke up the single line 
 over which their supplies were brought, as to necessitate and 
 hasten the evacuation of Corinth. 
 
 While at Boonville, the suspicions of a party of men were 
 aroused relative to the peculiar formation of so-called Confederate 
 graves. One, which, according to the inscription upon the head 
 board, purported to be the grave of a Confederate Major who 
 had been wounded at Shiloh and subsequently died, was exam 
 ined, when a fine brass cannon was unearthed, and on pursuing 
 
RETURN OF LIEUT. COL. JOSLYN. 209 
 
 > 
 their investigations, a number of others were discovered buried in 
 
 a similar manner. It was some days before the trains were able 
 to come up, during which time the process of cooking was per 
 formed after the most primitive style, without camp-kettles or 
 cooking utensils, while their scanty meals were eaten from chips 
 or flat stones in lieu of plates. The only casualty of the cam 
 paign occurring to the 36th was the accidental shooting of Lieut. 
 Dyke, by himself, in the foot, causing a painful wound. 
 
 Lieut. Col. Joslyn, who had been on leave of absence since 
 April, returned on the 10th, and was welcomed with three hearty 
 cheers. The whole family of regimental field-officers was again 
 united, but this happy condition of affairs lasted only for a single 
 day, for on the llth Col. Greusel obtained thirty days leave of 
 absence, and started at once for a season of rest and enjoyment 
 with his family at Aurora. The command of the regiment in 
 the meanwhile devolved upon Lieut. Col. Joslyn. On the 12th 
 the greater portion of Gen. Pope s army returned to Rienzi and 
 established permanent camps. 
 
 The weather was warm ; the roads, in marked contrast with the 
 former march, were dry, and great clouds of dust enveloped the 
 column. Men breathed dust, smelt it, tasted it, and stratas of 
 Southern soil gathered upon their clothing, changing the regula 
 tion blue to the hue of the butternut. All were in good humor, 
 and grinned at each other through their brown masks. Arriving 
 at Rienzi the regiment encamped near the railroad, on uneven, 
 open ground, badly situated for water, and without protection 
 from the broiling heat of the sun. But in a day or two the camp 
 was removed about a mile north of its first location, to high and 
 healthy ground, in a grove of oaks, which furnished constant 
 shade. A thousand willing hands cleared away the underbrush 
 
210 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and arranged the tents in military order, presenting a clean and 
 tidy appearance, characteristic of men of taste and refinement. 
 
 Under Col. Joslyn s supervision, an officers school was insti 
 tuted, for the purpose of instruction in tactics, army regulations 
 and the general duties of officers. The men likewise were thor 
 oughly taught in guard, picket and other duties, and the knowl 
 edge gained in these schools of instruction was frequently called 
 into requisition in guarding against the predatory attacks of a 
 vigilant and enterprising foe. Flying detachments of Confeder 
 ate cavalry at all times ranged the country, sweeping down upon 
 the pickets, picking up stragglers, menacing the camps, until for 
 prudential reasons it was found necessary to throw up rifle pits, 
 and in many places more elaborate works, for self protection. 
 Large details from the 36th, in connection with similar parties 
 from other regiments, by a vigorous use of pick and shovel, sur 
 rounded the post with formidable entrenchments, from behind 
 which the picket-guard frequently observed the enemy s cavalry 
 skurrying over the hills and were enabled with ease to thwart all 
 their efforts at a surprise. But woe to the luckless forager for 
 blackberries, or parties engaged in private marauding among the 
 sheep-folds and poultry-yards of the "natives" outside of the 
 picket lines, for such were pretty certain to be "gobbled up " and 
 immured in some filthy, vermin-haunted prison pen, where the 
 luxury of blackberries and cream, as well as all other dainties 
 which give zest to scanty prison fare, were denied them. 
 
 Among those who became personally cognizant of the ubiquit 
 ous character of the enemy s cavalry, and the alarming nearness 
 and frequency of their hostile demonstrations, was the wife of 
 Capt. Pierce, of Company D, who one day was captured by a 
 Rebel scouting-party. She had proceeded outside of the infantry 
 pickets, accompanied by privates Gillimore and Benedict, for the 
 
CAPTURE OF MRS. PIERCE. 211 
 
 purpose of procuring vegetables for the use of the hospital and 
 her own mess. Knowing the cavalry pickets were a number of 
 miles in advance, the party thought it safe to drive five or six 
 miles into the country. Suddenly they were beset by a squad of 
 armed men, who sprang out of the bushes and demanded their 
 surrender. They were hurried away to Ripley, twenty-seven 
 miles west of Rienzi by the direct road, but the Rebel escort con 
 ducted them by obscure, out-of-the-way paths, a distance of forty 
 miles. The men and ambulance were retained as lawful prizes 
 of war, while Mrs. Pierce was turned over to the Rebel com 
 mander, who catechised her closely relative to affairs within our 
 lines. The interview was unsatisfactory and barren of results, 
 except to teach him that he had a woman of spirit and shrewd 
 ness to deal with, from whom he could gain nothing of import 
 ance to his cause. She was treated with courtesy and fared as 
 well as could have been expected under the circumstances. The 
 next day she was returned to our picket lines, where in a few 
 minutes after, Capt. Pierce, in a fever of excitement, arrived 
 with an ambulance, and was much relieved as well as pleased at 
 so favorable a termination of his wife s adventures while in search 
 of greens. 
 
 The misfortunes sustained by the Confederates in the West, 
 by the destruction of their Mississippi river fleet before Mem 
 phis, the capture of New Orleans and the opening of the Mis 
 sissippi above and below Vicksburg, together with the brilliant 
 victories and uninterrupted series of successes attending our 
 Western armies, aroused them to the most stupendous efforts. 
 The conscript-law was rigidly enforced ; every man capable of 
 bearing arms was forced into the ranks, and their armies, which, 
 after the evacuation of Corinth were demoralized and on the point 
 of melting away, were subsequently reinforced and greatly 
 strengthened. 
 
212 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Gen. Hallock s splendid army in the meantime had been 
 broken up and scattered to every point of the compass, which 
 enabled the enemy to act on the offensive. The troops at Cor 
 inth and Rienzi did little but watch their wily and energetic foe 
 from behind entrenchments, while Bragg, with augmented num 
 bers, was secretly organizing for a descent into Tennessee and 
 Kentucky. The hot summer weather was not favorable for exer 
 tion, and while detachments were employed in building railroads 
 and in post and guard duties, the enemy was harassing the posts, 
 demonstrating upon our lines of communication, and sweeping 
 unopposed through the country. Early in July their cavalry, to 
 the number of four or five thousand, attacked Col. Schneider, 
 commanding an outpost held by detachments from the 2nd Mich 
 igan and 2nd Iowa Cavalry, armed with Spencer and Enfield 
 rifles, who, dismounting, gave their assailants a warm reception. 
 The enemy found it quite a different matter attacking men thus 
 armed, than in putting to rout, with a yell and a dash, a body of 
 men on horses, armed only with revolvers and sabres. A few 
 volleys cooled their ardor and sent them flying to the rear with 
 greater rapidity and impetuosity than they manifested in making 
 the charge. Heavy skirmishing with the pickets continued for 
 six hours, when they retired, without making an impression on 
 our lines. To meet successfully similar attacks, a battery was 
 sent to the front with Companies B and C of the 36th, under the 
 command of Capt. Miller, where they remained several weeks 
 detached from the regiment, until relieved by Company F, which 
 remained on picket nearly as long. Other demonstrations suc 
 ceeded this, and Asboth s, Hamilton s and Jeff. Davis s Divisions 
 were several times called to arms in anticipation of an attack. 
 
 In June, Gen. Grant marched upon Holly Springs from Grand 
 Junction, while Gen. Hamilton lead a co-operative column from 
 
CELEBRATION OF INDEPENDENCE DAY. 213 
 
 Rienzi. The town was taken and occupied by Grant s troops, 
 Gen. Hamilton proceeding only a part of the way and returning 
 without encountering an enemy, except flying detachments of 
 cavalry that were just saucy enough to keep the soldiers awake 
 and vigilant. Aside from this, no other movement of import 
 ance proceeded from Rienzi. Skirmishes upon the picket line 
 and sudden alarms were of frequent occurrence. So unexpected 
 and serious was one of these attacks that storehouses were rifled 
 of cotton-bales and temporary breast works hastily erected for 
 defence. Subsequently a strong force of the enemy rushed unex 
 pectedly upon the picket station on the Ripley road. Quite a 
 number of the 3rd Michigan Cavalry, stationed at that point, 
 were captured. Moving rapidly toward the camps, they were 
 confronted by well constructed ramparts of earth, behind which 
 gleamed a forest of polished bayonets. The prospect was too 
 uninviting for a closer intimacy, and, wheeling their horses, they 
 were away, carrying off their prisoners. 
 
 Independence Day at Rienzi was befittingly commemorated by 
 a salute of thirty guns in the morning, and more or less firing 
 during the day. In the afternoon the troops were marched to 
 brigade head-quarters, where a stand had been erected, and the 
 ever glorious Fourth-of-July was celebrated. It was not like 
 the usual celebrations gotten up at Aurora, Elgin and country 
 towns generally, where the militia, with clean faces, starched 
 collars and glittering uniforms, meet and play soldiers ; but a 
 concourse of swarthy, sunburned men, armed with real guns for 
 deadly war, and with real cannon ready at the word to hurl their 
 missiles into the ranks of opponents. 
 
 The Declaration of Independence was read, and Jefferson s 
 immortal enunciation of life, liberty and happiness to all, was 
 responded to with cheers. The bands poured forth their liveliest 
 
214 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 strains, and the stars and stripes, the hallowed emblems of all 
 the past glories of the Republic, floated in the swelling breeze. 
 To the universal and clamorous call for a speech, Col. Ed. Joslyn 
 responded with an earnestness proceeding from a heart thoroughly 
 warmed up in the cause of the country. It was one of his hap 
 piest efforts, and was loudly applauded. At the conclusion of 
 the Colonel s stirring address the bands struck up with the "Star 
 Spangled Banner," and on their return to their quarters the love 
 of the men for the old flag was strengthened and the determina 
 tion intensified to mete out double vengeance to those who should 
 trample its sacred folds beneath their traitor feet. 
 
 Camp life at Rienzi was rather barren of incidents, and aside 
 from picket duty and the usual batallion and brigade drills, it was 
 of the laziest order. With few opportunities of listening to the 
 music of Rebel bullets, and fewer chances for covering themselves 
 with glory, the men resorted to novel reading, letter writing, 
 sleeping and dreaming. Magazines and newspapers were read 
 through, advertisements and legal notices included, and however 
 ancient the dates, their contents were ever interesting and 
 devoured with a zest never before experienced. 
 
 Rations were in abundance, but independent of the army sup 
 plies the men generally helped themselves to sweet potatoes, 
 peaches, melons, apples, blackberries, and such vegetable pro 
 ducts as the country afforded. Nearly all the convalescents from 
 the Missouri and Arkansas campaign, and such as had been on 
 detached service, except those who by transfer or promotion had 
 become attached to other organizations, returned, and numeric 
 ally and in discipline the 36th compared favorably with any 
 other regiment in the field. 
 
 Col. Greusel returned on the 23d of July, with health restored, 
 and in cheerful spirits assumed command of the regiment. 
 
GEN. GRANGEK PLACED IN COMMAND. 215 
 
 The weather in the meantime was fearfully hot. Each day the 
 sun poured down its fiercest rays, driving men and panting 
 animals to the forest shade. Persons who had endured the heat 
 of the tropics, or waded through the fiery sands of Mexico, con 
 fessed they had never experienced anything like the heat 
 which prevailed during the summer of 1862 at Rienzi. There 
 was no thermometer in camp to mark the temperature, but Lieut. 
 Clark, a standard authority in such matters, gave it as his candid 
 opinion that it stood " somewhere about fifteen hundred in the 
 shade," which was too much even for his ardent constitution. 
 Some sickness prevailed in consequence; Lieut. Col. Joslyn 
 succumbed to the climate and was compelled to go North. 
 Realizing that an officer away from his command was of little 
 service to the country, he, together with Major Barry and Sur 
 geon Hawley, tendered their resignations. The authorities long 
 hesitated in accepting them, but they were eventually approved, 
 arid their connection with the 36th was ever after one of the 
 pleasing memories of the past. 
 
 About the 1st of August Gen. Granger was placed in com 
 mand of the division, relieving Gen. Asboth, who proceeded to 
 Washington and was assigned to other duties. The first orders 
 of the new commander was the arrest of all officers and sol 
 diers found away from their commands without proper authority, 
 and for negligence while on duty the most severe penalties were 
 threatened. By placing officers as well as privates on the same 
 footing, a check was put upon what had become a serious and 
 growing evil. Gen. Granger was a strict disciplinarian, harsh 
 and often unreasonable. For infractions of duty or military 
 etiquette, he could cause a soldier to be tied by the thumbs, or 
 administer the lash with as little compunction as he would apply 
 the same mode of punishment to a dog. 
 
216 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Eventually the long summer days began to wane, and were 
 succeeded by the fine marching weather of early autumn. From 
 certain precursory indications along .the lines of the various 
 armies which confronted each other, it was taken for granted 
 that more active operations would soon be inaugurated, and when 
 and where were questions which were uppermost in each soldier s 
 mind. But day succeeded day and still the troops remained in 
 their present encampments, the 36th clinging to the shade of 
 the venerable oaks that spread their protecting branches over the 
 camp. Food and clothing were in abundance, and once a week, 
 perhaps, each man took his turn at guard mounting, either at the 
 post or on the picket line. More or less drilling consumed the 
 cooler hours, while the remainder of the day was spent in idle 
 ness. Somehow the letters written from Camp Rienzi were 
 wonderful productions as to length and frequency, indicating 
 that business with the boys was not rushing, and time of but 
 little moment. 
 
 About head-quarters, officers levees were held, at which 
 were found many bright intellects with rich stores of thought 
 and experience, who kept the social current ever flowing. Old 
 stories were brought out, refurbished, and told anew. Battle 
 pictures were drawn, personal experiences related, and bits of 
 humor sparkled around the circle like flashes of electric light. 
 At such times camp life was relieved of some of its prosy dull 
 ness, and ceased to be a hum-drum affair. 
 
 One day, however, camp was thrown into a feverish state of 
 excitement by a sudden dash of Rebel cavalry upon the 1st Kan 
 sas Regiment, which was encamped about a mile from Rienzi. 
 They had managed to slip by the outer cavalry pickets, and so 
 dense was the cloud of dust which covered their movements that 
 the infantry could not determine their character, but supposed 
 
GALLANT CONDUCT OF KANSIANS. 217 
 
 them to be our own cavalry until it was too late to give the 
 alarm. In some mysterious manner the Kansians had received 
 notice of the movement, and as the enemy neared their camp on 
 a gallop, perfectly confident of a surprise and easy conquest of 
 the Kansas troops, they were met by a close and well directed 
 volley from the seven-shooting Spencers with which the 1st was 
 armed. Many saddles were emptied, and the riderless horses 
 sent into the fields and woods, followed by the whole Rebel 
 command, with a host of yelling Federals close at their heels. 
 The rattle of musketry spread the alarm through the camps. 
 Troops were promptly under arms, ammunition dealt out, artillery 
 horses harnessed, guns brought into position, and every prepara 
 tion made for an attack. It was believed that heavy supporting 
 columns were following up the cavalry, and that a general 
 engagement would ensue. The troops remained under arms 
 during the day and were ordered to sleep with their guns by their 
 side at night. The pickets were strengthened, the guards 
 doubled, and every precaution taken against surprise. The 
 Kansians, however, had effectually scattered the enemy, and the 
 men were generally glad that the threatened matinee had been 
 postponed to a later day and more suitable weather. 
 
 Such was the audacity of these prowling Rebel bands that the 
 utmost vigilance on the part of officers and sentinels on picket 
 was required to guard against surprise and night attacks. One 
 night, after Rebel cavalry had been reported in the neighbor 
 hood, the pickets were cautioned to be more than ordinarily 
 alert. Joseph Sanders, of Company Gr, being stationed in an 
 exposed and rather threatened position, was very watchful. 
 About midnight his ear caught the sound of crackling brush, 
 and peering into the gloom he discovered a moving object in the 
 edge of the timber. Supposing it to be a man in his shirt sleeves, 
 
 15 
 
218 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 he called out, "Who comes there?" No response being given, 
 he fired upon the object, thereby arousing the officer of the 
 guard, who hurried to the post, and on being directed to the spot 
 where the suspicious prowler had been seen, found a spotted cow 
 in the last agonies of death. Joe was laughed at by his com 
 rades, but complimented by the officers for his vigilance and 
 superior markmanship. 
 
 Very soon after the evacuation of Corinth, the cavalry compa 
 nies belonging to the regiment were placed on detached service. 
 Capt. Jenks was appointed Provost Marshal at Corinth, the 
 command of Company A devolving upon Lieut. Sherer. Capt. 
 Smith, of Company B, was arrested on charges which had pre 
 viously been preferred against him, and was subsequently 
 cashiered and dismissed from the service, his company in the 
 meantime being commanded by Lieut. Francis E. Reynolds. 
 Company B was on detached service from the time of its arrival 
 at Corinth, first as escort to Gen. Rosencrans, subsequently for 
 Gens. Granger, Asboth and Jeff. C. Davis, reporting to the latter 
 for duty July 24th, and participating in the Buell campaign to 
 Nashville, through Tennessee and Kentucky to Louisville. An 
 independent cavalry company on escort duty has so many oppor 
 tunities for feats of dash and daring, both as a company and 
 individually, that we have no doubt, had this portion of the his 
 tory of Company B been written, it would appear that hardly a 
 day passed but some member or members of the company, in 
 carrying orders, acting as advance or rear guard, or as scouts, 
 would be immortalized by acts of gallantry and adventure. 
 We regret that the materials before us, relative to this portion 
 of the history of Company B, are so meagre that we can only 
 give an outline of its marches and vicissitudes. 
 
CO. A ON DETAIL DUTY. 219 
 
 Company A was detailed as escort to Gen. Hamilton, then 
 commanding three brigades. In the latter part of June, Gen. 
 Hamilton marched with a strong force from Corinth, via Rienzi 
 and Ripley, towards Holly Springs, to co-operate with Gen. 
 Sherman in a movement upon that place. The town was cap 
 tured by the latter force, and Gen. Hamilton returned with his 
 division to the neighborhood of Jacinto, and subsequently to his 
 former camp at Corinth. While at Ripley, detachments from 
 Company A scouted the country far and near, capturing many 
 noted secesh, among whom was William Boyd, a member of the 
 Confederate Congress. On the 30th of July, the company was 
 detailed as escort for Gen. Rosencrans, with head-quarters any 
 where where night overtook him : sometimes at Corinth, then at 
 Rienzi or Jacinto, while details for other commanders and other 
 purposes were frequent. Fourteen men remained with Gen. 
 Granger, fourteen others with Gen. Stanley, and a large portion 
 of the company was scattered over the country as orderlies, 
 on escort, or other service requiring superior tact, enterprise and 
 industry. One phase of army life, and the haphazard nature of 
 detached service, may be illustrated by the story of "CoL." 
 DUFF. 
 
 One of the drollest characters of Company A was Nathaniel 
 Duff, of Sandwich. He was of Irish extraction, and endowed 
 with an unusual amount of native wit. There was always fun in 
 camp when Duff was there. A boon companion was James Mc- 
 Mullen, and it was universally conceded that the two could take 
 up more honey, gather more apples, pick more chickens and con 
 fiscate more forage than any other six men in the army. After 
 the arrival of the company in Mississippi, Duff was detailed as 
 an orderly for Gen. Sullivan. The honor was no sooner con 
 ferred, than he secured a couple of eagles from the heading 
 
220 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 of a newspaper, mounted them on cardboard, pinned them upon 
 his shoulders and announced himself as COL. DUFF. It was not 
 long before his title was acknowledged " by the rank and file. 
 Shortly after Duff s " promotion," he was sent on an errand: as 
 he returned to head-quarters, when passing the guard he brought 
 his hand to the side of his face, after the style of a Lieutenant 
 General, but for some cause was unnoticed, and failed to receive 
 the customary salute accorded to field officers. Suddenly wheel 
 ing his horse and drawing his sabre, he exclaimed, u D n it, 
 man, why don t you salute the Kernel ? Are yer eyes so poor 
 you can t see my shoulder-straps ?" Duff appeared so terribly 
 in earnest as to frighten and confuse the guard, who brought his 
 musket up to a " present " in double quick time. Ever after 
 that the "Kernel" received the .proper salute when he was 
 known. 
 
 At the battle of Inka, Duff ventured too far to the front and 
 was wounded with a minnie ball. He managed to get to head 
 quarters, but the wound not being properly cared for, gangrene 
 set in. He was removed to a hospital at Keokuk, Iow r a, where 
 he died of his wounds, December 4th, 1863. 
 
 The subsequent history of Company A was entirely distinct 
 from the infantry arm of the regiment. Seldom were the two 
 in the same department, and as the company not long afterward 
 was assigned to the 15th Cavalry, we shall notice its brilliant 
 career in a separate chapter. 
 
 Resignations and changes among officers were of frequent 
 occurrence. Many who at the outset had vowed to stand by 
 their men to the last, in their intense anxiety to see their wives, 
 their children or sweethearts, threw up their commissions and 
 retired from a service which their experience at Rienzi during 
 the long summer of 1862, taught them was one of inglorious 
 
OFFICERS OF THE REGIMENT. 221 
 
 inaction. Some had had enough of soldiering, while others from 
 disappointment, and chafing because promotion did not come 
 soon enough to fill the measure of their ambition, left the ser 
 vice. Notwithstanding their exit, the affairs of the nation went 
 right along as usual, and but few realized the loss the country 
 had sustained by being thus deprived of their valuable services. 
 Ill health forced from us many brave fellows who were ready and 
 willing to stand up arid face the dread realities of battles, whose 
 devotion and courage had been tried on the blood-stained fields 
 of Arkansas and Missouri. Others, unable to realize that wait 
 ing is an essential element of war, grew restive at the delays and 
 inactivity incident to the development of military plans. Bat 
 tles and victories looked to them a long way off, and not being 
 possessed of the power of omniscience, to see that the day of 
 glory was sure to come, left the rich harvest to be gathered by 
 others more patient and willing to watch and wait. 
 
 The following were some of the changes about this time or 
 shortly after among the officers of the 36th : 
 
 Lieut. Col. E S. Joslyn. resigned, succeeded by Albert Jenks. 
 Major A H. Barry, resigned, succeeded by Silas Miller. 
 Capt. M. B. Baldwin, Co. A, resigned, succeeded by Geo. D.Sherman. 
 Capt. Silas Miller, Co. B, promoted, succeeded by Beuj. F. Campbell. 
 Capt. E. B. Baldwin, Co. C, promoted, succeeded by Jas. B. McNiel. 
 Capt. Wm. P. Pearce, Co. D, promoted, succeeded by Geo. D. Parker. 
 Capt. Chas. D. Fish, Co. E, resigned, succeeded by Albert M. Hobbs. 
 Capt. Merit L. Joslyn, Co. H, resigned, succeeded by T. L Griffin. 
 Capt. J. Q. Adams, Co. K, resigned, succeeded by Aaron G. Holden. 
 Capt. Albert Jenks, Co. A Cav., promoted, succeeded by G A. Willis. 
 Capt. H. A. Smith, Co. B Cav., dismissed, succeeded by S. B. Sherer. 
 
 Many of these changes and promotions were made in the reg 
 ular order of rank. Some were for meritorious services at Pea 
 Ridge, or in the umbrageous shade of the oaks at Rienzi. Col. 
 Greusel was not without his share of militarv honors, and was 
 
222 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 placed in command of a brigade composed of the 36th, 44th and 
 27th Illinois, the 2nd Iowa Infantry and the 1st Indiana Battery. 
 The same meed of praise and lavishness of honors was bestowed 
 upon privates as well as officers, and it was thought that the 
 authorities at Springfield or Washington, from whence many of 
 the commissions emenated, regarded the whole regiment as a band 
 of heroes, worthy positions of honor and trust. The 36th had 
 the honor of furnishing officers for other State organizations, 
 some of whom taken from the ranks attained the position of 
 Colonel. Among these were : 
 
 M. La Rue Harrison, private Co. K, to Colonel 1st Arkansas Cavalry. 
 James Roseman, private Co. G, to Lieutenant 1st Arkansas Cavalry 
 Fred. A. Raymond, Sergeant Major, to Captain in 127th Illinois. 
 Addison A. Keyes, Q. M. Sergeant, to Lieutenant in 127th Illinois. 
 Bent. D. C. Holland, Corporal Co. A, to Lieutenant in 16th U. S. C. 1. 
 Jas. H. Moore, private Co. A, to Lieutenant 71st Illinois Infantry. 
 Robt. N. Thompson, private Co. B, to Lieutenant 1st Arkansas Cav. 
 Geo. W. Raymond, private Co. D, to Captain 1st Arkansas Infantry. 
 L. G. Bennett, Corporal Co. E, to Major 4th Arkansas Cavalry. 
 Thos. W. Chandler, Sergeant Co. G, to Major in 127th Illinois Vol. 
 David H. Dickson, Corporal Co. K, to Lieutenant in 16th U. S. C. I. 
 Jas. J. Johnson, Sergeant Co. B Cav., to Major 1st Arkansas Cavalry. 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 RIENZI TO LOUISVILLE. 
 
 JURING the summer of 1862, the different armies in 
 the West, like gladiators, manoeuvred for positions 
 from which to strike effective blows. After the 
 evacuation of Corinth, Beauregard fell back to 
 Tupelo, his troops demoralized, and their ranks 
 considerably thinned. Subsequently he retired from the army 
 on the plea of ill health, but the want of success in his manage 
 ment of affairs in the West, somewhat clouded the brilliant repu 
 tation he had gained at the commencement of the war. The 
 large army which Gen. Hallock had gathered at Corinth, in a 
 short time was broken into fragments and scattered over a wide 
 extent of country, each detachment so absorbed in building 
 railroads, maintaining long lines of communication, and guard 
 ing Southern plantations, as to leave little time to attend to the 
 main business in hand the suppression of the Rebellion. 
 
 A column under Gen. Buell moved leisurely eastward into 
 Tennessee, and in the direction of Chattanooga, which Beaure 
 gard in his retreat had left uncovered. With the exception of a 
 small force in Eastern Tennessee, there was at that time no Con 
 federate troops in the State, and by a little exertion on the part 
 
224 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 of Gen. Buell, both Chattanooga and Knoxville might have been 
 captured, and the State freed of the last vestige of a Rebel army. 
 Strong positions in Alabama and Georgia could have been 
 occupied from whence successful movements in any direction 
 might have interposed a barrier and frustrated all attempts of 
 the enemy to gain a foothold in either Tennessee or Kentucky, 
 the battles subsequently fought in the environs of Louisville and 
 Murphysboro would have been transferred to soil more steeped 
 in rebellion, and these States escaped the pillage, destruction 
 and ruin which marked the progress of armies within their 
 borders. Instead of this, the army was halted, and remained 
 idle at Nashville. Unimportant expeditions were sent out, where 
 movements in force should have been made. No obstacles were 
 interposed or plans devised to thwart their designs upon these 
 States. In fact, barriers were thrown down and invasion invited. 
 
 Gen. Bragg, who succeeded to the command of the Confeder 
 ate forces, prepared to assume the offensive. His cavalry and 
 numerous guerilla bands swarmed around the posts occupied by 
 our troops, for the purpose of mystifying the Federal commander 
 in regard to his ulterior purposes, which were to slip by his hes 
 itating foes, and by a bold and rapid movement into Kentucky, 
 menace Cincinnati and Louisville, and compel the withdrawal of 
 armies which, at a cost of much treasure and blood, had obtained 
 a firm foothold in the heart of the Confederacy. The plan was 
 well conceived, and to carry it out successfully the whole vast 
 energies of the South were concentrated. Reinforcements were 
 drawn from all parts of the country, and the conscription 
 rigidly enforced, adding large numbers of fighting men to the 
 ranks. 
 
 The country was friendly, and no long lines of communication 
 needed protection. The inaction succeeding the Federal successes 
 
KIRBY SMITH S MOVEMENTS. 225 
 
 achieved during the winter and early spring, gave them abund 
 ant opportunities to recuperate, which they were not slow to take 
 advantage of, and the prospects of the Confederacy from the 
 Atlantic to the Mississippi every day grew brighter. The situ 
 ation of affairs changed materially, and everything favored the 
 invasion by the combined armies of Bragg and Kirby Smith, 
 who, if they gained nothing, had but little to lose. The magni 
 tude of the interests involved certainly justified a movement 
 which, under other circumstances, might be deemed extra haz 
 ardous and rash. 
 
 Early in August, Kirby Smith commenced his march north 
 ward from East Tennessee, pushed his columns over mountains, 
 subsisting upon the scanty products of the country, and unop 
 posed reached Richmond, in the heart of Kentucky. The 
 scattered Federal garrisons were attacked in detail and over 
 powered, offering little or no resistance. Richmond, Lexington 
 and Frankfort, one after the other fell into the hands of the 
 Confederate leader. The Federals lacked Generals of military 
 intuition, and of sufficient nerve to hold in hand and successfully 
 wield an army, and want of combination worked their ruin. 
 
 While Kirby Smith was demonstrating in the direction of 
 Covington and Cincinnati, Bragg s army was operating further 
 south, having entered Tennessee by the way of Chattanooga, 
 keeping up a show of offensive attack upon Nashville, and at the 
 same time pushing his way northward, capturing Mumfordsville 
 and other garrisoned towns on his route, and in a short period of 
 time accumulating ten thousand Federal prisoners of war. He 
 in a great measure succeeded in deceiving Buell as to his real 
 object until he was fer on his way to Louisville. His purposes 
 were at length discovered by means of intercepted dispatches, 
 and had Gen. Buell s movements been characterized by his 
 
226 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 usual slowness and deliberation, he would have come out second 
 best in the military race which succeeded, and all the grand 
 achievements of our armies in the West in the earlier months of 
 the year, with the immense sacrifice of valuable lives offered up 
 on the altar of the country, would have been expended in vain. 
 The country was seized with consternation at the imminent 
 danger which menaced the cities on the Ohio river. The excite 
 ment at Cincinnati was so great as to paralyze business, and the 
 citizens stood appalled at the threatened peril of the city. The 
 Governors of Ohio and Kentucky issued their proclamations, 
 calling out the militia as well as all able bodied citizens to take 
 up arms in defence of their respective States. Those from Ohio 
 flocked in mass to Cincinnati with such arms as could be gathered 
 up in the country, presenting about as motly an assemblage of 
 " squirrel hunters," farmers and backwoodsmen, as was ever 
 brought together. Poorly armed, undisciplined, and without a 
 competent leader, the city was nearly as much endangered as 
 secured against Rebel assault. At this crisis Gen. Lew Wallace 
 was placed in command, and essayed to bring order out of the 
 general chaos which reigned supreme. 
 
 Gen. Grant was called upon to furnish such of his veteran 
 regiments as could be spared from his department. His response 
 was prompt, and orders were at once issued for a portion of the 
 troops at Rienzi to proceed forthwith to Cincinnati. Col. Greu- 
 sel s brigade was among those selected, and in obedience to the 
 following order, the troops were in motion for Corinth at six 
 o clock on the morning of September 6th: 
 
 HEAD-QUARTERS RIENZI, SEPT. 6th. 
 
 COLONEL: You will leave in the morning with your command 
 for Columbus, Kentucky. If on your arrival you should find 
 river transportation for Louisville, Kentucky, you will proceed 
 
UNDER WAY FOR COLUMBUS. 227 
 
 to that point without delay, and report to Brig. Gen. Boyle. 
 While en route to Columbus you will have guards properly 
 arranged and stationed on the cars, so as to guard against any 
 and every attempt of guerillas to surprise you or molest the 
 train. At all stopping places guards will be thrown out on each 
 flank, and to the front and rear, so as to secure the safety of the 
 train and your command. Your troops will keep their arms in 
 hand from the moment of their departure from Corinth, until 
 their arrival at Columbus. All officers will remain with their 
 companies and at their posts. These precautions and instruc 
 tions will be strictly observed day and night on the river or cars. 
 You will report your arrival at Columbus to me by telegraph. 
 Your obedient servant, G. GRANGER, 
 
 Brigadier General Commanding. 
 COL. N. GREUSEL, Commanding 2d Brigade. 
 
 There was a necessity for just such an order as this, for guer 
 illa bands were ranging the country, and cavalry raids were not 
 unfrequent. Never was summons to march more welcome. 
 Tired of serving the country in camp under the shadow of Mis 
 sissippi oaks, any change was hailed with delight. Before sun 
 rise the wagons were loaded, and at six o clock the column was 
 en route for Corinth. The shady avenues of Camp Rienzi, 
 deserted and still, were never more to be tenanted by the 36th, 
 yet the many pleasant associations connected with it, will ever 
 linger in the hearts and memories of the men. 
 
 The day was hot, but the men marched well, and the inter 
 vening miles were quickly measured. Arrangements were made 
 for transferring such stores and equipments as were to be taken 
 along, while the remainder were turned over to the Post Quarter- 
 Master. The next morning all were safely crowded upon the 
 train, and shortly under way for Columbus. Every car was 
 packed, and numbers climbing upon the top, blackened the decks, 
 their muskets grasped and gleaming in the bright sunshine. 
 
228 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 while bayonets, protruding from doors and windows, made the 
 cars resemble huge porcupines, with every quill erect, ready for 
 the onset. 
 
 Among officers, and to some extent among the men, there was 
 not the most perfect feeling of security. The recent movements 
 of Price and VanDorn in the vicinity of Holly Springs had 
 resurrected every Rebel bushwhacker in the country, who, issu 
 ing from their retreats, were perpetrating outrages upon loyal 
 citizens, burning bridges, obstructing railroads, and firing upon 
 passing trains with impunity. The whole country was suffering 
 from their ravages, and it was not at all improbable that the 
 command might be the recipients of a volley from some 
 secret ambuscade. The country offered every facility for such a 
 purpose, being heavily timbered, the shadowy depths and 
 tangled undergrowth furnishing opportunities for assailants to 
 retire in safety. Thoughts of danger from this source were 
 banished entirely as the train neared Columbus, which place was 
 reached at six o clock in the evening. A rain set in, rendering 
 it anything but pleasant transferring the stores from the cars to 
 an empty storehouse near the depot. Then distributing them 
 selves promiscuously about, the men found quarters and shelter 
 from rain in empty buildings and sheds. The next day the reg 
 iment embarked upon the steamer Tecumseh, reaching Cairo in 
 the evening, and at once transferred the baggage and camp 
 equipage to the cars of the Illinois Central Railroad. 
 
 On the trip to Cairo a misfortune befell Company G, in the 
 loss of "Jack," a favorite dog, who by some mishap was either 
 drowned, or by other means came to an untimely end. This 
 dog was recruited in a somewhat mysterious manner at Rolla, 
 Missouri, and was adopted by the company, to which he became 
 devotedly attached. He was a splendid specimen of the canine 
 
LIQUID SUPPLIES. 229 
 
 species, a cross between a bull and a mastiff. "Jack s" forte 
 was in catching hogs, and as a forager had not an equal. When 
 ever fresh meat was wanting, "Jack s" services were indispens 
 able in securing it. At the battle of Pea Ridge he unfortu 
 nately came in violent collision with a Rebel bullet, and for some 
 time was disabled for service. His wounds were dressed by his 
 comrades, and in a short time he reported for duty again. He 
 was never known to fail in the hour of need, and when his con 
 nection with the regiment was severed, the men of Company G 
 bewailed the fate of poor "Jack." 
 
 The levee at Cairo was literally covered with boxes, bales, 
 barrels and stores designed for the various armies operating in 
 the Mississippi and Ohio river valleys. A few raw, unsophisti 
 cated recruits, fresh froni the green fields of the North, were on 
 guard to protect these stores from theft or destruction. A pile 
 of barrels, some of them marked eggs and other creature com 
 forts not contraband of war supposed to be conducive to the 
 health and happiness of soldiers in the field, was presided over 
 by a light-haired and freckle-faced youngster in the garb of a 
 soldier, who, with musket in hand, was supposed to be looking 
 after the safety of said barrels. Unfortunately for the guard, 
 (and we may say for the regiment) toward the end of his relief 
 he was caught napping, and in the confusion incident to the 
 transfer from boat to cars, a number of barrels became unac 
 countably mixed with regimental property and loaded on the 
 train. On examination, each barrel was found to contain a keg 
 of Bourbon, snugly packed in straw or chaif. The nature of 
 the prize became known throughout the command, and during 
 the long ride over the Central Road to Odin, whisky, ice, eggs 
 and commissary sugar, thoroughly mixed, circulated freely, and 
 as a natural consequence the boys were unusually smiling and 
 
230 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 happy. Some became oblivious to the world and the surround 
 ings, and were tenderly laid away in the litter and dirt of the 
 cattle cars. 
 
 Through Illinois the trip was hurried, and neither citizens or 
 soldiers were particularly demonstrative. But at the Indiana 
 State line the patriotic "Hoosiers" turned out in thousands, 
 and the choicest viands their larders afforded were brought out 
 and forced upon the troops without money and without price. 
 At Seymour, on the arrival of the train, tables were already 
 spread and laden with all the delicacies as well as substantial^ 
 which the country afforded, to which the soldiers were heartily 
 welcomed. Great and boisterous was the rejoicing of the people 
 at the appearance of the " Regulars," as the soldiers were called. 
 
 Their progress from Vincennes to Cincinnati was a continuous 
 ovation. The roads were lined and the stations thronged with 
 enthusiastic and excited multitudes, ready with their sustenance 
 to feed the men and welcome and cheer them through the State. 
 How marked the contrast with the studied coldness or open 
 hostility of the people at the South. What an infinite differ 
 ence between riding by rail through a region densely populated 
 with an intelligent, well-to-do and patriotic people, with fields 
 smiling with abundant harvests, and the weary, toilsome march 
 ing through the wilds of Missouri and Arkansas. 
 
 The brigade arrived at Cincinnati at two o clock on the morn 
 ing of the llth. Debarking from the train, the column was 
 formed and marched to the head-quarters of Gen. Wallace, which 
 were in the upper stories of a centrally located business block. 
 On arriving, Col. Greusel went up several flights of stairs 
 to the General s room, in person reported his brigade, and asked 
 for orders and quarters for his men. Gen. Wallace, supposing 
 him to be a new-fledged militia brigadier with a rabble of "squir- 
 
\ COOL RECEPTION. 231 
 
 rel hunters " at his heels, somewhat crustily directed him to 
 quarter his men on the first vacant sidewalk he could find, and 
 remain there until morning for orders. 
 
 This was rather rough entirely unlike the kindly hospitali 
 ties of the " Hoosiers," but the Colonel was too much of a 
 soldier to ask questions or demur, and proceeded sullenly down 
 stairs to obey orders. In fact, he was angry, and on gaining the 
 street, where his tired and sleepy men were laying wearily 
 about on boxes, sidewalks and curbstones, he thundered his orders 
 in tones that rivalled the voice of a cannon. " Attention, Batal- 
 lion ! Shoulder Arms ! Right Wheel ! Right Shoulder-shift 
 Forward Guide Right March !" In all the turmoil and 
 excitement of the times, the streets of Cincinnati had not rever 
 berated orders so strictly military as those. Not one in a thou 
 sand had a voice as stentorian as Col. Greusel in those days. 
 His orders were heard many blocks away, and the startled citi 
 zens flew to the windows and peered into the darkness, thinking, 
 perhaps, Kirby Smith or U 01d Nick" himself had surely come. 
 
 Gen. Wallace was about as much astonished as the denizens of 
 the city, and at once every officer and attachee about head-quar 
 ters were at the windows gazing down upon the long line, every 
 man in his place, marching with the regularity and precision of 
 regulars. The General gave a hurried order, and an aide-de 
 camp came rushing down to the street, shouting, "Stop that 
 Brigade stop that Brigade!" The Colonel enquired, "What s 
 wanted now ?" " Oh, sir, the General took you for militia, who 
 for the last week have nearly worried him to death. Halt your 
 command and come up stairs. Gen. Wallace wishes to see you." 
 A halt was ordered ; the General was profuse with his explana 
 tions and apologies, and directed the Colonel to send the troops, 
 
232 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 under another officer, to the City Market Hall, where the best 
 the city afforded awaited them. 
 
 This was even so. Tables were set. loaded with viands as 
 toothsome as manna, and presided over by little less than a brig 
 ade of ladies, the beauty and worth of Cincinnati. At sight of 
 the tempting meal set before them, the soldiers, who for five days 
 had been trundled and tumbled about in close box-cars to their 
 supreme disgust, exchanged their scowling for countenances more 
 in harmony with the genial and hospitable surroundings. When 
 all was ready, they took their places and partook of the bounties 
 set before them as orderly as an orthodox Sunday School at a 
 pic-nic. Their slightest wishes were promptly attended by beau 
 tiful ladies, who, like winged flowers, glanced hither and thither, 
 supplying all their sharpened appetites craved, and urging them 
 to partake of more. Breakfast over, three as hearty cheers for 
 the ladies of Cincinnati as ever stirred the midnight air rang 
 through Market Hall. This to the tired soldiers was the ideal 
 breakfast of their lives, about which there lingered a fascination 
 in their memories for many a day. Then with fealty to their 
 home-loves for the time sadly impaired, they quietly took their 
 places in the ranks and early in the morning were marched across 
 the "bonnie Ohio" on a pontoon bridge, to the city of Coving- 
 ton, Kentucky, where temporary quarters were assigned them in 
 the City Market House. 
 
 Kirby Smith, with forty thousand Rebel troops, was reported 
 but a few miles distant, and marching upon the city. The excite 
 ment of the people was at fever heat. The militia of Ohio and 
 Indiana were pouring into the city in vast floods. The public 
 parks, the sidew r alks and every available square inch of space was 
 occupied by the undisciplined rabble of "squirrel hunters" and 
 farmers fresh from field and plow, partially armed with shot-guns 
 
CINCINNATI S FEARS ALLAYED. 233 
 
 and old rifles, making quite as rusty an appearance as Price s 
 horde of copper-bottomed Missourians. Ohio was awake to the 
 requirements of the hour, and when Governor Todd issued his 
 proclamation for troops, the citizens grasped rusty fire-locks and 
 responded in mass to the call. Men seventy years of age, with 
 heads whitened for the grave, and boys fifteen years old, rushed 
 to the front and lined the rifle pits, hastily thrown up to cover 
 the approaches to the city. Martial law was proclaimed, business 
 houses closed, and all work but that of arms suspended. Gov 
 ernor Todd was there in person, bubbling over with patriotism, 
 but knowing little of military matters or of disciplining the 
 mighty host he had evoked. All had "blood in their eyes," and 
 were fully bent on "damaging Rebels" if they ever came within 
 reach of their long-ranged rifles. 
 
 With the arrival of Greusel s brigade of veteran troops, whose 
 mettle had been tried on the battle-field, the fears of the citizens 
 were at once allayed. With such troops behind breast-works, 
 which each hour were being strengthened, they felt that a suc 
 cessful resistance could be offered to all the assaults which Kirby 
 Smith could organize against them. Never was there such a 
 revulsion of feeling from despondency to confidence, as was 
 experienced by the citizens of Cincinnati on the arrival of the 
 "Pea Ridge Brigade." A great weight was lifted from their 
 hearts, and they could not too warmly testify their satisfaction 
 and gratitude. Stores were thrown open, and such of their wares 
 as the soldiers wanted were at their command without remunera 
 tion. Cheers followed their march through the city, flags floated 
 from house-tops, and the streets presented the appearance of a 
 vast laundry from the handkerchiefs which fluttered from every 
 window. We doubt if the dread scenes of subsequent conflicts 
 
 16 
 
234 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 are more indelibly stamped upon the memory of the soldiers than 
 the reception accorded them by the citizens of a grateful city. 
 
 Col. Greusel was placed in command of nineteen regiments, 
 who were furnished with picks and shovels and set to work upon 
 the intrenchments in rear of Covington. They worked like bea 
 vers, and vast embankments gradually enclosed the city. 
 
 The 36th was commanded by Capt. Miller, of Company B, 
 the senior officer present for duty. Covington had many attrac 
 tions for the men, who wandered away from the Market House 
 singly or in squads, and when the Captain called for a detail for 
 the performance of some fatigue duty, scarcely a man could be 
 found. Those in the quarters were put on guard, with orders to 
 prevent any from passing out, while the city provost guard and 
 police were directed to arrest the stragglers wherever found and 
 bring them in. But few delinquents were caught, and many of 
 those remaining managed to slip by the guards and get away. 
 The Captain s patience was sorely tried; he declared it as his 
 belief that if but one man remained in the quarters and all the 
 residue of the regiment were set over that man, he would devise 
 some way to elude the guards and escape. At supper-time all 
 were in their places, hungry as sharks, sedate as high churchmen, 
 seemingly quite unconscious of having disturbed the equanimity 
 of their commanding officer, or of being guilty of unmilitary 
 conduct in ranging over the city, and away from their quarters 
 without permission. 
 
 The next day the 36th marched to a position near the line of 
 fortifications in rear of Covington. relieving a regiment of 
 Cincinnati militia, made up of clerks and book-keepers. Their 
 camp presented more the appearance of a lady s boudoir than the 
 temporary quarters of soldiers. In addition to their muskets 
 and accoutrements, each was armed with a brace of wine and 
 
LOUISVILLE, THE REBEL OBJECTIVE POINT. 235 
 
 Bourbon bottles tucked beneath their waistbands. Their com 
 missary was garnished with lager beer kegs, champagne baskets, 
 hams, crackers, sardines and oysters, while as many women as 
 men were in camp, looking after the morals and ministering to 
 the comfort of their "brave soldier boys." The veterans were 
 in hopes Kirby Smith would make an attack, just to give these 
 "counter hoppers" a chance to enjoy a mixture of gunpowder 
 and lead with their other luxuries, and afford an opportunity to 
 display their valor. Just imagine a charge upon a fortification 
 with a musket in their hands, a baby on one arm and a wife 
 clinging to the other ! When they were gone the thirsty " Pea 
 Ridge boys " occupied their quarters, and had a good time smell 
 ing empty bottles and beer kegs. While at this camp, William 
 W. Kerns, of Company G, was accidently shot. A stack of guns 
 falling over, one of them exploded ; the ball penetrating his side, 
 shattered a rib and disabled him for six months. This was the 
 only casualty to the 36th during the campaign. 
 
 For six days the troops lay in the trenches on the banks oi the 
 Licking, in constant expectation of an attack. But the move 
 ment of the main Confederate force, under Bragg, toward Louis 
 ville, the sudden departure of Kirby Smith from before Coving- 
 ton, and his forced march and junction with Bragg at Frankfort, 
 threw off the mask which had so long enveloped their plans, and 
 left no room for doubt that Louisville was the real objective point 
 of the campaign. The excitement which a few days before had 
 prevailed in Cincinnati, was now transferred to Louisville, and 
 frantic calls for veteran troops were made upon the Department 
 commanders. Gen. Nelson, who, after the defeat at Richmond, 
 had fallen back, was assigned to the command of the city, and 
 proceeded to arm the citizens, to fortify and place the city in a 
 complete state of defence. Cincinnati being no longer menaced, 
 
236 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Col. Greusel was ordered to proceed to Louisville with his com 
 mand. The greater portion of the troops embarked upon trans 
 ports and proceeded down the Ohio river, requiring nineteen 
 steamers to transport the command, which had now assumed the 
 proportion of a division. While the boats were passing^ the city 
 the people crowded the wharves and waved a heartfelt adieu. 
 
 The 36th proceeded by rail via Indianapolis and Seymour, of 
 pleasant memory, reaching Jeffersonville at noon on the 19th. 
 Such was the press of business incident to the confusion growing 
 out of the panic that the ferries and ordinary methods for cross 
 ing the river were crowded with fugitives from the panic-stricken 
 city, and were inadequate for the purposes of transportation. 
 Other troops had the precedence, and the 36th waited at Jeffer 
 sonville until evening before being ferried over ; then marching 
 five miles they went into camp in a cemetery in the south-east 
 ern suburbs of the city. 
 
 The exciting and somewhat exaggerated reports which were 
 being circulated of Bragg s nea,r approach, and the overwhelming 
 numbers of his forces, filled Louisville with alarm. Merchants 
 hastily removed the contents of their stores across the river, and 
 household goods, in many instances, were carried a hundred miles 
 into the interior of Indiana. Women, children and non-com 
 batants generally were sent away, that in case of a bombardment 
 there might be no helpless and frenzied objects of compassion to 
 cumber the movement of troops and retard the defence. Col. 
 Greusel, as at Cincinnati, was put in charge of the defences, and 
 under his spuervision earth-works were constructed, extending 
 around the city from the Marine hospital to the banks of -the 
 Ohio. The able-bodied citizens were pressed into service against 
 their inclination, and set to work in the trenches, digging, sweat- 
 
ALARM AND TERROR OF THE CITIZENS. 237 
 
 ing and swearing, while the veterans, with arms in hand, stood 
 by to see that each did his duty without shirking. 
 
 Each hour but intensified the terror of the people, and every 
 preparation was made for the reception of the doughty knights 
 under Smith and Bragg, when on the 25th of September Gen. 
 Buell entered Louisville instead of Bragg, he having come out 
 ahead in the race across Kentucky. Even then, from a general 
 lack of confidence in Buell s generalship, the apprehension of the 
 people was not entirely allayed. On his arrival he found an order 
 from the War Department suspending him, and placing Gen. 
 Thomas in command, which the latter absolutely refused to 
 assume, and by his persistent efforts succeeded in having the 
 order recalled and Gen. Buell retained. 
 
 After the junction of Buell s and Nelson s forces, the army- 
 numbered nearly a hundred thousand men, a majority of whom 
 were old soldiers, whose valor had been tested a number suffi 
 cient, if skillfully handled, to have annihilated Bragg and swept 
 his vagabond hordes from existence. Buell s army was worn 
 down with hard marching, and poorly clothed. The enemy 
 was likewise suffering from similar causes, and no good reason 
 existed why the forces then assembled at Louisville should have 
 been detained there a whole week, during which the country was 
 ravaged and property destroyed to the value of many million 
 dollars. 
 
 On the 29th, Gen. Nelson was shot by Gen. Jeff . C. Davis 
 and killed. This affair resulted from the insolence of the former 
 which Gen. Davis would not endure. Nelson had long been con 
 nected with the regular service, and though a man of courage and 
 a strict disciplinarian, was rough and overbearing in his demeanor 
 to inferiors. To retort was sure to be followed by insult and often 
 with blows. This was rather more than many of the impetuous 
 
238 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and hot-blooded officers would patiently endure. Nelson had 
 assigned Davis to an unimportant command over raw and insub 
 ordinate home-guards, who were constantly vibrating between 
 their homes and commands, and it was extremely difficult for an 
 officer to tell at a given time the exact number he could depend 
 upon in case of an emergency. At this time Nelson met Davis 
 in the hall of one of the principal hotels of Louisville, and in an 
 imperious manner asked the number in his command. Davis 
 could give only the approximate number, at which Gen. Nelson 
 flew into a passion and struck Gen. Davis in the face. The latter 
 borrowed a pistol from a bystander and shot the former while 
 passing up the hotel stairs. 
 
 Gen. Nelson s insolence not only impaired his usefulness as an 
 officer, but alienated the aifections of the men who served under 
 him. The people, particularly negroes, with whom he came in 
 contact, were treated by him more like serfs than free men. At 
 the funeral, when the coffin was brought out and the remains 
 exhibited to the assembled thousands, a passing cloud obscured 
 the rays of the sun, when the poor negroes who were present, 
 with one voice exclaimed, "De Lord am done gone and hid His 
 face from one dat kicks de cullered folks and break dar bones/ 
 
 Gen. Gilbert succeeded Nelson in the command of the Third 
 Corps, in which was the 36th, being part of the 37th Brigade in 
 Sheridan s Division. The Brigade was composed of the 36th, 
 44th, 88th Illinois, the 24th Wisconsin and the 21st Michigan 
 Regiments of Infantry, with Hiscock s Missouri and Barrett s 
 2nd Illinois Batteries, under the command of Col. Greusel. 
 
CH-APTER XVIII 
 
 ADVANCE INTO KENTUCKY. 
 
 |N THE 1st of October, after the Rebel cavalry 
 had quite effectually raided upon and devastated 
 the country up to our picket lines. Gen. Buell 
 marched out with a formidable army in quest of 
 the enemy. The columns were cumbered with 
 wagon-trains over twenty-two miles in length, and 
 moved exceedingly slow, averaging about ten miles a day. Gen. 
 Gilbert s crops occupied the Bardstown pike, passing through a 
 country far different in appearance from the rough chert hills of 
 Missouri or the marshy lagoons of Mississippi, a region that had 
 felt but little of the rude effects of war, and smiling in autumnal 
 beauty. Here and there elegant country seats adorned the way 
 side, and at the gates of many stood the occupants, tendering 
 cups of water to the men, while from window or piazza ladies 
 waved their handkerchiefs woman s banner in grief or joy in 
 token of patriotic sympathy. The pike was one crowded mass 
 of infantry, cavalry, artillery and wagon trains, moving in double 
 lines and rumbling over the solid but dusty road. Fields, farm 
 yards and woods were full of soldiers, and when the marching 
 
240 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 columns had passed, many of the plantations were denuded of 
 poultry, pigs and sheep. Slowly feeling its way, the army moved 
 against the Rebel invaders, affording ample opportunities for 
 stragglers to elude their officers and depredate upon hen-roosts 
 and potato fields. 
 
 Stringent orders against foraging were promulgated by Gen. 
 Gilbert, and much of that officer s time, and by far the most 
 onerous of his duties, was the protection of the hen-roosts and 
 "truck patches " of the fellow citizens of his native State, many 
 of whom were away from home and might have been found in the 
 gray Confederate ranks under Bragg, ready to shoot down at 
 sight the soldiers in blue, guarding their homes and plantations 
 from pillage. A little episode upon this march illustrates the 
 testy disposition of Gen. Gilbert, the coolness of Capt. Miller, 
 and the fearless devotion of the men to their comrades and com 
 mander. The weather was warm, and the men somewhat 
 fatigued, when the regiment halted a few moments by the way 
 side, opposite an orchard, the trees of which were loaded with 
 delicious fruit. A few of the men scaled the fence and were 
 filling their pockets with apples, when Gen. Gilbert chanced to 
 pass that Way and caught them in the " infamous act" of steal 
 ing. The General was furious, and ordered his escort to fire 
 upon the men thus engaged. The order was scarcely uttered, 
 when every man by the wayside sprang to his feet, seized his 
 musket, and the ramming of cartridges and click of gun-locks 
 was fearfully ominous, and warned the escort to desist from put 
 ting the order into execution. The General saw the look of 
 defiance and determination gleaming from the eyes of the men, 
 and did not repeat his heartless order the second time, but angrily 
 demanded, " Where is the officer in command of these mis 
 creants?" Capt. Miller, who was sitting cross-legged upon his 
 
CAPT. MILLER AND A KENTUCKY GENERAL. 241 
 
 horse, was pointed out. The General advanced, and with harsh 
 invectives assailed him. The Captain remained cool as if in a 
 drawing-room, and to the torrent of abuse curtly replied, General, 
 one word from me will call the boys out of that orchard a d d 
 " sight sooner than you can shoot them out; and should it come 
 " to that, I have the honor to assure you, General, that my boys 
 " never allow themselves to be outdone in this shooting business. 
 " I think your fellows had better put up their shooting irons, for 
 " the first flash of a carbine at one of them boys will be the death 
 " knell of every mother s son that has a hand in the business." 
 Such insubordination could not be overlooked by one of Gen. 
 Gilbert s phlegmatic temperament, and the whole regiment was 
 ordered under arrest. 
 
 The country was undulating, and from the summits of the 
 higher elevations one could look back over the line of march and 
 see the long blue columns streaming over the gentle acclivities, 
 the bayonets glistening in the sunshine, while in front the mighty 
 coil of armed men stretched away among the picturesque hills 
 until lost in the hazy distance. In the evening, temporary camps 
 were formed along the banks of streams and water courses, while 
 mile upon mile of camp fires flecked the hill-sides, wrapped the 
 country in flame, and lighted up the misty air of night with a 
 weird, sapphire glow, presenting a scene grand beyond conception. 
 The troops, after finishing their suppers, retired to some leafy 
 couch under the thick foliage of trees, arid sought repose. 
 
 In perusing the pages of the men s journals, relative to the 
 incidents connected with this campaign, we find little worthy of 
 notice transpiring on the inarch from Louisville to Perryville. 
 All were in fine spirits and eager for an encounter with the ene 
 my, who were slowly retiring with their plunder before the 
 advance of our solid columns. Each day yielded its usual har- 
 
242 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 vest of rumors, frequently throwing the newly formed regiments 
 into a fever of excitement, but not disturbing the equanimity 
 of the older troops. 
 
 Eventually these rumors were changed to reality, as the cav 
 alry came in contact with the rebel rear guard, and frequent skir 
 mishes marked the progress of the advance. The squads of lean 
 and ragged rebel prisoners captured in these encounters, as they 
 marched to the rear, were regarded with the utmost curiosity by 
 the new troops, now upon their first campaign. Some taunted 
 them as traitors, while others comforted them with words of pity 
 for the unfortunate condition in which they were placed. 
 
 Near Bardstown, a large force of the enemy was overtaken, 
 who manifested a desire to dispute our further progress. A halt 
 was ordered, skirmishers thrown out, the artillery brought up, and 
 considerable firing at long range ensued. The advance guard 
 was principally made up of new troops, it being the day when the 
 36th and the older troops of Sheridan s Division were in the rear. 
 The enemy stubbornly maintained their ground, presenting a 
 bold front, against which our skirmishers and field guns made but 
 little impression. Matters began to wear a serious aspect, and a 
 general engagement was immediately expected. This was con 
 trary to Gen. Buell s policy, which was, apparently, to keep just 
 as far from Bragg as possible and maintain the semblance of 
 pursuit, and if, by accident, the enemy should be encountered, to 
 fight him lightly. Orders were sent back for Greusel and Lei- 
 bold s Brigades of veterans to advance at once, to ascertain the 
 temper and disposition of the enemy. In a few moments the 
 troops were under arms and moving at a double-quick down the 
 dusty road, cheering as they ran, with little Phil Sheridan, their 
 division commander, at their head, as noisy and enthusiastic as if 
 in a buffalo hunt, and with words of cheer which rang out 
 
ON THE MARCH IN KENTUCKY. 243 
 
 like " Napoleon s," inspiring his men with confidence equal to a 
 reinforcement of a thousand men. Reaching the point of threat 
 ened conflict, they were only in time to see the gray backs of the 
 foe they were in search of disappear in rapid retreat. Disap 
 pointed and sullen, the troops returned three miles to camp, heartily 
 despising a foe whose courage oozed out at sight of men who 
 meant fight. 
 
 On the 6th, the 36th Regiment was detailed as rear guard, and 
 did not get under way till noon. The country was broken and 
 parched with summer heats. Water-courses were dried up and 
 the few springs filled with offal of the retreating enemy and ren 
 dered unfit for use. Here and there, tall chimneys, built accord 
 ing to southern fashion, on the exterior, and a few charred and 
 smouldering remains, marking the site of ruined mansions, told of 
 the devastation of war and the fearful retribution which the pas 
 sions of men had inflicted upon once peaceful and prosperous 
 communities. Aside from the gray ashes which marked the 
 place where houses and fences once stood, this part of Kentucky 
 was a fair land to look upon. Its gracefully rounded hills and 
 dark masses of wood, robed in autumnal glory, combined to make 
 a bright and beautiful picture, in spite of the fresh traces of the 
 destroyer and the ruins around which gathered the dejected and 
 houseless owners, brooding over the fragments of their ruined 
 possessions. 
 
 This day s march was about as severe as any the troops had 
 been subjected to. Without water, they pushed on through 
 blinding clouds of dust, that darkened the sun and yet added 
 intensity to its heat. They passed through Springfield, a half- 
 deserted and dilapidated town, odorous with bad whiskey and 
 rebellion, and did not reach camp until eleven o clock at night. 
 The summer and autumn had been unusually hot ; the fields were 
 
244 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 parched, the grass withered, and thirsty soldiers looked with 
 wearied eyes on the beds of streams and rivers, either totally dry, 
 or shrunken into little, heated, tired-looking threads of water 
 brackish and disagreeable to taste and smell. 
 
 The few springs and sparkling brooks were usually monopo 
 lized by Gen. Gilbert, who sent an aid in advance to select roman 
 tic spots near by, in which was pitched the General s marquee, and 
 a detachment of body guards posted to protect the sacred precincts, 
 as well as the spring, from intrusion. Near the close of this sultry 
 day, the 36th, soiled with dust and famished with thirst, came up 
 to a spring of clear, cold water, near which were located the 
 headquarters of Gen. Gilbert. The men, acting upon the cam 
 paign maxim, " wherever and whenever you can secure a square 
 meal or a drink of cold water, do so," eagerly crowded around 
 the spring, with the inevitable tin cup and canteen, quaffing great 
 draughts of the refreshing beverage, to quench a thirst of eight 
 or ten hours duration. A dapper little staff-officer came up and 
 ordered the boys away, to which, for awhile, they paid no more 
 attention than to the cackling of a hen, but persisting in his 
 impertinence, a broad-shouldered, ungainly private of Company 
 B knocked him down with the butt of his gun effectually silenc 
 ing him for the time being. Thereupon Gen. Gilbert came out 
 in person and reiterated the command, ordering Capt. Miller to 
 move on with his regiment. The Captain courteously but firmly 
 remonstrated, telling the General "that his men had marched 
 since before mid-day without water ; that the heat was oppressive ; 
 that his men were suffering from thirst, and that the refusal of 
 water under such circumstances showed a want of common 
 humanity." Geri. Gilbert was irritated at this manly protest 
 and ordered his body-guard to charge upon and drive the men 
 away from the spring. Captain Miller, nothing daunted, directed 
 
GEN. GILBERT SQUELCHED BY CAPT. MILLER. 245 
 
 his men to fix bayonets and run the first man through who should 
 molest them, until they got what water they wanted. To be thus 
 defied by a little, wiry Yankee captain, was more than Kentucky 
 dignity could stand, and addressing his body-guard (a detachment 
 of the 2nd Kentucky Cavalry) he said, "Yemen of Kentucky ! 
 will you allow this insult to your General to go unrebuked arid 
 unpunished ! If you are men, and have any regard for your honor 
 as Kentuckians, you will instantly disperse this insolent mob, 
 and arrest every one who refuses compliance with orders." It 
 was then Capt. Miller s turn to talk, and turning to the men, he 
 said, "Boys, massacre every mother s son of them that dares to 
 lay a finger upon you until your canteens are filled," and turn 
 ing to the body-guard and staff of the General, "if you, or any 
 other Kentuckian. want to die on your own native soil, now is 
 your chance to do so, for by the Great Eternal, my men are going 
 to have all the water they want, before marching another foot. 
 If you want to die, come on !" But they did not come on worth 
 a cent, and Gen. Gilbert returned chagrined to his tent, and the 
 36th remained masters of the situation. 
 
 The advance camped in the near vicinity of the enemy s rear 
 guard, with whom the cavalry had skirmishes all day, resulting 
 in the killing and wounding of a few. whom they left, in their 
 hurried retreat, by the roadside, to the tender mercies of the pur 
 suers. Surgeon Young, whose humanity equaled his patriotism, 
 caused some of their dead to be buried, and attended to their 
 wounded with the same considerate care bestowed upon our own 
 sick and suffering soldiers. A score or more of half-clothed pris 
 oners were taken, who looked wan, pale and thin from the many 
 privations to which they had been subjected. Ragged and dirty 
 as they were, they elicited the respect of the older soldiers, who 
 had learned how well they fought, how bravely and persistently 
 
246 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 they had stood up for their cause, bad as it was. As was remarked 
 by an officer who had them in charge. "Though not inspired by 
 God, they certainly are possessed of the devil, and have acted 
 bravely the part their master commanded them to play." 
 
 The opposition increased as the army advanced, the cavalry 
 skirmishing almost continually with the Rebel rearguard. Com 
 pany B Cavalry, under the gallant Capt. Sherer, was attached to 
 Gen. Mitchell s Division, and did good service in reconnoitering, 
 scouring the country, ever hanging upon the enemy s rear, and 
 whenever an opportunity offered, charging upon such bodies as 
 seemed determined to stand, who usually wavered and fled before 
 the withering blast from their carbines without waiting to feel 
 their keen-edged sabres. 
 
 The morning of the 7th broke clear and bright, and the wel 
 come rattle of carbines betokened that the cavalry were early at 
 their work. The conflict, which for the last three days had been 
 momentarily expected, all felt could not much longer be delayed. 
 The 37th Brigade headed the advance, and cheerfully the men 
 moved to the dangerous task before them. The columns were 
 massed and kept well in hand, advancing slowly and cautiously 
 in readiness for battle, the enemy stubbornly contesting every 
 inch of ground. On the crests of hills and at every available 
 point of defence, heavy bodies of troops formed in dense lines for 
 the protection of their rear, and anon the blue smoke-wreaths 
 flashing from out their waving line, and the sharp ring of mus- 
 ketrp was the greeting our cavalry received. Against the serried 
 ranks they moved, shot answering shot, steadily driving the 
 enemy before them. Occasionally from the summits of hills, up 
 and over which wound the crooked road, dense columns of the 
 enemy, many miles in extent, might be seen moving in perfect 
 order. Then long-ranged rifled parrots would be brought up. 
 
CAPT. HOBBS IN DANGER. 247 
 
 placed in position, and rounds of solid shot sent hissing after the 
 departing force, producing but little effect beyond hurrying the 
 retreat. The sullen booming of cannon, mingled with the patter 
 ing fire of musketry and carbines, served to arouse the energies 
 of the troops, who felt something of the old inspiration which 
 the music of flashing guns never failed to impart, and as a result, 
 there was much less straggling than usual. 
 
 As the division descended the southern slope of a range of 
 hills two or three miles north of Perryville, the sunset hues were 
 filling the west with gorgeous beauty. The eye took in a varied 
 landscape of hill and vale, field and woodland, alas! soon to echo 
 fhe roar of artillery, and rattle of musketry, to be seamed and 
 defaced by plunging shot and shrieking shell, and to witness 
 scenes and incidents that would afford interesting topics for fire 
 side talks that would last during the rest of the monotonous lives 
 of the denizens of these secluded valleys. The army camped in 
 a hollow or depression among the hills, but a mile and arhalf dis 
 tant from the position of the main Rebel army. In front was a 
 hill of gradual ascent, covered with brush, scattering timber and 
 small cornfields. The usual picket guard was doubled, and strong 
 details of picked men were required from the 36th and other reg 
 iments composing the division. Capt. Hobbs, of Company E, 
 was officer of the guard, and proceeded silently up the slope with 
 his detachment in skirmish line, through the intervening brush 
 and across fields to the brow of the hill, and established the picket 
 line three-quarters of a mile from camp. A dense forest lay in 
 front, and here and there across its dark aisles the straggling 
 moonbeams glanced, while in the patches of light the shadowy 
 forms of Rebel pickets were occasionally seen gliding from tree 
 to tree. But a few yards intervened between the hostile lines : 
 
248 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the changing of reliefs, and murmur of voices in low conversa 
 tion, could be indistinctly heard. 
 
 Capt. Hobbs, in the performance of his duty as officer of the 
 guard, while passing between the stations, frequently mistook the 
 shadows of the timber for picket posts, and strayed near to and 
 almost within the enemy s lines. Once, while approaching a post 
 from the direction of the enemy, he was taken for a Confederate, 
 and a member of his own company was on the point of firing 
 upon him. It was a beautiful, quiet, moonlight night. All were 
 on the alert, and the breaking of a twig, the rustle of a leaf or 
 the gentle sigh of a zephyr, attracted immediate attention and 
 found the watchful sentinels in readiness for any emergency. 
 Thus the hours passed. The night crept on towards morning. 
 Faint bars of gray tinged the hill-tops, one by one the stars dis 
 appeared, the leaden sky gave way to azure blue, and the position 
 of the opposing pickets was disclosed in plain sight and near at 
 hand. The changing of reliefs was taken for a movement, and 
 a rattling fire of musketry commenced with the dawn of morning. 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 BATTLE OF PERRYVILLE. 
 
 daylight on the morning of the 8th, the shrill 
 blast of the bugle aroused the slumbering camps, 
 and a hastily prepared breakfast was as hastily eaten. 
 Staff officers and orderlies rode hither and thither on 
 various duties. The new troops were full of excite 
 ment and watched with interest the preparations going on around 
 them. Then a line of battle was formed and gradually advanced, 
 pushing the enemy back, while random shots heightened the 
 interest and awoke the echoes of the morning. Reaching the 
 crest of the hills, officers with field glasses scanned the opposite 
 heights and intervening valleys, seeking to learn the enemy s 
 position and unravel the mystery which shrouded their move 
 ments. The men in the ranks could not distinguish a single bat 
 tery or discern the movements of a brigade. Scarcely a batallion 
 of the men in gray were in sight. Behind the opposite crest 
 they lay, rank upon rank, partially hidden by the inter 
 vening foliage and natural inequalities of the ground. Scarcely 
 was our line developed along the broken summit of the hills, when 
 smoke clouds leaped in sudden puffs from the opposite ridges, 
 which were crowned with hostile cannon. One by one the descend- 
 17 
 
250 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ing shot dropped within our lines, and soon all became familiar 
 with the shrill whizzing music of iron projectiles. Our cannon 
 were then set at work, and eloquently responded to the volleyed 
 thunder from the distant hill-tops. Skirmishers were deployed 
 and swept across the intervening valley, up the opposite slope, 
 under cover of the artillery, closely followed by strong columns 
 in support. The cessation of their artillery fire and the inter 
 mittent blaze of musketry along the skirmish line, indicated the 
 withdrawal of the enemy and their formation in a new position 
 upon the hills a half mile in rear of the first. 
 
 Orders being received to hold the hill at all hazards, Barrett s 
 battery of the 2nd Illinois Artillery was advanced to the position 
 just vacated, the 36th Illinois Infantry moving forward to its 
 support, taking a position in the timber on the right of the road 
 and partially in rear and right of the battery. The 88th Illinois 
 Volunteers were posted on the left of the road, also in rear of the 
 battery, in which position the troops remained until eleven o clock 
 A. M. The 36th occupied about a central point in the advance 
 of Gen. Sheridan s Division, but from its partially concealed posi 
 tion in the timber, few indications of a hostile force in the oppo 
 site fields and woods could be seen. Thin clouds of smoke were 
 observed rising lazily above the tree-tops, followed by a shrieking 
 shell which the enemy now and then tossed over to our position, 
 hoping, perhaps, to dislodge the artillery or demoralize the infan 
 try, which for the present was commanded to lay down and do noth 
 ing. No advance on our part was ordered, none on the part of 
 the enemy attempted ; so instead of exchanging the leaden com 
 pliments of war, and performing feats of daring, the troops 
 had only to listen to the shrieking shell and whizzing round shot 
 and await the development of movements in other portions of 
 the field. Scarcely had the echoes of their first shot ceased to 
 
MC COOK S ADVANCE. 251 
 
 reverberate, when Barrett s and other batteries posted to the right 
 and left, commenced a heavy cannonade, sweeping the hills with 
 an iron torrent, which the enemy could not long withstand. 
 
 While the opposing forces are thus facing each other, and a 
 desultory firing at long range in front of Sheridan s Division is 
 going on, in which but little damage to either side is being 
 inflicted, we will glance at other portions of the field where ground 
 is being desperately fought over, positions lost and won, and 
 tragedies enacted that appall the stoutest heart. The corps 
 of Gen. McCook comprised the left wing of the army, moved 
 upon other but parallel roads via Mackville, each column being 
 within call, with orders to support each other in case of neces 
 sity. Buell, notwithstanding his vastly superior numbers, still 
 wished to avoid a battle. From the determined opposition oifered 
 to Gilbert s advance, he anticipated some resistance at this stage 
 of the march, and ordered up McCook s corps from Mackville. 
 This order was received after two o clock on the morning of the 
 8th. Though twelve miles distant, with characteristic prompt 
 ness his columns were in motion before daylight and on the road 
 to Perryville. All the morning the booming of cannon in front 
 of Gilbert, reverberating among the hills, was wafted to the ears 
 of the men who marched to its rolling cadences. Though suffer 
 ing for the want of water, they pressed eagerly forward, over 
 roads rocky and rough in the extreme, the advance connecting 
 with Gilbert s right at 11 o clock A. M. 
 
 Taking in the situation at a glance, and knowing that from 
 their position on the second or Chaplin s Hills the enemy com 
 manded the approaches to the creek and springs, to which his 
 thirsty troops alone could look for relief, he determined to carry 
 the position and gain possession of the springs. The appearance 
 of McCook upon the field was evidently a surprise to the enemy, 
 
252 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 who were maneuvering to gain Gilbert s left and assail him in 
 flank. To frustrate their designs, Me Cook s arrival was not a 
 moment too soon, as the enemy s skirmishers were already 
 taking possession of the hills. From these they were easily 
 driven back upon their supports. Pressing forward with Lytel s 
 Brigade, and assisted by the 36th Brigade of Sheridan s Divis 
 ion, under Col. Leibold, a sharp contest for the possession of the 
 spring ensued, which involved the forces confronting Sheridan, 
 with whom Barrett s guns had all the morning been exchanging 
 the compliments of the season. While these movements were 
 taking place on the left, the 36th lay in the timber listening to 
 the report of cannon fired at unfrequent intervals, which to them 
 was becoming monotonous. Aside from these occasional explo 
 sions, the hills and woods, to all outward appearance, slept 
 peaceful and calm in the summer sunshine. 
 
 But what mean these quick, rushing smoke-puffs rising above 
 the trees away to the left, and the heavy crash of artillery fol 
 lowing them ? Quickly from the heights in front was heard an 
 instantaneous response and corresponding smoke-puffs from Rebel 
 batteries. Then the sharp rattle of musketry added its shrill 
 soprano to the carnival of sound that rolled down from the 
 woody slopes. 
 
 Through openings in the timber could be seen our skirmishers 
 moving slowly forward from tree to tree, and from position to 
 position ; now halting as if to select a particular object at which 
 to fire, then crouching and delivering their shots as deliberately 
 as if at target practice. They gradually pushed up the hill in 
 the face of a withering fire towards the summit, where every 
 rock, tree and clump of bushes concealed a Rebel sharp-shooter. 
 A few vards in the rear moved the long, dark line of reserves, 
 upon which the skirmishers rallied when they had unmasked the 
 
SUCCESSFUL FIGHT FOR GOOD-NIGHT SPRING. 253 
 
 foe. The rattle of musketry grew louder and more continuous. 
 Barrett s battery, with others placed at intervals along the line, 
 a mile in extent, were playing vigorously upon the enemy. 
 Leibold s Brigade, the gallant 2nd Missouri, in the lead, in con 
 junction with McCook s troops, maintained a steady line of 
 attack, never wavering or bending beneath the storm which 
 assailed them. The air was filled with shrieking lead, and from 
 our position could be faintly heard the cheers and yells of the 
 opposing forces and the continuous roll of musketry. For half 
 an hour the strife continued. Little by little the Rebel line 
 wavered, inch by inch they gave ground, and then broken and 
 discomfitted they retreated in disorder from the heights to their 
 reserves at Perry ville. Thus Chaplin s Hills were won. Good 
 night spring was ours, and great draughts of its refreshing 
 waters slaked the thirst of men, who for two days had toiled 
 through heat and dust, suffering intensely for the want of water. 
 In this fierce encounter which gained us Chaplin s Hills, the 2nd 
 Missouri took a prominent part, and had twenty killed and sixty 
 wounded. Their ranks, though swept with sheets of fire, which 
 sent many a hero bleeding to the ground, charged desperately 
 upon the living barrier and compelled it to fall back before their 
 terrific volleys, leaving many dead and mangled men scattered 
 over the hill-sides. 
 
 The enemy having been driven from their formidable position 
 in Sheridan s front, matters became comparatively quiet, and the 
 36th was advanced across the valley, through open fields and 
 intervening timber, to a position on the southern slope of Chap 
 lin s Hills, in support of Hiscock s Missouri battery, which occu 
 pied the summit of the hill, trying occasionally the effect of a 
 shot at long range. Away to the left, in front of McCook, the 
 continual roar of guns announced that his batteries were warmly 
 
254 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 engaged, and that an artillery duel of formidable proportions 
 was raging between the opposing forces. In front, and a mile 
 or more away, lay Hardee s corps in the valley of Chaplin s 
 creek, concealed from view by the intervening bluffs and fringes of 
 timber and bushes, which in isolated patches dotted the slopes. 
 The 36th descended the southern incline to a cornfield a few 
 hundred yards below, and in front of the batteries stationed on 
 the crest of the ridge, and halting, stood at ease in line of battle, 
 gazing over the undulating fields and valleys a mile away, where 
 hid from sight lay dense masses of Hardee s Infantry and Artil 
 lery, with only a thin line of skirmishers in view to break the 
 monotony and disturb the prevailing quiet. Soon after the bal 
 ance of the brigade came forward, followed by the whole army 
 corps. By noon the Federal line of battle extended along the 
 crest of the hills for a mile and a-half, the Divisions of Mitchell, 
 Sheridan and Schoeff, of Gilbert s corps, forming the right, while 
 Rousseau s and Jackson s Divisions, of McCook s corps, occu 
 pied the left, the latter confronted by Folk s and the former by 
 Hardee s veterans of the Confederate army. 
 
 The 37th (Greusel s) Brigade occupied a central position in 
 Sheridan s Division, and was formed in the following order. 
 Barrett s battery was stationed on the crest of the ridge to the 
 right of the Springfield road, supported by the 21st Michigan 
 Volunteers, a few yards in rear of the guns, just over the brow 
 of the hill which interposed a barrier against random shot that 
 struck the ground in front, and rebounding over the heads of 
 the troops, terminated their career a hundred yards to the rear. 
 The 24th Wisconsin Volunteers was stationed to the left of the 
 road, also protected by the summit of the ridge, while a section 
 of Hiscock s battery operated in its front. The 36th Illinois was 
 withdrawn from the cornfield to the timber immediately in front 
 
ATTACK ON MC COOK*S CORPS. 255 
 
 of Barrett s battery, on the exposed side of the hills, the cannon 
 being fired over the heads of the regiment throughout the ensu 
 ing engagement. The 88th Illinois Volunteers was posted to 
 the right of the batteries, on the brow of the hill, being more or 
 less exposed to the enemy s fire, and participated in the engage 
 ment from the beginning. 
 
 While this disposition of the Federal forces was being made, 
 Bragg advanced his right against McCook, and a furious engage 
 ment at once commenced. His artillery placed in favorable 
 positions on commanding elevations near the creek, poured a 
 pitiless storm of shot into the Federal ranks, which stood unpro 
 tected upon the open plain. This sudden outburst of Rebel 
 wrath was the sure precursor of an infantry charge, and the few 
 minutes that intervened before the appearance of the hostile 
 forces were spent in busy preparation for their reception. 
 Scarcely had the echo of the first gun ceased to reverberate, 
 when McCook s batteries commenced a heavy cannonade, sweep 
 ing the fields and broken plateau with a storm of iron that none 
 but stout hearted and hard nerved men could stem. A little 
 after noon the Divisions of Cheatham, Buckner and Anderson 
 emerged from the valley of Chaplin s creek, but so furious the 
 fire that greeted them that they were obliged to advance under 
 cover of sheltering ravines, and deploying upon the plain, 
 charged with great impetuosity upon Terrell s Brigade of raw 
 troops, which by a misunderstanding of orders had been pushed 
 to an exposed position in front, without adequate supports. They 
 were the first to encounter the charging divisions, and for a little 
 while bravely withstood the shock of battle. But volley after 
 volley of musketry was launched with merciless fury into their 
 devoted ranks. Thin grew their line. Men were shot down by 
 scores. What could they do but bend beneath the shock. Gen. 
 
256 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Jackson, their Division Commander, in trying to rally them, was 
 struck in the breast by a fragment of an exploded shell, and 
 with the exclamation, " Oh, God !" fell from his horse a mangled 
 corpse. Terrell also was struck down while endeavoring to 
 encourage the men, and the brigade began to melt away, its 
 broken remains flying to the rear. The horses attached to Par 
 son s battery were all shot down, most of the gunners either 
 wounded or slain. The survivors vainly attempted to drag their 
 pieces back by hand to save them from capture, but every effort 
 was baffled by the uninterrupted fire which decimated their num 
 bers, and they were forced to leave the guns in the possession of 
 the yelling and now triumphant enemy. 
 
 Starkweather s Brigade of war-worn experienced veterans, 
 who had marched and fought under 0. M. Mitchell, in his 
 meteor-like movements from the Ohio to Nashville and into Ala 
 bama, was the next to feel the weight of the attack. It was 
 posted at the extreme left of Rousseau s Division, and in reserve 
 behind Terrell. The safety of the trains and the whole division 
 depended upon their steadfastness and ability to hold their posi 
 tion. On swept the enemy over the field they had just won, 
 scattering the fragments of Terrell s recruits like snowflakes 
 before the wind, crushing the dead and wounded beneath their 
 horses hoofs and cannon wheels, and with terrific yells rushing 
 into the deadly embrace of Starkweather s veterans, who firmly 
 stood and held their position. From their well dressed lines 
 rang out the sharp crash of musketry, before which many in the 
 front rank of their assailants went down. Fresh troops step up 
 and close the gaps, and in solid masses once more advance to 
 again be mowed down by a whirlwind of fire. The survivors 
 paused not for an instant, but rushed forward to within a few 
 yards of the Federal line, and then halting, delivered a close fire 
 
A TERRIBLE COKFLICT. 257 
 
 that sent many a patriot reeling to the ground, baptizing the 
 soil of Kentucky with their generous blood. Here and there a 
 wounded hero dropped his musket from a nerveless grasp, and 
 pale and bleeding limped back to the rear. The brigade wavered 
 a little, but McCook was there watching the progress of the 
 fight, cheering and encouraging the men. Pride and discipline 
 at length asserted its sway over the troops, every man moved 
 forward to his former position and inflexibly held the line. No 
 reserves were near, and it was important the left must be pre 
 served at all hazards, lest the enemy breaking through should 
 capture the trains and doubling on the rear create a panic and 
 put the whole army to rout. For half an hour wave after wave 
 of Southern valor dashed against Starkweather s Brigade, to be 
 again and again hurled back, their ranks bleeding and discom- 
 fitted, followed by wild, irregular cheers. Under such circum 
 stances it does men good to shout. It infuses a sort of inspira 
 tion, tones up their waning courage, and is equal in value and 
 practical results to a reinforcement of fresh men. 
 
 Each repulse of Cheatham s batallions was followed by a lull, 
 a mere scattering fire of musketry; and there were moments 
 when not a shot was exchanged. Then would be heard that 
 Rebel yell, sending a thrill to the stoutest heart, and the storm 
 would burst forth afresh, the enemy charging desperately towards 
 our line, and hurling themselves upon this living barrier in vain. 
 Gen. McCook becoming assured that the left was placed in charge 
 of safe hands, proceeded to the right, where the roar of guns 
 told him a conflict of equal magnitude was going on. 
 
 Cheatham s charge upon the left, so disastrous to Terrell and 
 taxing to its utmost the courage of Starkweather s veterans, was 
 followed by Buckner and Anderson, who joined their divisions 
 to Cheatham s left, and at once the battle raged along the whole 
 
258 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 of Rousseau s line. Three divisions were thus launched upon 
 three brigades, a disparity in numbers too great to be success 
 fully withstood without the aid of parapets or natural advantages 
 of position as a protection against the effect of shot and shell. 
 For a while Rousseau s gallant squadrons held their own, return 
 ing blow for blow, and giving as good as was sent. The wide 
 openings which rent their ranks were closed again, and bravely 
 they responded, hurling grape, cannister and musket balls upon 
 the advancing foe, who outnumbered them three to one. A half 
 hour s exposure to three-fourths of a mile of sheeted musketry, 
 and the enfilading fire from a score of Rebel batteries, was suffi 
 cient to sweep every man from existence. Against numbers so 
 overwhelming they could not stand, and accordingly fell back to 
 the protecting summits of the ridge. The retreat was inevita 
 ble. It was not a disorderly rout, but with ranks unbroken they 
 fell back in good order, occasionally halting and defiantly hurling 
 rounds of grape into the face of the thronging enemy, and bring 
 ing their guns and colors safely from the field. 
 
 McCook met Rousseau s shattered columns slowly giving 
 ground, and ordered up all his reserves, including Webster s and 
 Hall s Brigades of Jackson s Division, and sought to hold the 
 enemy in check until reinforcements could be brought over from 
 Gilbert s corps, which up to this time had been but slightly 
 engaged. Hour after hour with varying fortunes the conflict 
 raged. Lytle, who had the extreme right of the division, was 
 struck down and carried bleeding to the rear. Webster, in his 
 efforts to maintain his line, was killed. The carnage on both 
 sides was frightful. Here, there and all around the mutilated 
 remains of heroic men were scattered over the field, their life- 
 blood crimsoning the earth. The 15th Kentucky Volunteers, 
 assailed by a largely superior force in front and enfiladed on 
 
BEAVERY OP AN OHIO REGIMENT. 259 
 
 either flank by a heavy fire of artillery, in five minutes was 
 nearly annihilated, and few survivors were left to tell the story 
 of their discomfiture. An Ohio regiment, while firmly holding 
 an advanced position, found themselves surrounded, the enemy 
 lapping around their flanks and nearly enclosing them within 
 their fatal folds. But brave and fearless officers were at the head 
 of equally brave and fearless men, and with the fury of tigers 
 they dashed upon the enclosing circle, cutting a broad road 
 through, and rejoining their comrades, who were maintaining a 
 desperate resistance on another portion of the field. 
 
 While the contest was thus fiercely raging on the left, the 
 right wing had not remained idle and disinterested spectators of 
 the rapid succession of events and turmoil of battle transpiring 
 around them. The position of Sheridan s Division, and more 
 particularly of the 37th Brigade, has already been alluded to. 
 On the left the battle had been in progress an hour and a-half 
 before demonstrations were made upon the right. The position 
 occupied by Barrett s and Hiscock s batteries commanded an 
 extensive view, and from it the panorama of war could be seen 
 in all its awful grandeur. When Rousseau s line was broken, 
 and the enemy s hosts were surging over the field, their advance 
 line fringed with fire, every glass was directed thitherward, and 
 when our lines went down before the irresi stable charge, many a 
 prayer went up to heaven, u God help our poor boys now!" 
 The enemy was observed massing his forces behind the narrow 
 belt of timber fringing a dry branch running into Chaplin s 
 creek, and sick at heart we beheld the attacking line firmly 
 advancing across the fields to complete the rout their death-deal 
 ing batteries had commenced. 
 
 Turning to the commander of a battery Col. Greusel exclaimed, 
 " Captain Hiscock, those fellows over yonder are using McCook s 
 
260 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 boys rather roughly. Can t you reach them with your shot ?" 
 " I ll try, Colonel," was the laconic reply, and elevating his 
 guns, shot after shot enfiladed their line ; shells bursting in the 
 midst of crowded ranks caused great rents which were promptly 
 closed, and the solid lines with flaunting banners pressed for 
 ward to the charge, scarcely deigning to notice the shot dropping 
 upon the heads of the advancing infantry. The gunners 
 redoubled their efforts, and blazing shell were launched in the 
 thronging Rebel masses. How eagerly we watched the effect of 
 shot hurled seemingly in the center of their squares ; and when 
 the dust was seen to fly, and men scattering in every direction, 
 loud shouts broke from our ranks, and men grew hoarse with 
 cheering. So deadly was Hiscock s fire, that the Rebel lines 
 were seen to waver, pause, and then halt, appalled at the destruc 
 tion which from an unlocked for quarter was smiting them to 
 the earth. Little squads started off to the rear, followed by 
 whole batallions, seemingly excited and panic stricken. Officers 
 were seen running hither and thither, waving their swords, ges 
 ticulating and undoubtedly threatening their men with due pun 
 ishment for this exhibition of cowardice. In a little time the 
 panic seemed to subside ; their ranks were reformed ; their ban 
 ners carried well in front were seen fluttering in the wind. 
 Again their batteries vomited sheets of flame, and their infantry 
 rushed desperately forward in the face of a murderous fire from 
 musketry in front and cannon in flank. 
 
 Hiscock s guns were worked to their utmost capacity. Solid 
 shot and shell were sent crashing into their ranks, rending them 
 asunder, and finally sending their broken cohorts in terror to the 
 rear, under cover of the hills and timber bordering the stream. 
 Thrice they attempted to cross this artillery swept field, only to 
 be hurled back again with diminished numbers. Thus the oppor- 
 
SAVING MC COOK S CORPS. 261 
 
 tunity for crushing Rousseau before reinforcements could arrive 
 was lost. McCook s corps, though crippled, was saved, but at 
 what a cost ! His command, which in the morning numbered 
 thirteen thousand, was now reduced to seven or eight thousand 
 men capable of fighting. The victory which for a while trem 
 bled in the balance and then inclined to the national side, was 
 largely due to the fatal precision and coolly delivered fire of 
 Hiscock s guns. It was subsequently ascertained from surgeons 
 left in charge that the loss of the enemy from this battery alone 
 amounted to four hundred and thirty killed and wounded. 
 
 After the enemy had been driven from their position in front 
 of Sheridan, and had fallen back to their reserves, the troops 
 occupying the hills remained comparatively quiet and unmolested. 
 Occasionally a solitary picket standing statue-like in sharp relief 
 against the opposite horizon, or a single horseman would be seen 
 on the summit, apparently reconnoitering the Federal position. 
 The flight of a shell in that direction would terminate the recon- 
 noissance and send him to cover behind the bluffs, where their 
 reserves in great numbers appeared to be massed. The flutter 
 of a flag or guidon just over the crest indicated where their 
 forces lay, and at intervals a shot would be sent to the position 
 supposed to be occupied by them, but elicited no reply. 
 
 About one o clock p. M., while the contest on the left was 
 raging, an unusual bustle was observed on the opposite elevation 
 by a batallion or two of Confederates, who made their appear 
 ance near a clump of timber. But little time was given for con 
 jecture as to the cause for this sudden spasm of activity in that 
 single isolated spot, for a sudden puff of smoke rising from 
 among the trees, followed by a muffled roar and the shriek of a 
 projectile full well explained its meaning. Under cover of pro 
 tecting trees and foliage they had succeeded in planting a battery 
 
262 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and began to throw shot among us too lively for enjoyment. 
 Their guns were admirably handled, and their aim was quite as 
 accurate as was deemed desirable. Sometimes a shot would come 
 shrieking over our heads and fall among the batallions in the 
 rear. Others would strike a few yards in front, and rebounding 
 over those in the advance, drop very uricourteouslv and unan 
 nounced among groups of men standing at their ease, causing a 
 sudden jumping, more sprightly than graceful. No one was 
 injured, or other effect produced than raising clouds of dust and 
 badly scaring some who for the first time were under fire. 
 
 It was said that one shot entered a soldier s knapsack and 
 scattered its contents over the ground ; among other things a 
 pack of cards, dealing them more expeditiously than by any of 
 the methods laid down by Hoyle. Another severed the belt by 
 which Pus Kendall s haversack was suspended, cutting it as 
 smoothly as though done with a knife. The haversack and its 
 contents dropped to the ground, and Kendall, who, in addition 
 to other peculiarities was something of a wag, started in haste 
 to the rear. Col. Greusel ordered him to halt, and demanded 
 the reason for such cowardly conduct. Pus, holding up the 
 mutilated remains of his belt, exclaimed, " Colonel, they ve cut 
 off my supplies, and how in h 1 do you expect a man can fight 
 when his supplies are gone ?" Kendall s excuse for falling back 
 was more ludicrous than efficacious, and he was sent to the com 
 mand, taking his place in the ranks and fighting bravely during 
 the remainder of the action. 
 
 This rapid and annoying fire was supposed to be introductory 
 to an assault by the enemy in force, and all were on the alert 
 and in a state of expectancy. Hiscock s guns were diverted 
 from the left for the purpose of rebuking the insolence of this 
 battery in front. The gunners, after sighting their pieces, flung 
 
DESTRUCTION OF A REBEL BATTERY. 2fi3 
 
 back an answering shower of balls, and at about the third round 
 had got the range so accurate that a shell was exploded in the 
 midst of the battery. A gun was dismounted, its carriage 
 knocked into splinters, and men were blown into the air. The 
 remaining fragments were taken to the rear, followed by a part 
 ing benediction from Hiscock s " Rodmans." In less than five 
 minutes from our first shot that battery was knocked to pieces 
 and completely silenced, their gunners and supports scattering 
 like sheep and flying for cover behind the sheltering bluffs, while 
 cheer upon cheer followed them in their retreat. 
 
 After the affair with the battery had terminated, the -36th 
 regiment rested quietly upon its arms. Only the artillery kept 
 up ja noisy promiscuous fire upon such squadrons as could be 
 seen, dealing out blows here and there wherever there was a 
 Rebel head to hit. The troops lay down, some even went to 
 sleep, notwithstanding the thunder of cannon resounded in their 
 ears. Half an hour, perhaps, passed, when the timber three- 
 fourths of a mile to the right front of our position was observed 
 to be densely crowded with Confederate troops. On the right, 
 and extending across our front, batteries were seen lining the 
 ridges with bodies of supporting troops behind them, and while 
 the infantry was forming in the timber, their batteries deluged 
 our exposed position on the slopes of the hills with shot and 
 shell. Our cannon were not silent, and answering missiles were 
 belched from the black throats of Barrett s and Hiscock s guns, 
 the hurly-burly of artillery drowning the din of battle on other 
 portions of the field. Above the roar of artillery the Rebel yell 
 was heard, and their dense columns were observed pouring out 
 of the timber, moving obliquely down the hill and across the 
 fields in the direction of the 36th. Then came the order, "Fall 
 in men," and instantly each soldier sprang to his feet, took his 
 
264 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 musket and assumed his position in the line. Officers worn out 
 with watching and fatigue, aroused themselves and were soon in 
 their proper places. Tired limbs lost their stiffness, and tKe 
 certainty of a hand to hand encounter with Hardee s pet soldiers 
 infused a new and wonderful inspiration. Confident of victory, 
 all were overflowing with enthusiasm, and stood quietly yet firmly 
 in the position assigned them. 
 
 On came the Confederate column across the intervening fields 
 and up the ascent on which our line of battle was formed, 
 directly into the fatal embrace of the 36th, who, fresh and 
 expectant, were awaiting their coming and eager for the fray. 
 They advanced most gallantly, marching in splendid order, not 
 a man wavering or falling out of line. Six battle flags proudly 
 waving indicated the number of regiments composing the attack 
 ing column, numbering at least three thousand men, the flower 
 of Hardee s corps, under the direction of General Cleburne, who, 
 it was understood, commanded in person. On the brow of the 
 the hill beyond were twice that number of men with several 
 batteries to support the attack, which played with considerable 
 effect upon our exposed line. Our batteries responded, filling 
 the air with missiles and opening upon the Rebel column with 
 solid shot and shell, which marked their course with long lanes 
 of fallen men, and tearing great rents in their lines which were 
 instantly closed up, the column sweeping steadily onward. 
 Their line of march could be traced by the dead and wounded 
 thickly scattered along the way, laying where they had fallen 
 and weltering in their blood. Coming within musket range they 
 deployed in line and swept across the cornfield towards the 36th, 
 yelling like fiends broke loose from pandemonium. Never did 
 troops display more courage and determination than Hardee s 
 veterans in this assault. For three-fourths of a mile they faced 
 
THE 36TH UNDER A TERRIBLE FIRE. 265 
 
 the deadly fire of artillery without faltering, and forming their 
 line under fire, prepared to sweep the 36th out of existence and 
 capture the batteries in their rear. 
 
 Not an officer or man of the 36th quailed, and when the gal 
 lant Miller, who was in command, gave the order to fire, with 
 the coolness of experienced marksmen they assailed the Rebel 
 lines with such an incessant storm of lead that for a moment 
 they faltered. Their officers dashed furiously along the line, 
 alternately cheering, threatening and encouraging the troops 
 when their line was again reformed, and pushed forward under a 
 fire so terrible that the cornfield was literally sprinkled with their 
 fallen. At last they reached the fence but a few yards below 
 the position of the 36th, which furnished a slight protection 
 against the fire of musketry. The opposing forces were now 
 within easy range. The rattle of musketry mingling with the 
 roar of artillery, the shouts of soldiers, the scream of shells, the 
 crash of small arms, the hissing sound of grape and canister, 
 the cries of the wounded and the yell of combatants, filled the 
 air with a medley of sounds better imagined than described. 
 Each soldier loaded and fired at will as rapidly as possible, the 
 sound of each discharge mingling with others, and the whole 
 merging in one grand volume, added to which the sulphurous 
 voices of heavy ordnance combined to swell the terrific chorus, 
 which reverberating among the hills caused them to tremble as if 
 shaken by the wrath of God. 
 
 Twenty, thirty and forty rounds per man were fired, and still 
 the enemy clung to the fence with the greatest tenacity, selecting 
 their living targets, taking deliberate aim, and firing with fatal 
 effect upon our exposed line, wafting many a heroic soul on the 
 red wings of battle back to the God that gave them, while 
 wounded soldiers limped painfully to the rear ; others, supported 
 
 18 
 
266 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 upon the arms of comrades, were conveyed to the hospitals, where 
 Surgeons Young and Pierce were kept busy in the performance 
 of their humane but unwelcome duty of caring for the maimed. 
 
 The battle-field by this time was enveloped in a smoky veil, 
 beneath which brothers and comrades, loyal and true, were fight 
 ing for the cause of country and right, grappling with a desper 
 ate and numerically superior foe. Fifty rounds were fired, and 
 the muskets becoming heated and foul it was with the utmost 
 difficulty the cartridges were forced down the gun-barrels. Offi 
 cers passed along the line and assisted in ramming the cartridges 
 home. But ammunition was getting scarce, many of the cart 
 ridge boxes were empty, and Adjutant Biddulph was sent flying 
 over the hills to obtain a fresh supply. The ordnance train hav 
 ing been moved was not readily found, and when discovered, the 
 teamster had not the nerve to proceed with his wagon into 
 the volcano of fire raging in front, until the flourish of a sword 
 and click of a revolver infused some little courage into the mule- 
 whacker, and he drove where the Adjutant directed. Meanwhile 
 the last cartridge was fired, and with fixed bayonets the regiment 
 prepared to rush down upon that vortex of flame and trust to 
 cold steel to clear the fence, for without ammunition nothing but 
 a desperate bayonet charge could save them. Then came the 
 order to fall back, which was executed without undue haste, the 
 troops preserving their alignement, ever and anon turning to 
 the fence which this day had been their worst enemy. 
 
 The 88th Illinois and the 24th Wisconsin regiments relieved 
 the 36th, and as the latter retired, the former moved down 
 the hill to the position just vacated. During the progress of 
 the conflict which the 36th for three-quarters of an hour suc 
 cessfully maintained, the 88th was posted on higher ground a 
 hundred yards to the right and rear, covering its three right 
 
A CRITICAL MOMENT. 267 
 
 companies and putting in an occasional shot as opportunity 
 offered. In retiring, it was necessary to pass through the 88th 
 as well as the batteries situated on the hills. The 88th was a 
 new regiment and under fire for the first time. The retrograde 
 movement of the 36th through their lines was construed by some 
 into a retreat, and created a ripple of excitement nearly approach 
 ing a panic. A half dozen or more files broke for the rear ; 
 a low murmur of disappointment which every instant grew louder, 
 ran along the lines of perhaps two or three companies, and the 
 men wavered as if on the point of flying. Another minute, and 
 undoubtedly the whole regiment would have been upon the wing, 
 for there is nothing on a field of battle so contagious as a panic. 
 Observing this, Col. Sherman and the regimental field officers 
 were instantly at the spot exerting their influence as well as 
 authority. The regiment was retired a few yards over the crest 
 of the hill, and by threats and example the officers succeeded in 
 restoring order. The ranks were reformed, the men were them 
 selves again, and advanced without flinching to the position 
 assigned them. During the remainder of the day, no signs of 
 disorder was manifested, but they fought like tigers until the 
 battle ended. 
 
 Adjutant Biddulph met the regiment with a supply of ammu 
 nition, and empty cartridge boxes were replenished, after which 
 a new line was formed in a cornfield to the left of the batteries 
 and east of the Perry ville road, where, sheltered behind the crest 
 of the hill, they were not again molested except by stray shot 
 which occasionally ricocheted over the hill in the direction where 
 the regiment was laying on its arms. 
 
 The conflict still raged in front, though not with that persist 
 ent obstinacy which characterized the earlier efforts of the enemy 
 to storm the heights. The 88th, after order had been restored, 
 
268 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 moved into the position vacated by the 36th, in the face of a 
 galling fire, and in descending the hill some of its best and 
 bravest men were either killed or wounded. Gallantly the Con 
 federates fought to maintain their position, tying a flagstaff to 
 the fence and flaunting their colors defiantly in our faces with the 
 determination to stand by them to the last. [By this time their 
 ammunition began to fail. Their ranks were fearfully thinned 
 by the cannonade from twelve well served guns, kept up for an 
 hour and a-half without a moment s intermission, which, together 
 with the deadly musketry fire poured upon them by the 88th, 
 caused portions of their line to give way. By the exertion of 
 their officers they rallied, but were again repulsed, while volley 
 after volley and cheer after cheer hastened their retreat. A few 
 regiments to the left of their line remained firm, but their fire 
 almost ceased and the engagement assumed more the character 
 of a massacre than a sharply contested battle where blows were 
 given as well as received. At length the remnant of that once 
 defiant brigade, that marched with streaming banners, proud and 
 confident, across that valley of death, with shattered ranks fled 
 precipitately from the field. With their retreat, the fighting in 
 front of Sheridan ended for the day. 
 
 A demonstration was however made upon our left, arid for a 
 time it looked as if the sanguinary scenes we had just passed 
 through would be enacted over again. The 21st Michigan and 
 36th Illinois were ordered into line in rear of and supporting Bar 
 rett s battery, which opened with telling effect upon the advanc 
 ing batallions, checking, and finally driving them gradually to 
 the cover they had left. 
 
 Behind the fence and in the edge of the cornfield, where the 
 enemy had so long and gallantly contended, their dead and 
 wounded lay in swaths. All through the field bodies attired 
 
COMPANY B CAVALRY, LEADING THE ADVANCE. 269 
 
 in Confederate gray were scattered among the long aisles of corn. 
 No matter in what direction one walked, the shocking picture 
 of death in its most revolting form was presented, touching 
 the heart, awakening pity, filling the soul with horror and the 
 eyes with tears. 
 
 The Division of R. B. Mitchell, on Gilbert s extreme right 
 shared in the tragedies as well as the glories of the day. The 38th 
 Brigade, under Col. Carlin, formed the left of the division, and 
 save a few random shots from the batteries shelling the woods and 
 ravines in front, for the purpose of ascertaining the position of 
 any enemy that might be stationed behind them, nothing of 
 moment occurred until 2 o clock P. M. The attack upon Sheri 
 dan had commenced when the brigade arrived on the ground and 
 formed on his right for the purpose of repelling any attempt to 
 turn his flank. Company B, of the 36th Cavalry, under the 
 gallant Capt. Sherer, led the advance. The Captain, with a 
 detachment of six men, was directed to proceed to an elevation a 
 half mile in front to reconnoitre, and report as to the practica 
 bility of occupying the position and planting a battery there. 
 While executing this^order, his party was fired upon from the 
 timber where large bodies of the enemy were massed to support 
 the attack then being made upon Greusel s Brigade. None of 
 the men were hit, and returning, the Captain reported the pres 
 ence and position of the enemy, when the brigade was formed 
 and advanced in line of battle. Almost immediately it was 
 enfiladed by a Rebel battery stationed on a commanding elevation 
 three-fourths of a mile away. Rebel thunderbolts filled the air 
 and went screaming over the heads of the troops, or bursting in 
 close proximity plowed up the ground, scattering dust and gravel 
 quite freely in the faces of the men. Soon becoming accustomed 
 to artillery at long range, the men were quite indifferent as to its 
 
270 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 effects, considering the probability of being hit was about 
 equal to that of being struck by lightning. Our artillery 
 responded to this fire, the gunners doing their work coolly, sys 
 tematically, and, as it was believed, with effect. 
 
 A Rebel brigade finally emerged from the timber and formed 
 in line apparently with the intention of attacking Carlin, who 
 thereupon advanced his skirmishers, conspicuous among which 
 was Capt. Sherer s company, who attacked the enemy with great 
 spirit, and poured a galling fire upon them. The reserves came 
 up to the support of the skirmishers, when the Rebels retired 
 under cover. 
 
 Meanwhile Sheridan was being vigorously pressed in front, and 
 had all he could do to maintain his position and beat back the 
 Rebel waves, which, like an ocean current, were surging against 
 him. His right was threatened, and if attacked in flank he was 
 apprehensive of the result, and desired assistance from Mitchell. 
 Col. Carlin was ordered to advance rapidly in Sheridan s 
 support. Pushing through a skirt of timber, across open fields 
 and ascending a range of hills in his front, he discovered a strong 
 force of the enemy marching upon Sheridan s right. This posi 
 tion overlooked much of the field where batteries, brigades and 
 divisions were fiercely contending for the mastery. A thin, drift 
 ing veil of smoke rested over the valleys and enveloped the hills 
 and timber belts, and through this misty sheen it was difficult to 
 comprehend the main features of the contest. The country was 
 broken into a series of undulatory elevations, each surmounted 
 with cannon, whose continuous booming was pealing in deaf 
 ening cadences upon the ear like the roar of ocean surges. The 
 hill sides were fringed with the fire and smoke of musketry, its 
 sharper tones joining in the grand chorus. In front of Sheridan 
 the crash of guns was never silent, and as the awful din of battle 
 
SCATTERING THE REBELS. 271 
 
 rolled up to the position occupied by Carlin, he felt that brothers 
 were there who, perhaps, needed his help to throttle the cohorts 
 of treason. He instantly ordered his troops forward on the double 
 quick, and charged their advancing column with such impetuosity 
 as to break it in two, throwing it into confusion and scattering the 
 Rebels to the four winds. Vain were the efforts to rally their 
 discomfitted troops, the gallant Carlin following so closely upon 
 the heels of the retreating foe as to frustrate every attempt at 
 forming a line of sufficient strength to offer serious opposition. 
 The pursuit was vigorously kept up to within a short distance of 
 Perry ville, to which the enemy retreated and formed under cover 
 of a range of bluffs just to the right of town, and protected by 
 batteries crowning their crests. A sharp artillery engagement 
 ensued at short range, accompanied by a lively fusilade of mus 
 ketry between the skirmishers, and terribly earnest were the 
 demonstrations of mutual hostility interchanged between the 
 respective forces. 
 
 Before the heavy cannonade which swept the intervening space 
 between the contending armies, searching out every nook and 
 corner of the field, the men were ordered to lie down. The con 
 tinued whizzing of solid shot and bursting of shell was not calcu 
 lated to assure one of entire immunity from danger, or cause a 
 relish for these messengers of war. The position of Company B, 
 36th Cavalry, at the left and rear of the battery, was one of pecu 
 liar danger. Shell burst in the midst of the troops, as they lay 
 hugging Mother Earth in a close embrace, filling their eyes with 
 dust and scattering gravel stones like drops of rain. One passed 
 in close proximity to Captain Sherer s head, stunning him for a 
 moment and convincing him that the exposed position which the 
 company occupied was not particularly desirable. By Gen. 
 Carlin s order, they retired a few yards, in rear of an elevation, 
 
272 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 behind which they were comparatively safe, and where the sound 
 of projectiles winging their way through the air and over their 
 heads was listened to with more satisfaction. 
 
 Many in the brigade were struck down and mangled by burst 
 ing missiles. The sight of their manly looking forms, stretched 
 lifeless on the grass, shocked as well as deeply impressed the 
 whole command. With the approach of twilight came a lull, and 
 when darkness finally veiled the scene, by tacit consent the fire 
 of artillery ceased altogether. 
 
 Capt. Sherer was ordered to the vicinity of the enemy s picket 
 line, and advanced his company to within a few hundred yards 
 of the town, where every movement in the neighboring camps 
 could be distinctly heard. His exposed situation, so far in advance 
 of any other portion of the army, was one of danger, and at 9 
 o clock P. M., by order of Gen. Mitchell, his command was with 
 drawn a half mile, within easy supporting distance of the brigade. 
 
 The prompt movements of Gen. Carlin, and vigorous pursuit 
 of the enemy, after having broken their column, diverted an 
 attack and prevented reinforcements from joining those with 
 whom he was already engaged, assisting materially in the repulse 
 of the forces that so fiercely and persistently assaulted him. In 
 the rapid advance upon Perryville, the enemy s ordnance-train 
 was overtaken and captured, with its guard of one hundred and 
 thirty-eight men and three officers. Capt. Sherer s company 
 shared in the honors of the achievement. 
 
 To Gen. McCook s appeal for aid, Gen. Mitchell responded by 
 sending Col. Gooding s brigade to the left. His command 
 consisted of three regiments of infantry and a battery, numbering 
 in all fifteen hundred men that were brought into action. Mc 
 Cook s right had been gradually pressed back, first to Kussel s 
 house, and then to a position three-fourths of a mile in rear of 
 
THE LINE RESTORED. 273 
 
 the first, and nearly at right angles with it. Gooding s brigade 
 was unused to service, but coming fresh upon the field, advanced 
 bravely to the encounter. The fragments of Rousseau s and Jack 
 son s depleted and somewhat despondent divisions rallied to 
 Gooding s support, and, notwithstanding the preponderance of 
 numbers against him he attacked vigorously ; his officers, with revol 
 vers in hand, taking the lead, fearlessly exposing their persons, and 
 animating the men with their dauntless courage. At once the 
 engagement became general and severe. The little brigade of 
 fifteen hundred men never faltered, but courageously beat back 
 every attempt to overwhelm it by the rebel force often or twelve 
 thousand, concentrated in its front. Men fell thick and fast, but 
 unabated raged the storm. The sun sank behind the western 
 horizon and it was nearly dark when Gooding succeeded in wrest 
 ing the position at Russell s house from the enemy and restoring 
 the line. This had been accomplished at an immense sacrifice of 
 life. Many of his best men had fallen, and at the close of the 
 brief but sanguinary encounter, five hundred heroes out of fifteen 
 hundred lay stretched upon the field, either killed or wounded. 
 Col. Gooding was taken prisoner, but the left wing had been 
 saved. 
 
 Just at dark, a brigade from Gilbert s division came up, and 
 thus strengthened, McCook no longer doubted his ability to hold 
 the position. The troops bivouacked upon the field, in the midst 
 of dead and wounded comrades, whose cries of anguish ascended 
 from every part of the blood-stained battle-ground. The casual 
 ties of the day in Rousseau s and Jackson s divisions numbered 
 nearly five thousand. The confederate commander, by concen 
 trating two-thirds of his strength and bringing it to bear upon 
 Rousseau and Jackson in detail, had overwhelmed and nearly 
 swept them from the field. Gen. Buell was miles away, and not 
 
274 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 aware until nearly night that an engagement was in progress. 
 Had Crittenden s corps and the reserves been brought up early 
 in the day, or had the troops already there been judiciously 
 arranged, and a vigorous and united effort made, Bragg s army 
 would never have left the field, except as prisoners of war. 
 
 The 36th (Greusel s) Brigade was under fire most of the day, 
 generally from artillery at long range ; but for two hours in the 
 afternoon at close quarters. Every charge of the enemy was 
 handsomely repulsed. Again and again did they advance impet 
 uously to the assault, only to be hurled back, completely broken 
 and discom fitted, being finally driven in a disorderly rout, leaving 
 three hundred and eighty of their dead laying within a quarter of 
 a mile of our position. 
 
 As an advance in the darkness to unknown localities would 
 have been the height of folly, the regiments, nearly exhausted 
 from the hard fighting, bivouacked upon their arms. Despite the 
 excitements of the day despite the dead, sleeping their last long- 
 sleep, some laying within a few feet of living sleepers exhausted 
 nature exerted its sway, and the solemn reflections born of the 
 hour could not keep them long awake. Except the faithful sen 
 tinels, keeping watch over their companions, all were soon soundly 
 sleeping. The chirping of crickets, or some new and unwonted 
 sound, would cause those on guard to hold their breath and 
 listen intently for movements indicative of a night attack. Occa 
 sionally their nerves were put in a quiver of horror as they 
 stumbled in the darkness over the cold body of some dead brave. 
 
 On the 9th, Col. Greusel s brigade moved to Good-Night 
 spring, a half mile northeast of Perry ville, and camped, the enemy 
 having withdrawn in the direction of Harrodsburg. The engage 
 ment was not renewed, except desultory skirmishing between 
 Carlin s advance and the rebel rear guard. The 38th Brigade 
 
RETREAT OF THE CONFEDERATES. 276 
 
 had penetrated to the rebel position, was the furthest in advance, 
 and not disposed to relinquish any of the advantages gained on 
 the previous day. After a brief repose, at three o clock in the 
 morning, Co. B. Cavalry was sent to reconnoitre, and proceeded 
 a half mile in the darkness, to the suburbs of Perryville, finding 
 a battery in position, which commanded the approaches and 
 supported by a force of infantry. At daylight, the enemy s 
 infantry was relieved by cavalry, and left at once for Harrods- 
 burg. The cavalry formed in line, to hold Carlin s Brigade in 
 check and enable the rebel army to make good its retreat. Gen. 
 Carlin was prepared for demonstrations on their part, and, 
 after maneuvering awhile, they withdrew, followed by our cavalry 
 and a section of light artillery, who pressed them closely ; the 
 latter opening upon their rear and driving them out of town. 
 
 Reaching the creek, they held it until the brigade was supplied 
 with water, when the artillery pushed on, sending a few shell into 
 the rebel rear, which put them to flight, followed by Company B, 
 who pressed the pursuit until three P. M., when a spirited skir 
 mish ensued, resulting in the capture of eleven prisoners, a quan 
 tity of ammunition, three cannon and three thousand stand of 
 arms abandoned by the enemy, and taken possession of by Capt. 
 Sherer s command. The road for miles was strewn with cloth 
 ing, muskets and military trappings of every description. Every 
 farm house and barn along the route was tenanted with wounded 
 rebels, left without medical care to the tender mercies of their 
 compassionate enemies ; some of them with hardly life enough 
 remaining to realize the horrors of their situation ; others mangled 
 and bleeding, presented sad sights and sounds, never to be for 
 gotten. 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 AFTER THE BATTLE. 
 
 THROUGHOUT the night succeeding the day 
 of battle and excitement, the rest of the troops 
 in Carlin s Brigade was more nominal than 
 real. Their position close upon the enemy s 
 lines, with shotted guns looking frowningly 
 down upon them, was particularly hazardous, 
 and demanded extraordinary caution and watchfulness on the 
 part of the command. The rest of Rousseau s and Jackson s 
 troops were interrupted by the moans of the wounded and 
 dying as well as by flying rumors of a night attack. Many were 
 without blankets, and bivouacked in the open fields with insuffi 
 cient protection against the chilly night air ; added to this, the 
 gnawing of hunger and thirst was not conducive to soundness of 
 repose. The little snatches of oblivion served more to pass away 
 the hours of darkness than to repair exhausted energies and 
 restore vigor and animation. 
 
 With the first streaks of dawn, all were up and peering through 
 the morning mists to discover signs of the enemy. But they 
 were gone. The fields were untenanted except by Federal and 
 
THE FIELD AFTER THE BATTLE. 277 
 
 Rebel dead. Little parties were soon exploring the cornfields, 
 hollows and skirting timber in search of missing comrades. In 
 places where the conflict had raged the fiercest, where the ground 
 had been repeatedly fought over and alternately in possession of 
 both armies, the dead of each, indicated by the Rebel gray and 
 Federal blue, lay commingled, often side by side ; some with an 
 expression of calmness as if asleep, the last reflection, perhaps, 
 that flitted through their minds being of home, mother, friends 
 and God. Upon the faces of others still lingered a courageous, 
 determined look as if when suddenly overtaken with death 
 every nerve was strung to its utmost tension, every impulse of 
 the mind warmed up to fever heat. How many of that silent 
 company, whose staring eyes were looking fixedly toward heaven, 
 were men of warm hearts and generous impulses, who, when 
 living, were loved, and whose death now caused doting hearts to 
 bleed. The official report of losses sustained by the Federal 
 army was 5,525, killed, wounded and missing, while that of the 
 Confederates amounted to 7,720. But few prisoners were taken 
 by either army, and the large list of more than twelve thousand 
 casualties indicated the severity of the conflict. 
 
 The picket lines were extended to embrace the battle-ground 
 and protect burial parties that were detailed from each regiment 
 to search the field and collect the fallen, friend as well as foe. 
 The bodies were generally ranged side by side in a trench dug 
 for the purpose, just as they were, with their uniforms crimsoned 
 with blood, wrapped in army blankets for winding sheets, and 
 laid away to rest. In the outskirts of the field where a few had 
 crawled away to die, they were buried singly, and lonely mounds 
 with rudely marked headboards indicated the last resting place of 
 their earthly remains. Over the graves the beautiful burial ser 
 vice was read or a prayer feelingly offered, a file of soldiers fired 
 a farewell volley, and all was over. 
 
278 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 This field, like all others, was strewn with muskets and the 
 usual debris of battle, and many a trophy was collected, carried 
 for days or weeks, then, perhaps, thrown away. The men were 
 now permitted to light their camp-fires, make coffee, and satisfy 
 the cravings of hunger and thirst, eating their hardtack and 
 other articles of army fare which were at hand with a gusto 
 rarely surpassed. 
 
 Our " battle picture would not be complete if painted entirely 
 in the sombre hues of death, unrelieved by the brighter colorings 
 of humor in which this, like similar contests, more or less 
 abounded. The battle of Perry ville was not wholly devoid of. 
 personal incidents, examples of individual heroism, of coolness 
 and endurance while under fire. 
 
 Many times have we heard described the ludicrous appearance 
 of Lieut. Clark, of Company E, as he retired from the field, in 
 good order however, his wounded arm tied up with a handker 
 chief saturated with blood, which was dripping to the ground. 
 He was forever joking with his men, and the only way they 
 could get even with him was to taunt him with his good fortune 
 in being on furlough during the battle of Pea Ridge, engaged in 
 singing lullaby s to his babies at home. But in this engagement 
 none were more plucky and fearless than he, and after being 
 shot, pointing to his wound he triumphantly exclaimed, " See 
 "there, boys; don t one of you chaps ever peep to me again about 
 "staying at home and rocking babies to sleep until you get as 
 "beautiful a hole as that bored into you. I m more proud of that 
 "bullet hole in my arm than I would be to have it decorated 
 "with Major General Buell s stars." 
 
 William Galloway, a private in Company G, just before going 
 into action was heard to complain of hunger. A comrade stand 
 ing near, responded, "Never mind about your hardtack, old boy, 
 
BRAVERY OF CORP. MOSSMAN. 279 
 
 ik you ll soon get a ration of lead, a little more indigestible, per 
 haps, but quite as satisfying to the appetite as bread and meat." 
 In the heat of the engagement, while loading his musket and on 
 a half turn, Galloway was struck by a charge of buck-shot which 
 entered his mouth, lacerated his tongue and knocked ten teeth 
 from his lower jaw. His comrade, on beholding the frightful 
 wound, by way of sympathy exclaimed, " There, Bill, I told you 
 " you d get all the grub you wanted are you satisfied now?" 
 The wound was a serious one, and enabled Galloway eventually 
 to get his discharge. 
 
 An incident connected with Corporal William H. Mossman, of 
 Company F, illustrates the coolness of some men in the exciting 
 hour of battle, and an unwillingness to shirk from danger and 
 duty unless compelled to do so by being disabled from the further 
 use of sword and gun. Corporal Mossman was struck by a spent 
 ball in the face and slightly wounded. The blood flowed freely, 
 and he at first imagined the injury to be serious enough to need 
 looking after, and started to the rear in search of a surgeon. 
 Finding himself but little inconvenienced and his strength unim 
 paired, he staunched the blood as well as he could, and voluntarily 
 returned to his post of danger, taking his place in the ranks and 
 fighting bravely to the end. 
 
 While the regiments were in position at the foot of the bluffs, 
 on which Barrett s guns were planted, and just before the rebel 
 assault, the men were ordered to lay down, thus presenting less 
 conspicuous objects for the enemy s shot, which were then howl 
 ing savagely around their heads. Lieut. Shaw, of Company I, 
 had just received his commission as 2nd Lieutenant, and being a 
 somewhat peculiar genius, a few words relative to him may not 
 be out of place. He was tall about six feet, two inches in hight 
 as slim as a ramrod, with a light, straggling mustache, which 
 
280 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 at unfrequent intervals ornamented his firm, thin lips. He was 
 light and agile as a cat, of a nervous, excitable temperament, 
 which on this occasion was strung to its highest tension. When 
 ordered to lay down, the Lieutenant stretched his gaunt propor 
 tions out upon the grass, face downwards, and, like the others, 
 hugged the ground closely. The near explosion of a shell, or the 
 dull thud of solid shot striking near, was sure to bring up his head, 
 only to be ordered down again by the officers in charge of the 
 entertainment. Shaw, though a good soldier, was deaf to such 
 commands, and the crash of shot in the near vicinity would set 
 him upon fingers and toes, like a long-legged spider, his head 
 thrown back like a gun-lock at half-cock. 
 
 At length the attacking columns were seen advancing upon 
 our position. Every soldier was reminded of his duty, and that 
 the country expected a good account of them. The sight of the 
 " Johnnies " set the Lieutenant fairly crazy with excitement, and 
 to add to his confusion, Capt. Barnett s double-shotted Napoleons 
 thundered immediately in the rear and over the heads of the 
 command, and were promptly answered by confederate guns. 
 The thickly dropping missiles turned the attention of the men to 
 the danger that menaced them, and but little thought was bestowed 
 on each other. A long-fused shell came tearing through the tree- 
 tops, and, striking a large hemlock, was turned downward, shriek - 
 and fizzing to the ground, dropping between the outstretched legs 
 of Lieut. Shaw. In exploding, it not only excavated a quantity 
 of soil, but carried away a portion of one of the Lieutenant s 
 he sis. Oh ! the gyrations, the antics and acrobatic feats, which 
 foi a few moments diverted the attention of the men from the 
 charging enemy. In a trice, Shaw was up and on his feet, then 
 pitched forward, like a frog taking a frantic dive in a mud-puddle. 
 Alighting on the ground, he was up again, and with an unearthly 
 
CAPT. SILAS MILLER S ACCOUNT OF THE BATTLE. 281 
 
 moan, went dancing on one foot, like a will-o -the-wisp, to the 
 rear. Thus he hopped away from his company, and his comrades 
 saw him no more. He was taken to Louisville, and, being per 
 manently disabled, soon after resigned much to the regret of 
 his company, who had become familiar with his peculiarities and 
 loved him for his goodness of heart, his soldierly bearing and his 
 tireless devotion to the welfare and comfort of his men. 
 
 Capt. Silas Miller, who commanded the 36th Regiment during 
 the battle of Perryville, was subsequently captured at Stone 
 river, and detained a prisoner of war many months. After his 
 release, and while on his way to join his command, his friends 
 and fellow-citizens at Aurora requested him at a public meeting 
 to detail some of his experiences in connection with the army of 
 the United States. The hall was crowded, and his speech was 
 listened to with the closest attention. We have taken the liberty 
 of transcribing some of his remarks relative to the battle of Per 
 ryville, believing that his words will be treasured by the survivors 
 who revere the memory of a brave man and gallant commander. 
 "On the 7th of October we neared Perryville. That night we 
 were called on for pickets as we had been four nights before. 
 The first thing to be done was to deploy in search of water, 
 which we found some of our boys in quiet possession of. The 
 next morning our army was attacked, the first gun being fired by 
 the pickets of the 36th Regiment. From early in the morning 
 heavy skirmishing continued, the 2nd Missouri Regiment driving 
 the Rebels before them. That night the corps of Gen. Gilbert 
 came up. Later in the day Gen. McCook s corps was attacked 
 very sharply. We fell back, and had hardly executed a change 
 in front, when, hearing a yell, we saw the banners of the Rebels 
 advancing over the fields. We could see their bright bayonets 
 glitter in just as beautiful a line of battle as was ever formed. 
 We lay perfectly still and did not display ourselves till they came 
 within range of canister. We then received the order to fire. 
 
 19 
 
282 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and from a thousand pieces leaped forth the death-dealing bullets 
 which finally caused the Rebels to reel and fall back in utter con 
 fusion. Oh ! you do not know the sweet little gulp of satisfac 
 tion that comes up in the throat to see them bite the dust. You 
 don t know the ecstasy it gives a man to see them mowed down 
 in swaths and see their banners fall to the ground. You don t 
 know and you cannot conceive the delight and indescribable joy 
 it gives one to see a Rebel fall and welter in his own death gore. 
 
 T know it is wicked to think and say so, and it is damnable to 
 act so. We call it glory ! Is it not glory to destroy a public 
 pest and put out of existence those who have caused so much 
 misery and bloodshed ? I think it is. I never felt more confi 
 dent and joyful than when I saw them coming upon us : Was 
 glad they were to be so badly punished glad they were coming 
 up to try us. But mark ! we left nine men dead, and seventy- 
 five just as good boys as ever breathed the air of heaven, on that 
 day sealed their patriotism with their blood. 
 
 We also insert the report of Captain Miller, which is brief a but 
 concise statement of the prominent part taken by the 36th 111., 
 in the action near Perryville. 
 
 HEADQUARTERS 36ra ILL. INF., ^j 
 
 GOOD NIGHT SPRINGS, NEAR PERRYVILLE, KY., > 
 
 OCTOBER 10, 1862. ) 
 
 COL. N. GREUSEL, Commanding &Ith Brigade, \\th Division, 
 Army of the Ohio : 
 
 This regiment was detailed for picket duty on arriving at camp, 
 between Fredericksburg and Perryville, on the night of the 7th 
 inst. Three companies were deployed as skirmishers to the right 
 of the road leading to Perryville, and the remainder advanced on 
 the road, taking a position to the right thereof. Towards morn 
 ing a skirmish occurred with the outposts to our left, but the 35th 
 Brigade being advanced, the enemy retired. Battery I, 2nd Illi 
 nois Artillery, advanced to the hill beyond, and this regiment, 
 by your order, took position in the timber to the right rear of the 
 battery, where it remained until about eleven o clock, A. M. The 
 enemy having again retired, it was advanced across the open 
 
PART TAKEN BY THE 36TH. 
 
 field, through the timber in front, to a position in support of Bat 
 tery G, 1st Missouri Artillery. It remained in position there 
 until withdrawn by your order to a position behind a cornfield, 
 to the right of the Perry ville road one section of artillery being 
 posted on its left and two sections upon the hill directly in rear 
 of the center. 
 
 The enemy s infantry in strong force advanced upon this posi 
 tion, and this regiment was here first engaged. The fire was 
 opened "by file" in each platoon, and continued until our ammu 
 nition (fifty rounds per man) was exhausted. Finding the ammuni 
 tion running low, Adjutant Biddulph was sent for more ; but it 
 becoming entirely consumed before his return and the enemy s 
 fire much slackened, the regiment was ordered to "fix bayonets ;" 
 but being advised by you that the enemy s cavalry menaced us 
 towards the left, the regiment was ordered " by the right of com 
 panies to the rear," leaving space for another regiment (the 24th 
 Wisconsin), supplied with ammunition. Some confusion was 
 occasioned in retiring, on account of the 88th Illinois covering the 
 three right companies, but after passing through the battery, a 
 new line was promptly formed to the left of the battery, on the 
 left of the road, in the cornfield, where our ammunition was 
 immediately replenished. The enemy s attack upon our first 
 position had, in the meantime, been repulsed and they put to 
 flight by a charge from our infantry. The enemy appearing in 
 front of our new position, the 21st Michigan was ordered by you 
 to join us, and then both regiments were retired by your direc 
 tion to the brow of the hill, to support Barnett s battery in a 
 new position, which battery had opened fire upon the flank of 
 the enemy pressing on our forces to the left. The regiment lay 
 upon its arms on the hill during the night. On the morning of 
 the 9th, taking a position in rear of the 88th Illinois Infantry, 
 they were ordered to advance to this camp, arriving here at five 
 P. M. 
 
 All officers acquitted themselves honorably and bravely, so 
 that all are entitled to consideration, as brave and efficient offi 
 cers. I desire on my own part to thank Capt. Porter C. Olson 
 
284 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 for his daring and efficiency in aiding to command the regiment 
 during the action, and acting Adjutant Biddulph, communicating 
 with you and others during the heat of the contest. Appended 
 will be found a list of the casualties during the action, as follows : 
 Killed, 9 ; wounded, 64, including seven officers. 
 I have the honor to be, respectfully, 
 
 SILAS MILLER, 
 Captain 36th 111. Inf. Vol., Commanding Regiment. 
 
 KILLED. 
 
 Company A, Patrick Gibbons, private. 
 Company B, Henry Reitz, private. 
 Company D, Charles Seymour, private. 
 Company F, William C. Jackson, private. 
 Company F, W. S. Nelson, Corporal. 
 Company K, William B. Giles, Corporal. 
 Company K, Harrison Skinner, private. 
 Company K, John H. Underwood, private. 
 Company K, Thomas Moffatt, private. 
 
 WOUNDED COMPANY A. 
 
 Albert Anderson, left lung, died. Henry Howe, right hand. 
 
 Timothy Ring, shoulder and side. Alx. Robinson, Sergt., left arm. 
 
 Patrick Branrion, left arm . John Blackman, missing. 
 Thomas Staunton, right arm. 
 
 COMPANY B. 
 
 Ernst Ansorg, bowels , died. John P. Fife, neck. 
 
 D. B. Roberts, lower jaw. Charles W. Sears, right hand. 
 
 J. C. Donnell, left side. 
 
 COMPANY C. 
 
 Ralph Miller, right shoulder, died. W. H. Harper, thigh. 
 
 John F. Henderson, abdomen, died. Dan. P. Baldwin, left ear. 
 
 John J. Cavis, left leg. Isaac Carson, left hand. 
 W. V. Reader, thigh. 
 
 COMPANY D. 
 
 Lieut. George Parker, shoulder. James Hurst, knee, died. 
 
 Lieut. J. H. Thompson, breast. Thomas Shaw, hip, died. 
 
 Clinton Lloyd, left hand. William P. Pyle, died. 
 
 John Murley, wrist. 
 
 COMPANY E. 
 
 Lieut. Wm. H. Clark, left arm. Henry Collman, left breast, died. 
 
 John Phontiel, neck. C. D. Ward, right hand. 
 
 Eugene Benoit, shoulder, died. James Harroll, face. 
 
 M. E. Cornell, shoulder. G. W. Lannigan, hand. 
 
 Erastus Beecher, ankle, died. George Merrill, left hand. 
 
LIST OF CASUALTIES. 285 
 
 WOUNDED COMPANY P. 
 
 Terris Johnson, leg. Wm. Coltrip, wrist and hip. 
 
 Emra Strait, knee and thigh. Wm. Eastman, leg. 
 
 COMPANY G. 
 
 Wm. Galloway, lower jaw. J. F. Sanders, left side. 
 
 C. H. Chandler, left leg, died. 
 
 COMPANY H. 
 
 Capt. T. L. Griffin, both legs. William H. Jones, leg. 
 
 Lieut. Morris Briggs, left shoulder. D. D. Warnick, leg. 
 
 Wallace Benson, left leg. B. Yanness, left arm. 
 
 O. H Murray, head and wrist. Jerome C. Ford, abdomen. 
 
 COMPANY I. 
 
 Lieut. David E. Shaw, ankle. Fred Shuienburg, shoulder. 
 
 Lewis Bower, leg. Nathan Hunt, hand. 
 
 Benedict Stamphley, leg. Fred. Witzkey, missing. 
 
 COMPANY K. 
 
 Capt. A C. Holden, right arm. E. M. Pratt, right arm. 
 
 John H Johnson, right thigh. Edward Clark, hip, died. 
 
 Peter Barnett, left leg. Abraham Long, left arm. 
 Henry C. Allen, left foot. 
 
 Preparations for resuming the pursuit the following day were 
 made by sending such of the wounded as could be removed to 
 Louisville, and leaving behind as few surgeons and temporary 
 field hospitals as were absolutely necessary. Wagon and ambu 
 lance trains were started at once, freighted with human suffering 
 and wounded heroes, and as the train wound its way over hills 
 and rough roads, jolting across rocks and into ruts, or rattling 
 along the hard pavement of Kentucky turnpikes, fearful were 
 the sufferings of those most severely injured. At last, after 
 being battered and used up generally, they reached Louisville, 
 and were consigned to clean hospital cots, where they lay and 
 wondered if they had not been passing through the mills of the 
 gods and been ground down exceedingly fine. Clean, well ven 
 tilated rooms, clean shirts and clothes generally, worked favorable 
 changes, and in a few weeks many returned to their places in the 
 ranks, ready to do and die if need be for country and right. 
 
286 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Others were crippled for life, and eventually received their dis 
 charge, to hobble their way through the thorny paths of life on 
 crutches. 
 
 A few hospital sketches must, of course, find place somewhere 
 in our story. Our history would be incomplete without them ; and 
 as the consecrated walls of the hospitals at Louisville at this time 
 were crowded with the sick and maimed, which like a vast sea 
 was ever ebbing and flowing, we have taken the liberty of trans 
 cribing from one of the diaries kindly loaned us. 
 
 TUESDAY, OCT. 30TH. My wound has troubled me but little 
 to-day. I have read much of the time, both the newspapers and 
 my Bible. There is much consolation in that Book of Books to 
 a bed-ridden, homesick and much demoralized soldier. Here is 
 a gem: " Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out." 
 I pondered long over that promise and thought to cast all my 
 cares and sorrows, hopes arid fears before the throne of God and 
 implore Divine assistance and aid. When my silent petition was 
 ended and I came to review it, I found that every request was 
 for the alleviation of my own sufferings and for personal bles 
 sings it was all for self. My own wants and wishes was the 
 burthen of that prayer. Oh ! this is a sad, hard and selfish 
 world, with none but selfish creatures in it. 
 
 Just then, who should appear but one of the "guardian angels" 
 of the hospital two ladies, sisters, resident in the city, whose 
 whole time is devoted to the sick and suffering ones, who daily 
 drift in from the army. They are constant visitants of the hos 
 pitals and minister to the sick and dying. One sat by my bed 
 side and talked long and earnestly with me ; entering with the 
 keenest zest into all my present trials and future plans, and 
 before she left, I learned to regard her as all the others do as a 
 kind sister and friend. How many a sick and despondent sold 
 ier has cause to bless these fair angels of mercy, who smooth the 
 dying pillow and cheer the weary spirit in its flight to the 
 brighter world beyond. Their coming brings a gleam of sun 
 shine into the chambers of sickness, that leaves a bright halo 
 
INCIDENTS OP HOSPITAL LIFE. 287 
 
 lingering around our couches long after they have departed. 
 Nothing but innate goodness, a strong sense of Christian duty, 
 regardless of self, prompts them to the performance of these 
 labors of love. Oh ! this world is not quite so selfish, after all. 
 There is much of love, true and unwavering, yet left in the 
 world, and this war, with all its untold horrors, has now and 
 then a cheering ray to relieve its night of darkness. Dwight 
 Follett. from Ohio, with as patriotic impulses as ever inspired 
 human being, left a home where peace and plenty abounded and 
 nothing was wanting to complete his happiness and promote his 
 highest earthly good. He left all for his country, and fearlessly 
 encountered the camp, the march and the battle-field. For a few 
 weeks he bore up bravely did cheerfully all that duty and 
 patriotism required. But alas ! disease fastened its remorseless 
 fangs upon his vitals, and we find him languishing on a bed of 
 pain. 
 
 To yonder home sped the sad tidings, and without a moment s 
 delay his mother hastened to the cot of her boy. She found 
 him very low almost at the portals of death. For six long and 
 weary weeks has she sat and watched by the side of her darling 
 boy. Visitors look into his pallid face and whisper, " he must 
 die! The physician sees no ray of hope, and has long since 
 pronounced his case a hopeless one. Not so, that mother. Her 
 abiding faith in a God that is a hearer and answerer of prayer, 
 tells her that her son shall live, and from that distant home 
 comes the father s word of cheer, for he, too, prays Heaven that 
 the sick one s life may be spared. How strong, how abiding 
 that mother s love. On awaking in the early morning, I see her 
 standing by the sick one s couch. From morning to evening she 
 is there ; and during the watches of the night, noiselessly and 
 oft she steals to the side of her sleeping son. Next to God s, a 
 mother s love is unfailing. Yesterday, when all but hope had 
 fled, one little ray of life was seen to steal over his countenance, 
 faintly lighting up his glazed and fixed eye. To-day he is 
 better still. Oh ! tis good to see that mother s heart thrill with 
 gladness. With an unshaken trust in God, she believes her boy 
 will yet be well. 
 
288 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 MONDAY, Nov. 5TH. It was a long time last night before I 
 could get to sleep. My wound was painful and my back ached 
 as if being stretched upon the wheel of torture ; my flesh was 
 tender and my mind as irritable as my body was sore. As I lay 
 upon my cot, the gas-light turned down until only a thin spire 
 of flame, dimly flickering, served to make visible the deep gloom 
 of night. I even fancied that dull light sharpened the percep 
 tions, and never before did I remember of being more sensibly 
 affected in body and mind by each little disturbing noise and 
 the breathing of sleepers around me. 
 
 The man in the cot next to mine was afflicted with a cough, 
 which might well be compared to a fog-horn, or the hoarse tones 
 of a thunder storm. Twas not a small, hacking cough, escap 
 ing from just beyond the lips, but deep and unfathomable ; surg 
 ing up from the lowest depths ; wrenching every joint and muscle 
 of the mortal system. That cough would long ago have wrecked 
 any common craft, sailing on its tumultuous billows. That cough 
 was enough to supply a regiment, and then have had a sur 
 plus sufficient for any possible contingency. There was no let 
 up to it at this time, and all night long it was cough, cough, 
 cough like the soughing of a steamboat, or the hoarse barking 
 of a blood-hound. 
 
 On the other side was a lubberly fellow, who appeared to care 
 more for his rations than for the disease with which he is said to 
 be afflicted. It is ludicrous as well as annoying to listen each 
 day to the recital of his various ailments, forming a chapter as 
 long as the song with nine hundred and ninety-nine verses in it, 
 the last like the first and they like all the rest, only a thousand 
 times more uninteresting. Well, he is terribly given to snoring, 
 and such deep, unearthly snores coming from the cavernous 
 depths of a huge pair of lungs, rushing like a hurricane through 
 a flabby glottis and distended nostrils, in tones as unmusical as 
 the rasping of a saw or the hooting of a bazoon. There was no 
 cessation in the notes he gave us that night. 
 
 It was a snore so deep, sonorous, 
 As to shake the ceiling o er us. 
 
A HEAVY SNORER. 289 
 
 Another, in a distant corner, laying near the cot of a German, 
 was all night long talking in his sleep. His dreams were vocal 
 ones, and it would have puzzled the most rapid short-hand 
 reporter to have followed the vagaries of his wandering and som 
 nolent senses. At times he was at work upon the farm, driving 
 oxen or horses, and then engaged in some fierce brawl. Very 
 few in that chamber of the sick attended to their own business, 
 and refrained from meddling with their neighbors. At times the 
 poor German in the corner was nearly frightened out of his wits, 
 and when he heard an extra snore, 
 
 " Wilder, fiercer than before," 
 
 I could see him raise up in his bed, cast a malignant glance in 
 the direction of the snorer, and in accents of despair cry out, 
 " Schay, you dhare, stophs dat ! me none at all schleeps dees 
 nicht." Thus might I go the rounds among the wheezy, groan 
 ing, moaning, sighing, dying and rueful visaged inmates of this 
 hospital and find each possessed of some characteristic peculiarly 
 their own that would attract attention. 
 
 No history of events connected with the rebellion would be 
 complete without a notice of the hospital and sanitary depart 
 ments, and the unremitting labors of many of the surgeons in 
 caring for the sick and wounded in their commands. In this 
 respect the 36th was peculiarly fortunate, and suffered less from 
 sickness and malignant diseases than any other regiment of equal 
 number in the army of the United States. In his report to Gen. 
 Sheridan, Col. Greusel used the folio wing language, " Dr. Young, 
 " the brigade surgeon, deserves the highest praise for his admir- 
 " able arrangements arid great care of the sick and wounded." 
 
 Very many of the slightly wounded at Perryville in a few 
 weeks returned to the regiment for duty, and participated in the 
 succeeding campaigns of Murfreesborough and Chickamauga. 
 
CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 PERRYVILLE TO NASHVILLE. 
 
 AM expected to furnish that part of the history 
 of the 36th Regiment Illinois Volunteers which 
 came under my own observation, extending from 
 the battle of Perryville, in October, 1862, to the 
 occupation of Columbia, in November, 1864. 
 My connection with the regiment really began 
 with a letter from Capt. A. M. Hobbs. of Company E, dated 
 Rienzi, July 27th, 1862, informing me of a vacancy in the office 
 of Chaplain, and that it was the unanimous desire of the officers 
 of the regiment that I should accept it. This letter was received 
 during the excitement which followed the Presidential call for 
 300,000 more troops, and while aiding to procure fresh enlist 
 ments in what afterward was known as the 89th Illinois Regi 
 ment. Coming at such a time and entirely unsought, this invi 
 tation seemed to deserve special attention, and as I gave some 
 encouragement that I would accept, a recommendation, signed 
 by Col. Greusel and every field and line officer, was forwarded 
 to the Governor, and a commission, dated August 18th, was sub 
 sequently issued. 
 
BOOKS AND PAPERS FOR THE REGIMENT. 291 
 
 Among other preparations for my work, I wrote to the friends 
 of the regiment in nearly every place that had furnished com 
 panies, inviting them to aid me in supplying the regiment with 
 suitable reading. A cheerful response was received, and before 
 leaving Chicago I was able to make arrangements with Rev. Mr. 
 Savage for a regular supply of soldiers papers arid books. B. 
 P. Jacobs, Esq., also gave me three hundred soldiers hymn 
 books, which we afterward found a most valuable acquisition. 
 Lieut. Geo. A. Willis (who was on leave of absence) and I, started 
 from Aurora Monday morning, Sept. 29th, intending to join the 
 regiment at Louisville. On Wednesday morning, Oct. 1st, I 
 started alone from Chicago, Lieut. W. having missed the train. 
 On reaching Louisville, on Thursday morning, it was found that 
 the regiment had marched on the 1st, in the army under Geri. 
 Buell, to attack and drive Bragg out of Kentucky. A detach 
 ment of the 86th, under Lieutenant Wakeman, was left in charge 
 of the camp, and with them we took up our quarters until our 
 horses should arrive. Here I caught my first glimpse of the stir, 
 bustle and confusion of army life, as I saw the streets thronged 
 with officers, soldiers, horses, mules, wagons and negroes. I 
 soon found, too, that what many thought would be a disadvan 
 tage, my being attached to one of the old regiments, was, in 
 fact, a very great advantage, and I had many reasons afterward 
 for being confirmed in this opinion. On the Sabbath, I dis 
 tributed reading matter and preached in the afternoon in a neigh 
 boring church, having for the first time in ray life a congrega 
 tion exclusively of men, and all of them United States soldiers. 
 A mess in one of the companies, noted for their excellent forag 
 ing and cooking powers, invited me to dine, and certainly we 
 had a sumptuous entertainment. I very wisely abstained from 
 making any enquiries about the magnificent turkey which occu 
 pied the place of honor at the table ! 
 
292 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 We heard from time to time by orderlies who came in, that 
 the regiment was marching south, and as soon as our horses 
 arrived we made preparations to follow. It was not, however, 
 until Thursday morning, Oct. 9th, that we could start taking 
 the Bardstown pike. In this first day we rode about thirty miles, 
 through a most beautiful and fertile country, abounding in rich 
 and productive farms. We suffered, however, from the intense 
 heat and found a great scarcity of water. Towards night the 
 country became more hilly, and there were rumors of a battle 
 which it was said had been fought. We made several attempts 
 to find lodging, but the people were suspicious and declined to 
 receive us. At last, as it grew late, a family by the name of 
 Evans reluctantly consented that we might stay with them. 
 Evans was a southern sympathizer, while his wife was quite bit 
 ter ; but they fed us well and gave us a good bed. Starting next 
 morning, we reached Bardstown about ten o clock and there 
 learned many particulars of the battle, which had undoubtedly 
 taken place. We traveled on in a heavy rain until we reached 
 Springfield, meeting by the way one of Col. Greusel s orderlies, 
 from whom we learned that the 36th was in the fight had stood 
 their ground two hours, and had one hundred killed and wounded. 
 We stayed over night at the same tavern a big, uncomfortable 
 h ouse where several of the Southern generals had lodged a few 
 nights before. The rain fell heavily, the trains were delayed, 
 and we knew that the troops had no rations. Next morning we 
 started forward and about one o clock came upon the buildings 
 occupied by our wounded men, left in charge of Dr. Pierce, 
 many of whom we knew. Here we learned all the particulars 
 of the battle, and were thrilled with the stories each man had to 
 tell. By-and-by we started forward, crossing the battle-field, 
 on which were stretched a number of dead bodies my first sight 
 
ARRIVAL OF THE CHAPLAIN. 293 
 
 of a real field of battle. On reaching the corral near Perryville 
 we bivouacked with the quarter-master s department and I took 
 my first experience of sleeping out of doors. The blazing fires, 
 the confused voices of men, the rattle of horses, mules and 
 wagons, and over head the deep, dark sky, studded with quiet 
 stars, altogether made a scene so novel and impressive, that I 
 shall never forget it. 
 
 Next morning, which was Sunday, October 12th, we started 
 to join the regiment, and after riding past long files of men 
 marching or resting by the roadside, we came upon the 36th 
 about two miles out. Willis was received with a shout, and I 
 had a cordial welcome from the officers and such of the men as 
 I was acquainted with. It was well for me that I did not learn 
 until subsequently the real feelings of many on seeing a Chaplain 
 appear among them. But long afterward, when our Sabbath ser 
 vices and other meetings, our papers and libraries had done their 
 work, and we came to feel, from sharing in common danger and 
 sufferings a tender interest in each other, both officers and men 
 became more communicative, and I learned how they felt during the 
 first weeks of my Chaplaincy. Col. Miller, the year following, 
 as we sat together in the beautiful chapel we had built at Cowan, 
 told me that as the men were, that morning on which I arrived, 
 without rations, and therefore peculiarly irritable, having been 
 destitute for many months of any religious or refining influences, 
 they vented their rage against the Government for sending them 
 a chaplain instead of hardtack. One sergeant, notorious for 
 his profanity, was especially loud in his denunciation, when 
 Capt. Miller, who then commanded the regiment, threatened that 
 if he uttered any such language in my hearing he would reduce 
 him to the ranks. This closed his lips, and was a warning to 
 
294 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 others. Long afterwards the rough man delighted to tell me 
 what a change had come over him about chaplains. 
 
 At eleven o clock we halted, and immediately cattle, hogs, 
 sheep, calves were slaughtered, and the hungry men relieved. 
 Strict orders had been issued against this, but necessity knows 
 no law, and the Generals did not interfere. The country through 
 which we marched to Harrodsburg was rolling and varied, and 
 the scenery delightful. We encamped for the night in a rain, 
 but Capt. Hobbs procured me accommodation in a house near by. 
 The next day we marched but a mile or two, with long hours of 
 waiting by the roadside, and it seemed inevitable that the enemy 
 would escape. At night I stepped out of the Colonel s tent to take 
 a look at the vast encampment, lighted up for miles around with 
 camp-fires made of Kentucky rails, and I thought I had never 
 seen a sight more grand and exciting. During the night several 
 orders arrived looking to sharp work, but finally word came that 
 the enemy had " skedaddled." 
 
 The next day we passed through the most lovely country, 
 studded with delightful residences, and entered Danville about 
 eleven o clock. This is one of the finest towns in Kentucky, 
 one of the blue-grass region. The houses were attractive, the 
 gardens and grounds laid out with great taste and planted with 
 evergreens. But the brightest recollection of Danville is con 
 nected with the Ladies Seminary, at the windows of which stood 
 crowds of young ladies, whose variety of beautiful dresses gave 
 them the appearance of bouquets of flowers, and whose loyalty 
 was expressed by the waving of handkerchiefs and flags. Most 
 heartily did the boys respond to their greeting. In the after 
 noon I rode forward with several officers to watch the novel pro 
 cess of shelling the enemy s rear, and next morning while doing 
 the same thing, I caught sight of the retreating Rebels, and saw 
 
A PRAYER MEETING CALLED. 295 
 
 their arms glittering in the sun. On entering Lancaster we 
 were met by the people with flags, cheers and rejoicings. Still 
 on we went, until tired and hungry we went into camp near 
 Crab Orchard about sundown. As it was evidently no use 
 attempting to follow up the enemy any further, the army rested 
 here until the following Monday. The time was busily employed 
 in washing up, writing letters, &c., which are the first employ 
 ments of a soldier in camp. Crab Orchard itself proved to be a 
 dilapidated village, which had evidently been a Southern water 
 ing place, but if it ever had any attractions they had certainly 
 disappeared. In every soldier s memory the place is remembered 
 as the southern extremity of our Kentucky march after Bragg. 
 
 Here I was able to make a beginning with my chaplain s work. 
 The first night I called a prayer meeting, when fourteen were 
 present, and another the following night, with twenty-six pres 
 ent. I was much assisted in becoming acquainted with the reg 
 iment religiously by the kindness of Sergt. Mann, of Company 
 A, whose blameless character throughout his army life gave him 
 great influence among the men. On Sunday, October 20th, we 
 held our first public service at two o clock. Contrary to the 
 custom which was observed at the beginning of the war, I insisted 
 that the attendance of both men and officers should be entirely 
 voluntary. As the result, when the call sounded, there assem 
 bled on the side of a knoll which had been selected, a very large 
 proportion of the whole regiment as well as men from other 
 commands. We had a good supply of hymn books and a choir 
 to lead the singing, and the sight of so many men who had been 
 destitute of all religious services for months, i. e. since they left 
 Holla, Missouri, standing up to join in the old, familiar hymns, 
 was one not to be easily forgotten. Before sermon I told them 
 of the interest in them expressed to me by their friends at home, 
 
296 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLtJNTEERS. 
 
 of the provision I had made for a supply of reading, and of my 
 willingness to spend and be spent for their welfare, inviting any 
 of them who might need my assistance to come without hesita 
 tion. I then preached a short sermon on "The blessedness of 
 sins forgiven," and we closed with singing, " My faith looks up 
 to Thee, Thou Lamb of Calvary." When, after night all through 
 the companies could be heard the sound of singing, as they used 
 the new hymn books, I was sure that the Sabbath and religious 
 services were needed by all. 
 
 To me it was not only interesting but instructive to learn of 
 the different comments made upon the service by the men. Some 
 who had threatened to resist if compelled to attend, had all their 
 prejudice removed by being simply invited. Some were partic 
 ularly gratified that they were not addressed in military lan 
 guage, as soldiers, regiment or batallion, but as a congregation. 
 It reminded them of home, and they liked even for a few moments 
 to feel relieved from the restraints of a military life. The ser 
 geant so notorious for his profanity, mentioned before, declared 
 he would come just once, and if I said anything about swearing 
 he would never come again, and as there proved to be no men 
 tion of that sin that day, he thought I would do pretty well. 
 Many a service did we hold together in the next two years, but 
 that one at Crab Orchard will always stand alone. 
 
 Next morning, Oct. 21, we marched early, and as soon as the 
 column began to head north and it was evident we were about to 
 return over the old ground, the indignation of the men, which 
 had been gathering for several days, broke out in the most vio 
 lent language. Indeed, one of the most startling facts that I 
 encountered on joining the army was the spirit of rebellion, 
 amounting almost to mutiny, which prevailed so largely. Apart 
 from the hardships of the march, the excessive heat, the dust, 
 
A JOKE ON THE 73D REGIMENT. 297 
 
 which was blinding and suffocating, the lack of rations and other 
 physical trials, there was a deep dissatisfaction with the conduct 
 of the campaign, and especially that, after we had suffered so 
 much and lost so many men, the enemy were to be allowed to 
 escape. Both the commanding generals and the Government 
 came in for their shares of the blame. 
 
 Gens. Buell and Gilbert were the last commanders of this army 
 who clung to the theory of conducting the war on peace princi 
 ples avoiding everything that would irritate the South. This 
 policy had already cost us vast treasures of blood and money. 
 The country was becoming sick of it, and the army was demand 
 ing a change. Within a week of this time a change was effected, 
 so that I saw our soldiers just when their indignation was the 
 worst and their opposition to conservative generalship most rebel 
 lious. Gen. Gilbert had no just conception of the peculiar treat 
 ment necessary to control the American volunteer, and when he 
 began to treat him in ways that implied equality with the dregs 
 of society so often swept into a regular army, he woke a 
 spirit of opposition that vented itself in acts which he found him 
 self unable to check. Men, w r ho in the rough campaigning of 
 Missouri and Arkansas, had been compelled to learn the art of 
 foraging, were stimulated to show how skillfully they could set 
 at defiance the orders which Gen. Gilbert issued. Stories illus 
 trating this spirit were constantly told not to defend the acts 
 themselves, but just as men talk over the successful tricks they 
 played on their teachers when they were boys. 
 
 When on the march near Crab Orchard, some of the 36th boys 
 killed twenty or thirty fat sheep, belonging to a native Kentuck- 
 ian, and after dark threw the pelts into the camp of the 73rd Illi 
 nois Regiment. Now the 73rd was gotten up by the Methodists of 
 
 Illinois and included many preachers and members of the Meth- 
 20 
 
300 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 march we were cheered by having our mail distributed as we 
 moved along, but the men were thoroughly exhausted when we 
 reached camp. This was not to be wondered at when the heat and 
 dust of each day and the cold at night are considered, arid most 
 of the men had only a single blanket, others only a rubber blanket 
 for their covering. Here we stayed till Saturday, 25th, resting 
 well, but suffering much for want of rations. I had one meal of 
 boiled beef alone, and our mess could have crackers only by bor 
 rowing a few from some more favored ones. While waiting here 
 many troops passed us, but we were henceforth to belong to Gen. 
 McCook s corps. It was here, therefore, we bade farewell to Gen. 
 Gilbert and the old regime, and a new order of things commenced. 
 
 A letter written from this point to the Aurora Beacon adds : " We 
 "reached this camp last evening, and are stopping to-day wait- 
 " ing for rations. Lebanon is the terminus of the Louisville & 
 " Lebanon Railroad, which road is now to furnish us with sup- 
 " plies. All this section of country has of late been under Rebel 
 " rule, consequently all the bridges have been burned and 
 " destroyed that could possibly impede the movements of the 
 " Federal army. The bridges on the Lebanon road have just 
 " been completed, and the first train of cars arrived at Lebanon 
 " last evening, and the supplies are to-day being landed from 
 " them for the army. We are marching on what the Commanders 
 "in this department term light-footed, which mean, when prop- 
 " erly interpreted, without tents or clothing and with as little 
 " food as can possibly keep body and soul together. This is 
 " Buell s policy, to which he adds his admirable strategy, which 
 u is to keep as far from Bragg as possible, and when by accident 
 "he does meet him, to fight him lightly." 
 
 On Saturday morning we started out again, leaving Lebanon 
 and the pike to the right and made through the woods for the 
 
AN UNPLEASANT SUNDAY. 301 
 
 little town of Newmarket. The wind had risen and blew very 
 cold. At noon it began to rain and snow, and a regular storm 
 set in. The boys were without warm clothing, their shoes were 
 worn out, and they had a hard time. I find in my journal the 
 entry, " One-half the sufferings of the army will never be known." 
 
 Sunday morning we had five inches of snow, and the weather 
 severely cold. The men tried to make themselves comfortable by 
 building sheds of rails and straw, but we were almost suffocated 
 with the smoke of the camp fires. Services were out of the 
 question, and, beyond some singing a few of us had, there was 
 nothing to mark the Sabbath day. We were glad to go to bed 
 early to keep warm. Monday morning we resumed our march, 
 taking the road south to Bowling Green, through Salome, a vil 
 lage of about thirty houses. This was one of the days to be 
 remembered. Though intensely cold in the morning, the weather 
 was fine and gradually grew warmer. The country was very 
 attractive, being either wild and romantic or beautiful and roll 
 ing ; in some places the road winding on the side of a ravine, 
 with precipitous sides fifty feet above and seventy-five feet below 
 it another division at the same time marching on the opposite 
 side. The open country was as beautiful as many parts near the 
 Hudson, needing only the same intelligent cultivation to make it 
 in every respect its equal. The bracing air, the beautiful coun 
 try, the more congenial command, and best of all the forward 
 march, gave the men new spirit, and I saw them to-day at their 
 best as a week ago I had seen them at their worst. We went 
 into camp on the top of a knoll with regiments on all sides of us, 
 whose camp-fires made an inspiring sight. I wrote in my jour 
 nal, " Such is life full of contrasts. If every day was like 
 "yesterday, deliver me from a soldier s life; if every day were 
 " like to-day, a soldier s life would be pleasant." 
 
302 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 The following days we marched across the corners of Taylor, 
 Hart and Barron counties, crossed the Little Barron river, the 
 largest stream we had seen since leaving Louisville. Ascending 
 the opposite bank was very much like going up stairs, and occa 
 sioned much delay. The country continued to improve, and after 
 a continuous and rapid march of twenty -two miles, we camped at 
 Pruett s Knob, a little beyond Cave City. Here the army waited 
 over one day for rations, and were mustered for pay. While 
 quite a number explored the Knob, a huge, sugar loaf mountain 
 covered with scrubby timber, a party was made up to visit Mam 
 moth Cave, eight miles distant. Capts. Miller and Sherer, 
 Adjt. Willis, Lieut. Barnard, Dr. Pierce and myself, with two or 
 three others, started about two o clock on this excursion. The 
 country over which we rode to the cave is itself a curiosity. It 
 is made up of precipitous hills and vast basins, which are deeply 
 depressed in the centre. Some of them, not more than five hun 
 dred feet across from side to side, seemed to be one hundred feet 
 lower in the centre than at the edge. Immense crevices at the 
 bottom of these basins permit the waters which are gathered by 
 these great funnels to pass into the underground streams. No 
 streams of w r ater are found on the surface for miles around, except 
 Green river, which seems to be the outlet of these subterranean 
 streams. No creeks, brooks nor rivulets exist upon the surface, 
 though the country is a constant succession of hills and hollows. 
 The cliffs, the rocks by the roadside, and even the small stones 
 seem full of holes, recesses and grottos, as if all of them were 
 trying to make little caverns in imitation of the great Mammoth 
 Cave, just as children are prone to imitate the curious and won 
 derful feats of older persons. 
 
 After a ride of an hour or two over this region, we arrived at 
 Cave Hotel a large building, with rooms all around opening on 
 
A SOUTHERN HOTEL. 
 
 303 
 
 a piazza, after the manner of Southern watering-places, and capa 
 ble of accommodating five hundred persons. Of course while visitors 
 were constantly coming and going, there was no such crowd as 
 belongs to peaceful times. After a very hearty supper, we entered 
 the cave under the guidance of Mat Bransford, who had served in 
 that capacity for over twenty years and had traveled in the cave 
 over fifty thousand miles. He was a genuine original character 
 and made things lively all the way. Under his directions we 
 visited all the principle avenues and halls ; passed through Fat 
 Man s Misery ; looked into the Bottomless Pit ; stood by the 
 Dead Sea and Lake Purity, and sailed on Echo River, on which 
 a revolver was fired several times. It was frequently suggested 
 that should Morgan make his appearance, he would have 
 us in a tight place. On the whole, we walked about eighteen 
 miles and came out between twelve and one o clock A.. M. The 
 condition of the atmosphere is such, however, that we could walk 
 further without weariness than above ground. In the parlors of 
 the hotel we saw specimens of the eyeless fish. 
 
 After a good sleep and excellent breakfast, we started for Bell s 
 Station, where we found the regiment just coming in. We fell 
 in and finished with them sixteen miles of marching that day. 
 We were all much rejoiced to be joined by Lieut, Wakeman with 
 the men, tents and equipage that had been left behind at 
 Louisville. The size of the regiment and its comfort were 
 very much increased. It might be noted as something- 
 remarkable that we had potatoes for supper. Next day we 
 marched to Bowling Green and went into camp a mile beyond the 
 town. Here we erected tents and in general put things to rights. 
 Gren. Rosecrans arrived on the afternoon train and took command 
 of the army. Next day being Sunday, I was able to distribute 
 a good supply of reading, which had arrived, and make arrange- 
 
302 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 The following days we marched across the corners of Taylor, 
 Hart and Barren counties, crossed the Little Barron river, the 
 largest stream we had seen since leaving Louisville. Ascending 
 the opposite bank was very much like going up stairs, and occa 
 sioned much delay. The country continued to improve, and after 
 a continuous and rapid march of twenty-two miles, we camped at 
 Pruett s Knob, a little beyond Cave City. Here the army waited 
 over one day for rations, and were mustered for pay. While 
 quite a number explored the Knob, a huge, sugar loaf mountain 
 covered with scrubby timber, a party was made up to visit Mam 
 moth Cave, eight miles distant. Capts. Miller and Sherer, 
 Adjt. Willis, Lieut. Barnard, Dr. Pierce and myself, with two or 
 three others, started about two o clock on this excursion. The 
 country over which we rode to the cave is itself a curiosity. It 
 is made up of precipitous hills and vast basins, which are deeply 
 depressed in the centre. Some of them, not more than five hun 
 dred feet across from side to side, seemed to be one hundred feet 
 lower in the centre than at the edge. Immense crevices at the 
 bottom of these basins permit the waters which are gathered by 
 these great funnels to pass into the underground streams. No 
 streams of water are found on the surface for miles around, except 
 Green river, which seems to be the outlet of these subterranean 
 streams. No creeks, brooks nor rivulets exist upon the surface, 
 though the country is a constant succession of hills and hollows. 
 The cliffs, the rocks by the roadside, and even the small stones 
 seem full of holes, recesses and grottos, as if all of them were 
 trying to make little caverns in imitation of the great Mammoth 
 Cave, just as children are prone to imitate the curious and won 
 derful feats of older persons. 
 
 After a ride of an hour or two over this region, we arrived at 
 Cave Hotel a large building, with rooms all around opening on 
 
A SOUTHERN HOTEL. 
 
 308 
 
 a piazza, after the manner of Southern watering-places, and capa 
 ble of accommodating five hundred persons. Of course while visitors 
 were constantly coming and going, there was no such crowd as 
 belongs to peaceful times. After a very hearty supper, we entered 
 the cave under the guidance of Mat Bransford, who had served in 
 that capacity for over twenty years and had traveled in the cave 
 over fifty thousand miles. He was a genuine original character 
 and made things lively all the way. Under his directions we 
 visited all the principle avenues and halls ; passed through Fat 
 Man s Misery ; looked into the Bottomless Pit ; stood by the 
 Dead Sea and Lake Purity, and sailed on Echo River, on which 
 a revolver was fired several times. It was frequently suggested 
 that should Morgan make his appearance, he would have 
 us in a tight place. On the whole, we walked about eighteen 
 miles and came out between twelve and one o clock \. M. The 
 condition of the atmosphere is such, however, that we could walk 
 further without weariness than above ground. In the parlors of 
 the hotel we saw specimens of the eyeless fish. 
 
 After a good sleep and excellent breakfast, we started for Bell s 
 Station, where we found the regiment just coming in. We fell 
 in and finished with them sixteen miles of marching that day. 
 We were all much rejoiced to be joined by Lieut, Wakeman with 
 the men, tents and equipage that had been left behind at 
 Louisville. The size of the regiment and its comfort were 
 very much increased. It might be noted as something 
 remarkable that we had potatoes for supper. Next day we 
 marched to Bowling Green and went into camp a mile beyond the 
 town. Here we erected tents and in general put things to rights. 
 Gen. Rosecrans arrived on the afternoon train and took command 
 of the army. Next day being Sunday, I was able to distribute 
 a good supply of reading, which had arrived, and make arrange- 
 
304 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ments for preaching, which took place at two o clock, and though 
 the day was very cold and all the companies were busy preparing 
 to draw shoes and clothing, we had a large attendance at the ser 
 vice. An excellent prayer meeting, attended by Mr. Seymour, 
 of Lisbon, Kendall County, closed the day. 
 
 The work of equipment went forward briskly the next day. 
 At night we had a meeting for singing in my tent, and on Tues 
 day morning, Nov. 4th, we resumed our march toward Nashville. 
 About three miles out, we passed Lost River, so called because it 
 disappears in a cave, miles in extent. Some of the boys explored 
 it as far as one candle would light them. The prevalence of 
 springs, &c., hereabouts indicates that the whole country is prob 
 ably formed like that about Mammoth Cave. Marched fifteen 
 miles and then camped at the edge of a beautiful grove. Next 
 day we passed through Franklin, a good substantial village of 
 about seven hundred inhabitants, and a county seat. Here an 
 old man and wife came in from the country and gave the boys a 
 quantity of apples. Very soon we crossed the line into Tennes 
 see, a huge stone marking the spot. The country now presented 
 a poor appearance ; Mitchellsville, near the line, being a poor, 
 tumble-down village, so nearly deserted that there were not inhab 
 itants enough left to even tell us the name of their miserable 
 town. The only evidence that it had ever been inhabited was 
 an old advertisement posted on the side of a deserted log-house 
 whisky shop, announcing that Levi J. North s Democratic Cir 
 cus would exhibit there on a certain day in the past. The boys 
 of the 88th soon recognized the thing as of Chicago origin, and 
 cheered accordingly. Mitchellville was at that time the terminus 
 of the Nashville and Louisville Railroad, and was a fair repre 
 sentative of the Tennessee towns we had passed through thus far 
 in this trip. It was forty-five miles from Nashville and all our sup 
 plies for this immense army had to be hauled from there by teams. 
 
VISIT TO NASHVILLE. 305 
 
 Two regiments of our brigade were here detached (21st Mich 
 igan and 24th Wisconsin) to guard the railroad. We camped at 
 night about four miles from the State line. Next day, after 
 marching about ten miles, we passed Tyree Springs, where was 
 a large hotel capable of accommodating five hundred guests. 
 Another small place, Goodlettsville, was also passed, and we 
 camped after marching twenty-four miles. Next day our brigade 
 was in the rear of everything, and was much delayed in starting 
 and marching. The wind was terribly cold and piercing, so that 
 I suffered more than in all the past four weeks. On the way we 
 learned how the enemy had approached Nashville in three col 
 umns to throw Negley oft his guard, while Morgan with his 
 cavalry came round prepared to burn the bridge over the Cum 
 berland. But Negley was not caught, the force guarding the 
 bridge being able to drive Morgan oif. As we came nearer Nash 
 ville the country improved, and we passed many fine residences, 
 with grounds laid out and adorned with evergreens. We passed 
 a number of burning houses, and went into camp at Edgefield 
 about five o clock. Here, and in a camp about half a mile oif, 
 we remained two weeks, giving opportunity for a general clean 
 ing up, posting books, making out rolls, &c., all of which is so 
 necessary to the comfort and efficiency of an army. 
 
 Of course too, an early visit was made to Nashville, and it 
 must be confessed with some disappointment. One writer says : 
 "Most of our Northern boys (myself among the number) 
 " expressed themselves surprised and disappointed in regard to 
 " Nashville. It is not so large or so fine a city as we anticipated. 
 "Its buildings are old, dirty and dilapidated. The streets are 
 " narrow, rough and decidedly filthy. The State House is a 
 " large, extravagant institution. It is really the majority of 
 "Nashville. Externally it presents an imposing appearance. 
 
306 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 " It is built on a high elevation of ground, near the center of 
 " the city, and of a very fine quality of stone. The great objec- 
 " tion to its outside arrangements is the limited quantity of 
 " grounds surrounding it. Internally it has some fine things, 
 u and some that are very objectionable. Its lower stories are too 
 " low. The offices and hall look squat and dingy. The Repre- 
 w sentative and Senate chambers are magnificent, their decora- 
 " tions and ornaments are well designed and splendidly executed. 
 ;; The workmanship throughout the entire building is very fine. 
 : The next thing worthy of note is the grave of ex-President 
 " James K. Polk. He is buried in the front yard of his own 
 " residence, near the centre of the city. The whole arrange- 
 " ment looks solid and lasting. The residence is brick, and built 
 " after the Southern style. It looks old, dilapidated and neg- 
 " lected. The yard is pretty well ornamented with shrubbery, 
 " evergreens and fine walks." And yet allo.wance must be made 
 for the fact that these were war times, that everything was being 
 used to the utmost, and nothing repaired or improved, so that a 
 rapid deterioration must be expected. 
 
 The State House grounds, &c., were bristling with thirty -two 
 pounders, protected by bales of cotton, and guarded by soldiers. 
 The cemetery was a beautiful place, but it was sad to see that the 
 number of soldiers buried here had already reached 1740, and as 
 I visited the hospitals from time to time, I saw many likely to 
 increase the number. 
 
 During the first week, Gen. Rosecrans reviewed the army by 
 brigades, and having heard of the skill of the 36th in the manual 
 of arms, he gave Col. Greusel an opportunity of exhibiting their 
 powers, which he did to the great gratification of the General, 
 who said to the rest, who were nearly all new troops, u Now, 
 beat that if you can !" At this time, too, the 36th was the won- 
 
THE HEALTH OF THE REGIMENT. 307 
 
 der and envy of all new regiments for their vigorous health and 
 abounding spirits. They were always ready for a game or shout 
 when off duty, while not a few of other regiments would mope and 
 sit around listlessly, until they were sick in earnest. In an article 
 published in the Atlantic Monthly, the 36th was pronounced 
 "the healthiest regiment in the service." Beside the usual 
 amount of picket and guard duty, foraging on the country had 
 to be carried on systematically. On one occasion, the 36th was 
 one of three regiments, accompanied by two sections of a battery, 
 to guard three hundred wagons, and the occasion was improved 
 to do some foraging on private account. One journal says, "No. 
 3 got twenty-five fowls, green apples, dried do., molasses, porker, 
 &c." Provisions at this time were very dear; flour, thirteen 
 dollars per barrel ; potatoes, four dollars per bushel ; butter, one 
 dollar per pound, and poor at that ; eggs, one dollar per dozen ; 
 black tea, two and a-half dollars per pound, and other things in 
 proportion. 
 
 About this time, some of the new commissions began to come 
 in, among which were Capt. Albert Jenks, for Lieutenant- 
 Colonel; Capt. Silas Miller, as Major, and Lieut. Geo. A. Wil 
 lis, as Captain Co. A Cavalry Some had written to the Aurora 
 Beacon a few days before, " The regiment proposes to send out a 
 " party to recruit officers. There has not been a field officer with it 
 " since the middle of August, and since the casualties at Perry ville 
 " there is an average of one line officer per company. We hope for 
 " the interest of the regiment that this state of things will not much 
 longer continue." By these promotions Lieut. Willis had to 
 report to his company in Mississippi to the great regret of all. " He 
 " has been with us from the start and is one of us. He is the good 
 "fellow of the regiment, and we cannot do without him. No one 
 "man has so many friends in the 36th Regiment as Willis." 
 
308 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 These two weeks gave me opportunity to organize my own work. 
 On my way thus far, I had proposed to such as were interested 
 in the formation of a religious society to give some bond of union 
 to all who desired to fight the stern battles of a Christian life. 
 At Bowling Green I began to take the names of those willing to 
 unite, and at Edgefield quite a number joined us, both of those 
 who had been professors of religion at home and those who were 
 desirous of becoming such. Our public services, and prayer 
 meetings grew in interest so that on Sunday, Nov. 16th, we had 
 a very large and solemn congregation, and I felt that my work 
 had really begun. I had heard so much of the difficulties found 
 by chaplains in obtaining any opportunity for their work, that I 
 anticipated meeting them myself. I was sure, however, from a 
 little observation, that some, at least, of these difficulties were 
 created by the indiscreet methods of the chaplains themselves, 
 and I sought to avoid them. I arranged always to have reading 
 matter ready for distribution every Sunday morning and passed 
 around the tents myself. I found every Sabbath an increasing 
 eagerness to receive what I brought. I invariably called on the 
 commanding officer with the best I had, and asked him at what 
 hour it would be convenient to have service, thus at once securing 
 his kindly co-operation and avoiding all clashing of appointments 
 and duties, and throughout my entire connection with the regi 
 ment I had service on every Sabbath, when such a thing was 
 possible. My commanding officers were almost always present, 
 and generally among the first to appear on the ground. Who 
 ever else has to complain of a lack of sympathy in his work on 
 the part of his officers, I have not. At this time I also made 
 out for my own use, a complete list of both officers and men, 
 which aided not a little in my future labors, and when we came 
 to the sterner realities of battle, proved simply invaluable. 
 
VISIT TO THE STATE LUNATIC ASYLUM. 309 
 
 On Saturday, November 22nd, we moved camp to a pleasant 
 location about seven miles south of Nashville, on the Nolensville 
 pike, near Seven Mile Creek. Here we remained between two 
 and three weeks, the time being occupied by skirmish and brig 
 ade drills, and picket and forage duties. Our stay at this and 
 the next camp, Mill Creek, was rather of the pleasant order. A 
 good many visits were made to other commands, and short jaunts 
 into the surrounding country, while a ride to Nashville was a 
 common thing. One of the most interesting of these visits was 
 made by the surgeons, Capt. Hobbs and myself, to the 89th Illi 
 nois, in Willich s Brigade, camped close by the State Lunatic 
 Asylum. We made quite a lengthy call at the Institution, where 
 we were received very kindly and shown over the building and 
 its attachments. The main building was about three hundred 
 and fifty feet long by two hundred and fifty feet deep, with a 
 corresponding height, the grounds laid out with evergreens, box 
 and ivy, with rookery and fish pond. Inside, the rooms were 
 finely papered and carpeted, and the walls adorned with pictures 
 of every order, from grave to gay, and every means seemed to be 
 used to interest and profit the inmates, of whom we saw a good 
 many. The most interesting sight of all, however, was the exten 
 sive green-house, adorned with twenty thousand varieties of beau 
 tiful productions, including many tropical plants. Here we saw 
 the palm leaf growing, and the magnificent Victoria Regia, of 
 which there are only two or three specimens in the country. The 
 superintendent had been removed for his rebellion, but it was 
 interesting to notice that the Southern people had been perfectly 
 willing to leave their unfortunate friends in our hands. There 
 was every proof that they would not suffer in our care. 
 
 Thursday, November 27th, being Thanksgiving, it was pro 
 posed that we have a brigade Thanksgiving service, and Col. 
 
310 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 
 
 Greusel requested me to preach. All necessary preparations 
 were carefully made, when at three o clock Thursday morning we 
 were called up to join an expedition consisting of the 2nd and 
 15th Missouri, 44th, 88th and 36th Illinois, with two sections of 
 Barnett s battery. We penetrated six miles into the Confederate 
 lines, driving in the cavalry pickets, who fired their pieces, 
 mounted their mustangs and fled at double quick. After waiting 
 until Col. Schafer could cross over to the next pike, we returned 
 to camp, arriving about three o clock, and somehow a good supply 
 of rations, not included in the army list, found their way back 
 with us. One incident of our trip is thus described by Dr. 
 Young: " Soon after starting the second instalment of Rebel 
 pickets, we were joined by a smart, sprightly negro, aged about 
 " twenty-five years, who knew the roads, and volunteered to show 
 4 *us the way across the creek, as the Rebels had burned the 
 " bridge and the stream was not fordable at that point. It so 
 "happened that our orders ended right at his master s plantation. 
 " We halted there about two hours. All the whites and blacks 
 l - had fled when we came in sight. Some of our boys suggested 
 <: to him that he had better return with us, so he gathered up his 
 " clothes and blankets and made ready to accompany us. 
 
 " Our troops now started back. My position, in consequence 
 " of having looked after the comfort of a couple of large turkeys 
 " on the plantation, was in the rear of our retreating army. 
 " The negro had accumulated his duds and started with us, when, 
 looking around, there came his wife and two children. He saw 
 " them and halted. I stopped my horse to see the result, for I 
 " was interested. I desired to see which the black man loved the 
 most the prospect of gaining his liberty, or his wife and babies. 
 She came up to him, and he said to her, Mary, I s gwine for 
 " to leab you! She looked thunderstruck, and inquired where 
 
ARRIVAL OF THE PAYMASTER. 311 
 
 " he was going. He said he was going with the Northern army 
 and be free. She replied, You shan t ! He asked me if she 
 " could go. T said yes. He informed her, but she instantly 
 replied, DeLord! I can t go and leab massa and dese chil- 
 u lens. The man looked troubled. The children came up to 
 " him and called him father. I did not say a word, but sat on 
 " my horse watching events. Our brigade moved forward, and T 
 "followed. I looked behind me; the negro was coming, and a 
 " short distance behind him, in the road, stood his wife and child- 
 "ren, watching the husband and father deserting them. He 
 looked behind him frequently, and I could see his broad black 
 4i chest heave, and hear him sigh. I pitied him, and thought he 
 <; felt and acted as I did when I left my home, wife and baby, and 
 li followed. In a word, he acted like a man a human being. I 
 " hated to see the fellow leave his wife and children. But she 
 " declared she would not leave the children. I thought, what 
 "will she do when the auctioneer comes?" 
 
 The following week had two special incidents, which attracted 
 much attention the coming of the paymaster on the 3rd of Dec., 
 which had put the boys in excellent humor, and the eclipse of the 
 moon on the night of the 15th, which was very fine. Our meetings 
 continued, and additional evening meetings were held for the 
 study of the Bible, so that I had some kind of service almost 
 every night. 
 
 On the 9th we had orders to be ready to march at a moment s 
 notice, without teams, and after dinner firing was heard and the 
 long roll sounded. The troops went out about half a mile and 
 were drawn up in line of battle, waiting for an attack, but noth 
 ing came of it and at night we returned to camp. Next day we 
 moved back toward Nashville and went into camp in a beautiful 
 grove on Mill Creek, remaining here at " Camp Sheridan " until 
 
312 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 we marched out to Stone River, Friday, the 26th The boys 
 have always been fond of talking of the camp on Mill Creek ; it 
 was the last encampment in which many of us were together. Here 
 the daily drills, the picket and forage duties continued, mingled 
 with rides and trips to Nashville. Our brigade, under command 
 of Col. Sherman, of the 88th Regiment, made a short foraging 
 detour into the disputed territory. They were gone three days, 
 and then returned with two hundred and forty-seven wagon-loads 
 of forage and produce, besides numerous horses, mules, hogs, 
 sheep and milch cows all secured from undo ubted secessionists. 
 Somewhere about this time a slaughtered hog was found hung 
 very near my tent, one Sunday morning, waiting, no doubt, to 
 be cut up. The owners got up a little pleasant fun on the parson 
 for such a sight, but the hospital tent was too near to turn any 
 one off the true to a false sbent. 
 
 Friday, Dec. 12, Brig. Gen. Sill being appointed to the com 
 mand of the brigade, Col. Greusel returned to the command of 
 the regiment and met a hearty welcome. As in a few days after 
 this the condition of the regiment was entirely changed by the 
 battle, this is the best place to insert a brief summary of facts 
 about it collected and printed at this time. " We left camp Ham 
 mond, Aurora, Kane County, Illinois, on Tuesday afternoon, 
 "Sept. 24, 1861, with 1,183 men. The regiment has been in 
 " the service fifteen months ; marched 2,800 miles five hundred 
 " and twenty miles by steamboat, ten hundred and nineteen by 
 "railroad and twelve hundred and sixty-one on foot. We have 
 " done military duty in five Southern states Missouri, Arkan- 
 "sas, Mississippi, Kentucky and Tennessee, besides traveling 
 " extensively in Illinois, Indiana and Ohio- We have been in four 
 " severe battles Pea Ridge, March 6th, 7th and 8th ; Company 
 "A Cavalry at luka, Corinth, Sept., and tfye regiment at Chap- 
 
A KBSUME OF THE REGIMENT. 313 
 
 "lin Hill, near Perry ville, Kentucky, Oct. 8th, 1862. We have 
 "had twenty-eight men and two commissioned officers killed in 
 " battle and died of their wounds. Twenty-two men have died 
 "in our regimental hospital, under care of our own surgeons and 
 " nurses ; sixteen have died in general and post hospitals ; 
 "three have died at home, while absent from the regiment on 
 "furlough, making the total deaths in the regiment from all 
 " causes, since it left Aurora, sixty-nine. Twenty- three commis- 
 " sioned officers have resigned or been dismissed from the ser- 
 " vice. One commissioned officer has died from disease, and two 
 " from wounds received in battle. Thirty-eight privates have 
 " been discharged from service by our regimental surgeons on 
 "account of disability. Forty -three have been discharged by 
 " general orders and post surgeons while absent from the regi- 
 " ment. Twenty-three were mustered out of service as a Band. 
 " Nine have been discharged on account of promotion to offices 
 "in other regiments. Thirty-one have deserted, and ought to be 
 " shot. Twenty-three new recruits have joined since the organ- 
 " ization of the regiment leaving 967 men now belonging to 
 " the regiment and doing duty. Our division is composed of 
 " twelve regiments four old ones and eight new ones, yet our 
 " regiment draws rations for more men than any other regiment 
 "in the division. We have one man sick in the regimental hos- 
 " pital to-day. The following figures show this morning s brigade 
 " report of sick in general hospital. The brigade is composed of 
 " four regiments, and the following are their figures : 36th Illi- 
 " nois has thirty-six men in general hospital, most of whom are the 
 " wounded of the Perryville fight. The 88th Illinois has one 
 " hundred and thirty-four men in general hospital ; the 24th 
 ; Wisconsin has one hundred and thirty-five men in general hos- 
 " pital, and 21st Michigan one hundred and twenty men in same," 
 
 21 
 
314 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 While camped at Mill Creek, south of Nashville, Peter Pelican 
 was detailed as orderly for Col. Greusel. His special duty was 
 that of mail carrier to and from Nashville. Peter was constitu 
 tionally thirsty, and the poor water of the South not always 
 agreeable, so on his frequent visits to Nashville he generally par 
 took more or less of the ardent. One time, while in a state of 
 semi-unconsciousness, his horse was stolen, with saddle, bridle 
 and equipments. It was said Peter s reputation for veracity was 
 not of a high order, and on his return to camp he stated, in his 
 half French manner, that while in the post office waiting for his 
 mail sober, of course some one had stolen his horse. Col. 
 Greusel furnished him a pass, and ordered him to hunt the horse 
 and not come back without him. Peter left on foot, and nothing 
 was seen or heard of him for some time. At length Major Miller 
 found him in Nashville, keeping a grog shop, and caused his 
 arrest and trial for desertion. The case was apparently a clear 
 one, and Peter was asked what he had to oifer in defence. Judge 
 of the consternation of Col. Greusel and the officers present, 
 when he pulled out of his pocket the Colonel s pass, and stated 
 that he had not yet been able to find the horse and hence had 
 not returned. Peter was cleared, of course. 
 
 It was at this camp the troops were furnished with the "shel 
 ter tent," which became a treasure to the men when they under 
 stood its value, but at first its appearance was almost a signal for 
 rebellion. The journals express the prevailing feeling perfectly : 
 " In the afternoon the new shelter tents came, and caused con- 
 "siderable excitement. The boys all declare they wont take 
 " them, and I am sure I don t blame them in the least they are 
 " an imposition." Another says : " An attempt was made to-day 
 "to furnish the brigade with the shelter tent, a miserable. 
 " coarse muslin thing, to be occupied by two men, and carried 
 
ON PICKET IN THE ADVANCE. 315 
 
 " on the back ; but the men came out in a body and refused to 
 " take them, declaring that if they had to, they would burn 
 " them. The officer thought discretion the better part of valor, 
 "and did not force the matter." 
 
 On the 16th, the regiment was on picket in advance, the Rebels 
 in sight. In the afternoon another regiment took our place, 
 while we went out two miles on a reconnoissance. Pickets ran 
 as we advanced. On Sunday, 14th, we had a most excellent 
 service in the morning, and then Jep. Denison,Hop. Steward and 
 I rode over to Gen. Davis head-quarters to visit Company B 
 Cavalry. We were very kindly received by Capt. Sherer and 
 his men. I distributed papers among them and afterward preached. 
 They expressed great gratitude for the service, which was the 
 first they had had. One man expressed his feelings by giving 
 me a cane which he had been making, with great care, out of 
 cedar and inlaid very ingeniously with ivory devices. I sent it 
 home, and preserve it yet as a memento of that Sunday. On 
 our return we had a large attendance at evening meeting, and a 
 number had to go away. I counted forty inside the tent. On 
 the 17th, I was requested, on behalf of Company B. to present 
 Lieut. P. Douglas with sword, sash and shoulder straps, on the 
 occasion of his promotion. We had an interesting time. The 
 rest of the time until our march to Stone river, on the 26th, was 
 occupied with the usual dress parades, skirmish and brigade 
 drill, picket and forage duty. On the 21st we had service at 
 three o clock p. M. By this time we were in the habit of draw 
 ing attendance from other regiments, and had a large concourse, 
 quite as many as I could address comfortably. The accumulated 
 influence of religious services for weeks had produced in the 
 minds of many men unusual tenderness, and when our service 
 closed it was with such a subdued and solemn feeling that the 
 
316 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 vast crowd seemed to disperse in almost entire silence. It was 
 the last sermon that many a man heard. Was it the shadow of 
 coming events that rested that afternoon upon us ? 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 BATTLE OF STONE RIVER. 
 
 
 
 {[O ON after the battle of Stone River, I wrote out 
 for a Chicago paper a full account of what I saw 
 and heard during those eventful days, It had 
 a large circulation, was read and commented 
 upon by officers and men at the time, and may, 
 therefore, be regarded as even more strictly cor- 
 
 TQT 
 
 rect than any that could now be written from memory. I therefore 
 reprint it, with only such verbal changes as the nature of the 
 case demands. The personal character of the narrative has to 
 be retained, and I know not how to help it. 
 
 MILL CREEK, ) 
 NEAR NASHVILLE, TENN. j 
 
 Thursday, Dec. 25th, 1862. Rose at six o clock. Under 
 orders to march. After breakfast, ordered to pitch our tents as 
 before, and make ourselves as comfortable as possible. Regi 
 ments came in from picket and everything looked as before we 
 broke up yesterday. This is Christmas Day. and Santa Claus 
 
ARRIVAL OF SHELTER TENTS. 317 
 
 has not come, unless he visited the little ones at home. Would 
 give a good deal to be at home to-day. Received a copy of 
 Army Regulations from the Adjutant. Heavy musketry heard 
 out on the lines. Rumors that we leave to-morrow ; 89th and 
 the battery are under orders; ours have not yet come. Even 
 ing Bible Class; subject, Almsgiving in Sermon on the Mount; 
 very interesting. 
 
 Friday, 26th. Called at six, with orders to march at seven ; 
 all is hurry and confusion. The shelter tents were issued ; the 
 men had threatened they would not receive them, considering it 
 an imposition to have them substituted for regular tents. A 
 shelter tent is composed of two sheets of cotton, which being but 
 toned together and propped with stakes, makes a tent of the 
 shape of a house roof, under which two men can lie ; being only 
 four feet high of course cannot be used for permanent encamp 
 ment. They are generally designed for march, to lessen the 
 baggage train, it being intended that wherever the army remains 
 awhile they should have the large tents. This morning many 
 refused them, preferring to be without any, as all the large tents 
 were ordered back to Nashville. I had my tent, trunk and stove 
 packed on the head-quarters wagon, so as to be provided for, but 
 by a misunderstanding which it was too late to correct when I 
 learned it, they were carried back to Nashville, so that I had 
 nothing but what was carried on the horse and in Henry s knap 
 sack. We supposed, however, that we should probably be back 
 next day, as it was reported that we were going to capture a force 
 that had ventured too near our lines. We had not gone far 
 before it was evident to all that this was a movement in force 
 Johnson s Division filing in from the other pike on to our rear, 
 and Davis going by another road, while Crittenden and Thomas 
 were advancing in another direction. It became a certainty that 
 
318 THIRTY-SIXTII ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 we wore now advancing on the enemy, and were about to have 
 war in earnest. It was at this time that I found my tent, trunk, 
 &c., had been left behind. 
 
 We had not gone far before it began to rain, and soon to pour, 
 making the road tedious to the men. We were shortly turned 
 off the pike to go round a creek by a circuitous route, as it was 
 expected that some fortifications had been erected there. A 
 negro was engaged as a guide, who, misunderstanding the Gen 
 eral s orders, took us the wrong way ; so after wading and slip 
 ping through the mud, the artillery cutting deep ruts, we had to 
 return and seek another track, very much to the annoyance of 
 the officers and the disgust of the men. Many remarks were 
 made anything but complimentary to " reliable contrabands." 
 The skirmishers soon came upon a band of the enemy s cavalry, 
 and a brisk firing was kept up for some time. Our regiment 
 being on the advance, we were very near. Our skirmishers were 
 very much exhausted by tramping through the muddy corn and 
 cotton-fields and trailing through the brush. 
 
 Having successfully crossed the creek, we again came upon the 
 pike, to find that Davis Division, which was behind us, had 
 gone on to Nolansville before us, in consequence of our delay in 
 finding the right road. Davis is a fighting man the same that 
 shot Gen. Nelson and we soon heard by the cannonade that he 
 had come up with a body of the enemy. After a little delay we 
 entered Nolansville, a dirty, dilapidated place of from fifty to 
 one hundred houses. One shell from a secesh battery had 
 entered a house and exploded in it. Here our boys bought some 
 butter and apples, the people preferring Confederate money to 
 greenbacks, which is the case through all this region. We soon 
 heard still heavier cannonading, and as we advanced, the signs of 
 a fight became thick and strong. All was excitement, and but 
 
A SOAKING NIGHT. 319 
 
 for being in the way, I should have ridden forward to see what 
 was being done. We halted for a time opposite a house where 
 there was a large number of negroes the owner having a negress 
 for a wife. 
 
 After a while the firing ceased, our Generals returned and 
 ordered us into camp in an orchard opposite. One of our regi 
 ments had made a charge on a battery and captured one gun. 
 One man was killed and thirteen wounded ; two more died the 
 next day. The enemy had fled toward Triune, where we expected 
 to find a heavy force within fortifications, and it seemed that 
 to-morrow we must have a general engagement. 
 
 The ground was thoroughly drenched with rain, and my 
 prospects were anything but flattering, my tent having been left 
 behind. The boys began to put up their shelter tents, and then 
 it appeared as though those who had refused them were not wise. 
 The Major kindly invited me to sleep in his tent which I gladly 
 accepted. During the night the rain began to pour down in 
 torrents, and it was sad to think that so many of our boys were 
 sleeping out in their blankets, and must inevitably be made sick. 
 
 My sympathies for them began to seek a new channel, for the 
 tent being on a side hill and the men having neglected to trench 
 it as a tent needs in a rain storm the water began to pour 
 into the tent, wetting our blankets, causing us to draw up our 
 feet to keep them out of the water. Blankets once wet require 
 a good deal of drying, so that altogether this was a little the 
 hardest soldiering I had had. 
 
 Saturday, 27th. Rose at six o clock ; somewhat blue. The 
 rain had stopped, and things did not look so gloomy as I had 
 anticipated. One thing, however, this rain had done, converted 
 most of the boys into friends of the shelter tent. The much 
 abused thing became a real favorite, for those who had taken care 
 
320 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 to put them up properly were kept securely from the rain, and 
 the story that they would not shed water was entirely disproved. 
 
 Our camp had been upon the side hill ; on a high hill in the 
 distance was Davis Division, while still others were camped in 
 the rear. When all these had their fires lighted at night it was 
 an exceedingly brilliant and gorgeous sight. After breakfast, 
 learning that Johnson s Division was to go ahead of us, I went 
 down to the road and waited nearly two hours for the 89th to 
 pass. It was a grand sight to see such masses of men move on, 
 accompanied by such trains of artillery, and gave me a better 
 idea of the size and thorough equipment of the army than I have 
 ever had before. Ah, me, how many of these strong and hearty 
 fellows are going, never to return ! Gen. McCook, Gen. Davis, 
 Gen. Sheridan and Gen. Sill were all together. When John 
 son s Division had passed, Sheridan s started. We were in the 
 second brigade. Soon we heard heavy firing, and knew that our 
 advance had come up with the enemy. At a large, brick house, 
 on top of a hill, where it was said Gen. Hardee had stayed the 
 night before, I had a sight of the spot about one and a- half mile 
 ahead, where our batteries were planted. When we had marched 
 some three miles and were about three from Triune, the order 
 came to gather all the ambulances in a field. The prisoners 
 taken said the enemy were in force at Triune, and our Generals 
 were going to make an immediate attack. The order was that 
 the wounded were not to be carried off the field until the battle 
 was over. 
 
 The surgeons were to go on to the field with such light appli 
 ances as they could carry. We the surgeons and myself put 
 everything in order, took the stretchers a kind of hand mat 
 tress on which wounded men were carried ate our turkey and 
 started after the troops, with the full expectation of an immedi- 
 
THE ADVANCE ON TRIUNE. 821 
 
 ate and bloody battle. At a little distance forward we turned 
 from the road and traversed the fields. The rain, too, began to 
 fall again, and this time in heavy torrents. We came up with 
 the regiment drawn up in line of battle, while yet other lines 
 were in advance of us, on knolls of ground, reaching nearer and 
 nearer Triune. Soon those in advance moved forward, one after 
 the other, and we took their places. Thus the whole army 
 advanced upon Triune. To wade through the almost liquid corn 
 field was work indeed. Artillery were dragged back and forth, 
 arid when our men came to cross their track it seemed as though 
 they would sink. I could not but think how little the people at 
 home, who so many of them sit at their ease and find fault with 
 the army, conceive of the real hardships of a soldier s life. And 
 yet the cheerfulness of the 36th was neither washed away in the 
 rain above, nor buried in the mud beneath. They were full of 
 life and pleasantry, and now and then, when the mud was deeper 
 and the marching harder than usual, one and another would say, 
 " This is all for the old Flag ;" while one more poetical in his 
 style than the rest, exclaimed, 4k 0, my country, how much do I 
 suffer for thee!" The lines were brought nearer to the enemy, 
 while we strained our eyes to catch a glimpse of them in the 
 distance. u Is it not strange," said I, "that we have to fight 
 men we have never seen, and cannot even now see ?" 
 
 Soon the intelligence was brought that our Generals had again 
 been misled by false information. Our cavalry had entered the 
 town, and no enemy was to be found ; what force they had, had 
 retired towards Murfreesborough, and we were ordered into camp 
 right where we were. But our condition was forlorn enough 
 all wet and chilled. We sent for the ambulances and hospital 
 wagons, put up the large tents, lighted fires and tried to dry our 
 selves. After awhile, supper was ready ; we had both poached 
 
322 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 eggs and butter strong, but still butter. After supper, what 
 should be brought in but a letter from home, the one I had 
 been expecting on Thursday. This was refreshing indeed, after 
 such a tedious and harassing march. In it was a Santa Glaus 
 present, which was very acceptable, and was much praised by 
 those who happened to be in the tent at the time, and who 
 claimed a sight of it. To me it appeared one of the prettiest 
 morsels I had ever had, so appropriate, so ingenious, and so red 
 olent of home affections and joys. God bless and preserve "the 
 loved ones at home." Prepared to sleep in the large hospital 
 tent ; our blankets were damp, but there was no help for it, so 
 we lay down to sleep, grateful that things were no worse. It is 
 astonishing how a man will become accustomed to inconvenience 
 and discomfort until he scarcely notices them. 
 
 Sunday, Dec. 28th. Rose at 7 o clock. Blankets still damp. 
 The morning was bright and beautiful, crisp and frosty. We 
 lay round for some time expecting orders to march ; but as they did 
 not come I began to think that perhaps our Generals were going 
 to obey the President s order about the Sabbath. A man from 
 the 2 2nd Illinois came over to see at what hour we intended to 
 have service, as some of that regiment desired to attend, they 
 being without a Chaplain. Promised to send them word when 
 the hour was fixed. Col. Greusel appointed three o clock, pro 
 vided we did not move. 
 
 Abundance of provisions were found in the neighborhood 
 pork, beef, apples, &c. and each company had men out to pro 
 cure what was needed. A large quantity of fine pork in salt was 
 found which looked as if prepared for the secesh army. Each 
 mess secured a share. Blankets, clothes, &c., were hung up in 
 every direction to be dried in the sun, and there was every pros 
 pect that a day s rest would prepare the men for a march to-mor- 
 
SUNDAY SERVICES IN CAMP. 323 
 
 row. In the midst of all this confusion I sat outside and drew 
 out a sketch for a sermon. I had neither Bible nor Testament, 
 nor manuscript of any kind, all being left behind in my trunk. 
 About one o clock I went over to the 22nd Illinois, and informed 
 them about service. Some of them came over, and after the 
 battle I found one of them among the wounded. At three o clock 
 had service a large attendance. Text, " My word have I hid 
 in my heart that I sin not against thee." 
 
 Prayer-meeting in the evening in the large hospital tent ; 
 thirty-five present. Slept in tent with dry blankets, anticipat 
 ing an early start, and a march on the enemy to-morrow, 
 
 Monday, 29th. Called at half-past four o clock ; lay quiet 
 till daylight waiting orders. Company A had procured a seccsh 
 tent, which they lent to me until I shall receive my own. Had 
 it put on the head-quarters wagon. Marched about sunrise, but 
 much disappointed to be turned back as though we were return 
 ing to Nashville, and it seemed for a moment that we had failed 
 in our expedition. We soon found that we were only going back 
 a short distance to take a cross road to Murfreesborough, which 
 was now our declared destination. It was reported that Critten 
 den had taken Murfreesborough; and again that he had found 
 unexpected opposition, and that we were to reinforce him. 
 
 This being a cross road and riot a regular turnpike which are 
 excellent for a marching army, both men, wagons and artillery 
 our progress was slow, many portions very rocky, and others 
 equally muddy, and all very bad for an army. But the country 
 itself presented many interesting features to an attentive observer. 
 One view was especially noteworthy. We emerged from the 
 timber on the brow of a hill from which there was an uninter 
 rupted prospect of the country for many miles. Right beneath 
 us was a belt of open farm land extending, perhaps, one or two 
 
324 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 miles across, then an extensive cedar grove, while beyond it 
 another belt of open country, with timber still beyond that. 
 Through the first open land was gliding like some cobra di ca- 
 pello, or to adopt the Potomac name " anaconda," a portion 
 of our column, while the advance could be detected winding 
 through the first grove, by the gleaming of arms as the light 
 glanced upon them. But another use could be made of this hill 
 besides affording beautiful and enchanting prospects. About 
 three miles distant, and a little to the right, was another high 
 eminence, from which, with a good glass, an observer might 
 count every regiment and battery as it descended to the plain, 
 and thus form a judgment sufficiently accurate for practical pur 
 poses, of the strength of this portion of the army of the Cum 
 berland. 
 
 In pursuing our journey we had many tedious halts, caused 
 in part by the difficulty of dragging artillery over such rough 
 roads. At one spot on the banks of a creek, we halted for a 
 considerable time until other troops could form a junction with 
 us, it not being considered safe to make the flank movement of 
 to-day without having the columns within supporting distance of 
 each other. Indeed the place where we halted would have been 
 a hard place to be attacked in, and so evidently thought our 
 Generals, for they ordered all fires to be put out, that there might 
 be no sign by which an enemy at a distance could detect our 
 presence. 
 
 We passed through several immense cedar groves. The cedar, 
 when as large as in these groves, loses a great portion of its 
 beauty, not appearing bushy as when cultivated, but a huge, bare 
 pole. One peculiarity of these groves is that instead of soil 
 there is very little besides immense rocks, almost making one 
 wonder where the roots find nourishment, many of them being 
 
A CONFLICT IMPENDING. 325 
 
 imbedded in solid rock. In many places it was difficult to ride 
 even on horseback, the track very much resembling broken, 
 slippery, uneven steps, with winding passages between the rocks, 
 which were not a little suggestive of " Fatman s Misery," in the 
 Mammoth Cave, though, of course, considerably wider. But 
 the most unpleasant days have an end, and so have roads. Bye- 
 and-by we came upon the fine rolling country which is the 
 glory of Tennessee, through which her beautiful pikes run, arid 
 in which her vast plantations and stately residences are located. 
 We passed Davis Division already going into camp, while we 
 were ordered forward about a mile. On our way we began to 
 feel that the air was heavy with rumors and premonitions of the 
 coming conflict. 
 
 During the afternoon a portion of Pennsylvania Cavalry, out 
 skirmishing, had been drawn into a trap, and before they could 
 escape, about thirty were killed and a large number wounded. 
 This was enough to convince us all that war is not a thing of 
 parades and shows, but a stem and cruel reality. A number of 
 negroes by the roadside had built a fire of rails. Gen. McCook 
 rode along, and in no very complimentary style ordered them to 
 put it out. We marched down the Wilkinson pike and were 
 ordered into a cornfield, the regiment preserving a line of battle 
 behind a rail fence, but forbidden to build fires, or pitch tents, or 
 speak loudly, or do anything which could reveal our presence to 
 the enemy s pickets. The only indulgence granted was to gather 
 the cornstalks for bedding, that we might not lie in pure mud. 
 The whole brigade and a battery were together and the rest of 
 Sheridan s Division close by. The ambulances and hospital 
 wagon to which I was to look for whatever comfort I was to 
 have had been taken into a clean field of grass and trees, a 
 little back on the pike and on the opposite side. 
 
326 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 We had just begun to unpack and to congratulate ourselves 
 that we had so pleasant a spot where we could spread our blank 
 ets on clean ground and under the trees, when an order came for 
 the ambulances, &c., to be all removed half a mile back. So off 
 we started arid found that another muddy cornfield had been 
 selected, and that all the ambulances, &c., of the division were 
 to be brought together. I confess the prospect was gloomy ; no 
 fire, consequently no coffee. It was already seven o clock, cloudy 
 and threatening rain. But there was no help for it We ate a 
 supper of cold beans, pork and crackers, drinking water. Now 
 the bed. Had we desired to be imbedded, AVC could have had our 
 wisli without a moment s difficulty. After discussing the ques 
 tion, decided to make our bed under the ambulance. We plucked 
 cornstalks sufficient small stakes would have made a good sub 
 stitute on them we spread our blankets, and then with great 
 difficulty took off our clothes, which had to be done under the 
 ambulance, our heads knocking against hooks and axletrees, all 
 outside being soft mud of the clay family, and stretched our 
 selves for sleep. 
 
 Soon a new difficulty arose. No less than five horses were 
 tied to the ambulance, while at something less than two horses 
 lengths off was the hospital wagon, to which were attached six 
 mules. Not content with making their usual noises, which, 
 while insufferable to a citizen, are not supposed to be even heard 
 by a soldier, the horse tied to the wheel close by my head, per 
 sisted in taking his hind feet too near the mules, and a general 
 kicking and yelping, together with the violent jerking of the 
 ambulance, were the consequence. This was partly remedied by 
 one of our hospital mess, who had not yet "retired" if the term 
 is allowable in circumstances suggestive of anything but retire 
 ment. But straightway there came another unlocked for dis- 
 
A CORNSTALK BED. 327 
 
 turbance. The horses had by this time pretty well eaten up their 
 cornstalks all the forage we could obtain for them and in their 
 eagerness for more they began to pick and pull at the ends of 
 the stalks composing our bed. In addition, the same horse, 
 thinking it a good and appropriate act, laid down in the mud for 
 a good roll, by which he succeeded in fastening his hind legs in 
 the wagon wheel ; and finally, as if by one great annoyance to 
 make us forget a great many small ones, the threatened rain 
 began to fall, giving us the prospect of a thorough wetting. It 
 was now necessary to rise slowly, carefully, amid the hooks and 
 axletrees and spread my poncho over us, and feeling that we 
 had done all that imperfect human beings could do to make the 
 best of our situation, we strove hard to sleep, rocked by the 
 jerking ambulance and lulled by the pattering rain. After sun 
 dry efforts to make our bones fit between the cornstalks, and 
 with thoughts of home, the events of the past day, the strange 
 forebodings of the morrow all mingling confusedly in our minds, 
 "tired nature s sweet restorer, balmy sleep," dropped his mild 
 influence on our eyelids and bade us rest ; and but for an occa 
 sional pull by the horses at the cornstalks under us, or the 
 blankets over us, the remainder of the night we were undisturbed. 
 Tuesday, Dec. 3Qth. Rose about half-past six. It was quite 
 a feat to pull on one s boots under the ambulance before stepping 
 out into the mud. After a glance at the water, which was about 
 as thick though not as dark as coffee, concluded that I was too 
 clean to risk a wash. A fire being kindled, we had beef, coffee 
 and hard bread. Had expected early, orders to march, but they 
 did not come. The whistle of the locomotive at Murfrees- 
 borough had been heard at intervals all night, and there were 
 speculations as to whether it betokened reinforcements or evacu 
 ation. I had rather inclined to the latter, supposing that the 
 
328 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 usual policy of our enemy has been to draw us on as far as pos 
 sible from our base of supplies, and gain as much time to bring 
 their limited forces to the spot, thus making their smaller army 
 really equal to our larger one. "Well," said some, "there are 
 many things we shall know to-morrow night that we do not 
 know now" a remark which received a striking and sad veri 
 fication. 
 
 After breakfast, went down to the regiment and found the men 
 cheerful and courageous after their comfortless night. Alas, it 
 was to many their last night, and to others the first of many 
 nights of discomfort and sorrow. Here, too, they were all spec 
 ulating upon the probabilities of finding any enemy between us 
 and Murfreesborough. But we were not long left in suspense. 
 The booming of artillery in the front told that our troops were 
 beginning to take up their positions for the day. Orderlies 
 galloped to and fro over the pike, and soon Gen. Sheridan 
 appeared and his division began to move. 
 
 There were no braver men in the army than the three officers 
 who commanded the brigades in our division. Col. Roberts led 
 out his brigade first, and I noticed with what feeling he bade 
 adieu to Gen. Sheridan, as though conscious of the perilous work 
 that devolved upon him. Then came our brigade, led by the 
 esteemed Sill, the 36th being in advance, with the "old man" 
 at the head. Our regiment never looked larger to me than this 
 morning, as I sat on my horse at the gap in the fence where they 
 passed out on to the pike, while, as usual, the whole column 
 resounded with fun and laughter. 
 
 We had not gone far before skirmishers were thrown out to our 
 right, we marching on until we came to the edge of the timber, 
 when we turned to the right and took up- a position on the south 
 edge of it in front of a cornfield, the other regiments of the 
 
ADVANCE OF DAVIS* DIVISION. 329 
 
 brigade being arranged on each side, a battery of artillery being 
 at the left edge of the wood, and another a little to the right. 
 It was not long before the regiment was ordered forward into the 
 cornfield, arid the men laid down. The battery on the left began 
 to play, and was occasionally responded to from the woods where 
 the enemy were concealed. Dr. Pierce and I being behind the 
 regiment, were ordered by the Colonel to retire into the woods. 
 Skirmishers were sent out to feel the position of the enemy in 
 the woods in front of us, while we remained stationary for about 
 two hours. 
 
 While there, Davis Division advanced in line of battle across 
 the field, on the right, and entered the thick woods to the right 
 of where our skirmishers were. It was not long before our 
 division was ordered forward, marching down the open field 
 towards the woods, thus joining our right to Davis left, Johnson 
 having made a similar movement on the right of Davis ; the 
 whole line going not due south straight forward but diagonally 
 towards Murfreesborough, so as to form when the fighting was 
 over for the night the line of battle. 
 
 Dr. Pierce and I started to follow across the cornfield towards 
 the woods. Being a little to the left, we rode somewhat diagon 
 ally to come up to the regiment, when the battery on the right 
 opened fire, and of course was right across the track we were 
 taking. A ball cut the tops of the cornstalks so little in advance 
 of us that had we started two or three seconds sooner, or traveled 
 so much faster as to have been a few steps further forward, we 
 should probably both have been struck, for I was slightly in his 
 rear and to the left, and therefore what had struck one would 
 probably have taken both. We immediately concluded that it 
 was but foolhardiness for those on whom the care of wounded 
 devolved thus to expose themselves when they could render no 
 
 22 
 
330 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 kind of service. Just at this moment a man from the 22nd 
 Illinois coming up from the woods with his hand shot and need 
 ing immediate attention, we rode to a house on the left and took 
 possession of it for a hospital, it being nearest of any to the scene 
 of action. 
 
 This building, or rather series of buildings, is what we called 
 " Hospital Harding," and was our place of residence for over a 
 week, where we had the care of upwards of one hundred and fifty 
 wounded. The house was a third rate frame building, with the 
 log cook-house, &c., attached, and surrounded by negro cabins, 
 as is the custom here, while at a little distance was a barn, 
 cotton gin and all the appliances of a cotton plantation. The 
 owner was evidently a man of considerable wealth, owning about 
 fifty negroes, and having an extensive plantation. There were 
 evidences on the premises of considerable refinement, a well cul 
 tivated garden and good pianoforte being respectively the external 
 and internal representatives of it. Mr. Harding was at home, 
 and two or three negroes. At the time we took possession they 
 had sought safety in the cellar. But the rest of the family, 
 white and black, had been removed to the other side of Murfrees- 
 borough, the secesh commanders having informed him a few days 
 before that the battle would be fought on his land. He looked 
 with anvthirig but complacency upon the Federal army, nnd 
 indeed there was nothing peculiarly attractive in a body of men 
 taking forcible possession of a man s house, covering his floors, 
 carpets, beds and bedding with bleeding men, and appropriating 
 anything within reach that might be made serviceable. 
 
 But I saw him under both Northern and Southern rule and 
 thought it plain that he sympathized with the latter ; yet it was 
 equally plain that he had very little human kindness in his breast, 
 and that the claims of humanity were very lightly felt a remark 
 
CAKE OF THE WOUNDED, 331 
 
 applicable to very few of the Southerners with whom I came in 
 contact. He evidently cared very little for North or South in 
 comparison I will not say with his family or plantation but 
 with his household furniture, his chickens, and the most trifling 
 articles of personal property. A marked illustration of this I 
 will give in its proper place. 
 
 We had no sooner attended to the wounded man just men 
 tioned, and were preparing to go again on the field, than one and 
 another began to arrive, some riding, some walking, and some 
 carried upon stretchers, but all more or less dangerously wounded. 
 Dr. Young who, besides being the senior surgeon of the 36th, 
 was also brigade surgeon had by this time arrived, together with 
 the surgeons of the 88th Illinois and the 24th Wisconsin, and 
 there was work for all. To me was assigned the duty of taking 
 the names of the wounded, their regiment and the location and 
 character of their wounds, and as I went the rounds it was sad to 
 find that a large proportion, nearly three-fifths, were of my own 
 regiment, they having been placed in front. Henry came in, but 
 happily his wound was not dangerous. One young man. who is 
 a professor of religion, and whose name was among those associ 
 ated together for mutual watch- care and Christian effort, was 
 brought in dangerously wounded, and as I approached him he 
 exclaimed, " 0, Chaplain, I am so glad I have mv name on vour 
 list." While all this was going on, the fight outside became more 
 fierce as the forces came into closer contact ; a battery planted 
 near the house convulsed the ground at every explosion, and 
 threatening to dash in pieces every pane of glass. 
 
 But by-and-by the friendly night, as if sickened at the sight of 
 slaughter, separated the combatants, and all was still. The result 
 of this short conflict, so far as our portion of the field was con 
 cerned, was five killed and twenty-seven wounded, of which there 
 were belonging to the 36th three killed and thirteen wounded. 
 
332 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Among the wounded was Lieut. Davidson, aid to Gen. Sill, 
 who had been struck by a ball evidently aimed at Col. Greusel, 
 but which glancing by, severely wounded the Lieutenant. After 
 dark Gen. Sill came in to see him. The General was at once a 
 fearless and able soldier, and a kind and modest gentleman a 
 man whom foes might fear, and friends could not but love. It 
 was a great comfort to the wounded man to have his General take 
 such interest in him. Just before leaving, he stood for awhile 
 leaning on his sword, wrapt in deep thought, and I imagined a 
 shade of sadness on his fine face. The next morning, when he 
 was killed almost instantly at the opening of the battle, I won 
 dered whether some sad presentiment of his fate was not passing 
 through his mind as he stood the evening before, gazing silently 
 upon his wounded aid. 
 
 The question of the morning was now solved ; the enemy in 
 force was before us ; and as we spread our blankets on the floor 
 and composed ourselves to rest, it was with the full conviction 
 that to-morrow T would witness one of the fiercest and bloodiest 
 battles of the war. 
 
 Wednesday, Dec. 31s, 1862. Rose between four and five 
 o clock. There was no water to be had, nor anything to put it 
 in, so that another day I had to go unwashed. For breakfast had 
 fat pork and hoe-cake, made of corn meal and water. An order 
 had come during the night to have all the wounded removed to a 
 house two miles in the rear, as the ground on which the hospital 
 stood was expected to be hotly contested. With them I sent 
 Henry, in charge of my horse and blankets, thinking I* should be 
 so busy during the day that I could not attend to private prop 
 erty. It was very fortunate I did so, or horse and equipments 
 would have fallen into secesh hands. By the time this work was 
 accomplished, day had dawned. A few of us occupied the leisure 
 
THE HOSPITAL UNDER FIRE. 333 
 
 moments in examining the grounds, the line of battle at the edge 
 of the wood below us, and in hoisting a red flag on the roof, that 
 the house might be spared by both armies. Dr. Griffiths, Divis 
 ion Surgeon, called and told us that the heaviest fighting would 
 be on this ground, and that if the fire became too hot we had 
 better retire. 
 
 He had scarcely left us when a big gun sounded from the woods 
 opposite our division, giving notice that the fearful work of the 
 day was beginning. It was significant also that the first gun was 
 fired by the enemy, showing that the policy of the day before 
 waiting to be attacked was not to be continued to-day, but that 
 he had assumed the offensive, and was about to hurl upon one of 
 our wings all his available force. This first shot was quickly 
 followed by others, and the various regiments of our division 
 were soon on their feet, prepared for action. Shot and shell 
 began to fall very near our house, while a battery on the hill 
 behind us opened fire, thus placing us in imminent danger from 
 both sides. 
 
 We concluded the time had come to obey Dr. Griffith s order, 
 but loth to give up the house so conveniently situated for our 
 regiment, and not doubting for a moment that our troops would 
 speedily advance and drive the enemy before them, thus placing 
 our hospital out of range, we decided to retire for a short time to 
 the woods in the rear, from which we had advanced the day 
 before. There was no time for delay. Dr. Pierce mounted his 
 horse, while I started on foot, and made all haste across the corn 
 field, bearing constantly to the west, to keep out of range of the 
 battery, until we reached the edge of the woods, I thoroughly 
 exhausted with tramping through the mud and minus one spur. 
 Here we stayed a short time, until we were joined by some 01 
 the 36th who had just been wounded and needed immediate 
 
334 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 attention. It being madness to return to our old place, we took 
 them to another house Orison s further to the west, "where 
 were gathered several hundred wounded, chiefly of the previous 
 day, but increased every moment by fresh arrivals from the field. 
 Finding it impossible to obtain accommodations in the house, we 
 had to content ourselves with giving them places on the veranda, 
 and went vigorously at work, Dr. Pierce performing the necessary 
 operations, and I holding the instruments, bandages, &c. 
 
 It was while we were thus engaged that we began to suspect 
 our line was falling back. The firing, especially the musketry, 
 was unmistakably drawing nearer. An orderly rode up hurridly, 
 to have all the ambulances driven to the rear as fast as they 
 arrived. The surgeon in charge ordered a man to hoist the red 
 flag. One of our men whose wound had been dressed, and who 
 having the use of his hands, had just been sent by Dr. Pierce to 
 build a fire wounded men are always chilly returned, saying 
 he was wounded again, a shot having struck his arm. It was 
 evident, therefore, that not only was our line retiring, but that 
 already we were within range of the enemy s musketry. 
 
 Now what shall we do? was the question. Shall we make 
 our escape while we can, or remain and care for the wounded, 
 especially those of our own regiment, which we had already 
 learned from those who had come in, was fearfully cut up ? We 
 both felt that to flee would be dishonorable both to our profession 
 and to our humanity. " I shall stay," said the Doctor. " So 
 shall I," said the Chaplain. Immediately every man whose 
 wounds did not unfit him for traveling was ordered to escape to 
 the rear ; our retreating army made its appearance, and the fields 
 and woods around us were alive with men and horses, all hurry 
 ing away from the advancing enemy. But grasping the halter 
 of Dr. Pierce s horse we again commenced our work among the 
 
A TARGET FOE BOTH FRIEND AND FOE. 335 
 
 suffering. In a moment " whisk!" came a shell right through 
 the yard, quickly followed by another and another. In the con 
 fusion the old red flag had not been hoisted according to order, 
 arid here we were in the full range of a battery ! We hastily 
 retreated behind the house, taking with us both the wounded men 
 and the horse, and crouching down as low as possible we pursued 
 our work. Those moments were terrible, while shot and shell 
 rained thickly around us, and we felt that every breath might be 
 our last. 
 
 One man was shot on the platform close to us. But neither 
 of us regretted that we had stayed behind, and many a time 
 afterward, when we were surrounded by wounded and dying men 
 at Hospital Harding, we expressed our gladness and gratitude 
 that we had kept the path of duty, which in this case certainly 
 proved to be the "path of safety." 
 
 But on came the Confederate columns, cheering as they 
 advanced, and sweeping through the yard, fairly enclosed us in 
 their lines. Every man with arms laid them down, and we passed 
 into Dixie without an effort, and without for a moment ceasing 
 to dress wounds. We had scarcely time to breathe freely in our 
 new situation before another danger arose. 
 
 Our line had found a rallying point and planted a battery, and 
 " whisk !" came a shell through the yard from them. We were 
 destined to be a target for friends as well as foes. This was pecu 
 liarly unpleasant, for if we were to be shot at all, we preferred 
 that it should not be by our own army. So gathering all up 
 again, and still holding on to the horse, who had no relish for his 
 strange position, we hastened to the other side of the house, and 
 behind some log out-buildings, seated ourselves on some timbers 
 and resumed our work. But by-and-by, our batteries and our 
 
336 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 line receded, a second line of the Confederate army marched up 
 and we resigned ourselves to our fate. 
 
 In all my anticipations and forebodings of the day, no such 
 denouement as this had any part. I looked for a fierce and 
 bloody contest equal to any since the war began ; for the thun 
 dering of artillery, the roll of musketry, and worst of all, for 
 the masses of dead and crowd of wounded and dying; but the 
 thought that our line would be driven back, and I should find 
 myself in the Southern Confederacy, never for a moment crossed 
 my mind. I could scarcely credit my own senses when the stub 
 born fact stared me in the face. Why was all this ? We both 
 thought we could discern the cause, and subsequent inquiries and 
 developments confirmed our suspicions. The truth was, we were 
 surprised, and "Shiloh" was the word we exchanged when we 
 had time to reflect. The enemy had played his old game, and 
 successfully, too, of massing his force suddenly upon one wing 
 of our army, and partly by the weight of his columns, and partly 
 by the surprise of the attack, we had been driven back. I can 
 not say that the Generals had taken me into their confidence, but 
 as "actions speak -louder than words," I will tell you what from 
 their actions appeared to me to be the plans of the Generals on 
 both sides, and from facts learned after we were once more within 
 our own lines, I think I am not far from the truth. 
 
 Our line of battle on Tuesday night extended about three 
 miles, Johnson being on the extreme right, near the Franklin 
 pike. Next came Davis Division, then Sheridan s. These three 
 divisions constituted McCook s corps, or right wing. Next to 
 him was Thomas corps, and then Crittenden s on the left. On 
 the two pikes in the rear, and protected by our line of battle, 
 were our trains of ammunition and army stores. Rosencrans 
 headquarters were several miles back on the Nashville pike. 
 
THE CONFEDERATE PLAN WELLf EXECUTED. 331 
 
 I do not believe it was Gen. R s design to attack on Wednes 
 day morning with his whole line, for I listened anxiously to hear 
 Crittenden s cannonade, hoping that a movement on the left 
 might relieve us on the right. But I listened in vain, and I 
 think it was not designed that Crittemden should advance, until 
 it was found that our attack on the right was successful, when he 
 should march into the town and complete the rout of the enemy. 
 But they also had their plan, which was to hold back on Tuesday 
 until our forces were brought forward and something of their 
 strength could be ascertained, and then leaving a small force to 
 threaten and check our left, hurl their available vStrength on 
 McCook s corps, dr ve him back, take possession of the two pikes, 
 thus securing not only our trains of supplies and ammunition, 
 but effectually cutting us off from Nashville. This would com 
 pel us to retreat to some point on the Cumberland river, and by 
 harassing our rear and attacking us in detail, they could weary 
 out and demoralize our forces. In accordance with this plan, 
 their cavalry had attacked and burned an immense train on Tues 
 day, at Lavergne, on the Nashville road, and at the same time 
 the attack was made on our right, a heavy force of cavalry was 
 sent around to our rear, and while McCook was falling back our 
 whole train of ammunition and supplies was falling into the 
 enemy s hands. 1 am glad to say, however, they did not keep 
 it above twenty or thirty minutes. 
 
 It is vsimple justice to a brave foe to admit that their plan was 
 admirably conceived and well executed, and for a time seemed 
 certain of success. But it must also be said that there were cir 
 cumstances in our army which favored their plan, and helped 
 materially to carry it out. Chief among them was the mode in 
 which they fought the previous day. The mass of their army 
 was concealed behind the woods, and it was only by the continual 
 
338 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 advance of our skirmishers and lines that we could find them at 
 all. Our Generals, or at least some of them, never dreamed but 
 what the same mode of fighting would be adopted on Wednesday, 
 and that nothing would be done until they made the attack. 
 When, therefore, the enemy who had been slightly massing his 
 troops all night, started as soon as it was light, and charged 
 heavily along our whole line, driving in our pickets and stopping 
 at nothing, he found our troops on the extreme right, the most 
 important part of all, entirely unprepared. They were not in 
 line of battle, their arms were stacked, not a few were in their 
 shelter tents, others cooking and fetching water, while the horses 
 of at least one battery were off watering, and the battery was 
 captured without firing a single shot. Of course they retreated 
 in confusion, by which Davis was not only attacked in front but 
 also on his right flank, and nothing but retreat could save him 
 from destruction. This brought Sheridan into the same position, 
 and desperately did his division seek to turn the tide. They 
 fought until it was useless to stand longer, when they were 
 ordered back Rosecrans himself saying that Sheridan had saved 
 his army, but at what a fearful cost ! Let the silent voices of 
 three brigade commanders, and two hundred killed and wounded 
 of my beloved regiment alone, reveal. 
 
 But you will be anxious to know more particularly the part 
 the 36th performed in this deadly struggle. When we left the 
 regiment the afternoon before to attend to the wounded, they 
 continued their march to the woods, bearing towards Murfrees- 
 borough, in the direction of the line of battle. They were ordered 
 to lie down, while a battery placed below the hospital fired over 
 them into the woods, where was the far-famed Washington bat 
 tery, of New Orleans. After a while the regiment was ordered 
 up and to fix bayonets for a charge on the battery, seeing which 
 
VIGILANCE OF GEN. SILL. 339 
 
 the enemy hastened to draw it off. The left of the regiment 
 was then brought up even with the woods, making the whole line 
 parallel with and facing into the woods. It was while this move 
 ment was being made, which brought one end of the regiment 
 towards the enemy, that a large number of the wounds of our 
 men were received. Quickly, however, the position was changed, 
 and when the firing ceased for the night, they occupied the ground 
 half in the woods and half out. Our skirmishers were thrown 
 out to the edge of the cornfield, while the skirmishers of the 
 enemy occupied the woods on the other side, the cornfield being 
 the disputed ground. 
 
 Whatever neglect may be attributed to other officers, none can 
 attach to ours, whether brigade or regimental. The men were 
 allowed no tents, nor comforts, but for the second night had to 
 lie upon the ground, with nothing to eat but hard bread and raw 
 pork. They continued in line of battle all night, and though 
 these regulations were hard to bear, if all our army had been 
 dealt with in this manner, the day s disaster might have been 
 prevented. Gen. Sill never for a moment relaxed his attention 
 to his brigade. He visited our advanced skirmishers and watched 
 during the night as the enemy massed his troops opposite. He 
 foresaw the events of the coming day, and therefore it was that 
 he ordered the wounded to be carried to the rear before daylight. 
 When the first gun was fired from the woods and the desperate 
 charge was made, there was no surprise, every man was in his 
 place. Col. Greusel sent his horse to the rear, sharing with his 
 men the dangers of the position; and as the enemy advanced, 
 passing through our line of skirmishers, the 36th, sheltered by a 
 low pile of rails in their front, poured such volleys into their 
 ranks that they wavered and began to fall back. Immediately 
 an order was given to charge bayonets. The men started up and 
 
340 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 charged to the edge of the woods, but fresh columns of the enemy 
 were advancing, the regiment on our right, too. had given way, 
 so that the 36th fell back to its original position, and again poured 
 its volleys into the advancing foe. 
 
 It was now that Gen. Sill fell mortally wounded under the left 
 eye, while directing the movements of the battery, and the enemy 
 pouring in upon the right as well as front of the regiment, thus 
 obtaining a raking fire upon it, company after company was com 
 pelled to fall back to escape utter destruction.. A rally was made 
 at Schaffer s Brigade, which was in the rear, but the ammunition 
 of the men was expended, and by order of Gen. McCook they 
 fell back to replenish. 
 
 The record of this deadly struggle can be read not only in the 
 fearful list of our killed and wounded, but in the trees among 
 which it took place. No part of the whole field showed more 
 plainly the awful storm that raged around. Trees were there 
 with numerous bullets imbedded in each side, and one more con 
 spicuous than the rest, two and a-half feet through, was com 
 pletely pierced by a cannon ball, and others were torn to splinters 
 by shells. As we gazed upon these silent evidences we wondered 
 how any man escaped with life. 
 
 As it was, we had forty-five killed and one hundred and fifty- 
 four wounded, not a few of whom have since died, and others 
 cannot recover. 
 
 Well might the regiment use in sad sincerity the words spoken 
 in jest as we waded through the mud at Triune, " 0, my coun 
 try, how much do I suffer for thee!" 
 
 I will pause here in my personal narrative to insert the descrip 
 tion given by Major Miller, to his friends at Aurora, on his release 
 from captivity in Libby Prison. He says : 
 
 From Nashville we advanced towards Murfreesborough slowly, 
 as the mud was knee deep, and skirmishing all the time. The 
 
UNDER A HEAVY ARTILLERY FIRE. 341 
 
 day before the battle of Murfreesborough, the 30th, we encoun 
 tered the enemy in strong force their infantry continually oppos 
 ing our advance ; skirmishing most of the time, and skirmishing 
 is the prettiest way of fighting in the world. We advanced till 
 we had to rest for the day. Soon the rebels opened upon us 
 with five or six pieces of artillery, and if I was ever under a 
 heavy artillery fire, it was that afternoon. I have always enter 
 tained considerable regard for the ability of the being called 
 Lucifer to make hideous noises, but I don t think he could get 
 up anything to compare with the horrible screeching, hissing and 
 moaning of grape, shell and shrapnel from artillery. But the 
 danger to which you are exposed is not to be compared with that 
 of musketry. The minnie ball may go by without being noticed, 
 but a shell that weighs from six to thirty pounds makes a noise 
 that sends a thrill of horror to your very soul. That night was 
 cold and dreary, and we could not stir without a ball whizzing by. 
 They would not come over to talk, but would send over little 
 messengers. It Avas absolutely necessary for every man to keep 
 still. Dared not go to the fire to warm ; could not get up and 
 dance around unless you went to the rear, and if the Colonel 
 found jou there, you would go back without ceremony. It was 
 generally understood that we were to attack, until informed 
 that the enemy were to attack us. Under these circumstances 
 we were ordered to fall back slowly, and the left wing was to fall 
 upon Murfreesborough. At daybreak we had just finished our 
 breakfast when a continued fire of musketry was heard. Very 
 soon our skirmishers were falling back, and when you get the 
 Elgin boys with their Enfield rifles and those fellows down here 
 with their Springfield rifles, you may bet your life they come into 
 line of battle very suddenly, and some work is soon accomplished. 
 They were not slow of action upon this occasion. On came the 
 rebels, the 24th Wisconsin waiting to receive them. The divis 
 ions to the right were driven back. We knew nothing of the 
 fate of those to the right or left. It made no difference to us ; 
 our instructions were to hold that point. The enemy s attack 
 was the most terrific I have ever witnessed. I have heard officers 
 who were in the battles of Shiloh, Antietam, South Mountain 
 
342 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and Richmond, assert that they never saw such an impetuous 
 attack an attack which it was so utterly impossible to resist. 
 When troops are all formed, one brigade in the rear of another, 
 moving in a perfect column, the opposing line must give way 
 somewhere. The enemy s force struck our line, which was single 
 and not backed up by supports, as they could have been, some 
 where near the center of Davis Division. 
 
 Some held their positions long enough to fire eight or ten 
 rounds at the enemy. With such furious onslaught they moved 
 on, taking full batteries before the horses were harnessed. The 
 enemy advanced in splendid style, their first lines coming up 
 closely upon each other, until within range of our boys, who 
 gave them such a warm reception that not over half of them went 
 back again. Some went back, and in a great hurry, too. One 
 regiment on our right, composed of just as good materials as any 
 regiment in the service, as their works on that day proved, the 
 officers did not command with the most implicit confidence. That 
 regiment broke, and in attempting to rally it. Gen. Sill was 
 killed. Another regiment took its place, and when the order was 
 given to charge upon the enemy, every man was up for the fray, 
 and they administered to the first line terrible punishment. We 
 had hardly left our position for the charge when the word came, 
 "Gen. Sill is killed!" It shocked me terribly, for if I ever 
 loved any man, that man was Gen. Sill. He was a man to love. 
 He loved every patriot, and every patriot loved him. 
 
 The second line of the enemy was upon us. We first charged, 
 then fell back to wait their attack. They were upon us before 
 we were fairly formed. The place upon our right had been refilled 
 by new regiments. They could not hold their position long, and 
 when it was absolutely impossible to do so longer, they fell back. 
 I cursed until I was hoarse the men who left the field in such dis 
 grace. 
 
 You don t know how intensely you can love or hate a man until 
 you have seen him on the battle-field. The second line of the 
 enemy had been whipped and every regiment was about making 
 another charge. The enemy prepared to advance the second 
 
MAJOR MILLER S DESCRIPTION OF THE BATTLE. 343 
 
 line coming up and waiting for their approach, when a tremen 
 dous roar came and nothing could be heard but the terrible crash 
 of musketry. The surrounding scenes if T could describe, I 
 would not attempt to. 
 
 When the third line of the enemy came up. further resistance 
 ceased to be a virtue it was a useless waste of life. The galling 
 fire of the right was more destructive than any other, and not 
 having seen a superior officer for some time, I gave the order to 
 retreat, and never felt so proud as when I saw the little band run 
 as fast as their legs could carry them. They were only going a 
 little further, to welcome them on for a more deadly conflict. 
 Just there I bade the regiment "good bye." That was the day 
 before New Years. I never felt so perfectly satisfied that we 
 could whip them three to one, if they would come straight in 
 front. 
 
 To me, the light of that day was darkness and despair. The 
 showers of tears that poured over me as the corporals asked if they 
 should not carry me to the hospital, was a strong contrast to what 
 I heard two minutes afterward ; " Oh, you d d Yankee, we ve 
 got you now !" 
 
 An eye-witness describes the progress and final checking of- the 
 enemy on the Nashville Pike thus : 
 
 To Gen. Sheridan was left the task of repelling the hitherto 
 successful onset of the foe. Never did man labor more faithfully 
 than he to perform his task, and never was a leader seconded by 
 more gallant soldiers. His Division formed a kind of pivot upon 
 which the broken right wing turned in its flight, and its perilous 
 condition can easily be imagined, when the flight of Davis 
 Division left it without any protection from the triumphant 
 enemy, who now swarmed upon its front and right flank. 
 But it fought until a fourth of its number lay bleeding and dying 
 upon the field, and both remaining commanders. Col. Roberts and 
 Col. Schaffer, had met with the same fate as Gen. Sill. Then it 
 gave way, and as in almost every instance of the kind, retreat 
 was changed into a rout, only less complete than that of the troops 
 of Johnson and Davis. 
 
344 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 All these divisions were now hurled back together into the 
 immense series of cedar thickets which skirt the turnpike and 
 extend far over the right. Brigade after brigade, battery after 
 battery, from Palmer s, Negley s and Rousseau s Divisions, were 
 sent into the midst of the thickets to check the progress of the 
 foe and rally the fugitives ; but all in turn were either crushed 
 outright by the flying crowds, broken by the impetuosity of the 
 foe, and put to confused flight or compelled to retire and extricate 
 themselves in the best manner that seemed to offer. 
 
 The history of the combat in those dark, cedar thickets will 
 never be known. No man could see even the whole of his own 
 regiment, and no one will ever be able to tell who they were that 
 fought the bravest arid they who proved recreant to their trust. 
 I know, too, that there was shown by many officers arid regi 
 ments as lofty a heroism as that which distinguished and immor 
 talized the followers of Godfrey or the Cid. 
 
 But in spite of heroism and devotion, in spite of desperate 
 struggles which marked every fresh advance of the foe, in spite 
 of an awful sacrifice of life on the part of the officers and soldiers 
 of 4he Union army, the Rebels still steadily pushed onward and 
 came nearer to the turnpike. Nearly two and a-half miles the 
 right wing of the army had been driven, and a faintness of heart 
 came over me as the destruction of our whole army seemed to 
 stare us in the face. But the word went forth from Rosecrans, 
 the flower of the left wing and centre were hurried over toward 
 the right, and massed, rank behind rank, in an array of impos 
 ing grandeur, along the turnpike, facing to the woods through 
 which the Rebels were advancing. 
 
 The scene at this time was grand and awful as anything that I 
 ever expect to witness until the Day of Judgment. I stood in 
 the midst and upon the highest point of the somewhat elevated 
 space between the turnpike and the railroad, which formed the 
 key to our entire position. Let the Rebels once obtain posses 
 sion of it, and of the immense train of wagons parked along the 
 turnpike, and the Union army was irretrievably ruined. Even 
 
THE STORM OF BATTLE. 345 
 
 its lines of retreat would be cut off, and nothing would save it 
 from utter rout, slaughter and capture. 
 
 And yet each minute it became more and more plainly evident 
 that all the reinforcements which had been hurried into the woods 
 to sustain and rally the broken right wing and check the progress 
 of the enemy in that direction, had proved inadequate to the 
 task, and had in turn been overthrown by the great mass which 
 was struggling in inextricable disorder through the woods. Such 
 sounds as proceeded from that gloomy forest of pines and cedars 
 were enough to appal with terror the stoutest hearts. The roar 
 of cannon, the crashing of shot through the trees, the whizzing 
 and bursting of shell, the uninterrupted rattle of thirty thou 
 sand muskets, all mingled in one prolonged and tremendous 
 volume of sound, as though all the thunders of heaven had been 
 rolled together, and each individual burst of celestial artillery 
 had been rendered perpetual. Above it could be heard the wild 
 cheer of the traitorous hosts, as body after body of our troops 
 gave way and were pushed back toward the turnpike. 
 
 Nearer and nearer came the storm; louder and louder the 
 tumult of battle. The immense train of wagons parked along 
 the road suddenly seemed instinct with life, and every species of 
 army vehicle, preceded by frightened mules and horses, rolled 
 and rattled away pell mell in an opposite direction from that in 
 which the victorious foe was pressing onward. The shouts and 
 cries of the terrified teamsters, urging their animals to the top of 
 their speed, were now mingled with the billows of sound which 
 swayed and surged over the field. 
 
 Everything now depended upon the regiments and batteries 
 which the genius of Rosecrans had massed along the turnpike, to 
 receive the enemy when he should emerge from the woods in 
 pursuit of our broken and flying batallion. Suddenly the rout 
 became visible, and ten thousand fugitives., representing every pos 
 sible phase of wild and uncontrollable disorder, burst from the 
 cedar thickets and rushed into the open space between them and 
 the turnpike. Amongst them all perhaps no half dozen mem 
 bers of the same regiment could have been found together. 
 
 23 
 
346 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Thick and fast the bullets of the enemy fell among them, and 
 scores were shot down ; but still the number increased by reason 
 of the fresh crowds which burst every moment from the thickets. 
 It was with the greatest difficulty that some of the regiments, 
 which had been massed together as a sort of forlorn hope, to 
 withstand and if possible drive back the victorious cohorts of 
 treason, could prevent their ranks from being crushed or broken 
 by the mass of fugitives. 
 
 From my position, upon the elevated ground between the rail 
 road and the turnpike, I could view the whole scene, and with an 
 intensity of interest and tumultuous emotions which I have no 
 language to express, I watched for the result when the desperate 
 soldiers of the rebellion should enter the open space. A tempest 
 of iron was whistling about my head ; but for the first time since 
 I began to participate in the transactions of this fearful war, they 
 whistled and burst unheeded. I make no pretentions to extra 
 ordinary physical courage. He who says that amid the horrors 
 of a battle he experiences no feeling of awe, and sometimes shrink 
 ing awe, is a falsifier, an idiot, or a madman. But at this time 
 I could not have retired even had I been so inclined. My feet 
 were rooted to the spot; my gaze was fascinated and fixed upon 
 the quarter where I expected the enemy to appear, and had an 
 earthquake rent the ground before me I could not have moved 
 from the spot, until I knew from the testimony of my own eye 
 sight whether or no the troops, upon whom rested the last hope 
 of the Union army, were to be, like the rest, beaten and over 
 thrown. It was not in consequence of superior physical courage 
 that I remained there, but of the mental impossibility of doing 
 otherwise. 
 
 With cool courage, Gen. Crittenden awaited the coming storm, 
 and conspicuous among all was the well built form of the com 
 manding General ; his countenance unmoved by the tumult around 
 him, but expressing a high and patriotic hope, -which acted like 
 an inspiration upon every one that beheld him. As he cast 
 his eye over the grand array which he had mustered to repel 
 the foe, he already felt himself master of the situation. 
 
BATTLE STILL RAGING. 347 
 
 At last the long lines of the enemy emerged from the woods, 
 rank behind rank, and with a demoniac yell, intended to strike 
 into the souls of the " Yankees " who stood before them, charged 
 with fearful energy almost to the very muzzles of the cannon 
 whose dark mouths yawned upon them. 
 
 A dazzling sheet of flame burst from the ranks of the Union 
 forces. An awful roar shook the earth ; a crash rent the atmos 
 phere. The foremost lines of the rebel host were literally swept 
 from the field, and seemed to melt away like snowflakes before a 
 flame. Then both armies were enveloped in a vast cloud of 
 smoke, which hid everything from the eye. 
 
 In the still visible ground between the pike and the railroad, 
 the tumult redoubled. Not knowing what would be the result 
 of the strife which was raging under the great canopy of smoke 
 that concealed the combatants, the flight of those in charge of 
 wagons and ambulances became still more rapid and disordered. 
 Thousands of fugitives from the broken right wing mingled with 
 the teams, and frequently a mass of men, horses and wagons 
 would be crushed and ground together. Every conceivable form 
 of deadly missile whizzed and whirled and burst among the crowd, 
 and terror and dismay ruled uncontrolled. The whole disordered 
 mass rushed down as fast as possible toward the river, into which 
 it plunged, pushing arid struggling to the other side. 
 
 The combat under that great cloud of smoke was some 
 what similar to that in the woods. No one knows exactly what 
 occurred. There was a shout, a charge, a rush of fire, a recoil, 
 and then all for a time disappeared. For ten minutes the thun 
 der of battle burst forth from the cloud. When our batallion 
 advanced they found no Rebels between the woods and the turn 
 pike, except the dead, dying and disabled. There were hundreds 
 of these, and their blood soaked and reddened the ground. 
 Since the annihilation of the " Old Guard " in their charge at 
 Waterloo, there has probably not been an instance of so great a 
 slaughter in so short a time, as during this repulse of the Rebel 
 left at Murfreesboro, and it will hereafter be celebrated in history, 
 as much as is the fiery combat which crushed forever the power 
 and prospects of Napoleon. 
 
348 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 I will now return to relate our adventures after being enclosed 
 
 in the enemy s lines. 
 
 i 
 
 A Provost-Guard was immediately placed around all the build 
 ings. In a few minutes Gens. Hardee and Cheatham, with their 
 staffs, rode up. Gen. Hardee has a very dignified and intellect 
 ual countenance, and, what rather surprised me in a Southern 
 chief, was remarkably placid. No one can see him without feel 
 ing that he is a man of unusual ability. Gen. Cheatham was 
 more demonstrative, and answered more nearly to the character 
 attributed to Southerners. It was the judgment of more than 
 one that day that he was intoxicated. While they were near 
 the house, the body of Gen . Rains one of their commanders at 
 Pea Ridge was brought in on a stretcher. Those who stood 
 by said that Cheatham wept freely when he saw that his friend 
 had fallen. One of Hardee s staff soon called out all the Fed 
 eral soldiers who could walk, and ordering them to take off their 
 hats, administered to them the oath not to take up arms until 
 regularly exchanged. At first I was a little surprised at the 
 haste with which this was done ; but when I saw the cautious 
 ness their generals manifested in advancing their troops, I con 
 cluded they were not by any means sure of their position and 
 thought it best to secure as many as possible of our men, lest 
 our line should return. All who could walk to Murfreesboro, 
 except a few detached as nurses, were then marched off under 
 guard, and as they shouted their u good byes " to their comrades, 
 I wondered what strange and perhaps sad scenes they would pass 
 through before they would meet again. Of course we knew that 
 we could not be paroled or treated as prisoners of war. so we con 
 tinued without intermission the care of the wounded, paying no 
 attention to the call for all Federals to fall in. Just before the 
 rest were marched off, the officer called for Dr. Pierce, who 
 
THE TIDE OF BATTLE TURNS. 349 
 
 informed him that he and I had remained to care for the wounded. 
 "Very well," he replied, "you and the Chaplain will do what 
 you can for the interests of humanity." So to work we went 
 again now and then attending to a wounded secesh as well as 
 our own men. 
 
 We listened anxiously, to judge if possible the fate of our 
 army, but farther and farther went our columns, and the can 
 nonade grew fainter and fainter. At last there was evidently a 
 stand our men obstinately refusing to be driven any further 
 and then commenced such a roll of musketry as I never heard 
 before and hope never to hear again. It made us both pause in 
 our work, and raise up, and wait, looking in the direction from 
 which it came, and my heart sank foi a moment, as I thought of 
 the awful slaughter that must ensue ; for in a battle, it is such 
 musketry as that which cuts down men. Happily such fighting 
 never lasts long one side or the other must give back. This 
 time it was the enemy. Our columns were evidently advancing 
 the firing came nearer the last line, with its battery, that 
 had gone past us, came back, and formed very near us, as though 
 to cover the retreat of the advance line, and finally a friendly 
 cannon ball from one of our guns came whistling over our heads, 
 and by our looks, and remarks uttered in a low voice, we began 
 to congratulate ourselves that the day was not as disastrous as 
 we had supposed, but that perhaps we might yet sleep at night 
 within our own lines. But no more shots came over us ; our 
 columns had evidently ceased their advance, and we worked on 
 to alleviate the mass of suffering around us. But as hour after 
 hour passed by in this labor, it seemed as though nothing had 
 been done, so constantly were we met with the cry, accompanied 
 by such a piercing look as only a wounded man can give, " 
 Doctor, won t you do something for me?" Go where we would, 
 
350 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 on every hand, in that spacious house, in the numerous tents and 
 outhouses, and laid all over the yard, were the suffering, the 
 mutilated, the dying and the dead. 
 
 Exhausted, we sat down to rest a few moments. In my pocket 
 I found some hard bread, which was duly divided. Dr. P. 
 objected against my robbing myself, but I insisted that in our 
 captivity we should share alike. It then became a matter of 
 interest to find how much money could be raised between us, for 
 who could tell how long our captivity would last ? But again 
 the suffering soldiers called for help. After this, Major Pickett, 
 Inspector General on Hardee s staff went round, taking the names 
 of the wounded soldiers for parole. Dr. Pierce inquired of him 
 as to the prospect of our being able to return to our former hos 
 pital, where we supposed we should find the wounded of our own 
 regiment, for whom we felt the greatest responsibility and inter 
 est. He replied that at any time we desired to go he would fur 
 nish us with a pass. We continued at work about an hour 
 longer, still uncertain whether all this ground might not be 
 fought over again. But at last, being convinced that for that day, 
 at least, all likelihood of such a thing was past, Dr. Pierce pro 
 cured the requisite pass, and he on his horse and I on foot, 
 retraced the ground we crossed in the morning. 
 
 The field was strewn with dead horses, saddles, harness, parts 
 of artillery carriages, and not a few of our soldiers, who had 
 died where they fell. In a few moments we arrived at Hospital 
 Harding, and if there had been any lingering doubt as to our 
 duty, it would have been instantly dispelled by the hearty wel 
 comes which made the old house ring. To every wounded man 
 the well-known face and voice of Dr. Pierce, in whose skill every 
 one that knew him had confidence, was peculiarly cheering. It 
 was now as we passed from room to room, that we began to real- 
 
SCENES IN HOSPITAL. 351 
 
 ize the fearful slaughter which the obstinate struggle of the 36th 
 against overpowering numbers had cost. It was sad, too, to con 
 clude that many of these must die. The slightly wounded had 
 either escaped before the enemy came up, or had been marched 
 to Murfreesboro ; those that remained being nearly all severely, 
 and many of them mortally wounded. Dr. Pierce declared their 
 wounds the worst, as a class, that he had ever seen. In a cor 
 ner of one room was a ghastly sight. Three men lay dead and 
 another was dying. They had been brought in from the field 
 and laid there and their wounds given some attention, when a 
 cannon ball from one of our guns struck the house, piercing the 
 siding and washboard just above the floor, crossing the corner of 
 the room, and glancing on the washboard of the other side, broke 
 off two legs of the pianoforte. In the corner, between the two 
 washboards, lay the four men, who all lost their lives by that one 
 shot. The old man of the house, on having the sight pointed 
 out to him, remarked, " It is a great pity to have the piano 
 broken !" 
 
 But there was no time to be wasted, for with the utmost 
 despatch, many hours must elapse before all of them could receive 
 even slight attention. I devoted myself to handing water to the 
 thirsty, and in preparing the men to have their wounds dressed ; 
 as it commonly takes much more time to take off clothing, &c., 
 than to dress the wound itself. At the time we were enclosed 
 by the enemy at the upper hospital, there stood a box nearly 
 filled with sanitary goods, chiefly such as were necessary for the 
 wounded ; this box, of course, became Confederate property, 
 there being great lack of such stores in Secessia, We thought 
 there would now be a general lack for our wounded, as we were 
 effectually cut off from all our supplies. 
 
 Dr. P. seized the opportunity to step up to the box and take 
 from it a small bundle of lint and a large piece of cotton cloth, 
 
352 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 which, whilst assisting him, I employed myself in tearing into 
 bandages, and having made them into rolls, filled my pockets 
 with them. They were now found of great value. One of the 
 surgeons of the 21st Michigan was present with his medicine 
 case. It was necessary, also, to send out parties to bring in the 
 wounded, who in large numbers still lay where they fell. Another 
 party, at the head of which was Chaplain Thomas, of the 88th 
 Illinois, was engaged in preparing soup from such scraps of meat 
 as could be found in the house and in the haversacks of the men. 
 And thus the work went on. 
 
 As the afternoon wore away, straggling officers and men from 
 the Confederate army began to gather in the yard, partly to see 
 us and our sad charge, to talk about the battle, give vent to 
 their feelings generally, and to see what could be picked up in 
 the way of loose property; for U. S. was known to clothe and 
 "fix up " his army pretty well, and C. S. found it profitable to 
 make various requisitions upon him. At this time an officer 
 drew a valuable horse. " Prince " was a noble animal, bought 
 by Dr. Pierce in Kentucky. For a long time after the enemy 
 came up he was held by the halter for fear some one would take 
 him off. On bringing him down to our hospital, he was hitched 
 to one of the outbuildings. A Colonel came round inquiring 
 where he could find a horse, as he had two shot under him dur 
 ing the day. His attention was soon directed to "Prince," but 
 no one could give any information about him except ourselves. 
 Dr. P. removed the saddle, carried the blankets into the house, 
 and tried to make some arrangements with the owner to have 
 him stabled. In a little while the Colonel returned the old 
 man had told him who owned the horse insisted on receiving 
 the paddle, also, and then rode him off. Subsequently Dr. P. 
 had his blankets and overcoat taken ; nothing seemed safe from 
 
CAKING FOR THE WOUNDED. 353 
 
 their thieving hands. With me it was "blessed be nothing." 
 I had only my overcoat that could be stolen, and that I kept on 
 all the time I was not asleep. 
 
 About sundown, wearied and hungered, we looked for some 
 thing to eat. The cooks had found a small quantity of corn 
 meal and fat pork. So there was pork and mush for supper. We 
 had about twenty wounded soldiers as nurses and helps, and it 
 was evident that a more thorough organization was necessary in 
 order to an equal division of labor, and that nothing might be 
 neglected. T therefore suggested that Dr. Pierce, who was the 
 ranking surgeon, should be placed in charge, and that we all 
 should consider ourselves under his command. This was at once 
 acceded to, and Dr. Pierce immediately called together all the 
 nurses, &c. ; stated to them their duties, divided them into reliefs, 
 and placed a non-commissioned officer to see that every man per 
 formed his assigned duty. For the first twenty-four hours they 
 worked almost incessantly, waiting on the wounded and also 
 bringing them in from the field stragglers from the Confeder 
 ate army continually coming in to tell us where our men were 
 lying. At last, when we could do no more, and every building 
 was full, fires were built in the woods, and the remaining wounded 
 were carried and placed near them for the night. 
 
 In the evening, while busily engaged with the wounded, we 
 were visited by some officers connected with a battery stationed 
 in the cornfield above. After a little conversation about the con 
 dition of our wounded men, they commenced a discussion upon 
 the points of difference between the two sections. This they 
 were all anxious to do on every possible occasion that offered. I 
 do not know but the same was true of our officers with 
 the prisoners that fell into their hands. I am very much of the 
 opinion of "Autocrat," in the Atlantic Monthly. " It is fair 
 
354 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 "to take a man prisoner. It is fair to make speeches to a man. 
 " But to take a man prisoner and then make speeches to him 
 "is NOT fair." 
 
 On this occasion they commenced by assuming that the whole 
 purpose of the war was the destruction of slavery, and that it 
 originated in the unwillingness of the North to allow them their 
 rights under the Constitution. I explained to them my own 
 position ; that I regarded slavery as a local institution, to be 
 regulated by the people of each State for themselves, and that I 
 never had any disposition, as I believed I had no right, to 
 interfere with slavery in the States where it was established, and 
 that the masses of the Northern people regarded the subject, 
 before the breaking out of the war, in precisely the same light, 
 although interested newspapers and politicians had succeeded in 
 making the Southern people believe otherwise. That Mr. Doug 
 las whom none could accuse of prejudice against the South 
 declared in his last speech that the rights of the South were 
 never so safe as they were at the time of the rebellion, and that 
 this was corroborated by the fact that according to the census of 
 1860, fewer fugitive slaves had escaped from those States between 
 the years 1850 and 1&60, than during the previous ten years. 
 
 These statements they did not deny, but replied that we had 
 refused them their just rights in the common Territories. To 
 this I answered that whether slavery should or should not be 
 admitted into Territories belonging to the whole nation, was not 
 decided by the constitution, but like thousands of other ques 
 tions arising under it, must be decided by the votes of the peo 
 ple ; that when the voice of the people has been made known in 
 proper form, their decision was binding on the whole until it was 
 changed by the same authority ; otherwise there was no free gov 
 ernment. That a majority at the election in 1860 decided that 
 
NEW YEAR S EVE. 355 
 
 slavery should not be extended into the Territories ; that if the 
 position of the South was correct, they ought to have striven to 
 enlighten the nation and influence public sentiment, so that at 
 some future election the verdict might have been reversed. But 
 when instead of this they sought to break up the Government 
 itself, the question was changed. It was not so much whether 
 slavery shall or shall not be tolerated in the Territories, as 
 whether the voice of a majority, constitutionally expressed, shall 
 be binding upon the minority that is, whether we shall have a 
 free government at all, for it can only exist on the principle that 
 the will of the majority, constitutionally expressed, must prevail. 
 
 To this argument they not only made no reply, but attempted 
 none, going of into another vein that the South thought it 
 more to her interest, arid could acquire greater wealth to separate 
 than to continue in the Union. 
 
 Just at this point the calls of some wounded men required my 
 attention, and when I returned, our visitors thought it necessary 
 to return to their quarters, and bade us good evening. When 
 we had made all necessary arrangements for the night, detailing 
 nurses for each room, &c., the Chaplain of the 88th and I spread 
 some borrowed blankets on the floor and tried to sleep. But for 
 a long time sleep fled my eyes ; the past day seemed more like a 
 month, when measured by events and especially by the contrast 
 between my feelings and anticipations in the morning, and our 
 actual condition at night. This was New Year s Eve, such an one 
 as I had never before seen. Our army, from which so much had 
 been confidently expected, had not only been checked, but if the 
 report of the enemy s officers could be relied on, was in immi 
 nent danger of total destruction, being entirely cut off from 
 Nashville, and its immense train of stores captured. Coming 
 
356 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 as this did closely upon the heels of the Fredericksburgh dis- 
 . aster, from which the people had not yet recovered, what des 
 pondency might be expected to fill every loyal heart, and what 
 exultation the hearts of traitors ! Would it be surprising if 
 foreign nations, after waiting to give us time to bring our 
 augmented army into the field, should now conclude that the 
 work we had attempted was too great, and that the South 
 had fairly earned her recognition ? And then it was the eve of 
 the day appointed for the President s Proclamation ; would he 
 issue it ? And if he did, would it not, under existing circum 
 stances, injure the cause it was designed to help ? A mighty 
 weapon when proclaimed by a victorious army, would it exhibit 
 anything but impotent rage when heralded by disaster and 
 defeat ? These were the questions that would rush through my 
 mind, pressed home by the events of the day, and made increas 
 ingly emphatic by the groans of the wounded, which never 
 ceased for a moment through all that sad and restless night. 
 
 But knowing how much depended upon our husbanding our 
 strength, I strove hard to banish these intruding thoughts, an 
 effort which for a short time proved successful. For three or 
 four hours I forgot alike the sorrows of the past and the fore 
 bodings of the coming day. 
 
 Thursday, Jan. ls, 1863. At home my ears would have 
 been saluted by the cheery welcome, " Happy New Year!" but 
 this morning, the only sounds I could hear were the cries or 
 suppressed moans of wounded men. On rising, the first inform 
 ation I received, was that nine men had died during the night. 
 I received into my care such articles of value as had not been 
 taken from them by the enemy on the field, and which their 
 friends would prize highly if we should ever be so fortunate as 
 to return to our own lines. I succeeded this morning in finding 
 
SEARCHING FOR RATIONS. 357 
 
 water for a wash, a blessing I prized highly, my hands and face 
 being innocent of any contact with that element since Monday 
 morning. 
 
 Perhaps it was because of my presentable appearance arising 
 from my ablution, that Dr. Pierce requested me to undertake the 
 task of finding rations for our hospital. We had then upwards 
 of a hundred wounded, besides a number of nurses ; not a few 
 were still out on the battle-field, and must be brought in to such 
 accommodations as we could provide and yet, for the whole 
 there was only to be found a few pounds of cornmeal. No time 
 was to be lost, and so, armed with the pass given us the day 
 before, and which in the sequel proved a friend indeed, I started 
 on my mission, not, however, without some appreciation of its 
 perilous nature. 
 
 Making my way first to the battery in the corn-field, I found 
 the officer who visited us the previous evening in command. He 
 did not know to whom we could go for supplies ; the Generals 
 were out in the field and I could not go to them thought that 
 my best plan was to go in the direction of Murfreesboro, where 
 I should find some of their hospitals, and probably one of their 
 surgeons would draw rations for us, at least he would be able to 
 direct me how to proceed. 
 
 Following these directions, my track lay through the woods 
 where a portion of the fighting had been. It was sad to see, 
 scattered around, the bodies of those who had fallen the day 
 before, and that sadness was not relieved by noticing that they 
 had been stripped of whatever clothing was considered sufficiently 
 valuable to be carried off. It is a fact too plain to be denied 
 that Southern soldiers not only took the clothing of our pris 
 oners, but stripped the wounded and dead. Indeed, to an extent 
 really surprising, the clothing of their army was obtained from us, 
 
358 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and so numerous are the blue overcoats in their ranks that our 
 men were often prevented from firing upon them, supposing them 
 to be Union soldiers. 
 
 After walking about a mile, I came to a large house which had 
 been used as a Confederate hospital the day before. Most of 
 the wounded, however, had been removed into Murfreesboro, 
 arid there was no surgeon left. There seemed no alternative 
 but to go forward, and as I had often found it both wiser and 
 pleasanter to deal with principals than subordinates, I deter 
 mined to go at once to Gen. Bragg s headquarters, and lay our 
 situation before him. I had scarcely resumed my journey when 
 there came over me such a sense of the loneliness of my situa 
 tion personally, and of the woe and misery through which for a few 
 hours I had been passing, that for a few moments I was almost 
 unmanned. I never before felt such force in the words fre 
 quently used, " a. stranger in a strange land," for I never before 
 had drawn a single breath under a hostile flag. Then came the 
 thoughts of home ; the dread suspense the loved ones there 
 would endure while waiting for the full details of the battle 
 which even then would not be relieved by finding iny name 
 among the missing, but perhaps would have to be endured for 
 weeks or months before my true situation could be made known 
 to them. Against these, thoughts it was hard to stand up, and 
 for a moment I felt as though it would be a relief to sit down 
 and weep. 
 
 But the remembrance of the mass of wounded men, and how 
 much depended upon my exertions, came to my rescue, and with 
 a quicker step and stouter heart I hastened on. All along the 
 way I met numerous squads of soldiers, who inquired the loca 
 tion of their different regiments and divisions. Fortunately I 
 was taken all along for one of their own surgeons, perhaps 
 
THE ENEMY S FORTIFICATIONS. 359 
 
 because of my shabby appearance generally, for when they 
 took me prisoner every convenience for personal adornment 
 was left within our lines, and the enemy very unceremoniously 
 allowed me no opportunity to procure them. I was, therefore, 
 "not lo put too fine a point upon it," decidedly shabby, and 
 perhaps for that reason, if not for my lean and professional 
 look (!), was taken for one of themselves, their army as a whole 
 being more remarkable for some other things than for its external 
 appearance. I carefully studied the ground as I went along, to 
 judge of the degree of difficulty we would have found in enter 
 ing Murfreesboro, had our right wing maintained its posi 
 tion, for it would have fought over this precise ground. The 
 country presented but a continuation of the same features as that 
 which constituted the battle-field alternate strips of timber and 
 open country, each of which probably would have been stoutly 
 contested. On reaching their picket line I presented my pass, 
 and although it was given for an entirely different purpose, it 
 was not questioned, but the officer gave me all the information 
 in his power. On arriving at Stone river I found the bridge 
 destroyed. Rails were thrown in on which footmen could cross, 
 but the ford for teams was very bad, the banks on each side 
 being steep and rocky. 
 
 This position could have been stoutly held against our men, as 
 it would have been very difficult to cross with artillery, and the 
 opposite bank, beside being steep, was covered with huge rocks, 
 forming a natural fortification, behind which sharp-shooters could 
 operate with almost perfect impunity. Just before entering the 
 town itself, I came upon a line of rifle-pits, prepared to defend 
 the approach from this side. On the opposite side of the town 
 there were no defenses at all, and it is evident that Rosecrans 
 was fully informed of all this ; hence his decision to swing his 
 
360 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 left into Murfreesboro, while the right was simply to hold the 
 ground, and thus make the advantages the enemy possessed on 
 the route I have been describing of no effect. His plan was 
 admirable, and richly deserved success. 
 
 After passing the rifle-pits, I came upon an encampment at 
 the edge of the town. Thinking this would be a good place to 
 find a surgeon, I enquired, and was pointed to one immediately. 
 I told him frankly my situation and errand, and asked for any 
 directions which his knowledge of their army regulations might 
 enable him to give me. He treated me with a good deal of 
 courtesy, told me to apply to Major Hilly er, Chief Commissary 
 on Bragg s staff, who, he assured me, would not fail to make 
 every necessary provision for our wounded. 
 
 After a little desultory conversation, he insisted on my remain 
 ing until he could make me acquainted with their Chaplain. 
 We had a few moments of very pleasant interchange of thought. 
 He was a Protestant Methodist, and I should judge a sincere 
 and conscientious man. Despite, however, all our efforts to 
 steer clear of the painful subject, the conversation would turn 
 on the war and the battle of yesterday. I found that some of 
 their best men had fallen, particularly the Colonel of the 5th 
 Georgia, whose body they were just preparing to send home. 
 Considering that the victory was already won, they stated, what 
 probably they would have been less ready to say could they have 
 foreseen the final result, that Bragg s reputation had suffered a 
 great deal since the battle of Perryville and his evacuation of 
 Kentucky ; that in consequence he had determined "to whip at 
 this fight, or lose the last man;" that all the Generals and men 
 under him felt as he did, and even the citizens partook of the 
 same spirit, hence the victory of yesterday. I have often won 
 dered since how they felt when Bragg, after fighting, was com- 
 
CONCERNING MURFREESBORO. 361 
 
 pelled to abandon a large portion of Tennessee, precisely as 
 after Perry ville he abandoned Kentucky. 
 
 The crushing depression which was felt at the South after the 
 surrender of Murfreesboro shows, however, that my acquaint 
 ances reflected truly the prevailing public sentiment. 
 
 At the time I called upon the doctor, the camp table was spread 
 for breakfast. As I turned away and hastened forward into 
 town, the hour of day (it was about nine o clock), my tedious 
 walk, the sharp air (there had been a keen frost), with perhaps 
 a few grains of generosity, all combined on an empty stomach 
 to form in me a distinct resolution shall I tell you what it 
 was ? that if ever I should find a Confederate officer in a posi 
 tion similar to mine that morning, I would certainly ask him to 
 eat with me. 
 
 Murfreesboro was a rather pleasantly located city of a few 
 thousand inhabitants, considered quite an important place in the 
 South, but not larger than many of the thriving towns to be 
 found on the lines of our railroads, of which Sandwich might be 
 named as an example. The most important building was a neat 
 and substantial court house in the public square. It was built 
 of brick, surmounted by a cupola with a clock attached. The 
 city stood on a knoll, at the foot of which ran a creek, and close 
 by was the railroad and depot. As I passed up the hill into 
 town, I met numbers of slightly wounded men who enquired the 
 way to the depot. They were to be removed probably to 
 Chattanooga. 
 
 On arriving at the public square I found a long line of our 
 men, who had been taken prisoners, marching off. probably to the 
 Chattanooga depot. The court house yard was also full of them. 
 As soon as I came near I was saluted by the cry, " Why, Chap- 
 " lain, are you a prisoner too ?" I approached to find what num- 
 
 24 
 
362 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ber of the boys was there, but the guards interfered, and would 
 allow no conversation. My mind was too much absorbed in the 
 urgent business that brought me to town to allow me to pause, 
 so, exhorting the boys to "keep up good heart," I passed on. 
 
 When I had time to reflect upon it, I sincerely regretted that 
 I had not used a little of that ingenuity which soldiers know how 
 to practice, and thus ascertained the names of the prisoners con 
 nected with the regiments from our own section, which would 
 have enabled me to relieve the dreadful suspense of friends who 
 read that some loved one was " missing." 
 
 After some inquiry, I found the quarters of Major Hyllier. 
 Just as I stepped in he was calling to some friend in the next 
 room to look at the line of prisoners as they passed by. "See," 
 said he, in a gleeful tone, "what a string of Yankees ! It was 
 somewhat embarrassing to introduce myself and business at such 
 an unlucky moment, but I must do the Major justice to say that 
 he appeared quite as much embarrassed by the circumstance as I 
 was, and that his readiness to forward my object, and the kind 
 attention he showed me throughout, went far to atone for the 
 seeming breech of military courtesy. (It is a point of honor with 
 fine military men, to abstain from all appearance of triumph over 
 those who may be so unfortunate as to fall into their hands.) He 
 said he should be glad to supply me with food necessary for our 
 hospital, but that it would be necessary first to procure an order 
 from Brig. Gen. Brown, Commander of the Post, and that I could 
 find him at the court house. 
 
 In a few moments I was at the General s quarters, and agam 
 presented my pass and made known my errand. The General 
 said that as soon as the battle now pending was decided, they 
 would make permanent provision for the wounded, that they 
 hoped to have a supply of hard-bread, rice, beef, &c., and such 
 
ENEMY S SUPPLY or PKOVISIONS. 363 
 
 food as was most suitable for the sick ; that in the meantime if 
 we could make such rations as they issued to their soldiers answer 
 our purpose, he would supply me with enough for one day. I 
 told him the wants of the men were urgent, and therefore I should 
 accept whatever he could do for them. His Adjutant made out 
 an order for one hundred rations, and finding I had no means of 
 transportation, he told me that if the commissary could not sup 
 ply me with a team and wagon, I might return, and he would 
 make provision. Returning to Major Hyllier, he countersigned 
 the order and sent me to the Post Commissary at the depot. I 
 had some difficulty in finding the officer, and my attention was 
 thereby directed to the conclusive evidences that everything had 
 been arranged beforehand for an evacuation, should it prove to 
 be necessary. The rooms occupied by all the officers I had yet 
 seen were bare of furniture, and had the appearance of being 
 used only for a temporary purpose. No one seemed able to inform 
 me where the Post Commissary s office was, and when found, it 
 proved to be the warehouse of a business firm, used only tempo 
 rarily. The supply of provisions on hand for such an army was 
 very small, and a large portion of it was on the cars, on the track, 
 ready to be run off at a moment s notice. Close by were also 
 a number of cars, loaded with brass field pieces and carriages, 
 while the haste with which the slightly wounded and the prisoners 
 were being taken off was also suspicious. 
 
 I read in all this that they had not been by any means sure of 
 their position previous to the battle ; but I did not suppose that 
 they would yet be obliged to use all these facilities for [making 
 their escape. And yet I noticed particularly that while the citi 
 zens were very jubilant over their victory, the military invariably 
 spoke of the conflict as being undecided. 
 
 The Commissary received me courteously, and seemed anxious 
 to do all in his power to help me. While waiting to have the 
 
364 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 order filled, a citizen entered the store with a copy of the morn 
 ing paper, " Murfreesboro Rebel Banner" about the size of a 
 tolerable hand-bill, the paper being what we would think rather 
 inferior wrapping paper, and only printed on one side. It pro 
 fessed to give an account of the previous day s battle. It seemed 
 that military men were not allowed to subscribe for a copy, and 
 as it was only published for civilians semi-occasionally, the people 
 did not suffer very keenly the evils resulting from a free press. 
 
 Those in the office gathered around, the citizen reading aloud. 
 He had read just about far enough to give the number of killed 
 and wounded on their side, together with the general effect of 
 the battle on themselves, when I noticed one whisper to him, 
 evidently informing him that a "Yankee" was present. He 
 immediately stopped, and it was amusing to see the expedients he 
 adopted to find out which was he. He asked some, and having 
 ascertained which were not, naturally concluded that I was the 
 person. 
 
 He was anxious then to see the order I had brought, which 
 was lying on the desk, and on finding out its purport, wondered 
 (loud enough for me to hear) " how long such things were to 
 last." At intervals he gave us a piece of his mind, gloating over 
 Jeff. Davis proclamation against Butler, just issued, and longing 
 for the time when the hanging on the first limb should commence. 
 All this, of course, was for my particular benefit, and I could 
 not resist the conviction, as he every little while looked askance 
 at me, that it would have afforded him extreme gratification to 
 make me the first victim. I simply folded my arms and took it, 
 but I inwardly rejoiced that I had dealt with principals instead 
 of subordinates, and thus was safe from all interference. The 
 Commissary found it impossible to provide transportation. I 
 therefore reported the fact to Gen. Brown. 
 
RATIONS FINALLY OBTAINED. 365 
 
 I could see that it was extremely inconvenient to spare a team 
 at that time, when all their resources were taxed to the utmost 
 but he nevertheless gave me an order on the Quarter-master for 
 a conveyance. While the order was being written he made a few 
 enquiries as to what State I was from, &c., and remarked that he 
 had two relatives in the Northern army, one a minister, and, I 
 think, a Chaplain. On reporting to the Quarter-master, I was 
 again an object of curiosity to the hangers-on, but my order was 
 imperative, and in a few minutes a six-mule team, with an officer 
 to accompany me, was at my disposal. We returned to the Com 
 missary s, loaded the rations, and started for the hospital. The 
 wagon was marked U. S., and had evidently been captured at 
 some time from our forces, and that not long since, for inside 
 were pieces of hard-bread, showing that it had been used for 
 carrying provisions. The sight of the hard-bread was really 
 pleasant, reminding one of our old friend, Uncle Samuel ; and 
 the taste, to one who had not broken his fast, was not bad. The 
 officer who convoyed the team was a true gentleman. On the 
 way we had quite an interesting conversation, and I found him 
 both candid and reasonable, more so than any one with whom I 
 came in contact while within their lines. He performed his duty 
 so pleasantly that I shall always remember him with gratitude, 
 and have only regretted that I did not learn his name. 
 
 Our blockade was so strict that they were cut off from all articles 
 of fancy manufacture, and even their officers smoked pipes made 
 of wood, corn-cobs, or roots. Among the articles belonging 
 to boys who were dead, were some rather neat pipes which we 
 had no means of preserving, but which would be stolen by strag 
 glers. I selected the best one, and gave it to this gentleman, as 
 the only article within reach by which we could express our 
 appreciation of his kindness. He received it with much pleas- 
 
366 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ure, and when we parted he extended his hand with all the warmth 
 of old friendship. 
 
 My prolonged absence had given rise to the suspicion that 
 perhaps I had been "gobbled up." My return, therefore, after 
 a successful mission, was a pleasant surprise. It was certainly 
 time for breakfast, being noon, if not after. Some fat pork was 
 fried, and pancakes made of flour and water, which were eaten 
 with a relish. I am happy also to say, a posteriori, that I suf 
 fered no harm therefrom, a result which, a priori, I should 
 scarcely have considered possible, for if you suppose that they 
 were anything like what usually pass under the name of pan 
 cakes, you are certainly mistaken. They were only equalled by 
 some biscuits which we had for several days, and which it was 
 suggested should be tried by some one before the rest ventured 
 on them, for fear of fatal results. It is saying a great deal for 
 that wonderful organ, the stomach, when I announce that we all 
 survived the hazardous experiment of eating them. During the 
 day an additional number of the wounded were brought up, and 
 as there was no more accommodation in the building, they were 
 wrapped in their blankets and laid in the yard, and large fires 
 built near them. It was now absolutely necessary to take a list 
 of the names, as several had died already whose names we could 
 not find. This work devolved on me. In addition to the name, 
 regiment, and location of the wound of each man, I determined 
 also to take the name and post office address of his friends. It 
 was indeed a laborious task. The condition of many made it 
 very difficult to converse ; many were foreigners, whose pronun 
 ciation of names it was sometimes impossible to understand, and 
 required the aid of an interpreter, while many seemed so con 
 fused with their sufferings that even such simple enquiries were 
 answered with difficulty. One man could not remember for some 
 
ANOTHER EVENING DISCUSSION. 367 
 
 time the name of the place where his friends lived, although he 
 knew quite well the county and State. One case was peculiarly 
 painful. In due course I came to a young man who evidently 
 could not live long. He gave me his name, company and regi 
 ment, then his father s name. He hesitated about the post office 
 address ; I asked him again, but he gave no answer. I looked 
 up ; he was dying ; he had spoken for the last time, in a few 
 moments he was gone. 
 
 In the evening the officers who visited us the night before came 
 again, accompanied by others. They were in high glee. Their forces 
 were certainly between us and Nashville. Wheeler s cavalry, 
 which we had seen go out in the morning, was operating on our 
 rear; our provision trains, numbering hundreds of wagons, had 
 fallen into their hands ! the victory was certainly theirs, and 
 they should enter Nashville at once ! External appearances 
 favored these reports, and we began to credit them, and supposed 
 that we were in for a lengthened captivity. We imagined that 
 the force which still kept up occasional firing with the enemy was 
 a strong guard to hold them in bay until Rosecrans could draw 
 off his main force, or else to-day s comparative rest was prepara 
 tory to another vigorous and probably decisive struggle to-morrow. 
 Again our visitors commenced the discussion of our sectional 
 differences. Their new companion, also a captain of a battery, 
 took the most prominent part. He was evidently a well educated 
 man, and a fluent speaker. He was principally to be remem 
 bered for his fierce denunciations of Gen. Butler, whom he named, 
 as did the South generally, "Beast Butler," and whom he could 
 scarcely tolerate that we should call by his official title. 
 
 For hours that night I laid awake imagining the dread disasters 
 which this unfortunate campaign had brought upon our cause. 
 In fact I experienced, in their full effect, the measures by which 
 
368 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the Southern army was encouraged to believe in the ultimate tri 
 umph of their cause. Admitting the simple truth would dispel 
 a large share of their illusions. 
 
 Friday, January 2nd, 1863. Rose at daylight. Several 
 more had died during the night. After breakfast, resumed 
 the work of taking names. Before noon a number of officers 
 came in, telling us with great glee that our train was certainly 
 captured, that Gen. Davis was killed, and that our forces had 
 been repulsed at Vicksburg and driven back to their boats. 
 Indeed our situation appeared more and more gloomy. At the 
 same time we judged from occasional firing that our forces were 
 moving more to their right, and were certainly not retreating, 
 which to us was unaccountable. Officers rode around, some of 
 whom held council with Harding, the owner of the house, and 
 for several hours he was busy gathering up whatever loose prop 
 erty he could, and manifested great anxiety to get away, as he 
 said, to Murfreesboro. 
 
 During the day, movements of the enemy s lines seemed to us 
 to indicate falling back, and had we known the exact condition of 
 our army it would have been easy to interpret the different 
 occurrences of the day. About noon a Confederate officer arrived 
 to parole in due form all of our men, whether wounded or not. 
 On the first afternoon they had been required to swear not to 
 take up arms, but according to the terms of the cartel it was nec 
 essary that each man should receive a printed parole as evidence 
 of the transaction. Assisted by one of the surgeons, this work 
 proceeded all the afternoon, and was not completed until twelve 
 o clock at night. At the time it appeared strange that the work 
 was thus hurried when we were entirely in their power. In the 
 sequel, however, their haste was perfectly intelligible. 
 
 
ftOSECRANS CANNONADE. 869 
 
 About three o clock I finished my list and myself together. 
 The intense excitement of the past few days was subsiding, 
 our hospital was gradually assuming an air of order, and I 
 began to realize that I was flesh and blood. For the first time 
 I sat down and rested awhile. About four o clock commenced a 
 most fearful cannonade on the left of our lines, accompanied with 
 heavy musketry. If Rosecrans was cut off and his army well- 
 nigh destroyed, it was evident that his spirit was undaunted. 
 Indeed, all his movements were mysteries to us. The furious 
 fighting continued until after dusk. In the evening, just before 
 dusk, a number of us were standing out in the yard, when a ball 
 from one of Our Parrott guns came whistling over us. What 
 could it mean ? It was evident that our lines were advancing, 
 and were probably not much more than a mile away. At last we 
 concluded it was a friendly message, telling us to keep up cour 
 age and all would yet be well. 
 
 My time had hitherto been almost exclusively occupied in 
 efforts to supply the temporal wants and alleviate the sufferings 
 of the men. As occasion presented, I had spoken to one and 
 another of the precious Savior, who alone could give true com 
 fort ; but anything like connected effort was out of the question. 
 And yet something must be done. That evening, therefore, I 
 went into some of the rooms, where it was most convenient, and 
 spoke a few words of earnest invitation to come to Christ and 
 accept his pardoning mercy. May they prove to have been words 
 in due season. 
 
 This evening the officers from the battery gave us another call. 
 They seemed quite perplexed with Rosecrans movements. They 
 said that Gens. Polk and Hardee and others had been all day on 
 an eminence whence they could overlook our lines, and they 
 reported great activity on our right, wagons moving and troops 
 
370 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 marching. Indeed their Generals were as much perplexed by 
 the movements of our army as we were. According to all 
 accounts their provisions were cut off, and according to all the 
 ordinary rules of warfare Rosecrans ought to have been looking 
 for his "lines of retreat " and "base of supplies," instead of 
 which he was holding on desperately to his position, and refused 
 to retreat. Our visitors had evidently an inkling of what was 
 passing in their own lines, for they said it would not be surpris 
 ing if within the next twenty-four hours we should occupy this 
 ground. "We may retire," they said, "but if we do, it will only 
 be to fight you again when you are still further removed from 
 your supplies, and still more open to attacks in your rear." 
 
 One of our number unwisely allowed himself to be led into a 
 dispute as to the barbarities said to be committed by both armies. 
 Such discussions at best are unprofitable, for often things 
 occured which no man of integrity would justify, and any attempt 
 to arrive at the merits of the question in dispute by bringing up 
 the conduct of either army was simply foolish. Crime, lawless 
 ness, cruelty, are the inseparable concomitants of war, and those 
 who, by striking down the national emblem, brought on this war, 
 should have counted beforehand its fearful cost. In the heat of 
 the dispute, while "Beast Butler" was unmercifully condemned 
 by the one and Gen. Butler was upheld by the other, a personal 
 encounter seemed for a few moments nearly inevitable. But by- 
 and-by the subject changed, the works of nature and art came up 
 for discussion. The principal speaker was a well educated man 
 with a good deal of taste and refinement, and the remainder of 
 the evening was passed as pleasantly as though we had all been 
 friends for years and were gathered in some social parlor. 
 
 To give you a clue to the animus of the South, other portions 
 of the conversation may be worth recording. While the wordy 
 
HATRED OF THE YANKEES. 371 
 
 duel was going off, and some statement was made by one and 
 denied by the other, said the disputant on our side, " I will bet 
 you a can of oysters on it, and you will be coming some time to 
 Detroit and then we will eat them." 
 
 " I come to Detroit ?" was the answer, "never, sir, unless I 
 go there as a prisoner of war. No, sir, we do not want to have 
 anything to do with you. Give us our independence, and we 
 will never set foot on your soil." 
 
 It is impossible to describe in language the utter contempt 
 they (the officers) feel for u the Yankees," and their furious 
 determination never to have anything more to do with them. 
 We enquired whom they called Yankees. 
 
 " We call all Federals Yankees, now ; but strictly we do not 
 include Northwestern men. Yankees really are the men from 
 New England, New York and Pennsylvania, and we think that 
 one of our men is as good as three of them, any time." 
 
 " What do you think, then, of Northwestern men?" we said. 
 
 u Oh, we find it hard enough to take man for man of them. 
 We have great respect for the N. W. men." 
 
 All day the wind had been blowing from the South, threaten 
 ing a rain storm. We had about forty of our wounded laid out 
 in the yard, with huge fires to keep them warm. It was evident 
 that some other arrangement must be made. By re-arranging 
 the various rooms, removing furniture, &c., the largest part were 
 put under shelter, and for the rest we gathered all the shelter 
 tents we could find. We had scarcely finished setting them up 
 when the storm fairly set in. It contributed no little to a quiet 
 night s refreshing sleep to know that the poor fellows were not 
 lying in the drenching rain. 
 
 Saturday, Jan. 3d, 1863. The rain which had been falling 
 all night still continued, giving everything a gloomy and com- 
 
372 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 fortless appearance. But " it is an ill wind that blows nobody 
 any good," and even this storm proved a blessing. It supplied 
 us with good, soft water. One of the greatest disadvantages of 
 our position at this hospital was the want of good water. There 
 was a well, to be sure, but the enemy s battery camped near by 
 appropriated that to themselves, leaving us no alternative but to 
 draw our supply from a pond at a distance, which, besides being 
 so far off and thus taxing the overworked nurses to procure it, 
 afforded only the poorest description of water. So much, too, 
 was required to quench thirst, that much washing was out of the 
 question. This morning, however, we had a large barrel of pure, 
 soft water ; the battery had disappeared during the night, leaving 
 us the undivided possession of the well. The nurses, as the 
 result of their being regularly relieved, were recovering from 
 their fatigue, and were now contemplating plans for the perma 
 nent rather than (as heretofore was necessary) the temporary 
 comfort of their wards. The first thing done was to have every 
 man wash, at least his hands and face. 
 
 The moral effect of this was remarkable. Men with an arm 
 broken or injured began to practice what would be to many of 
 them, poor fellows, a life-long lesson, of helping themselves with 
 the other, and felt better by the effort. Their attention was 
 occupied and turned off from the contemplation of their pain and 
 misfortunes, and as a consequence they Became more cheerful and 
 contented. Some of the wards, where the nurses were particu 
 larly hopeful, were completely transformed, and though my heart 
 was weighed down by sorrow, I strove in every way to cheer up 
 the men and strengthen their courage. But when every improve 
 ment possible was made in our situation, I came, unconsciously 
 to myself, to feel that it was a happy lot when men were killed 
 outright upon the field, and thus saved the lingering tortures and 
 
GENERALS POLK AND CHEATHAM. 373 
 
 numberless trials of an extemporized hospital within the enemy s 
 lines. By dint of crowding, and several having died, we succeeded 
 in getting all safely under cover, and the yard for the first time 
 was clear. 
 
 During the forenoon Gens. Polk and Cheatham called at the 
 house. They conversed for some time with Dr. Pierce. Speak 
 ing of the battle and of the army opposed to himself, Gen. Polk 
 remarked, u I have had the honor of fighting Gen. McCook 
 before ; I think he will have reason to remember me." They 
 enquired if we had everything we needed ; if not, they would do 
 their best to supply us. Dr. Pierce replied that our small stock 
 of medicines was giving out, and we needed an additional supply. 
 "Oh," said he, u your people have blockaded our ports so that 
 we cannot obtain medicines. You ought to have thought that 
 you were liable to fall into our hands, and might need them." 
 We heard very little those days about a " paper blockade." 
 
 About noon, by order of these Generals, twenty-five men were 
 brought from a hospital about a quarter of a mile off, and placed 
 in the barn and cotton-gin. They had been from one to three 
 days on the battle-field, and then been removed to the hospital 
 yard where they had lain ever since. Most of their wounds had 
 not been touched, except what they had done for themselves. A 
 considerable part of the time they had been without food, and to 
 complete the sad list of their sufferings they had been out in this 
 soaking rain all night and so far of the day. As I looked at 
 them, shivering with cold and writhing with pain, vainly striving 
 to gather a little warmth from their soaked blankets, I could but 
 wonder that they lived at all. Indeed, some did not. One was 
 dying as he was lifted from the wagon, and another never mani 
 fested consciousness, but died in a few hours. 
 
374 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 The place to which they were brought was enough to fill them 
 with despair. The barn was built of huge logs, without chink 
 ing, and the cold wind rushed in while the rain leaked through 
 the roof. The cotton-gin was a dryer but even colder place, and 
 in either of them an Illinois farmer would think it hard for his 
 horse to stand on such a day. Dr. Pierce summoned his assist 
 ants, and they proceeded at once to dress every man s wounds, 
 while I took his name and description. They were chiefly from 
 Negley s Division, Indiana and Kentucky troops. A number of 
 Confederate soldiers crowded around, some of whom gave them 
 a portion of their none too ample rations, while others piled 
 cotton upon those who suifered most from the cold. One nurse 
 was left with them, while Dr. Pierce and I started off to the large 
 hospital to procure additional nurses, and some food more appro 
 priate than any we had for men in such reduced condition. 
 
 On the way we picked up a good frying pan off the battle 
 field, and as we needed cooking utensils very much, we were glad 
 to carry it along. On arriving at the hospital it was with diffi 
 culty we could persuade three men to undertake the care of our 
 new cases, until one, finding that I had a list of the wounded, 
 inquired very earnestly after a brother, who he knew was wounded, 
 but whom he had vainly sought in every direction. On refer 
 ring to my list, I found that his brother was one of the unfor 
 tunate ones just brought into the cotton-gin. He was overjoyed 
 at the information, and gladly volunteered, with two others, to 
 accompany us ; and I must say that they did their duty to their 
 charge day and night, alleviating suffering not a little. After 
 procuring a few pounds of hard-bread, which was all within reach, 
 we returned to our quarters, and night settled down upon us, 
 with the rain still falling, but the wounded better cared for than 
 before, indeed, better, for the facilities we had, than any hospital 
 in the vicinity. 
 
REBELS ENTIRELY DISAPPEARED. 375 
 
 During the day I had several interesting conversations with 
 some of the wounded, whom I found under, as I believe, real con 
 viction of sin, which had burdened their minds long before the 
 battle. Such cases were very common in the army, and should 
 encourage Christians both to pray and to labor. One of the 
 cases I met was a young man whose mother was a Christ 
 ian, and as I spoke to him the tears began to flow, and he told 
 me he had been anxious for some time, and if it could only be 
 told his mother that he was a real Christian, it would be all his 
 desire. But both he and another, notwithstanding their religious 
 training, were seeking to fit themselves to come to Christ, and 
 scarcely seemed to credit the thought that they must come then 
 and come as sinners; and yet their evident sincerity led me to 
 hope that this error, so natural to a sinner under conviction, 
 would be quickly laid aside, and they would embrace Christ as 
 .ieir all-sufficient Savior. 
 
 Sunday, Jan. 5th. The rain stopped during the night, and a 
 beautiful day, such as gives us some idea of the u Sunny South," 
 broke upon us in the morning. The first fact which attracted the 
 attention of all was that the rebels had entirely disappeared. 
 Those who had been awake all night said that their wagons and 
 artillery had been moving for hours, and just at break of day 
 Wheeler s Cavalry filed past, going towards Murfreesboro, and 
 from that time not even a straggling soldier was to be seen. We 
 thought this was a "change of base," but did not allow ourselves 
 to be sufficiently elated to suppose it was an actual retreat. And 
 yet all the morning we kept remarking to each other how quiet 
 everything was, and how strange that not a single Confederate 
 was left. 
 
 On rising that morning I resolved, if possible, to hold a short 
 religious service in each room, that those who were capable of 
 
376 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 attention might be benefitted. With this view I revolved in my 
 mind a few thoughts suggested by the wounded Israelites look 
 ing to the brazen serpent, which I hoped might prove in season 
 to some of these afflicted ones. Dr. P. also encouraged the 
 effort, but in going the rounds, I found that the care which every 
 man needed in having his wounds dressed once a day, would make 
 any services impracticable until afternoon. And as there was 
 nothing to be done for the men that others could not do as well 
 and even better than myself, I felt that the time had come when, 
 without neglecting public duty, I could seek to relieve my anxiety 
 for the fate of my brothers, I had confidence that Henry, hav 
 ing my horse, and being an old soldier, would be able to take care 
 of himself; but there were two others belonging to the Railroad 
 Regiment, in Johnson s Division, about whose welfare I felt a 
 painful anxiety. The day before, when such a number of shiv 
 ering, wounded men, all soaked with the rain, were brought into 
 the cotton-gin, I could not but think, what if my two brothers 
 had been lying day and night exposed to this storm, and perhaps 
 neglected by some inhuman surgeon ! And yet I could not recon 
 cile it with my duty to leave those who had a right to look to me 
 for help, until I saw them as well cared for as under the circum 
 stances was possible. But this having been done, I seized the 
 first moment to start in search of the hospital and ground near 
 which Johnson s Division had operated. The large house to the 
 northwest, with rows of tents surrounding it, was occupied chiefly 
 with the wounded of Davis Division, while Johnson s were in 
 houses and barns still farther to the west. After careful search, I 
 found one man from the Railroad Regiment there, who could 
 answer many of my inquiries and who assured me of the safety 
 of both my brothers. This information afterwards proved 
 incorrect with regard to one of them, who was taken pris- 
 
EVIDENCES OF CARNAGE. 377 
 
 oner, but for the time my anxiety was allayed. In going from 
 tent to tent I found the list of wounded more precious than gold, 
 as I was able to answer the inquiries of not a few, and my book 
 was looked upon by the boys as though there was a charm about it. 
 Before the day closed I came to the conviction that next in import 
 ance to feeding these poor fellows and dressing their wounds was 
 the procuring of a correct and minute list of all who came 
 under one s care. Finding that some of the 89th with whom I 
 was acquainted were dangerously wounded and were lying in 
 buildings further to the west, I set out to find them. 
 
 Leaving the house, I started in the direction pointed out, which 
 led me over a portion of the ground occupied by Davis and John 
 son s Divisions. Near by was a long row of dead, gathered dur 
 ing the last few days, and an immense grave was being dug for 
 their burial. Every moment I came upon fresh evidences of the 
 fearful storm that had swept over these fields and through these 
 groves. 
 
 Mangled horses were strewn in every direction, while the dead, 
 more or less stripped of their clothing by the enemy lay where 
 they fell on that fatal morning. After searching for a long dis 
 tance and failing to find the hospitals to which I had been directed, 
 I concluded that my informant was mistaken ; and as the time I 
 could be spared had nearly expired and I was unmistakably weary 
 with my tramp, I retraced my steps as quickly as possible to 
 Hospital Harding. A circumstance we all thought very notice 
 able was, that I had not seen a single " butternut " the whole 
 morning; but the time had arrived when the mystery which 
 hung over, not only the conduct of the enemy, but the opera 
 tions of both armies since our capture, was to be suddenly 
 and delightfully dispelled. We had just seated ourselves at din 
 ner in an outhouse, which served the manifold purpose of dining- 
 
378 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 room, cookhouse, storehouse and general rubbish receptacle, and 
 had begun to eat what was set before us, when one of the boys 
 ran in with the exciting intelligence that our cavalry had emerged 
 from the woods and were advancing towards us. Dinner was 
 left, and out we went to see the sight, and sure enough, there 
 they came, deployed as skirmishers, advancing slowly and peer 
 ing in every direction to find the retreating foe. Murfreesboro 
 was evacuated ! But still, though we could understand the 
 disappearance of the enemy from all about us for the past twen 
 ty-four hours, yet how Bragg, who, according to what had been 
 told us, had been operating so successfully in our rear, capturing 
 our trains, and every few hours doing some new and wonderful 
 thing in the way of damaging Rosecrans, should find it necessary 
 to retreat, and Rosecrans, who had been harassed at every 
 hand, who was without food and ammunition and well-nigb 
 destroyed, should be the victor, and march unopposed into Mur 
 freesboro, remained to be explained. 
 
 But on came the "blue coats," and in a few minutes we 
 exchanged glad greetings with our Union brethren. Who they 
 were or from what State they came it mattered not ; they were 
 the representatives of our country, of all that was dear to humanity 
 in the present, and hopeful in the future. And none can tell how 
 good for the eyes and the heart was the sight of the lovely stars 
 and stripes, and the blue uniform of our men, to those who 
 had been compelled to see flaunting in their faces the emblem of 
 tyranny, and to meet at every turn the loathed and detested 
 " butternut " uniform. 
 
 Our line was only about a mile away from us, and in a few 
 minutes several boys had started for the regiment to tell of our 
 condition and learn the news. The excitement among the 
 wounded was most intense, and men forgot their sufferings in the 
 
ANXIETY FOR COMRADES. 379 
 
 triumph of our arms. It was not long before numbers of our 
 boys, who had been lying out day and night keeping the foe at 
 bay, rushed to the hospital to see their comrades still living and 
 to learn about the dead. Every room was crowded, and such 
 shouting and shaking of hands, such a wild mixture of emotion, 
 must be seen and felt to be comprehended. For a while a 
 stranger would have taken Hospital Harding for an extemporized 
 lunatic asylum, and I, for one, felt I had important qualifications 
 for an inmate. But who could be staid and sober amid such 
 scenes ? Here were men driven back by overwhelming numbers 
 from a hard-fought field, and compelled to leave their comrades 
 in the enemy s hands. From that moment they had been unable 
 to obtain any definite information regarding them. Who were 
 but slightly wounded, and who mortally, they could only con 
 jecture, and heavy had been their hearts day and night. How 
 they rushed from room to room ! and as they caught sight of 
 some well known face, finding some alive who were reported dead, 
 that old building resounded with their shouts. On the other 
 hand, here were the suffering and the mutilated, who, after the 
 most heroic bravery, had fallen, only to see their comrades driven 
 back, leaving them not only in the hands of the foe, but in a 
 state of dread suspense as to the results of the whole campaign. 
 
 Day and night they had lain in their agony, aggravated by 
 the flying stories the self-deceived Confederates brought in from 
 day to day. But now, for the first time, they learned the truth : 
 how Sheridan, though compelled to retire to avoid annihilation, 
 had checked again and again, four times, the advancing tide, 
 saved time for reinforcements to arrive and change the fortunes 
 of the day, thus indelibly inscribing his name upon the history 
 of his country ; how when sad at heart with the loss of their 
 companions, and the check on the right, the cheery voice of 
 
380 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Rosecrans would be heard ringing out often in the stillness of 
 the night, as he moved from place to place, ordering everything 
 himself, and seeing with his own eyes that it was done ; how his 
 tone and whole manner inspired confidence of final success, as 
 he taught not only Generals and Colonels but privates how to 
 use their guns and snatch victory from the very jaws of defeat ; 
 how on that memorable Friday afternoon, when the friendly shot 
 came whistling over our building, he had massed his men and 
 guns so rapidly and with such skill that in forty minutes the 
 enemv was driven back a broken and confused mass, leaving two 
 thousand slain upon the field. When all these truths were related, 
 we might be pardoned for our excitement and joy. Indeed, we 
 could tell the feelings of the ancient Jews when they sung, 
 " When the Lord turned again the captivity of Zion, we were 
 like them that dream, then was our mouth filled with laughter, 
 and our tongue with singing. The Lord hath done great things 
 for us, whereof we are glad." Never was language more fitly 
 used than when our heroic General closed his account of the bat 
 tle, not with self-gratulation, but with, " Nbn nobis Domine, non 
 nobis, sed nomini tuo da gloriam" "Not unto us, Lord, not 
 unto us, but unto Thy name give glory." 
 
 All idea of religious services which had been contemplated in 
 the morning was laid aside. It was imperatively necessary that 
 a correct list of the killed and wounded should be immediately 
 prepared and despatched North, that the dreadful suspense of 
 friends at home might be relieved, as well as incorrect accounts 
 be rectified. In a little while Dr. Swift, the Department Medi 
 cal Director called to ascertain the number in our charge and 
 what supplies we needed. He also requested that a list might 
 be forwarded at once to headquarters. 
 
THE PRECIOUS LIST. 381 
 
 This work, of course, devolved on me ; but in spite of every 
 effort my progress was tedious and slow, and interruptions were 
 momentary. First we learned that a mail would speedily be 
 made up for Nashville, and the Doctor and I could not lose the 
 opportunity of sending a line to relieve anxiety at home. Then 
 Henry arrived, and I could not postpone listening to his story. 
 As the afternoon wore away, officers, privates, cavalry-men, 
 artillery-men, infantry, friends and strangers, trooped into the 
 enclosure, and as I had the only list, they rushed into the room 
 where I was, shouted through the back window or through a 
 broken pane in front, that they might learn the fate of men, 
 comrades or relatives. Again and again did I search through 
 my long list, my answers sometimes leaving the questioner still 
 in doubt, sometimes lighting up his face with joy, sometimes 
 crushing out the last hope from his heart. One case I shall 
 never forget. A young man who seemed to act as orderly to 
 some officer, came up to the window to make enquiries about 
 some near friend, I believe a brother, who had been wounded on 
 our portion of the field. As I turned over leaf after leaf, he 
 was very nervous, saying that he was afraid he could not stay; 
 and still as I found no trace, he said he must leave, and started 
 off. I had a lingering impression that I had met with the name 
 mentioned, so I continued my search. Just before he got out of 
 sight round one of the buildings, I found it, and immediately 
 called out to him, "It is here." With face lighted up with joy, 
 and with buoyant steps he hastened back to the window, but no 
 sooner had I turned my eye once more to the page, that I might 
 give him the particulars, than it caught the fatal announcement, 
 " Died " on such a day. I hesitated a moment, as he stood with 
 wistful look, waiting for me to speak, for how could I dash his 
 hopes at one stroke ? Then, as gently as possible, I broke to 
 
382 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 him the sad news. I saw on the instant a change in his coun 
 tenance, hope die out of his young heart, and he stood for a 
 moment stunned by the blow. Then recollecting that duty 
 called him, with a gentleness that I never saw surpassed, he 
 said, " Thank you, sir," and hastened away. 
 
 I never saw him before and have never seen him since. Our 
 whole interview was not longer than two or three minutes, but 
 in the few words he spoke, and in the changing aspects of his 
 youthful face, I thought I could read his story. I thought of a 
 home somewhere in some State, in city or in country, but wher 
 ever it was, one where affection reigned, and where the gentle influ 
 ence of a loving mother had proved so strong that cruel war had 
 only bound its ties the closer, and made the heart, while yearn 
 ing for the lost one, even grateful for the news which relieved 
 suspense, though it crushed the last hope. 
 
 The remainder of the afternoon and evening I pursued my 
 task, till weary eyes and aching head compelled me to pause for 
 rest. 
 
 Monday Morning, Jan. 5th. We were called up early in the 
 morning by the arrival of a surgeon in charge of forty ambu 
 lances for the purpose of removing all the transportable wounded 
 to Nashville. For several hours all was bustle and confusion 
 while these mutilated men were being prepared for their long 
 and painful ride. That morning I had another conversation 
 with the young man mentioned in a previous letter. He seemed 
 still waiting to better himself before coming to Christ. I shall 
 never forget his earnest look as I repeated to him the verse com 
 mencing, " Just as I am, without one plea." He said he had 
 never seen the subject in that light before and I hoped that the 
 true light had shined into his soul. I found a fragment of a 
 soldier s hymn-book lying near, and on examination found that 
 
SPIRIT OF THE CONTRABANDS. 383 
 
 it contained the whole of that beautiful hymn. This I placed 
 in his hands just before he was lifted into the ambulance. I 
 have not seen him since. 
 
 When Mr. Harding removed his family from the plantation, 
 just before the battle, he took his negroes, numbering about 
 fifty, leaving two or three to preserve what they could. The 
 negroes were quite shrewd, and took care not to commit them 
 selves except where it was safe to do so but none could doubt 
 for a moment their hearty sympathy. One of them using in my 
 hearing the expression, * our army," " I pray which is your 
 army?" said I. "Oh, de Norf," said he, "we s all for de Norf. " 
 To show their spirit I cannot, perhaps, do better than give you 
 a conversation which Dr. Pierce overheard. He entered the cabin 
 known among the black people of the place as " Aunt Car line s 
 house," and among us as Ward No. 5. He found an interesting and 
 exciting colloquy in progress which had been started by Tom, a 
 wild, rollicking boy of about twelve years, with important orders. 
 He said he was stopped at Murfreesboro, as he was coming back 
 from the other plantation, where the servants of Mr. Harding 
 had been sent for safety, by the order of Col. Somebody, who 
 had detained all the rest of the company and sent him for those 
 who were at the old place. 
 
 " La me," said Aunt Car line, " I never was in sich bothera 
 tion in all my life. I se been brought up in sich a kinder guv- 
 nment dat I hates to be gwine off till I se seed all de parties. 
 Now ef I could only jes see ole Missus, and she was agreeable, 
 I d go quick enough. To tell de truf, I dun know what to do." 
 
 " Well," says Tom, " dem s de orders. De Kurnel sent me 
 up to tell you ns to come down to town ; dat you wer nt to work 
 any more for ole Massa Harding, case he s secesh." 
 
 " la ! what shall I do ? What will become of ole Missus ? 
 her as I used to nurse if she was only agreeable. I tell you 
 
384 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 I se not dat kind of pusson dat runs away from her ole missus." 
 " Look e here," says an old man, the husband of Caroline, a 
 patriarch among the darkies, and, by the way, the intellectual 
 head of the Harding family. "Look e here ; don t ye see we s 
 prisoners of war ? We must do what dem tells us as took us 
 prisoners. Yesterday all round here was dese Rebels ; now 
 ebery one has treated, and de Union soldiers, God bress dem, 
 has come on, and we s in de hands ob de Union we s prisoners 
 ob war. Now don t you see we wont run away from Massa 
 Harding, but we only obeys de orders ob dem as took us prison 
 ers. I told ole Massa long time ago dat he better be on de side 
 ob de Union, dat God would bress de Union yet ; but he only 
 git mad, and cuss, and say de Souf will whip every time. You 
 see ole Massa wants to be allers on de side dat whips. Dat s de 
 kind ob man he is." 
 
 "Oh, oh," said Caroline, "I se nebber in sich trouble in all 
 de born days ob my life. I se completely flustrated. I don t 
 like to leave ole missus, I don t." 
 
 " Do you think you re gwine to stay here when you get your 
 orders, and de whole army what made de rebels skedaddle close 
 by to force de orders ? Tears to me you han t got good sense 
 to-day, Car line." 
 
 " Well, pears to me I don t know nothin at all. I never 
 seed sich times afore. T allers said I d stay with missus while I 
 last, but pears like I must go now." And the old couple pro 
 ceeded to gather up their earthly goods to leave. If this should 
 ever meet the eye of the white Mr. Harding he has my testi 
 mony that his negroes did not run away. 
 
 During the forenoon Gen. Sheridan called, making inquiries 
 for the body of the lamented Sill. By his orders a detachment 
 of the 36th, under command of Captain, now Major, Sherman, of 
 
BtJRIAL OP THE DEAD. 385 
 
 Elgin, was sent to bury the dead of our regiment. It was a mourn 
 ful sight. One portion was engaged in digging a huge trench at 
 the edge of the woods and close to where the struggle was 
 so desperate on the 31st another in gathering the bodies 
 together and arranging them side by side according to their com 
 panies, just as they had stood in the ranks while another was 
 engaged in carving the name, &c. of each on a head-board, that 
 the body might be identified, and the Captain kept a record of 
 each burial, with any particulars requiring mention. Next to 
 the patient endurance of the wounded, there was nothing more 
 touching than to see the tender care with which these men per 
 formed the last rites for their fallen comrades. When all was 
 done, and a fence had enclosed the long grave in which forty- 
 one had been laid to rest, the men were drawn up in line, and in 
 a few words I referred to the sorrows of the week and the heavy 
 affliction which had fallen upon us. I thought I had felt for the 
 soldier before, but it was at that moment / knew a soldier s 
 heart. I tried to turn their minds to Christ as to him who alone 
 could comfort and make things work together for our good. We 
 then called upon God in prayer, asking him that our sorrows 
 might not be unsanctified ; that he would graciously comfort the 
 wounded, sustain the loved ones at home amid their anxious sus 
 pense and when the news of bereavement should reach them ; 
 and that there might be few such struggles between us and the 
 ultimate deliverance of our sorrowing land. 
 
 We turned away, but the memory of that hour and spot can 
 never be effaced. Often afterward, when the regiment had 
 been exposed to rain and storm, and hour after hour passed 
 and still they failed to come, I found myself unconsciously 
 rising and peering into the darkness, and I asked whence came 
 this strange interest in these men? Immediately the vision 
 
386 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 of that long lone grave would rise before me, and I felt it was 
 born there. And while I mused there seemed to rise from those 
 many silent lips, a low, sad wail, which in a moment was caught 
 up from a thousand cots of pain, and then echoed back from ten 
 thousand desolate hearth-stones, and it said, (what I heard when 
 wading through the mud at Triune) " Oh, my country, how much 
 do I suffer for thee !" 
 
 And when the day shall come, for come it will, that the tree 
 of liberty, more firmly rooted for this fearful hurricane, shall 
 embrace this continent with its giant arms, and our posterity, 
 reposing safely beneath its grateful shade, shall ask whose blood 
 and agonies purchased for them this fair inheritance, then, among 
 the thousands of others, shall they be pointed to that grave, 
 where, side by side, hard by the spot on which they fought and 
 fell, sleep the patriot martyrs of the 36TH ILLINOIS. 
 
CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 BATTLE OF STONE RIVER CONTINUED. 
 
 HAT we may have a full account of all the 
 movements of the Regiment during these event 
 ful days, I will present extracts from the official 
 reports, supplemented by such incidents and 
 comments as the journals of officers and men 
 afford. 
 CAPT. P. c. OLSON S REPORT. 
 
 HEADQUARTERS 36TH ILL. VOLS., \ 
 JANUARY 9, 1863. { 
 
 The 36th Illinois Regiment, Col. N. Greusel commanding, 
 was called into line at four o clock on Tuesday morning, Dec. 30th, 
 1862, and stood under arms until daylight, to the left of the 
 Wilkinson pike, our right resting upon it, five miles from Mur- 
 freesboro. At 9 o clock A. M. we moved forward to Murfrees- 
 boro. Two companies were deployed as skirmishers to the right 
 of the road and were soon engaged with the enemy s skirmishers. 
 When two miles from Murfreesboro, the regiment was deployed 
 in the cornfield to the right of the pike, and two companies were 
 sent forward as skirmishers, as ordered by Gen. Sill. The regi 
 ment lay in line in this field until two o clock p. M., at which 
 time the whole line was ordered to advance. The skirmishers 
 kept up a sharp fire the enemy s line retreating and ours 
 
388 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 advancing. We drove the enemy through the timber and across 
 the cotton-field, a low, narrow strip, stretching to the right, into 
 the timber. A Rebel battery, directly in front of the 36th, 
 opened a heavy fire upon us. Our skirmishers advanced to the 
 foot of the hill near the cotton-field, and here kept up a well- 
 directed fire. We were ordered to support Capt. Bush s Bat 
 tery, which was brought into position in the point of timber 
 where our right rested, and opened fire with terrible effect upon 
 the enemy. We remained as a support until nearly dark, when 
 Capt. Bush went to the rear, the enemy s battery, or rather its 
 disabled fragments, having been dragged from the field. In this 
 day s engagement, the regiment lost three killed and fifteen 
 wounded ; total, eighteen. We occupied the hill during the 
 night, and our skirmishers were in line at the edge of the cot 
 ton-field. 
 
 On the morning of Dec. 31st, soon after daylight, the enemy 
 advanced in strong force from the timber beyond the cotton-field, 
 opposite our right. They came diagonally across the field, and 
 upon reaching the foot of the hill made a left half-wheel, coming 
 up directly in front of us. When the enemy had advanced up 
 the hill sufficiently to be in sight, Col. Greusel ordered the regi 
 ment to fire, which was promptly obeyed. We engaged the 
 enemy at short range, the lines being not over ten rods apart. 
 After a few rounds, the regiment supporting us on the right gave 
 way. In this manner we fought for nearly half an hour, when 
 Col. Greusel ordered the regiment to charge. The enemy fled 
 in great confusion across the cotton-field, into the woods oppo 
 site our left, leaving many of their dead and wounded upon the 
 field. We poured a destructive fire upon them as they retreated, 
 until they were beyond range. 
 
 The 36th again took position upon the hill, and the support 
 for our right came forward. At this time Gen. Sill was killed 
 and Col. Greusel took command of the brigade. A fresh brigade 
 of the enemy advanced from the direction that the first had come, 
 and in splendid order. We opened fire on them with terrific 
 effect. Again the regiment on our right gave way, and we were 
 
CAPTAIN OLSON S REPORT. 389 
 
 again left without support. In this condition we fought until 
 our ammunition was exhausted and the enemy had entirely flanked 
 us on our right. At this juncture, Maj. Miller ordered the reg 
 iment to fall back. While retreating, Maj. Miller was wounded, 
 and the command devolved on me. We moved back of the corn 
 field to the edge of the timber, a hundred rods to the right of 
 the Wilkinson pike and two miles from Murfreesboro, at eight 
 o clock A. M. Here I met Gen. Sheridan and reported to him 
 that the regiment was out of ammunition, and that I would be 
 ready for action as soon as I could obtain it. We had suffered 
 severely in resisting the attack of superior numbers. I had now 
 only one hundred and forty men. The regiment fought with 
 great obstinacy, and much is due Col. N. Greusel for his bravery 
 in conducting the regiment before being called away. Adjutant 
 Biddulph went to find the ammunition, but did not succeed. I then 
 informed Quartermaster Bouton that I needed cartridges, but he 
 failed to find any, except size fifty-eight, the calibre of most of 
 the arms being sixty-nine. I was ordered by Maj-Gen. McCook 
 to fall back to the rear of Gen. Crittenden s corps. I arrived 
 there about ten o clock A. M.. I here obtained ammunition, and 
 despatched the Adjutant to report to Col. Greusel the condition 
 and whereabouts of the regiment. He returned without seeing 
 the Colonel. Lieut. Watkins soon rode up and volunteered to 
 take a message to Col. Greusel or Gen. Sheridan. He also 
 returned without finding either officer. I now went in search of 
 Gen. Sheridan myself; found him at twelve o clock, and reported 
 to him the regiment (what there was left of it) ready to move to 
 the front. He ordered that I should hold the regiment in read 
 iness and await his commands. 
 
 At two o clock P. M. I received orders from Gen. Sheridan to 
 advance to the front to the left of the railroad, and connect my 
 command temporarily with Col. Leibold s brigade. We were 
 here subject to a very severe artillery fire. A twelve-pound 
 shell struck in the right of the regiment, and killed Lieut. Loren 
 L. Olson (a brave and faithful officer, commanding Company F), 
 Corp. Riggs, and wounding three others. At dark we were 
 
390 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 moved by Lieut. Denning one-quarter of a mile to the rear, 
 where we remained for the night. At three o clock in the morn 
 ing of the first of January, 1863, by order of Gen. Sheridan, 
 we marched to his head-quarters on the Nashville pike, a dis 
 tance of half a mile, where at daylight I reported to Col. Greu 
 sel. As ordered by him, we took position to the right of Capt. 
 Bush s battery, fronting west. We built a barricade of logs and 
 stone, and remained through the day ready to receive the enemy, 
 but no attack was made. On the morning of the 2nd. the regi 
 ment was in line at four o clock ; stood under arms until daylight. 
 We remained ready for action through the day until four o clock 
 p. M., when, by order of Col. Greusel, we moved to the right on 
 the line formerly occupied by Gen. Davis. During the night 
 considerable skirmishing occurred on our front. On the morn 
 ing of the 3rd inst., the regiment stood under arms from four 
 o clock until daylight. At eight o clock A. M., by order of Col. 
 Greusel, we changed position to the right and somewhat to the 
 rear, letting our right rest upon the Nashville pike. On the 
 morning of the 4th we were under arms at four o clock. No 
 fighting occurred on our part of the line during the day. In 
 the action throughout, the regiment behaved in the most gallant 
 manner. The officers, with only a single exception, distinguished 
 themselves for bravery and coolness. The men with unflinching 
 courage were always ready, and met the enemy with a determin 
 ation to conquer. I tender my thanks to Adj. Biddulph for the 
 gallant and efficient manner in which he assisted me, and also to 
 the other officers for their gallant action throughout the strong 
 conflict, which resulted in victory. I append to this report a 
 list of casualties. PORTER C. OLSON, 
 
 Captain, Commanding 36th Illinois Vols. 
 The journals of the boys make special mention of the march 
 back to Gen. Sheridan s head-quarters on the Nashville pike at 
 three o clock A. M., January 1st, and no wonder, for they were 
 hungry as well as exhausted, and were allowed to help themselves 
 to rations, which they were not slow to do. Behind the barri 
 cades, mentioned by Capt. Olson in his report, one-half the men 
 
STAMPEDE OF CEDAR SWAMP. 391 
 
 sat up during the nights of January 1st and 2nd, while the oth 
 ers slept, thus securing themselves against a surprise. On the 
 2nd, while holding their position all day, heavy firing continued 
 along the lines till afternoon, when the enemy was drawn into a 
 general engagement, which continued with terrible fury till dark. 
 " We lay," says one, "with our muskets in our hands, breath 
 lessly listening to every change in the battle, every moment 
 expecting it would begin with us. Now could be heard the 
 cheers of our gallant boys as some advantage was gained, then 
 the loud yell of the enemy. At last a long, loud cheer broke 
 from our lines as the firing grew distant, and we had gained the 
 battle." It is to this engagement on our left reference is made 
 in my journal, and of it Gen. Rosecrans says in his report : 
 " The firing was terrific, and the havoc terrible. The enemy 
 retreated more rapidly than they had advanced. In forty min 
 utes they lost two thousand men." 
 
 The hospital steward, J. C. Denison, gives a lively picture of 
 the stampede through the Cedar Swamps, the remembrance of 
 which will never be effaced from the mind of any one who saw 
 it. He says of Dec. 31st : " The fighting commenced very 
 heavy, and soon Johnson s whole brigade was running, and a 
 greater stampede I never saw. We all ran through a large cedar 
 swamp, over stones, across the railroad, through fields, the secesh 
 throwing shells right among us. They got so near that they 
 took teams all around us, but George Woods and our team got 
 away." Soon he adds : " The ambulance drivers got up another 
 big scare and ran off and left us." The day after he says : 
 "Very soon the cannon commenced to boom and the drivers 
 mounted in hot haste and started again, but soon we got them 
 back." 
 
 J. L. Dryden, of Company C, says: "At the opening of 
 the battle on Wednesday morning, Dec. 31st, I fired one shot 
 
392 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 while lying down behind our little breast-work of cedar rails, 
 but not liking the situation as far as loading was concerned, I 
 rose up and remained standing during the battle. With the 
 second shot I received a buck shot in my right arm, (which 
 remains there yet) and which felt at the time more like the prick 
 of a pin than anything else. This kept me off duty for about 
 one week. At the time the second charge was made, when our 
 forces on our right had given way, the old regiment fell back one 
 at a time, until when I started for the rear there was not a man 
 of our regiment on my right, and the Johnnies were rapidly 
 forming a bull pen around us. Thinks I to myself, Old 
 Broadhorns is a goner sure. I started for the rear, dragging my 
 old musket in my right hand, and some man, I never knew who, 
 ran along beside me for quite a distance, when all at once a 
 musket ball struck him in the back of the head, coming out of 
 his nose, throwing him face up right in front of me, and his 
 dying groan I never can forget. I found my way to the hospital 
 wagon, had my pin-hole wound dressed, and returned to the 
 company next day, but had no more fighting that time." 
 
 Among the bravest of the brave should be mentioned Sergt. 
 0. Smith, of Company E, whose gallantry was so conspicuous 
 as to win the special commendation of his officers, and after the 
 battle he was promoted to the 2nd Lieutenancy of his Company. 
 
 There were well authenticated cases of soldiers prophesying 
 their own death. Such an one occurred in this battle. Samuel 
 Young, Company D, before the engagement of the 31st Dec., 
 said to his comrades, " I have passed through two battles, but 
 this is my last," shook hands and bade "good-bye" to nearly all 
 his Company. His premonition proved true, for after the fight 
 his comrades, some of whom had ridiculed his prophecy, found 
 his body, face to the enemy, and as there was nothing terrible 
 
COMMENDATION OF OFFICERS. 393 
 
 depicted on his countenance, it was felt that Sam was ready to 
 meet death as he had been ever ready to meet the enemies of 
 his country. 
 
 Charles J. Miner, of Company K, had an enormous Roman 
 nose, which won for him the name of "Nosey." This promi 
 nent organ was the source of much fun, and his companions 
 declared that if ever he was shot, his nose, which overshadowed 
 his face, would be the object hit ; and sure enough, at this battle 
 he was shot through his nose. The damage disfigured him more 
 than ever until the wound was healed, when it was found that 
 the quantity of nose shot away materially improved his looks, so 
 that the name " Nosey " was afterward dropped. 
 
 All spoke enthusiastically of the hopeful courage of Gen. 
 Rosecrans, who seemed to be everywhere. He visited our lines 
 during the night, showed the men how to rear up rails against 
 their breastworks of logs and stones, and, while firing between 
 the rails, have their own heads well protected from attack. 
 
 Gen. Rosecrans says in his report, " Col. Greusel, 36th 111. 
 Vols., and Col. Bradley, 51st 111. Vols. are especially commended 
 for skill and courage." 
 
 Gen. Sheridan s report says of Col. Greusel and other officers 
 who took charge of brigades at the death of their commanders : 
 "These officers behaved gallantly throughout the day." Gen. 
 S. also adds : " I refer with pride to the splendid conduct, bravery 
 and efficiency of the following regimental commanders, and the 
 officers and men of their respective commands: Maj. Silas Mil 
 ler, 36th 111. ; wounded and a prisoner. Capt. P. C. Olson, 
 36th 111., Company B Cavalry." Capt. Sherer s command was 
 on duty at Gen. Davis headquarters, and of them Gen. D. says in 
 his report: " The enemy s pickets were discovered by my cavalry 
 
 26 
 
3$4 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 escor t composed of Company B, 36th Illinois Vols., under com 
 mand of Capt. Sherer within a few miles of our camp. This 
 small squad of cavalry being the only mounted force under my 
 command, I ordered them to the front, with instructions to drive 
 in the enemy s pickets, and to attack him on his flanks at every 
 opportunity. So effectually -was this done that the infantry and 
 artillery were enabled to move with little interruption to within 
 a mile of Nolensville. By this time I had learned from reliable 
 information, through citizens, as well as ca.valry scouts, that the 
 enemy occupied the town in some force, both of cavalry and 
 artillery." 
 
 Col. Carlin, commanding 2nd Brigade, 1st Division, reports : 
 " Of my orderlies, Private Pease, Company B, 36th Illinois 
 Vols., had his horse shot under him while carrying my orders. 
 Private Knox, same company, also had his horse shot under him, 
 and while endeavoring to procure another horse for me, was 
 wounded by a grape shot, and again by a minnie ball." 
 
 LIST OF KILLED AND WOUNDED. 
 
 OFFICERS KILLED. 
 
 2nd Lieut. Loren P. Olson, Company F. 
 
 OFFICERS WOUNDED. 
 
 Major Silas Miller, 1st Lieut. S. H. Wakeman, Company A ; Capt. B. 
 F. Campbell, Company B; Capt. Albert Hobbs, Company E; Lieut. G. 
 W. Mossman, Company F; Capt. O. B. Merrill, Company I; 1st Lieut. 
 John F. Elliott, Company K. 
 
 OFFICERS MISSING. 
 
 2nd Lieut. Myron Smith, Company H. 
 
 NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICERS KILLED. 
 
 Corp. Thomas Fenner, Company A; Sergt. David McClorg, Company 
 B; Sergt Alexander Stickler and Corp. William C. Benedict, Company 
 D; Sergt. Michael Boomer and Corp. Alfred Riggs, Company F; Corps. 
 Wm. Hutchings, Orlando W. Nash and Alvin S. Bunker, Company H; 
 Corp. Asaph Adams, Company K. 
 
KILLED AND WOUNDED. 395 
 
 NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICEKS WOUNDED. 
 
 Sergt. Alexander Robinson and Corporal Benjamin D. Rowland, 
 Company A; Corporals Henry B. Latham and Wm. F. Blakeslee, Com 
 pany B; Corp. John C. Taylor, Company D; 1st Sergt. O. Smith, Sergt. 
 L. F. Hemenway, Corps. D. Darnell and D. Burnside, Company E; 
 Sergts. S. L. Smith and Wm. Eybond, and Corp. Wm. Mossman, Com 
 pany F; 1st Sergt. H. N. Crittenden, and Sergts. Nelson B. Sherwood, 
 J. C. Wolfe and D. Hartman, Company H; Sergt. T. Folsom and Corp. 
 Frank Weeks, Company K. 
 
 LIST OF THE MISSING. 
 
 Sergt. D. Smith, Company I. 
 
 PRIVATES KILLED. 
 
 Henry Clayton, Thomas Staunton, Frederick H. Burmaster, Moses F. 
 Gibbs and George M. Johnson, Company A ; Frank Thompson, Com 
 pany B; Joseph Baxter, James Elder, Daniel H. Buchanan and Wm. F. 
 Arthurs, Company C ; James Thorp and Samuel Young, Company D ; 
 Benjamin Sayers, Nicholas Meehan, Augustus Kastin, William Burgess 
 and James Baird, Company E; James Foster, Cornelius Seward, Rich 
 ard H. Spaulding, Charles Wangler and Augustus Vanorden, Company 
 F ; Zalman F. Hulse,Henry D. Norton and David Vandorsten, Company G ; 
 Robert Archibald, Washington M. Floyd, William H. Jones and Lorenzo 
 D. Keyes, Company H ; Leander Ellis, Company I ; George Lenheart, 
 George Monroe, George Pollock and George Hall, Company K. 
 
 PRIVATES WOUNDED. 
 
 Alexander C. Lind, Leroy Salsbury, Cyrus F. Dean, John W. Aid- 
 rich, Charles A. Brown, Freeman S. Dunkle, John Flood, Alexander F. 
 Henderson, John A. Hewitt, David Munro, Merrill H. Sabin, Charles L. 
 Themur, Milton S. Townsend and John A. White, Company A; Ornery 
 D. Haseltine, Henry Alcott, Vanwyck Race, John Ott, Adam Reitz, 
 William Vanohlen, James Campbell and Thomas McConnell, Company 
 B; Robert J. Colwell, James L. Dryden, Albert 0. Eckleston, John B. 
 Edgar, Thomas B. Gormley, William Hartsell, Ferdinand Hercher, 
 Warren Kintsee, Ethan Keck, Francis McClanahan, Walter Reeder, 
 John Shook, James H. Smith, Abraham Steward and Joseph Young, 
 Company C; O. H. Thompson, Joseph A. Smith, Harvey Kimball, 
 Henry F. Burch, Lynder K . Banister, Thomas Welch, Samuel Tucker, 
 Nelson Eckerson, 0. N. Johnson, 0. W. Oleson and Lewis R. Seymor, 
 Company D; Frederick Beir, Alfred Bullard, James Brown, Charles G! 
 Doane, Charles W. Doty, Aaron Darnell, Uriah Foster, Oscar Howe, 
 Henry Haigh, James Harral, William Hunter, James S. Hatch, Gilbert 
 Ketcham, Elisha E. Lloyd, George W. Lanigan, Henry Mullen, James *E. 
 Moss, George E. Merrill, Cyrus Perry, Walter S. Ralston, Charles H. 
 
396 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Scofleld and Joel Wagner, Company E; William Curtis, Stephen Cum- 
 mings, Edwin Dopp, William A. Haggett, John Jordan, Anton Myer, 
 Lewis Oleson, Alfred Tomlin, Albert H. Wulff and William Thompson, 
 Company F ; William Goold, Robert B. Home, Daniel Kennedy, Peter 
 Bradt, William Chamberlain, Joseph Hebert, Robert Jordan, George 
 W. Moody, Wilbur Roseman, William F. Severans, Peter Buchanan, 
 Frank Small and Milton G. Yarnell, Company G; Charles Crawford, 
 Jackson Conroe, Jerome Ford, John Sackett, David D. Warwick, Myron 
 Harris and Munroe Throop, Company H; Frederick Witzkey, William 
 Varner. John Roth and Anton Miller, Company I; John Gordon, 
 Eldridge Adams, Frederick Hazelhurst, Sydney Wauzen, Henry Buten, 
 Charles Miner, Owen Wood, Henry Hogue, Lemuel Grundy, John 
 Peterson, Paul VanWicklin, Eugene Albso, Harlem Sanders and Lucien 
 Button, Company K. 
 
 PRIVATES MISSING. 
 
 Isaac N. Miner, Edwin H. Robinson, Albert Shan, John F. Scott, 
 Company A; Elnathan Weeden, Adam Campbell, Jacob Winn, Carl 
 Eckhart,Joel Wilder,Company B; Frank Henning, Oliver Edmond, Com 
 pany D ; William Woolen wiber, Company E ; Canute Phillips, Company 
 F; Jesse Brown, Company G; Robert Kee, Company H ; D. M. Carry, 
 Company I; Allen Bursse, Edward Reader, Joseph Leurman, George 
 Gates, Company K. 
 
CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 PRISON LIFE IN THE SOUTH COL. MILLER S STORY. 
 
 NOW come to that portion of my experience which 
 is not interesting to me, but is perhaps to you. 
 Immediately after my capture I was offered a parole. 
 I remarked, I did not believe it would be recog 
 nized by Gen. Rosecrans. In holding me, I pro 
 posed there should be some one held in my place, 
 and there was, until a week ago last Tuesday. We 
 were hurried immediately, as fast as we could walk, 
 to Murfreesboro, where we found from one to three 
 thousand men from Johnson s Division and some from Davis , 
 cooped up in a yard in that place. We were put in the upper 
 room of a very handsome house, of course, and when their lines 
 began to fall back, they hurried us off to Chattanooga, and from 
 thence to Atlanta, arriving at that place on the 21st of January. 
 On that day Jeff, said he should exchange no more prisoners, 
 but was going to try them all for negro stealing, the penalty for 
 that offence being death. 
 
 At Atlanta, during the first two months we were no better treated 
 than I supposed we should be. Your treatment as a prisoner of 
 war in the Southern Confederacy will depend much into whose 
 hands you fall. As a whole, I did not complain, for I fared as 
 well as other officers did, yet never as hard in the Federal lines. 
 
398 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 I do verily believe that if our army was fed as bad, fifty per 
 cent of them would desert, officers and all. 
 
 Prison life is a very different thing from what you may antic 
 ipate. It is not very pleasant to be there and know you can t 
 get outside ; to know there is a bayonet and musket pointed at 
 you if you try to get by. At the same time, there is no place 
 in life where I could not enjoy myself to some extent, and I 
 enjoyed myself there. There was a jolly set of boys there, from 
 Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio, Michigan, Missouri, &c., and they 
 were all good company. What time we could not use up playing 
 cards, sledge, euchre, &c., was spent in reading light literature. 
 Our rations consisted of all we wanted to eat of cornmeal, mixed 
 with water, thrown by not a very clean negro into a pan and 
 baked, and venerable beef beef that ought to exact reverence 
 from any man who looked at it. 
 
 Ladies and gentlemen, if you ever go where there are prison 
 ers of war, go with a civil tongue in your head. If you cannot 
 go to see prisoners without offering an insult, let them alone. It 
 is mean yes, it is downright cowardice to insult a man when 
 he is in your power. Rebels were very liable to get into dis 
 cussions with us. Rebel newspapers are the most consummate 
 set of liars to be found anywhere. The press of the South have 
 done more to deceive the people than anything else in the whole 
 South. Their ardor does not consist so much in their patriot 
 ism, a love of their cause based upon truths they know, as the 
 knowledge they have is from the lies of Rebel newspapers. I know 
 they lied some, because they said we could not sing, which was 
 not so. During my incarceration I never was interrogated but 
 once with regard to my political feelings. A man asked me what 
 I was in the army for. I told him I would not argue with him, 
 because it would make him none the better. He said he did not 
 believe I knew what I was fighting for ; that we were all mis 
 guided, were all abolitionists, and all we went into the war for 
 was the nigger ; that we would all soon get sick of it, and get 
 out ; the South was not going to give up till we drove them to 
 the last ditch. The guard gave me permission to say what I was 
 
COL. MILLER S STORY. 399 
 
 a mind to. I asked him about the origin of this rebellion ; 
 if there was anything honorable, honest or consistent in the mem 
 bers of the United States Senate from the Southern States swear 
 ing upon the Bible to support the Constitution of the United 
 States, when they were secretly plotting to break up this glorious 
 Union, thus swearing to a lie? that they were malicious per 
 jurers. I asked him if they could succeed and exist in such a 
 cause, cradled and swathed in crime, and kept in existence by 
 the worst form of slavery, by the most diabolical measures ; that 
 my platform was annihilation and re-population of the Southern 
 Confederacy. 
 
 That is my platform still ! and if it costs the life of your son, 
 the life of my brother, my life, and a million of other lives, what 
 is that compared with the support and preservation of this gov 
 ernment ? 
 
 We remained at Atlanta till the majority were taken to Rich 
 mond. All supposed we were to be exchanged. We got our 
 blankets packed up, and felt very happy, but the man came and 
 said he guessed some of these fellows were going to remain, 
 because Gen. Rosecrans had got some of their legislature men in 
 Louisville, and till they were released we were to suffer the same 
 penalty inflicted on them ; if they were shot, we were to be shot. 
 This was very pleasant after thinking you were to be free. We 
 hostages were left in the best prison, the others went to the Libby 
 prison. After this time our treatment in Atlanta was excellent, 
 our guard being one of the very best in existence. The first 
 party went to Richmond by way of Augusta, and we went by 
 way of Knoxville and Lynchburg. 
 
 There is a great deal of loyalty in East Tennessee. In Knox 
 ville, officers were offered any amount of money they wished. 
 There was upwards of four thousand dollars offered to the officers 
 if they would only accept it. For natural beauty it is next to 
 Kentucky and the Fox River Valley. In Richmond, our old 
 friends, except a few, were still remaining, but many officers were 
 in Libby prison. In the New York Herald there was published 
 a full description of the prisoners and their position. 
 
400 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 The first thing you would hear in the morning was a big negro, 
 hollering "great news ;" but he would not sell any of his papers 
 till all were awake. The price was very reasonable. One-half 
 sheet seven columns, and price only fifteen cents apiece. The 
 next thing after reading the papers, was to find out when your 
 turn came to cook. Sometimes we had a chance to cook twice, 
 and sometimes but once. If you had the first chance, you might 
 cook twice ; if not, you ate just as little bread as you could get 
 along with, and hung off till dinner time. Our rations in Libby 
 prison were riot anything to brag of. The meat was not much 
 worse than we had while in Atlanta a little older and somewhat 
 more venerable. We could not get very near it until it had been 
 boiled in two or three waters. Some of it had been pickled in 
 the same brine that had been used for pickling oysters, and all 
 that you would have to do to distribute it around, was to take oft 
 its shackles and order it to go, which it could do without further 
 assistance. With this beef we had a one-half pound loaf of hard 
 bread, and I have seen the time I could eat the day s rations at 
 one meal very comfortably. 
 
 Bread was worth $2.25 ; butter, $2.50, and molasses could be 
 bought at from $13.00 to $16.00 per gallon. We used to have 
 pretty high living when we had plenty of money. 
 
 The most amusing occupation we had, was what we called 
 skirmishing. A class of individuals were disposed to dispute our 
 sovereignty to a certain portion of our property. Our blankets 
 were of a curious nature. I don t know how many men had died 
 in them ; 1 don t know where they came from ; but I do know 
 they had a great many inhabitants in them. Mine had, and it 
 was absolutely impossible to rid them of their tenants. ,You 
 might sit and search your clothes ; the iioor on which you slept ; 
 might look at your blankets ; boil them in hot water, and you 
 could not expect to exterminate the heavy division called " Grey 
 Backs," which came down upon us like an avalanche every night. 
 One of our principal sources of amusement in Libby prison, was 
 punishing these fellows. Sleeping on the floor is very nearly as 
 good as sleeping on the ground ; but not quite, because you could 
 
COL. MILLER S STORY. 401 
 
 make a hole in the ground. We used to sing there, very consider- 
 bly, " Old John Brown," &c., and by this means passed away many 
 a happy hour. We were in Richmond till a week ago Tuesday. 
 A week ago last Sunday, the doctor conveyed the idea that we 
 were going to be carried to City Point. If you ever saw a panic 
 anywhere; if you ever saw men concerned about their prop 
 erty and negroes ; if ever men were in a panic, they were when 
 Stoneman s cavalry neared the city. I believe fifteen hundred 
 cavalrymen could have gone into that city burned all the gov 
 ernment stores, cars and transportation, which, by the way, is 
 one of their very greatest supports. No train was permitted to 
 run more than ten miles an hour, and when you destroy a full 
 train of cars, you do them more damage than if you destroy a 
 whole brigade of infantry. The following Tuesday morning we 
 were taken to City Point, where we saw a flag-of-truce boat, and 
 for the first time in four months we saw the American flag. When 
 you come out from under the tyrannical power of the S. C., and 
 compare it with the control under which you now live, you will 
 then know what relief is. 
 
 The order and system that exists in Fortress Monroe, com 
 pared with that of City Point, presented a most glowing contrast. 
 I don t see how any man who has ordinary observation, judging 
 from what he can see, can have any sympathy whatever for the 
 Southern Confederacy. I don t see how any man here can pos 
 sibly grumble at the deprivation of his liberties under the Gov 
 ernment, at the enormous taxes, duties, &c. Nothing makes me 
 so completely exasperated as to hear a man complain of the right 
 to suspend the writ of habeas corpus, when in the Southern Con 
 federacy it has been suspended without any right. All you have 
 to do there is to be suspicioned, and that is enough to throw you 
 into prison. I have seen gangs of from forty to sixty, with iron 
 bracelets on each hand, marching into prison, to remain not till 
 they take the oath of allegiance, but till they volunteer to go 
 into the Confederate army, or stay till the war is over one or 
 the other they have to do. 
 
402 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 CAPT. MERRILL S STORY. 
 
 We, Col. Silas Miller, Capt. Albert Hobbs, Capt. 0. B. Mer 
 rill, Capt. Frank Campbell, Capt. Wakeman and Lieut. Smith, 
 prisoners taken at Stone River on the last day of December, 
 1862, after a stay of three weeks at Atlanta, arrived at Libby 
 via Augusta, Ga. ; Sumpter, S. C. ; Wilmington, N. C. Our 
 advent, in company with many other officers of other regiments 
 at the old tobacco mansion, was the signal for great rejoicing on 
 the part of the denizens of Richmond, who came in large num 
 bers to see how Western soldiers looked, they having never seen 
 any such before. We were given quarters on the first floor, adja 
 cent to the room of Major Turner, the commandant of the prison. 
 The prison was about 60 by 30 feet, with a very good view, from 
 the two back windows, of the James River, the cotton mills on 
 its opposite bank, and the surrounding country. The view from 
 the front was not so pleasant. Most of the time it was a home 
 guard carrying a musket. The furniture was plain and substan 
 tial : one twelve-foot bench. Toward evening we were furnished 
 with a blanket each, well lined with u grey-backs;" and wrapping 
 the frisky drapery around us, we lay down to sleep, or dream, or 
 scratch our first night in Libby. 
 
 The morning came, dark, heavy and dreary, and upon every 
 face were hidden glances of solicitude, of reflection. But the 
 dreariness soon passed away in the presence of new duties and 
 new scenes. There were twenty-two officers, all from the West 
 ern army, Brig. Gen. Willich, of Johnson s Division, among the 
 number. At ten o clock came the roll-caller (one Ross, who 
 perished at the burning of the Spottswood House in 74), and 
 then came rations for the day : two table-spoonsful of black beans, 
 two of rice, six ounces of meat (generally mule), and three small 
 slices of bread. With this was a dozen tin plates. This neces 
 sitated the dividing of the company into messes of twelve, and 
 with the conviction that in union there is strength, we put the 
 twelve rations together into one kettle, boiling to a soup. It was 
 soup, soup, twice a day for five months, with but a few excep 
 tions. It was also a lucky thing for the cooks that so many men 
 
CAPT. MERRILL S STORY. 403 
 
 of different nationalities were fond of soup. About the com 
 mencement of the soup season we purchased an old stove for one 
 hundred and sixty dollars, making an everyday detail from each 
 mess of two as cooks, thus enabling us to cater to our appetites 
 more fully by occasionally having soup. 
 
 The prisoners were generally disconsolate for the first month, 
 from the fact that we were continually reminded that an exchange 
 was about to take place, but we soon learned that this was for 
 effect, to keep the gathering force resigned. Then it was that 
 some of the prisoners, whose home ties were strong, became dis 
 heartened and sick, resulting in their being taken to the hospital, 
 which they rarely ever left except in a pine coffin. It was 
 at such times that inducements were offered to enter the Confed 
 erate service, but we have no record of a single one accepting or 
 even giving it a thought. The monotony and close confinement 
 was beginning to tell upon us, and give signs in the gaunt faces, 
 listless eyes and stupid utterances. But Gen. Willich, a thorough 
 soldier, came to the rescue by organizing games of exercise, one 
 of which was "Fox and Geese." This soon became the game of 
 all others, which was practiced twice a day for four months, and 
 to its highly entertaining qualities many were in debt for their 
 rescue from gloomy thoughts, the hospital and death. Our " Fox 
 and Geese" was similar to the old game, with the exception of 
 which the Fox must hop from his corner on one leg, having a 
 knotted handkerchief, and whoever received a blow must u git" 
 to the goal, after having to run the gauntlet of all the geese who 
 also had knotted handkerchiefs to help the victim along. There 
 were some strong arms there, and some knots larger than others, 
 and some officers who wore jackets and were possessed of rotund 
 forms, not over active, and for such the running of the gauntlet 
 had its terrors. New recruits were brought in almost every day. 
 and this was our mode of initiation. It may seem to those not 
 acquainted with the situation that there was folly in this, but in 
 the absence of reading matter or any occupation whatever, it was 
 the very best thing to do. At times the discipline around the 
 prison was very severe. The guards on the James river side, on 
 the slightest pretext shooting through the windows, but there was 
 
404 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 no one hit, though there were some narrow escapes. The rim of 
 Col. Miller s hat was perforated during one of their shooting 
 scrapes. 
 
 The floor above us was used as a prison for Southern Union 
 men, and through a hole in the floor, we opened a correspondence 
 and an exchange bank. 
 
 Finding that a dollar of our money went no further than a dol 
 lar of Confederate when sent out by the guard for rice and 
 tobacco, we were not long in finding out, too, that we could do 
 better, the Union prisoners above offering four, five and six dollars 
 for one of greenbacks, we always taking the highest bidder. A 
 string was let down, the* greenback tied on and hauled up and its 
 price returned. About the first of April the small-pox appeared. 
 As a " preventative," they smoked us twice a day. "Uncle 
 John," a colored prisoner, appeared at such times with his camp- 
 kettle half full of burning leather, crying out, " Good mornin , 
 gentlemen; here s yer nice warm smoke." All "business" was 
 immediately suspended. Weeping, sneezing, and feeling around 
 for what was once a handkerchief, in the smudge of half an hour, 
 was about all that was done. But there were many things said. 
 
 Our room was full, and, perhaps owing to the prevailing epi 
 demic, a large number were removed to a room on the third floor, 
 all officers being selected above and below the grade of captain, 
 thus separating the 36th squad; leaving Capt. Hobbs, Capt. 
 Waterman, Capt. Campbell and the writer below ; Col. Miller 
 and Lieut. Smith above a change not all desirable. 
 
 About this time, Brig. Gen. Stoughton arrived, captured from 
 the army of the Potomac, and taken at the same time was a Rus 
 sian baron, a Captain of Lances in his country, taking " items " 
 at the general s headquarters. He was assigned to our mess, and 
 Capt. Campbell, who was cook for that day, conducted him to the 
 table, placing before him a tin plate and a wooden spoon, asking, 
 "Will you have some of the soup, sir?" He looked thin and 
 hungry, but he said gracefully, " No, tank you ; I haf never eat 
 soup." This being the first and last "course," he fasted, we 
 knowing full well the cause. For three days the Baron held out, 
 
CAPT. MERRILL S STORY. 405 
 
 but hunger levels the best of us, and so it did him, for on the 
 afternoon of the third day he left the table filled with disgust," but 
 he was filled with soup, too. To say that he was shocked at the 
 kind and manner of dispensing rations, was nothing compared to 
 his unutterable disgust at finding, on examination, his garments 
 covered with " graybacks." This completely knocked the dignity 
 out of him, but being a very sensible baron, he finally laughed the 
 thing off by saying that when he got back to Russia he vould 
 hav a good long shoke on ze boys." He remained with us about 
 six weeks, when he was exchanged through the Russian Minister, 
 and on his arrival at Washington, wrote for the press a very faith 
 ful account of our trials, which was copied in the Richmond 
 Examiner, we, through our " warm smoke " man, obtaining a 
 copy. 
 
 Commissioner Ould came in about the first of May, informing 
 us that there seemed no hopes of an exchange, and that our Gov 
 ernment had sent us clothes pants, shirts and blouses. We 
 needed the clothes. Being without needles and thread, some of 
 the company would have made a very distressing appearance in 
 any garden. 
 
 The goods were brought in a box containing about twenty- 
 five suits, for three hundred officers. " More were sent, but they 
 were captured (?) by the Confederates," said the Commissioner. 
 Our 36th squad of four, in the lower room, received one shirt, 
 which we wore by detail, two days on and six days off. The 
 duty in this case was light. One blessing we had, and that was 
 water plenty of it, and good. We had, too, some very fine 
 singers, and they fairly inocculated the walls of that prison with 
 our national and patriotic melodies. So touching were they to 
 the ears of the guards at times, that they often came in to listen 
 always giving an order on such occasions. Of the many offi 
 cers together and constantly arriving, but one feeling actuated 
 them that of liberty to again take the field. The best of har 
 mony prevailed throughout the whole time of imprisonment. 
 
 Near the first of June, at midnight, guards appeared with 
 lights, the Adjutant commanding us to prepare for immediate 
 
406 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 departure from the prison. In silence a silence that was almost 
 mournful each one proceeded to obey the command, for all 
 thoughts were busy at the unexpected relief and the future. All 
 filed out into the street, where we remained for half an hour, then 
 were ordered back into the prison, as " some little difficulty with 
 the enemy had interrupted communications," said the Adjutant. 
 The " little difficulty " proved to be a cavalry raid, in which our 
 troops got within eight miles of Richmond, so we learned from a 
 wounded officer brought in the next morning. All took the mat 
 ter of returning coolly, feeling assured that release would soon 
 come. 
 
 And so it did. On the third of June, again at midnight, we 
 were marched out and to the depot, took the cars for City Point ; 
 arrived about three o clock in the afternoon, boarded the steamer 
 " State of Main," and were under the old flag. Without bustle 
 or confusion she steamed from the dock, and when our captors 
 were no longer in sight, as if an unseen hand had touched the 
 magnet, there broke from those four hundred and fifty throats in 
 song, "The Star Spangled Banner." The silence was broken, 
 and the five months of captivity ended. 
 
 Of the six prisoners of the 36th at Libby at that time, but 
 two are living, Lieut. Col. Frank Campbell and the writer. 
 Capt. Wakeman and Lieut. Smith were killed at Chicamauga, 
 Col. Miller at Kenesaw Mountain, Capt. Hobbs died about two 
 years ago from a wound received at Chicamauga. A great many 
 incidents relating to the imprisonment may have passed from my 
 memory during the past thirteen years, but the main features are 
 as fresh to-day as then, and I hope they may remain so in time 
 to come. 
 
CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 MURFREESBORO. 
 
 FTER the battle, the army was disposed to the south 
 of Murfreesboro, in such a way as to defend the dif 
 ferent approaches to the town. Our brigade was 
 stationed on the banks of Stone river, about three 
 miles south of town, on the Shelbyville Pike. The 
 encampment was named " Camp Bradley," in com 
 pliment to Col. Bradley, Commander 3rd Brigade. Some one 
 has said that the worst thing next to a defeat is a victory ; and 
 certain it is that a great battle, even if it results in victory and 
 holding the objective point, brings terrible exhaustion and dis 
 order. Men and officers are literally worn out, and life for a 
 time seems a burden, while the gaps which death and wounds 
 have made in the ranks of both officers and men, not only weaken 
 very materially the force of the army, but necessitate such 
 changes as for a time throw business into almost inextricable 
 confusion and perplexity. The wounded must be cared for, the 
 dead buried, the promotions and changes necessary to carry on 
 army life must be made ; then reports, company, regimental, 
 brigade, division and corps, must be made out, and every care 
 taken to secure the property and pay of every wounded and dead 
 
408 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 man, and whoever is familiar with the minute details connected 
 with army reports, knows that this is a stupendous task. Yet 
 all the routine of military life must go on. The enemy must be 
 watched, the army clothed and fed, defences thrown up, and 
 Everything done to make past success secure and prepare for fur 
 ther efforts. 
 
 Everything that could be was done at once for the care of the 
 wounded. As early as Monday morning after the battle, a train 
 of ambulances took to Nashville a large number that could be 
 moved, and on the following Thursday, Dr. Pierce and I accom 
 panied another train from our division. It was long after night 
 when we arrived, and as we went around from church to church, 
 and from building to building, all occupied as hospitals, it seemed 
 for a time as though we should scarcely be able to dispose of our 
 suffering charge. And indeed it was not until after midnight 
 that we secured a resting place for our last man, and could our 
 selves lie down and sleep. 
 
 The next day we spent in visiting the wounded of our imme 
 diate acquaintance, many of whom could not contain their joy at 
 seeing some one from the regiment. The severely wounded who 
 could not bear so long a journey were brought into the Court 
 House and the private houses of Murfreesboro. Surgeons were 
 detailed to care for them, and everything possible for their com 
 fort and recovery was done. The wounded of the 36th who thus 
 remained were cared for incessantly, not only by our own sur 
 geons, Young and Pierce, but by the officers and men of their 
 own companies, and it was particularly touching to see the tender 
 interest which the men felt in their suffering comrades. They 
 would send their gifts by me as I started to visit them, and on 
 my return to camp I was plied with every enquiry as to their 
 condition and prospects. But for many of them there was no 
 
A DOUBLE VICTORY WON. 409 
 
 hope, and one after another, after exhibiting a patience and hope 
 fulness truly heroic, succumbed to their fate, and quite a number 
 whose names appear in the list as wounded, were soon counted 
 among the dead. 
 
 Among all the feelings which characterize a soldier, none is 
 more worthy of notice than the solicitude with which he waits to 
 learn how the news of his deeds is received at home. The Army 
 of the Cumberland was conscious of having achieved a great vic 
 tory, and it waited to learn what the country, and especially the 
 loved ones at home thought of it. For awhile communication 
 was broken and uncertain, but at last there came pouring into 
 camp, bushels of letters and papers, filled with praises and con 
 gratulations. No language seemed too strong to express the 
 pride and joy of the people. 
 
 It was found, too, that we had been fighting a double battle 
 and had won a double victory. The sympathizers with the South 
 in some of the Northern States, and especially in Illinois, embold 
 ened by the delays and the recent disasters in the army of the 
 Potomac, had determined on an attempt to embarrass and even 
 change the administration in Springfield, and call home the Illi 
 nois troops. But the victory at Stone River, and especially the 
 determined spirit of the army, checked their plans. They felt 
 that the army was in earnest and would stand no trifling, and 
 when, by and by, Gov. Yates prorogued the Legislature, even 
 without any appropriations for carrying on the Government, the 
 people felt relieved. All these events were discussed in camp 
 with the intensest interest, and joined with the enthusiastic praises 
 of all loyal hearted people, seemed to make some compensation 
 for the sacrifices and agonies of the battle-field. But the friends 
 at home were not contented with sending letters and congratula 
 tions they sent delegations of citizens to visit us and, if possible, 
 27 
 
410 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 to aid us. Though Gen. Rosecrans issued orders against civilians 
 visiting the army, a few of the many who came down to Nash 
 ville succeeded in reaching the front. Among these were Messrs. 
 Sherman, Rosecrans and Mallory, from Elgin ; Dr. R. Hopkins, 
 of Bristol, and a pastor, from Warren County. Some of these 
 gentlemen and quite a party of officers, spent one whole day in 
 exploring the battle-field, going over especially that part in which 
 the 36th had been most engaged. We stood together on the spot 
 where the deadly attack of the 31st was made, and listened to a, 
 description of its wild horrors from the lips of Major Sherman 
 and others who were present, and read in the twisted and riven 
 trees a silent confirmation of the terrible story. 
 
 We then passed through the Cedar Swamp and out near the 
 Nashville road, where were remaining the very barricades which 
 the regiment threw up in the first days of January. After rid 
 ing fifteen or sixteen miles, we returned, weary and hungry, but 
 more than ever impressed with the greatness and importance of 
 the deadly struggle. 
 
 In January and February, although there were many bright, 
 beautiful days as warm and genial as May, yet we were much 
 tried by heavy rain storms, some of which ended in sleet and 
 snow. Our encampment was very unfavorable for such weather, 
 and many of the tents were flooded at one time or another, while 
 the sound of the river was like the rumbling of the cars. The 
 journals of the boys at this time were filled with accounts of these 
 terrible inundations. " The rain ran into the tent so hard," says 
 one, " that Fin and I had to get up on to some boxes to sleep. 
 The water was six inches deep." The rain was no respecter of 
 persons, for Dr. Young wrote : " Last night was a terrible night. 
 Everything was afloat ; our tent leaked badly ; our bed was sat 
 urated. The water was from three to six inches deep all over our 
 
A SOAKING STORM. 411 
 
 tent. Our things swam about generally. I did not sleep much, 
 I was too wet and cold. Got up after daylight and stood up on 
 the bed to dress myself; then went down and waded out. The 
 whole camp was overflowed and looked like a vast sea. We cast 
 about and found a high piece of ground, and then took up our 
 bed and walked. We soon moved our tent and commenced busi 
 ness on a new basis, from a higher standpoint in society and Ten 
 nessee. After awhile, we succeeded in getting our regular hard- 
 bread, bacon and coffee for breakfast." At headquarters they 
 only had two meals that day, owing to the storm. This unpleas 
 ant weather, when for several days we could not see the sun, 
 was a time for feeling lonesome and homesick ; but when the 
 sun came out again, every one cheered up. We were com 
 forted, too, with the knowledge that these floods would swell 
 the Cumberland River, and thus vastly increase our facilities 
 for supplying the army, which hitherto had depended on the 
 single line of railroad and the wagon-train from Mitchellville. A 
 good deal of extra duty also was performed through all this 
 stormy time. Gen. Rosecrans ordered the building of extensive 
 and elaborate fortifications to the north of Murfreesboro, designed 
 not only to hold the point, but to be a vast storehouse of supplies, 
 from which we might draw after we had advanced further south. 
 These works were admirably constructed, so as to defend the 
 approaches from every direction, and were supplied with bomb 
 proof magazines and a railroad track connecting the different 
 sections and wings. On these works the regiment was some 
 times detailed, and the different journals unite in mentioning one 
 wet Sunday when they were so engaged. 
 
 Sometimes, also, the whole brigade was sent out on picket, and 
 quite often something lively would occur on the front line, as on 
 January llth, when the outposts beyond our pickets were driven 
 
412 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 in by the enemy, shortly after npon. The whole command was 
 under arms for about three hours, when all became quiet. It 
 proved to be a reconnoitering, party and did not trouble our pick 
 ets. Sometimes the boys went out to guard a forage train, and their 
 journals make glad mention of the supplies which the different 
 messes obtained on these excursions, though they were dreadfully 
 fatiguing. Not always, however, were they so safe, for Adju 
 tant Biddulph writes, February 4th : "A forage train was 
 attacked at noon and cannonading kept up all the afternoon. 
 Re-inforcements were sent for, and one brigade and four pieces 
 of artillery were started out from our division, to which they 
 returned at dark. Some of the Union boys were killed and 
 wounded during the skirmishing." 
 
 About this time a number of important changes took place 
 which ought to be mentioned. Assistant Surgeon William P. 
 Pierce, formerly Captain of Company F, received, January 16th, 
 the appointment of Surgeon of the 88th Illinois Volunteers. 
 This was a most worthy and creditable promotion. There was 
 but one feeling throughout the regiment in regard to it, for Dr. 
 P. was a universal favorite. From the time of my joining the 
 regiment we had been almost uninterruptedly together, traveling 
 night and day, enduring the hardships of the tent, the march and 
 the battle, while our startling experience at Stone River had given 
 us more than a common interest in each other. The Doctor was 
 well read, a delightful and intelligent companion, while his pro 
 fessional skill was of a high order, and his devotion to the men 
 most exemplary. His sunny face and ringing voice were welcome 
 everywhere. 
 
 Alas, that there were some of whom this could not be said, but 
 whom in the days of extremity it would have been a relief to 
 boot out of the army. In looking over the diary of Dr. Young, 
 
COL. GREUSELS FAREWELL. 413 
 
 I find the following: " Dr. Pierce received the appointment of 
 Surgeon in the 88th, and left us this afternoon. How lonesome 
 I shall be without him. We have been together continually for 
 the past year ; have messed together, rode and slept together. 
 I regretted to have him go. May success and happiness attend 
 him in his new position." 
 
 Col. Greusel, who had continued in command of the brigade 
 since the battle, felt constrained, from the state of his health, to 
 tender his resignation, which was accepted February 9th. On 
 the 15th he started for home, but before doing so the following 
 farewell address was read to the brigade and regiment on dress 
 parade : 
 
 CAMP SHERIDAN, SALEM, TENN., February 9th, 1863. 
 To the Officers and Soldiers of the 36th Regiment Illinois Vol 
 unteers, and to my Brigade : 
 
 FELLOW SOLDIERS : I am about breaking the ties that for 
 nearly two years have bound us together, having received an 
 honorable discharge from the General commanding this Depart 
 ment, on account of my health, and will return to my family in 
 Illinois. In parting with you, beloved soldiers, I feel as bad as 
 you can possibly do, for we have gone through hardships together 
 that will form many fireside entertainments in our after life, until 
 the battle of this life is ended, and we join those brave men who 
 fell by our side at Pea Ridge, Perrysville, Stone River, and those 
 who fell by the wayside. Your bravery and courage in the face 
 of the enemy have won for you a glorious renown, and the 36th 
 Illinois will be looked upon as one of the bravest of the brave. 
 I have led you into many a battle and I feel proud to say that 
 not one of you have ever faltered or turned your face from the 
 enemy. In parting with you I feel like a father parting from his 
 family ; and in looking back to Rolla, Mo., and seeing how you 
 showed your love for your old man, by standing by me through 
 that eventful trial, I shall always remember that it was your love 
 that kept me at that time. This war is not yet ended, and I 
 
414 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 fervently hope you will stand by the flag until our common enemy 
 is subdued and humbled in the dust. Many of you may fall, but 
 always remember, what would your homes be worth if you and 
 your children should be the abject slaves of our country s foe ? 
 Younger men will lead you, and may God direct them to lead 
 you not as some do, but as soldiers and brave men should be led. 
 I have one thing more to say, and that is, not one of you has 
 ever received or deserved any punishment at my hand. My aim 
 Was love to you all. Tyranny in a commanding officer is one of 
 the greatest faults of some men. Show me a regiment of care 
 less, shiftless soldiers, and I will show you a regiment commanded 
 by a tyrant. 
 
 To you, my brigade, receive my hearty thanks for valor during 
 battle, your kindness while in camp, and for the mode in which 
 you have always obeyed every order, no matter if death stared 
 you in the face arid how many fell, in order to do your whole 
 duty to your country. I am glad to say that I have not an 
 enemy in the whole brigade. Our intercourse has been pleasant. 
 Often when short of rations we suifered alike, and I have yet to 
 see a complaint from one of you. 
 
 Now I bid you farewell, and may God soon bring this strife to 
 a close and allow all of you to join your families at home. 
 
 N. GREUSEL. 
 
 Lieut. Col. Jenks was promoted from the Captaincy of Com 
 pany A Cavalry, which was at the time in Mississippi. He 
 immediately started for the regiment and took command January 
 29th. Col. Jenks was a man of excellent abilities, of fine taste 
 and culture, a man whom to know was to esteem. But unfortu 
 nately he found himself in a position equally unpleasant for him 
 self and the regiment. 
 
 It was felt that the two companies of cavalry being so distinct 
 in organization and service, ought not to be reckoned in the line 
 of promotion, but that the regimental officers should be taken 
 from the regiment itself. This feeling was so intense that neither 
 
A NOVEL USE FOR PHYSIC. 415 
 
 kindness nor discipline could overcome it. At one time it seemed 
 so high that it almost threatened mutiny, when Col. Jenks wisely 
 resigned and returned to his profession, in which he has proved 
 himself so successful. Capt. Olson again took command of the 
 regiment. Near the same time Dr. Young, who had been attacked 
 with a severe sickness doubtless a premonition of the disease 
 which finally ended his life decided to resign also, and his papers 
 returning in time, he left the regiment February 26th, in com 
 pany with Lieut. Col. Jenks. 
 
 Dr. Young had been identified with the regiment from the 
 first, and was enthusiastically attached to its name and history. 
 He took a deep and personal interest in all its concerns, and 
 contributed much to the hardy and healthy character of the men. 
 He was the unmitigated foe of all shirks, and many a man who 
 was really needing medical treatment, preferred to wait until the 
 last moment before presenting himself among the "quinine bri 
 gade." Without doubt, deserving cases were sometimes classed 
 unjustly among the pretenders, but on the other hand it must be 
 confessed that Surgeon Young had reason sometimes to keep wide 
 awake. One of the boys relates the following, which accounts 
 for what seemed to me at first a strange and disgusting practice, 
 that of requiring the men who needed oil to take it from the 
 bottle at the Surgeon s quarters. Several members of Company 
 Gr received some new boots from home, and knowing that castor 
 oil was a good preserver of leather, they made repeated visits to 
 the Doctor s quarters for physic, always carrying the oil to their 
 tents to take it (so they told the Doctor). Mistrusting that cer 
 tain parties needed a good deal of oil for a common camp com 
 plaint, he finally found out they oiled their new boots at the 
 expense of Uncle Sam. The Doctor ordered physic as usual 
 to the next man who called for it, but when the victim begged the 
 
416 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 liberty of carrying it to his quarters to take in coffee, the Doctor 
 requested him to swallow the nauseous dose then and there. 
 Being fairly caught he obeyed, but not needing any oil inwardly 
 just then, the result was anything but satisfactory. 
 
 Dr. Young was in many respects a remarkable man ; his 
 ability as a Surgeon was of a high order, and with him nothing 
 seemed too much to do for his friends. I had one instance of 
 such kindness which I valued much. A personal friend in 
 another regiment, who had been sick, was taken into Murfrees- 
 boro and placed in the erysipelas hospital. It was some time 
 before I could find him, and then he was in such a terrible con 
 dition by reason of sores, that the Surgeon in charge evidently 
 thought there was no hope for him, and no use in bestowing any 
 particular care on him. On mentioning the case to Dr. Young, 
 he proposed going with me, which he did. We had a conver 
 sation with the Surgeon, who was quickened to bestow more 
 effort on him. We continued to visit him, giving help in an 
 unofficial way, until the Surgeon found it was important to do his 
 best, although the case was so bad that I read in Dr. Y s journal 
 "he will die in a few days." But he did not. Those visits 
 were the crisis in his case, and after the Doctor resigned, I con- 
 t inued to visit him until he was able to be removed to the rear. He 
 subsequently recovered, and is now a prosperous and influential 
 business man. 
 
 Dr. F. W. Lytle, Assistant Surgeon of the 51st Illinois, became 
 Surgeon, and entered on his duties March 2nd. The same week 
 with these changes we were ordered to make camp on the south 
 side of Stone river, where the ground was higher and much 
 better adapted for the purpose. Here we remained until March 
 18th. 
 
VISIT OF THE PAYMASTER. 417 
 
 A good deal of interest centered in the building of a bridge, 
 under the direction of some of the officers of the 88th. The interest 
 was turned into sport when the bridge was nearly completed, by 
 its suddenly falling, broken by its own weight. " Board of 
 Trade bridge " became a standing joke. 
 
 A still deeper interest was felt about this time in the visit of 
 the Paymaster, for over six months pay was due. This meant 
 with many men, heavy debts to their comrades, the sutler, or 
 both, and with many more, hardships for the families at home. 
 The daily enquiry was, when will he be here ? and as he visited 
 one regiment after another, his course was watched with 
 unwearying solicitude. If the importance of any man is to be 
 judged by the interest felt in his movements by others, Major 
 Mclntyre was a great man. He proved to be an excellent man, 
 of whom we all came to think very highly, for the uniform kind 
 ness with which he discharged his delicate and often perplexing 
 duties. 
 
 Immediately after receiving pay for two months the regiment 
 was called out on a ten days expedition toward Duck river. 
 On the 4th of March they marched at seven o clock A. M., with 
 four days rations, leaving the hospital department, &c., behind. 
 Dr. Lytle accompanied the troops. During this absence we 
 were subjected to the usual rumors and counter-rumors which 
 visit camps at such times, and were kept in a state of constant 
 suspense and anxiety. The day after they left we heard very 
 heavy firing in the direction of Nolensville, and were, of course, 
 sure that our boys were engaged. Two days after, firing was 
 heard again, and reports reached us that sixty of Companies A, 
 C and G were prisoners. On the 9th, orders came to move 
 everything, with the report that Bragg and the Vicksburg army 
 were just upon us. So the sick were sent to town, everything 
 
418 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 was packed, and we waited and waited, but no orders came, and 
 we pitched our tents and staid all night. During the night it 
 stormed heavily, also next day, when orders came to remain 
 where we were. The day after, we had the pleasure of welcom 
 ing Dr. Hatch, our new Assistant Surgeon, who, to distinguish 
 him from Dr. Lytle, generally passed by the name of " Little 
 Doc," but who, in activity, faithfulness and imperturbable good 
 humor, was always able to hold his own, and was a general 
 favorite. 
 
 But still time dragged heavily, and we wished that either the 
 regiment would come in, or we might be sent to it. At last, on 
 Saturday night it made its appearance with a regular 36th 
 shout, and each man running to be first in camp, Capt. Olson 
 crying out to his cook, " Supper for two," by which we knew 
 the men were tired and hungry. 
 
 They told us that the division went out on the 4th as far 
 as Salem, there waiting until a large train of wagons, escorted 
 by a brigade of cavalry, had passed by, when they resumed their 
 march through Versailles toward Eagleville, marching in all 
 about sixteen miles. They learned that the advance cavalry had 
 charged into a Rebel camp at Eagleville, captured fifty men and 
 all of their camp equipage. Resuming the march next day they 
 saw at Eagleville the prisoners and wagons captured the day 
 before, and shortly after turned off the road and bivouacked for 
 the night, the 36th being sent on picket. Considerable cannon 
 ading was heard to the left. 
 
 Next day (6th), the pickets were called in at. daylight, and 
 joining the division the march was resumed until ten o clock, 
 when they bivouacked again. Company E was sent out to pro 
 cure some meat for the regiment. They brought in several head 
 of cattle. It rained all day. At night there was a severe thun- 
 
A HEAVY RAIN. 419 
 
 der storm, and the rain fell in torrents. They managed to keep 
 pretty dry, however, having put up a kind of shelter called 
 " shebangs." Next day it was still raining, making the roads 
 horrible for artillery and marching, but at half-past one P. M. 
 they started, drawing two days rations at Triune, and then turn 
 ing off the pike towards Franklin, marching until half-past five 
 P. M., went into camp. 
 
 During the night the rain fell in torrents, and the ground was 
 flooded, but the march was resumed for about eight miles, and 
 camp was reached about one mile from Franklin, the right wing, 
 under Capt. Sherman, going on picket. The next day, after 
 passing through Franklin, they halted until the artillery came 
 up, then moved on south, passing the evacuated camp of the 
 Rebels, who retreated before them through Spring Hill, the 4th 
 regular cavalry having a skirmish with them, losing three men. 
 
 Marched about fourteen miles, and camped at Spring Hill. 
 It rained all night, and they were pretty wet when the morning 
 dawned. At eleven o clock they marched seven or eight miles. 
 At two o clock halted and formed line of battle to the left of 
 the pike. The cavalry were skirmishing at a creek about half a 
 mile from them. Some came in that were wounded. The Rebels 
 were posted on the opposite side of the creek. At five o clock 
 went into camp on the crest of a hill overlooking the creek, the 
 left wing going on picket under command of Capt. Olson. 
 Rain had fallen all day. 
 
 On the morning of the llth a few shots were fired at some 
 Rebels on the other side of the creek, but they elicited no reply. 
 At eight o clock A. M. the right wing of the regiment was 
 ordered to move down the creek about a mile, as a support to 
 Col. Minty s Cavalry, and at eleven o clock Gen. Sheridan 
 ordered the left wing to be relieved from picket by the 88th and 
 
420 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 brought up. The cavalry commenced crossing the creek, and a 
 strong line of skirmishers was posted to the right and left of 
 the ford. A battery in the rear sent a shell through a building 
 on the opposite bank in which Forrest was said to be, and caused 
 a general scattering. The boys got a shot at some of the Rebels, 
 one of whom was seen limping off as if he had been struck 
 with a bullet. Returned to the division at nine P. M., the 
 cavalry pursuing the enemy to Columbia. They commenced the 
 return march on the 12th, making twenty miles to camp north 
 of Franklin by four P, M. At eight o clock next morning 
 they passed through Franklin, crossed the country to the Wilson 
 Pike, leading to Triune, near which they camped about five o clock, 
 after fifteen miles march. Next day (Saturday, 14th,) the bri 
 gade was rear guard, and so, late in starting and in coming in, 
 arrived at Camp Bradley just before dark, having marched 
 twenty-three miles. 
 
CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 MURFREESBORO CONTINUED. 
 
 |N TUESDAY, March 17th, Major Mclntyre 
 paid off the regiment again, and next day we 
 moved camp to a fine piece of ground very near 
 Murfreesboro, on the Franklin Pike. At Camp 
 Schaffer we remained until our march south, 
 June 24th. On going out on picket duty next 
 day, the whole picket line was drawn in to the north of Stone 
 River. For some time a constant alarm was kept up that some 
 part of our line was to be attacked. On Saturday, 21st, the 
 Rebels attacked our pickets in strong force. The Brigade was 
 ordered out and marched as far as Gen. Sheridan s headquarters, 
 remaining under arms for several hours, when the enemy being 
 driven off, we returned to camp. In the afternoon there was a 
 division review by Gen. Sheridan, in preparation for a more 
 elaborate one by Gen. Rosecrans on Monday. This day was also 
 to be noted for the arrival of a number of commissions among 
 them that of Major Miller, as Colonel; Capt. George D. Sher 
 man, as Major, and Adj. George G. Biddulph, as Captain Com 
 pany K. Major Sherman commanded the regiment. Gen. 
 Sheridan was highly sensitive about the condition of his com- 
 
422 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 mand, and always sought to have it in the best possible state. 
 He was anxious in the forthcoming review that his division should 
 appear worthy of its reputation. His desire communicated itself 
 to all the officers and men, and on Saturday, Sunday and Mon 
 day great pains were taken to bring everything into presentable 
 appearance ; every man s clothing, arms, accoutrements and 
 boots underwent a thorough cleansing. At noon the review took 
 place, the Commanding General being accompanied by Gens. 
 Garfield, McCook and Sheridan. These officers made a magnifi 
 cent appearance, and Geri. Rosecrans complimented the 36th. 
 As he passed our flag and saw the name on it, he said, Well, 
 they say the old 36th will march further and do it easier than 
 any regiment we have got." "Well, boys," said he, " does 
 Gen. Sheridan take good care of you?" Some one answered, 
 though as the drums were beating he did not hear it, " Yes, only 
 he don t give us vinegar enough." Mrs. Rosecrans, Mrs. Mc 
 Cook, Mrs. Sherman and Mrs. Pierce were among the reviewing 
 party as the regiment marched by the General. 
 
 On the 26th the whole brigade, with Col. Bradley s brigade, 
 went out one and a-half miles on the Salem pike, remaining five 
 days. These were trying days, as the rain fell heavily and the 
 enemy made several attacks upon our videttes, so the troops had 
 to be under arms at daylight, and fall in quickly when the alarm 
 was given. 
 
 On Sunday, 29th, I went out to the regiment and held ser 
 vices both morning and afternoon for the first time since I joined 
 the army. During all the time we remained in this camp I went 
 out and preached to the regiment when it was away on the Sab 
 bath ; once, in a manner which excited some interest. April 5th, 
 the brigade was out on picket to the west of town, the right of 
 the 36th resting on Wilkinson pike. In the morning Col. Sher- 
 
A SERIES OF PRESENTATIONS. 423 
 
 man sent an order for every officer without exception to go out. 
 Although not customary for a Chaplain to go on such occasions, 
 the men being divided for the different stations, yet I obeyed 
 the order, and Major Sherman accompanying me, I passed from 
 station to station, and preached a short sermon to the men not 
 out on the line. While thus engaged at one point, Col. Sherman 
 and his staff rode up inspecting the line, and of course the men 
 were expected to turn out and salute him as he passed ; but I 
 went on with the service, and the Colonel lost his salute, which 
 gave considerable amusement to the officers who had been per 
 emptorily ordered out. On this same day we were agitated by 
 learning that a spy had attempted to pass through Crittenden s 
 lines. He was caught, but being confined, tried to escape, and 
 was shot by the guard, but that not stopping him, a soldier, who 
 had been in the guard house for some fault, caught up a gun and 
 shot him dead. In his stockings were found all necessary 
 information about our forces and drawings of the fortifications. 
 The General said the soldier need not return to the guard-house. 
 
 Early in April we had quite a series of presentations. On 
 the 2nd I presented a beautiful sword to Capt. Cass, in behalf 
 of Company D, on the occasion of his promotion to the Cap 
 taincy. The next was one of very general interest to the regi 
 ment and finds a place in the journals, but I have failed to 
 obtain a copy of the proceedings as printed at the time, and so 
 am compelled to give some extracts from a private letter written 
 a day or two after. 
 
 On the 18th, at the close of dress parade, instead of dispers 
 ing as usual, Major Sherman brought the regiment into the shape 
 of a half moon, the officers in advance, when a messenger was 
 sent for me. On repairing at once to the Major, I found Dr. 
 Pierce and a number of officers from the 88th. Dr. Pierce and I 
 
424 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 were requested to step forward, when Capt. Olson addressed us, 
 describing the feelings of himself and officers at having to retire 
 on 31st December, and leave such a number of our dead and 
 wounded in the hands of the enemy ; how at last tidings were 
 brought that we had volunteered to remain with them ; how their 
 hearts were relieved, and that they desired to express their 
 appreciation of what we did in some form which should be a 
 memento of their regard. He then addressed me, saying, it was 
 often remarked that Chaplains were of no use in . the army, but 
 I had shown that a Chaplain could be as useful and more so than 
 any other officer in the regiment, &c. He handed me a most 
 beautiful sword and belt. He then addressed Dr. Pierce, and 
 gave him one of a different pattern but equally fine. I felt just 
 on the point of crying, and motioned to Dr. Pierce to speak 
 first, which he did, doing first-rate, but he said he had to stop or 
 he should have been crying. I then spoke, but made a botch of 
 it. Then came hearty congratulations from both officers and 
 men. Dr. Pierce proposed to stay with the 36th, but a number 
 of his 88th officers being present threatened to get up another 
 for him in their regiment. This was the first presentation ever 
 made by the regiment, and when they make a demonstration 
 they meant it. It was no sham, but a heart-felt act, undeserved 
 on our part but exceedingly gratifying. 
 
 The third presentation consisted of a splendid sword, with 
 jeweled hilt, sash, belt, revolvers, etc., made April 16th, to Gen. 
 Sheridan, by all the officers in his division, as a personal com 
 pliment to him on his promotion to the rank of Major General. 
 The whole cost from twelve to fourteen hundred dollars. The 
 presentation speech was made by Col. Sherman, and the General s 
 reply was a model of neatness and appropriateness. The 36th 
 had felt an unflagging interest in Gen. Sheridan from their first 
 
RESULTS OF BATHING IN THE RIVER. 425 
 
 acquaintance with him when he was a Captain in the regular 
 army, and Quarter-master in Missouri, and not a few were ready 
 to prophesy his rapid advance in rank if the war continued. 
 His conduct at the battle of Stone River brought him into promi 
 nent notice and opened the way for his brilliant and honorable 
 career. 
 
 By this time the weather was becoming inconveniently warm, 
 and the regiment engaged pretty generally in building sheds over 
 their tents, to keep them cool. By allowing them to extend over 
 the front of the tent and then planting large evergreens at inter 
 vals, a cool verandah was secured, and, at least until the leaves 
 withered, a very pretty effect was procured. 
 
 One of the favorite recreations at this time was bathing in 
 Stone River, and no doubt many a record could be made like 
 that given by Dryden, Company C, who says: "In camp at 
 Murfreesboro I received my first and only black mark. A num 
 ber of us were swimming in the river one evening, and by hard 
 running reached Company I just as Wilson got through calling 
 the roll. Next morning we took a wagon and built a brush shed 
 over Lieut. Turnball s quarters as < fatigue duty, (?) all the pun 
 ishment I ever received in the army." 
 
 A favorite amusement all through our Murfreesboro stay was 
 base ball, and many an hour was spent at Camp Schaffer in this 
 absorbing game. Sometimes the fun was varied by a contest with 
 some other regiment, and though the 36th were very skillful, they 
 sometimes met their match, as one record very candidly says : 
 " In the afternoon eight boys of the 24th Wisconsin played ball 
 against eight of ours and beat us (!) by fifty a very interesting 
 game. 
 
 April 14th we were again paid off, and on that day the whole 
 regiment was made to sympathise with a heavy affliction which 
 
 28 
 
426 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 fell upon Lieut. Clark, Company E. His wife had been danger 
 ously sick for some time, and two weeks before he had used every 
 effort to secure a leave of absence for a few days to visit her. 
 But leaves of absence were discouraged at headquarters, and one 
 was refused him, and when a telegram was sent informing him 
 of her death, the whole regiment felt it as a personal affliction. 
 A leave of absence was now procured for him, and in a few hours 
 he started for his desolate home and motherless children. 
 
 On the 18th we had a meeting of which officers and men have 
 been proud ever since. An act of Congress made it the duty of 
 every chaplain " to report to the colonel commanding the regi 
 ment to which he is attached, at the end of each quarter, the 
 moral and religious condition of the regiment, and such sugges 
 tions as may conduce to the social happiness and moral improve 
 ment of the troops." In my report for the quarter ending March 
 31st, were the following passages : " Our volunteer army sustains 
 peculiar relations to the country. It is not composed of men 
 who have taken up arms as a chosen profession, but of men from 
 every calling and walk in life, who, because their flag has been 
 insulted and their loved country imperilled, have laid all aside for 
 awhile, that treason may be rebuked and our glorious Govern 
 ment saved. This done, they expect to return to the quiet pur 
 suits of civil life ; the student to his books and profession, the 
 merchant to his desk, and the farmer to his land. This army, 
 then, is not only at present the bulwark of the republic, destined 
 to beat back the waves of sedition, .but being composed in a great 
 measure of the young and promising, it will for years to come 
 constitute the very strength of our land, while the spirit our sold 
 iers cultivate and the habits they form will be a controlling ele 
 ment in the nation long after the war has been brought to a suc 
 cessful issue. In the meantime, the volunteer is the object of 
 
REST ON SUNDAYS. 427 
 
 intensest solicitude to his friends at home, not only on account of 
 physical dangers which stand thick on every hand, but of the 
 vices and habits which army life, away from the restraining and 
 refining influences of home, is found frequently to foster. Respect, 
 then, for the feelings and wishes of the good and honored at home, 
 anxiety for the present and eternal welfare of the soldier and an 
 enlightened regard for the future of our country, combine to press 
 upon all in situations of authority, the importance of surround 
 ing the soldier with every influence that may foster virtue and 
 repress vice. Foremost amongst these powers for good is the 
 observance of the Sabbath. The President of the United States 
 and Commander-in-Chief, feeling his responsibility in this regard, 
 issued his general order about four months ago, and the general 
 commanding this department has since given to this army Sab 
 bath rest, except when the pressing necessities of the service pre 
 vented. It is probable that this course will be pursued in the 
 future. But the full benefits of Sabbath observance are enjoyed 
 only, when besides rest for the body, the mind is turned to the 
 contemplation of the works and will of God. Our facilities for 
 doing this are much fewer than in civil life, rendering it import 
 ant to make the best use of the means we possess, that as much 
 of the day as possible may be occupied, and the soldier be not 
 left to that vacuity of mind which is the sure parent of vice. I 
 therefore respectfully recommend that whenever the weather and 
 military duties will permit, arrangements be made for two public 
 meetings on the Sabbath, believing that the interest which has 
 hitherto been manifested in one service, and the good which has 
 flowed from it, will justify the step. A second most potent influ 
 ence for good, is well selected reading. 
 
 I propose to continue my past course with respect to religious 
 reading. I find no difficulty in obtaining money for this purpose, 
 
428 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 as the report read a few weeks ago to the regiment clearly shows, 
 but I have frequently to refuse contributions, as we have not trans 
 portation sufficient to justify keeping a large assortment on hand. 
 It is necessary that the men should be supplied with read 
 ing of a more general character, which shall combine amuse 
 ment with instruction, thus contributing to the contentment and 
 mental vigor of the soldier, and preserving him from the deleteri 
 ous eifects of the debasing trash which he often reads because it 
 is all he can obtain. The small libraries now in the hands of dif 
 ferent companies, suggest a feasible plan by which this lack may 
 be supplied. One hundred or one hundred and fifty volumes 
 might be selected from the catalogues of different publishers, 
 which being divided into five or six libraries, would add but little 
 to the transportable property of a company. At intervals, each 
 library might be changed, until the whole had been within the 
 reach of the entire regiment, and the advantages of a regimental 
 library be enjoyed without the embarrassment which would arise 
 from keeping the books all together. I would respectfully 
 recommend that whenever the prospect of the regiment s remain 
 ing in camp is such as to warrant the experiment, such a plan 
 should be adopted, convinced that it would conduce to the social 
 happiness and moral improvement of the troops." 
 
 Both these recommendations were heartily adopted. Until our 
 removal from Murfreesboro we held two public services on the 
 Sabbath, whenever other duties did not interfere, and our camp 
 on that day became as quiet and orderly as a New England vil 
 lage, and all not by order, but by the voluntary choice of the 
 regiment. The second recommendation found a hearty response 
 from the officers, and on Saturday night, April 18th, just before 
 dark, a meeting was called of the whole regiment, and the plan 
 of the regimental library laid before them. An eye witness says : 
 " When the motion was put to go into the plan, you should have 
 
THE SOLDIER S LIBRARY. 429 
 
 heard the Aye/ Whoever thinks that soldiers are degraded, 
 would learn something from that sound. If they are degraded, 
 it is because no one tries to elevate them. Good seed never found 
 richer soil than here in the army." Subscription papers for each 
 company had been prepared and were now distributed, and after 
 singing, "My Country Tis of Thee," the meeting broke up. In 
 about an hour $200 was brought in, which was soon swelled to 
 $350. The only danger now seemed to be that our library would 
 
 be too large, but we hoped by dividing it into thirteen sections 
 
 placing one in the care of each company and one for headquar 
 ters that it would not prove burdensome, while at the same time 
 affording every facility for self-improvement. The Chaplain was 
 prouder of his regiment that night than ever, and especially as 
 both officers and men insisted that the books should be of sterling 
 value. The task of selecting and organizing such a library so as 
 to give variety and appropriateness to each section, proved to be 
 very heavy, and having to be accomplished at such a great dis 
 tance from the publishers, necessarily took a good deal of time, 
 and was only finished at last by the kind assistance of Rev. Mr. 
 Cass, of Como, who, while on a visit to his brother, Captain of 
 Company D, volunteere/1 to take the oversight of the purchase of 
 the works and to issue the catalogue after all the lists had been 
 prepared. Messrs. Griggs & Co., of Chicago, furnished the books 
 and presented us with a copy of " Webster s Unabridged." 
 Although the work was pushed with all speed possible, we did 
 not receive our library before we left Murfreesboro and the 
 interruptions of our advance south hindered still more, so that it 
 was not till we had camped at Bridgeport that the library arrived 
 and was distributed. Further reference will be made to it when 
 we reach that point. 
 
 On the 21st, Brig. Gen. Lytle took command of the brigade. 
 He was from Ohio ; had distinguished himself in the campaign 
 
430 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 in West Virginia, and at Perryville, where he was wounded. 
 On his recovery he was assigned to the command of our brigade. 
 He was a brave and competent officer, highly respected by 
 all who came in contact with him. On the 29th an order was 
 issued requiring all the wall-tents, except one for each company 
 and three for the field and staff, to be turned over to the Quar 
 ter-master. This made a great fluttering, as it confined all the 
 men to their shelter tents, and brought the officers into tight 
 places. But necessity is the mother of invention, and the men 
 procuring boards and other material for the sides of their quarters, 
 and using the shelter tent for the roof only, succeeded in making 
 themselves comfortable. The order fell specially hard on 
 the hospital department and the chaplains, indeed the latter were 
 thereby deprived both of all personal accommodations and all 
 opportunity for doing their work. At this time, besides our pub 
 lic services, I had regular meetings in my tent five nights every 
 week. Our officers would not hear of my tent being taken. The 
 Quarter-master did not touch it, and Gen. Lytle very kindly sent 
 me word to hold on to it. In the end the position of chaplains 
 was actually benefitted by the order, for Gen. Rosecrans had 
 been supposed for some time to make distinctions in favor of 
 Catholic chaplains, but now the three Corps Commanders, who 
 were strong Protestants, threatened to appeal to Washington if 
 the chaplains were deprived of their tents. Gen. McCook 
 invited all his chaplains to meet at his quarters, where they filled 
 a large room. He spoke to them kindly and with evident 
 understanding of the annoyances to which many of them were 
 exposed. He said he had made arrangements that all his chap 
 lains should have a tent of any kind they chose, to be their own, 
 not to be touched by any other officer, nor controlled by the 
 Quartermaster ; that transportation should be afforded by the 
 
A WEDDING ON THE BATTLE FIELD. 431 
 
 Colonel ; that he wanted to receive a report from each as to 
 whether they were comfortable and well cared for, and that so 
 long as he had a place to sleep and food to eat they should have 
 both. Before we separated an order came from Gen. Rosecrans 
 giving to each chaplain his own tent, thus ending the agitation, 
 and making comfortable and useful many a chaplain who received 
 no attention from the officers of his own regiment. In the 36th 
 it made no difference except to make their Chaplain feel how 
 strong both he and his work were in the hearts of officers and 
 men. 
 
 At the close of this meeting the chaplains were invited to 
 attend a wedding to be celebrated next day on the spot at the 
 extreme left of our line, where had been the hardest fighting on 
 January 2nd. Inviting Maj. Sherman to accompany me, the news 
 spread, and the result was that the Major, Dr. and Mrs. Pierce, 
 Mrs. Sherman, Mrs. Cushing and Quarter-master Sutherland, all 
 went over together, arriving just as the ceremony was being per 
 formed. Immediately after, Gens. McCook, Crittenden and 
 Johnson arrived. We were all introduced in turn to the bridal 
 party, and extended our congratulations. The bridegroom held 
 a position in the army, the bride was a lady who had been in the 
 service of the Sanitary Commission. 
 
 Any description of our camp life in Murfreesboro would be 
 defective if it did not make special mention of the intense inter 
 est with which all the movements of other armies were regarded. 
 The army of the Potomac was watched and criticised unsparingly. 
 The army of the South-west, which at this time was concentrat 
 ing for the capture of Vicksburg and Port Hudson, excited the 
 deepest solicitude, for we were destined to feel the effects of its 
 movement, whatever they proved to be. Many and fierce were 
 the debates to which the daily events gave rise, and men and 
 
432 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 officers grew hot as they discussed the various phases of the war 
 and the competency and incompetency of Generals in com 
 mand. No better example of camp excitement could be given 
 than that afforded by the report which thrilled the whole country 
 on Sunday, May 10th, that our troops had entered Richmond. 
 For twenty-four hours the camps had been full of anxiety, but 
 when the news finally came, about noon, even Gen. Sheridan was 
 so much carried away by the excitement that he galloped to the 
 headquarters of one of the brigades without his hat. It was 
 quite dispiriting when we found that only our cavalry had been 
 within sight of Richmond, giving the Confederate rulers a terrible 
 scare, but nothing more. 
 
 On the llth of May, Capt. Olson became Lieut. Colonel, and 
 took command of the regiment. This promotion was highly hon 
 orable to that worthy officer, whose fidelity and courage, tested 
 both in camp and field, had won the confidence of the regiment. 
 The appointment, too, will never cease to be equally honorable 
 to Major Sherman, who, though himself the ranking officer, and 
 entitled to retain the position, by recommending Capt. Olson as 
 Major, a course which was often taken in the army, and did not 
 lack for advocates on this occasion, yet voluntarily recommended 
 him for the position of Lieut. Colonel, himself retaining the 
 Majorship, an instance of self-abnegation as honorable as it was 
 
 rare. 
 
 About this time we were in daily expectation of welcoming the 
 return of the officers who had been wounded and captured on the 
 ever memorable December 31st. These were Maj. Silas Miller, 
 Capts. B. F. Campbell, Albert M. Hobbs and 0. B. Merrill, and 
 Lieuts. S. H. Wakeman, John F. Elliot and Myron Smith. They 
 had been sent after the battle, first, to Atlanta, and then to Libby 
 prison, Richmond, which at that time was at the height of its 
 
RETURN OF COL. MILLER. 433 
 
 reputation for filth and wretchedness, and its keepers for general 
 heartlessness and bitter hatred of all who came into their hands. 
 Although for the most part we were kept in ignorance of the con 
 dition of our officers, yet now and then a few meagre items of 
 information were obtained, sufficient to whet our curiosity and 
 awaken the liveliest interest in their welfare. 
 
 Our solicitude was not a little increased by learning that Gen. 
 Willich and Maj. Miller had been selected as hostage, and were 
 threatened with death. But as time wore on and the exchange 
 of prisoners proceeded we began to anticipate the pleasure of wel 
 coming them home. On the 16th day of May, Maj. Miller 
 addressed the citizens of Aurora, giving a glimpse not only of 
 army, but also of prison life, from which much of his story in a 
 former chapter has been taken. 
 
 The interest of the regiment in his return was increased by his 
 promotion to the rank of colonel ; not simply his by virtue of his 
 seniority, but felt to be well earned by his singular fidelity and 
 courage. On the 5th of May, Capts. Wakeman and Campbell 
 returned and received a hearty welcome, but it was not until the 
 23rd that Col. Miller arrived. For several days he had been 
 eagerly expected, and on the 22nd we learned that he and Capt. 
 Hobbs had arrived in Nashville and would be out next day. 
 Lieut. Col. Olson and a number of officers met him at the train. 
 His horse, which fortunately had been saved from the battle was 
 led down, and as soon as word was brought that the party were 
 approaching camp, the whole regiment turned out and stood 
 waiting until the Colonel appeared, when they broke into their 
 wildest cheer, which with the 36th meant a great deal of noise. 
 He galloped at once among them, grasping the hands of the men 
 as they crowded around his horse, and gave himself up to as 
 hearty a welcome as was ever given by a regiment to its com 
 mander. Soon the officers of the other regiments in the brigade 
 
434 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 made their appearance, crowding the head-quarters tent. The 
 band of the 24th Wisconsin came over and played in their best 
 style "Home Again," and for several hours nothing seemed 
 thought of but congratulations and joy at the return of one who 
 had led the regiment so bravely, and suffered for it so greatly and 
 so long. At the first dress parade, held a few days afterward, all 
 endeavored to be present, Surgeons and Chaplain, too, in com 
 pliment to the Colonel, to whom it was a great gratification to be 
 surrounded by those so enthusiastically attached to the cause and 
 to himself. About the same time quite a number of our paroled 
 men returned from parole camp, and gave us quite a re-inforce- 
 ment, making us feel more thoroughly at home than at any time 
 since the battle. 
 
 From this time until our final march from Murfreesboro, much 
 attention was given to every description of drill, even the officers 
 being drilled in the use of gun and bayonet by Major Sherman. 
 As the weather was now intensely hot, these drills were often very 
 exhausting, and one man, Charles Irish, of Company H, was 
 sun-struck. 
 
 Great excitement continued to prevail in regard to the cam 
 paigns on the .Potomac and the Mississippi. We were in daily 
 expectation of hearing that Vicksburg and Port Hudson had 
 fallen, while in the East, the failure of the campaign under 
 Hooker, followed by Lee s invasion of Maryland, kept us in con 
 stant anxiety. It was doubtless, too, to hide the weakening of 
 the force in our front that the enemy made several attempts to feel 
 our lines, and exhibited signs of activity, while in reality all his 
 available force was used elsewhere. Our own War Department 
 was extremely anxious that Rosecrans should advance to make 
 a diversion in favor of Hooker and Grant, and were impatient at 
 the long delay. When, however, the great difficulties of our 
 
BREAKING UP CAMP AT MURFREESBORO. 435 
 
 advance into Southern Tennessee and Georgia stood revealed, the 
 caution of Rosecrans appeared to be vindicated. But all signs 
 pointed to an early advance, and we waited to hear the word 
 "forward," which at last came on June 24th, and our long 
 encampment at Murfreesboro was over. 
 
 This record should not be closed, however, without a word upon 
 the religious interest which prevailed at that time. For some 
 months increased attention had been given to religious services 
 throughout the army, and quite a number of the leading officers 
 sustained Sabbath services at their headquarters. Gen. McCook 
 had preaching every Sabbath afternoon, which was attended by 
 many Generals and regimental officers of his corps. Series of 
 night meetings were also held, and a large number of the men 
 made professions of religion. At the Chaplains meetings, held 
 every Monday morning, the reports from the different regiments 
 were highly encouraging. The last Sabbath before we marched, 
 thirty were baptized in Stone River. On that day the Chaplain 
 of the 36th, on going to the camp on Salem pike, where the reg 
 iment was, found that the place selected for the pulpit had been 
 carefully and beautifully ornamented by an arch of evergreens, 
 giving evidence at once both of the interest and taste of those 
 who had prepared it. After an interesting service, thinking to 
 enjoy the privilege of hearing a sermon, he went to Gen. Mc- 
 Cook s headquarters, but the appointed preacher having failed, 
 at the General s request the Chaplain officiated. Before another 
 Sabbath both officers and men were once more amid the excite 
 ments and confusions of a campaign. 
 
CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 ON TO THE TENNESSEE. 
 
 ! HE ENEMY S center was Tullahoma, while its 
 wings extended to Shelbyville, which was 
 strongly fortified, and McMinnville. The 
 country through which we were now to operate 
 presented increased difficulties in the way of 
 military operations, as we were gradually near- 
 ing the mountain region, penetrable only through certain passes, 
 which of course it was necessary to seize, but were comparatively 
 easy for the enemy to hold unless they were manoeuvered out of 
 them by superior strategy and celerity of movement. 
 
 On Wednesday, June 24th, the army left Murfreesboro in three 
 columns, Thomas on the right, McCook in the centre, and Critten- 
 den on the left. Our brigade being out on the Salem pike, had its 
 preparations made the day before. Early in the morning the 
 pickets were drawn in, and after breakfast the brigade joined the 
 rest of the division near the "Board of Trade Bridge," and we 
 marched out on the Shelbyville pike. The army was in fine 
 spirits and hopeful of success. We had scarcely started, how 
 ever, before it began to rain, inaugurating what might truly be 
 called "the campaign of mud and slush." About six miles out we 
 struck the enemy s lines, and at the distance of nine miles we were 
 
THE ENEMY ENCOUNTERED. 437 
 
 halted for several hours while the cavalry skirmished, supported 
 by two regiments of our brigade. The enemy used artillery in 
 checking us, and two or three shots fell in front of our regiment. 
 Soon a part of Thomas corps came up and went forward toward 
 Shelbyville, while our division was turned eastward on a dirt road, 
 on which we marched about six miles and went into camp in a 
 dense wood. The headquarters wagon not coming up, the 
 officers were in poor plight. The rain poured down all night and 
 next day, and though we were up at three o clock A. M. no orders 
 came until three P. M. We could hear, however, the sound of 
 firing in the advance, where Johnson s Division was taking Lib 
 erty Gap, which they did in fine style, not, however, without con 
 siderable loss. The next day we were up at three o clock, 
 marched a little way, and then halted until eleven o clock. 
 Again it commenced to rain if rain it might be called which 
 came in such torrents that rubber was no protection and the 
 water varied from ankle to waist deep, with mud in proportion. 
 The men pronounced it the hardest they had ever seen. We 
 went through Liberty Gap, captured the day before, and camped 
 at the entrance of Hoover s Gap, on the McMinnville pike, hav 
 ing marched only about four miles. Next day, the 27th, we were 
 up at three o clock, and reached the Manchester pike, where we 
 found our train and rations. We made a halt for some time, then 
 leaving the pike, struck off to the right, through a small town 
 called Bedford. Here our division encountered some force of 
 the enemy, and for about half an hour the 36th was thrown out 
 to the left as a protection. We soon went forward, however, and 
 turning east again, marched on until nine o clock, when, thor 
 oughly exhausted, we went into camp in an orchard, about two 
 miles from the Manchester pike. 
 
 On the 28th (Sunday), we struck the pike about nine o clock, 
 and went into camp near Manchester about eleven o clock. The 
 
438 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 day was fine, and the boys used it to bathe and wash up, for 
 which they had unusual facilities, there being a dam with a fifty 
 feet fall. All they had to do was to stand under the descending 
 water and their clothes were cleansed from the mud with which 
 they had been covered. This day s rest helped the troops much, 
 and we were encouraged by learning that our forces occupied 
 Shelbyville the day before. In the evening, arrangements were 
 made for a union service of all the regiments in the division 
 camped together. The Chaplain of the 36th preached the ser 
 mon to a vast audience, gathered in an immense circle. At the 
 close, those who desired to give themselves to the Lord s service 
 were invited to step into the center, where they kneeled as 
 prayer was made for them. It was a solemn sight, for soldiers 
 do not commonly profess such an interest unless they deeply 
 feel it. 
 
 On Monday, 29th, we resumed the march about noon, the inev 
 itable rain beginning to fall just as we left camp, and pouring 
 in torrents as we plowed our way along. We had to make sev 
 eral halts to rest, for sometimes the battery and wagon wheels 
 sank so deep that it seemed almost impossible to move them. We 
 went into camp about seven o clock and remained there all next 
 day, as it was impossible to move artillery. As we were now 
 within a few miles of Tullahoma, of whose great strength we had 
 been hearing for months, there was much speculation as to what 
 reception we should meet there. We marched again about two 
 o clock July 1st, and had scarcely gone a mile before we learned 
 that the enemy had evacuated. A rapid march was made under 
 a burning sun so hot that a large number of men fell out and 
 our division was the first to enter Tallahoma. We found the 
 deserted fort, with several sixty -four pound siege guns spiked and 
 quite a quantity of tents and ammunition. Next day we started 
 
FORDING ELK RIVER. 439 
 
 at five o clock and began to receive into our lines a number 
 of prisoners, who represented themselves, and large numbers of 
 their comrades, as disgusted with the war and determined to desert 
 to us rather than leave the state as Bragg was preparing to do. 
 About ten o clock we made a long halt at Estelle Springs, and 
 finally found it necessary to leave the direct road in order to ford 
 Elk River, the enemy having burned the bridge. This was a 
 difficult and dangerous operation, as the recent rains had swollen 
 the river to a roaring torrent, and the enemy were on the other 
 side. We commenced crossing about six o clock. It was a ludi 
 crous sight to see so many men wading the stream, with their 
 clothes and accoutrements raised in the air, to keep them out 
 of the water, which with some men came almost to the neck. The 
 current was so rapid, that in places it was difficult to urge 
 horses through, but at last they became so accustomed to it that 
 some of them made a number of trips, carrying over special 
 friends. We went into camp at eight o clock, having marched 
 fifteen miles. 
 
 Starting next morning at six o clock, we soon came in sight of 
 Winchester, and the rear guard of the enemy could be plainly 
 seen. A line of battle was at once formed, with Company B 
 thrown forward as skirmishers to support the cavalry, who charged 
 into town, capturing fifty prisoners. After wading a stream 
 waist deep, the infantry stacked arms in Winchester. At another 
 stream beyond, our cavalry received a check, and the infantry was 
 formed again in line of battle, but the enemy soon retired and we 
 advanced, wading another stream and passing a house where a 
 small boy had been accidentally killed in the skirmish. We con 
 tinued our march till we reached the foot of the Cumberland 
 Mountains, and went into camp at Cowan Station at six o clock. 
 Further pursuit being fruitless, the Nine Days Campaign ended 
 
440 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 here, and Middle Tennessee was once more in possession of our 
 forces. The boasting with which Gen. Bragg made his advance 
 a year before, and the assurance he had given the farmers that 
 no second invasion should ever interrupt their ordinary pursuits, 
 were seen to be vain, for the army of the Cumberland had returned 
 with more strength and determination than ever. 
 
 At the conclusion of this campaign, the War Department were 
 incessant in their demands for an advance against the enemy south 
 of the Tennessee ; but they scarcely realized the difficulties which 
 such a movement would encounter and the risks which would 
 be incurred when it was actually made. In the meantime the 
 railroad bridges were rebuilt, and as fast as supplies could be 
 brought up, the troops were thrown forward to the line of the 
 Tennessee, preparatory to the fall campaign. During this time, 
 the regiment had the usual variety of picket, forage and outpost 
 duty, interspersed with events which were startling at the time 
 and are now interesting to recall. 
 
 The day after our arrival at Cowan, the glorious Fourth was 
 duly observed by a national salute, and a patriotic sermon by 
 the Chaplain on the 5th, it being the Sabbath. About sun 
 down on the 7th we were attracted by tiring of heavy guns in 
 the direction of Tullahoma, Gen. Rosecrans headquarters. Many 
 were the speculations as to what it meant, but next morning we 
 were roused at sunrise by our own batteries making a similar 
 salute in honor of the fall of Vicksburg and the victory of Meade 
 at Gettysburg. For several days the excitement was most 
 intense, and we watched the papers for every scrap of informa 
 tion about both armies, many prophesying Lee s utter destruc 
 tion and the near end of the war, little dreaming that two weary 
 years must yet elapse before peace would come. 
 
 On the 13th the regiment went out to Anderson Station, near 
 the Alabama line, marching on the railroad track through the 
 
RESUMPTION OF RELIGIOUS MEETINGS. 441 
 
 Cumberland Tunnel, 2228 feet long. They returned on the 16th. 
 Orderly Sergt. Hunt, of Company G, died on the 17th, and 
 was buried with military honors the next day. 
 
 By this time the railroad was repaired, and on the 21st we 
 were greeted by the first passenger train. During these two 
 weeks stay at Cowan we suffered constantly from the heavy rains 
 which fell, and on the other hand were wonderfully favored with 
 an abundance of blackberries, which were devoured all the time 
 and in every possible shape, off the bush, out of the pail, in 
 sauce, shortcake, pies, &c., a diet as healthy as it was acceptable. 
 
 Our religious meetings, too, were resumed, and on Sunday, 
 July 19th, we had two excellent services under trees by the banks 
 of the creek. Col. Miller had promised that when the prospect 
 of our remaining in camp would justify it, we should build a 
 chapel for public worship. After making the tents comforta 
 ble, volunteers and a detail of men were set to work, the plan 
 being furnished by the Chaplain, and the erection superintended 
 by Capt. Wakeman, of Company H, and Lieut. Smith, of Com 
 pany E. As the chapel was altogether the most attractive of 
 any that was seen in our army, and was highly prized by the 
 regiment, a further description of it may be desirable. Against 
 a picket fence as a base was described a semi-circle, thirty-six 
 feet across the widest part and sixty feet long. At intervals on 
 this circle and through it diagonally were erected strong posts, 
 on which poles were placed for plates and rafters, the whole 
 bound together strongly. The roof was covered with branches 
 of trees, while evergreens, about five feet high, were planted all 
 along the outer circle between the posts. Similar evergreens, 
 points downward, were hung from the plates above, making 
 a complete evergreen siding to the whole building, which, while 
 keeping out the sun, admitted the air through the waving branches. 
 
 29 
 
442 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Next to the fence the lower tier of evergreens was omitted for 
 purposes of light, and here was placed the pulpit, from each side 
 of which an aisle was drawn in line with the posts supporting the 
 roof and leading to two Gothic doors built in the sides. The 
 spaces between the aisles and on each side of them were filled 
 with seats, arranged in the same shape as the building, so that 
 every hearer faced the pulpit, and the congregation was brought 
 into a compact form. As the work proceeded, much enthusiasm 
 was manifested, and those who had special tastes devoted them 
 selves to special parts. The pulpit was trimmed with sunk panels 
 of arbor vitae, by J. C. Denison, Kelly and Burch ; some trimmed 
 the Gothic doors, while others made and covered with evergreens 
 the figures 36, so large that when placed on the front plate of 
 the chapel they could be seen all over the camp. Right over the 
 centre of the chapel was built an evergreen cupola, arranged so 
 as to hold the regimental flag. When finished it surpassed the 
 expectation of those who planned it, and was the admiration of 
 the whole camp. 
 
 On Sunday, the 26th of July, the morning opened most 
 beautifully, the flag was hoisted, and at ten o clock the men 
 assembled, Capt. Wakeman and Lieut. Smith acting as ushers. 
 The seats which would accommodate about five hundred were 
 comfortably filed. Gen. Lytle and Col. Miller were seated in 
 the pulpit with the Chaplain. The sermon was from Ps. LXXXIV-! : 
 " How amiable are Thy tabernacles, God!" and was a discus 
 sion of the influence of the Christian sanctuary upon individuals 
 and nations. A collection was taken to purchase a new supply 
 of reading for the regiment. In the afternoon we organized a 
 Sabbath School and Bible Classes, and in the evening held a 
 prayer and conference meeting, and when the day closed all felt 
 abundantly repaid for the toil. The chapel was so airy and cool 
 
MAKING PICTURES OF OUR CHAPEL. 443 
 
 that it became a favorite resort, many coming there to read or 
 write letters. 
 
 The next day, finding that a Lieutenant of topographical engin 
 eers on Bragg s staff, had come in and given himself up, who was 
 an excellent draughtsman, having in his possession some very 
 fine drawings of Lookout Mountain and other scenery near Chat 
 tanooga, we proposed to him to make two drawings of our chapel 
 for preservation. He was in need of money, and gladly accepted 
 the offer at five dollars each. The pictures were excellent, and 
 taken by the Chaplain to Chicago and lithographed by Shober, 
 a thousand copies of each being eagerly purchased by the regi 
 ment and are now carefully preserved. 
 
 Monday, the 27th, Maj.McIntyre arrived with four months 
 pay, and permission being given the Chaplain to proceed to Illi 
 nois with such funds as might be entrusted to him, the day, and 
 far into the night, were spent in writing letters and preparing 
 packages of money for the dear ones at home. Next day he 
 started, carrying over $15,000, and taking also the regimental 
 flag, to have inscribed on it the names of the battles in which it 
 had been carried. 
 
 On Thursday, July 30th, we broke camp for the march over 
 the mountains, which proved rough and weary indeed. Many 
 wagons broke down and again the rain did not forget to fall. 
 Halted for the night three miles from Anderson Station and next 
 day arrived at Stevenson. On Saturday we went forward to 
 Bridgeport, the advance of Sheridan s Division. Here an island 
 divides the Tennessee River into two channels, each of which 
 was spanned by a fine railroad bridge. That on the west had 
 already been partially destroyed, and the enemy s pickets occu 
 pied the island. Our men frequently held conversations with 
 them and the pickets exchanged papers. Trains ran through to 
 
444 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Bridgeport, bringing up the baggage, and a permanent camp was 
 once more made, where we remained until the general advance. 
 The weather at this time was intensely hot, and there being little 
 or no shade, united with the miasma from the river, caused quite 
 an increase of sickness in the regiment. The usual routine of 
 picket and foraging duty was varied with bathing, fishing, &c., 
 and now and then a flag-of-truce boat put out from one or other 
 army, transferring persons and carrying messages. 
 
 The event of this camp, however, was the receiving, after so 
 long a delay, of our regimental library. It arrived August 9th. 
 The work of cataloguing and dividing it into sections having 
 been done before it was ordered, a force immediately proceeded 
 to cover the books with stout paper, put on the numbers and 
 labels, and next day each company was in possession of its sec 
 tion. The eagerness with which the books were taken out and 
 read was a sight good for the eyes. It must be remembered, too, 
 that they were not flashy books, but the choicest literature in the 
 English language, comprising the works of such authors as Wash 
 ington Irving, Macauley, Motley, Scott, Dickens, Hughes, &c. 
 The enthusiasm pervaded all classes. Strong boxes were fitted 
 up and every provision made for the safe preservation of the 
 books. The library was used whenever we were long enough in 
 camp to justify its being brought forward, and at the muster out 
 was divided among the survivors of the regiment. On the 17th 
 and 18th of August, meetings were held to organize a literary 
 society, for the purpose of encouraging and directing an intelli 
 gent use of the library. Speeches were made by various officers, 
 patriotic songs were sung, and the following officers of the society 
 were elected: Pres t Chaplain Wm. M. Haigh ; Vice-Prest 
 Maj. Geo. D. Sherman; Secy Thos. P. Hill: Board Capt. 
 Geo. G. Biddulph, Sergt. J. J. Wilson, Nath. McCutchen, Com 
 pany B, and George Wood, Company D. 
 
PERPETUAL SUPPPY OF READING MATTER. 445 
 
 About this time another arrangement was made, which proved 
 of the highest benefit in providing reading matter. Hitherto 
 our papers had been chiefly religious, but our funds were now 
 sufficient to provide a larger variety on which we might depend 
 during the march. Accordingly we procured twenty copies weekly 
 of the N. Y. Evening Post , twelve copies each of Atlantic, 
 Harper s, Continental and Eclectic Magazines, and also the Army 
 and Navy Journal, which, with the large number of religious 
 papers, gave us all the benefits of a perpetual reading room. 
 This plan was found so beneficial that it was kept up to the last. 
 
 On the night of the 14th, the enemy fired the remainder of 
 the bridge. A few shells were thrown during the night and the 
 next day, but with no particular effect. 
 
 All signs began to indicate a movement. Companies B and 
 C, supported by D and E, made a reconnoissance, followed in 
 a few days by Companies A, F, H and G. At the close of the 
 month, trains came in loaded with pontoons arid materials for 
 building, and September 2nd, the bridge being completed, the 
 word "Forward " was sounded and we were once more on the 
 march. 
 
CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 BATTLE OF CHICKAMAUGA. 
 
 HATTANOOGA, the objective point of our next 
 campaign, was the gateway of Georgia," and, in a 
 sense, of the whole South, for from it opened val 
 leys, through which operations could be carried on 
 and supplies furnished in almost every direction. But 
 the very features of the country which gave such 
 advantages to forces holding Chattanooga, presented the most 
 formidable obstacles to any force operating against it, especially 
 from the north, Protected as it was by a rapid stream over two 
 thousand feet wide, on the banks of which were cannon ready to 
 sweep away any army that should attempt to cross, it was still 
 further inaccessible by the mountainous region to the north, over 
 which it was exceedingly difficult to operate an army, and even 
 more difficult to supply it so far away from any practicable base. 
 Its lines of communication south were protected by mountainous 
 ridges running south and south-west, through which the openings 
 were but few and easily defended, but across which it was a stu 
 pendous task to throw an attacking force. Indeed, much as the 
 War Department had complained of Rosecrans delay, the event 
 showed that he had not overrated the difficulties of the task, 
 especially when his deficiency of mounted men was considered. 
 
A FLANK MOVEMENT. 447 
 
 A flank movement being the only one which promised success, 
 and the country north and north-east being unfit for army oper 
 ations, it remained to cross the mountain ridges on the west and 
 south-west and strike the enemy s communications south, com 
 pelling either the evacuation of Chattanooga or fighting a battle 
 on equal terms. 
 
 The success of such a movement, involving the passage both 
 of the river and several high mountains, depended upon keeping 
 the enemy in ignorance of our real plan, by diverting its atten 
 tion and resources to a different quarter. This was most effect 
 ually done by a brilliant feint by Crittenden, whose corps crossed 
 the Cumberland Mountains into the Sequatchie valley in four 
 days, though they had to drag their cannon over precipices by 
 hand. Thence he despatched four brigades, two of cavalry, Col. 
 Minty s and Wilder s mounted infantry, and Gen. Hazen s and 
 Wagner s brigades of infantry, to proceed to points on the river 
 opposite Chattanooga, above and below the town, and make a 
 feigned attack. This was done. Some of Wilder s troops above 
 the town let ends of logs, rails and bits of timber float down past 
 Bragg s front, as if they were preparing a bridge ; other troops 
 slapped boards together to make a lumbering noise, while Wilder 
 unlimbered his artillery and shelled the town. In the meantime 
 the other corps of the army had been concentrating at Steven 
 son, Bridgeport, Battle Creek and Caperton s Ferry, the pon 
 toons and other preparations being kept out of sight, and when 
 the time for crossing had come, Bragg s attention had been so 
 completely absorbed by the movement on his front that the whole 
 army was transferred across the river without opposition. 
 
 The passage of Sand Mountain involved the necessity of 
 making and repairing roads, and when this had been done as far 
 as practicable without too mnch delay, such was the steepness of 
 
448 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the ascents on the different routes of advance that teams were 
 often doubled to move the artillery and wagons. By September 
 6th these movements in the main had been completed, and the 
 army, except what was left to threaten Chattanooga on the north, 
 lay along the western base of Lookout Mountain from Wau- 
 hatchie, a point six or seven miles from Chattanooga, to Valley 
 Head, thirty-five miles distant. 
 
 It was on Sept. 2nd that Sheridan s Division, to which the 
 36th belonged, received orders to cross the river. As there were 
 not pontoons enough to reach across both channels, the engineers 
 had finished the bridge by setting down trestles and planking 
 them over a device which came near costing us dearly. It was 
 an exciting time. Thoughtful men realized the peril of putting 
 such a river in their rear with such mountains in front, while the 
 measured tread of infantry, the rattle, shout and crack of the 
 whip, as the heavily laden wagons bounced from the banks on to 
 the narrow pontoon causeways ; the heavier jar and crash, as the 
 huge artillery vehicles rumbled over the planks, must be heard 
 to be appreciated. The troops passed over safely and in fine 
 spirits, and marching forward about four miles, went into camp 
 in Hog Jaw Valley, where Gen. Negley, of the 14th Corps, had 
 preceded us and was preparing to ascend the mountain. We 
 soon found that the officers were destined to an unpleasant night, 
 for word was brought that in attempting to cross the bridge 
 some of the trestles had broken, precipitating several wagons into 
 the river. This meant that we must shift for ourselves for shel 
 ter and food. Good use was made of the abundance of soft 
 corn growing near, which, with salt, was quite a pleasant change 
 from army diet. Next morning troops were under arms early, 
 but we did not march. By and by our wagons arrived, the 
 bridge having been repaired during the night, though it gave 
 
ASCENDING THE MOUNTAIN. 449 
 
 way a second time. It seemed little less than miraculous that, 
 in accidents so dangerous, no men were lost, and only one mule. 
 Two men, however, were much injured in camp by the fall of a 
 tree. 
 
 It was an interesting sight to watch Negley s Division ascend 
 ing the mountain road, which in many places was as steep as an 
 ordinary house roof. The teams of six horses or mules had to 
 be doubled to accomplish the task. Some of the men were so 
 impatient of the delay that they went to the top to reconnoitre, 
 and brought exciting news of the scenery and prospect. By 
 and by they had as much of mountain climbing as they desired. 
 
 It was not till Friday, about three o clock, that the way was 
 cleared and we began to ascend. It took our battery four and 
 a half hours to go up. On reaching the top we continued our 
 march for about five miles and went into camp at dark, much 
 exhausted with the heat and dust. It took most of the night 
 for the train to come up the hill, and, with all the care that could 
 be exercised, several wagons fell over the precipice on the road 
 side, which varied from ten to one hundred feet deep. The next 
 day we crossed the mountain, and descending a hill even worse 
 than the one we ascended the day before, went into camp near 
 Trenton about three o clock. Our train came in early, so that 
 we made ourselves quite comfortable, and were especially grati 
 fied to find a creek of most beautiful water, supplied from a spring 
 which gushed out of the rock in a stream as broad as a man s 
 body. Such water in so great abundance makes a soldier happy. 
 On Sunday we resumed our march down the valley, passing 
 numerous houses with rich and beautiful farms. We found here, 
 too, more men at home than usual, and quite a number who had 
 been paroled at Vicksburg. The heat and dust that day were 
 almost intolerable. One man sank down by the roadside and 
 
450 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 another when we reached camp. On Monday we went eight 
 miles further and then camped, where we remained until Thurs 
 day. It was during these three days that the object of this hard 
 marching was accomplished the evacuation of Chattanooga. 
 
 As soon as the main army had been transferred to Lookout 
 Valley, Crittenden on the left was instructed to advance over the 
 mountain, Thomas to penetrate and hold the gaps in the centre 
 (Cooper s and Stevens Gaps), while McCook was to push for 
 Broomtown Valley, his outpost being at Alpine. These move 
 ments revealed the real plan of Rosecrans, and Bragg at once 
 commenced to evacuate, as his line of supplies and reinforce 
 ments were falling into our hands. Besides, the lull of opera 
 tions, both east and west, was allowing reinforcements to be sent 
 him from Virginia and beyond the Mississippi ; Buckner was on 
 the way from East Tennessee with fifteen thousand men, and 
 time was needed to concentrate these forces. His evacuation 
 was evident to our troops on the north side of the river, on Tues 
 day evening, September 8th, and on the 9th our men entered. 
 This success, as the result of strategy alone, gave great joy to 
 the army and gratification to the whole country, and all thought 
 now not of battle, so much as pursuit and capture of the retreat 
 ing forces. Orders were therefore given for Crittenden to occupy 
 Chattanooga, and push towards Ringgold and Dalton ; Thomas 
 to penetrate the gaps on his front and reach Lafayette ; McCook 
 to enter Broomtown Valley and communicate with Thomas, while 
 cavalry was sent out towards Rome. Accordingly we marched 
 from our camp in Nill s Valley, September 10th, and moved fast 
 up to Valley Head, where a spur of Lookout juts across the 
 valley. Here we joined Davis and Johnson s Division, which 
 had come over the mountain from Stevenson, and our corps was 
 now together again for the first time since leaving Murfreesboro. 
 
ON LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN. 451 
 
 After resting two hours, we began to scale the mountain through 
 Winston s Gap, which was very steep, and both men and horses 
 were exhausted with our previous march. After reaching the 
 top (Lookout is 2,200 feet above tide), we went on about two 
 miles and camped beyond Davis about four o clock. 
 
 These mountain tops were a great curiosity, this being, as a 
 writer has said : " Some dozen miles wide, so level and gently 
 rolling that one laughs at his preconceived ideas of the tops of 
 mountains, if he does not forget that he has left a valley. No 
 peaks from which to unfurl a flag, if any one should be geo 
 graphically poetic ; no sugar loaves where one can clamber, and 
 feel like a giddy explorer standing on a heavenward land s end. 
 There are groves, fields, and smooth flowing streams, where the 
 imagination pictures verdant crags and cascades." 
 
 We camped that night in a most picturesque spot, named very 
 appropriately u Falling Waters," where the water poured over 
 the rocks, two hundred feet high, into a deep basin. Next day 
 we went forward until we reached the opposite brow of the moun 
 tain, where we were halted for a while by some obstruction in 
 front, but had a most glorious view of the country, its succession 
 of hills and valleys extending as far as the eye could reach. We 
 then descended into the Broomtown valley, and went into camp 
 about two miles beyond. Here we remained until Sunday, the 
 13, the reports from the cavalry making any further advance 
 unwise. Indeed, the real position of affairs was only now begin 
 ning to be understood. If Rosecrans had succeeded in mislead 
 ing Bragg enough to compel him to evacuate Chattanooga, he was 
 himself mislead in his belief that Bragg was in full retreat. He 
 had, in fact, been all the time concentrating his army near 
 Lafayette, with the purpose of striking ours in detail, as we sought 
 to penetrate the gaps at various points stretching from Chatta- 
 
452 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 nooga to Alpine. At this time our situation was all that he 
 could desire. Negley found as he advanced to the gaps in his 
 front that he was in the presence of a heavy force that was able 
 to attack him through gaps on either flank, and Bragg made 
 .immediate dispositions for doing so, but by some unaccountable 
 delay was hindered long enough to give time to Negley to with 
 draw his division to a safe point. Crittenden s reconnoisance 
 toward Ringgold revealed the fact that Bragg was not retreating, 
 and compelled Crittenden to draw his corps together. As soon 
 as the movement against Negley failed, an attempt was made to 
 overwhelm Crittenden, which also came to naught by the 
 latter sending VanCleve with one brigade on a reconnoisance 
 toward Lafayette, who, meeting the enemy with cavalry and 
 artillery not far from Gordon s Mills, drove him three miles, dis 
 concerting Gen. Polk, who, instead of attacking as ordered, 
 halted in defense, and called for reinforcements. This failure 
 saved our left. Me Cook also found from the reports of his 
 cavalry that the enemy were not retreating but concentrating, 
 and as we were so far away and isolated from the centre and 
 open to attack from Lafayette, our position, too, became quite 
 critical. Indeed, the whole army was in danger, for Bragg was 
 nearer to either of our wings than it was to the other. Crit 
 tenden could not hold the road to Chattanooga until Thomas 
 could close up on him, and Thomas could not do this until 
 McCook joined him. For four days, while we were crossing the 
 mountain to join Thomas, the fate of the army hung in the bal 
 ance, and as we now look back and see the advantage Bragg had, 
 we are amazed that with opportunities so vast his achievements 
 were so meagre. 
 
 It was at midnight on Saturday, the 12th, that Gen. McCook 
 received the first intimation that he was to join Gen. Thomas. 
 
MARCHING TO MEET THE ENEMY. 453 
 
 At first, he prepared to send his trains under the protection of 
 three brigades, Gen. Lytle commanding, back on the route of 
 advance, and with the remainder of his corps to move along the 
 eastern base of Lookout to Dougherty s Gap. But this was soon 
 abandoned and another route was sought on the mountain to 
 Stevens Gap. As the citizens concurred in denying the exist 
 ence of such a road, and having no guide, he determined to move 
 by way of Valley Head. This necessitated a march of forty-six 
 miles instead of seventeen, and the loss of four days and a-half, 
 instead of one and a-half. It was on Sunday we received orders 
 to march on this return, but our brigade being rear guard to the 
 trains, we lay round all day until five o clock, when we marched 
 back two miles to the foot of the gap by which we had descended 
 from Lookout two days before. Here we lay exposed to the cold, 
 which was very severe, while the trains continued to ascend the 
 hill ; huge fires being kept up all night to facilitate the move 
 ment. At daylight, the teams were all up, and we followed, 
 accompanied by about fifty prisoners who had been captured, and 
 who all united in declaring that their generals were preparing 
 for battle. 
 
 We marched back to Falling Waters, where we remained until 
 Wednesday, Sept. 16th, and returned to Dougherty s Gap. 
 Here we had a magnificent view of the Alpine Valley. The 
 cavalry marched past us most of the night. Next day we started 
 early, moving north to Stevens Gap and keeping in sight of the 
 valley all day. We then descended a hill two miles long, the 
 worst we had yet found, and entered McLemores Cove, where 
 Negley had first found the enemy and where we were for the first 
 time in supporting distance of Thomas, who proceeded at once 
 to close up on Crittenden. As soon as we entered the cove, the 
 proximity of the enemy was evident, and the troops were thrown 
 
454 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 into line of battle. We lay down, expecting to be called at any 
 moment, but notwithstanding this and a threatened rain, we slept 
 soundly, for our day s march had been one of the hardest we 
 had known, over twenty miles of a mountain road, for the greater 
 part without water and almost insufferable from dust. Next 
 morning we were up at three o clock, and at daylight began our 
 march up the valley, toward a gap held by the enemy. After 
 going about four miles, we halted and formed line of battle, and 
 in about two hours moved a mile or so further, then went into 
 camp with the expectation of staying all night. Just before 
 dark the "general " sounded, and immediately we prepared to 
 march, but hindered, probably by the teams, we waited and 
 waited, and at half past eleven we had moved but a few rods, 
 while the men built huge fires of rails for warmth and light. 
 After we got started our progress was extremely tedious, many 
 of the men lying down by the roadside to sleep, and officers in 
 danger of falling from their horses through sleep ; but on we 
 went, lighted by burning fences, until we bivouacked at Pond 
 Spring about three o clock, and in a few minutes were fast asleep. 
 
 We were up next morning, 19th, about six o clock, and imme 
 diately began to speculate as to what all this marching and 
 counter-marching, this turning night into day, could mean for 
 though it is all plain now, then it was mere conjecture. We 
 could see, however, that our army was concentrating, and that 
 we were in constant danger of being attacked by the enemy. 
 As the morning advanced, a muttering sound as of distant thun 
 der was heard to the north-east, and every ear was turned, listen 
 ing for it again. Before long it was repeated again and again, 
 and we took in the situation at once, for 
 
 " Nearer, clearer, deadlier than before, 
 It is, it is the cannon s opening roar." 
 
OPENING OF A GENERAL BATTLE. 455 
 
 Bragg, after failing to strike our three corps in detail, had 
 been waiting for reinforcements from Virginia. On the 17th 
 our cavalry discovered his columns from Dalton to our left, with 
 the purpose of crossing the Chickamauga and occupying the 
 roads to Chattanooga, north of Gordon s Mills, which Critten- 
 den was holding. Had this movement been executed with vigor 
 on the 18th, as Bragg ordered, it might have been successful ; 
 but that unaccountable delay by his subordinate officers, which 
 had already lost him such golden opportunities, ruined this also, 
 by giving Rosecrans time to bring up Thomas and McCook. 
 
 While this movement to our left was taking place on the 18th, 
 the enemy made some demonstrations against Gordon s Mills and 
 Craw-Fish Springs to cover its real plan, but the revelations of 
 our cavalry left no doubt of its ultimate design. Accordingly 
 our forces were brought up on the 18th as rapidly as could be 
 done with safety, and during the night while we marched up to 
 Pond Spring, Thomas was marching past Gordon s Mills, taking 
 up a position which protected the main roads leading from the 
 crossings of the Chickamauga to Chattanooga. Neither force 
 knew of the proximity of the other, but Gen. Thomas, being 
 informed that a Rebel brigade was isolated on this side of the 
 creek in consequence of the burning of the bridge by our cav 
 alry, sent forward two brigades to reconnoitre, who encountered 
 a heavy body of the enemy that had crossed during the night. 
 This merely tentative movement proved the opening of a general 
 battle, whose first shots had attracted our attention. Thomas 
 was reinforced by a division from Crittenden, and by Johnson s 
 division of McCook s Corps, which was arriving on the ground 
 and were able to check the enemy inflicting heavy loss on him, 
 which so occupied his attention that he did not discover for some 
 time a large opening between Thomas and Crittenden which our 
 
456 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Generals strained every nerve to fill. A portion of their force at 
 Gordon s Mills was thrown to the left, and soon Gen. Davis 
 arrived from McCook. These dispositions were scarcely made 
 before a heavy body of the enemy, concentrated for the purpose 
 of filling this gap in the line and cutting our army in two, broke 
 upon them. They resisted manfully, drove back the enemy, but 
 soon, little by little, gave ground, specially on the flanks of the 
 line, until Davis right and left rested upon the Lafayette road. 
 In this position, supported by Wilder s mounted infantry, he fought 
 successfully the superior forces of the enemy through several 
 hours. It was while resisting this attack that our division came 
 up to help. 
 
 In the morning the wagons were sent to Chattanooga, and 
 Sheridan s Division made a rapid march to Craw-Fish Spring. 
 Here every man filled his canteen, and extra boxes of cartridges 
 were distributed to the companies, men being detailed to carry 
 them on their shoulders. Then on we went again at a rapid 
 pace, until the sight of Negley s flag showed that we had struck 
 the right of the army holding one of the gaps and thus protect 
 ing our rear. Soon we arrived at McCook s headquarters, where 
 all was excitement. Says an eye witness, "An aid with pallid 
 face rides up to McCook and exclaims, hastily, For God s sake, 
 General, send somebody down to hold Gordon s Mills ! Bushrod 
 Johnson has crossed with a division, and is hugging the bank of 
 the stream. He will be in our rear in fifteen minutes. Where 
 is Wood ? asked the General. Gone into the fight long ago 
 and left the position vacant. " McCook orders Sheridan to take 
 his division down to the Mills and hold them. The first brigade 
 files by, Gen. Lytle at its head, calmly smoking a cigar, receiv 
 ing his orders with that stately courtesy at once so becoming and 
 winning. There was not the slightest change in the manner or 
 
VALUE OF FULL CARTRIDGE BOXES. 457 
 
 intonation of the chivalric Lytle. I felt, as his horse bore him 
 quickly away, that I was gazing upon the incarnation of manly 
 courage and nobility. His brigade swept by with a graceful 
 swing. One of his regiments, the 36th Illinois, whose banners 
 were blazoned with "Pea Ridge," "Perryville," and u Stone 
 River," had a number of men carrying heavy boxes of cartridges 
 on their shoulders. Noble fellows! Experience has not been 
 lost upon them. They, perhaps, had learned the value of full 
 cartridge boxes. The next moment an aid from Rosecrans 
 dashes up. "Where are your reserves, General," he asks. " I 
 have none, save Negley holding Owen s Gap," was the reply. 
 " Tell him to report immediately to Thomas, who is hard pressed 
 again," rejoins the aid and gallops off. Negley is quickly sum 
 moned and streams by towards the left, and so Sheridan s Divi 
 sion is the extreme right of the army. But even a single division 
 could not be spared for so important a point, for the pressure 
 upon Davis and Wood became so heavy that Bradley s and Lai- 
 bold s Brigades were ordered to their assistance, leaving our 
 brigade alone to guard the mills. The same eye witness says : 
 "Reaching an open field, I find two of Sheridan s Brigades 
 moving by the left flank from the position just assigned them. 
 4 Where are they going ? I ask. i They go to reinforce the right/ 
 I am informed. Gen. Lytle s brigade alone was left at Gordon s 
 Mills, and there were no more to come up. Glancing at the sun 
 my very heart sank to see it still an hour and a-half high. The 
 left had already absorbed the centre, and the centre and right had 
 absorbed every brigade in the army, except one holding a vital 
 point. I followed Sheridan s swift brigades and soon saw the 
 right of our line in confusion, falling back rapidly under an 
 appalling fire. Sheridan s third brigade, commanded by that 
 true gentleman and soldier, Col. Bradley, deployed into line, and 
 
 30 
 
458 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the very instant its flanks turned to the front it pushed into an 
 open field at a double quick, while behind it Wood s two brigades 
 rallied and gathered up their scattered groups. I heard a cheer, 
 loud and ringing, and riding up behind the line of Col. Bradley s 
 charge, saw four noble regiments far across the field pouring 
 swift volleys into the flying foe, and flapping their colors in tri 
 umph. Their cheers subsided, and a sharp shower of balls warned 
 me away from the inspiriting sight. In a moment Sheridan 
 dashed back to the rear, hatless, but his eyes aglow with pride for 
 the brilliant charge of his brigade. His practiced ear had caught 
 the warning musketry rattle of a counter charge, and he threw 
 his second brigade into line for another charge if the other one 
 was compelled to give way. But it did not give way. Inspired 
 by Sheridan and Bradley it withstood the shock, and its assail 
 ants hastily retired. A few more straggling shots, and firing 
 ceased along the whole line, as if both parties had exhausted 
 themselves. Just as night fell, a terrific fire of musketry opened 
 on our centre where Negley was moving into position, but it lasted 
 not ten minutes, then all was quiet again. The moon, which in 
 a few nights had grown from the slenderest of silver sickles into 
 a graceful, golden canoe, was far on its nightly voyage, shining 
 faintly on two weary armies, bent on destroying each other, and 
 waiting only for the line and gold of sunrise to renew the struggle." 
 With the exception of Granger s Reserve Corps, Ly tie s Bri 
 gade was all of our army that did not participate in the battle. 
 As for us, while holding that important point, so vital to the 
 safety of our right, we expected every moment to take a share 
 in the fray ; but it was ours only to listen to the whistle of scat 
 tering bullets, dodge an occasional stray shell that came whirling 
 over our heads, and witness the agonies of the wounded and dying. 
 Night closed the scene, and we lay on our arms expecting to 
 
A HEAVY NIGHT CONFLICT. 459 
 
 be called in any emergency, for we could plainly hear the enemy 
 busy in their preparations, ahead, and now and then the crack 
 of a rifle and the whiz of a stray bullet fired by an advanced 
 picket. It was a chilly as well as an anxious night as we lay on 
 the cold ground. Still it brought us some rest from our long and 
 tiresome forced march. About eight or nine o clock we were 
 startled by a heavy night conflict on the left of our line, where 
 two of Thomas Divisions had been suddenly attacked, resulting 
 in heavy losses on both sides, and final repulse of the enemy. 
 
 The battle of Saturday resulted in our general success. The 
 contest raged along hillsides and amid forests and ravines. The 
 army lines extended over nearly three miles of ground, arid only 
 by the smoke that rose above the heights, the dust that ascended 
 above the forest trees in the valley, or as the cannon s roar and 
 the rattling discharges of musketry were heard upon surround 
 ing hills, could the observer note the ebb and flow of the tide of 
 battle. Besides the beginning of the conflict, being on the part 
 of both Generals rather accidental than intentional, the lines had 
 a great deal of an extempore character, and on our side the dif 
 ferent divisions were arranged without any reference to their 
 place in the corps, each being thrown in where it was most needed. 
 But we closed at night with a continuous line and with a more 
 compact and favorable formation than we had had any time during 
 the day. Gen. Bragg had one marked advantage, in that he had 
 more troops in reserve available for the next day than Rosecrans. 
 He had three divisions almost untouched, and Longstreet with 
 several fresh brigades reached Ringgold in the evening. But 
 still he had cause to feel uneasy with regard to the work before 
 him. He had been completely foiled in his strategy and tactics. 
 He had expected to find Crittenden s corps on the left of the 
 national army, but his own enveloping lines had been taken in 
 
460 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 flank, and the right half had been fearfully shattered. At the 
 opening of the battle his army had been well in hand for offence 
 or defence, while Gen. Rosecrans had been compelled often to 
 throw forward divisions and brigades without support on right or 
 left, and the national army was now before him with continuous 
 lines, having the choice of strong positions in the rear. Besides, 
 this army was yet upon the roads to Chattanooga, which he had 
 expected to grasp after he had doubled its left upon its centre and 
 pressed it back upon the mountain passes. In all his special 
 expectations and dominant aims Gen. Bragg had been disap 
 pointed and defeated. 
 
 Gen. Bragg received reinforcements during the night, and with 
 them, their commander, Lieut. Gen. Longstreet. He transferred 
 all his infantry to the west bank of the Chickamauga; divided 
 his army into two wings, placing Gen. Polk in command on the 
 right and Gen. Longstreet on the left. He ordered the former 
 to attack from his right at daylight and to bring his divisions into 
 action consecutively to his left, and the latter to await develop 
 ments on the right and then attack in similar manner. While 
 thus ordering an attack along his whole line, the special object 
 to be sought and gained was the possession of the Lafayette road 
 to Rossville and Chattanooga. 
 
 On our side, about midnight, after a conference with his corps 
 commanders and other general officers, Rosecrans gave orders 
 relative to the battle front for the next day. Thomas was to main 
 tain his line as formed on Saturday evening ; McCook was to 
 withdraw Sheridan s and Davis Division and form a new line, 
 further to the north and west, with the right resting at the Widow 
 Glenn s and the left joining to Thomas right, thus making a 
 shorter but a stronger line. Crittenden was to withdraw Wood s 
 and Van Cleve s Divisions to the rear of the junction of Thomas 
 
DISPOSITION OP THE TROOPS. 461 
 
 right and McCook s left, to be ready for the support of either. 
 The cavalry were to connect with McCook and receive orders 
 from him, which proved in the end to be the pivot on which 
 the misfortunes of next day s engagement turned. Negley, at 
 Gen. Thomas request, was to be relieved from his place in the 
 line and transferred to the extreme left, to aid in defending that 
 flank, which it was anticipated would be the chief point of attack 
 by the enemy. 
 
 Before daylight, the divisions designated for new positions, 
 except Negley s, made the movements required, while those in 
 position, as far as practicable, covered their fronts with barricades 
 of logs and rails. Gen. McCook placed Lytle s Brigade, of Sher 
 idan s Division, to the right and rear of Widow Glenn s, and 
 Laibold s and Bradley s to the rear and right of Lytle, and 
 the two brigades of Davis Division, Carlin s arid Heg s, in rear 
 of the line thus formed. Wilder s Brigade of mounted men was 
 divided, two regiments being placed on the right and two on the 
 left of Sheridan. Gen. Crittenden posted his two divisions on 
 the eastern slope of Missionary Ridge, in readiness to support 
 either the right or the left. It is not too much to say, in view of 
 all subsequent events, that had this line remained substantially 
 undisturbed and Negley been sent before daylight to his place on 
 the left, our right would have held its ground, and night would 
 have seen a complete victory for our army. Unfortunately, how 
 ever, these dispositions did not command the approval of Gen. 
 Rosecrans, when he inspected the lines after daylight. He 
 wished to hold the space from Widow Glenn s house to Brannan s 
 right with McCook s six Brigades, including Wilder s, and keep 
 Crittenden s corps wholly in reserve. He therefore ordered Mc 
 Cook to fill the space to be made vacant by the withdrawal of 
 Negley, if practicable. But it was not practicable to cover the 
 
462 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 space from Widow Glenn s to Brannan s right, except with an 
 attenuated line, and after some delay Rosecrans called upon Crit- 
 tenden to furnish troops to fill the division interval which Negley 
 was holding. Gen. Wood, therefore, was ordered to relieve Negley, 
 while" Van Cleve took position behind Wood. Rosecrans also 
 ordered Davis to form his brigades some distance to the north 
 and east of where they were in the rear of Sheridan. As this 
 change exposed his right flank, Gen. McCook posted Laibold s 
 Brigade, of Sheridan s Division, to the right and rear of Davis 
 and held Lytle s and Bradley s Brigades in reserve. This left 
 Ly tie s Brigade and the 36th in their old position near Widow 
 Glenn s, but with a line much weakened. Other changes were 
 soon made, which still further favored disaster. 
 
 A heavy fog hung over the battle-field during the early hours 
 of the day, and Gen. Polk did not attack as ordered. Gen. Bragg 
 waited near the center of his army until his patience was exhausted, 
 and then proceeded to his right, to find that the commander of 
 that wing was not on the field and that the necessary preparations 
 for battle had not been made. During the progress of prepara 
 tions, Bragg ordered a reconnoisance beyond Thomas left ilank, 
 and was gratified to learn that the Lafayette road was open to his 
 possession. This condition of aifairs was owing to the fact that 
 Negley s Division was still in position on the right of Brannan. 
 Thomas felt great uneasiness, for though his troops had con 
 structed barricades, the flank could not be strong while the prom 
 ised division was absent ; yet Gen. Bragg was forming a combi 
 nation against it, both in pursuance of a general plan and with 
 special reference to its weakness, and he was sure that an attack 
 would not long be delayed. He therefore sent a staff officer to 
 hasten Negley, two of whose brigades were yet in line, the reserve, 
 Gen. Beatty s, being alone free to move. This was the only sup- 
 
OPENING OF THE SECOND BATTLE. 463 
 
 port on Thomas left flank, in room of a whole division promised 
 for the coming battle. 
 
 At half-past eight A. M. the character of the skirmishing plainly 
 indicated that the enemy was preparing for an attack, and within 
 an hour from that time he made a furious assault upon the left of 
 the general line, which was rapidly extended to the right. The 
 single brigade protecting the flank was soon displaced, and 
 Thomas left flank was greatly overlapped; but the attack against 
 the main line was so stoutly resisted that the enemy dare not 
 swing his right flank into our rear, the other divisions being so 
 fearfully shattered. Gen. Cleburne reported the loss of five 
 hundred men in a few minutes. Breckenridge s left brigade was 
 almost annihilated, having lost its commander, Gen. Helm, and 
 four Colonels, two killed and two wounded. The national artil 
 lery was especially effective. 
 
 Thus their second battle opened auspiciously for our army ; 
 but as the attack progressed along the line and Longstreet 
 advanced to continue it, he found only isolated fragments of a 
 battle line before him. This state of things resulted from a com 
 bination of circumstances. As the promised division had not 
 been sent to Gen. Thomas, he repeated his requests for reinforce 
 ments, especially after the opening of the action. These calls, 
 and the quietness of the enemy on the right, induced Gen. Rose- 
 crans to believe that Bragg was moving his army to his right. 
 So strong was this belief that he finally decided to withdraw his 
 own right altogether. At ten A. M. he ordered Gen. McCook to 
 make dispositions looking to the movement of his troops to the 
 left, and soon after gave him a specific order to send two brigades 
 of Sheridan s Division to Gen. Thomas, with all possible dispatch, 
 and the third as soon as the line could be sufficiently withdrawn 
 to permit it. He also directed Gen. Crittenden to send the two 
 
464 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 reserve brigades of VanCleve s Division to the same destination. 
 These orders put in motion to the left every brigade in reserve 
 except Wilder s. 
 
 Another misapprehension was still more favorable to the enemy. 
 Gen. Rosecrans having received information that Brannan s line 
 was refused, on the right of Reynolds, he ordered Gen. Wood to 
 " close up on Reynolds and support him." Regarding this order 
 too explicit in requirement and too imperative in tone to warrant 
 any discretion as to obedience, Gen. Wood withdrew his division 
 with promptness. His left was aligned with Brannan s right, 
 and he saw no way to close upon Reynolds but to withdraw from 
 line and pass to the left, in the rear of Brannan. Having advised 
 Gen. McCook that this change would be made, Gen. Wood moved 
 his division rapidly from line. Brannan was not out of line, 
 Reynolds was not under pressure, and just as Wood moved out 
 the enemy advanced to the attack, Wood s last brigade being 
 severed as it retired, and Brannan was struck in flank. Gen. 
 Davis threw his reserve brigade toward the wide, vacant space, 
 but the heavy columns of the enemy were soon upon it. His 
 troops resisted bravely, but assaulted in front, flank and rear, 
 they were lifted from position and hurled in fragments toward 
 Missionary Ridge. The attack and issue were too sudden for 
 Laibold s brigade to move to his assistance, and the latter was 
 quickly routed. It was then that Lytle s and Bradley s brigades 
 at the time ordered to the left, were halted and thrown in to 
 occupy the ground from which the second brigade had been 
 driven, and gallantly did they face the fearful task ; but with a 
 force flushed with sudden success swarming on both flanks and in 
 front, it was a task hopeless and vain from the first, and after a 
 deadly and desperate struggle they fell back to the road where 
 they rallied, but after checking the enemy were again overpowered 
 
WAITING TO RESUME THE BATTLE. 465 
 
 by superior numbers, and the shattering of our right wing was 
 complete. After this general view of the situation, let us now 
 retrace our steps and gather up the story of the first brigade and 
 the 36th. 
 
 It was about three o clock on Sunday morning that we were 
 ordered with the brigade further to the left. The hospital depart 
 ment with the ambulances did not follow until about daylight, 
 when, as they approached the lines, they found the cavalry guard 
 ing the flank, so that for some time they had been outside our 
 lines, and in coming in, had passed so near the enemy that they 
 could have been fired on and taken, had it not been for the heavy 
 fog which covered everything until eight or nine o clock. Our 
 new position proved to be the Widow Glenn s house, Gen. Rose- 
 cran s headquarters, which had been selected the preceding day, 
 as being the rear of the center of our line of battle, but which 
 this morning was our extreme right. Here the men had break 
 fast, the 88th kindly giving our boys one day s rations. By and 
 by Rosecrans came round accompanied by his staff and escort. 
 He looked in bad plight, but his voice was ringing and cheery. 
 "Boys," said he, "I never fight Sundays, but if they begin it we 
 will end it." 
 
 The men lay round, ready at a single bound to reach their 
 places, while all speculated as to the coming events of the day. 
 Some of the officers of the 51st, which was close by, came over, 
 and gave us a full account of their part in the battle of the day 
 before, declaring it the hottest place they were ever in. Gradually 
 the fog lifted and a warm and beautiful day greeted us ; a day for 
 praising and serving God, rather than for destroying man. Every 
 one felt that it would not be long before the enemy would show 
 his intentions. There were conversations, too, and words that 
 proved to be the last with many, which will long be remembered 
 
466 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 by the survivors. There was Gen. Lytle, as he sat calm and 
 dignified at the head of the brigade, to all appearance unmoved 
 by the circumstances, though comprehending all the gravity of 
 the situation. As soon as the brigade had taken its place near 
 Widow Glenn s, he called aside one of his aids, Lieut. J. M. 
 Turnbull, of Company E, and told him that he felt a great battle 
 would be fought that day and that he would be killed. He said, 
 " Turnbull, I want you to stay with me to-day. I will have 
 orders carried by others, and I want you to stay with me." His 
 reply was, " General, if that is your wish, while I live and you 
 live we will be together." There were Capt. Wakeman and 
 Lieut. 0. Smith, who had taken such an interest in the erec 
 tion of our chapel and who had officiated as ushers at the ded 
 ication. Capt. Wakeman had been sick for a number of days 
 and unable to march, and Surgeon Lytle had offered to send him 
 back, but he had repeatedly declined to go. The Chaplain remon 
 strated with him that morning, but he adhered to his resolution to 
 stand by the boys. 
 
 Every little while, scattering shots from the picket line were 
 heard, but between nine and ten o clock, the thickening sounds 
 began to tell that the day s work was opening. It was not long 
 before the musketry increased to a continuous roll, and then the 
 booming of artillery began, telling us that our left was attacked. 
 Fierce and long did the terrible roar continue, and then it came 
 nearer, making every man feel that it could not be long before 
 the terrible storm would break on us. And nearer it did come, 
 till the crash seemed almost upon us. Troops near by moved up 
 at quick pace, aad batteries of artillery were started off at a 
 jump, but, unlike what we had experienced before, we seemed 
 left till the last, whereas our place had hitherto been at the front. 
 Those who were present will never forget the awful silence in 
 
GALLANT CONDUCT OF LIEUT. TURNBULL. 467 
 
 which these movements were watched and orders were waited ; 
 every man grasping his gun and every officer standing to his 
 place. Soon there came an orderly at full speed and dashed up to 
 Gen. Lytle. It was but a word, and his voice like a trumpet rang 
 out, "Fall in!" Every officer took up the word and every man 
 was in his place. " Forward double-quick !" and in a moment 
 the regiment was dashing down the slope and on to the scene of 
 conflict. 
 
 A little while before this order was received, Lieut. Turnbull 
 was sent forward to the skirmish line in our front, commanded 
 by Capt. Bross, of the 88th. On reaching the left of the line, 
 which rested just in the edge of the woods, he found that it did 
 not connect with the troops on the left. Enquiring of the Ser 
 geant about it, he learned that the line had been withdrawn a 
 few minutes before (the result of moving Wood to the left). 
 Telling the Sergeant to caution the men not to fire on him, he 
 rode to the front to reconnoitre. Proceeding about a hundred 
 yards through the thick brush, he heard troops moving before 
 him and so near that he could hear the command, "Halt," 
 " Halt," continuously given. He divined at once that the enemy 
 were massing, after crossing Chickamauga, preparatory to a move 
 ment through our broken lines. Turning, no time was lost in 
 reaching our skirmishers whom he ordered at once to face to the 
 left and move into the woods, the right of the line to rest where 
 the left then was. He returned as fast as his horse could carry 
 him to the brigade, which he found moving, as we have described, 
 under the guidance of one of Rosecrans staff officers, whose 
 name (happily for him) we do not know. On taking his place 
 beside Gen. Lytle, Turnbull protested against moving by the 
 flank as they were then doing ; told him we should move in line 
 of battle, that the enemy were close to us in our front and we 
 
468 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 should have to form line of battle under fire. The General 
 called the staff officer and told him. He laughed, and said he 
 had just come from the front, and intimated that Turnbull was 
 scared. So on they went, through dust enough to choke, and heat 
 to melt, soon meeting the wounded and demoralized of the first 
 line which had been routed and driven back, while the second 
 line was beginning to give way. It seemed but a few moments 
 when a most terrific volley was opened on them. (Turnbull 
 looked around for our staff officer who was acting as guide, and 
 saw him riding rapidly to the rear and has not seen him since.) 
 Gen. Lytle turned in his saddle and gave the command to the 
 officers at the head of the column, " By company, into line." 
 It was taken up by the line officers, and it is questionable whether 
 such a command was ever executed under such terrible fire so 
 gallantly and so well as was this one by these brave men. They 
 were falling on every hand thick and fast, but they formed a good 
 line and moved rapidly to the crest of the hill. This was the ground 
 which the second brigade had tried to hold, and their wounded 
 and dead obstructed the way, while men, horses and artillery 
 were scattered in great confusion. One battery wagon swinging 
 round with almost lightning speed struck a dead tree, which 
 caused the top to break off, coming down into Company F and 
 striking two men, one of whom was Oscar Hobbs, supposed to be 
 killed, but he afterwards revived. 
 
 In the order of march our battery was in the centre of the 
 brigade, which delayed very much the formation of the second 
 line of battle. Becoming restive under this delay Gen. Lytle 
 turned to Turnbull and ordered him to superintend the forma 
 tion of the second line of battle with all possible speed. The 
 Lieutenant looked at him ; seeing that he was terribly in earnest, 
 saluted him for the last time, and turned to execute his order. 
 
DEATH OF GEN. LYTLE. 469 
 
 Directing the artillery to the rear, the second line was speedily 
 formed, the front line in the meantime having advanced to the 
 brow of the hill, where it took but a moment to comprehend the 
 situation and realize the terrible danger to which they were 
 exposed. The sight was truly appalling. " We were in an old 
 field where the ground was covered with dry grass and old logs 
 which the bursting shells had set on fire. A thick cloud of smoke 
 had risen about as high as our heads and seemed hanging like a 
 funeral pall in the air. Under this we could see, away down the 
 slope of the hill and across the little valley just as far as the eye 
 could reach, moving masses of men hurrying toward us. In our 
 front, not more than seventy or seventy-five yards distant, the 
 enemy s front line lay secreted behind a low rail fence. We set 
 to work with a will, while the ranks of the enemy belched forth 
 a stream of fire, and a battery of artillery on the right flank tore 
 the ground with grape and shell." 
 
 But more quickly than we can tell the story, death was doing 
 its terrible work. Gen. Lytle had bravely fronted his brigade. 
 Riding up before our regiment and praising its conduct, he drew 
 his sword close by our colors and was apparently about to give 
 orders to charge, when he was struck in the head with a bullet, 
 and fell into the arms of one of his aids, while his horse galloped 
 to the rear. This was the General s third battle and third wound. 
 Struck at Carnifex Ferry, and grievously hurt at Perryville, on 
 both occasions he had requested those around him to leave him, 
 exclaiming that he was mortally hurt. Now he again begged to 
 be abandoned, but not until the enemy had almost closed around 
 him did the aid obey his desire, and then the General was appar 
 ently dead. 
 
 In the meantime the fiery conflict grew more desperate and 
 deadly. Col. Miller, on whom the command of the brigade 
 
470 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 devolved, gallant as ever ; Lieut. Col. Olson, brave to a fault, 
 and Major Sherman, true and unflinching, were everywhere con 
 spicuous, encouraging the men by their example to wring from 
 unwilling hands of fate the victory which was denied. Our 
 exposed left was not unseen. " Who will take care of our left ?" 
 said a man to Major Sherman. " Never you mind the left," he 
 replied, " take care of what is in your front." And well did 
 they do it against ever increasing forces, sending well directed 
 volleys into their ranks which staggered and checked them ; while 
 the gallant color-bearer, William R. Toll, of Company C, seem 
 ing to know no fear, stood erect, waving in the very faces of the 
 foe our glorious flag, already blazoned with the names of "Pea 
 Ridge," " Perry ville " and "Stone River," soon torn and the 
 staff shattered by many a bullet aimed at the brave bearer. 
 Ezra Parker, Corporal Company B, one of the color guard and 
 a true man, fell pierced by a bullet through the forehead. Sergt. 
 Hitchcock, of Company B, at the extreme left, was notified to 
 detail another corporal to fill his place. He designated Corp. 
 Charles G. Ayers, .who, like the true and brave soldier that he 
 was, shouldered his musket and ran to his stern post of duty, and 
 afterwards he could show forty bullet holes through his blankets 
 and uniform. Fearful was the havoc which the storm of lead 
 was making. Capts. Mitchell, Campbell, Hobbs, Austin, Wake- 
 man ; Lieuts. 0. Smith, Company E, Denning (on Gen. Sheri 
 dan s staff), Myron A. Smith, Company H, and a host of non 
 commissioned officers and privates were falling victims. The 
 air seemed alive with bullets, and every moment the ranks were 
 growing thinner. The column which had dashed on to the field 
 fifteen minutes before with three hundred and seventy men, had 
 already lost one-half, while the enemy in growing ranks were 
 swarming around both flanks as well as pressing on the front. 
 
TERRIFIC ATTACK OF THE ENEMY. 471 
 
 The command was given to fall back, which was executed in good 
 order, every step of the ground being contested, until they 
 reached the valley through which they had come, when fighting 
 behind rocks and trees they checked for a little while the advanc 
 ing foe. It was a bitter thought that they should have so many 
 of their comrades wounded and some dying in the enemy s hands. 
 Quite a number were helped off the field, others were assisted to 
 sheltered places behind trees, &c. But time was short on 
 again came the hosts of the enemy, bringing artillery with grape 
 and canister to bear, until slowly the retreat was continued across 
 the road and into the woods beyond, halting and checking their 
 advance from time to time, until all hope was gone our right 
 had been utterly shattered. 
 
 At the time the brigade was ordered in, the Hospital Depart 
 ment with the ambulances followed and took position on the west 
 side of the road, sending in the men detailed with stretchers, 
 and waited to render assistance to the wounded at the earliest 
 moment. As the last file of men disappeared in the woods now 
 half hidden in dust and smoke, the roll and crash of musketry 
 was so terrible that it seemed impossible for any one to come out 
 of such a storm alive. Here they gazed in the direction of the 
 battle, expecting every moment some poor, wounded soldier would 
 be brought for relief, instead of which only here and there a 
 straggling one appeared with a slight wound, able to take care of 
 himself, while the firing, instead of being checked, seemed to 
 come nearer. Soon the bullets struck spitefully in the tree-tops, 
 and gave warning that the ambulances must be moved further 
 back. Taking them back a little way they were halted again, 
 while the number of slightly wounded and straggling soldiers 
 seemed to increase every moment. It was but a few minutes and 
 again the bullets were striking snappishly in the tree-tops, and 
 
472 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 streams of men, wounded and unwounded, began to pour forth. 
 Reaching the next ridge, and passing along it, we found Gen. 
 Sheridan and Lieut. Turnbull riding up and down, begging the 
 men to halt and form line. The Lieutenant, after executing 
 Gen. Lytle s last order, to form the second line, had his horse 
 shot under him, saw the General s galloping riderless, and soon 
 the whole line gave way. He made all haste to procure another 
 horse, then rode back to the ridge where we saw him, and with 
 the help of other officers undertook to organize by pressing into 
 the ranks every person that came to the rear. When they had 
 got about a hundred men in line, Gen. Sheridan and a staff 
 officer or two rode up and said, " You are doing a good work ; 
 have the men fall back to the next ridge and gather up every 
 straggler." As we passed on we heard him say, " 0, my men, 
 wont you make a stand here?" By following too much the lay 
 of the country we were unconsciously facing too much to our right 
 where we should be exposed to capture, and so were directed to 
 bear to the left. Passing over a ridge we found a road in the 
 next hollow, on which were streaming wagons, ambulances, cais 
 sons, officers and men, mounted and unmounted, wounded and. 
 unwounded. Here we gathered more of our wounded. Capt. 
 Austin and Lieut. Denning, who had both been helped off the 
 field, were taken up. The ambulances were loaded. Surgeons 
 Lytle and Hatch and the Chaplain gave up their horses for the 
 wounded to ride, and so we pressed on, expecting every moment 
 to see the Rebel cavalry coming down upon us and capture this 
 long train. By and by we came to a cross road, near a high 
 ridge, en which were cavalry men and a part of McCook s escort, 
 stopping every straggler and beginning to form a line. Here all 
 the ambulances, wounded men and hospital arrangements were 
 ordered to make their way with all speed to Chattanooga, about 
 twelve miles distant from this point. 
 
SERGEANT BROWNLEE S HEROISM. 473 
 
 While they were wending their way to the city, the work of 
 re-organization went on rapidly. Lieut. Turnbull with his 
 co-workers had gathered two or three hundred men by the time 
 they made their second halt, and it was not long before Gen. 
 Sheridan had quite a force ready and willing to follow him any 
 where. Then came a short council of war, which is a good illus 
 tration of the fertility of that General s brain on a battle-field. 
 "Officers," said he, " we are cut off from the main army and 
 must reach Gen. Thomas with the least possible delay. This, I 
 
 think, from my field notes, is Ridge, and, if I am right, 
 
 by following it we shall come to a cross-road, where, I hope, we 
 can communicate with the General." He was right, and on the 
 march thither fragments of each regiment in the brigade were 
 gathered up. Among them was French Brownlee, Sergeant 
 Company B, who had been sick for some time and was directed 
 by his officers and Surgeon to stay with the ambulance and aid 
 the wounded. But his spirit had no rest, and as our line retired 
 he kept near enough to use his Springfield rifle. The 98th 
 Illinois coming near where he was, one of their captains requested 
 him to lead some skirmishers. He soon found three rebels roam 
 ing over the field, ordered them to halt, promising them safety. 
 One came in ; he sent the contents of his musket after another, 
 giving him a close call, but not being supported by the skirmish 
 ers he retired with his one prisoner and handed him over to the 
 98th. In following the regiment he passed the killed and 
 wounded, gave the latter what water he had, and soon found the 
 color bearer of the 22nd Illinois wounded. He carried his flag 
 and assisted him to walk until he gave him into the care of one 
 of his own men, then, aften two hours of painful search, succeeded 
 in finding his own regiment as it moved under Sheridan. 
 
 On reaching the Dry Creek Valley road, the force having 
 increased to fifteen hundred, some delay occurred, and the troops 
 
 31 
 
474 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 re-organized. The commanding officers of each regiment were 
 stationed at a designated spot, and the members of the different 
 regiments directed to report to them. Here the brigade again 
 took form. Col. Miller was put in command, and Turnbull 
 ordered to report to him for duty. It was soon ascertained, how 
 ever, that the enemy had moved on a parallel line with us, and 
 were already in possession of the Dry Valley road, so the Gen 
 eral determined to make a rapid march through Rossville and 
 join Gen. Thomas on the Lafayette road. This was successfully 
 accomplished about half-past five P. M., Sheridan reporting with 
 more men and guns than he carried originally into the fight. 
 
 When the right was compelled to give way under the over 
 whelming force brought against it, it was the general opinion of 
 all in that part of the line that the disaster extended to the whole 
 army. Rosecrans, McCook and Crittenden, all shared this con 
 clusion, but as the afternoon proceeded it was found that the 
 right and centre still held their ground. Bragg made another 
 and still heavier attack on our right, but was repulsed with great 
 slaughter. Brannan, a part of whose division was broken with 
 the right wing, succeeded in rallying and taking up a very strong 
 position to the right and rear, and by throwing up barricades 
 made it impregnable. Other dispositions were made to the right 
 and left of him as emergencies arose, and at last Longstrcet, who 
 had been massing his forces through the afternoon, made a most 
 desperate attack, which, however, though repeated again and again, 
 was successfully resisted. But there was a depression on the west 
 of Brannan which afforded easy passage around it. This pas 
 sage the enemy started to seize, arid thus take in reverse the 
 line which had repelled every direct attack. This was the crisis 
 of the whole battle. A few moments more and the day would 
 have been utterly lost to us. At this critical juncture Gen. 
 
LONGSTREET REPULSED. 475 
 
 Granger with his reserve troops which had hastened from Ross- 
 ville, reported to Gen. Thomas, who directed him at once to our 
 threatened right; and as the enemy moved down the northern 
 slope towards our rear, Steedman s Division, with a fury born of 
 the impending peril, charged the foe and drove him over the ridge. 
 In gaining their position one thousand men were lost, " but if 
 the issue of battle has ever given compensation for the loss of 
 valuable lives, it was in this action, for the opportune aid of these 
 two brigades saved the army from defeat and rout." Longstreet 
 afterward massed his whole force to carry these positions, but he 
 failed in every instance, the configuration of the ground proving 
 very much to the advantage of our men, who could advance and 
 deliver a plunging fire from the brow of the hill, and by a slight 
 recession while loading were entirely covered from the bullets of 
 the enemy. Indeed, the greatest danger at last was the scarcity 
 of ammunition, the average to the man being not more than three 
 rounds, and it was quite common to search the cartridge boxes of 
 those who fell. Whenever ammunition failed entirely, the order 
 was given to fix bayonets and hold the hill with cold steel. Thus 
 was the enemy repulsed at every point until night fell, arid in 
 the final attacks this was accomplished in no slight measure with 
 the bayonet and clubbed muskets. 
 
 After Sheridan had reported to Thomas, his division was sent 
 toward Rossville to bring off a train which was falling into the 
 hands of the enemy. After marching some miles, they went in 
 perfect silence to within rifle shot of the enemy s camp-fires 
 without discovery, secured the train, and returned five miles, 
 where they bivouacked for the night as best they could. A more 
 tired and hungry set of men it would have been hard to find, 
 some having had nothing to eat all day, and others had break 
 fasted on bran pudding. But saddest of all was the thought 
 
476 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 that so many comrades were gone, partners and mess-mates, 
 killed, wounded or missing. Not a few have never been heard 
 of since. During the night the army was withdrawn, and took 
 a strong position around Rossville. 
 
 The train of ambulances with the wounded whom we left on 
 the road to Chattanooga pursued their way all the afternoon and 
 evening, being much delayed by various causes, but arrived in 
 the town about nine o clock. Wagons, ambulances and all kinds 
 of army baggage, with wounded and unwounded men, had been 
 streaming in on the different roads all the afternoon. The 
 teams filling the main streets in rows four and five deep, were 
 ordered across the river. Breastworks were planned and com 
 menced in the rear of the place, ready for a new and last line 
 of battle should such a struggle come. The stragglers were 
 set to work, and many of them reformed and sent back to the 
 army. We had about eighty men in the ambulances of which 
 we had charge, and it was a long, tedious task to find accommo 
 dations for them all, dress their wounds, and supply them with 
 food. But this was done before we stretched our own tired limbs 
 to rest long after midnight. 
 
 Next morning we were up early, went down to see the boys, 
 had all the 36th removed to one of the churches, of which Dr. 
 Lytle was put in charge, drew rations for them, and had their 
 wounds dressed. The other hospitals also were visited to find 
 any of our men. By and by the hospital wagon with the nurses 
 arrived, the big tent was set up, and our men were made 
 tolerably comfortable. Lists and descriptions of the wounded 
 were made out to be sent home the first opportunity, and it was 
 observed that the wounds as a class were specially light, which 
 was easily accounted for by the fact that the worst wounded men 
 were unable to leave the field when our troops fell back. In the 
 
PREPARATIONS FOR RETREAT. 477 
 
 meantime every kind of wild report was brought by stragglers 
 from the front, and it was the confident expectation of all that 
 our troops would fall back. Every man capable of walking was 
 sent over the river, where a field hospital on a large scale was 
 being laid out. 
 
 After the most pressing work had been done, it was arranged 
 that the Chaplain and Dr. Hatch should go to the regiment, 
 while Dr. Lytle should remain with the wounded. As they rode 
 out toward Rossville it was evident from the streams of wagons, 
 caissons, &c., coming in, that preparations were being made for a 
 retreat. They found the division a short distance to the south 
 and west of Rossville, with a strong line of barricades protect 
 ing their front and flank. During the night the army had with 
 drawn from the position occupied at the close of the battle, and 
 was now grouped on the roads concentrating at Rossville. Dur 
 ing the day the enemy with a strong force of infantry and cav 
 alry approached on the direct roads from the battle-field, and in 
 the afternoon they felt our lines and there was considerable skir 
 mishing, succeeded later in the day by a brisk artillery fire. 
 What remained of the three left companies of the regiment, aided 
 by a company from the 21st Michigan, were sent forward about 
 one-quarter of a mile as skirmishers, but were relieved at night. 
 Our army seemed terribly shrunk in size, but they were undaunted 
 in spirit. 
 
 The movement to Chattanooga was commenced at nine P. M. 
 It was made by divisions in supporting distance, one after 
 another, from left to right. Sheridan s Division being on the 
 right, we did not start until two or three o clock, although we 
 were called up about midnight. The air was chilly; we were 
 forbidden all lights, fires or noisy movements, and it seemed as 
 though the order to move would never come. At last, however, 
 
478 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLfrNTEERS. 
 
 we filed out to the road, and found Sheridan sitting calmly 
 on his horse, waiting until the very last of his division had safely 
 retired. His subsequent history only confirmed the confident 
 judgment of his men that night that had he been in a superior 
 instead of subordinate command, the results at Chickamauga 
 would have been much more satisfactory. Our march was in 
 double column, filling the whole road so that the retreat was 
 speedily made. At five o clock we reached the suburbs of Chat 
 tanooga, where, after breakfast, the brigade was set to digging 
 rifle pits, and the siege and defence of Chattanooga had begun. 
 
 The battle of Chickamauga has provoked the most active crit 
 icism from both sections of the country. But the verdict of 
 time is not very different from that which our army gave as they 
 entrenched themselves at the foot of Lookout, that provided we 
 held Chattanooga it was for our army a great triumph. For, if 
 to attain and hold the objective point of the campaign, to throw 
 ourselves across such a river, and by wise and vigorous marching 
 day and night over mountains and through mountain gaps, 
 threaten communications and then elude attack in detail, gather 
 up our widely scattered forces and concentrate in the face of an 
 outnumbering enemy, foil his plans to throw himself on our 
 flanks, and then in a great battle not only hold him at bay, but 
 inflict upon his overwhelming force such terrible losses that he 
 was incapable of any but the most cautious following when we 
 fell back to occupy the place for which we had been contending 
 if all this was not success, what was it? 
 
 On the other hand, for Bragg to have his own army reinforced 
 by large bodies from both the east and west, a veteran corps from 
 Lee in Virginia, Buckner s corps from East Tennessee, troops 
 from Mississippi and Georgia, until this force was superior to 
 ours by twelve or fifteen thousand, with the expectation not 
 
BRAGIG S GENERALSHIP CRITICISED. 479 
 
 simply of retaking Chattanooga but annihilating the army of 
 the Cumberland, and then to have failed to strike our scattered 
 forces in detail, to fail to prevent their concentration on his 
 chosen battle-field, fail to drive them from their position even 
 when mistakes on our part gave him the advantage, and then, 
 notwithstanding the preponderance in numbers, to suffer such 
 immense losses especially in men and officers, that though pos 
 sessing the field he was too exhausted and beaten to follow to any 
 purpose, thus making whatever success he had barren of any 
 real results if this was not failure, what was it ? No wonder that 
 Bragg s generalship was criticised, and that the Southern people 
 complained that the battle of Chickamauga gave no results com 
 mensurate with the resources it represented or the losses it 
 entailed. Bragg admits in his report the loss of two-fifths of 
 his army ; two Major Generals were wounded, three Brigadiers 
 killed and three wounded, and one of the latter was captured. 
 
 As regards our own division and brigade and the 36th, every 
 man feels that it was an honor to have served amid such perils 
 and contests. Not to mention the weary marches, day and night, 
 over mountains two thousand feet high, the dust, heat, lack of 
 water and rations, the spirit of the men in battle was something 
 to be proud of. Virtually deprived of the direct handling of 
 their trusted Sheridan by the over-ruling orders of his superiors, 
 and thrown into the battle after the enemy had made the attack 
 in overwhelming numbers, success was hopeless before they fired 
 a shot; while the large number of both officers and men who fell 
 in the front line, attests the persistent courage of all in the face 
 of the most terrible odds. Instead of counting it any lessening 
 of their honor that they finally fell back, it would have been no 
 disadvantage if they had done so sooner, for the forces both in 
 front and on each flank were simply overwhelming. Sergt. 
 
480 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Hitchcock, who was wounded in both arms just before the regi 
 ment retired, and paralyzed and bleeding was captured in a few 
 moments by the rushing foe, was afterwards led under guard over 
 that ground and found large bodies of troops yet undeployed, 
 while Lieut. Col. Thurston, chief of staff to McCook s corps, 
 returning from Craw-Fish Springs with our cavalry about fifteen 
 minutes after our forces had retired, saw a long line of the enemy 
 reaching far to the south of Widow Glenn, moving up to con 
 tinue the fight. To have remained longer would have been to be 
 captured bodily. As soon as re-organized they were ready again 
 for the sternest work, and on the succeeding days and during 
 the long siege of Chattanooga, atid then on Mission Ridge, gave 
 proof that though they had been checked their spirit was simply 
 invincible. 
 
 This chapter must not be closed without one more reference to 
 our noble brigade commander, who fell close to our colors on that 
 fateful day. Under a flag of truce his body was recovered for 
 honorable burial by faithful and loving hands, and long will his 
 name and memory be fragrant to the survivors of the First Brig 
 ade. Gen. Lytle was a classical scholar and a poet, and every 
 member of the 36th will be glad to possess a copy of the follow 
 ing poem written by him, and published immediately after the 
 battle : 
 
 ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA. 
 
 BY GEN. WM. H. LYTLE. 
 
 From the Memphis Bulletin. 
 
 The following poem was written by the gifted and gallant 
 Gen. William H. Lytle, of Ohio, who fell in the recent battle in 
 Georgia. It was published a few years ago in the Cincinnati 
 Commercial, and pronounced by W. W. Fosdick, himself an 
 eloquent poet, "One of the most masterly lyrics which has ever 
 
GENERAL LYTLE S POEM. 
 
 481 
 
 adorned American poetry ;" and he predicted for it " a popular 
 ity and perpetuity unsurpassed by any Western production." 
 
 Both of these gifted men are now dead. One died in a quiet, 
 happy home, in a peaceful land, surrounded by his friends ; the 
 other "perished like a Roman" went down amid the " Stygian 
 honors " of battle, surrounded by his " scarred and veteran 
 legions." 
 
 u Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori." C. L. T. 
 
 " / am dying, Egypt, 
 I am dying, Egypt, dying, 
 
 Ebbs the crimson life-tide fast, 
 And the dark, Plutonian shadows 
 
 Gather on the evening blast. 
 Let thine arm, oh ! Queen, support me, 
 
 Hush thy sobs and bow thine ear, 
 Hearken to the great heart secrets, 
 
 Thou, and thou alone, must hear. 
 
 Though my scarred and veteran legions 
 
 Bear their eagles high no more, 
 And my wrecked anil shattered galleys 
 
 Strew dark Actium s fatal shore ; 
 Though no glittering guards surround me, 
 
 Prompt to do their master s will, 
 I must perish like a Roman 
 
 Die the great Triumvir still. 
 
 Let not Csesar s servile minions 
 
 Mock the lion thus laid low ; 
 Twas no foeman s hand that slew him, 
 
 Twas his own that struck the blow. 
 Here, then, pillowed on thy bosom, 
 
 Ere his star fades quite away, 
 Him who, drunk with thy caresses, 
 
 Madly flung a world away ! 
 
 dying." [Shakespeare. 
 
 Should the base plebeian rabble 
 
 Dare assail my fame at Rome, 
 Where the noble spouse, Octavia, 
 
 Weeps within her widowed home ; 
 Seek her say the Gods have told me, 
 
 Altars, augurs, circling wings, 
 That her blood, with mine commingled, 
 
 Yet shall mount the throne of kings. 
 
 And for thee, star eyed Egyptian ! 
 
 Glorious sorceress of the Nile, 
 Light.the path to stygian honors 
 
 With the splendors of thy smile. 
 Give the Caesar crowns and arches. 
 
 Let his brow the laurel twine ; 
 I can scorn the Senate s triumphs, 
 
 Triumphing in love like thine. 
 
 I am dying, Egypt, dying ! 
 
 Hark ! insulting foeman s cry ; 
 They are coming quick, my falchion ! 
 
 Let me front them ere I die. 
 Ah ! no more amid the battle 
 
 Shall my heart exulting swell ; 
 Isis and Osiris guard thee, 
 
 Cleopatra ! Rome ! farewell ! 
 
 LIST OF CASUALTIES AT CHICKAMAUGA. 
 
 COMPANY A. 
 
 Capt. W. H. Mitchell, left knee; Corp. John S. Long, finger; Fred 
 Krahan, wounded and missing; Dorus Murus, wounded and captured 
 since died; John O Connell, killed; Ed. H. Robinson, lungs, and cap 
 tured died at Andersonville ; Chas. B. Rapp, killed ; Michael Seisloff, 
 wounded slightly ; Ed. Nute, slightly. 
 
 COMPANY B. 
 
 Capt. B. F. Campbell, wounded and captured; 1st Sergt. Samuel 
 Hitchcock, both arms, and captured; Corp. Ezra W. Parker, killed. 
 Privates -Jacob Winn, died at Andersonville; Rudolph Berger, slightly; 
 O.F.Brownlee, knee; Frank Dugan, both hips; Fred. Haeni, face, and 
 
482 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 captured ; Chas. Heinzie, thigh ; Henry Levoy, finger; John Ott, left arm ; 
 Daniel B. Roberts, face ; Daniel Terry, slightly ; Christian Brunerneyer, 
 face; Thomas McCutcheon, never heard from. 
 
 COMPANY c. 
 
 Corp. James L. Dryden, wounded and captured; Corp. William S. 
 Allen, killed; Corp. M. L. Bute, wounded and captured never heard 
 from; Sergt. Geo. N. Mercer, wounded; Ethan Keck, wounded; Thos. 
 Leggett, wounded; Geo. H. Knox, wounded, and died at Chattanooga ; 
 Hugh W. Harper, wounded ; John H. Ward, wounded ; John G. Cavis, 
 wounded, captured and never heard from ; Geo. W. Thompson, wounded 
 and captured; William Ward, captured; Elisha L. Atkins, captured, 
 and died in the enemy s hands; Benj. Sawins, the same; Orlando 
 Hayes, captured; Geo. Monro, wounded and captured. 
 
 COMPANY D. 
 
 Sergt. W. I. Maycroft, neck and shoulder; Corp. J. M. Leach, foot; 
 Corp. Harvey Kimball, killed ; W W. Gifford, leg, and captured ; Edward 
 Seymour, arm, captured and never heard from; Ezra Taylor, body, and 
 missing; Francis Phelps, elbow; C. H. Bissell, finger; Joseph Shaw, 
 leg, slight; Peter A. Johnson, wounded and captured; Miles Murray, 
 William P. Burgess, Joseph Apply, captured. 
 
 COMPANY E. 
 
 Capt. A. M. Hobbs, wounded and captured; Lieut. Orison Smith, 
 killed; Sergt. William Willett, killed; Corp. D. Burnside, hip, and cap 
 tured; Corp. John Phansteil, slight; Comfort Brace, killed; Henry C. 
 Baxter, killed ; Herbert Dewey, wounded and captured ; William Han 
 son, face; James Hatch, neck; Henry Hennes, hips; Reuben Perrin, 
 killed; Oscar Pecoy, right arm; Henry Smith, head, and captured; 
 Jacob Wolfe, killed ; William Zellar, left arm ; Elisha Lloyd, wounded 
 and captured ; Barney Wheeler, captured. 
 
 COMPANY F. 
 
 Sergt. Burgo Thompson, head; Sergt. Geo. Neff, hip; Corp. Gunner 
 Gunnerson, shoulder; James H. Hall, died in enemy s hands, Sept. 22; 
 Ira M. Johnson, neck; Oscar Hobbs, head; Walter E. Partridge, head; 
 William McLary, finger; Chas. Sweetland, captured. 
 
 COMPANY G. 
 
 Capt. Linas J. Austin, thigh; Lieut. Robert Denning, thigh; Sergt. 
 William Rolla, face; Sam. Saltmarsh, face; Alex. Still, dangerously, 
 and captured; Daniel Kennedy, severely, and captured. Corp. L. B. 
 Dawson, left arm ; James Lear, left side ; Robert Jordan, leg, slight ; 
 Joseph Hebert, slight; Peter Bradt, head and breast; Frank Bradshaw, 
 hip; Isaac Carson, killed; Joseph Vogt, shoulder; George Haltz, killed 
 Lewis Jones, wounded and captured; Charles Landon, wounded and 
 captured. James Meacham, shoulder ; Sylvester Meacham, killed; Henry 
 Spelman, elbow; Seth Slyter, hand; Benj. Stevens, killed. 
 
KILLED AND WOUNDED. 483 
 
 COMPANY H. 
 
 Capt. S H. Wakeman, killed; Lieut. M. A. Smith, killed; Ebenezer 
 Lamb, killed; David Warwick, killed; John C. Wolfe, arm; Day 
 Elmore, lungs; S. Z. Carver, leg; M. W. Goold, back; Charles Dygert, 
 breast; Chas. Irish, arm; John Holdennan, head; Harrison Montgom 
 ery, lungs, died Sept. 26; Addison M. Throop, head; Cornelius Vaimess, 
 arm; Henry C. Murray, shoulder; Greo. Jackson, James K. Perkins, 
 captured. 
 
 COMPANY i. 
 
 James Scully, killed; Corp. J. Earth, head; M. Manning, face; F. 
 Shoger, finger; F. Schulenberg, hand; F. Witski, mouth; S. Mall, 
 mouth; Fred Miller, captured. 
 
 COMPANY K. 
 
 Sergt. David H. Dickenson, leg; Sergt. James C. Hogue, leg; Corp. 
 Peter Barnet, hip; Corp. E. Pratt, leg; James Delany, slight; James 
 H. Hogue, back; William N. Hall, neck; Abram Long, shoulder; Sid 
 ney 0. Munger, left leg, amputated; Allen Burroughs, killed; William 
 Adams, Lem Grundy, J. Levereau, Edward Mayberry, Harlow Slate, 
 captured. 
 
CHAPTER XXIX 
 
 CHATTANOOGA. 
 
 TIEN the Army of the Cumberland fell back 
 into Chattanooga, it was with no certainty 
 that it could be held. Gen. Rosecrans ex 
 pressed his fears to the President, the day after 
 the battle, that he should not be able to hold 
 his position. This will partly account for the 
 lines of defence which he adopted, and the disposition of his 
 forces. He made no attempt to hold Lookout Mountain, the 
 railroad, or the river below Chattanooga, and was therefore shut 
 out from all direct communication with Bridgeport and Stevenson, 
 our base of supplies. That is to say, he made his disposition to 
 save the army from immediate disaster, by protecting his bridges 
 and presenting strong lines to the enemy, rather than to prepare 
 for resisting a protracted siege. 
 
 As soon as we reached Chattanooga on the morning of the 
 22nd of September, heavy details were made for working in rifle 
 pits. Every hour added immensely to the strength of the 
 position and the courage and determination of the men. The 
 lines selected were admirably adapted to their defensive purpose ; 
 extending from Chattanooga Creek at its mouth, near the foot 
 
SHERIDAN S HONORABLE MENTION. 485 
 
 of Lookout, to the mouth of Citico Creek, north of the town. 
 After the work had progressed some hours, heavy cannonading 
 was heard in front, as the enemy felt his way towards our posi 
 tion, and the brigade fell in, the 36th being put in reserve. 
 Probably it was here that occurred that honorable mention of the 
 regiment which the boys were glad to repeat. It having been 
 suggested to Gen. Sheridan that an additional battery was needed 
 to strengthen a certain point, " No," said the General, " the 
 36th Illinois is stationed there ; no battery is needed." But no 
 attack was made, the enemy being content with skirmishing and 
 finding out our position. 
 
 It is worthy of mention that even in these critical circum 
 stances, our mail came in, bringing a good supply of Atlantics 
 and Harpers , besides the usual letters, so long looked for and so 
 welcome. Towards evening, things having quieted down the 
 wounded having been all transferred to the field hospital Sur 
 geon Lytle and the Chaplain determined to ride down to the 
 river crossing, below the town, and ascertain for themselves the 
 the prospect of an evacuation, which it was supposed would be 
 made that night, if at all. It was a beautiful moonlight night, 
 and as they rode by the foot of Cameron Hill and looked upon 
 the placid river, with the pontoon bridge sleeping quietly on its 
 bosom, the contrast with the stir, confusion and agitation of 
 the camp was most marked. It was evident that there was no 
 present intention on the part of our commander to evacuate the 
 town, which had already cost us so much. As they continued 
 their trip through the principal streets of the town, saw its 
 public buildings, railroad facilities, hospitals, &c., they thought 
 it ought not to be evacuated, but held at all hazards. On their 
 return to camp, voices were heard on all sides, asking for the 
 news. "Are we going to evacuate?" "No," was the reply, 
 
486 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 "no evacuation; we must hold Chattanooga." We had a splen 
 did night s rest, and a marked improvement in the spirits of 
 the men was visible next morning. 
 
 Digging entrenchments and felling trees was the order of the 
 day on the 23rd, quickened by the report that the enemy was 
 advancing upon us. After dinner there was heavy firing to the 
 left, and all was excitement, as we looked for a general attack 
 along the lines. As the afternoon wore away, Gen. Rosecrans 
 passed along from left to right, encouraging the men and receiv 
 ing hearty cheers wherever he went. " We started for Chatta 
 nooga;" said he, u we are in Chattanooga, and we will stay in 
 Chattanooga." The same day he telegraphed to Washington 
 more confidently than on the 21st, saying : u We hold this point, 
 and cannot be dislodged, except by very superior forces and after 
 a great battle." Another good night s rest helped the spirits of 
 the men wonderfully. 
 
 We were up at three o clock on the 24th, and that day the 
 enemy took possession of Lookout Mountain. An attack in 
 force was still looked for and every preparation made to meet it. 
 Our brigade was the extreme right of the army, resting upon the 
 Tennessee River, and, when on the front line near Chattanooga 
 Creek, was in the vicinity of a huge foundry and tannery, which 
 had done good service to the Southern army. In these buildings 
 the 36th was set to pile up combustibles, so that they might be 
 destroyed if we had to abandon them. The enemy, without 
 making a general attack, succeeded in lodging his batteries so 
 near that a shell exploded in our brigade and wounded one man 
 in the 88th. The ambulances were ordered back out of range, 
 and at eight o clock P. M., the left wing went to work on entrench 
 ments, working till one o clock A. M. The right wing went out 
 later and worked until morning. At ten o clock, p. M. there was 
 
BRAGG ON RIFLE PITS. 487 
 
 heavy skirmishing and cannonading near the centre of the line, 
 lasting about two hours. Next morning the brigade was moved 
 back on to a hill, in preparation for a permanent camp, and a 
 detail was sent out to work on a fort being erected at our right, 
 which overlooked the river. The day was quiet along the lines 
 until about sundown, when cannonading was resumed for a while, 
 but it did us no damage. The nights were now growing intensely 
 cold. Next day (Saturday) was spent in felling trees and work 
 ing on rifle pits, which was continued till late at night. 
 
 On the 27th, just one week after the fight, we began to make 
 our regular camp and resume something like regular habits. The 
 mail being once more allowed to go out, lists of the killed and 
 wounded were sent north for publication, and for the first time 
 since we left Bridgeport, we were able to have service. A large 
 congregation assembled, and the Chaplain preached. About 
 eleven o clock P. M., we were roused by a fierce attack of mus 
 ketry in front, and the regiment went into the rifle pits, remain 
 ing about an hour, and then returned to camp. 
 
 It was now evident that Bragg had no intention of driving us 
 from Chattanooga by assaulting our lines, but had determined to 
 compel our retreat by cutting off our supplies. The bitter lessons 
 he had learned at Stone River and Chickamauga, about assault 
 ing our men when only partially entrenched, were not lost upon 
 him. After the last battle Gen. Johnston thus accosted him: 
 " Having beaten the enemy, why didn t you pursue the advan 
 tage?" "Well," replied Bragg, "my losses were heavy, you 
 see, my line was pretty long, and by the time I could get under 
 motion the Yankees would have been ten feet under ground!" 
 
 From Van Home s history we now learn that "Loiigstreet 
 insisted on a flank movement instead of a siege. He suggested 
 to his chief to cross the river above Chattanooga, and make him- 
 
488 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 self so felt in the rear as to force Rosecrans to evacuate the posi 
 tion and fall back to Nashville, then, if not able to continue the 
 northern movement from inadequate transportation, to follow the 
 railroad to Knoxville, destroy Burnside, and from there threaten 
 Rosecrans communications in the rear of Nashville. Bragg, 
 however, did not deem this suggestion feasible. His transpor 
 tation was not considered adequate, and in his view purely mili 
 tary considerations forbade the step. He thought that the inter 
 ruption of Rosecrans communications with Bridgeport, south of 
 the river, promised better results, and he disposed his army to 
 accomplish this object. He confided the holding of this impor 
 tant route to Gen. Longstreet, and threw his cavalry across the 
 river to operate against the transportation of supplies by wagons 
 over the mountains to Bridgeport. He judged wisely that his 
 superiority in cavalry and the length and condition of the roads, 
 rendered wagon transportation a precarious means of supply for 
 the army shut up in Chattanooga. His success was assured if 
 he could maintain his hold upon the river and the shorter roads 
 to Bridgeport. The situation of the beleaguered army was crit 
 ical from the first," for though immediate steps were taken to 
 transfer two corps under Gen. Hooker from the army of the 
 Potomac, and bring assistance from Gens. Hurlbut arid Sher 
 man, yet " the movement of troops from points so remote, gave 
 no promise of immediate relief, and as the enemy was on the 
 direct line of approach, their passage from Bridgeport to Chat 
 tanooga was itself an intricate problem." The maintenance of 
 our position against such fearful odds, the ultimate raising of the 
 siege, and the successful defeat of the investing army, will ever 
 furnish one of the most thrilling chapters in the history of our 
 war. 
 
 On Monday, September 28th, one hundred ambulances were 
 sent out to the battle-field to bring in our wounded, and in two 
 
CAPT. HOBBS OF COMPANY E. 489 
 
 days a similar train went on the same errand. At the picket 
 line our drivers were compelled to give way to Rebel drivers, 
 who took charge of the ambulances until they were brought back 
 with their sad loads. The tender mercies of these drivers will 
 be perpetuated in the narratives of some of our men. 
 
 Among the first to be brought in was Capt. Hobbs, of Co. E, 
 reported among the killed, but who proved to have been wounded 
 in the knee. Capt. Hobbs had been identified with the regiment 
 from the first, had participated in all its marches and battles, had 
 everywhere proved himself a worthy and efficient officer, and 
 was highly esteemed by both officers and men in the command. 
 At the battle of Stone River he was wounded in the breast 
 captured, and shared with other officers in the five months cap 
 tivity and wretchedness in Southern prisons. He and Lieut. 
 Turnbull, Company C , were selected by choice of their com 
 rades, on account of gallant conduct in battle, to represent the reg 
 iment on the "roll of honor," which was made up by order of Gen. 
 Rosecrans. After his arrival in Chattanooga, he remained in one of 
 our hospitals in town, receiving every attention until he was able 
 to be moved, when he was sent North. The situation of the ball in 
 the knee was such that it was not safe to remove it, and as it 
 would not hinder his walking when aided by a cane, it was con 
 cluded to allow it to remain. It brought, however, his army life 
 to a close. He returned to Kendall County, where the people 
 showed their appreciation of his services by electing him Circuit 
 Clerk, an office which he retained until his death. In time, the 
 presence of the ball in his knee gave him much trouble, and 
 seemed to threaten his life; he therefore submitted to an opera 
 tion for its removal, which, instead of benefiting him, hastened 
 his death, which took place a few days later, on January 4th, 
 1872, over eight years after the battle in which he was wounded. 
 
 32 
 
490 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 From Capt. Hobbs we learned more definitely about the others 
 whose fate was uncertain. His 2nd Lieutenant, Orison Smith, 
 was found to be dead. He was a gallant soldier and a true man 
 everywhere, and his loss was deeply felt. All suspense, too, was 
 ended about the fate of Capt. Wakeman. Some had assisted 
 him to a sheltered spot behind a tree, after he was wounded, and 
 we hoped, even against hope, that he might survive, but most 
 probably he died almost at once after our line retired. " Dad," 
 as he was familiarly called in Company A, while yet in a subor 
 dinate position, was one to be loved by those who knew him. 
 Beside his noble qualities as a soldier, he was exceedingly com 
 panionable as a man ; well read, of fine tastes and elevated views, 
 in sympathy with all that was pure and good. He had a special 
 love for fine scenery, and his fellow officers call to mind many a 
 pleasant talk they had over their pipes, while he would point out 
 whatever was attractive in the scenery or the occurrences of the 
 day. He was the fast friend of the Chaplain, and sought in 
 every way to advance the highest interests of the regiment. 
 
 His 1st Lieutenant, Myron A. Smith, reported wounded, was 
 also found to be dead, and much other information was gained in 
 regard to those who had been left on the field. Those who were 
 brought into our lines gave sad proof, in their wretched condi 
 tion and haggard looks, of the rough treatment they had received. 
 Some of them had had nothing to eat for four days. Two nar 
 ratives, which have been secured, may stand as representative 
 of the rest. One from J. L. Drvden, of Company C, and one 
 from P. A. Johnson, of Company D. 
 
 DRYDEN S NARRATIVE. 
 
 The first Rebel I got sight of, I fired at; and while loading, 
 a buck shot struck me in the knuckles of the left hand, caus 
 ing no inconvenience, however. I finished loading as quickly 
 
j. L. DRYDEN S STORY. 491 
 
 as possible, drew up and fired at a Rebel who was capping his 
 gun. The instant I fired, a musket ball struck me, glancing 
 across the upper side of my left wrist (which was then turned 
 under, holding the gun in position for firing), and passing through 
 my left shoulder and top of left lung, caused my left arm to drop 
 as if struck with a club, turning me partly around, but not caus 
 ing me to lose my balance. My gun fell at my feet ; I saw at a 
 glance that my share of the work was finished, and taking a fare 
 well look of my faithful Erifield, I started for the rear. I walked 
 perhaps twenty rods before I fell, exhausted from loss of blood. 
 A Sergeant of Company H passed just as I fell. I called him. 
 He came, and with his knife freed me of my knapsack, cartridge 
 box, haversack and canteen. He lifted me up and we managed 
 to walk a little further until we met the fifer of Company G, 
 Bennie Sawin, Lon Hays and Daniel Baldwin, with a stretcher. 
 I was placed on this and carried to a little cabin where I remained 
 until an ambulance came along, when I was conveyed to the 
 hospital at Craw-Fish Springs, lifted out, and laid down under 
 an oak tree, where I remained until Monday night. About sun 
 down of Sunday evening the black -whiskered surgeon of the 21st 
 Michigan came along. I asked him to do something for me. 
 He replied that it was useless, as I would never see morning, 
 and with this morsel of cold consolation, passed by on the other 
 side. 
 
 I have no distinct recollection of anything that passed from 
 that time until Monday night. 1 was then carried into a tent, 
 stripped, and my wounds dressed by Federal nurses arid surgeons. 
 I did not know until the next day that our forces were defeated 
 and we prisoners. Tuesday afternoon the rebel cavalry came 
 flocking in, stealing everything they could find. Fortunately, 1 
 had nothing left but my hat, and that they took, and would have 
 taken my pants if they could have got them off. For nine days 
 I lived on boiled wheat, and but little of that. 
 
 On Wednesday, September 30th, five hundred ambulances 
 reached us with crackers and coffee, and the work of assorting 
 and paroling commenced. We were put to all manner of tests 
 
492 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 to discover how badly we were injured. The surgeons, nurses 
 and those barely able to care for themselves were sent, God knows 
 where, and such of us as were not able to take care of ourselves 
 were paroled and sent back to Chattanooga. This was my good 
 fortune ; and on the morning of October 1st they commenced 
 piling us into the ambulances, filling them as full as they could 
 hold. It was raining hard bitter, bitter cold to a man without 
 clothes. About daylight we were ready for the road, and look 
 ing back, I could see the long line of my poor, starved, crippled 
 comrades on foot, taking up their line of march for the nearest 
 railroad station, and thence to Southern prison pens. It was the 
 saddest sight I ever saw. In a short time after starting we 
 passed through the fated battle-field of ten days before, and 
 within fifty yards of where we formed our first line. I did not 
 see a single Rebel unburied ; neither did I think it possible that 
 one of our men could have been buried, they lay so thickly on 
 the ground and so closely to the road that the driver, through 
 carelessness or spite, ran our ambulance over many of them. It 
 rained hard all day. Oh, the horrors of that day s ride ! Many 
 of the streams we crossed were so swollen that our ambulance 
 box would be filled with water, and the poor boys Avho were lying 
 down in the bottom were nearly drowned once or twice. Our 
 driver, a gruff, sour, old Rebel, wouldn t hear to one word of 
 complaint, saying "it was all good enough for d d Yankees." 
 About midnight we reached Chattanooga ; were carried up stairs 
 in a large, brick building, washed, had our wounds dressed, and 
 felt satisfied that we were "just inside the borders" of civiliza 
 tion once more. I remained in Chattanooga two days ; crossed 
 the Tennessee river to the field hospital, two miles in the country, 
 where I remained two weeks. All this time the " Cracker Line" 
 remained closed, and our rations were by no means large enough 
 to be used as evidence at the bur of " conscience " in making out 
 an indictment against us for the sin of "gluttony." But here 
 thanks to the Northern fingers which made it, and blessings on 
 the Sanitary Commission which brought it I once more reveled 
 in the luxury arid gloried in the possession of a shirt, having 
 
DRYDEN S STORY CONTINUED. 493 
 
 been seventeen days without hat, coat, shirt or socks ; it was a 
 blessing not lightly to be esteemed that shirt was. 
 
 On Wednesday, the 21st of October, we started with a large 
 ambulance train for Stevenson, Alabama, distant thirty-five or 
 thirty-six miles by the river road, but by the "pole road," which 
 we were obliged to take, it was almost one hundred, occupying 
 five days and nights, and those were days and nights of the most 
 fearful and most causeless suifering, hardship and privation that 
 I ever endured in my life. The train was placed in command of 
 an old German surgeon I know not who he was, where he came 
 from, or where he has gone to, arid I care less. His first care 
 was to crawl into the ambulance containing the hospital stores 
 and get drunk, and he remained drunk until we reached Steven 
 son. The train started, winding its way up miserable little 
 ravines and cracks, on the east side of Waldron s Ridge, which 
 we crossed on the morning of the third day after starting. There 
 are not adjectives enough in the English lauguage to express the 
 condition of that road. Rocks about the size of a sentry s box, 
 lying right across the road, would raise the front end of the 
 vehicle up straight, then the hind end, causing us one moment 
 to be lying full length on the bottom of the ambulance, and the 
 next standing on our head in the corner. Our driver was a jolly, 
 good fellow, but he couldn t help the jolting, except as he light 
 ened our burdens by laughing at our odd predicament. The 
 third day we crossed Waldron s Ridge, and started down the 
 beautiful Sequatchie valley, when our road gradually became 
 better as we neared the river. During the whole of this trip I 
 know of no one who had his wounds dressed from the time we 
 started until we reached Stevenson. We were almost starved. 
 There was provision along, but our head being muddled with 
 whisky, there was no one to issue it; the strong helped them 
 selves and the weak did without. At night the driver would 
 gather me a hatful of persimmons, and after supper I would lie 
 down under the ambulance and dream of the "gal I left behind 
 me." I got but one square meal in the whole time, and I got 
 that just as the skunk secures many privileges by my smell. 
 
494 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 We reached Stevenson, Alabama, at last, starved, wearied, 
 jolted arid used up generally, when I stretched my wearied limbs 
 upon a bona fide hospital cot, and lay and wondered whether the 
 whole world, inhabitants and all, had not been passing through 
 a the mill of the gods." I seemed to be ground down exceed 
 ingly fine. Here Add. found me, after a long, dangerous search, 
 furnished me with a new blouse and cap, and bound my feet in 
 slips of red flannel, in lieu of socks. After many more ups and 
 downs we started for home, and on the 22nd day of November 
 we crossed Mason and Dixon s line, and were in God s country 
 again. J. L. DRYDEN, 
 
 Company C, 36th Illinois Volunteers Infantry. 
 
 JOHNSON S NARRATIVE. 
 
 Sept. 20th, 1863, I was wounded at the battle of Chicka- 
 mauga, and like a great many others, left on the battle-field. After 
 we broke from the first line of battle, Gen. Sheridan ordered us 
 to halt, face about, make another charge and drive the Rebs back. 
 While making this charge, I was somehow a little in advance. I 
 kept right on, and the first thing I knew, all our forces were gone 
 and T was alone. I started back, when I was wounded in the 
 leg. The Rebs came right on, and as soon as they came up to 
 me, one asked if our men were in full retreat ; to which I replied, 
 " Well, I guess they are going back rather lively." " Have you 
 any cartridges . " was his next question. "A few," said I. "Well, 
 let s have them," said he. So I pulled off my cartridge-box and 
 gave it to him, and while so doing, some other Reb stole my rub 
 ber blanket. By this time, the main line came up and all pushed 
 on, so I turned my attention to my wound, I began to think I 
 was going to bleed to death, so I tied a little bag, about the size 
 of a common pillow case, around it, and poured some water on it. 
 As soon as the water struck the wound I fainted. A couple of 
 straggling Rebs happened to be near by, saw me faint and instantly 
 came and rubbed my forehead with water and brought me to. 
 Soon the Rebels retreated and stragglers began to come on to the 
 field, among them our drummer, Billy Burgess. As soon as he 
 saw me, he said, "Hallo, Pete, are you badly wounded?" " I 
 
CAMPBELL S LETTER TO MILLER. 495 
 
 do not know," said I. "I will go and get an ambulance," said 
 he, "and take you to the hospital." So off he started, in his 
 shirt sleeves, and that was the last I ever heard of him. We 
 gathered ourselves together in a little group beside the road and 
 did what we could for one another. Among us were Will Gif- 
 ford, Company D, 36th, James H. Hall, Company F, 36th, and 
 a great many from other regiments. It was here I witnessed the 
 death of J. H. Hall, Company F, 36th, Sept. 22nd. He gave 
 me some silver money, his pipe and pocket knife, to send to his 
 folks at Newark, Illinois, when I should get through the lines, 
 which I sent to the Captain of Company F, as soon as I reached 
 Chattanooga. We all lay on this battle-field from the 20th to 
 the 27th of September. After we were taken to the hospital 
 and everything arranged for being paroled, we were about to sign 
 the documents, when the Rebel officer having charge said to our 
 doctor : " Doctor, I would like to have all your men sign this 
 parole, if they can." To which the Doctor replied, " I want 
 you to understand we have a class of men who are able to sign 
 their own names." The Rebel officer replied, sharply, " None 
 of your slurs." 
 
 A letter received by Col. Miller from Capt. B. F. Campbell, 
 soon after this time, gives his experience : 
 
 FRIEND SILAS : You are no doubt aware of my misfortune 
 in being wounded and captured by a force of the enemy, which 
 moved in round the left flank of our regiment on the 20th of 
 September. That part of the line giving way before the advanc 
 ing foe, exposed the left wing of the old 36th to a galling and 
 destructive cross-fire, with a prospect of being bagged, as the 
 force on our left could not be rallied to our support. Still, our 
 brave boys worked on, never flinching, until the order sounded 
 along the line to fall back and take another position, which was 
 done. I rallied my men about twenty yards in rear of the line 
 from which we had just retired, and again moved forward. When 
 near where the first line was, I was sent sprawling to Mother 
 Earth, almost helpless, from the effects of a shot in the right 
 breast, operating severely on my ribs, at the same time causing 
 
496 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 me to spit blood quite freely. In this plight I was soon sur 
 rounded by the enemy and called on for my implements of war 
 fare by a Lieutenant Colonel of a Georgia regiment, who coolly told 
 me to go to the rear, which it was impossible for me to do then, 
 being very weak. After recovering myself slightly, I with much 
 difficulty rose to my feet, and was escorted to the rear with others, 
 by the post guard. I arrived in Richmond, September 30th, and 
 was put in Libby Prison. There are now eight hundred and 
 twenty-five Federal officers confined here, awaiting exchange. 
 We occupy six rooms, with privilege to visit any of those rooms 
 at will. The old hospital room of this building has been fitted 
 up for a dining hall, and we do our own cooking in the basement 
 quite an improvement on the former style. In addition to this, 
 we are permitted to send outside the prison and purchase many 
 things we need, at rates that will make bankrupts of us all, if 
 not soon exchanged. 
 
 My wound is doing well ; hope to be with you soon. Do not 
 fail to write me. My regards to all the boys. 
 
 When the wounded were brought into our lines, we were already 
 beginning to feel the effects of the siege, in the shortened rations 
 that were issued, and even the hospitals found difficulty in obtain 
 ing a full supply. But Steward J. C. Denison, who had charge 
 of the supplies for the field hospital, went direct to Gen. Sheri 
 dan and represented the destitute condition of the wounded com 
 ing in, and he promptly ordered full rations; saying, " We must 
 take care of our poor wounded men." 
 
 In pursuance of his general plan, Bragg soon began to make 
 demonstrations against our communications, to embarrass us in 
 our really vulnerable point our supplies. On the 1st of Oct., 
 Wheeler crossed the river with a large force of cavalry, and 
 before our troops could overtake him, he attacked and partially 
 destroyed a large wagon train loaded with supplies, near Ander 
 son s cross roads. Our cavalry immediately pursued, but the 
 
DESTRUCTION OF SUPPLIES. 497 
 
 enemy having the start, and heavy rain falling continually, they 
 were much hindered. On coming near Anderson s, they saw the 
 smoke of the burning wagons, and hurrying forward, drove a por 
 tion of the enemy s force past the fire, upon the main body, which 
 was in line of battle about a mile off. Several attacks were made 
 with continued success and the enemy was pursued across the 
 Sequatchie Valley. Eight hundred mules were recaptured and 
 some of the wagons saved, but three hundred were burned. Quite 
 a number of the enemy were killed, wounded and captured. 
 Another detachment of Wheeler s command had been sent to 
 McMinnville. This also was pursued, but not in time to save 
 the stores and garrison. A similar movement against Murfrees- 
 boro was headed off, and Wheeler, after several defeats, was com 
 pelled to make his way across the Tennessee River, while other 
 forces, designed to co-operate with him, had to retreat. Upon 
 the whole, while the loss of the train was a great one, the expe- 
 pition proved very disastrous to Wheeler, and did not accomplish 
 anything like what was expected of it. His loss was computed 
 at two thousand men and six pieces of artillery. 
 
 The first news of the burning of our train created a great 
 excitement in Chattanooga, for it was felt that we could resist the 
 enemy in front better than spare our supplies. But a worse 
 enemy than Wheeler was beginning to work against us, and "the 
 situation of our army was becoming exceedingly critical. At the 
 commencement of the occupation, there were large trains in good 
 condition, and the prospect of transporting supplies was some 
 what promising. But early in October the rain began to fall," 
 and the rains of that mountain region are something to remem 
 ber. It seemed as though the very heavens had turned to water, 
 which poured down incessantly, sometimes for three and four days 
 and nights, until everything was soaked through and through. 
 
498 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 The roads became almost impassable. The sixty miles between 
 Chattanooga and Bridgeport required a longer time with every 
 trip, and the animals grew more and more exhausted with inces 
 sant labor and lack of forage. As the number of wagons grew 
 less and the weight of supplies they could bring was diminished, 
 the rations served out to the men were steadily reduced. The 
 possibility of being starved out of our position stared us in the 
 face. All along our front, extending from Lookout across the 
 valley of Chattanooga and all along Missionary Ridge lay the 
 Southern army, their flags flying, their tents in full sight, and 
 every little while their heavy guns on the mountain- top belching 
 forth defiance, only waiting until we should commence our retreat, 
 when they would fall upon our flanks and rear and make the 
 Army of the Cumberland one of the things of the past. With 
 them and with President Davis, as he looked down upon us from 
 the mountain height, our ruin and the consequent recognition of 
 the South was only a question of time. 
 
 But not so thought we, and as the situation grew more desper 
 ate the spirit of our army seemed to rise in stern and unquench 
 able determination to hold Chattanooga or die. Many were the 
 jokes about the possibilities in store for us; headquarters and 
 the hospital department had many a pleasantry about our six 
 mule team, one of the sleekest and most attractive in the army, 
 of which George took almost idolatrous care, as we prophesied 
 the day when we should be taking our daily rations from their 
 tempting flanks. The keenest minds were quickened to find 
 some solution of this stern problem, which should save both the 
 army and Chattanooga, and in due time it was found. Before 
 we narrate the circumstances of our relief, a number of incidents 
 occurring at that time should find record. 
 
 Too much cannot be said of the benefit we derived from the 
 coming of our mail. Next to his rations, the soldier always 
 
TRIBUTE TO FRANK W. RAYMOND. 499 
 
 valued his letters, and that value was very much increased during 
 the dreary time of the siege. At first, communication was stopped 
 by the General, but after it was once resumed there was no further 
 interruption, but through all the rain, mud and risk came our 
 letters and papers. With the 36th this meant a good deal, for 
 the regiment stood alone for the amount of reading matter which 
 it provided through the mails in addition to our library. Twelve 
 copies of the four monthlies, twenty copies each of several 
 weeklies, beside all the religious reading, swelled the mail matter 
 largely, so that after the blockade was partially raised the Chap- 
 received at one time a bushel of magazines and papers. When 
 our library came up, which it did about the same time, the moral 
 effect on the men was most happy. 
 
 No record of the regiment would be complete which should 
 omit to make special mention of this peculiarity, or should fail 
 to notice the untiring efforts and marked skill which characterized 
 our brigade mail carrier, Frank W. Raymond, of Company A. 
 Frank was a universal favorite, and was emphatically the right 
 man in the right place. He knew every man, and the sight of 
 his cheery face, the sound of his familiar voice, especially when 
 he had a letter, was often better than medicine for a sick man, 
 and he says, " If their friends could have seen their disappointed 
 faces when I told them I had no letter for them, they would have 
 been more frequent in writing." 
 
 While the regiment was at Rienzi he made the trip to Corinth 
 and back (fifteen miles) every day. After the Perryville cam 
 paign began, he followed with the mail, traveling as far as his 
 horse would carry him, camping either by the roadside or in the 
 house or barn of some citizen at night, until we reached Bowling 
 Green. When the railroad was repaired he took it from our 
 base of supplies, wherever that might be. During the Tullo- 
 
500 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 homa campaign he encountered all the perils of that wet and 
 muddy time, swimming Elk River when it was very much swollen, 
 with his horse "Old Gabe," in the presence of a brigade of cav 
 alry, who expected to see him carried away by the current and 
 drowned. As he came out on the south bank, a Major, one of 
 Gen. Rosecrans aids, on his way to Tullohoma with despatches, 
 came to him and said, "Young man, I will give you ten dollars 
 if you will swim my horse across." Frank replied, "No, Major, 
 not if you give me your commission." When Gen. Sheridan 
 heard that the mail carrier of the First Brigade had reached 
 camp, he sent for him, questioned him at some length in regard 
 to his trip, and then wrote him a very complimentary letter. 
 
 Early in October, the Army of the Cumberland was reorgan 
 ized by the consolidation of the 20th and 21st Corps into what 
 was now called the 4th Corps, and the reserve corps was incor 
 porated with the 14th. Each corps included three divisions, 
 and each division three brigades. The 4th Corps was placed 
 under command of Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger, with Generals 
 Palmer, Sheridan and Wood, commanding respectively the 1st, 
 2nd and 3rd Divisions. About the same time, Gen. Hooker, 
 with the llth and 12th Corps, took position on the Nashville & 
 Chattanooga Railroad, and disposing his troops from Nashville 
 to Bridgeport, gave security to our communications. The Army 
 of the Cumberland thus comprised four corps, with three divisions of 
 cavalry. The 36th was attached to the 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, 
 (Sheridan s) 4th Corps. These changes necessitated a change of 
 camp, we being moved over toward the left, and a portion of the 
 14th Corps taking our place. Our former camp had its disad 
 vantages, for in heavy rains the water poured in streams down the 
 hillside, and was with great difficulty kept out of the tents. But 
 in our new location, we had peculiar annoyances, for the ground 
 
CHANGE OP CAMP. 501 
 
 being very low and flat there was not only no opportunity for 
 drainage, but it was at night and morning enveloped in thick fog, 
 and justified the strong expression of Major Sherman as we took 
 possession of our new quarters, "Here, gentlemen, is where you 
 can get your ague in solid chunks." It was only by cutting deep 
 ditches through the ground that we could keep the camp in toler 
 able condition, while again and again the heavy rains poured 
 down, finding every hole in our tents, compelling us to select a 
 seat somewhere between the leaks, soaking our clothing and even 
 our books and papers, as the marks on many a man s diary and 
 letters sent home now bear witness. The weather, too, was fast 
 becoming extremely cold, and the thin, worn clothing of the men 
 was but slender protection from the piercing wind. 
 
 Necessity quickens though, and the dilapidated ruins of former 
 mansions soon found their way to camp, and with mud for mor 
 tar, camp chimneys began to go up in all directions. It was not 
 every man who knew the secret of constructing a chimney so it 
 would not smoke, and bitter were the experiences of some who, 
 after wearisome toil, succeeded in finishing their task, only to 
 find that as soon as the fire was built all the smoke poured out 
 into the tent ; only by lying down and breathing the lowest stra 
 tum of air could they stay in the tent, however stormy it might 
 be outside. Great was the rejoicing when, after many failures, 
 their efforts were crowned with success and the draught was all 
 right ; then the tent was cosy indeed. 
 
 Our new position was a little south of the Western & Atlantic 
 Railroad, not far from the point where the track turns to the 
 north, and so we were almost directly opposite Gen. Bragg s 
 headquarters on Mission Ridge. The Rebel camps were in plain 
 sight, and their flag at headquarters and on the top of Lookout 
 waved defiance day by day. Beyond this, and their watch over 
 
502 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 us, they did but little harm, much less than they might have done 
 if they had tried. The second Sunday of our occupation, while 
 we were still on the right, and the regiment was on picket near 
 the foundry, the Chaplain went out to hold service. During 
 the afternoon the attention of all was attracted to movements on 
 the mountain side, the nature of which it was difficult to deter 
 mine, as they were much concealed behind the trees. Our sus 
 picions, however, were soon confirmed by the construction of an 
 earth-work and the mounting of guns. Next day they opened 
 upon our line with shot and shell. One rifled shell fell in Com 
 pany E, and sliding along the ground struck Henry Haigh, tak 
 ing the skin off the hip, but as it fortunately did not explode, no 
 further harm was done. Very soon heavy guns were mounted on 
 Lookout, from which shell were occasionally thrown even into 
 town, and sometimes to Brigade Headquarters in our new posi 
 tion at the left, but we soon became perfectly indifferent to the 
 whole performance, except as it afforded material for conversation 
 or jests from day to day. We were able to return these compli 
 ments in kind, and sometimes with marked effect. 
 
 It seemed at first as though Rosecrans had made a great mis 
 take in giving Lookout Mountain to the enemy, but it was soon 
 found that the fort erected on Moccasin Point went far to neutral 
 ize the advantage, for it was perfectly easy to shell the base of 
 the mountain and even the top when necessary, while the fort 
 itself was strongly protected on both flanks by the river. The 
 sharp, shrill voice of Moccasin, as she took care of our right 
 flank, became one of the recognized institutions. Fort Wood, 
 too, on our left and rear, in our second position, could easily 
 reach the side and top of Missionary Ridge, and many a wagon 
 train or detachment of men was glad to quicken its steps as 
 Fort Wood planted a shell near its track. Indeed, Bragg evi- 
 
FAMILIARITY OF THE TWO ARMIES. 503 
 
 dently thought that time, rain and mud would accomplish his 
 purpose, and that he need not waste his ammunition upon us, 
 but no hawk ever watched a feeble bird with keener glance than 
 he watched the army which he counted as his lawful prey. At 
 the time the army was re-organized, when all the camps were in 
 confusion, regiments, brigades and divisions changing places, 
 he thought his hour had come, and we were certainly preparing 
 to evacuate, for he kept his troops ready all day to march at a 
 moment s notice. Besides the singularity of two hostile armies 
 thus watching and operating in plain sight of each other, the 
 nearness and familiarity of the two forces was something remark 
 able. The camps were so near that when one night the Colonel 
 and the Chaplain had walked out to the picket line at the time 
 of tattoo, the sounds of fifes and drums from both armies were so 
 intermingled that it was difficult, even when they attempted it, to 
 tell them apart. The pickets, too, held conversations, exchanged 
 papers and scraps of news, and as B. F. Taylor says, " An exam 
 ination of many a plug of the Indian weed in a picket s pocket 
 would show the print of a Rebel s teeth at one end and a Yan 
 kee s at the other." " An officer belonging to a regiment in the 
 front came across the neutral ground, and while standing with 
 our picket until he could be brought in, actually heard them call- 
 the roll of his company, and when his name was reached, cried 
 out, Here! 
 
 During all this time of fortifying, watching and waiting ; these 
 days of storm and rain and mud and ever shortening rations, our 
 religious meetings were well attended, sometimes when it was 
 scarcely to be expected. One week from the battle, Sunday, we 
 held our first service on the hillside to the right, and though the 
 men had been working day and night during the week, there was 
 a large turnout from both the regiment and the brigade. Our 
 
504 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 evening meetings were also resumed, and continued as long as 
 the weather would permit. On the following Sabbath, Oct. 4th, 
 the regiment being on picket, the service was held near the Foun 
 dry, where the enemy s line was within hearing distance. From 
 that time one or two services were held every Sabbath when prac 
 ticable, after which, the Chaplain visited one or more wards in 
 the hospital, preaching a short discourse in each ward. Our sup 
 ply of reading matter enabled him to distribute a great many 
 papers, &c., among the wounded men, which were most eagerly 
 received and read. So little had many of the poor fellows 
 enjoyed of such things, that they looked with wonder upon our 
 excellent advantages in the way of reading. The field hospital 
 across the river also was visited regularly, and reading matter 
 distributed. If it was something never to be forgotten to notice 
 the silent, patient determination with which the men in the ranks 
 met the hardships of their lot, still more to be remembered is the 
 quiet uncomplaining spirit of the sufferers in the hospitals, by 
 whom the smallest kindness was esteemed a favor ; who received 
 a cup of water, a paper or magazine, a short prayer or an address 
 with a tender gratitude which would bring tears to the eyes that 
 looked on it. 
 
 The changes in the Army of the Cumberland proved to be but 
 the precursors of still wider changes throughout the West. The 
 departments of the Cumberland, the Ohio and the Tennessee had 
 been hitherto independent of each other, and though attempting 
 some sort of co-operation, had signally failed in aiding each other. 
 This failure had proved very disastrous to us, when Buckner had 
 re-inforced Bragg with 15,000 men, just before the battle of 
 Chickamauga, while Burnside was not able to come to our help. 
 Now that the enemy had concentrated his forces against Chatta 
 nooga, and had drawn upon the whole Southern Confederacy for 
 
NEW COMPLICATIONS IN THE COMMAND. 505 
 
 troops, it became imperatively necessary to unify our strength 
 and bring all our scattered forces under one control The coming 
 of Hooker added new complications, for there were now two gen 
 erals who had commanded the Army of the Potomac, and it was 
 difficult to reconcile questions of rank. The Department at 
 Washington found a happy solution for all difficulties by creating 
 the " Military Division of the Mississippi," and placing Gen. 
 Grant in command. The same order (dated Oct. 18th) desig 
 nated Gen. Thomas to command the " Army of the Cumberland," 
 which now included Hooker s two corps, in place of Gen. Rose- 
 crans. Probably the Government had various reasons for the 
 change, but it was certain that the tone of Gen. Rosecrans 
 despatches had caused a fear that he might evacuate Chattanooga, 
 although he had no intention of doing so, except in the case of 
 absolute necessity, and on the day of his removal he was engaged 
 in maturing the very plans which under Grant, ten days after 
 ward were the means of opening the river and the direct road to 
 Bridgeport. The Army was sorry to part with Rosecrans, but 
 they could appreciate the situation and had every confidence in 
 Thomas, who, they knew, was only prevented by his modesty 
 from accepting the command of that army at Louisville, a year 
 before, and who had actually saved it by his coolness, determina 
 tion and skill after the almost fatal break on the 20th of Sep 
 tember. 
 
 Gen. Grant s first telegram on assuming his new command, and 
 Gen. Thomas pnswer, indicate the spirit which was to character 
 ize the new administration. " Hold Chattanooga at all hazards," 
 was the order. "We will hold Chattanooga until we starve," 
 was the reply. 
 
 Before Gen. Grant reached Chattanooga, on the 23d, prepara 
 tions had been well forwarded for opening the river, and after he 
 
 33 
 
506 .THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 had given the plan a careful investigation and approval, it was 
 carried out with complete success. Although the 36th bore no 
 part in the execution, yet the movement itself was of such vital 
 importance that some account of it ought to be given. 
 
 The Tennessee River makes a very circuitous course in the 
 neighborhood of Chattanooga, of which most excellent advantage 
 was taken. Winding to the west of the town in the shape of a 
 half circle, it flows in a south-easterly direction, until it is arrested 
 at the foot of Lookout and forced by rocky barriers to turn and 
 flow north-west, then north, until opposite the town it again turns 
 permanently north-west. By this strange course a tongue of 
 land is cut out, which, when looked down upon from the top of 
 Lookout, presents the appearance of the moccasined foot of an 
 Indian, and is therefore called Moccasin Point. On the shore 
 across the narrowest part of this foot, which is south-west .from 
 town, is Brown s Ferry, opening up to Lookout Valley, through 
 which the railroad and wagon road to Bridgeport passes. This 
 ferry is only about four miles from Chattanooga, while round by 
 the river it is nine miles. 
 
 The plan proposed was for Hooker to advance up the valley 
 from Bridgeport until he could hold the roads connecting Brown s 
 Ferry with Kelley s several miles below, and by a force from 
 Chattanooga co-operating at Brown s we should take possession 
 both of the shortest route to Bridgeport and up the river far 
 enough to allow boats to come up to Kelley s, since Brown s 
 Ferry was within range of the guns on Lookout. A steamboat 
 at Bridgeport and another taken by us at Chattanooga were fitted 
 in readiness for use. One of Gen. Thomas first orders after 
 assuming command was to Gen. Hooker to prepare his troops for 
 that expedition, partially matured by Rosecrans. After Gen. 
 Grant had given his approval, and everything was ready, Hooker 
 
BROWN S FERRY MOVEMENT. 507 
 
 designated October 27th to commence his march, and the night 
 of the 26th was fixed for the Brown s Ferry movement. 
 
 This was really one of the most delicately constructed and 
 skillfully executed movements of the war. Pontoons had been 
 prepared at North Chickamauga Creek, and brought by a circuit 
 ous route behind the hills to their starting point at Chattanooga. 
 These were to convey 1,500 picked men under Gen. Hazen down 
 the river, passing the enemy s pickets stationed for seven miles 
 along the left bank, and then effect a landing at Brown s, while 
 the remainder of Hazen s Brigade, Gen. Turchin s Brigade and 
 three batteries of artillery, were to take position above the ferry, 
 ready to cover the landing on the opposite bank, and cross in 
 support as quickly as possible. Chaplain Van Home, in "Army 
 of the Cumberland," thus graphically describes the scene: 
 
 The boats moved from Chattanooga at three o clock A. M. on 
 the 27th. A slight fog veiled the moon, and the boats, directed 
 by Col. T. R. Stanley, glided noiselessly with the current. Hug- 
 ging closely the right bank, they rounded Moccasin Point and 
 moved unperceived to the place of landing. The boats had been 
 called off into sections before starting, and each section was placed 
 under an officer, who knew beforehand his exact place of land 
 ing. As the foremost section neared the shore at its appointed 
 place at early dawn, the surprised pickets fired a harmless volley 
 and fled. In quick succession the several sections landed; the 
 men leaped upon the bank, and ascended the adjacent hill to meet 
 and drive back a small force that had hurried forward in response 
 to the warning volley. There was a sharp engagement for a 
 moment, then all was quiet. The boats first brought over the 
 remainder of Hazen s troops, and soon after Turchin s Brigade. 
 Hazen took firm hold of the hill above the gorge through which 
 the Bridgeport road passes to the ferry, and Turchin the one 
 below it. As soon as skirmishers could be thrown sufficiently 
 forward to prevent a surprise, detachments with axes went vigor 
 ously to work felling trees and constructing barricades and abatis. 
 
508 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 In two hours the defenses were such as to bid defiance to the 
 enemy. This accomplished, the pontoon bridge was speedily 
 thrown under the skillful supervision of Capt. P. V. Fox, First 
 Michigan Engineers. Although the force engaged was exposed 
 to a vigorous cannonading by the enemy s batteries on the front 
 of Lookout Mountain, Gen. Smith s loss was six killed, twenty- 
 three wounded and nine missing. The loss of the enemy was 
 probably not less, as six of their dead were left on the field and 
 six prisoners captured. Twenty beeves and two thousand bushels 
 of corn were added to the slender rations of the troops. These 
 supplies, of hardly appreciable value to a large army under 
 ordinary circumstances, were of very considerable moment at a 
 time when soldiers gladly gathered the fragments of crackers and 
 grain which fell to the ground in transfer. 
 
 This was a surprise to both armies, so secretly had every 
 thing been executed. To Bragg it was a great mortification, and 
 it is only the more astonishing that he did not perceive the drift 
 of it and prevent its entire success by defeating Hooker. The 
 latter met no opposition until reaching Wauhatchie, when a faint 
 demonstration was made against him and the force was shelled 
 from the Mountain, but his advance went into camp one mile 
 from Brown s Ferry, at five o clock. On the night of the 28th, a 
 sudden attack was made upon these troops, which, after a fierce 
 struggle and one bayonet charge, was successfully repulsed, and 
 our troops were in possession of the valley and the hills com 
 manding the roads. 
 
 We were roused from our slumbers by the attack, which 
 in the moonlight and the silence of the night, sounded distinctly 
 through all our camps, and we realized that the question of our 
 supplies was being settled by the musketry which echoed through 
 the still air from the mountain side. That night the steamboat 
 at Chattanooga successfully ran the batteries on Lookout, and the 
 one at Bridgeport was soon in motion up the river, laden with 
 
A BRIGHTER OtJTLOOK. 509 
 
 supplies. This movement was made none too soon. The very 
 day that Hooker went up the valley, our boys only went through 
 the motions of having breakfast, dinner and supper all they had 
 was some coffee, with the addition at supper of a little beef. On 
 the 31st, one hundred pounds of hard bread a good share of 
 which was green and yellow with mould, besides being wormy 
 was all that could be allowed for the regiment. Even at head 
 quarters, about this time, we had a few flour pancakes, with a 
 little bacon, and water to drink, while the men who had eagerly 
 picked up bits of mouldy hard tack and gathered kernels of corn 
 out of the mud and fried them in a little grease, thought them 
 selves specially happy. Indeed, the short rations, scanty cloth 
 ing, excessive picket and trench duty, the wet and stormy weather 
 and cold nights, were telling fearfully on the men, whose sunken 
 cheeks and spiritless manner gave token that their powers of 
 endurance were being greatly tried. Sometimes they were so 
 weak that they tottered and staggered like old men. The teams, 
 too, which through the mud, rain and dangers of those weeks 
 had kept on the mountain road, to our base, were fast perishing. 
 Many of the deep ruts and ditches were filled with animals that 
 had died in the harness, while dead horses and mules were 
 scattered in every direction around Chattanooga. But the end 
 had come, and though it was not until the railroad was completed 
 that we might be said to have full supplies, yet by the 5th of 
 November the change was so great as to justify the most cheer 
 ing comments in the journals of the men. For the sick and the 
 wounded, too, the relief was most acceptable, for instead of being 
 transferred to the rear over the rough mountain roads, they were 
 sent on the return trip of the boats. 
 
 The whole outlook for the future became more bright. We 
 had no longer the prospect of choosing between evacuation and 
 
510 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 starvation. The siege was virtually raised, and it was simply a 
 question of time when we should assume the offensive, tear down 
 the flags now flaunting from Mission Ridge and Lookout, and 
 plant there the stars and stripes. 
 
 The most gigantic preparations were now undertaken for driv- 
 ind the enemy from his strongholds. Sherman, who had been 
 repairing roads as he advanced, was ordered forward with all 
 speed. All available men in the rear were brought up, and 
 arrangements made for mounting the forts with heavy siege 
 artillery. The sight of these black monsters was particularly 
 gratifying to those who had been so long penned up within 
 entrenchments, and the rebound from the discouragements of 
 Chickamauga, and the sufferings gf the state of siege began to 
 be felt. Nothing, however, has appeared more inexplicable than 
 Bragg s strange ignorance of the situation, notwithstanding that 
 from his post of observation all our operations were exposed to 
 view. Even so vital a movement as the junction with Hooker 
 at Brown s Ferry, he failed to comprehend until it was too late 
 to arrest it, and now so little did he divine our plans or under 
 stand our situation that he detached Longstreet with his corps to 
 recover East Tennessee by overwhelming Burnside, with the 
 expectation, perhaps, of returning to attack us. Not content 
 with this, other portions of his army were afterward sent to 
 Longstreet s support. Perhaps it was to cover their movement 
 that a general attack was threatened November 2nd, and all our 
 forces were thrown into the entrenchments at night, remaining 
 there about two hours and then returning to camp. Men were 
 set to work building a bastion near our reserve line, to be mounted 
 with artillery. As soon as it was ascertained that Longstreet 
 had gone, Gen. Grant was anxious to attack Bragg, both to take 
 advantage of his weakened force and to make a diversion for the 
 
FATE OF TWO DESERTERS. 511 
 
 relief of Burnside. Indeed, an order was issued for an attack 
 on the north end of Missionary Ridge November 7th, but after 
 a careful examination of the ground, the condition and paucity 
 of the animals and the inadequacy of his forces, he decided that 
 the movement was " utterly impracticable until Sherman could 
 get up." This caused a delay of over two weeks, but the grand 
 success which resulted showed the wisdom of it. It was not 
 until the 15th that Sherman with his advance reached Bridge 
 port, when he immediately hastened to Chattanooga, and the 
 plans were matured for the general attack. 
 
 In the meantime some incidents occurred which are worthy of 
 mention. On the 12th, the Chaplain was sent for to Brigade 
 Headquarters by Col. Sherman. On his reporting there, he 
 was informed that two men of the brigade, one belonging to the 
 44th and the other to the 88th, had been sentenced by court 
 martial to be shot for desertion, and the sentences, having been 
 approved by the Commanding General and the President, would 
 be carried out at twelve o clock next day. The Chaplain was 
 requested to prepare the men for their fate. A tent was set up 
 and every facility afforded him for his melancholy task. Subse 
 quently a Catholic chaplain was procured for the man from the 
 44th, he being a German Catholic. With the other it was found 
 impossible to make any progress, as he insisted that his sentence 
 was unjust, and that on proper representation being made his 
 life would be spared. That no obstacle might remain in the way 
 of his true preparation, the Chaplain waited on Col. Sherman, 
 and subsequently inquiries were made as to the possibility of a 
 reprieve. It was found that his desertion had been attended 
 with such marked aggravations that not a man of his own com 
 pany could be induced to take a single step towards his deliv 
 erance. The Chaplain . informing him of this, he resigned 
 
512 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 himself to his fate, and the rest of the day was spent in- settling 
 up his affairs, dictating letters, written by the Chaplain, and 
 joining in reading the Scriptures and prayer. He professed to 
 be penitent for his sins, but still maintained his innocence of 
 any crime against the Government. The next morning was 
 excessively cold, and on repairing to the Guard Tent, the Chap 
 lain found him standing with the guards near a rail fire, which 
 had been built for his comfort. Instead of appearing in the 
 penitent mood of the previous evening, he soon broke out into bitter 
 accusations against everybody who had anything to do with his 
 condemnation, exclaiming against their injustice, and declaring 
 that they dare not execute his sentence. As this speech was 
 evidently made for effect on the guards and those to whom it 
 would be repeated, the Chaplain called his attention to the time 
 and care that had been taken in his case ; to the unprejudiced 
 character of the men who had tried him ; to the fact that the 
 evidence and findings had been reviewed by the highest author 
 ities, and that even his own company would not make any move 
 towards the mitigation of his doom, assuring him by all that was 
 solemn, that the sentence would be executed, and that when the 
 hour arrived he would be a dead man. He exhorted him to use 
 his few last hours in preparing to meet his God, rather than 
 accusing man. As soon as he saw he would not be allowed to 
 prejudice the guards, he desisted from his attempts, and thence 
 forth gave himself up to conversation, prayer and sending his 
 farewell messages and tokens of affection to his friends. Just 
 before noon, the officers and guards arrived, the two men were 
 brought out and the mournful procession started. 
 
 In the meantime the whole brigade had been drawn up in an 
 open space east of the railroad track. Four regiments formed 
 three sides of a hollow square, the railroad bank making the 
 
A MILITARY EXECUTION FOR DESERTION. 513 
 
 fourth side. The remaining five regiments formed a similar 
 square outside the first one, and some twenty feet from it. The 
 regiments forming the smaller square faced about, and through 
 this passage between the squares the procession marched. First 
 came the band of the 24th Wisconsin, playing a dead march ; 
 next followed the guard and details from the two companies to 
 which the condemned belonged, who were to execute the sen 
 tence; then eight men carrying the two coffins, followed by the 
 doomed men, each attended by his chaplain. As they struck 
 the right of the brigade where were Gen. Sheridan and Col. 
 Sherman with their staifs, the 88th man, who had evidently 
 determined to make the most of his situation, straightened him 
 self and saluted the officers with the grace of a Major General, 
 and all through the march around the regiments he continued to 
 salute the officers, and conduct himself with the loftiest bearing. 
 On reaching again the railroad embankment the coffins were set 
 down, and the guard and detail to fire took their places in front 
 of the smaller square. The Chaplain addressed to his man a 
 few last words, urging him, as he would appear so soon in the 
 presence of God, to truly repent of his sins and cast himself on 
 His mercy. They then knelt down by the side of the coffin 
 while the Chaplain offered a short prayer, and then shaking 
 hands with him, left him seated on his coffin. The other man 
 had a crucifix placed in his hands by his Chaplain, on which he 
 was exhorted steadily to gaze. The Brigade Adjutant stepped 
 forward and began to read the sentences and orders under 
 which the executions were to take place ; at the same time 
 every regimental adjutant stepped out in front of his regiment 
 and did the same, so that every man throughout the whole brig 
 ade heard the order. A white cloth was then bound over the 
 eyes of the condemned. The regiments in the inner square 
 
514 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 faced inwards and with the guard knelt down, when the orders 
 " Prepare take aim fire !" were given in a low tone, and the 
 men fell dead without a struggle. The 88th man, as the order 
 was given, pointed to his heart, indicating his wish to be shot 
 there. The moment they fell, Col. Sherman gave the command 
 "Forward." and leading the way with his staff, the whole brig 
 ade filed past the dead bodies and wont into camp. 
 
 Besides the brigade, there were thousands of men gathered 
 from all parts of the army to witness this strange and mournful 
 sight. It was the first time that this extreme penalty had been 
 inflicted in the Army of the Cumberland, and was regarded by 
 some as a doubtful course to take. The result was every way 
 favorable to the interests of the army, for so far from exciting 
 sympathy for the sufferers and their cause, the general, and it 
 might almost be said the unanimous voice of the multitudes that 
 discussed it was one of condemnation of the men, arid of increased 
 determination to uphold the flag and the welfare of the country. 
 The common expression was, "Well, I am not going out of the 
 army that way." The event was one of the most exciting in all 
 our experience, and created much commotion for the time. On 
 the following Sabbath a sermon was preached by the Chaplain 
 from the text, "Prepare to meet thy God," in which the prac 
 tical lessons of the sad sight were enforced, and the necessity of 
 true allegiance to Divine government was exhibited. 
 
 On Saturday, Nov. 14th, the regiment was paid off, and if the 
 men had been unable to procure a full supply of clothing, had 
 compensation now in being able to draw a corresponding increase 
 of pay. At the request of Col. Miller, the Chaplain received 
 permission to carry home to the families of the soldiers their 
 much needed money. His task was a very complicated and 
 delicate one, owing to the many interests that had to be attended 
 
METHOD OF TRANSMITTING MONEY. 515 
 
 to. It may be interesting to notice how it was discharged in 
 the 36th, and how the many dissatisfactions experienced by 
 other regiments were avoided. Both now and when we were 
 paid off at Cowan, the following course was adopted : Notice hav 
 ing been given through the regiment, each man prepared his let 
 ter, with the money enclosed ; then each company reported in 
 turn at the Chaplain s tent, where several officers were present 
 to assist him. Each letter was emptied of its contents and the 
 amount entered on a roll the letters being filed away. When 
 this was done, and the amount on the roll and the amount of 
 cash were found to agree, the money was refunded to the Pay 
 master, who issued his draft on Louisville for the total sum, and 
 then all risk of loss by capture of the train was avoided. On 
 reaching Louisville, the Chaplain drew the full amount from the 
 U.S. Depository and replaced the necessary sum in each letter. 
 On reaching Chicago, all letters that could not be delivered in 
 person were sent out by express, the agent signing the receipt roll, 
 and the rest were conveyed to the families personally, they sign 
 ing the roll also. By this simple means all misunderstandings 
 were avoided and entire satisfaction was secured. The amount 
 thus distributed this time was about $17,000. 
 
 AvS the men were suffering so much for lack of warm clothing, 
 the Chaplain obtained permission from headquarters to bring- 
 back with him a box of goods, not exceeding five hundred pounds, 
 not doubting that friends at home would gladly fill such a box 
 with socks and mittens. Everything being arranged, he was 
 sent over in an ambulance to Kelley s Ferry, on Wednesday, Nov. 
 18th, taking the evening boat, which arrived at Bridgeport in 
 the night. He there found that Gen. Sherman had been rowed 
 down the river in a small boat ; had started his troops forward 
 with all haste, and that the previous evening a force had crossed 
 
516 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the river to penetrate the Trenton Valley, and thus begin that 
 series of movements which in just one week drove the enemy 
 from Lookout Mountain and Mission Ridge. 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 MISSION RIDGE. 
 
 c\ 
 
 N ONE respect, at least, the great battles of Chat 
 tanooga were in marked contrast to Chickamauga. 
 The latter was fought on ground which afforded no 
 points of view from which the nature and progress 
 of the struggle might be seen and directed, and every 
 division, and sometimes each brigade, had, in a sense, 
 to fight alone. As a consequence, not only was the 
 general conduct of the battle hindered, but the troops were 
 deprived of that moral support which comes from the knowledge 
 of what others are doing, and the consciousness that their own 
 conduct is observed by the rest of the army. These conditions 
 were now to be exactly reversed, for if the battles of Lookout 
 Mountain and Missionary Ridge will always furnish one of the 
 most thrilling stories of the war and of modern times, it is partly 
 because the theatre of those battles was such as not only to give 
 
FORT WOOD AND LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN. 517 
 
 scope for great generalship and wise direction, but also to evoke 
 from every soldier all the heroism and patriotism of which he was 
 capable. A brief description of this theatre is absolutely essen 
 tial to a correct understanding of the struggle by those who were 
 not present. Every 36th man knows full well that country, and 
 carries in his own remembrance a picture of it which will perish 
 only with his life. 
 
 One of the most prominent objects in that semi-circle of works 
 erected by our army in front of Chattanooga was Fort Wood, 
 remarkable riot only for its great size and strength, but because 
 from its location admirably adapted to reach the enemy s line 
 even to the summit of Mission Ridge. From this fort the most 
 comprehensive view of the situation could be obtained. Stand 
 ing on the parapet, the town in the rear, the general line of our 
 works reaching from the river above the town to the river at the 
 foot of Lookout was plainly visible, with lesser works for the 
 grand guards and the pickets in front. The most prominent 
 object, of course, was Lookout Mountain, which seems to stand 
 guard over this whole region, go where we will. From Fort 
 Wood it is nearly five miles, though appearing only two, and from 
 its summit the Southern flag waved and heavy guns boomed from 
 day to day. In front, stretching away to the north, as far as 
 the eye could see, to the south and south-east, until nearly touch 
 ing Lookout, is Mission Ridge, itself a high mountain range but 
 appearing low in contrast Avith Lookout. In front of this ridge, 
 broken by detached hills, is the Chattanooga Valley, which 
 sweeping south, turns to the south-east through a narrow open 
 ing between the ridge and Lookout range. Of these detached 
 hills which break up the valley, the principal one is Orchard 
 Knob, directly in front of Fort Wood and half way between it 
 and Mission" Ridge, while a little to the south was the beautiful 
 
518 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 mound shaped hill which afterwards was devoted as a national 
 cemetery. All along the front, on the top of Mission Ridge, 
 across the valley and on the top of Lookout, could be seen the 
 tents and camps of the enemy, while directly in front of Fort 
 Wood on the top of the ridge, Bragg s headquarters was in plain 
 sight, with the flag waving over it. Through the valley, from 
 north to south and in front of our line, were entrenchments for 
 the grand guards and pickets of the enemy, and those on Orchard 
 Knob and vicinity were quite strong works. On the north end 
 of Mission Ridge he had a position of great strength protecting 
 his railroad communications, while Lookout on his extreme left 
 was regarded as unassailable, although Hooker held the valley 
 below. 
 
 It was on Friday, the 20th of November, that the army in 
 Chattanooga received orders looking to the coming battle, although, 
 as we have just seen, movements had already been made from 
 other points. On that day, every man was to be ready for action 
 with two days cooked rations in haversack and eighty rounds 
 of ammunition. Dr. Lytle was detached from the regiment 
 and placed in charge of Division Hospital No. 2, and the musi 
 cians, &c., were ordered to be ready with stretchers, to carry off 
 the wounded from the field. Saturday, the 21st, was the day 
 fixed for the attack, but a heavy rain commenced on the 20th 
 and continued through the 21st, making it impossible for Sher 
 man to get into position on our left. Indeed, it is but just to 
 have it understood that not only the day fixed for the battle was 
 changed, but the whole plan of attack was so modified by cir 
 cumstances beyond control, that the final issue was entirely dif 
 ferent from the original intention of Gen. Grant, and several of 
 the most important movements did not enter into his plans at all. 
 The original plan contemplated the principal movement to be 
 
KEMOVAL OF NON-COMBATANTS. 519 
 
 made by Sherman against the position of the enemy on the 
 north end of the Ridge ; the Army of the Cumberland to con 
 centrate toward the north end of the Ridge, and ultimately join 
 with Sherman in dislodging the enemy from it altogether. 
 Hooker was in the meantime to hold Lookout Valley, but no 
 attempt was to be made to take the Mountain. On the 22nd, a 
 further postponement was necessary, in consequence of the part 
 ing of the bridge at Brown s Ferry, preventing two of Sherman s 
 Divisions from crossing. 
 
 It was then that Gen. Thomas suggested the moving of How 
 ard s Corps to join Sherman and the using of the divisions 
 left behind in an attempt to take Lookout. Howard was 
 accordingly moved into Chattanooga and took his place to the 
 left of the Fourth Corps. All this day the troops were in an 
 excited condition, and Fort Wood shelled Mission Ridge heavily. 
 Deserters came in who said that troops had been sent to McLe- 
 more s Cove, and that there were indications that Bragg was 
 about to retreat. This, joined to the fact that on the 20th he 
 had notified Grant to remove all non-combatants from the town, 
 induced the latter to order a reconnoisance, to find out whether 
 Bragg was retreating or not. This reconnoisance proved to be 
 th^ real opening of the battle, and its results were such as to 
 have a. marked effect on the subsequent movements. 
 
 It was about noon of the 23rd that the order was received to 
 "Fall in," and Sheridan s Division was formed in line in front 
 of the breastworks to the right of Wood s Division, which was 
 to lead the movement by a demonstration against Orchard Knob, 
 while our Division was to act as support. It was a grand and 
 imposing sight, as these divisions moved out in plain view of 
 the enemy and started forth on their desperate task. It must 
 have been that Bragg thought his position too strong for even 
 
520 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the thought of assault, or he would not have allowed this advance 
 to be so slightly checked. 
 
 Wood s Division, stirred with the consciousness that the eyes 
 not only of the enemy, but of the whole army were upon them, 
 moved rapidly forward, his left capturing the Knob with unex 
 pected ease, and his right, after a desperate bayonet charge, car- 
 rving a lower hill. Sheridan moved up his Division to the right, 
 and Granger s headquarters at four o clock were on Orchard Knob. 
 
 All this was unexpected success, as simply a reconnoisance 
 had been designed ; but Wood and Sheridan were immediately 
 ordered to fortify and hold their positions, while Howard was 
 thrown to the left of Wood, where, after a brief struggle he suc 
 ceeded in forming his line. Our brigade, advancing to this place, 
 lay behind rail breastworks ; after dark the works were raised, 
 capped with logs and banked up with earth. On Orchard Knob 
 preparations were made for a battery, and Bridge s was moved 
 there during the night. Thus auspicionsly did the work begin, 
 for we had not only gained ground unexpectedly, but it was 
 ground from which other movements could be most favorably 
 prosecuted; for from these hills the enemy s positions could be 
 plainly seen the Ridge, with its three lines of works and all 
 the open space in front. Besides, the movement was so vigorous 
 and imposing, that Bragg was compelled to transfer Walker s 
 Divisions from Lookout Mountain to sustain his left thereby 
 opening the way for Hooker s success next day. During the 
 night the lines were perfectly quiet. About three o clock our 
 brigade was moved farther to the left, where the works were only 
 some eighteen inches high, but we soon raised them to three and 
 one-half feet. 
 
 During this time, the most important movements were being 
 made by both Sherman and Hooker. On the 23rd, another of 
 
GENERAL SHERMAN ADVANCES. 521 
 
 Sherman s Divisions crossed at Brown s Ferry, when the bridge 
 was again broken ; but Grant determined to wait no longer. For 
 several days a large number of pontoons had been accumulated at 
 North Chickamauga, prepared to float down and effect a landing 
 at South Chickamauga. 
 
 Great care had been taken to preserve the secresy of these 
 preparations, and the citizens throughout the region had been 
 put under guard. Sherman being now ready to cross, at mid 
 night of the "23d, one hundred and sixteen boats with a brigade 
 left the North Chickamauga and floated quietly down, landing on 
 the enemy s side of the river. Troops were then brought rapidly 
 over, and by daylight two divisions had crossed and the construc 
 tion of the bridge was well advanced. The steamer Dunbar also 
 came up from Chattanooga and aided in crossing troops. Soon 
 Gen. Howard, with a brigade of the llth Corps, came through 
 the valley and joined Sherman, showing that the enemy had 
 fallen back to his positions near the ridge. The bridge was fin 
 ished at eleven o clock. At one o clock Sherman began his 
 advance, and in due time occupied the two northern summits of 
 Missionary Ridge. He found, however, that the enemy was in 
 strong position on the third summit which protected the tunnel. 
 
 While all this was going on at the left, Gen. Hooker at the 
 right was even more successful. As soon as it was ascertained 
 that Osterhaus Division could riot cross in time to join Sherman, 
 Hooker was ordered to make a demonstration against Lookout, 
 and if found practicable, take the point. At eight o clock Geary s 
 Division and other troops began to move up the mountain side, 
 hid by the fog, while other forces prepared to co-operate below. 
 The attention of the enemy was concentrated on the latter in a 
 vain attempt to prevent their crossing Lookout Creek, and when 
 Geary had succeeded in reaching the rocky palisades of the 
 
 34 
 
522 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 mountain with his right, sweeping on towards the point with his 
 line, the troops below were ready to join him, thus taking the 
 enemy s ranks in flank and rear. The artillery at the same time 
 did fearful execution, and scattering in all directions they began 
 to retreat around the front of the mountain. On this point the 
 Moccasin battery had full range, preventing the concentration 
 of forces, and so our line swept on, inflicting heavy loss and cap 
 turing a large number of prisoners. The noise of that battle 
 created intense excitement in the rest of the army. Every avail 
 able spot was sought from which to catch a glimpse, if possible, 
 of the conflict, and as the noise indicated its coming eastward, 
 the agitation grew more and more wild, until through the rifts in 
 the fog and smoke could be plainly seen the flying rebels, fol 
 lowed by the blue line of our troops, stretching from the rocky 
 face of the mountain, far down towards the valley, and appear 
 ing, a.s it slowly moved round the nose of Lookout, like the swing 
 ing of a huge pendulum. 
 
 The 36th at this time occupied the hill south of Orchard Knob 
 (which afterward became the National Cemetery), and had there 
 fore a fine view of the whole movement. It was an inspiring sight to 
 men who had watched so long and so impatiently the waving of 
 the Rebel flag on Lookout, to see now flag after flag, with the 
 beautiful stars and stripes, borne gallantly round the point, and 
 though two miles away, the firing and the cheering of each charge 
 were plainly heard. At two o clock in the afternoon, Hooker s men 
 had exhausted their ammunition, and as it could not be supplied 
 in the ordinary way, they had to wait. At five o clock, a brigade 
 from the 14th Corps crossed Chattanooga Creek and ascended the 
 mountain, carrying on their persons a supply of ammunition for 
 Hooker, beside what was needed for themselves. Heavy skir 
 mishing was resumed and continued until near midnight, and for 
 
SHERMAN RENEWS HIS ATTACK. 523 
 
 hours the mountain side was illuminated by the constant flashing 
 of musketry. 
 
 Next morning, before daylight, a number of daring men from 
 the 8th Kentucky scaled the rocky heights, and planting the 
 National flag on the summit of the mountain, announced to the 
 whole army the full success of the day before. As the morning 
 light fell on the beautiful folds, cheer after cheer went up through 
 all the lines, and a fresh inspiration was gathered for the crown 
 ing work of the day. Soon after, it was found that the whole 
 mountain, as well as the summit, was evacuated, and that troops 
 had been drawn off to re-inforce Missionary Ridge. Subse 
 quently Gen. Hooker was ordered to march his force, except what 
 was necessary to hold the mountain, towards Rossville, and then 
 in co-operation with the 14th Corps, to sweep north along the 
 ridge. Delayed through the burning of a bridge, &c., Gen. 
 Hooker did not accomplish his purpose as early as was expected, 
 but succeeded far enough to draw troops from the centre to oppose 
 him, arid thus contribute to the final success of the day. 
 
 In the meantime Sherman had renewed his attack. The orig 
 inal plan for the day contemplated a combined attack by Sher 
 man and Thomas, but as Sherman had not yet carried the ridge 
 to the tunnel, the combined movement was delayed until later. 
 All through the morning he continued his operations against 
 what proved to be a very strong natural position, made well nigh 
 impregnable by works and by the veteran troops which manned 
 them. As Gen. Grant observed the contest from Orchard Knob, 
 he ordered at ten A. M. Gen. Howard s Corps on the left of the 
 Fourth, to report to Sherman, who soon renewed his effort against 
 the enemy s right but was partially repulsed. About noon Grant 
 detached Baird s Division of the 14th Corps to still further 
 reinforce Sherman, but on reaching him Baird was informed that 
 
524 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 he was not needed, and returning to the centre he formed his 
 division with the left of Wood at half-past two o clock. These 
 movements declaring Grant s determination to carry the north 
 end of the ridge were answered by corresponding ones of the 
 enemy to his right ; but as the day advanced and Sherman had 
 not turned the right and Hooker had not yet made his appear 
 ance on the left, it was evident that some new effort must be 
 made if the enemy was not to be left in possession of Missionary 
 Ridge. Soon after the return of Baird s Division therefore, Grant 
 ordered an independent assault from the centre, not to take the 
 ridge, but the rifle pits at the foot of the ridge, by, if possible, 
 the skirmish line. The signal for the advance was six second 
 guns from Bridge s Battery on Orchard Knob. 
 
 Sherman s Brigade and the 36th had continued to occupy the 
 ground assigned them early on the morning of the 24th, and 
 from their position on cemetery hill had a splendid view of the 
 movements on Lookout and all along the ridge. About ten o clock 
 three companies A, B and F were sent forward to be deployed as 
 skirmishers, under the command of Major Sherman. At one 
 o clock the three regiments composing the front line of the brig 
 ade, of which the 36th was one, were ordered to what had been 
 the front line of the enemy s works, about three-fourths of a mile 
 from the foot of Mission Ridge. These three regiments were 
 placed under the immediate command of Col. Barrett, Col. Miller 
 having been assigned to the command of four other regiments. 
 The command of the 36th thus fell on Lieut. Col. Olson. In 
 the midst of all the other stirring events, about noon the boat 
 from Bridgeport sent forth its piercing scream as it approached 
 Lookout. In a little while it appeared around the bend of the 
 river, and steamed up towards the town, giving to the boys the 
 most cheering proof of all that the blockade was raised, by open- 
 
LIEUT. TURNBULL COMMUNICATES ORDERS. 525 
 
 ing up the " Cracker line." The exciting events of the past two 
 days, the splendid successes already achieved, stirred the men to 
 the utmost, and they were ready to do and dare, while every 
 soldier was general enough to see that with the enemy massing 
 against Sherman we could not long remain idle. But where 
 should we go ? 
 
 It was about three o clock when Col. Sherman was notified of 
 the intended advance, and ordered to be ready at the firing of 
 the signal. Lieut. Turnbull was directed by him to communicate 
 the order to the picket line. He started at once, and commencing 
 at the left passed along to the right, giving every man and officer 
 the order and signal. "I shall never forget," he says, "the 
 change of countenance exhibited by those men as they received 
 the order and nerved themselves for the conflict. They seemed 
 to me like men that understood fully what was required of them, 
 and that nothing but death would hinder them from carrying out 
 the order." But what a task it was ! They must come out from 
 the protection of the woods and charge across an open plain half 
 a mile wide, in the very presence of the enemy, with sixty pieces 
 of artillery playing on them, sweeping the ground with shot and 
 shell ; then when the foot of the ridge was reached " a heavy 
 work, packed with the enemy, rimming it like a battlement. That 
 work carried, what then? A hill struggling up out, of the valley 
 four hundred feet, rained on by bullets, swept by shot and shell ; 
 another line of works, then up like a Gothic roof, rough with 
 rocks, a wreck with fallen trees, four hundred more ; another 
 ring of fire and iron, then the crest and then the enemy." For 
 such a journey no wonder the men had to brace themselves. 
 
 Turnbull had scarcely reached the right of the brigade line, 
 when the signal guns from Orchard Knob were fired. As soon 
 as the sixth gun was heard, Maj. Sherman s clear voice rang out, 
 
526 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 "Forward, boys," and they sprang forward, emerging quickly 
 from the woods and starting across the open meadow, while Fort 
 Wood and Negley, and Bridge s Battery on the Knob, opened 
 fire over their heads, and sixty pieces of artillery from Mission 
 Ridge swept their path with deadly iron. It was a sight never 
 to be forgotten, and every house top, fort and rise of ground had 
 its spectators, and every man who was not under absolute orders 
 was watching the wonderful charge, near two miles long. Nor 
 was this true of our ranks alone, nor were Grant and Thomas, 
 on Orchard Knob, the only generals who gazed down on that 
 strange sight. The army on the ridge was equally excited, and 
 Bragg stood near his headquarters and took the measurement of 
 this new move. " 0, General," said a woman who lived near by, 
 44 the Yankees are coming. What shall I do ? W T here shall I go ?" 
 "Woman," said he, "are you mad? There are not Yankees 
 enough in Chattanooga to come up here; those are all my prison 
 ers." But onward went the skirmishers, until they reached the 
 rifle pits at the foot of the ridge, out of which they drove the 
 Rebs, some falling back to the next line, and large numbers sur 
 rendering and hurrying to our rear, hastened by the fire of their 
 own comrades which swept the ground. The main line followed 
 hard on the skirmishers, and the foot of the ridge was held in 
 force, the men being glad to drop into the rifle pits for a tempo 
 rary shelter, and to gain a little rest. 
 
 The order under which the line had charged was now obeyed, 
 but it was evident that something more must be done. With such 
 a storm of iron hail falling thickly around, it was impossible to 
 remain they must either advance or retreat. To retreat was out 
 of the question, after such a success, and over such a plain, and 
 yet there were no orders to advance. "But," as Chaplain Van 
 Home appropriately says, " there are occasional moments in 
 
T \YLOR DESCRIBES THE BATTLE. 527 
 
 battle when brave men do not need commanders, and this was 
 one." Says Turnbull, u the officers of the field and line, and the 
 boys, were the generals ordering the advance ; in other words, I 
 think it was a necessity understood alike by officers and men, and 
 acted on at once. This movement along the line was almost 
 simultaneous, yet I believe our brigade was the first to start, and 
 it was done without any particular order as to lines or military 
 movement. The crest of the ridge was now the objective point, 
 and they started for it." 
 
 A keen observer, B. F. Taylor, says : " But they did not 
 storm that mountain as you would think. They dash out a little 
 way, and then creep up, hand over hand, loading and firing, wav 
 ering and halting, from the first line of works toward the sec 
 ond. They burst into a charge with a cheer and go over it. 
 Sheets of flame baptise them ; plunging shot tear away comrades 
 on left and right. It is no longer shoulder to shoulder, it is God 
 for us all. Under the tree trunks; among rocks; stumbling over 
 the dead; struggling with the living; facing the steady fire of 
 eight thousand infantry poured down upon their heads, as if it 
 were the old historic curse from heaven, they wrestle with the 
 ridge." 
 
 The cannonade from the summit now grew terrific, and as the 
 charges of canister poured over the heads of our men, they 
 sounded like flocks of wild geese sweeping past, while from behind 
 rocks, logs and earthworks, poured an incessant stream of mus 
 ketry fire. Twenty-eight balls were counted in one little tree. 
 Through such a storm and against such odds our men pressed 
 onward. The generals now began to appreciate the situation, 
 and followed the leadership of the rank and file. 
 
 Says Turnbull, " I had come forward with the skirmish line, 
 instead of returning and taking my place with the brigade staff. 
 
528 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 I now joined Col. Sherman, ready for further duty, and after 
 accompanying him part way up the ridge, was ordered back by 
 him to the first line of works to urge forward any troops that 
 might be there, to assist in the grand struggle at the top of the 
 ridge. I did so, and ori reaching the rifle pit, found it full of 
 troops, protecting themselves from the fire as best they could. 
 Just at this time two staff officers rode up and enquired for Col. 
 Sherman. I pointed to where he was, and told them he was 
 leading his command up the ridge. One of them then told me 
 that he belonged to Gen. Granger s Staff; that he was sent to say 
 the movement beyond the front line of works was contrary to 
 orders, and asked me to communicate this to Col. Sherman. I 
 declined to receive a verbal order from him, saying that he must 
 communicate with the Brigade Commander himself, as I was now 
 under orders from my commander that looked as though we 
 intended to see the top of the ridge. I then began in good earnest 
 the task of urging forward laggards, (and I will say right here 
 that I did not find a 36th man among them). On looking up the 
 ridge I became alarmed. The column had assumed a pyramidal 
 or sugar loaf form. The brigade flags, I believe the colors of 
 every regiment of the brigade, were grouped together and were 
 in advance of the lines. I urged the men forward to help plant 
 their colors on the ridge, and was meeting with only tolerable 
 success, when Gen. Sheridan, who had taken in the situation, 
 dashed forward on his black charger to the foot of the ridge, dis 
 mounted, threw his cape to his orderly, and running forward 
 among us, shouted, Boys, we are going to take the ridge. For 
 ward and help your comrades. That settled the question, and 
 there was no soldier, who was nut wounded or in some way dis 
 abled, that did not make every effort to be among the first to 
 reach the top of the ridge." 
 
THE RIDGE TAKEN. 529 
 
 In the meantime streams of surrendering and captured officers 
 and men poured to the rear, while those defending the heights 
 above grew more and more desperate as our men approached the 
 top. They shouted " Chickamauga " as though the word itself 
 were a weapon ; they thrust cartridges into guns by handsfull ; 
 they lighted the fusees of shells and then rolled them down ; 
 they siezed huge stones and threw them, but nothing could stop 
 the force of the desperate charge, and one after another the regi 
 mental flags were borne over the parapet and the ridge was ours. 
 The finest battery of guns in the Southern army, including the 
 Lady Buckner and Lady Breckenridge, &c., was there, the ram 
 mers half way down the guns when captured. These were 
 whirled round and fired in the direction of the flying foe. Bragg 
 himself, who believed his position impregnable, had stayed to the 
 last moment and barely escaped as our men came up close to his 
 headquarters. But oh ! what yells and cheers broke from the 
 panting, weary, but triumphant ranks. They threw their haver 
 sacks in the air until it was a cloud of black spots ; officers and 
 men mingled indiscriminately in their joy ; all distinction seemed 
 lost for the time in the wild enthusiasm of success. Soon Gen. 
 Sheridan appeared, mounted his black horse, and the boys gath 
 ered around him and cheered, patted his horse and greeted him 
 with, u How do you like this, General ?" " Bully for Sheridan," 
 &c., &c. In a few moments our Corps Commander, Gen. Gor 
 don Granger, reached the top of the ridge, and a number of the 
 boys, more courageous than many of their comrades, gathered 
 around him, shouting, " What do you think of this, General ?" 
 
 "I think you disobeyed orders, you rascals!" was his 
 
 characteristic reply. He seemed to have no sympathy for so 
 irregular a movement on the part of Volunteers. 
 
 Perhaps it can never be ascertained exactly what flag was 
 first over the parapet, so nearly together did many of the regi- 
 
530 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ments struggle on to the ridge; but of our part of the line, 
 our color-bearer says the 22nd Indiana was first, while he was 
 second, and declares if he had been without his overcoat, he would 
 have been first, and the 88th we know was close by. Lieut. 
 Hemingway and Sergt. Hall, Company E, were the first to reach 
 the New Orleans Battery and demand the surrender of the guns. 
 The charge was full of personal incidents, some of which must 
 be put on record. 
 
 First, must be mentioned Col. Miller, whose gallant conduct 
 drew the attention that day of his superior officers, even to Gen. 
 Thomas, the Department Commander. B. F. Taylor says : 
 " A division general turned abruptly to me with, If you write 
 anything about Wednesday s affair, as you will, don t forget 
 Col. Miller, of the 36th Illinois one of the most gallant little 
 fellows that ever drew a sword. I did not need the injunction, 
 for Col. Silas Miller rode through the storm to the summit of the 
 ridge, at the head of his regiment, like a veteran, inspiring his 
 men, till the little 36th was a phalanx of heroes. The Colonel 
 used to be adjutant of types, and lead a column, now and then, 
 in the old days, and true to his early love, he headed a column at 
 Mission Ridge." The horse he rode that day was not his own 
 which, with the other regimental horses, had been sent to the 
 head of the Sequatchie Valley to be near forage but an inferior 
 gray horse, which he used in emergencies. He did not dismount, 
 but through all that long and perilous charge of over an hour, in 
 the teeth of every kind of deadly missile, he kept his seat, mov 
 ing one direction and then another, rallying his deini-brigade 
 and inspiring every officer and man. His enthusiastic nature was 
 wrought up to its highest pitch, making him all unconscious of 
 personal danger, and giving to his very language an exalted tone, 
 which astonished himself in cooler moments. As he moved 
 about from one point to another, he came upon a man sheltering 
 
COL. LEIBOLD OF MISSOURI. 531 
 
 and resting himself behind some covering. He struck him a 
 smart blow with the flat side of his drawn sword, and pointing to 
 the top of the ridge, he cried out, "Excelsior!" 
 
 There was a young fellow who had disgraced the regiment by 
 cowardice at Chickamauga, and Col. Miller had threatened to 
 have him court martialed, but permitted him to go into this fight 
 to redeem himself, with the understanding that if his cowardice 
 was repeated, he would suffer. He went in ; stood his ground, 
 and was wounded in the hand. He was so overjoyed that he ran 
 to the Colonel and showed his wound with all the pride he might 
 have felt if he had been promoted. 
 
 Side by side with the First Brigade moved the Second, a por 
 tion of it under the command of Col. Leibold, of the 2nd Mis 
 souri. Near the beginning of the ascent he was wounded in his 
 left hand, and two fingers were shot away. Lieut. Hemingway, 
 Company E of the 36th, was close by and saw him holding up 
 his bleeding hand, exclaiming, " Shust see dhat ! I gives dree 
 kegs lager peer if dem fingers shust comes back on mein hand 
 again." On he went, however, his hand dripping blood over his 
 clothes and making him a most unsightly object. On reaching 
 the top he spied a Rebel officer near by and demanded his sword. 
 The officer haughtily replied, " Sir, I am a Colonel in the Confed 
 erate army and commander of a brigade, and desire to surrender 
 my sword to an officer of equal rank. What rank are you, sir?" 
 Col. L., who was covered with dirt and blood, and looked as rough 
 as a private, replied, " Ah, you bees a Colonel and commands 
 von prigade ha ! Vel, I does dat peesness meinself sumdimes. 
 You givs dat sword to me shust now, or I puts mein sword through 
 your life so quick as von minnit." He complied, of course, and 
 was sent a prisoner to the rear, 
 
 Lieut. Turnbull adds the following : " The timber on the side 
 of the ridge had been cut down and formed a kind of abattis. 
 
532 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Some of the Rebels, on retreating, stopped about two-thirds of 
 the way up the ridge, and determined to sell their lives as dearly 
 as possible. The 36th color-guard lay down to rest behind a log, 
 having got too far ahead of the troops. On commencing to rise, 
 the Sergeant in charge saw a man with a musket leveled on them 
 only a short distance away. Lie down, he whispered sharply 
 to the boys. They did so, and he coolly laid his musket over the 
 log in front of him. Now, said he, show him your knapsack. 
 The color-bearer, who had a full one on his back, rose carefully 
 on all fours, exposing only his knapsack. The Sergeant s gun 
 went off. Lie down again/ said he. He reloaded. Do that 
 again, said the Sergeant. The color-bearer did so, and the Ser 
 geant s gun went off again. Now, said he, w we can go. One 
 of the boys fished out a Mississippi captain among the logs. He 
 had his bayonet fixed, and was calling on the captain to surrender. 
 The captain was jumping first one way and then another, saying, 
 Call an officer. The soldier responded, I m officer enough for 
 you ; surrender, or I will put the bayonet through you. I was 
 passing along and said I would receive his sword. He very 
 quickly gave it to me, remarking that we were certainly very 
 rough to prisoners. I answered that the soldier ought to have 
 put the bayonet through him. Why, sir, said he, what do you 
 mean? I have had prisoners in my charge and never treated 
 them in this way. Then, said I, take off that overcoat you 
 have stripped from some of our shivering, wounded comrades 
 on Chickamauga. The poor fellow threw it off quickly, saying 
 that we attacked them so suddenly that he forgot to take it off. 
 I made him take the coat with him to the rear, and told him to 
 trade it for a blanket." 
 
 Among all the noble spirits that that day struggled so grandly 
 for their country s flag, there was none more heroic than Walter 
 
BRAGG SURPRISED AND MORTIFIED. 533 
 
 V. Reeder, Company C of the 36th, who, having received the 
 wound in the thigh, of which he died in about two weeks, lay 
 bleeding on the hill-side, and taking a handkerchief out of his 
 pocket, waved it towards the top of the ridge, silently inspiring 
 his comrades to complete what he had so gallantly helped to 
 commence. 
 
 To Bragg and his army, and the whole South, this defeat was 
 a terrible surprise and mortification. Even after the siege was 
 so far raised that he could not hope to starve us out, he felt so 
 safe from any attack, that he did not hesitate to send off Long- 
 street and other forces to attack Burnside, and in his official 
 report he said : " The position ought to have been held by a skir 
 mish line, against any assaulting column." 
 
 With the National Army, besides the combinations of military 
 power, there were forces which, when they come upon soldiers, 
 seem to make every man a hero. In the breasts of both officers 
 and men of the Army of the Cumberland, on which the capture 
 of Mission Ridge devolved, there was shut up a fire of stern 
 determination, which had been burning silently through all the 
 weary days of toil, hunger and storm, and had been fed by hourly 
 gazing upon the white tents and waving flags on the ridge and 
 the* mountain. There was the knowledge that the Army of the 
 Potamac had re-inforced them on the right and the Army of the 
 Tennessee on the left ; there was the bursting forth of new energy, 
 which came with the successful opening of the battle on Monday, 
 whereby a simple reconnoisance was changed into a substantial 
 advantage. Then followed the forty-eight hours of waiting in 
 this advanced position, almost under the shadow of the ridge, and 
 looking right down into the rifle pits of the enemy. Under 
 their very gaze, Hooker stormed Lookout so gallantly and flung 
 the beautiful flag to the breeze, and Sherman knocked long and 
 
534 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 loud at the northern gate of the ridge. On that memorable 
 afternoon, they were so surcharged with inspiring force, and 
 comprehended so clearly more clearly even than their com 
 manders the crisis that was upon them, that they needed but 
 the sound of those six guns from Orchard Knob to start them on 
 a race of life and death, from which they brought back what was 
 up to that time the completest victory of the war. 
 
 Besides all these natural agencies, and working by means of 
 them, we cannot fail to recognize the power of that Spirit which 
 breathed on men of old, till " one could chase a thousand and 
 two put ten thousand to flight;" which enabled David to say : 
 " By Thee I have run through a troop, and by my God have I 
 leaped over a wall." Indeed, we must not forget that the plans 
 which finally prevailed were not the ones originally laid, and the 
 most successful movements were either afterthoughts, or taken with 
 out orders. The plan of this series of victories was in the hands of a 
 Higher Power, and while we render all honor to wise generals and 
 noble men, the real glory belongs to Him who heard the cry of His 
 people and had mercy on our land. Was it not more than a beau 
 tiful co-incidence, that the loyal people everywhere were preparing 
 with unusual devoutness to celebrate the first Thanksgiving to 
 which they had ever been called by Federal proclamation, and 
 that when they gathered the next day in their houses of worship, 
 to call to mind the abundant mercies of this never-to-be-forgotten 
 year, their hearts should be thrilled with a new and everwhelm- 
 ing call to thanksgiving ? 
 
 Nor was it alone arnid peaceful congregations that devout grat 
 itude was felt and expressed. The journals of the soldiers show 
 that in many a crisis hearts that were as loyal to God as to their 
 country were lifted in prayer for help, and in thanksgiving for 
 victory. One such group at that time may not pass unnoticed, 
 
CASUALTIES AT MISSION RIDGE. 535 
 
 the more as he who led the devotions in less than one month had 
 laid down his life. While the people of the North were in the 
 midst of their rejoicings ; while Fort Wood thundered a salute 
 of thirty-four guns ; while the dead were being buried near the 
 ridge, and the sufferings of the wounded were being assuaged, 
 French Brownlee, Sergeant Company B, Sergt. McCoy, J. R. 
 Henderson, and some others of Company C, met in a small tent, 
 and after singing the xxiu Psalm and reading the xci Psalm, 
 were led in prayer and thanksgiving by Brownlee. 
 
 CASUALTIES IN THIRTY-SIXTH AT MISSION RIDGE. 
 
 COMPANY A. 
 
 Lieut Leroy Salisbury, wounded in leg. 
 
 COMPANY B. 
 
 Thomas S. Bowen, arm amputated; Lewis Olson, face; Edward 
 Strait, arm ; Chris. Zimmer, nose. 
 
 COMPANY C. 
 
 Sergt, J. A. Pierce, killed ; L. M. Pike, killed ; Sergt. J. W. McCoy, 
 shoulder; Sam. Paxton, foot; Warren Kinzie, arm; E. E. Munson, 
 thigh; W. V. Reeder, thigh, died Dec. 12th; E. Sholtz, leg broken. 
 
 COMPANY D. 
 
 Lieut. S. M.Abbott, killed; Sergt. C. H. Thompson, wrist, W. C. 
 Kiiox, heel. 
 
 COMPANY E. 
 
 Ed. Zellar, wounded six times, left arm amputated ; J. E. Moss, leg 
 broken; L. Shaffer, left arm; C. M. Baker, nose. 
 
 COMPANY H. 
 Benj. Alien foot; L. Stanton, foot; S. Gates, head 
 
 COMPANY I. 
 
 George Beck, hand; Chris. Mall, head; William Freeze, leg. 
 
 COMPANY K. 
 
 James Severance, hand. 
 
CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 EAST TENNESSEE. 
 
 IGHT closing in very soon after the ridge was 
 captured, a vigorous and organized pursuit was 
 impossible. The force which held the north end 
 against Sherman, was the only part of Bragg s 
 army that was not routed. This was drawn oft" 
 in good order after night, hut the rest fled pre 
 cipitately, and the roads were found strewn with broken wagons, 
 caissons, accoutrements and arms. A portion of Sheridan s 
 Division followed in pursuit that night, but the 36th went into 
 bivouac on the ridge. They were delighted to fill up their boxes 
 with English cartridges, of which they found abundance, so that 
 when Sheridan ordered eighty rounds to a man to be served out, 
 they were found supplied. 
 
 At one o clock A. M. they marched in pursuit, halting about 
 two miles out until near eleven o clock, when they went on and 
 formed line on Chickamauga Creek. All the way out they met 
 bands of prisoners and deserters coming in, as many as one hun 
 dred at a time. Some hurrahed for " Coffee and sugar," some 
 for " Chicago ;" others said, " Boys, we have got through with 
 our fighting; here goes for home." One straggler came in dur 
 ing the night to enquire for the 5th Georgia, and was astonished 
 
TROPHIES OF THE BATTLE. 537 
 
 to find himself surrounded by blue coats and asked to surrender. 
 Cannons were occasionally fired by the troops ahead, and thick 
 clouds of smoke rising betokened the burning of trains and sup 
 plies. At three o clock the division was relieved by Baird s and 
 ordered back to Chattanooga. Arriving at the ridge before sun 
 set they saw the town from that point for the first time by day 
 light. How changed the condition of things as they returned to 
 the old camp, from what it was when they left it on Monday ! 
 Besides all other advantages the material gains had been very 
 great. There were captured six thousand one hundred and forty- 
 two prisoners, forty-two guns, sixty-nine gun carriages, seven 
 thousand stand of small arms, beside the large amount of supplies 
 which were not destroyed by the enemy in its flight. 
 
 All the night after the battle and all next day, the ambulances 
 plied back and forth between the ridge and the hospitals, bearing 
 their loads of wounded and suffering men. Surgeon Lytle and 
 his assistants, who had four hundred and thirty- six wounded men 
 in charge, were indefatigable in their labors remaining at work 
 all night, and even till one o clock the next night, before rest 
 could be taken. Their fidelity was acknowledged afterward in a 
 complimentary order by Medical Director Hewitt. Many of the 
 wounds were very bad, and the reduced condition of the men in 
 consequence of their privations, increased the unfavorable symp 
 toms. Not a few lingered awhile, only to die at last. 
 
 Sheridan s Division had returned to camp to prepare for the 
 necessary march to Knoxville. Longstreet had already gained 
 some advantages over Burnside, whose rations would hold out 
 only to Dec. 3rd, and Grant felt the urgent necessity of relieving 
 him. Granger s Corps was ordered to move at once, and subse 
 quently Gen. Sherman was put in command of all the forces nec- 
 
 35 
 
538 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 essary to make the expedition a success ; in all, more than eight 
 divisions of infantry, besides cavalry. 
 
 The 36th, with Sheridan s Division, left Chattanooga on Sat 
 urday, Nov. 28th, about one o clock, after a heavy rain, which 
 made the mud ankle deep. They marched about ten miles to the 
 east of Chickamauga Creek, crossing on Sherman s bridge, and 
 went into camp at dark. Next day they reached Harrison, and 
 on the 30th, after marching over twenty miles, came to the Hia- 
 wassee, over which they were ferried. Here they found the steamer 
 from Chattanooga, loaded with rations. All through their march 
 they found the people friendly, devoted to the flag, and although 
 it was so cold that ice, one and three-quarters inches thick, stood 
 in the sun all day, women and children remained out of doors 
 until their faces were the hue of the damask rose. 
 
 Next day, as the enemy was near, three companies were thrown 
 out as advance guard. On approaching Decatur, a strongly 
 rebellious place, Gen. Sheridan and his staff charged into town. 
 The 36th was made provost guard. Their camp Avas formed on 
 the court house square, and the men stationed as guard in differ 
 ent houses about town. There was but one Union family there. 
 The next day Gen. Sheridan expressed himself as much pleased 
 with the regiment in the performance of their guard duty, and 
 Lieut. Col. Olson was ordered to have one wagon for each brig 
 ade loaded with salt meat taken from the people. That day they 
 marched seventeen miles, and the next, eighteen, camping near 
 Morgan town. On the 4th it was necessary to grind corn to sup 
 ply food. Some of the boys in their ramblings fell in with 
 a young woman, who, among other things, had to tell them about 
 her sweetheart, to whom she gave the endearing name of "June 
 Bug." On the 5th, the troops drew rations of flour and mid 
 dlings, of which they made pancakes, and about noon crossed 
 
GENERAL BURNSIDE S SITUATION. 539 
 
 the Little Tennessee on a trestle bridge built by Sherman s troops. 
 On the 6th, they passed through Marysville at noon, while Gen. 
 Sherman and Gen. Granger went into Knoxville to meet Gen. 
 Burnside. Longstreet, having learned of Bragg s defeat, and 
 realizing that his time was short, made an assault on Fort San 
 ders, the main protection of Knoxville, on Sunday, November 
 29th, but was repulsed with great slaughter. Knowing that 
 Sherman was near, he raised the siege on the night of the 4th, 
 and retreated towards Virginia. 
 
 On Gen. Sherman s arrival at Knoxville, he found a large 
 drove of cattle in a pen ; Gen. Burnside comfortably quartered 
 in a mansion, and a fine dinner, including roast turkey, was set 
 upon the table. It was found that at no time had Longstreet 
 completely invested the place or cut off all communication with 
 the Union farmers south of the river so that the hardships 
 endured to relieve them were not so much needed as was sup 
 posed. Sherman, having accomplished his task, left Granger s 
 Corps to aid Burnside, while the rest of the troops began their 
 return to Chattanooga. 
 
 The 36th, after a tedious march, and some counter-marching, 
 went into camp near Knoxville, at nine o clock P. M., on the 7th. 
 Here they remained until the 12th, with very limited rations. 
 On the 9th, the boys drew a half slice of bread apiece ; went 
 without dinner, and just at dark had a pint of corn-meal and a 
 little pork for each man. There were some, however, who evi 
 dently did not rely exclusively on the army ration, for on the 
 same day one boy wrote, "for breakfast this morning, we had 
 sausage, bacon, potatoes, honey, molasses, short-cake, biscuit, corn 
 bread, graham bread, wheat bread, etc., etc. Bought four chick 
 ens, two pies and a pone." Deserters from Longstreet came in, 
 spreading wild stories about the dispersion of his troops. The 
 
540 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 question of supplies was an urgent one, and on the 12th, the 
 brigade was started out northeast from Knoxville, for the pur 
 pose of occupying and operating the various mills of the country. 
 About thirteen miles out, the 88th took possession of a mill. 
 The 36th marched twenty miles to Bratton s Mill on the Hol- 
 ston, where they staid several days, other regiments of the brig 
 ade scattering in various directions. On the 16th they started 
 back, arrived in Knoxville about noon of the following day, 
 marched to the depot and were supplied with sixty rounds of car 
 tridge per man, also some rations of hard bread, sugar and coffee, 
 which were gladly welcomed. At ten o clock P. M., they took 
 the train for McMillen Station, and next day started out to 
 u Elaine s Cross Roads," the camp which, for many reasons, will 
 never be forgotten. Here they remained, with the usual camp 
 interruptions, until the regiment, having re-enlisted, started home 
 on their Veteran Furlough. 
 
 Gen. Granger was by no means a favorite with the troops. 
 Although personally an able officer, he retained that contempt for 
 volunteers and subordinates which characterized many officers of 
 the regular army, and was peculiarly harsh and unfeeling in his 
 treatment of the men. These qualities had shown themselves 
 during his command in Mississippi, and when he was placed at 
 the head of the Fourth Corps, it can not be said that he was wel 
 comed. On the march for the relief of Knoxville, he maintained 
 his arrogant demeanor towards those with whom he was associ 
 ated, and particularly towards private soldiers; inflicting on them 
 barbarous and humiliating punishments for neglect of duty or 
 infraction of military etiquette. Gen. Sheridan, prior to the 
 Rebellion, was very intimately acquainted with Granger, at one 
 time serving under him as lieutenant, and the familiarity of the 
 past was in a measure resumed. 
 
GEN. SHERIDAN S HUMANITY. 541 
 
 At one time, after a soldier belonging to Sheridan s Division 
 had been tied and inhumanly beaten with a rope s end, Gen. 
 Sheridan proceeded to Granger s headquarters, and firmly pro 
 tested against such punishments being inflicted upon his men, 
 stating that he could punish those under his command himself, if 
 they deserved it, without any interference, and among other 
 things, said, " Sir, if you had seen these men where I have seen 
 them, and been with them in the face of death as I have, the 
 thought of whipping one of them would bring tears to your eyes, 
 instead of harsh upbraidings." This conversation was overheard 
 by a 36th soldier on guard, and coming to the ears of the troops, 
 still more, if possible, endeared Gen. Sheridan in the affections of 
 his men. 
 
 At this camp, in the very wilderness, the mail came to us 
 twice. Frank Raymond says : "Our severest trip was while our 
 command was in East Tennessee. Our depot was Chattanooga, 
 and we had a long, tiresome and exceedingly dangerous trip 
 through the enemy s country, a distance of one hundred and 
 twenty-five to one hundred and fifty miles. The roads were in 
 terrible condition, and the woods were infested with bushwhack 
 ers, but fortunately we were never captured, although we had 
 some very narrow escapes. At one time, I remember, I was 
 journeying towards Knoxville with my mail, when within about 
 thirty-five miles of that place I heard a horse galloping rapidly 
 behind me. I turned in my saddle and discovered a Rebel cav 
 alry man approaching me. It was too late to run, so I decided 
 to hold my ground and take the consequences. He galloped up 
 to my side and spoke to me, and soon satisfied my fears by 
 informing me that he was a Federal spy and that his name was 
 Carter ; that his father was an old Baptist preacher, living some 
 twenty-six miles south of Knoxville, towards which place we 
 
542 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 journeyed together. That night he showed me his papers, signed 
 by Gen. Burnside, and next day we rode into Knoxville. I felt 
 very proud of my prisoner as we rode by the picket guard, but 
 as he had a pass from Gen. Burnside, while mine was only signed 
 by Gen. Sheridan, I concluded not to turn him over to the 
 authorities, al though he did wear a Confederate uniform." 
 
 On the 21st, Major Sherman started for Illinois in command 
 of a recruiting party, to fill up the thinned ranks of the old 
 regiment. On the 23rd, a falling tree laid the headquarters tent 
 level, but fortunately no one was hurt. 
 
 Christmas was a dull day. About the time that the stockings 
 were emptied at home, the boys were choking and crying over 
 the smoke, trying to get warm. Silas Dyer, who for the first 
 time was sick in hospital at Knoxville, says : " Self and com 
 panion managed to get a couple of stuffed chickens for a Christ 
 mas dinner, prepared by an Ethiopian cook. Towns-people 
 appear to enjoy it hugely, but we can t see it. 
 
 On Tuesday, the 29th, the Chaplain and Assistant Surgeon 
 Hatch arrived in camp. The Chaplain had not been with the 
 regiment since leaving it just before the battle of Mission Ridge. 
 After reaching Illinois, he visited Aurora, Elgin, Oswego, Bris 
 tol, Newark, etc., seeing many of the families of the men, and 
 distributing the money. He also gave some public addresses, 
 describing the condition and prospects of the army and showing 
 the hardships which they had suffered in the siege. Everywhere 
 the proposition to send a supply of socks and mittens to the 
 regiment, as a greeting from friends at home, met with a hearty 
 response, and within a few days money enough was placed in his 
 hands, the socks and mittens were purchased, and he started back 
 with his huge box filled to the utmost. It was a very difficult 
 task to secure transportation for it, especially from Louisville, 
 
THE DIVISION HOSPITAL. 543 
 
 and only by the most persistent and personal attention could it 
 be brought along. At last, however, arriving at Stevenson, he 
 found Quartermaster Sutherland with his train, who took it in 
 charge and in due time delivered it at Chattanooga. About noon, 
 December 12th, the Chaplain arrived at the division hospital, 
 which was in charge of Surgeon Lytle, who insisted he should 
 remain and assist him with the wounded men instead of joining the 
 regiment. As it was yet uncertain whether they would not come 
 back, he consented to do so, and for two weeks gave his time to 
 the hospital. The building was a very large one, built like a 
 huge barn, three stories high. It had been erected by the South 
 when Chattanooga was their principal base. Here Surgeon 
 Lytle, with his assistants, were hard at work, while Steward J. 
 C. Denison had charge of the supply department. Besides 
 what was furnished by Government, the Sanitary arid Christian 
 Commissions were now accumulating large stores, both of cloth 
 ing and food suitable for the sick and wounded, and our hospital 
 was treated with great liberality and kindness by these agencies. 
 It is simply impossible to overrate the benefits derived by our 
 army from these institutions, which helped save thousands of 
 valuable lives, besides mitigating much suffering. Like all hos 
 pitals of such a size, this one afforded some curious illustrations 
 of the freaks which are sometimes played by the deadly missiles, 
 as well as the wonderful endurance of the men. Surgeon Lytle 
 kept full reports of forty cases of special interest. One man 
 lived twenty-five days after a ball had passed almost through the 
 centre of the brain; could sit up on the side of his cot, and 
 lived four days after the right carotid artery had been tied. 
 
 In the various wards of this hospital, services were held from 
 time to time, as opportunity offered. Sometimes in the evening, 
 when all work, dressing wounds, etc., had ceased, Scripture 
 
544 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 was read, a hymn sung and prayer offered, and on Sabbath, a 
 short discourse was preached in each room. A large quantity of 
 reading matter was also distributed. Many interesting incidents 
 occurred, bringing out the religious feelings of the men. Imme 
 diately after his arrival, the Chaplain looked up the wounded of 
 the 36th ; found W. Reeder hopeful, and apparently doing well, 
 but that night he was sent for to visit him, as he was fast sink 
 ing. He spoke most confidently of his trust in Christ, and, as 
 on the battle-field, he was now ready for death in the hospital. 
 During the night he passed away, and was buried in the National 
 Cemetery, on the 14th. 
 
 The men, in the midst of their sufferings, were enthusiastic in 
 their accounts of the battle, and never tired of detailing the 
 events of that memorable day. One man, Sergt. Hough, Com 
 pany H, 15th Indiana, gave a most graphic account of his being 
 shot down on the side of the ridge, and as he lay there, bleeding 
 from a cut artery, realizing that he must have help at once, or 
 die, he lifted up his heart to God and prayed for his life, prom 
 ising to devote himself to His service. Almost immediately, 
 some men with a stretcher were directed that way ; found him, 
 stopped the bleeding and had him conveyed to the hospital. 
 " Now," said the Chaplain, after he had finished his exciting 
 account, " don t you think you ought to keep your vow ?" " Yes, 
 I do," he said. " Well, will you ?" u Yes," said he " I will." 
 Prayer was offered, in which he joined, and as he was visited 
 from day to day, he gave evidence that he had become truly pen 
 itent, and was filled with quiet and holy peace. He continued 
 to be as enthusiastic as ever about the battle, but spoke of him 
 self in humble and broken accents. He seemed particularly 
 grateful as he remembered the prayers and anxieties of his lov 
 ing wife, who, he said, had never ceased to pray for him and his 
 
FKENCH BROWNLEE DIES. 545 
 
 conversion for fourteen years, "and now," said he pointing to the 
 stump of his amputated limb, " she won t think anything of this 
 when she learns that I am a Christian." At his request a letter 
 was written to his wife, giving a full account of his escape and 
 experience. He continued to grow more earnest in spirit as he 
 improved in health, and there was every prospect that he could 
 soon be sent North, but on the Chaplain s return from East Ten 
 nessee, he found that the severe weather of the first week in Jan 
 uary proved too much for his reduced system, and he had been 
 dead some days. 
 
 French Brownlee s condition had been growing rapidly worse 
 for some time. Efforts were made by Col. Miller and the surgeons, 
 to obtain, first, a furlough, and then, to procure his discharge; 
 but owing, perhaps, to the confusion incident to so many military 
 movements, it seemed impossible to get papers through the regu 
 lar channels. The hope of returning home kept him up for 
 awhile, but at last he sank rapidly and died on Christmas day ; 
 very soon after, his discharge arrived. He was a man whose 
 stern integrity and unblemished character made him highly 
 respected by officers and men. 
 
 Mittens and socks were distributed among all the men of the 
 regiment who were in Chattanooga, and on Saturday, the 26th, 
 after making every effort to obtain transportation for the remain 
 der, but without avail, the Chaplain started for the regiment. 
 Travel at that time was anything but a luxury. The boat was 
 about destitute of accommodations for passengers. The rain fell 
 in torrents, and at Loudon, the only refuge while waiting for the 
 train, was in a cabin occupied by the most primitive of human 
 beings girls, and even children, smoking and chewing tobacco. 
 On the train, he had the novelty of stopping occasionally while 
 a detail of men went out to chop and bring in wood for the 
 
546 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 engine. At Knoxville, he stayed in the cars all night, taking a 
 wash next morning in a pond near Fort Sanders. At Straw 
 berry Plains were found some of the 36th and a horse, and he 
 reached the regiment at Elaine s Cross Roads on Tuesday, 29th, 
 bringing the first printed account received of the battle of Mis 
 sion Ridge. 
 
 Not only were rations scarce at this camp, but we had the 
 additional annoyance of receiving a supply of flour made of 
 " sick wheat." This acted as an emetic, and robbed many a poor 
 fellow of a good meal. At headquarter s mess the Chaplain and 
 "Little Doc." were both sceptical about the wheat, not having 
 any experience with it. One night the Chaplain thought it best 
 to take a short walk away from camp, not to meditate or star 
 gaze, but to part w r ith the much needed supper he had just taken. 
 He soon recognized some one else out on a similar errand, who 
 proved to be "Little Doc.," at which they both had a good 
 laugh, to be repeated on their return to headquarters. 
 
 On the last day of the year the regiment went out foraging. 
 The day was rainy, and during the night it turned to a storm, 
 the wind blowing so hard it seemed as though everything would 
 go to pieces. In the afternoon of January 1st the troops 
 returned, almost perished with cold. The strongest men were 
 staggered. During the night the men could not sleep, though 
 they wore their great coats and had huge fires built in front of 
 their quarters. The only way to endure it at all was to sit or 
 stand close to the fire, and then they would burn on one side and 
 freeze on the other, while the wind blew the smoke in curling 
 clouds about their heads and made them almost blind. There 
 were some whose systems never recovered from the shock of 
 those terrible days and nights. Among these was Lieut. Bar- 
 stow, who had commanded Company G after Captain Austin was 
 
LIEUT. BARSTOW S DEATH. 547 
 
 wounded at Chickamauga. In the notice of him, published after 
 his death at Burlington, Vt., it is said: "From Mission Ridge, 
 badly worn by many previous marches and skirmishes, besides 
 the more desperate conflicts, and by the quarter rations of Chat 
 tanooga, they were ordered in lightest equipments, with all speed, 
 to Knoxville. It was there, during the coldest weather known 
 for thirty years, hardly protected at all, as the necessities of 
 service required, that he took a most violent cold, to the effects 
 of which his strong constitution finally yielded. He made 
 in direct marches, as his own private record shows, over seven 
 thousand miles." "Dick" was a faithful soldier. 
 
 On Sunday, January 3rd, the cold moderated enough so that 
 it was possible to keep warm by a huge fire with great-coats on. 
 In the afternoon a short service was held, at which the Chaplain 
 preached a New Year s sermon, from " He thanked God and took 
 courage." 
 
 It seemed during these few days as if "Valley Forge" was 
 being repeated in this wilderness, and it is not too much to say 
 that the spirit of "Valley Forge" was exhibited by the 36th, 
 as the next chapter will show. 
 
CHAPTER XXXII 
 
 RE-ENLISTMENT AND FURLOUGH. 
 
 HE reverses of the enemy during the summer 
 and fall of 1863, had produced a profound 
 depression throughout the South, and the defeat 
 at Chattanooga, especially, cast a gloom over 
 all their prospects. But they were not slow to 
 perceive that there were elements of weakness 
 on our side which might eventually work to their advantage. 
 Chief of these was the important fact that a large number of 
 our best troops would close their term of enlistment during the 
 coming summer and fall, and right in the midst of the campaign 
 we should be deprived of our most experienced and seasoned 
 men. When to this was joined another fact, almost equally 
 important, that near the same time a new election for President 
 must be held, in which all the vexations and traitorous opposi 
 tion to the Government in the North could be rallied to its 
 embarrassment, they looked with confidence to see the reverses 
 of 1863 turned into victories in 1864. Our own Government 
 was equal to the emergency, and proposed the enlistment at once 
 of Veteran Volunteers, with additional bounties and one month s 
 
DISCUSSING RE-ENLISTMENT. 549 
 
 furlough and opportunity to recruit at home. It was soon seen 
 that the determination to put down the rebellion was not con 
 fined to those who occupied places of security and comfort, but 
 was pre eminently felt by the men on whom the hardships of the 
 service fell most severely. Regiment after regiment fell into 
 line, and during the next few months the different States were 
 made glad as they welcomed home their veteran troops, who not 
 only recruited their ranks, but gave such moral support to the 
 national cause as was largely felt all through the remainder of 
 the w T ar. 
 
 It was at Blame s Cross Roads the day before Christmas that 
 the subject of re-enlisting began to create excitement in the reg 
 iment ; it grew rapidly every day. They reasoned thus: 
 We are in until next fall any way, so that probably we shall have 
 to share in the remaining fighting. If we re-enlist now it will 
 have a great moral effect on the South, who are counting much 
 on the old regiments going out ; we shall also secure the bounty 
 and be discharged when the war is over. In addition, it is most 
 probable that many of us will re-enlist next fall if the rebellion 
 is not ended, so that it is best to do it now. A private letter 
 written at the time, says, " The singleness of purpose to see this 
 rebellion put down which characterizes these men, is such as 
 completely surprises me; it is the men, not the officers." 
 
 In his report to the Adjutant General of the army, the Chap 
 lain wrote, " On the 1st of January, 1864, while in bivouac at 
 Elaine s Cross Roads, East Tennessee, the order with respect to 
 veteran regiments was read, and a large number of those present 
 re-enlisted. The circumstances under which this was done are 
 worthy of record. They had formed a part of the army besieged 
 in Chattanooga, and had borne their full share in the labors and 
 privations of those trying days. Then came the gallant charge 
 
550 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 on Mission Ridge, followed by a rapid and arduous march to 
 the relief of Knoxville. The extremely cold weather of the season 
 closed in upon them in the mountain regions, with scant clothing 
 and rations, and the rudest of shelter. And yet no hardships 
 could crush their devotion to the cause, for in full view of the 
 sufferings and trials through which the organization had passed, 
 (nearly five hundred of the original number had been killed or 
 wounded in battle) they pledged themselves as veterans. The 
 scene will long be remembered, where, amid mountain wilds, the 
 smoke of the camp-fires was hurled in every direction, making it 
 well nigh intolerable to remain by a fire, and yet the atmosphere 
 was so intensely cold that when standing by the fire, one side of 
 the body was scorched and the other almost frozen. The ink 
 with which the enlistment papers were signed, froze on the pen 
 while the signer was using it, and had to be broken off in solid 
 ice before another man could use it ; the inkstand in the mean 
 time being only kept available by constant contact with the fire. 
 All honor to the noble men of many regiments, who amid such 
 severities still gave themselves afresh to their country s salvation." 
 To this should be added two sentences taken verbatim from the 
 journal of Chas. S. Stiles, Company A, written at the time, 
 and worthy of "being printed in letters of gold : 
 "THE VETERAN ENLISTMENT PAPERS WERE FILLED OUT AND 
 
 SIGNED THIS P. M. NO RATIONS TO-DAY. TWO EARS OF 
 CORN WERE ISSUED THIS EVENING TO EACH MAN." 
 
 The 44th Illinois was re-enlisted at the same time, and it was 
 reported that the regiment which should procure the requisite 
 number of names first would be allowed to go home first. As 
 the work approached completion, long after dark, the excitement 
 grew intense ; each regiment having scouts out to watch the 
 movements of the other. The 36th came out ahead, but it was 
 
MOVEMENTS OF THE VETERANS. 551 
 
 afterward decided to draw lots, which was done January 5th 
 the 36th being the winner. Accordingly next morning all the 
 veterans, bidding farewell to their comrades, who were assigned 
 temporarily to the 88th, started for Chattanooga, and after a 
 march of eighteen miles, arrived at Knoxville at 4 p. M. Next 
 day they took the cars for Loudon, where they remained until 
 Sunday, 10th. Here they sought refuge from the severe weather 
 in log barracks, and were gratified on the 9th by the appearance 
 of the box of socks and mittens, which had been delayed so long. 
 Distribution was made to all present, and the rest were shipped 
 to the boys now with the 88th, where they arrived on the 14th. 
 On the 10th, the march was resumed by way of Kingston, and 
 the old camp at Chattanooga reached on Friday, the 15th. 
 
 In crossing on the ferry at Kingston, the headquarter s wagon 
 slipped into the river, soaking all the baggage. All who were 
 unable to march were sent down on the boat. They had a hard 
 trip; ran aground several times; broke their rudder; stove in 
 the boat ; changed off to another ; had to march several miles 
 round the shoal water, and to crown all, having laid in provisions 
 for only one day, were out three, and came near starving many 
 being glad to gather ears of corn from the shore and eat the 
 kernels. 
 
 The next two weeks were spent in making up the " muster 
 out " and " muster in " papers of the men, and in closing up all 
 regimental business. The opportunity was also seized by many 
 to visit Lookout and Missionary Ridge and review the scenes of 
 the late conflicts. As we looked down from that lofty height 
 upon all the encampments of Chattanooga, it seemed wonderful 
 that Bragg did not make a better use of his points of obser 
 vation. 
 
552 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Services were held with the regiment and in the hospital each 
 Sabbath, and on the 24th, after the sermon, several addresses 
 were made, in view of their starting for home the next week. 
 The Chaplain called attention to the need of caring for their 
 health, which could not fail to be affected by their change of 
 habits ; and also to the necessity of safely investing the large 
 sums of money which would be paid them, and which had cost 
 them so much that it ought not to be wasted. Especially he 
 urged them to care for their character and morals, lest their noble 
 record should be stained, and the joy and pride of their friends 
 should be turned to shame. Col. Miller followed, enforcing these 
 thoughts and insisting on the maintenance of discipline through 
 out the trip. Lieut. Olson also spoke in the same strain, and 
 much was done to counteract the temptations which would be 
 placed in their way. 
 
 On the 25th they were mustered into service. On the 27th 
 they were paid off, finishing at 11 P. M., and next morning had 
 breakfast at three o clock ; turned over camp and garrison equi 
 page, and at six o clock left Chattanooga on the cars for home. 
 They arrived at Stevenson next day at noon, and at Nashville at 
 eight o clock A. M., of the 29th. Leaving there at seven A. M., 
 of the 30th, they arrived in Louisville at five P. M. 
 
 So many veteran regiments had passed through this city, that 
 the storekeepers, and especially the clothing merchants, had 
 learned what a golden harvest could be reaped from men who had 
 been so long away from civilization, and they were not slow to 
 take every advantage possible. They had runners out, who met 
 the regiment as soon as it arrived; learned its number and some 
 of its history, and then were loud in its praises imposing on 
 many an unsuspecting victim, who was persuaded to buy poor 
 clothing at high prices. 
 
ARRIVAL IN CHICAGO. 553 
 
 Leaving Jeffersonville at three P. M., Monday, February 1st, 
 they reached Indianapolis next morning, and Chicago at midnight 
 of the 2nd. They were assigned quarters at the Randolph Street 
 Market. 
 
 The ladies of the Soldier s Home were prepared to welcome 
 all returning regiments, and expressed the greatest regrets that 
 they had not been informed of the coming of the 36th, so that even 
 at that untimely hour, a good meal might have been ready. A 
 most sumptuous dinner was provided next day at Bryan Hall, to 
 which the regiment sat down, and after the " squarest of square 
 meals," an enthusiastic welcome to the State was given in a 
 noble speech by Thos. B. Bryan, Esq. ; responded to by Col. 
 Miller and the Chaplain, and followed by some ladies with sing 
 ing. They all insisted we should come back to breakfast next 
 morning, when, after a most bounteous entertainment, the ladies 
 sang once more, and the boys sang some patriotic airs. The 
 Governor also sent a congratulatory telegram to the regiment 
 through Col. Miller. 
 
 The time was occupied until Friday morning, the 5th of Feb 
 ruary, in making out furloughs, which being distributed in time 
 for the morning trains, the different companies started out on the 
 C. B. & Q., the Galena and the Rock Island Railroads. Five 
 companies, B, C, E, F and I, went out to Aurora, where they 
 were welcomed by the firing of cannon, the cheers of a multi 
 tude, and afterwards sat down to a sumptuous dinner, followed 
 by speeches. Companies D and G were similarly entertained 
 at Morris, and others at their destination. 
 
 The six weeks which elapsed before the regiment started again 
 for the front were all too short for the enthusiastic reception 
 which the men everywhere found. The ladies of every city, 
 village and rural neighborhood seemed to have the most lively 
 
 36 
 
554 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 recollections of the starvation times in Chattanooga, for they vied 
 with each other in piling their provisions in mountainous ridges, 
 before which even the heroes of " Mission Ridge" were staggered 
 and beaten back. Indeed their movement might very properly 
 be termed " the bread and butter campaign," in which the whole 
 region was traversed by hungry veterans ; in which there were 
 combined and deadly assaults in the cities, heavy skirmishing in 
 the country, and a steady running fire from house to house, until 
 the weary soldier could almost look with eager longing for the 
 hardtack and army ration of the front. Besides the reception 
 at Aurora, there were large gatherings at Elgin, Morris, Oswego, 
 Lisbon, etc., at which addresses were made by Col. Miller, Lieut. 
 Col. Olson, the Chaplain and others, in which the most patriotic 
 toasts were given and songs sung. As one of our comrades had 
 been unfitted for service by reason of his wounds, what could he 
 do better at this time than write us a song in honor of 
 " OUR FLAG" 
 
 DEDICATED TO THE 36TH ILLINOIS, BY J. L. DRYDEN. 
 
 AIR " The Bonnie Blue Flag." 
 
 Come, beys, a song for our own flag, 
 
 Our colors old and dear : 
 Each shred and tatter time hath made, 
 
 We every one revere. 
 Then fling it once more to the breeze 
 
 Unfold its crimson bars, 
 And let our friends know we retain 
 Our galaxy of Stars. 
 
 Chorus Hurrah ! Hurrah ! 
 For freedom far and wide ; 
 Hurrah for the dear old flag, 
 That fills our hearts with pride. 
 
 We ve rallied neath its ample folds 
 
 On many a well fought plain ; 
 And since our Country calls, we go 
 
 To bear it up again. 
 And never since by loyal hands 
 
 Twas placed within our trust, 
 Has that old flag dishonored been, 
 
 Or trailed in Rebel dust. 
 Chorus Hurrah ! &c. 
 
 At Pea Ridge first mid shot and shell 
 
 It waved right gloriously ; 
 And many neath its colors fell, 
 
 And died for Liberty. 
 Then next at Perry ville it rose 
 
 Mid shouts of victory ; 
 And waving over vanquished foes, 
 
 Kentucky was made free. 
 Chorus Hurrah ! &c. 
 
 On Murfreesboro s stubborn field 
 
 We see it next displayed ; 
 Though forced by numbers once to yield, 
 
 Our trust was not betrayed. 
 But high aloft mid carnage dire, 
 
 We bore its flaming bars, 
 And three score men there shed their blood, 
 
 To purify its stars. 
 
 Chorus Hurrah ! &c. 
 
POETICAL EFFUSIONS OF THE TIME. 
 
 555 
 
 Next on Chickamauga s plain, 
 
 It faced Virginia s pride ; 
 Though driven back, twas borne aloft, 
 
 And Rebel shells defied. 
 And last on Chattanooga s height, 
 
 In honor twas upreared, 
 And proudly waved till Mission Ridge 
 
 Of Dusky Coats was cleared. 
 Chorus Hurrah ! &c. 
 
 Then, boys, we ll ever love that flag, 
 
 Stand by it firm and true ; 
 We ll wipe out treason from our land, 
 
 And traitor hordes subdue. 
 Then friends at home will look with pride 
 
 On those time honored bars, 
 And bless the men who fought and died 
 
 To reunite its stars. 
 Chorus Hurrah ! &c. 
 
 To this shall be added a toast and reply, and song, which, 
 though not given until similar occasions several years after, may 
 well be recorded for their own sake, and as suggestive of the 
 spirit of those enthusiastic gatherings. The first were given at 
 Monmouth, on the occasion of a reception to the 36th and 83rd 
 Regiments : 
 
 " The Ladies Characterized by patriotic deeds and loyal 
 sentiments ; remembered as our country s warmest friends and 
 the soldiers truest allies ; admired for their personal charms and 
 womanly graces ; and loved, because our mothers, our sisters and 
 our wives ; praised and thanked especially for this generous act, 
 this bounteous dinner, these numerous tables so well spread, these 
 large baskets so well filled, these tidy waiters so well willed, and 
 tasty cooks so well skilled. May they have their reward." 
 Eliciting the following response by Miss Alice Mitchell : 
 
 We thank you for your words of praise, 
 
 Your tones of kindly greeting; 
 And bright will be for many days, 
 
 The memory of this meeting. 
 
 Our hearts, whose pulses beat so high 
 When war s grim visage frowned, 
 
 Now send swift praises to the sky, 
 And peace with love is crowned. 
 
 Heaven bless you, soldiers ! may your arms 
 Which struck the chains from others, 
 
 Be now the comfort and support 
 Of sisters, wives and mothers. 
 
 We wish that you may never have 
 Than this, a poorer dinner ; 
 
 And that of some nice, " tasty cook, 
 You soon will be the winner. 
 
 We read your fame in every star, 
 
 On every flag recorded, 
 And feel that we have been and are 
 
 Most gloriously rewarded. 
 
556 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 WELCOME HOME. 
 
 The following poem was written by a lady in Lisbon, and read 
 at the reception of Company D, 36th Illinois Veteran Volun 
 teers, in that village. 
 
 And now we meet together, 
 The friends ye knew of yore, 
 
 To welcome sons and kinsmen 
 To your prairie homes once more. 
 
 Yet if some lip should quiver, 
 And tears should dim some eye, 
 
 Home again, home again, 
 
 Soldiers brave and true ; 
 Loyal hearts are gathered 
 
 Now to welcome you. 
 Forth ye went to combat, 
 
 At your country s call, 
 Shrinking not from danger, 
 
 Though each one might fall. 
 
 On the field of battle, 
 
 In the prison cell, 
 On the rugged mountain, 
 
 In the lowly dell, 
 Ye have stood together, 
 
 Ever side by side, 
 Bearing on your colors 
 
 With a soldier s pride. 
 
 There were lonely marches 
 
 Neath the starless sky, 
 And lonely hours of watching 
 
 That saw some comrade die. 
 There were days of dreary sorrow, 
 
 There were nights of wretched pain, 
 When ye looked across the gloomy sky 
 
 For a ray of light, in vain. 
 
 O, Brothers, many a Northern heart 
 
 Went with you on your way, 
 And many a Northern heart sent up 
 
 Its prayer by night and day, 
 That God would guide and guard you 
 
 And send you home at last 
 When our country should be free again, 
 
 Her hour of peril past. 
 
 At all these gatherings efforts were used to obtain recruits to 
 fill up the ranks. Recruiting offices were opened at Aurora, 
 Elgin, etc. The supervisors of the different counties voted to 
 give additional bounties, and the 36th, in common with other 
 regiments at home at the same time, gathered a goodly number 
 of recruits. The Chaplain also visited several prominent places 
 on the Sabbath, and delivered addresses to large audiences on 
 "The moral and religious aspects of the war," seeking to stir up 
 
 Remember, there are countless graves 
 Left neath the Southern sky. 
 
 Remember ye are bringing 
 
 Up memories full of pain 
 Of fathers, brothers, lovers, 
 
 Who are numbered with the slain. 
 Remember, there are aching hearts 
 
 Still bleeding for their lost, 
 Who only know that peace was bought 
 
 At such a fearful cost. 
 
 They have crushed back the rising sigh, 
 
 And dried each bitter tear, 
 And join with us in giving 
 
 To you a welcome here. 
 And mid loyal words of greeting 
 
 We give three cheers for you, 
 And three times three for our bonny flag, 
 
 The old Red, White and Blue. 
 
LIST OF VETERANS AND RECRUITS. 557 
 
 not only increased interest in the furnishing of men, but also 
 in their religious and moral welfare, on which the future of our 
 country so much depended. 
 
 The following is a list of the Veteran Volunteers and Recruits 
 of the 36th Illinois : 
 
 COMPANY A. 
 
 John W. Aldrich. Fenelon J. Nicholas. 
 
 Leman Bartholomew. Walter J. Ordway. 
 
 John Bluckman. Charles Olsykwski. 
 
 Jeptha C. Dennison. Chandler Preston. 
 
 Henry Ford. George L. Peeler. 
 
 Henry Howe. Augustus Ritze. 
 
 Charles A. Halsey. Michael Seisloff. 
 
 Leverett M. Kelley. Milton S. To\vnsend. 
 
 Tobias Miller. Arzotus White. 
 
 Isaac N. Miner. Homer H. Wilcox. 
 
 Edward Nute. 
 
 RECRUITS. 
 
 Charles W. Aldrich. George M. Salisbury. 
 
 William Burke. Francis F. Shaw. 
 
 Richard Cool. William Srnailles. 
 
 Henry E. Deill. John F. Scott. 
 
 Albert Deill. Henry Samis. 
 
 Henry Hains. Otis D. Shaw. 
 
 Joseph D. Ham. Aaron B. Tice. 
 
 Benjamin F. Lockhart. William H. Winnegar. 
 
 Charles M. Lytle. Franklin Webber. 
 
 COMPANY B. 
 
 George Berger. Thomas E. Hornby. 
 
 Rudolph Brager. Charles E. Henzie. 
 
 Arba Camp. Owen Hughes. 
 
 Thomas Clark. Sidney E. Kendall. 
 
 William H. Dugan. Henry B. Latham. 
 
 Daniel Davis. Robert D. Logan. 
 
 John W. Edwards. Elihu Mahew. 
 
 James Eddy. Peter Pellican. 
 
 Frederick Emde. VanWyck Race. 
 
 Joseph McGee. Charles W. Sears. 
 
 John Ott. William Schaffer. 
 
 Edward Pearce. Fritz Wilkinson. 
 
 John A. Gronberg. Charles W. Travis. 
 
 Dorr K. Hodges. Christian Zimmer. 
 
558 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Nelson Esser. 
 John P. Tuffee. 
 John N. Jones, 
 August Meak. 
 
 Joseph W. Arthurs. 
 Daniel P. Baldwin. 
 Isaiah Baughman. 
 William P. Criswill. 
 Isaac Carson. 
 Harvey P. Donnell. 
 James Davis. 
 John Q. Graham. 
 David H. Henderson. 
 David S. Irvine. 
 Ethan Keck . 
 Warren Kintzie. 
 Henry H. Lord. 
 
 James C. Arthurs. 
 Abram Y. Arthurs. 
 Joseph A. Allen. 
 Thomas F. Baird. 
 James P. Barten. 
 Jamea M. Black. 
 William C. Buchanan. 
 Dexter C. Colby. 
 Samuel Carson. 
 Robert J. Caldwell. 
 Thomas B. Gormley. 
 Harvey P. Harper. 
 Robert A. Henderson. 
 John R. Henderson. 
 J. H. Hayes. 
 
 Henry F. Birch. 
 Lydon K. Bannister. 
 James A. Baker. 
 Charles H. Bissell. 
 Seth Darling. 
 William Duckworth. 
 Nelson Ericksou. 
 
 RECRUITS. 
 
 Henry A. Snell. 
 Daniel Terry. 
 Peter Thompson. 
 Joseph E. Way. 
 
 COMPANY C. 
 
 William A. Mitchell. 
 George N. Mercer. 
 Jacob W. Moss. 
 Stephen Matteson. 
 Samuel Paxton. 
 John A. Porter. 
 James Ralston 
 William R Toll. 
 James I. Wilson. 
 Samuel W. Wilson. 
 John Wilson. 
 Ezekiel Wimmer. 
 
 RECRUITS. 
 
 John W. Kitchen. 
 Martin E. Kin^. 
 George H. Knox. 
 John McL. Lukes. 
 Francis T. Mitchell. 
 Samuel A. Markwell. 
 Joseph A. Pollock. 
 Thomas R. Pollock. 
 William A. Rodgers. 
 William H. Smith. 
 Flavins J. Sawins. 
 William E. Stewart. 
 Jackson Suodgrass. 
 Julius C. Wright. 
 
 COMPANY D. 
 
 Edward Lars. 
 James M. Lach. 
 William T. Maycroft. 
 Louis R. Seymour. 
 Phillip Stage. 
 Joseph Shaw. 
 John C. Taylor. 
 
LIST OF VETERANS AND RECRUITS. 559 
 
 COMPANY D CONTINUED. 
 
 Alfred H. Gaylord. Thor Thorson. 
 
 John W Graham. Garrett G. Vreeland. 
 
 John Hier. Andrew F. Wilsey. 
 
 William C. Knox. John Wilson. 
 Henry T. Kellam. 
 
 BECKUITS. 
 
 Joseph Anderson. Henry S. Langdon. 
 
 Isaac Ashalter. Robert McNoven. 
 
 Edward Anderson. John H. Thompson. 
 Timothy A. Burgess. 
 
 COMPANY E. 
 
 John W. Alston. Thomas P. Hill. 
 
 James H. Alston. Henry Haigh. 
 
 Christopher M. Baker. James S. Hatch. 
 
 George W. Beane. Judson W. Hanson. 
 
 Frederick Beier. Holvar Hanson. 
 
 Christ Batterman. Henry Hennis. 
 
 John Bush. William Hall. 
 
 Marcus S. Bushnell. George E Lonsberry. 
 
 Milton E. Cornell. George W. Mathews. 
 
 Patrick Connor. Amos Norton. 
 
 Edgar S Case. Melancton J. Ross. 
 
 Silas F. Dyer. Walter S. Ralston. 
 
 Charles W. Doty. Robert B. Ralston. 
 
 Uriah Foster. Thomas P. Titlow. 
 
 RECRUITS. 
 
 James Allison. William H. McKay. 
 
 William P. Boyd. William Nichols. 
 
 John P. Clegg. Willis Olmstead. 
 
 Edwin E. Dyer. William G. Peterson. 
 
 Michael Divine. Ross Seely. 
 
 James Hen n ing. David Spencer. 
 
 Joseph Jenkinson. James C. Stokes. 
 
 William Manton. Myron C. Skinner. 
 
 George W. Lannigan. Ira M. Scofield. 
 
 George McHugh. Henry Webber. 
 
 COMPANY F. 
 
 Lewis E. Belden. Warren C. Massey. 
 
 William H. Curtis. Francis A. Mossman. 
 
 Edwin Dopp. Walter E. Partridge. 
 
 Gunner Gunnerson. William J. Pletch. 
 
 John Green. John H. Roots. 
 
560 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Oscar P. Hobbs. 
 John J. Jordan. 
 John T. Johnson. 
 Alexander Lipskey. 
 William McOlarey. 
 
 Demetrius W. Cady. 
 Lewis fl. Congden. 
 Alexander N. Friland 
 Lafayette Price. 
 
 Robert R. Bradshaw. 
 George M. Birdsell. 
 Peter Buchanan. 
 Robert Brierly. 
 Jesse H. Brown. 
 John Corkins. 
 John A. Dispennet. 
 Lewis B Dawson. 
 Wallace Ellis. 
 Evan Edwards. 
 
 Francis Carney. 
 Jonathan Foulk. 
 Warren Foulk. 
 Ellis W. Hulsizer. 
 Joseph Hook. 
 William Mei. 
 
 COMPANY F CONTINUED. 
 
 Emra Strait. 
 Benjamin Stevenson. 
 Beigo Thompson. 
 Alfred Tomlin. 
 John H. Whitney. 
 
 RECRUITS. 
 
 Marshall W. Treeman 
 James Verbeck. 
 Franklin A. Whitney. 
 William W. Water?. 
 COMPANY G. 
 
 John S. Fairman. 
 William S. Gibson. 
 Daniel Hart. 
 Joseph Hebert. 
 William W. Kerns. 
 Newman Perkins. 
 James Royds. 
 William F. Severns. 
 Job Whybrow. 
 Milton G. Yarnell. 
 
 RECRUITS. 
 
 Ebenezer S. B. Northrup. 
 James Rafferty. 
 Bryan H. Streeter. 
 Henry Wehr. 
 Thomas Williams. 
 
 Lillburn B. Agnew. 
 Horace N. Chittenden 
 Samuel Z. Carver. 
 Andrew J. Conroe. 
 Charles B. Crawford. 
 William Carl. 
 Day Elmore. 
 John P. Floyd. 
 Thomas Finlaysou. 
 Stephen Gates. 
 Madison W. Gould. 
 James A. Hutchins. 
 
 Henry Alison. 
 Elias Bartlett. 
 
 COMPANY H. 
 
 John A. Halderman. 
 David Hartman. 
 Charles W. Irish. 
 Myron D. Kent. 
 Cassins M. Kimplin. 
 Charles II. McDargh. 
 John Nemeyer. 
 Nelson B. Sherwood. 
 Frederick Smith. 
 Lavern Stanton. 
 Barent VanNess. 
 
 KECRUITS. 
 
 John Fox. 
 George Kingsbury. 
 
LIST OF VETERANS AND RECRUITS. 
 
 561 
 
 George W. Avery. 
 George Beck. 
 D wight G. Cowan. 
 Hobert Doctor. 
 James F. Ferris. 
 Joseph V. Gentensburg. 
 Henry Hirse. 
 Conrad Larnichel. 
 John Lonigan. 
 Hiram Lowry. 
 
 George Case. 
 John Figgins. 
 Martin Highbrick. 
 Michael Kertiser. 
 Zachariah Lerindin. 
 Jonathan Moore. 
 Henry Mehlke. 
 Michael Manning. 
 
 Harrison W. Blank. 
 Seneca Birdsell. 
 Solomon Emberling. 
 John M. Gordon. 
 Daniel P. Hammond. 
 James Hazelhurst. 
 James M. Hogue. 
 James C. Hogue. 
 John H. Johnson. 
 John P. Lenhert. 
 George Laker. 
 
 Hiram Bogardus. 
 Lucien Button. 
 John Dunn. 
 John Gannon. 
 James Guss. 
 Zenas E. Hogue. 
 M. LaRue Harrison. 
 Edward C. Mulinix. 
 Robert C. Moore. 
 Adam Mitchell. 
 
 COMPANY I. 
 
 Samuel Maul. 
 Nicholas Swichart. 
 Andrew Turner. 
 Harvey Tooley. 
 Christopher Thake. 
 Bart J. VanVaulkenburg. 
 Abram V. Wormley. 
 Christ Wentz. 
 James Wicks. 
 
 RECRUITS. 
 
 Charles Meyers. 
 James D. Powell. 
 John Roush. 
 John Shields. 
 Isaac P. Smith. 
 Jared E. Thomas. 
 William Tobey. 
 John E. Watts. 
 COMPANY K. 
 
 John C. Minkler. 
 James McCrarey. 
 John Poll. 
 Simeon Parsons. 
 Emery W. Pratt. 
 Robert H. Starr. 
 Romain A. Smith. 
 George M. Scales. 
 Francis Tewksbury. 
 Charles A. Tucker. 
 William C. Underwood. 
 
 KECRUJTS. 
 
 John McFarland. 
 Patrick O Connor. 
 Lyman K. Powers. 
 Peter Parquette. 
 Joseph Richardson. 
 Harlow Slate. 
 John Tyler. 
 
 George A. Underwood. 
 Hiram F. Watkins. 
 Arthur W. Wilson. 
 
CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 TO THE FRONT. 
 
 JN SATURDAY, March 19th, 1864, the regi 
 ment fell into line and took the cars for Chicago. 
 A large crowd of the citizens of Aurora greeted 
 [them with their cheers and adieus as the train 
 moved out, and as soon as it was well under way, 
 a copy of the following address was placed in 
 the hands of every officer and man, and at once carefully read : 
 
 To the Officers and Soldiers of the " Thirty- Sixth Illinois: 
 Veteran Volunteers : 
 
 It is the custom of many wise and good men to select, at inter 
 vals, some brief sentence of Scripture, which being often called 
 to mind, may serve to warn, to strengthen and direct them. 
 
 Allow me, at the commencement of your new term of service, 
 to present to you, as a motto, the words of David to his son 
 Solomon : 
 
 " SHOW THYSELF A MAN !" 
 
 David s eventful life was drawing to a close. But ere he left 
 his throne on earth for a seat in heaven, he longed to give such 
 counsels to his son as should both insure his personal happiness, 
 and the continued prosperity of his people. Calling Solomon 
 into his presence, he said (1 Kings ii, 2j: tk l go the way of all 
 the earth; be thou strong, therefore, and show thyself a man." 
 
"SHOW THYSELF A MAN." 563 
 
 All he could wish his son to be ; all that in the following verses is 
 expressed in detail, was comprehended in these four brief words. 
 And if ere we move again to the front, we could stand before the 
 venerable patriarch at once the greatest captain, statesman and 
 monarch of the age to receive from his lips some weighty and 
 pertinent advice, he might with equal propriety say to each and 
 all, " Show thyself a man." 
 
 This we should do in relation to ourselves, our country, and 
 our God. 
 
 I. Ourselves. Man s first and chief responsibility is for him 
 self; and no amount of anxiety for others, or zeal for our coun 
 try, will atone for the neglect of ourselves. Our immortal souls, 
 for which Christ died, must be watched over ; the evil corrected, 
 the good cherished. Many a young man has been lured into 
 vice by the insinuating thought, that it is manly to indulge in 
 profanity, intoxication or licentiousness ; but in this he is duped 
 by the same deceiver who taught our first parents that though 
 they disobeyed God, " they should not surely die." To resist 
 vice, not yield to its seductions, is the mark of true manliness. 
 " Greater is he that ruleth his own spirit than he that taketh a 
 city." Officers and generals we can not all be, nor can we write 
 our names conspicuously on the roll of those who capture cities 
 and lead us on to victory ; but we may all win that greater glory 
 which attaches to resisting sin and conquering self. In this, 
 then, " Show thyself a man." 
 
 II. Our Country. Our imperilled country called for help. 
 You sprang promptly to her relief. You are now engaged in a 
 special service ; one which for the right performance of its duties, 
 requires some of the noblest powers of manhood, whatever posi 
 tion be assigned you. The private, as truly, if not as conspicu 
 ously, as the highest officer, may show himself a man ; for fidelity, 
 courage and patient endurance are required of all. In this special 
 service to which, for a while, you are devoted, u quit yourselves 
 like men." Let that unquestioning obedience to command, so 
 essential to military success, be always given not grudgingly, 
 nor simply for your oath s sake, but cheerfully, like men who 
 
564 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 have voluntarily sacrificed for a while their personal freedom to 
 the salvation % of their country. Let the privations and hard 
 ships, inseparable from every campaign, be met with a manly 
 fortitude, knowing that he who calmly endures such trials is as 
 truly a hero as he who boldly stands in the face of the enemy. 
 Nay, the spirit of both is so near akin, that the soldier who proves 
 himself the true man on the march is never found wanting on 
 the battle-field. Carefully, too, abstain from those lawless prac 
 tices to which a military life presents so many temptations, and 
 by which some soldiers and regiments have brought a stain upon 
 their otherwise fair name, which even gallantry in the field has 
 scarce sufficed to remove. Remember you are citizen-soldiers, 
 whose highest hopes will not be realized simply in the subjuga 
 tion of armed forces in rebellion, but who seek to implant in 
 Southern soil those sacred principles of freedom, regulated by 
 law, which, whilst desolation reigns in the theatre of war, still 
 keep our far-away homes the abodes of peace and prosperity, and 
 which, "when this cruel war is over," shall grow until they lift 
 their branches over the whole land, and a continent shall safely 
 recline beneath their shade. Let there be nothing, then, in your 
 conduct which shall belie this sacred mission, or make those you 
 meet misunderstand your aims. 
 
 But this manliness should be chiefly shown 
 
 III. Towards G-od. With some it is considered manly to 
 scoff at religion, and boast in unbelief, unmindful of the fact, 
 that the glory and service of God was the chief end of man s 
 creation, and never till he gives himself to that service, making 
 that glory his supreme desire, does he attain full manliness. 
 " The Christian is the highest style of man." The love of God 
 restrains and purifies the love of self; it sanctions and strengthens 
 the love of country, and gives to the character a stability and 
 glory all its own. To be true men, let the counsels of the 
 Savior be heeded ; let His precepts be your guide, His blood and 
 righteousness your only refuge. Rest not without an interest in 
 His salvation. 
 
"SHOW THYSELF A MAN." 565 
 
 Would you look on one in whom these traits of manhood were 
 all seen ? Remember him who was " first in war, first in peace, 
 and first in the hearts of his countrymen," while even now each 
 return of his birth-day makes a nation glad. Victorious over 
 self, devoted to his country, consecrated to God, he stands forth 
 an embodiment of true manliness. Called to live in times the 
 counterpart of his, to bear in your degree burdens like his, need 
 ing the very qualities which in him shone out so brightly, let his 
 honored memory press upon each the exhortation of the dying 
 warrior and saint "Show thyself a man." 
 
 You are surrounded with the noblest incentives to such a course. 
 The ever brightening prospects of our country s cause, and the 
 certainty of its speedy and final triumph, call aloud to each 
 defender " Show thyself a man!" 
 
 Our glorious old flag, soiled and battered, but never dis 
 honored, waves to and fro in the breeze, and seems to say to every 
 one "Show thyself a man!" 
 
 The intense interest felt for you by loving hearts at home, and 
 the earnest prayers ascending ceaselessly in your behalf, come 
 whispering in soft and winning tones " Show thyself a man !" 
 
 The remembrance of the glad welcome which has been extended 
 to you by all the loyal and the good, testifying the honest pride 
 they feel in your achievements and devotion to country, and the 
 desire you cherish that it may never be dashed by hearing on 
 your lips or seeing in your lives, the traces of vice, should, like 
 a talisman, preserve you from contagion, ever reminding you 
 " Show thyself a man !" 
 
 The reflection that this terrible struggle is intimately con 
 nected with the highest interests of humanity and religion, and 
 that our national triumph will result in giving a new impulse 
 among men to everything that is elevating, good and holy, urges, 
 lest you come short yourselves of the blessings you are procuring 
 for others and posterity "Show thyself a man !" 
 
 Finally, the sacred graves of our fallen comrades, silently tell 
 ing of the perilous service in which we are engaged, and that not 
 all who now leave home, amid the adieus of friends, shall live to 
 
566 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 receive their congratulations at our return, should lift our thoughts 
 toward heaven and eternity, while the voice of God urges the 
 exhortation in its fullest, Christian sense "Snow THYSELF A 
 MAN !" Your devoted friend and Chaplain, 
 
 Bristol, 111., March, 1864. WM. M. HAIGH. 
 
 In Chicago they were marched to the Soldiers Rest, where 
 they had accommodations and dinner provided. About three 
 o clock they went on board the cars, but did not start till near 
 dark traveling very slowly all night, and arriving in Indianap 
 olis Sunday afternoon. After a most hearty and welcome dinner, 
 the journey was resumed and Jeifersonville reached next morning. 
 Thus far, we had been in company with another veteran regiment, 
 which seemed to be without any efficient commander, smashing the 
 windows of the cars and tearing up two of the inside roof cover 
 ings. The official in charge of the train, in giving in his report, 
 warmly commended the 36th for their orderly behavior, in con 
 trast with their temporary associates. On the way from Louis 
 ville to Nashville, next day, however, as the two heavily loaded 
 trains moved out of the city the engines tugging like dray 
 horses the spirit of mischief came upon some of the 36th, and 
 they pulled a coupling pin, causing a halt and a delay. As the 
 train started again, the trick was repeated, to the no small vexa 
 tion of the train men. At last a guard was set over each coupler, 
 and of course the game was up. 
 
 On arriving at Nashville, we were confronted with the unwel 
 come announcement that we could proceed no further on the rail 
 road, but must march over the country to Chattanooga, as all the 
 transportation was needed for accumulating supplies at the front. 
 The traveler lolling at leisure, perusing his morning paper, while 
 the train glides over the track, is not more conscions of an 
 unpleasant jerk, when his smooth progress and his reading are 
 brought to an untimely end by some displaced rail or broken axle. 
 
AGAIN ON THE MARCH. 567 
 
 than were we in finding the comforts of civilization thus suddenly 
 exchanged for the stern realities of war. But we submitted with 
 as good a grace as the circumstances would allow. Laying aside 
 all the superfluities which belong to life in " America," and com 
 ing down to "first principles," we prepared to march. 
 
 We set out on Friday, March 26th, and, as usual, the rain 
 began simultaneously to fall. After we had marched about nine 
 miles, we pitched our tents, in the midst of a driving shower. 
 This was a hard beginning for the new recruits, but the elasticity 
 of the old soldierss, howed itself in the jokes which were let off 
 upon the situation of soldiers in general and veterans in particu 
 lar. " There is one thing that comforts me a good deal," said 
 an old boy ; " I ve only a little over two years and nine months to 
 serve." 
 
 On the road, both before and behind us, were numerous regi 
 ments, making their way also to the front, whose camps were in the 
 same vicinity, and in spite of all the care that could be taken, by 
 limiting each days journey to about twelve miles starting early 
 and going into carnp early, the men suffered a good deal, for even 
 the old soldiers were unseasoned, their feet being especially tender 
 and easily injured. The camps along the way were named by 
 the Colonel after the first two, in compliment to absent officers. 
 Camp Haigh was the name of the first, Camp Hatch of the 
 second, Camp Sill of the third, which was about half a mile 
 south of Murfreesboro. This camp we reached at eleven o clock 
 on Sunday, the day being excessively hot and the men tired. 
 It was with melancholy interest we retraced the old ground, 
 made historic by fierce struggles and deadly conflicts, or examined 
 the riven trees silent witnesses of the fiery storms which raged 
 terrifically through them. And how did our thoughts turn 
 towards that spot where two hundred of our regiment fell wounded 
 
568 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 or dead ere the rushing foe could break through that living bar 
 rier of loyal hearts ! or that other spot, hard by, where sleeps 
 the precious dust of those who loved their country better than 
 their life. Towards evening we gathered for service, the Chap 
 lain preaching a sermon appropriate to the beginning of a new 
 term of service, from the character of the Roman military officer 
 whom Christ so much commended. It was a solemn season. 
 The memory of fallen comrades, the tears and prayers of Christ 
 ian friends just left behind, the unknown but perilous future, all 
 seemed pressing on that hushed gathering the claims of Christ 
 and eternity. The spirit of God, we have reason to believe, was 
 there with His effectual calling, and not a few resolves were made 
 that hour which were found afterwards to ripen into hopeful 
 conversion. 
 
 Next morning the regiment started early, while the Chaplain 
 and Adjt. Case remained behind to procure transportation for 
 some men unable to march, but as the General was not yet up, 
 they seized the opportunity to ride out to Hospital Harding, look 
 over the battle-ground and ascertain the condition of the grave. 
 They found the fence still remaining, but the ground itself so 
 settled that should the fence be removed, all traces of the grave 
 would soon disappear. On joining the regiment that night, 
 about fifteen miles south of Murfreesboro, and stating the facts, 
 a determination was at once expressed to erect a monument on 
 the spot, that the memory of their comrades valor might be pre 
 served. Measures were at once taken to procure the necessary 
 plans, and progress was made, but a National Cemetery was 
 ordered at Murfreesboro, under the superintendence of Chaplain 
 Earnshaw, and the remains of the dead all over the battle-field 
 were gathered and re-interred, making the efforts of separate 
 regiments unnecessary. In this connection it is well to know, as 
 
A SCHOOL IN SESSION. 569 
 
 Chaplain Van Home states, (who has borne the most prominent 
 part in this most necessary and honorable task) : u ln expression 
 of the value of each citizen who fell in the war, the body of each 
 was placed in a separate gave. And so thorough was the search 
 for the dead upon every battle-field, and over the whole country, 
 that their friends may be assured that, whether identified or not, 
 all rest in grounds consecrated to their abode forever." 
 
 That night we experienced a terrible thunder storm, accompanied 
 with much rain and wind ; but leaving Camp Greusel, we resumed 
 our march next day ; passing through Shelbyville a fine town, 
 with a loyal population, whose ladies gave us a hearty reception. 
 We continued our course southeast, towards Tullohoma, halting 
 at Camp Joslyn, five miles out. Next day we went into camp at 
 Tullohoma Camp Jenks. During this day we saw the first 
 school in session that we had seen in all our marching, and it was 
 worthy of notice that the whole region from which it drew its sup 
 port was loyal. Next day the regiment took the railroad track, 
 while the officers went around by the road. Before starting, it was 
 ascertained that a new recruit, Ira Scofield, had stayed back the 
 day before at a farm-house, complaining of sickness. A man 
 was detailed to take an ambulance and bring him into town, that 
 he might be well cared for. The man found him too sick to be 
 moved, but remained with him until he died. 
 
 On arriving at Derchard, the Colonel found a construction 
 train, on which he succeeded in placing the regiment for a ride 
 through to Cowan, where the officers found them on their arrival, 
 camped on the old ground, to which we now gave the name of 
 Camp Olson. We took an interest in looking for any traces of 
 our once beautiful chapel, and succeeded in finding the stumps of 
 old posts still remaining. On Friday we crossed the Cumber 
 land mountains in a heavy rain storm, the road indiscribably 
 
 37 
 
570 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 muddy and rocky, so that it seemed impossible for a wagon to 
 pass over it. And sure enough, after selecting camp five miles 
 beyond Tantallon (Camp Barry), we waited until after five o clock, 
 when we learned that our wagon was stuck on the mountain, and 
 Lieut. Col. Olson went back to bring it on. Headquarters were 
 thus without tents, blankets or food. This state of things lasted 
 two days, until the wagon was brought forward. Those two 
 nights of trying to fight the cold and wet and catch some sleep, 
 will not soon be forgotten. For food, they were made welcome to 
 the rations of the men, who thought that in this matter as well 
 as the veteran bounties they had the advantage of the officers. 
 Our next halt was Camp Sherman, at Stevenson, where we 
 remained all day Sunday, expecting every hour to start for Chat 
 tanooga. Night came and no train, but a terrible rain storm 
 instead. A number of officers found shelter at the Home. Next 
 morning we took an early start the men riding on the top of 
 the cars, in a heavy rain and arrived in Chattanooga about noon. 
 Here we remained several days, waiting for transportation, and 
 had a fine opportunity to visit Mission Ridge with Col. Miller 
 and others to recognize all the localities. 
 
 On Friday, the 8th, three companies found accommodations, 
 and went on to Loudon. Next day three more followed, the rest 
 being left in charge of Capt. Biddulph. At Loudon we found 
 the brigade, and the non- veterans who were with the 88th. They 
 had been enjoying a good rest there for some weeks, and abund 
 ance of rations. This was very different from what they had at 
 first. Thumb, of Company D, says : "My mess-mate and myself 
 took an inventory of our stock of provisions and fuel this morn 
 ing after breakfast, and found them to consist of the following 
 named articles for one day s rations for two men : half a pound 
 of beef (half of it bone), one pint of cornmeal, two dozen small 
 
NUTRITIOUS BILL OF FARE. 571 
 
 white beans, and a tablespoonful of salt. Our wood consisted of 
 half a rail, and two small sticks of wood; so the first thing to 
 be done was to cut and carry some wood (distance to wood half 
 a mile), which took us till noon ; the next, to find how to cook 
 our rations so as to make three meals. After an hour s hard 
 study, we concluded to boil the beans and beef and make some 
 soup. After boiling two and a-half hours, found we had two 
 pints of bean soup of about the strength of water a hearty meal 
 for two stout, hungry men. We had meal to bake into griddle 
 cakes for supper, and then go hungry until we could get some 
 more. This is a soldier s fare; who would not be a soldier? 
 The cattle-guards went over to Division Headquarters for some 
 beef cattle to-day, and they had to leave three head on the road, 
 for they were so poor they could not walk ; several more of them 
 lay down as soon as they were turned into the yard, and could 
 not be made to get up. It is only two miles to Division Head 
 quarters. We drew beef this evening for one day, and fresh pork 
 for another. The beef is so poor they had to give us some pork 
 to cook with it to keep it from sticking to the pan." 
 
 After reaching Loudon, however, they had good and abundant 
 rations. Their journals were full of complainings about being 
 lonesome, and one designates them as "we foundlings." They 
 left the 88th, April 10th, the band playing, "Get out of the Wil 
 derness," and returned to the old 36th playing, " Home Again," 
 which tells the whole story. 
 
 The nine companies made camp. On the Sabbath religious 
 services were held, and the Chaplain being furnished with a fine 
 large tent, the evening meetings were resumed, and it was found 
 that many officers and men had returned from home with heart 
 felt determinations to serve God as well as their country. A 
 Christian Association was formed, to which quite a number 
 
572 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 attached themselves. Our library, too, was with us, and the mag 
 azines came regularly, so that we were well supplied with read 
 ing, and passed the week quite pleasantly. 
 
 In the meantime, a detachment under Capt. Biddulph had 
 started for Loudon, but were stopped at Cleveland by order of 
 Gen. Howard, who now commanded the corps. The 36th was 
 camped near his headquarters . On the other side of the town 
 was a division of cavalry assigned to provost and guard duty. 
 Careless and inefficient officers had made the command like them 
 selves, so that they were notoriously negligent as guards, and 
 property committed to them was less safe than if exposed with 
 out guard. Great dissatisfaction arose at their lack of discipline, 
 and the lawless habits which the men had contracted. One day 
 the Adjutant General inquired of Capt. Biddulph if he supposed 
 the 36th could perform provost duty without being overriden by 
 the cavalry. "Try them," said Biddulph, and the change was 
 at once made. The detachment moved their quarters to and 
 adjoining the court house, and entered upon their duty. Con 
 fusion and outrage quickly gave place to quiet and order. The 
 wild and lawless found that their power was gone, and that for 
 drunkenness and disorderly conduct they were unceremoniously 
 dumped into the guard-house. In conversation with the Adju 
 tant General, one evening, Gen. Harker asserted that he could 
 run the guard when he pleased, without the countersign. On 
 being told that a new order of things had been introduced ; that 
 the 36th was now on duty, and that running the guard was " played 
 out," the General adhered to his assertion, and offered to wager a 
 basket of champagne that he could succeed. The wager was taken, 
 and the General sallied out to make the attempt, but was abruptly 
 snubbed by the first guard he encountered, and, when he insisted 
 upon passing, was arrested and conducted to the guard-house out 
 
ATTRACTIONS OF THE VALLEY. 573 
 
 of which even his stars would not have kept him, had not the 
 Adjutant General made his appearance and effected his release ; 
 claiming, no doubt, his basket of champagne. It was some time 
 before the detachment returned to the regiment, but when they 
 did so it was with high compliments upon their efficiency as pro 
 vost guards. 
 
 On Sunday, April 17th, the regiment moved to the south of 
 the river, where we held service, and the next morning started 
 for Cleveland, the headquarters of the corps, arriving there the 
 following Thursday. 
 
 It would be difficult to find language too strong in which to 
 describe the attractions of this valley, through which runs the 
 Tennessee & Virginia Railroad. Its beauty of scenery, fertility 
 of soil, salubrity of climate, and its never-to-be-forgotten spark 
 ling, pure water, point it out as a region destined one day to 
 receive and sustain a large population. Its purely stragetic value 
 in the war could not be overrated, and its advantages as a source 
 of supplies, justified the tenacity with which the South clung to 
 its possession and the sullenness with which they gave up the 
 contest for its recapture. 
 
 During the winter our commanders had quite extensively to 
 supply the inhabitants with rations, but all along the line of our 
 march from Loudon, fences were being built, and with such horses 
 as were left if by any figure of speech such frames could be 
 called horses farmers were putting in their spring "craps." 
 Great care was used by our commanders to protect them in their 
 work, and avoid all unnecessary waste of property. 
 
 We remained at Cleveland nearly two weeks, occupied with the 
 usual camp duties, chiefly picketing and drilling. We were 
 reviewed once by our new Corps Commander, Gen. Howard, and 
 made special use of our regimental library. We were encouraged, 
 
574 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 too, to increase our usual number of meetings because of the 
 growing interest felt in them. Cleveland also was visited by D. 
 L. Moody, and other members of the Christian Commission, and 
 quite a deep religious interest was manifested, which extended to 
 many members of the 36th. But all signs pointed to an early 
 advance. On Monday, May 2nd, we packed up the library and 
 all extra baggage, to see them no more until they should come 
 forward to us in Atlanta, and on Tuesday, May 3rd, we started 
 out on the Atlanta Campaign. 
 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 DALTON AND RESA.CA. 
 
 ,OTII North and South were looking with intense 
 interest for the opening of the spring campaign. On 
 our side the most stupendous preparations had been 
 made both East and West. Chief in importance was 
 the re-enlistment of so many old regiments, bearing henceforth, 
 as has been truly said, " the grandest name which the war origin 
 ated." Next, must be placed the unifying of all army move 
 ments, by the appointment of Grant as Lieutenant General, thus 
 making possible the most thorough and wide-reaching co-opera 
 tion of all the forces. " The Military Division of the Missis 
 sippi " was continued, and placed under the command of Gen. 
 
 
CHANGE OF COMMANDERS. 575 
 
 Sherman; McPherson taking the "Army of the Tennessee," 
 and Schofield the " Army of the Ohio." Supplies in vast amounts 
 were collected at Chattanooga, and everything done that could 
 be to thoroughly equip the forces for what was hoped would prove 
 the final campaign of the war. .The South, too, realized the 
 crisis, and notwithstanding the disasters of the year past, con 
 fronted us with a strength and determination worthy of a better 
 cause. Chief among the significant acts of preparation in the 
 South was the appointment of Gen. Joe Johnston to command 
 their Western army, a man equal, if not superior, to any officer 
 in their service. 
 
 In our own part of the army important changes were made, 
 some pleasing, others not so. The substitution of Gen. Howard 
 for Gen. Granger, in command of the Fourth Corps, gave univer 
 sal satisfaction, but the removal of Gen. Sheridan from the com 
 mand of the Second Division to the head of the Cavalry on the 
 Potomac, while highly honorable to him and serviceable to the 
 country, was looked upon by all who had served under him as 
 inflicting on us a loss which was simply irreparable. Perhaps 
 we were in no humor to give any man who might take his place 
 a perfectly fair judgment, but it is the truth to say that Gen. 
 Newton never commanded the confidence of officers or men, and 
 many a time when the division was placed in critical circum 
 stances, the wish expressed by all was, " 0, that Sheridan were 
 here." 
 
 Some changes also were made in the First Brigade, which was 
 composed now of nine regiments, the 2nd and 15th Missouri, 
 24th Wisconsin, 28th Kentucky, 36th, 44th, 73rd, 74th and 88th 
 Illinois, all under the command of Col. F. T. Sherman, of the 
 88th. In the regiment the only change to be noted was the 
 absence through the campaign of Major Sherman, who was left 
 
576 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 behind in Illinois in recruiting service, and on being relieved was 
 appointed by Gen. Thomas Commandant of Military Prison at 
 Nashville, which delicate and responsible post he filled with the 
 commendation of the General. 
 
 The general plan adopted for the prosecution of the campaign, 
 was for both armies, East and West, to move forward simulta 
 neously against the enemy in their front, and press so vigorously 
 and persistently as to allow no opportunity to the enemy to 
 re-inforce in either direction. The 2nd of May was first desig 
 nated by Gen. Grant for the united advance, which, however, was 
 afterwards changed to the 5th. That we might be in time to take 
 our place on that day, the Fourth Corps received orders on the 
 morning of the 3rd to be ready to march at noon, and promptly 
 at that hour we left camp and drew out on the road to Dalton. 
 That our campaign was to be an earnest and vigorous one, was 
 evident from the strict regulations in regard to camp equipage 
 and transportation. To each regiment was allowed but one 
 wagon and one ambulance, and one tent as an office, but as the 
 wagon would only occasionally be with the regiment, each officer 
 and soldier was required to carry on his horse or person, food and 
 clothing enough for five days. A pack-horse was allowed to 
 headquarters for forage, etc., and one for the officers of each com 
 pany, so that it was common to see quite a number of pack- 
 horses or mules at the rear of each regiment. Gen. Sherman 
 himself set the example of light marching, by having nothing 
 but a tent-fly for his headquarters. 
 
 On the 3rd, we marched about fourteen miles, camping near 
 Redclay, just across the Tennessee line, and next day arrived at 
 Catoosa Springs, completing the concentration of the Army of 
 the Cumberland. 
 
 Here are twenty-five different kinds of mineral waters, with a 
 large hotel, and all the conveniences of a Southern watering 
 
ENEMY S FORTIFICATIONS. 577 
 
 place. The enemy had been using it, of late, as a hospital 
 In this vicinity we remained until Saturday, the 7th, when at 
 four o clock A. M., we commenced the advance on Tunnel Hill, 
 which, after a good deal of skirmishing and firing in front, we 
 reached at about ten o clock. Next day we moved out at nine 
 o clock, but halted frequently, while Barker s Brigade, of our 
 division, pushed forward to Rocky Face Ridge, having a, number 
 killed and wounded, and at night we bivouaced on the same 
 ground that we occupied in the morning. Here we learned of 
 the successful movement of Grant s army in Virginia. Next day 
 (the 9th) we ascended Rocky Face, in support of the troops 
 already there, and from this point had a magnificent view of the 
 country ; of the enemy s position and our own. It is seldom 
 indeed that so fine an opportunity is afforded for watching the 
 operations of contending armies. Rocky Face Ridge is what its 
 name imports ; is of great height, and extends for many miles 
 due south. About the centre is a gorge, through which flows 
 Mill Creek, and also passes the railroad to Dalton. This gap 
 has sharp, precipitous sides, which could only be approached from 
 the ridge, and then, so defended was it by rocks and ledges, that 
 men could not be massed in order, but must ascend in broken 
 fragments. These palisades were crowned with batteries. This 
 was Buzzard s Roost. On the east side of the ridge and in front 
 of Dalton were the main fortifications, covering all the roads 
 from the north and east. These were very strong including all 
 the defences of modern warfare and in front were strong lines 
 of sharpened stakes, leaning outwards, protected by a perfect 
 labyrinth of fallen trees. By means of dams, also, the country 
 round was flooded, so that every protection possible had been 
 provided. The ascent to the ridge was the steepest we had ever 
 known in some places almost perpendicular, arid the crest was 
 but a few feet wide. As soon as we could take a view of the sit- 
 
578 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 uation, there was much speculation as to what the enemy would 
 do, and we scanned the works in front of Dalton narrowly, to 
 find if possible what men occupied them. But everything there 
 was quiet, and not a man was to be seen. About noon, there 
 broke on us a sight which none present can ever forget. The 
 23rd Corps, whom we had passed in the morning, had entered 
 the valley round the northern point of the ridge, deployed across 
 it, and were now marching in line of battle directly upon the for 
 tifications. First, we could see the lines of skirmishers, moving 
 steadily forward, reaching from one favorable cover to another, 
 and firing at intervals, as they caught sight of the opposing skir 
 mishers. Then came the line of battle in splendid order, the 
 regimental flags glistening in the sun and appearing in beautiful 
 contrast to the rich green of the trees and grass through which 
 they were borne. On they went, driving in the enemy, until 
 about four o clock, when they came within range of the forts, 
 and we were in momentary expectation of witnessing a bloody 
 conflict. Gun after gun opened from the fort, and quick as 
 thought, the top of the parapet seemed alive with men s heads, 
 stretched up to see our advancing columns. Their curiosity had 
 got the better of their judgment and orders, and we could see 
 that their works swarmed with men. But the 23rd Corps halted, 
 having evidently carried out their orders. 
 
 Late in the afternoon, Barker s Brigade made a direct assault 
 on the south end of our ridge, while Wagner s Brigade did the 
 same from the east side. The firing was tremendous for a little 
 while, and the spent balls fell thickly where our brigade lay in 
 reserve, but the assaults were unsuccessful, and we lost quite a 
 number of men. During the afternoon our mail arrived and 
 was distributed. At night our brigade was withdrawn from the 
 ridge and sent back about three miles to guard the roads and 
 
NIGHT ON THE KIDGE. 579 
 
 trains. Next morning we returned to the entrance of the valley, 
 passing round the northern end of the ridge and up the eastern 
 side, which was easier of ascent than the western. Despatches 
 arrived announcing Grant s success on the Potomac. The Brig 
 ade was soon set to work building breastworks of the stones 
 and timber which could be gathered, while the 23rd Corps retired 
 to the mouth of the gap. 
 
 We now learned that the fighting of the previous day was 
 simply to hold Johnston s army at Dalton, while McPherson 
 siezed Snake Creek Gap and operated against the railroad at 
 Resaca. Rain began to fall, and our preparations for the night 
 were anything but inviting. The narrowness of the ridge pre 
 vented our selecting a level spot to lie down on. The sides were 
 at an angle of about forty-five degrees, and the rocks so thick 
 that it was extremely difficult to find a spot large enough or of 
 such a shape as to admit a man sleeping with any comfort, but 
 we put up shelters the best we could and lay down. During the 
 night, however, there came up a furious storm of rain and wind, 
 blowing down our coverings and drenching us through, so that 
 with many of us the only way to pass the rest of the night was 
 to sit up by the fire and take it as easy as possible. The next 
 day the rain continued, but all was quiet, and with the exception 
 of a slight change in position, no movement was made. The one 
 bright spot of the day was the coming of the mail. Next day 
 it was evident that our corps and the cavalry alone remained ; 
 that Schofield and the rest of the army had moved south to 
 re-inforce McPherson, which they were well able to do without 
 the knowledge of the enemy, for Rocky Face Ridge operated like 
 an impenetrable curtain, behind which all our movements were hid. 
 Near noon, however, our attention was attracted by the marching 
 of a heavy column of infantry on the other side of the valley 
 
580 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 towards our left. We could see the glistening of arms and the 
 white covers of the wagons among the trees. It was an exciting 
 time, for it looked like a massing of forces against us ; but soon 
 our signal flags were seen to be busy, and Wood s Division, in 
 reserve on Tunnel Hill, broke up camp, marched rapidly down to 
 the mouth of the gap, and formed in two lines across it. The 
 enemy s cavalry made a dash on ours, but on discovering our 
 infantry they withdrew. About three o clock, when we were 
 watching with breathless interest for the opening of a brisk fight, 
 they began to fall back by the road on which they came, having 
 accomplished their object of finding out if our forces were mov 
 ing towards Resaca. At night we could see fires burning within 
 their works, indicating evacuation. Next morning we found the 
 enemy gone, and the 2nd Missouri occupied Buzzard s Roost. 
 
 We started down the eastern side of the ridge and marched 
 rapidly towards Dalton. We were now able to judge exactly 
 what a task it would have been to take their works in front ; it 
 would have been a terrible misfortune even to attempt it. We 
 passed through the deserted camps which had been occupied all 
 winter, and soon arrived at Dalton. By some oversight no guards 
 had been appointed, and the troops were not sparing of anything 
 within their reach, particularly tobacco and peanuts, of which 
 an abundance were found. After leaving the town, Stanley s 
 Division in advance overhauled the enemy s rear guard, and our 
 progress was slow ; but with one halt about six o clock to make 
 coffee, we moved on until about nine o clock, when we bivouacked 
 by the roadside. 
 
 Next morning (Saturday, 14th) we were up at dawn, and 
 marching very slowly for about two miles, made junction with 
 the 23rd Corps, which had come by the other road. Very soon 
 Gen. Howard appeared, and a line of battle was formed facing east. 
 
 
ANOTHER OF GRANT S VICTIMS. 581 
 
 About half-past ten we heard the troops to our right cheering 
 lustily. Soon the 36th was called to "attention," and a despatch 
 was read from Washington, announcing that Grant had captured 
 a whole division of Lee s army and thirty pieces of artillery. 
 Three hearty cheers were given by each regiment in the brigade, 
 and the band struck up "Hail Columbia," "Yankee Doodle," 
 " Dixie," etc. 
 
 About half-past eleven o clock we moved forward by the left of 
 companies to the front, our regiment marching in the rear of 24th 
 Wisconsin. After passing through very heavy brush and timber 
 for about a mile, we come out upon open ground, and again 
 formed line of battle. While this was being done, the 23rd 
 Corps, on our right, moved forward to the attack in splendid style, 
 and in half an hour the artillery and musketry firing became very 
 heavy. The brigade was now ordered to throw up breastworks 
 on the knoll they occupied, which was rapidly done with logs, 
 stones and anything available. Soon they advanced again, while 
 a battery was opened by the enemy directly in front, and the 
 shells came whistling over us lively. As the Chaplain and Dr. 
 Pierce were following in the rear of the brigade, a shell exploded 
 close by them. After remaining in reserve until about half-past 
 three, the brigade moved forward in sight of the enemy, and 
 were soon engaged. 
 
 About half-past four the 36th and 15th Missouri charged up 
 from the creek, under whose banks they had been sheltered, 
 against a Rebel battery behind breastworks on a hill, with a heavy 
 infantry support. They moved across the open field under a ter 
 rible fire of shot, shell, canister and musketry, and succeeded in 
 reaching nearly to the very walls of the fort, when they were 
 obliged to fall back, some to the middle of the field and others 
 to the cover of the steep banks and fringe of trees lining the 
 
582 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 banks of the creek. Here each selected his own position, and 
 continued to fire with such success as to keep the cannoneers 
 from working their guns, thus allowing our artillery to play on 
 them. 
 
 In this advance the new regimental flag was nearly demol 
 ished by a shell passing through its centre. Quite a number 
 were killed and wounded, who, falling between the lines, could 
 not be removed until dark, when the firing ceased. A few of 
 the men while making the charge, had taken positions behind 
 trees, stumps and rocks, somewhat in advance of the regiment, 
 and so thoroughly was the field swept with Rebel shot that it was 
 dangerous for these to fall back when the rest retreated. Among 
 them was Newman Perkins, of Company G, who had been with 
 the regiment since its organization, but in consequence of some 
 defect in his foot which interfered with inarching, had been 
 detailed as teamster, and this was his first participation in a bat 
 tle or exposure under fire. He and a comrade remained for some 
 time close under the enemy s works, deliberately loading and 
 firing from behind a tree, Rebel bullets in the meantime striking 
 the ground and tree close to them. They finally broke for the 
 creek, running for dear life down the hill, followed by singing 
 bullets which riddled their clothing. A high rail-fence, the angles 
 thickly grown up with bushes and covered with vines, interposed 
 between them and the sheltering bank. This was cleared by 
 Perkins at a bound, while his comrade was detained by the vines 
 and brush, but both reached the creek in safety. About eight 
 o clock the lines became quiet, and there was opportunity to bring 
 off our wounded. Among them was Milt. Cornell, of Company 
 E, who was wounded in both legs. He was carried in a blanket 
 by Lounsbury and Dyer, two of his comrades, to the rear, and 
 then on a litter to the Ambulance Corps. 
 
HOOKER S ASSAULT. 583 
 
 The regiments were relieved at ten o clock, and moving back 
 into a piece of woods, lay down for the night. Among those 
 who fell should be mentioned Howard Whitney, Company F, 
 who was shot through the neck living but a few moments 
 after he was struck. Howard was a faithful soldier and a true 
 Christian, and before going into battle, wrote to his friends "how 
 glad he was that he had a Savior to take care of him in this time 
 of trouble." The general result of the day s fighting was in our 
 favor, and an attempt to turn the left flank of our corps was 
 checked by the timely coming up of Hooker. 
 
 Next morning, after replenishing their stomachs with coffee 
 and their cartridge boxes with ammunition, the regiment moved 
 to the front about one hundred yards to the left of where the 
 charge was made the day before and passing up a ravine, took 
 the place of the men in the breastworks ; holding them and fight 
 ing steadily for two hours ; the enemy s works being about fif 
 teen rods off. Our men were afterwards moved further to the 
 right, in support of Battery M, 2nd Illinois, where they remained 
 the rest of the day and night. About one o clock, Hooker made 
 an assault on the left with great vigor and success, driving the 
 enemy a mile back, and in the meantime the firing all along our 
 corps was very heavy. The enemy s guns in front of our divi 
 sion were kept silenced by the fire of our artillery. Fred Bier, 
 Company E, one of the color guard, had thirteen bullet holes 
 through his jacket. 
 
 In the meantime, everything possible was being done for our 
 wounded. As the hospitals were now established for corps and 
 divisions, and the ambulances used in the same way, it was more 
 difficult than formerly to keep our men together. Dr. Lytle was 
 put in charge of our Division Hospital, and thither many of our 
 men were carried. But others were missing, and so the Chap- 
 
584 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 lain went over to the 23rd Corps hospitals and found a number 
 had been carried there. The Sanitary Commission, represented 
 by Rev. J. H. Hazen, brought forward their supplies and dis 
 tributed them. The injuries of some of our men (among whom 
 were Lieut. Sands, Company C, and Cornell, Company E) requir 
 ing amputations, these operations were performed with marked 
 skill by Surgeon Pierce, whose work has stood the test of time. 
 
 The situation of the enemy was now becoming desperate. 
 Hooker s advance had closed in on the right. McPherson had 
 gained a position from which he could reach the railroad bridge 
 over the Oostanaula, and in a few hours retreat would be cut off. 
 Johnston therefore issued orders to withdraw ; but to cover his 
 movement, a general attack was made on our line about ten o clock, 
 when the firing was very heavy. But it soon ceased, and next 
 morning our pickets advanced on their works and found them 
 empty. There were abundant marks of the severity of our fire. 
 Our artillery especially had been very destructive; horses lay 
 dead in masses, and new made graves were thick. A detail was 
 made to bury our dead, and the troops pushed on in the pursuit. 
 The bridge across the river had been fired, but it was reached in 
 time to save it by carrying water in haversacks. As soon as the 
 crossing could be made safe, the 4th Corps passed over and lay 
 in line of battle, a little to the right, uutil about three o clock, 
 when they resumed march, and, though retarded by the enemy s 
 rear guard, arrived at Calhoun in the evening. It is worthy of 
 note that the railroad train with supplies came steaming down 
 to the river before we left. 
 
 CASUALTIES AT RESACA. 
 
 KILLED. 
 
 Corp. J. H. Whitney, Co. F; Chas. M. Lytle, Co. A; William Zcllar, 
 Co. E; D. P. Baldwin, Co. C; William McCrary, Co. K. 
 
WOUNDED AT RESACA. 585 
 
 WOUNDED. 
 COMPANY A. 
 
 William Smailles, left leg; William Burke, right leg; Edward Nute, 
 hand. 
 
 COMPANY B. 
 Henry Olcott, head ; R. Logan, arm ; Geo. Ritze, hand. 
 
 COMPANY C. 
 
 Lieut. J. Sands, foot ; R. J. Caldwell, arm; J. A. Porter, stunned- 
 Geo. W. Nichols, hand. 
 
 COMPANY E. 
 
 W. P. Boyd, leg; Milton E. Cornell, both legs; Uriah Foster, foot; 
 Fred Bier, foot. 
 
 COMPANY F. 
 
 Erasmus Anderson, arm ; Alfred Tomlin, arm. 
 
 COMPANY H. 
 
 M. W. Goold, leg. 
 
 COMPANY I. 
 
 J. S.Thomas, leg; Sergt. H. Hirse, arm. 
 
 COMPANY K. 
 
 George Laker, leg; J. H. Johnson, leg; 1st Sergt. J. M. Gordon, leg; 
 A. Mitchell, leg; Edward Reeder, leg. 
 
 F. J. Nichols, Co. A, Missing. 
 
CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 ADAIRSVILLE. 
 
 UR army resumed its march from Calhoun soon 
 after daylight, May 17th Newton s Division. 
 First Brigade, being in front ; the 36th deployed 
 as skirmishers. Col. Sherman had desired Col. 
 Miller to take command of the demi-brigade, 
 but this he declined to do. He was therefore 
 put in charge of the skirmish line. We had no sooner arrived 
 at the suburbs of the town and the regiment been deployed, than 
 a volley was fired by the enemy s pickets. Our men made a rush 
 for them, and several prisoners were captured. 
 
 On making a sharp turn in the road, a battery opened on us 
 with shell striking the head of the column and making quite a 
 flurry. The rear guard with the gun had thrown up breastworks, 
 which it was necessary to flank, and as soon as they were driven 
 out, they fell back to another line, thus fortifying and holding us 
 in check every half mile. The struggle was hard until near noon, 
 when the 88th relieved us, and the regiment, after cleaning their 
 guns and procuring ammunition, fell to the rear of the brigade, 
 which, however, was not a safe place, as a shell soon dropped 
 among us, but exploded without injury. 
 
ADVANCE TO ADAIRSVILLE. 587 
 
 Everything passed off smoothly until we were within a few 
 miles of Adairsville, when suddenly a battery opened on us from 
 the front, the shells falling near the regiment. One of them 
 struck a barn in front of us, and exploding, wounded Capt. E. 
 Cass, Company D, and a private in Company I. The brigade 
 was immediately formed in line of battle, and the 36th was sent 
 to re-inforce the skirmish line; the right wing to the right, and 
 the left to the left. Instead of simply a rear-guard, it was found 
 that there was in our front, a whole division of infantry, besides 
 cavalry and artillery. Indeed, from Johnston s own account, we 
 now find that his whole army was close by, and he had Cheat- 
 ham s Division detailed on purpose to check our advance until 
 nightfall. But though our men were suffering fearfully, it seemed 
 impossible for our leaders to believe that there was anything in 
 front of us except a cavalry rear-guard. Lieut, Turnbull, on the 
 Brigade Staff, gives a lively account of that memorable day : 
 
 Gen. 0. 0. Howard, our Corps Commander, was in constant 
 communication with the front, and told us his orders were to 
 reach Adairsville that day, and he wanted us to do it. Early in 
 the afternoon, our boys came in sight of a rebel wagon train and 
 were in high glee, pressing it closely, when all at once, on pas 
 sing through a belt of woods, they came upon a heavy line of 
 infantry, protected by good, substantial earthworks, with at least 
 one battery in prominent position. The enemy s line covered 
 more than our front and seemed strong at all points. They 
 opened a furious fire on our thin line, and our men had to lie 
 down and protect themselves as best they could ; many being 
 shot while lying down, on parts of the line that were most exposed. 
 This was particularly true of part of the 24th Wisconsin line. 
 After seeing and appreciating the situation, I reported to the 
 Brigade Commander, Col. F. T. Sherman, and asked leave to 
 
588 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 withdraw portions of the line that were most exposed to the 
 enemy s merciless fire, to a more sheltered position. Col. Sher 
 man said, " Let us see Gen. Howard." He was near and we 
 went over to him and reported. The General seemed nervous 
 and irritable, and showed plainly that he did not believe the 
 report. He replied by saying, " Your brigade must move for 
 ward. We are to go on to Adairsville to-night. If .you do not 
 do it, I will move my troops by the flank right through your line." 
 He then asked, " What force do you think you have in your 
 front ?" I replied, "At least a division of infantry and several 
 thousand cavalry." The General replied sharply, "It is not true. 
 I have information through my scouts every few minutes, and 
 you only have part of a brigade of mounted infantry in your 
 front. Your brigade must move forward." Stung to the quick 
 by this charge of cowardice on my part, I replied by saying that 
 if the General would accompany me or send a staff officer to the 
 front with me, I would very soon convince him that the report 
 was correct. He did not see proper to comply with the request, 
 and it was probably just as well, for I was then in the humor to 
 have taken him where it was hot. I went forward again and 
 inspected the lines, finding no change, except that the ranks of 
 our boys were being thinned, without their having any oppor 
 tunity to retaliate. Hurt by the thought that the Commanding 
 General would not give proper support, I again appealed to Col. 
 Sherman to be allowed to retire the line, in the more exposed 
 parts, but he thought that, under the circumstances, it would not 
 do. I then returned to the lines and longed for night to come 
 and stop the carnage. Just before sunset, some troops (I was 
 told they were Stanley s Division) moved up and took position 
 on our left, somewhat retired, and were not brought under fire. 
 On our right another force was brought up, and crossed the Goth- 
 
DISLODGING SHARP-SHOOTERS. 589 
 
 caloga, but one well-directed volley from the enemy forced them 
 back to a safe distance. Night soon set in and the firing ceased. 
 " Soon after nightfall, my Orderly, Isaac Carson, known as 
 u Ike," came to me and wanted some matches. What do you 
 want to do with them, Ike ? I said. We want to storm those 
 buildings from which the sharp-shooters have been firing at our 
 boys, said he. There had been great annoyance given our men 
 from those buildings. Some of our men under their fire had to 
 lie in one position all the afternoon, without moving scarcely a 
 muscle. I gave him the matches, and in a few minutes 1 heard 
 a whoop, a few shots, and in a very short time all that was wooden 
 about those old stone buildings was blazing nicely. 
 
 " During the afternoon nearly all the generals whose com 
 mands were near, assembled at the spot mentioned by Gen. Sher 
 man in his Memoirs, and were treated once in a while to a saucy 
 shot from a battery in front. Col. Frank Sherman was almost 
 frantic, and appealed for help for his brigade, but Gen. Thomas 
 and others told him that he could not have it. Some have found 
 fault with him for not handling his brigade better, but with one 
 exception I think he was not to blame. In my judgment, when 
 he found that it was impossible to move his command forward, 
 he should have handled it in such a way as to better protect the 
 lives of his men. But with Gen. Howard s determination to 
 move forward, I suppose he was i\ot to blame." 
 
 Those wounded in the early part of the day had been cared 
 for, but when Capt. Cass and others were struck, and the num 
 ber of wounded became numerous, it was necessary to take pos 
 session of a neighboring house. Long after night they contin 
 ued to stream in, until every part of the house and all around in 
 the yard was covered with wounded men one hundred and nine 
 teen in all, exclusive of those wounded during the day, and 
 
590 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 mostly from our brigade. When Capt. Cass was having his 
 wound dressed, it was amusing to witness his anger, not simply 
 at his being struck, but that he should be struck without even 
 the dignity of being hurt in battle. " They will ask me in what 
 battle I was wounded," said he, " and I shall have to say no 
 battle at all, but only a miserable skirmish." He may, how 
 ever, have the consolation of knowing now that Adairsville, by 
 reason of its sharp struggle has passed into history. 
 
 Among the wounded was James P. Barton, of Company C, a 
 new recruit. While lying down under fire, a minnie ball strik 
 ing a rail fence, split in two, and one-half struck him on the top 
 of his head, settling into the brain. All the night he was 
 insensible, and next morning when the Surgeon and Chaplain 
 went forward with the regiment, the latter taking his list of 
 names with him, Barton was sent back from hospital to hospital 
 until lie reached Nashville, no one being able to give his name or 
 regiment. On examining his wound the Surgeon found lying in 
 the brain the half ball, a piece of his hat and some hair. Soon 
 after removing these, his speech returned, and his friends heard 
 of him after a full month of anxious suspense. He is still living. 
 
 Next day we moved on, passing through Adairsville, and while 
 halting there Gen. Osterhaus came to see the regiment and made 
 an appropriate speech to them. They greeted him with three 
 cheers. Quite a large number of prisoners and deserters were 
 brought in. Next day we passed through Kingston, and on 
 turning to the left towards Cassville, about three o clock we came 
 in sight of the enemy in line, and a large wagon train. Our 
 corps was drawn up in line of battle, and the battery was opened 
 on the train. Hooker also came up on our left. Heavy firing 
 of artillery and skirmishing continued until night, when we went 
 into camp about eight o clock. 
 
CASUALTIES NEAR ADAIRSVILLE. 591 
 
 It now appears that Johnston was preparing to give battle at 
 Cassville, and had arranged his army accordingly, but the dis 
 satisfaction of some of his generals decided him to withdraw 
 beyond the Etowah. A battle then would have saved us from a 
 long campaign. 
 
 CASUALTIES NEAR ADAIRSVILLE. 
 
 KILLED. 
 
 John Aldrich, Sergt. Co. A ; Franklin Webber, Co. A ; Jas. Davis, 
 Co. C. 
 
 WOUNDED COMPANY A. 
 
 Corp. Romaine Kilburn, face and breast; H. Haynes, Louis Miller, A. 
 Shaw. 
 
 COMPANY B. 
 
 Joseph McGee, wrist. 
 
 COMPANY C. 
 
 James P. Barton, head; J. W. McCoy; S. N. Wilson, hand. 
 
 COMPANY D. 
 
 Capt. E. P. Cass, leg; Sergt. W. T. Maycroft, head; Allen Alvord, 
 hip; Eben Gates, jaw. 
 
 COMPANY F. 
 
 Lieut. L. P. Southworth, arm; E. H. Strait, side; C. K. Johnson, 
 arm; Canute Phillips, thigh; Geo. A. ("ummings, hip: Edwin Dopp, 
 leg; J. H. Roots, shoulder. 
 
 COMPANY H. 
 
 Sergt. Albert Wolfe, thigh; Chas. Irish, finger. 
 
 COMPANY I. 
 
 Sergt. Geo. W. Avery, heel; Corp. H. Lowry, side; Saml. Mall, foot. 
 
 COMPANY K. 
 Corp. R. H. Starr, leg. 
 
CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 DALLAS. 
 
 FTER nearly three weeks of hard campaigning, we 
 were glad to remain a few days to rest in Cassville, 
 the enemv having retreated bevond the Etowah. 
 The railroad bridge at Resaca was quickly rebuilt, 
 the trains came up with full rations, and we had the 
 telegraph wires right into camp. The time was 
 spent in bathing, washing, writing letters and sleeping. Gen. 
 Sherman issued an order encouraging the men to write home, 
 and ordering all chaplains and officers to aid them even to the 
 extent of supplying them with paper, if necessary. 
 
 On Sunday, May 22nd, we had service twice, and at night 
 the whole army received orders to march. Brig. Gen. Kimball 
 was assigned to the command of the brigade, and Col. Sherman 
 was detailed as Chief of Staff to Gen. Howard, probably as an 
 acknowledgment that he had been unjustly dealt with in the 
 Adairsville fight. We broke up camp about noon on Monday, 
 the 23rd, and went into town ; while all the rest of the troops 
 moved forward, we were detailed as rear guard to the corps train, 
 and lay around until eight o clock before we could start. The 
 route taken by the army was not in direct pursuit of the enemy, 
 
HOOKER AT PUMPKIN VINE CREEK. 593 
 
 but towards Dallas, for Sherman had decided not even to attempt 
 to take in front the stronghold at Allatoona. We had a tedious 
 march all night, arriving at Etowah bridge about half-past three 
 o clock, as the other troops were sounding reveille. After cross 
 ing the covered bridge we prepared breakfast, which we had 
 scarcely time to swallow before we were ordered to join the brig 
 ade. The trains filled the road and we found it very hard to 
 march by. The men were exhausted from loss of sleep, and 
 just as we got into camp at night a thunder-storm broke on us, 
 and we lay out all night in the rain, covered as well as possible 
 with our rubbers. 
 
 Next day we halted for coffee, which was just boiling, when 
 orders came to fall in and hasten forward. Hooker, who was in 
 the advance, had come upon the enemy at Pumpkin Vine Creek, 
 and needed support. On reaching the bridge, we saw that 
 attempts had been made to burn it. By this time, Hooker had 
 rallied his Corps and was driving the enemy. As we came up 
 in line of battle, a very severe engagement with both artillery 
 and infantry took place, and the enemy fell back to his chosen 
 position, at the junction of the roads near New Hope Church. 
 It was some time before we could reach our place, and night 
 came on and then a heavy rain storm, which made it impossible 
 to make camp in any order, and only by calling out to each other 
 could we find out where we were. This contusion came near 
 costing us dearly, and it was only by the wounding of one of 
 our best officers that our critical condition was found out. About 
 three o clock next morning, Lieuts. Turnbull and Jackson, of the 
 Brigade Staff, went out to inspect the lines. They heard men in 
 front throwing up breastworks, who greeted them with a volley, 
 which wounded both, but the attention of Gen. Howard was 
 thereby drawn to the condition of our lines, and intrenching 
 soon commenced. 
 
594 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Here the armies remained in close proximity and in deadly 
 conflict day and night. The regiment was under fire for ten days, 
 for though they were regularly relieved from the front line and 
 reserve, the third line and the rear were not out of range. Cor 
 poral James Royds, of Company G, an elderly man, much 
 respected by his comrades, and known among them by the title 
 of " Old Reliable," was sitting on a stone fence, smoking his 
 pipe and unsuspicious of danger, as the regiment was off duty 
 and resting in the rear of the works, when a rebel sharp-shooter, 
 perched in a tree, from which he commanded a view of our men, 
 shot him dead. As his body was laid away in the grave, tears 
 fell like rain from the eyes of his comrades, whose love for Father 
 Royds was that of children for a parent. One day Gen. Kim- 
 ball desiring information about the enemy s line, Geo. Scales, 
 Company K, volunteered to climb a tall pine tree, which he did 
 in the sight of the enemy and in the teeth of a murderous fire, 
 remaining there some time, and receiving two shots which slightly 
 wounded him. 
 
 Th* 1 rifle pits and skirmish lines of the two armies were very 
 close to each other, so that ordinary conversation could be dis 
 tinctly heard within the opposite entrenchments, whenever there 
 was a lull in the firing. Many were the tricks they played and 
 messages they sent to each other. Charges, too, were frequently 
 made on both sides, in which the assailants were generally unsuc 
 cessful, and had to pay dearly in killed and wounded. These 
 charges were preceded by much shouting and yelling by those 
 who made them, so that the party assailed learned to be on the 
 lookout, and rose from behind their works to deliver their fire. 
 This led to a ruse by the 2nd and 3rd Brigades. The bugler 
 blew the double-quick call, which was followed by a yell. The 
 enemy thinking a charge was to be made, rose up, and a volley 
 
ASSAULTS ON OtJR LINES. 595 
 
 both of musketry and artillery was poured into them, with terri 
 ble effect. 
 
 Our Division Hospital was located about three-fourths of a mile 
 to the rear, and thither our wounded were conveyed in ambu 
 lances. The first two days the casualties were very heavy ; after 
 that, the men being more protected by their works, the number 
 decreased rapidly. As occasion offered, religious services were 
 held, sometimes in the hospital street, sometimes in the tents. 
 On Sabbath evening the Chaplain preached a short discourse, 
 within the hearing of as many as possible. After service, we 
 were all impressed with the absolute silence on the lines, and felt 
 that something was about to happen. Precisely at ten o clock, a 
 furious assault was made on our part of the line, which, how 
 ever, was speedily repulsed, at which a loud cheer broke from 
 our boys. This had scarcely ceased, before a tremendous attack 
 was made on our extreme right, at Dallas. The firing continued 
 three hours, but the enemy was repulsed at every point. It 
 seemed a terrible thing to our wounded men to lie there and feel 
 that if our lines should give way, they would be at the mercy of 
 their enemies. Not only was our ground held, but Sherman was 
 gradually moving up his left, until he had covered the roads to 
 Ackworth and Allatoona, and was preparing to draw out and fall 
 back on the railroad, when Johnston himself fell back, and on 
 Sunday morning, June 5th, our men occupied his works. They 
 proved to be very strong, and impregnable to direct attack. The 
 dead between the lines had not been buried. The trees opposite 
 our brigade were very thick, and nearly all of them in a dying 
 state from the effects of shot and shell. 
 
 Arrangements were immediately made to move our hospitals 
 and trains over to Ackworth, our new base. We had a large 
 number of badly wounded men who were in poor condition for 
 
596 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 such a trip, but there was no help for it. The first night we 
 went about four miles. The next morning we were favored with 
 some exquisite music from one of the bands belonging to the 
 Regular Army, the effect of which on the wounded men was 
 most inspiring. We had a weary day s travel to Ackworth, and 
 did not arrive until long after dark. When the tents w r ere set 
 up and the wounded all cared for, it was near midnight, and 
 everybody worn out. 
 
 In the meantime the brigade had been detached from the corps, 
 and left to protect the flank and rear while the hospitals were 
 being moved over. They had built breastworks facing west, 
 when on the morning of the 7th the Rebel cavalry came up and 
 fired a few shots, but they fell back, losing some prisoners. The 
 Quartermaster Sergeant, J. Terrell, and Post boy, C. Kingman, 
 were just outside our pickets, bathing, when the cavalry came 
 up, and took them oft without giving them time to dress. Our 
 pickets fired on them, when one ran oft , leaving his prisoner. 
 The other turned and emptied his carbine at our pickets, when 
 his prisoner (Terrell) seized him by his beard and pulled him off" 
 his horse, giving him no time to draw his sabre, and shoved him 
 before him until he could give him up to the picket, then returned 
 and got his clothes. 
 
 As soon as the hospitals, etc., had been safely removed, the. 
 brigade joined the army at Ackworth, where they rested until 
 Friday, the 10th. We succeeded in obtaining a good many deli 
 cacies from the Christian Commission for our wounded, and were 
 able to make them very comfortable. Besides special services 
 for them, on Thursday night the Chaplain preached to the regi 
 ment. Here we parted with two men who were always great 
 favorites, Sergt. Ordway and Lieut. Turnbull. Ordway had 
 suffered amputation at the shoulder, and but for his reduced con- 
 
LIEUT. TURNBULL S NARRATIVE. 597 
 
 dition would have done well. Two days after we left he died 
 quietly, regretted by all his comrades. Lieut. Turnbull had the 
 pleasure of welcoming his father the very day we left, and soon 
 was able to return home and resume the duties of civil life. He 
 has written out an account of his experience at Dallas, a portion 
 of which we insert, which cannot fail to interest every surviving 
 member of the 36th. We regret that we have not room for it all. 
 LIEUT. TURNBULL S NARRATIVE. 
 
 On coming down from the mountain spur and nearing Pump 
 kin Vine Creek, we heard firing ahead, and were soon informed 
 that Hooker had met the enemy and was engaged in a sharp 
 fight. Our division was ordered forward to support him. This 
 was done with all speed, and on nearing the field, our brigade 
 formed in line of battle and moved forward in the direction of 
 the firing. Darkness set in and the firing ceased. As soon as 
 portions of Hooker s line were reached, the troops in our front 
 commenced moving back through our lines, and we were left in 
 the dark, in close proximity to the enemy. A detail for picket 
 was at once made, and I, as Brigade Inspector, charged with the 
 responsibility of placing them. We formed a line on our right, 
 which we took for a starting point, and commenced stationing the 
 men from right to left of our brigade front. The night was 
 intensely dark and the ground covered thickly with pine and 
 cedar. We had no guide, and could only get the location of the 
 enemy s line, by drawing their fire, or hearing them. We how 
 ever got our lines formed in close proximity to the enemy s lines, 
 about midnight, and I returned through the rain and darkness 
 to Brigade Headquarters (located under a large pine tree) and 
 reported to Gen. Kimball. 
 
 Soon after my return, Gen. Wagner, commander of one of the 
 brigades on our left, came over to our headquarters (and being 
 from Indiana, he was was well acquainted with Gen. Kimball) 
 and asked the General if he knew how he (Kimball) had his line 
 of battle formed. Kimball said he thought it was all right. 
 Wagner remarked that he had his formed; " but," said he, with 
 
598 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 an oath, " I believe I have rny men s backs to the enemy." This 
 will give you some idea of the confusion and uncertainty about 
 our lines at that time. I laid down in the rain and tried to sleep. 
 Meeting with only partial success, I was aroused about two o clock 
 A. M., by some horseman inquiring of the sentinel, if that was 
 Gen. Kimball s Headquarters. On arousing the General, who 
 was sleeping under a tree, the officer asked him if he was aware 
 that there was a line of our men in front of his brigade. He 
 said he was not, and called me. I at once responded that I had 
 very good evidence that such was not the fact. The officer (a 
 stranger to me) persisted that I was mistaken, and that there 
 certainly was a line of our men in front. Gen. Kimball at 
 this point, very properly said to me, u Go and see what is in 
 our front." I at once rose to start, and Lieut. Jackson, of 
 the 88th Illinois, Acting Provost Marshal, hearing the order, 
 said he would accompany me. We went to the right of our 
 picket line and asked one of the men standing on picket what 
 there was in our front. He replied, "Rebels." I said, "Are 
 you sure they are Rebels? Might they not be our own men ?" 
 His answer was, " No ; I can hear them throwing up works 
 quietly, and we will find out who is there as soon as it is day 
 light." Just at this juncture, a soldier came up from the rear, 
 who, after being halted by the picket, was asked what he wanted. 
 " I want to go to my regiment." was the reply. " Where is 
 your regiment?" " In front." He \vas asked what regiment, 
 brigade and division he belonged to, and gave correctly, as we 
 had been informed, the troops we had relieved. I said to him, 
 " My good fellow, you have lost your bearings. You have lain 
 down and had a sleep, and while sleeping, your regiment has 
 moved to the rear." Somewhat exasperated at being charged 
 with going to the rear to take a sleep, he swore that he " knew 
 what he was doing," and wanted to pass through to his regi 
 ment. I then said to the picket, k Let him pass through." As 
 soon as he had passed, Jackson said, " Turnbull, that man knows 
 what he is about. Let us go out with him. You know our 
 orders." I replied, "I know the orders of the General, and I 
 also know that those are Rebels in our front, but as you have 
 
LIEUT. TURNBULL S NARRATIVE. 599 
 
 asked to accompany me to the front, I can do no less than com 
 ply with the request." 
 
 We started, and with my usual caution, I requested Jackson 
 to keep a few paces to my left while we moved forward quietly, 
 keeping our eyes on our comrade in search of h s regiment. 
 Presently I saw him stop. I did so, and signalled Jackson. On 
 looking past our stranger I could see another man a few steps to 
 his right and front. I could also see some logs or works thrown 
 up, and imagined that I ought to be able to tell which side of 
 those works the man was standing on. The clouds had broken 
 up somewhat, and the moon shone faintly through the tree tops. 
 In my anxiety to trace the outline of the object, I unconsciously 
 stepped out from the shadow of the tree by which I had been 
 standing, and very soon saw the gleam of a musket as the soldier 
 
 was bringing it to an aim, followed quickly by a flash, and I 
 
 was wounded. My friend, who was in search of his regiment, 
 convinced that it was not there, made good time to the rear. 
 Jackson, brave and fearless to a fault, had, unnoticed by me, 
 slipped over by my side, and simultaneous with the report of 
 the Rebel musket, exclaimed, "My God, Turnbull, I am 
 wounded," and he, too, wisely started for the rear. Seeing at 
 once the situation in which I was placed, I unhooked my sabre 
 (a cavalry one) from the belt, which served me as a cane and 
 enabled me to stand, took a look at the person that had shot me, 
 grasped my revolver, and then concluded as I was between the 
 picket lines and would certainly draw the fire from our own men 
 as well as the foe, that " discretion was the better part of valor," 
 quietly returned it to the holster and hobbled back to our lines. 
 On reaching our picket line, Jackson was very much surprised to 
 find me wounded, as he had not suspected it, when he left me. 
 We soon reached Brigade Headquarters, and surprised Gen. 
 Kimball somewhat by assuring him that we could state positively 
 what was in our front, as we were both wounded. Receiving the 
 sympathies of the headquarters, from the cook to the General 
 commanding, and a hasty examination by Brigade Surgeon Pierce, 
 we were placed each on one horse, and accompanied by Gen. 
 
600 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Kimball, proceeded to Division Headquarters (Gen. Newton 
 commanding) and reported to him, through Geri. K., that our 
 lines were very much exposed, and as it was now near daylight, 
 would soon suffer severely from the enemy s fire. Gen. Newton 
 replied, that he would like to change our lines, but could not 
 assume the responsibility. Disheartened by the thought that 
 our brave comrades would soon be under a merciless fire, at great 
 disadvantage, and suffering from our wounds, we bade Gen. Kim- 
 ball good-bye and started to the rear, to find, if possible, a resting 
 place. We had not gone far when we met Gen. 0. 0. Howard, 
 our Corps Commander, who, recognizing us, asked us about the 
 condition of the lines in front. I told him heartily our experi 
 ence, the exposed condition of our men, and urged a withdrawal 
 of our lines to a more sheltered position. Putting spurs to his 
 horse, he moved hastily to the front and we resumed our journey 
 to the rear in search of a resting place. Re-crossing the classic 
 " Pumpkin Vine," and seeing a small frame building on our left, 
 minus weather boarding, near the road over which the troops 
 were passing, we turned our horses toward it, and on examination, 
 Jackson and I concluded to start a hospital. Assisted by com 
 rades, we dismounted, and were soon lying side by side on our 
 blankets under the roof of the frame. For the first time an 
 opportunity was given to carefully examine our wounds, disclos 
 ing the fact that we had received the contents of an old U. S. 
 Army cartridge, a round ball and three buckshots ; one buckshot 
 hitting a finger on Jackson s right hand, another penetrating 
 his groin, and the third passing almost through my left knee 
 the large ball passing betw r een us, clipping my clothing in front 
 and Jackson s in rear. 
 
 We now began to realize our situation. Our army was on the 
 march. There was no hospital established near us. We were 
 seriously wounded ; lying in the midst of a wilderness, and at 
 least twenty rniles from the nearest point on the railroad. Jack 
 son and I were both alarmed about his wound in the groin, and 
 I was satisfied, from the indications, that my limb would have 
 to be amputated. Would we live to rejoin our families and again 
 
TUKNBULL S NARRATIVE. 601 
 
 form part of the family circle ? was the question discussed by us. 
 We were both married men, and each was fully convinced that 
 he had the best wife and some of the prettiest children that could 
 be found in any place, north or south. But we were riot allowed 
 to become despondent. Kind comrades by hundreds, on passing, 
 stepped off the road to take a look at the wounded officers, and 
 although nearly all strangers to us, except that they " wore the 
 blue," they kept us supplied with the best fresh water they could 
 get, to appease our thirst and cool our wounds. They gave us 
 food, and rendered a thousand little kindnesses, that can neither 
 be described nor forgotten. One Commissary Sergeant, on dis 
 covering us, and knowing what officers were supposed to like, 
 walked back a mile and got us a canteen full of what was there 
 known as "Commissary," brought and left it with us depriving 
 himself, as I verily believe, of the only canteen he had to carry 
 water to slake his own thirst on that weary march. How can 
 persons forget such kindnesses ? Or how could they become 
 despondent when those grim-visaged and sunburned " soldier 
 boys " all had a word of encouragement. They could go into 
 battle and face death, but when they met a wounded comrade, 
 they were gentle as a woman, and could handle one with that 
 lightness of touch that at once indicates the skillful nurse. It 
 brings tears to my eyes yet, when I think of that day, and of 
 the thousand unpremeditated kind acts rendered by those com 
 rades. It did much to convince me that we often judge wrongly 
 those hardy, blunt specimens of our race, by looking on the 
 exterior, and give no opportunity to draw out those finer feel 
 ings that they all possess. 
 
 Passing a tolerably uncomfortable night, an ambulance was 
 sent for us in the morning, and we were taken to the Field Hos 
 pital, which had been established nearer the front than we had 
 been lying. We had our wounds carefully examined by skillful 
 surgeons, with the following result: Jackson got what they 
 called a " twenty days home," and I got my leg^ cut off. The 
 operation was skillfully performed by Dr. W. P. Pierce, assisted 
 by an able and sympathetic corps of surgeons, who by a judi- 
 
602 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 cious use of chloroform, rendered it entirely painless, not allow 
 ing me to wake up until the last pin was put in the bandage 
 enclosing my mutilated limb. I took a last look at what had 
 been my faithful support through life, and with feelings that can 
 not be described, was carried to the cot prepared for me. 
 
 CASUALTIES NEAR DALLAS. 
 
 KILLED. 
 
 John Green, Co. F ; William Thompson, Co. F ; Joseph Hook, James 
 Royde, Co. G-; Martin flighbrick, Co. I; Geo. W. Gates, Co. K. 
 
 WOUNDED - COMPANY A. 
 
 1st Sergt. W. Ordway, arm amputated, died at Ackworth, June 12th; 
 Charles A. Halsey, arm broken. 
 
 COMPANY B. 
 Elihu Mayhew, arm ; Fritz Wilkinson, thigh ; W. Edwards, head ; 
 
 Sidney Kendall, hand. 
 
 COMPANY c. 
 
 Lieut. J. M. Turnbull, leg amputated ; James W. Black, finger. 
 
 COMPANY D. 
 
 Seth Darling, head, died June 1st; William Duckworth, finger. 
 
 COMPANY E. 
 
 James Stokes, arm. 
 
 COMPANY F. 
 
 Sergt. B. Thompson, leg. 
 
 COMPANY G. 
 
 Robert Bradshaw, neck ; Ellis Hulsizer, breast and hand. 
 
 COMPANY I. 
 
 1st Sergt. James F. Ferris, leg. 
 
 COMPANY K. 
 
 Lieut. Chas. Hazelhurst, back ; Harrison W. Blank, knee ; Jas. Hazel- 
 hurst, forehead ; Seneca Birdsall, leg. 
 
CHAPTER XXXVII. 
 
 KENESAW. 
 
 EN. JOHNSTON, after abandoning his strong works 
 at New Hope Church, occupied a new line extend 
 ing over a series of hills, reaching from Kenesaw on 
 his right to Lost Mountain on his left, with Pine 
 Mountain as his advanced centre. McPherson 
 operated against Kenesaw, Schofield against Lost, and Thomas 
 against Pine Mountain. We started from Ackworth on Friday, 
 June 10th, but the advance coming upon the enemy s skirmish 
 ers at once, and we being in the rear, our progress was very slow, 
 only about five miles the first day. A heavy rain storm set in 
 which lasted until the following Tuesday, bringing all active 
 operations to a halt. But while gloom seemed to rest over 
 everything, we had one bright spot in the knowledge that 
 we were not dependent upon wagon trains for supplies, the 
 railroad being repaired, and the whistle of the locomotive heard 
 right up to the skirmish line. Big Shanty, in sight of Kene 
 saw, was now our base. On Tuesday, 14th, operations were 
 resumed, and that day Gen. Polk was killed by a shot from a 
 battery fired close by us. On Wednesday, knapsacks were 
 thrown off and preparations made for a charge, but it was found 
 unnecessary. The next day was a busy one entrenching in two 
 
604 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 positions under fire, and Gen. Sherman came down and lying 
 behind the low breastworks, examined the ground and talked 
 with the men. Luther W. Gates, Company D, was wounded in 
 the shoulder. A work was thrown up for twelve guns which 
 were mounted during the night, but the position being now 
 untenable, Johnston gave up his centre and fell behind Mud 
 Creek. The next day was spent in finding his position, and at 
 night his skirmishers were driven across the creek. Twice dur 
 ing the night he attempted to drive off our skirmishers, but was 
 repulsed. Just as it became light we surprised him by a sud 
 den attack, securing a portion of his main line, and capturing 
 quite a number of prisoners. This was done in a drenching 
 rain-storm, and as we waited in reserve at the top of a hill, the 
 poor fellows captured presented a most woe-begone appearance 
 while filing past us. Immediately the whole division was ordered 
 forward to hold the ground thus gained, and having crossed Mud 
 Creek (it was worthy of its name), went into position on the 
 second line. The enemy opened with both artillery and mus 
 ketry, but after a while one of our batteries came up and kept 
 theirs tolerably quiet. Five of our men were wounded : L. P. 
 Boyd, Company D, both thighs; M. .C. Skinner, Company E, 
 foot struck by a round shot which went through Silas Dyer s 
 haversack foot afterward amputated ; William Plctch, Com 
 pany F, side; Chris. Thake, Company I, contusion, and John 
 Shields, slight. 
 
 This day s operations proved so decisive, that the enemy evac 
 uated during the night, and fell back to his third and strongest 
 position, on Kenesaw, by which he was directly in front of Mari 
 etta, and well protected, both on his flanks and his centre, and 
 his line being shorter, his troops were more concentrated. Our 
 division was thrown forward at once ; the 36th with orders to 
 
SERGEANT KELLEY S ADVENTURE. 605 
 
 join on the right of Baird s Division. The skirmishers went 
 forward, but in consequence of the roughness of the country, it 
 was near noon before the rest of the regiment could find them. 
 The position to which they were assigned was in front of Kenesaw. 
 The ground over which they had to skirmish was so covered with 
 underbrush, especially where it sloped down to the creek in the 
 hollow, that no line could be kept, and our men could not be distin 
 guished from the enemy at even a short distance. The day there 
 fore became fruitful of surprises and strange adventures on both 
 sides. We captured twenty-five prisoners, including four officers ; 
 some under very peculiar circumstances. One captain and a squad 
 were in the act of relieving their guards, when, mistaking our 
 men for theirs, they were brought in. 
 
 Sergeant Kelley, commanding Company A, saw, as he made 
 his way through the thick brush, three men in an open space, 
 whom he supposed to be ours, and advanced towards them, but 
 becoming suspicious, he inquired their regiment. u 30th Georgia," 
 was the reply. As retreat was impossible, he boldly demanded 
 their surrender, seizing the largest one by the collar. Two of 
 them were disposed to yield, but the third shot at Kelley, who 
 knocked the gun to one side, so that the charge passed through 
 his clothes, without injuring him. It was now his turn to sur 
 render, which he did, and requested to be taken to the rear. But 
 the Rebel who had just fired, proceeded to load again, with the 
 avowed intention of shooting him. Seeing it was death any 
 way, Kelley broke for our lines the shot fired after him graz 
 ing his head and stunning him for an instant ; but he quickly 
 rejoined his company, who, seeing him fall, had supposed him 
 dead. 
 
 Company C was commanded that day by Sergt. Wilson, with 
 orders to line on Company I. In charging through the brush, 
 
606 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 however, they got considerably in the advance, and Wilson 
 becoming anxious about his connections, gave the order, " Lie 
 down." In passing down the line, Jacob Moss was shot directly 
 from the right, and Wilson supposing it to come from some care 
 less fellow in Company I, ran in that direction, when he caught 
 sight of five Rebels, standing at a tree a few feet off, loading 
 and firing. They called, " surrender," but having always felt a 
 greater fear of being taken prisoner than of being killed, after 
 pausing an instant and seeing them raise their muskets, he 
 made a turn and escaped as if shot from a twelve-pounder, 
 the bullets clipping the brush about him. As he came near 
 his men, he ordered, " Company C retreat," and going back 
 about thirty rods, found Company I still in its place. This, 
 he thinks, was the worst scare he ever had, and the boys said 
 that his eyes were ag big as saucers for an hour afterward. 
 
 As Company D advanced through the thick brush, an order 
 was heard, "Right and left forward," which proved to be from 
 the Rebel side ; but the lines being so near together, both obeyed, 
 and were brought face to face only their numbers were three to 
 one of ours. Picking their men, they fired arid then fell back a little 
 way. ThorThorson confronted an officer and four men. They called 
 on him to surrender. " Not with a loaded gun," said he, and fired 
 at the officer. Noticing as he ran that the men aimed low, he 
 leaped up as they fired, escaping all the bullets but one, which 
 wounded him in the thigh, but not so as to hinder his getting away. 
 The officer was afterward found dead. John C. Taylor was 
 wounded in the shoulder, while attempting to carry Gaylord 
 behind a tree. When we fell back, the Rebs did not come out 
 of the brush, and soon our men rallied and drove them across the 
 creek part over a bridge and the rest through the mud and 
 water. On the other side, Joe Whitman was in hot pursuit 
 
HIS SWEETHEART S SWORD. 607 
 
 of a Reb, who drew him on to re-inforcements. Now it was Joe s 
 turn to run back, and as he jumped into the muddy stream, his 
 U. S. plate was struck by a bullet, which doubled him up, taking 
 away his breath. After lying in the mud awhile, his breath 
 came again, and he scrambled out on the other side. He after 
 wards took pride in showing the black and blue spot and the 
 battered plate, which became his life preserver. 
 
 One Rebel captain surrendered to Capt. Biddulph, of Com 
 pany K, but very reluctantly gave up his sword, and tried to 
 enter into a stipulation that it should be restored to him on his 
 being exchanged ; giving as the reason, that he would not like 
 to lose it, as it was a present from his Southern sweetheart. It 
 is very much to be feared that neither he or she ever saw that 
 sword again. Sergt. Hogue, of the same Company, brought two 
 stalwart Georgians in prisoners, who had called on him to sur 
 render. Other companies also had strange occurrences ; making 
 both our losses and our gains that day something to be long 
 remembered. 
 
 Jacob Moss only lived till night. He was a good soldier of 
 Jesus Christ, as well as of his country, and in his last hours spoke 
 triumphantly of his hopes of heaven and exhorted his comrades 
 to meet him there making a profound impression. 
 
 The casualties of the day were : 
 
 KILLED. 
 
 H. Ribby, Co. B; Sam. Saltmarsh, Co. G. 
 
 WOUNDED. 
 
 Co. A, Azotus White, thigh ; Romaine Kilburn, thigh. Co. B, H. B. 
 Latham, hand. Co. C, W. H. Smith, shoulder; Jacob Moss, body. 
 Co. D, Sergt. J. C. Taylor, shoulder; Alfred Gaylord, thigh, died; 
 Thor. Thorson, thigh; Chas. H. Bissell, back. Co. E, Geo. McHugh, leg. 
 Co. F, M. V. Tremain, chin and body. Co. H, John Nemire, leg. Co. 
 I, Mich. Kirtiser. Co. K, S. Parsons, wrist; C. A. Tucker, arm. 
 
 MISSING. 
 
 Charles Travis, Co. B; J. M. Leach, Co. D; James Hatch, Co. E: B. 
 Streeter, Warren Folk, Co. G ; Wilson Lawson, Co. II ; Mich. Clig- 
 gitt, Co. I. 
 
608 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 The next day the regiment was in reserve and put up tents. 
 But picket firing was very heavy, and in the afternoon forty 
 pieces of artillery opened, with marked effect. All through the 
 day, and for several days that week, discharges of artillery were 
 almost invariably followed by heavy showers. Just before night, 
 the Rebel artillery answered, and some shells came over the regi 
 ment, but at dusk we were relieved by the 14th Corps, and went 
 back two miles on to a rocky ledge to sleep. Next morning, and 
 all through the week, our troops were moving to the right, to 
 outflank Kenesaw. On Tuesday afternoon our division took 
 possession of an advanced knoll, adjoining Hooker, which received 
 special commendation from Gen. Thomas. On Wednesday we 
 made demonstrations to help Gen. Hooker, who was heavily 
 attacked by massed forces, but drove them back, with slaughter. 
 These operations on the right continued with slight variations all 
 the week. On the 22nd, W. L. Campbell, Company B, was 
 wounded and on the 23rd, Adelbert Shaw, Company A, and J. 
 C. Ford, Company H. 
 
 It was now decided to break through the enemy s line at a 
 favorable point in McPherson s and Thomas fronts. Davis and 
 Newton s Divisions were selected for the assaulting column. 
 Every preparation was quietly made to render the assault itself suc 
 cessful, and to insure its vigorous support and following up ; as, 
 successful with such a river as the Chattahoochee in Johnston s 
 rear, it would insure the destruction of his army. A hill in the 
 rear of Thomas centre was cleared, and to it all the telegraph 
 lines were laid. Troops were brought up, and corps to the right 
 and left were held ready for instant support. All day Sunday, the 
 26th, things were very quiet; a few dropping shots being all that 
 broke the stillness of the day. But it was whispered about that 
 there would be hot work to-morrow. The hospitals were cleared 
 out and accommodations extended. 
 
COL. MILLER WOUNDED. 609 
 
 Next morning the troops were massed for a charge, the 36th 
 being in the skirmish line. For about fifteen minutes all the 
 guns within reach concentrated their fire on the point of attack, 
 and precisely at nine o clock the column moved forward. The 
 skirmish line rushed on and succeeded in effecting a lodgment 
 within a few rods of the Rebel works, where they sheltered them 
 selves and looked for the main column to follow. But they were 
 not able to break through the terrible fire, and after our men had 
 remained about half an hour in this position, they were ordered 
 to retire. By about eleven o clock, the attack here, as also with 
 McPherson and Schofield, was over, and except some small gains 
 in position, was substantially a failure. The loss was terrible 
 over fifteen hundred killed, wounded arid missing in our corps, 
 including some of our best officers and men. It was a sad day 
 for the 36th. Very soon after the assault commenced, the ambu 
 lances began to pour their streams into the hospitals. Among 
 the first to arrive, was our honored Colonel, wounded through 
 the right shoulder and shoulder-blade. 
 
 One after another was brought in, until every company was 
 represented, and the 36th, which had already suffered so much, 
 seemed now fast melting away. One case deserves special atten 
 tion. Hatch, of Company E, the youngest and the tallest of 
 the one hundred who first joined the company, had a brother 
 Henry, only fifteen years old, who was extremely anxious to go 
 with the 30th. At Camp Hammond, the flag in some way became 
 entangled, and he climbed the pole in sight of all, freeing the 
 flag, and the boys made up a collection for him. After the 36th 
 left, he ran away and enlisted in the 57th Illinois; was at Shiloh 
 and most of the battles up to Resaca, when he became footsore, 
 and dropping back, fell in with the 127th, in which he was 
 acquainted ; fought with them, and when near Dallas, passing 
 
610 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 near the 36th, he joined his old friends once more, remained with 
 them until the charge at Kenesaw, in which he was mortally 
 wounded, dying the same day. Both the Colonel and his cap 
 tain promised to have him transferred to the 36th, but his death, 
 and also the Colonel s, so soon after his coming, prevented it. 
 He is reported on his own company roll as a deserter. Although 
 his being with the 36th was an irregularity, yet his devotion 
 to his country, as shown in his fidelity in many battles, is worthy 
 of all honor, and it is but just that he should find honorable 
 mention in our history. 
 
 Later in the day, a truce was agreed upon in our part of the 
 lines ; giving opportunity for both sides to recover their dead 
 and wounded, and also to extinguish a fire which had broken out 
 the boys mingling freely. But next day, to prepare for further 
 movements, the wounded were ordered to be removed at once, 
 and soon a long ambulance train started for Big Shanty. At 
 the general desire of the regiment, the Chaplain went to take 
 charge of Col. Miller, attending to him while waiting at the 
 depot ; transferring him the day after to the hospital train, and 
 caring for him day and night until they reached Chattanooga. 
 There were strong hopes that with proper attention, his vigorous 
 and youthful constitution might enable him to recover and live 
 a long life. At Chattanooga he was taken in charge by the San 
 itary Committee, as the Chaplain could not secure permission to 
 go further. His wound seemed to be doing well, and he felt 
 quite comfortable and hopeful. But the subsequent delay in the 
 train arriving at Nashville, and the heat of the weather, brought 
 him into the city much reduced; with his symptoms much less 
 hopeful, and as we heard from time to time, we began to fear 
 that we should never see his face again. 
 
CASUALTIES AT KENESAW. 611 
 
 CASUALTIES JUNE 2TTH. 
 
 KILLED. 
 
 J. W. Hinsdale, Company D; Seneca Burdsall, Company K. 
 
 WOUNDED. 
 
 Col. Silas Miller, right arm and shoulder; Sergt. Maj. L. P. Ticknor, 
 slight. 
 
 COMPANY A. 
 
 Henry Howe, hand; L. W. Mann, leg; M. Seisloff, arm; M. S. Town- 
 send, side. 
 
 COMPANY B. 
 
 Geo. Berger, thigh; K. Logan, mouth; Geo. H. Burns, leg; Elihu 
 May hew, slight. 
 
 COMPANY c. 
 
 Geo. Mercer, jaw; J. Snodgrass, leg; Harlan E. King, thigh; James 
 Wilson, arm. 
 
 COMPANY D. 
 
 Wm. Duckworth, thigh; Jos. Whitham, abdomen; L. K. Bannister, 
 body, died same day; Lieut. I. N. Beebe, slight. 
 
 COMPANY E. 
 
 Daniel Darnell, hand; Lieut. Hemingway, slight; E. S. Case, slight. 
 
 COMPANY F. 
 
 Geo. Neff, thigh ; J. M. Johnson, foot ; Oscar P. Hobbs, finger ; Edwin 
 Dopp, thigh ; Capt. Geo. Mossman, arm. 
 
 COMPANY G. 
 
 Chas. Landon, hip; Wm. Carnes, shoulder; D. Kennedy, M. G. Yar- 
 nell, slight. 
 
 COMPANY II. 
 
 Thos. Finlayson, slight. 
 
 COMPANY I. 
 
 Dwight Cowan, bruise. 
 
 COMPANY K. 
 
 J. C. Hogue, thigh; H. J. Sipe, body died same day; J. H. Hogue, 
 hand; Wm. C. Hall, wrist; II. Bogardis, Patrick O Connor, slight. 
 
CHAPTER XXXVIII 
 
 ATLANTA. 
 
 FTER the failure in the assault of the 27th of June, 
 there was nothing left but to resume the flanking 
 process, which was done by a further extension of 
 our right, threatening Johnston s rear, and on Sun 
 day morning, July 3rd, his works were evacuated 
 and our men occupied them. Our corps inarched 
 directly through Marietta, which was said to be a beautiful and 
 attractive place, with many public buildings and improvements. 
 Heavy cannonading and skirmishing continued for several days, 
 as Johnston was retreating across the river, and many prisoners 
 were taken. Our division, being in the rear, was not called upon 
 to participate. They went into camp on the Chattahoochee, not 
 far from Virginia Station, on the 5th, and from a hill near by 
 could see Atlanta the goal of all our fighting and marching. 
 Next day they made a camp one and a-half miles up the river, 
 near a saw mill, the dam of which proved a fine place for bath 
 ing and washing. On the 9th, the division marched, leaving 
 the camp standing, for Roswell, twenty miles up the river, where 
 our cavalry had already secured a crossing. The heat was so 
 overpowering that a number were sun-struck and many fell out. 
 
THE ADVANCE ON ATLANTA. 613 
 
 After dark they crossed the river, relieving the cavalry, and 
 next day built works to hold the position. On the llth they 
 were relieved by the 16th Corps, for whom the crossing had been 
 secured, and coming down the river two miles, guarded a bridge, 
 returning to camp at Power s Ferry on the 12th. Next day 
 we crossed the river on canvas pontoons, went about two miles 
 on the other side and built breastworks. With the exception of 
 one day s fatigue duty, building a trestle bridge, there was noth 
 ing of note, except the picking and eating of blackberries, until 
 Sunday, when our regiment and the 74th went out on a recon- 
 noissance until they connected with the 23rd Corps. This day we 
 had two religious services in the regiment and one at the hospital. 
 
 On Monday, the 18th, the whole army commenced the 
 advance on Atlanta. We now learned that the day before, John 
 ston had been relieved of his command, and Hood had been 
 appointed, with the express understanding that he should strike 
 a " manly blow for Atlanta." We began to look for stirring 
 times, and Sherman gave special orders to his army commanders 
 to be ready always for battle. We had some brisk skirmishing 
 as we advanced, but our artillery did good service sending a 
 cannon ball clear through a tree under which the enemy s bat 
 tery had been standing. We camped at Buckhead, remaining 
 there until next night about six o clock, when Wood s Division 
 having built a bridge and effected a crossing of Peach Tree 
 Creek, we went forward, and about ten o clock laid down on 
 the south side of the creek. 
 
 Johnston, in relinquishing his command, had given to Hood 
 two plans which he had for attacking us, and which Hood at 
 once adopted. One was to assault us after crossing Peach Tree 
 Creek, by which we might be thrown into confusion, with the 
 Chattahoochee in our rear. The other was to occupy the works 
 
614 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 of Atlanta by State troops, and sally out with the army against 
 the most exposed of our wings as we closed in about the city. 
 
 Hood s tactics for the Peach Tree Creek attack were very 
 shrewd. Our division, after waiting for Hooker to connect on 
 the right, advanced against stout opposition until they reached 
 an open field, over which they charged, driving the enemy out 
 of the rifle pits, and immediately proceeded, though without 
 special orders, to throw up barricades, the left resting on the 
 Buckhead road. On sending forward skirmishers, they found 
 nothing in front, and deserters declared that there was no enemy 
 for two miles. One division of Hooker s had not come forward, 
 so that there was an opening in the line on our right presenting a 
 strong temptation to the enemy to flank us, but opposite to it, 
 only retired and out of sight, lay Ward s Division, ready to 
 advance. At three o clock, when the barricades were scarcely 
 completed, the enemy, without skirmishers and without warning, 
 broke upon us in masses. A division first attacked the left flank ; 
 another came up in front, and a "third advanced to the open space 
 on our right, with the evident determination to break through and 
 cut us off from retreat. While the two brigades in the front 
 line, sheltered by their works, were taking care of the front, 
 Bradley s Brigade was thrown to the left protecting that flank, 
 and some troops were sent to help the right, until Ward s Divi 
 sion at last coming in made that flank perfectly safe. The attack 
 was successfully repelled. But by and by it was renewed with 
 the utmost impetuosity ; again commencing on the left of our 
 division and working to the right ; but Geri. Thomas, being there 
 in person, sent for Ward s Artillery, directed its posting and 
 firing himself, until about six o clock, when Hood drew off his 
 forces, thoroughly worsted. He had certainly struck a " manly 
 blow " for Atlanta, but it was a blow which did him many times 
 
A FAIR FRONT FIGHT. 615 
 
 more harm than us. This was the first time that the 36th had 
 been permitted to do justice to the masses of the enemy in front, 
 while at the same time, both their flanks were protected, and the 
 opportunity was improved to the utmost. Three hundred rebels 
 were buried from the front of our division, alone. We had but 
 one man wounded, and that not severely, Sergt. Wormley, Com 
 pany I. When all was over, it seemed more like a dream than a 
 reality, and made not a few declare that our success was due to 
 the good providence of God watching over and protecting us. 
 
 During the fight, Scales, Company K, had a Spencer rifle, 
 and finding a sheltered nook in advance of our line, took pos 
 session and went to work with a will. Soon a squad of Rebels 
 came up and desired to surrender to him. " Go to the rear," 
 replied Scales, " and get out of my way. I have no time to 
 take prisoners." So excited did the men become, that they con 
 tinued to fire long after the last gray coat had disappeared. 
 
 On the 21st, we remained in position behind the works, many 
 of the men taking the opportunity to look over the field and see 
 the piles of dead bodies left by the enemy. On the 22nd, they 
 having disappeared, we resumed our march slowly approaching 
 Atlanta. After going a little over a mile, as we came in line with 
 one of the principal works, the guns opened on us with shell, 
 which fell lively all through the middle of the day ; our skir 
 mishers in the meantime advancing as close as possible. While 
 this was going on, Hood had massed his troops on his extreme 
 right, to carry out the second part of Johnston s plan, by attack 
 ing McPherson. This was done with great vigor, and at first 
 with bad effect upon us, especially in the loss of McPherson 
 himself; but as the day wore on and our forces could be rallied, 
 the defeat of the enemy was complete, with a fearful loss to him 
 of not far from ten thousand ; over three thousand of his dead 
 were buried. 
 
616 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 In securing our line near Atlanta, that day, we had one man, 
 Thomas Pollock, wounded in the wrist. The next day, before 
 the regiment was relieved from picket, we had one man, Charles 
 Hinzee, Company B, killed; Benj. Allen, Company II, wounded 
 and missing, and James M. Smith missing. 
 
 After a few days, the Army of the Tennessee marched past, 
 on their way to the extreme right ; Gen. Howard, our Corps 
 Commander, being assigned to McPherson s place. This gave 
 us Stanley for the 4th Corps, and some other changes were made. 
 The lines were advanced a little almost every day, sometimes with 
 most bloody battles. Hood made an attack on Howard as he 
 went into his new position, but was repulsed with terrible slaugh 
 ter. Indeed, a few more " manly blows would have left Hood 
 but a fragment of Johnston s force. By and by Schofield was 
 brought over to the right flank, and we were ordered to take his 
 position on the extreme left on the very ground fought over on 
 the 22nd. Here we were within sight of the city, and skirmish 
 ers reached almost to the suburbs. 
 
 On the day that we made this change, we received definite 
 information that Col. Miller was dead. We had heard such dis 
 couraging reports for some time, that we were somewhat pre 
 pared for the final result ; but the whole regiment was filled with 
 unaffected sorrow. The warm weather had been exceedingly 
 unfavorable for wounded men, and gangrene in its most persistent 
 form set in, and though he had the most assiduous attention 
 from his friends and physicians, he expired July 27th, just one 
 month from the day on which he was wounded. Although but 
 twenty-two years of age at the outbreak of the war, he sprang 
 to arms at the first call for troops ; entered the service as a pri 
 vate in Company C, 7th Illinois, and was among the first to 
 arrive at Cairo. He was chosen 2nd lieutenant, but became 1st 
 
SKETCH OF COL. MILLER. 617 
 
 Lieutenant before the three months expired. He aided much in 
 raising the Fox River Regiment, and became Captain of Company 
 B ; was commissioned Major in November, 1862. arid Colonel in 
 March, 1863. He was with the regiment in all its expeditions ; 
 was present at the battles of Pea Ridge, Perryville, Stone River, 
 Chickamauga, Mission Ridge, Resaca, Adairsville, Dallas and 
 Kenesaw, and except at Pea Ridge, and a portion of the time at 
 Stone River and Mission Ridge when he led a part of the bri 
 gade was in command of the regiment, which always gladly fol 
 lowed his lead. From the first, he gave himself to a careful study 
 of military tactics, and was specially skillful in the command of 
 skirmishers. His ability in this direction, and his gallantry in 
 battle, frequently called out the special commendation of his 
 superior officers. At Stone River he was wounded and captured, 
 remaining nearly five months in prison. A day or two spent at 
 home, on his way to rejoin his regiment, constituted the only 
 respite he had while in the service. His patriotism was singu 
 larly pure and unselfish. Personal ambition and love of fame 
 were lost in the higher principles of duty. On the 19th of June, 
 being on the skirmish line and unsupported, he ordered the men 
 who were taking the prisoners to the rear, to deliver them to the 
 first staff officer they could find, and immediately return. They 
 were delivered to Baird s Division, 14th Corps, whose right he 
 joined. A general to whom the circumstance was mentioned, 
 remonstrated with him, saying, " Baird s Division will get all the 
 glory." " Glory, General," said our gallant Colonel, u is a mighty 
 cheap thing with me, when I need men." His heart was with his 
 regiment to the last. He was often moved to tears while speak 
 ing of the bravery of his men, and. the sufferings they endured 
 so nobly, especially at Stone River and Chickamauga. When 
 
 brought in wounded and laid upon the operating table for surgi- 
 40 
 
618 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 cal examination, his first inquiry was after his men. Upon 
 the Chaplain mentioning the number brought in, together with a 
 few of their names, he gave way to his feelings, and as the tears 
 rolled down his cheeks, he said : "I have seen hundreds of those 
 poor boys struck down, and I think it is my turn now." Dur 
 ing his sickness, referring to this occasion, he said to his brother, 
 " I suppose those surgeons thought me such a baby, that I cried 
 from the pain of the operation. But," said he, " I didn t care 
 for that. I was thinking of the old 36th. I thought of her as 
 she was when we left home over a thousand strong. I thought 
 of her now, with scarcely enough men for a full company. I 
 thought of the trials and privations which those dear boys had 
 endured and must still endure, and it seemed to me they were 
 doomed to annihilation. It was for them I cried." Their inter 
 ests were constantly in his mind, and when delirious, he imagined 
 himself at their head and leading them in battle. Few men of 
 his years have had entrusted them to such weighty responsibilities ; 
 few men of twice his years have borne such responsibilities so 
 nobly and so well. Among the many heroic spirits sacrificed for 
 the salvation of our country, a front place in the ranks must be 
 given to Col. Silas Miller. 
 
 As soon as the regiment was settled in its new position, a meet 
 ing of the officers was held, at which it was decided to send a let 
 ter of condolence to the bereaved family, and ask permission to 
 erect a regimental monument over his grave, for which a sub 
 scription was at once commenced. In a few days a meeting 
 of the regiment was held, at which the letter, prepared by the 
 Chaplain, was read, and the plan proposed was explained. A 
 most liberal response was at once given. Over $800 were sub 
 scribed in two days, and the amount was subsequently swelled to 
 about $1,100. Mr. W. H. Miller, in behalf of the family, soon 
 
SIEGE OF ATLANTA. 619 
 
 replied, in a most touching and appropriate letter, accepting the 
 offer of the regiment, and proposing to add the contributions of 
 the different members of the family. Lieut. Col. Olson, Maj. 
 Sherman and Chaplain Haigh were appointed the Regimental 
 Committee, and the beautiful monument in Spring Lake Ceme 
 tery, Aurora, attests the affection which was borne for the gallant 
 young man by his family and regiment. 
 
 During the three weeks we remained on the left, Sherman was 
 engaged in extending his right further and further to the south, 
 and sending out cavalry expeditions to cut the roads. In the 
 meantime, the troops in front made various demonstrations. 
 Sometimes the lines were tolerably quiet ; sometimes the roar of 
 artillery continued day and night, with the most terrible effect 
 on the buildings of the city. On the 12th of August, a recon- 
 noissance was made in our front, in which one man, Peter 
 Little, Company A, was wounded. On the 13th, just at night, 
 a heavy shelling of our position commenced, the shells going 
 through some of our quarters and exploding all around ; but as 
 the rifle pits were deep and well made, no one was hurt. On 
 Wednesday, the 17th, a demonstration was made by marching 
 around for about five miles, to draw off attention from something 
 else. But Sherman at last decided to raise the siege and move 
 upon the communications. An order to this effect fixed the 18th 
 as the day. This was afterward changed to the 25th. 
 
 Before this move was made, Gen. Kimball was placed in com 
 mand of the 1st Division, and Col. Opdyke, a brave and gallant 
 officer, was assigned to our brigade. His regiment, the 125th 
 Ohio, came with him. On the 24th, Lieut. Col. Olson, who had 
 been absent through sickness since June, returned and resumed 
 command. Since the charge on the Kenesaw. the regiment had 
 
620 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 been well led by Captain J. B. McNeal, Company C, who now 
 became acting Major. 
 
 Everything being carefully prepared before hand, as soon as 
 it was dusk on Thursday, August 25th, we broke up camp and 
 marched in silence to the rear of the 20th Corps, covering their 
 retreat to the river, and then about ten o clock A. M. we marched 
 beyond the railroad and lay down until daylight. The cavalry 
 dismounted had taken our place in the works, so that the enemy 
 did not suspect our absence. One man, Michael Manning, of 
 Company I, fell out that night and was captured. In the morn 
 ing we had to build breastworks hastily, and a few shells were 
 thrown at us from the works. The march was soon resumed, 
 and proved to be very exhausting as the heat was most intense. 
 One man in the 88th sank down by the road side and died in a 
 few minutes. A heavy rain came up, flooding the roads, and we 
 went into camp near Utoy Creek, having marched eighteen miles 
 since the previous night. Next day we were rear guard to the train, 
 and did not march until two o clock. It was long after dark when 
 we made camp in thick woods, and immediately threw up breast 
 works. On Sunday we lay still until two o clock, the 14th Corps 
 marching past us, the Army of the Tennessee swinging further 
 to our right, and Schofield alone remaining in his original posi 
 tion. While waiting, we had service by the roadside, and 
 did not reach camp until long after dark, and then could 
 only make line in the thick woods by lighting candles. 
 We were now near Red Oak, where we remained until Tuesday, 
 other troops in the meantime spending the day in destroying the 
 Montgomery railroad. On the 30th, we moved forward, skir 
 mishing heavily, the 3(>th in reserve, and next day connected 
 with the 23rd Corps below Rough and Ready. On Thursday, 
 September 1st, we started down the railroad, burning the ties 
 
EVACUATION OF ATLANTA. 621 
 
 and twisting the rails as we proceeded. It was a memorable sight 
 to see the men lift a long section of the road, turning over the 
 ties, wrenching them from the rails, piling them in blocks, on 
 which the rails were laid, and then as they burned, the ends of 
 the rails fell down, rendering them useless. 
 
 In the meantime the enemy was concentrating on Ilardee s 
 Corps at Jonesboro, and orders came for us to hurry up. 
 Howard had made a successful attack on the west, Davis on the 
 north, and it needed but our corps and the 23rd to come in on 
 the east to cut off retreat. We hastened forward, marching par 
 allel with the 23rd Corps, deployed on the east of the enemy s 
 works, and moved to the attack ; but night set in, and in the dark 
 woods we could not tell friend from foe. Another half hour of 
 daylight and Hardee could not have escaped ; as it was, we cap 
 tured in all about two thousand men. Hardee drew out and 
 joined the rest of Hood s army at Lovejoy. 
 
 During the night we were roused by the sound of heavy explo 
 sions in the direction of Atlanta, indicating evacuation, and soon 
 the news arrived that Slocum had marched into the city. Next 
 day we moved forward on Lovejoy, where severe fighting took 
 place toward evening, resulting in mortally wounding Capt. 
 McNeal, of Company C, acting Major; Abm. Long, of Company 
 K, killed ; Fred. Smith, of Company II, and Jos. Hebert, of 
 Company Gr, wounded. Capt. McNeal was a tried and true 
 soldier, one whom the men could "tie to" at all times, and his 
 death was deeply and sincerely mourned. 
 
 Sherman had determined to go no further south at present ; 
 he therefore issued orders for the army to return to Atlanta for 
 rest. On Monday night at eight o clock we drew out and 
 marched back to Jonesboro, which we found as light as day with 
 burning cotton. Next day we resumed our march, entering 
 
622 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Atlanta on Thursday, 8th, our band playing national airs and 
 the sidewalks lined with spectators. The evidences of destruc 
 tion within the city were almost indescribable, particularly where 
 they had exploded their ammunition supplies. We went into 
 camp near the Augusta road. This was a great day for our 
 army and for all loyal people. Sometimes it had seemed as 
 though our task would never be done, but we found compensa 
 tion in the fact that the copperhead platform in the North had 
 been built on the assurance that Atlanta could not be taken ; 
 and now that it was taken the platform must fall with all who 
 stood upon it an expectation which was fully realized. 
 
CHAPTER XXXIX. 
 
 ATLANTA TO COLUMBIA. 
 
 CR RELIEF was great \vhen we could go into 
 camp again, and have a general clean up. 
 The wagons came in, bringing the regimental 
 baggage and our library, and we settled down 
 for a luxurious rest. Unoccupied houses were 
 unceremoniously dismantled, and excellent 
 quarters were built of the materials. After surveying the city 
 which had cost us so much, the boys concluded it was not much 
 of a town after all. Most of the houses had holes dug in the 
 ground, into which the people had retired during our firing, and 
 some of the loyal inhabitants could show us their furniture 
 smashed by our cannon balls. Ordinary camp duty was resumed. 
 The officers were busy with their company books, which had been 
 so long neglected, and the non-veterans whose time would expire 
 in a few days, began to report from all directions, swelling our 
 numbers a good deal. Regular religious services were held on the 
 Sabbath and also during the week, and some of the brigades began 
 to build beautiful chapels. 
 
 On the 23rd of September, the anniversary of the muster in 
 of the regiment, one hundred and twenty-seven men arid one 
 
624 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 officer whose three years had expired, were mustered out and took 
 leave of their comrades. Being drawn up in line, they were 
 addressed in a speech by Lieut. Col. Olson, reviewing their con 
 nection with the regiment, honoring their fidelity, and exhorting 
 them to be true to the country as citizens at home, while their 
 comrades continued to bear the hardships of camp and field. 
 This was followed by an address from the Chaplain, and then the 
 non-veterans responded with hearty cheers for their officers and 
 veteran comrades whom they were to leave behind. A general 
 handshaking followed, which brought tears to many eyes not used 
 to weeping. One writes in his journal: "It was like leaving 
 home to part with them, and I could not keep back the tears 
 which persisted in flowing." 
 
 At this completion of the three years service, the losses in the 
 regiment had been as follows : Killed in battle, 97 ; died of 
 disease, 52 ; died of wounds, 74 ; discharged on account of 
 wounds, 56 ; discharged on account of disease, 110 ; deserted, 28 ; 
 transferred, 44 ; wounded in battle, 486 ; officers resigned, 31 ; 
 mustered out in disgrace, 2 ; enlisted men promoted to commis 
 sions, 47. 
 
 So many of the old regiments were undergoing a similar deple 
 tion that arrangements began to be made for consolidation, and a 
 good deal of interest was felt at this time in a proposed union of 
 the 36th, 42nd and 51st Illinois. But this arrangement shared 
 the same fate as a plan to erect a Brigade Chapel. The chap 
 lains had secured all things necessary, and volunteers were ready 
 from the different regiments to aid in the work, when on Sunday, 
 September 25th, just after morning service, orders came to be 
 ready to take the cars, and in two hours we had eaten dinner, 
 packed up, marched over two miles to town and were seated in 
 the cars ready to start for Chattanooga. 
 
MOVEMENTS OP GEN. HOOD. 625 
 
 It was Gen. Hood who had broken up our much coveted rest 
 and disturbed our plans. Moving away from Lovejoy, he pre : 
 pared to strike our communications ; Forrest appearing at the 
 same time, with over six thousand cavalry, in Tennessee. New 
 ton s Division was sent back to Chattanooga and Gen. Corse to 
 Rome, to protect our main points of supply. Still we expected 
 that our absence would be only temporary, and we should soon 
 return to the corps. After a cheerless all-night s ride, we arrived 
 at Chattanooga, where we were placed in charge of Fort Phelps 
 and afterwards of the Stone Fort. Hood s movements became 
 so threatening that Gen. Thomas arrived, September 29th, to 
 direct the defence of the Tennessee line. On the 2nd of Octo 
 ber, the 36th and 44th Illinois and 24th Wisconsin were sent on 
 the cars to Dalton, expecting to have to fight their way to the 
 Fort ; but they found nothing of importance and returned on the 
 6th. It was at this time that Hood was operating against Alla- 
 toona, which he failed to reduce ; losing one thousand men. As 
 the indications were that he now was working west, it seemed 
 unnecessary to continue any additional force at Dalton. The 
 following week he came up to Resaca, which held out against 
 him, but he sent a force to Dalton, which captured the garrison 
 there and also at Tilton. It now became a serious question 
 whether he intended to come up the railroad or to strike Chatta 
 nooga and Bridgeport by the valleys leading to them, and so 
 from Saturday, the 15th, to Tuesday, the 18th, we were on the 
 cars, constituting a flying force, ready to defend any one of those 
 points, while troops from all outlying posts were concentrated at 
 Chattanooga. First we went out to the Junction, and then to 
 Ringgold ; on Sunday, the 16th, we returned, and immediately 
 went forward to Shell-mound, to look out for any force that might 
 appear there. After dark we returned to Whiteside ; staying 
 
626 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 there still on the cars all night, and before daylight moved on 
 to Bridgeport, where we remained all day and next night. 
 
 By this time it was evident that Hood was not making in this 
 direction, so we returned, arriving at Chattanooga at noon, and 
 immmediately were joined with other troops under command of 
 Gen. Schofield, to take two droves of cattle through to Sherman s 
 army at Gaylesville, We marched out to Gordon s mills that 
 night, and the next day went by Craw-fish Springs and our old 
 hospital, arriving near Lafayette, through which we passed next 
 day, the 20th. We found this intensely Rebel town much dilap 
 idated, the court house being riddled. Our boys took great 
 delight in singing with all their might, "John Brown s Body." 
 Although Hood s army had been through here, we found abund 
 ance of forage. 
 
 The next day we marched first on the Summerville and then 
 on the Alpine road about fourteen miles, and the day after reached 
 beyond Alpine to dinner, when Morgan s Division went on to 
 Gaylesville and we went back and camped at Alpine on the very 
 ground we occupied the year before. Although we were on short 
 army rations, the supplies in the country were so abundant that 
 we lived well, and this trip was of as much service to the men 
 as if they had been sent to the hospital and fed on sanitary goods. 
 Here we remained one week secluded from the world, and won 
 dering what it all meant, one man declaring that Sherman had 
 taken a contract to eat out these valleys. But the fact was, Sher 
 man was now maturing his plans for his " march to the sea," and 
 was only waiting to watch Hood s movements before starting. 
 Hood by this time had moved west, ?,nd showed an intention of 
 crossing the Tennessee at Decatur. On Friday, the 28th, 
 the repairs on the railroad were completed, and we com 
 menced our march back to Chattanooga, the 4th Corps having 
 
SEPARATION FROM SHERMAN. 627 
 
 been assigned to Thomas as a part of his army of defense, while 
 Sherman moved south prepared to strike out for Savannah. We 
 marched over the Chickamauga battle-field, which bore in the 
 trees the traces of those two terrible days, and arrived in Chat 
 tanooga on Saturday night, October 29th. 
 
 That very day Hood had commenced crossing the Tennessee 
 below Florence, and it was necessary to hurry the 4th Corps on 
 to the line of the Nashville and Decatur railroad. Wood s 
 Division was the first to arrive. On Tuesday, November 1st, we 
 took the cars at Chattanooga, all horses, etc., except one for the 
 commanding officer, being left behind to come over the country. 
 Traveling all night by way of Huntsville and Decatur, we found 
 ourselves next morning at Athens, and received orders to march 
 forthwith to Pulaski, where the corps was to concentrate. Sixty 
 rounds of ammunition per man were distributed, and we moved 
 out in rain and mud about three miles. Next day it rained hard. 
 We started about noon, marching ten miles. This was severe on 
 the officers who had never marched before. On Friday, the 4th, 
 we went forward, and after dinner waded Elk River, marching 
 fifteen miles. In the afternoon, James Hazlehurst, of Company 
 K, was accidentally shot, and four men were detailed to bury 
 him. On Saturday, November 5th, we entered Pulaski, and 
 made camp on a ridge two miles north of town. The body of 
 Hazlehurst was brought forward and buried there. Rifle pits 
 were thrown up. On Tuesday, the 8th, the regiment was paid 
 off for the first time in many months. 
 
 On the 12th, telegraphic communication with Sherman ceased, 
 and henceforth the brunt of Hood s blows were to fall on us. On 
 Monday, the 14th, one hundred and eighty recruits arrived as 
 the result of the draft, and next day were assigned to different 
 companies. Their ignorance of army ways and discipline was 
 
628 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 for a while a source of great amusement to the veterans, but they 
 soon began to show good soldiership. One man on being detailed 
 for duty, replied, "Nay, I can t go to-day, I have some letters 
 that I must write." He soon learned better. 
 
 All this time we were waiting to ascertain Hood s intentions, 
 but he was detained for his supplies and by the high stage of 
 water until the 19th, when his plans for advance were fully 
 developed. Gen. Thomas had hoped that the delay might con 
 tinue long enough to gather his reinforcements and defend the 
 line of Duck River, but the troops he had expected failed to 
 arrive in time. There was nothing left then but to fall back. 
 On Tuesday, November 22nd, while our cavalry checked Hood s 
 advance, we began our march on Columbia. The weather was 
 bitterly cold, and the recruits suffered a good deal. Our camp 
 at Lynnville, twelve miles out, was so bleak as to remind us of 
 Elaine s Cross Roads. Next day we changed camp about one 
 and a-half miles, but in the night Gen. Stanley was informed 
 that Hood s advance was so rapid that the cavalry which was at 
 Mount Pleasant, nearer to Columbia than we were, was already 
 driven in by infantry. We were aroused, and at three o clock 
 were making a forced march, reaching Columbia about half-past 
 ten. 
 
 Just before arriving, we heard heavy firing on the Mount 
 Pleasant Road, where Gen. Cox was driving back the enemy s 
 cavalry, barely in time to save the town. The troops were imme 
 diately disposed in line, and breastworks were thrown up, with 
 sharpened stakes in front. During that day and the next, the 
 works were constantly strengthened, while heavy skirmishing 
 continued on both pikes. On Friday night, after dark, we were 
 moved over to the extreme right of the line and again threw up 
 works, which were strengthened constantly next day. By this time 
 
CHAPLAIN S [RESIGNATION ACCEPTED. 629 
 
 the enemy s infantry appeared and pressed our lines at every point, 
 and we were required to be ready for an attack at any moment. 
 It rained all day, making things particularly gloomy and unpleas 
 ant, and at night we prepared to cross the river, as Hood was try 
 ing to flank us. But the night proved horribly dark, and the 
 storm had made the bridge unsafe, so the movement was post 
 poned twenty-four hours a delay, which, by giving Hood the 
 start, cost us dearly at Franklin, three day afterwards. 
 
 On Sunday we lay behind our works. Notification was here 
 received that the Chaplain s resignation, which had been sent in 
 some time before, was accepted, and in the afternoon, though 
 ready every moment for an attack, a farewell service was held 
 behind the breastworks, after which, the men who had recently 
 been paid off, made up their packages of money for home. At 
 nine o clock p. M., the movement across the river commenced, 
 and we made camp about midnight in the woods on the other side. 
 Next morning, with the warm-hearted greetings of the officers, 
 with whom he had been associated in army life so long and so 
 pleasantly, and with a hearty hand-shaking all through the regi 
 ment, the Chaplain started for Nashville. At his departure, 
 besides the soldiers money, sixty dollars were placed in his hands 
 to renew their supply of reading matter he promising to attend 
 to their interests in this respect as long as they were without a 
 chaplain. He was also requested to publish in one of the papers 
 circulated in the regiment, a summary of what provision had 
 been made for reading matter during his chaplaincy. This was 
 done, but before it could reach them, a good many of those who 
 requested it had laid down their lives. With a short extract from 
 that report, his connection with the regiment and with this his 
 tory of its achievements may appropriately close, 
 
630 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 REPORT. 
 
 There lias been contributed by the regiment during the period 
 covered by this report, the sum of $582, which, together with 
 $41 given me to commence with, makes a total of $623. During 
 the same period there have been distributed 5,450 copies Tract 
 Journal, Christian Banner and American Messenger ; 720 copies 
 Christian Times, 520 N. W. Christian Advocate, 1,586 Chicago 
 Journal, N. W. Evening Post, and Army $ Navy Journal ; 
 536 copies Harper, Atlantic, Continental and Eclectic Magazines, 
 200 copies Christian Press, 2,000 Tracts, 300 Soldiers Books, 7 
 Soldiers Libraries, 800 Hymn Books, Testaments (English and 
 German), and a large quantity of miscellaneous books arid papers, 
 English, German and Norwegian. At the same time there have 
 been held 76 public services with the regiment, 119 prayer meet 
 ings, 55 Bible classes. 
 
 Not a few of the most pious men have laid down their lives. 
 It is sad to know that only two days after I bade them farewell 
 on the banks of Duck River, they were again found in the thick 
 est of the fight and slaughter at Franklin. Among the killed was 
 Lieut. Col. Olson, the brave and beloved Commander, and among 
 the wounded, Lieut. C. F. Case, the no less brave and beloved 
 Adjutant. To these were added a long list of gallant names, 
 which has not yet been fully received. 
 
 Should the eyes of those brave few who still survive of the 
 "old 36th " behold these lines, let them be assured of the deep 
 and brotherly sympathy of one who has been with them in the 
 perils and toils of more than two years, and whose remembrance 
 of their patience, their fortitude, and their devotion to their coun 
 try, can never be obliterated. 
 
 May our Father who is in heaven, have them in his gracious 
 keeping, and, if it can be, shield the little remnant from future 
 slaughter. But if it must be that others also shall lay down their 
 lives in battle, that any of their eyes must close upon this loved 
 laud ere the object for which they have fought shall be fully 
 attained, that it may be with them all that by a timely seeking 
 of the precious Savior, those eyes, when they grow dim and dark 
 to earth, may open upon " the better land." 
 
CHAPTER XL. 
 
 SPRING HILL. 
 
 [EFINITE information that Hood s army was cross 
 ing Duck river in force, moving rapidly northward, 
 on roads parallel with the Columbia and Franklin 
 Pike, and from two to four miles distant, was 
 received from Col. Post, who, with his brigade, 
 had been sent up the river to reconnoitre and watch the enemy s 
 movements. Thereupon the 1st and 2nd Divisions of the 4th 
 Corps, commanded respectively by Gens. Kimball and Wagner, 
 were directed to proceed to Franklin with the baorgage and 
 
 i OO O 
 
 ordnance trains, as well as the reserve artillery. At eight o clock 
 A. M. of the 29th, the trains were drawn out upon the pike and 
 the march commenced, interrupted only by the little halts insep 
 arably connected with the movement of a long wagon train. 
 The 2nd Division was in the advance preceding the train. The 
 roads were in fine condition, the troops marched well, and rapid 
 progress was made. Four miles north of Columbia the road 
 crosses Rutherford s Creek, an affluent of Duck river. Here 
 Kimball s Division (the 1st) was halted, and took up a defensive 
 position on the south side of the creek, fronting east to cover the 
 crossing, it being apprehended the enemy might make a flank 
 
632 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 attack somewhere in that locality for the purpose of cutting off 
 the retreat. 
 
 The 2nd Division, to which the 36th Illinois was attached, 
 continued its march up the pike in advance of the train. On 
 approaching Spring Hill, a small village and courier post twelve 
 miles north of Columbia, where a detachment of cavalry was 
 stationed, the head of the column was met by a badly scared 
 trooper, who, hatless and in an otherwise demoralized condition, 
 represented that he was making his escape from a force of Rebel 
 cavalry, which in great numbers were menacing the town, the 
 garrison of which was quite too small to contend successfully 
 with the overwhelming numbers preparing to sweep down upon 
 them. 
 
 At that moment a rattling fire of carbines heard in front con 
 firmed the trooper s story, indicating clearly that the enemy by a 
 forced march had outstripped Gen. Stanley s command, and by 
 moving rapidly north on a converging road had struck the line 
 of retreat at Spring Hill and had nearly gained possession of 
 the town. 
 
 Orders were given to advance rapidly to the assistance of the 
 detachment then hotly engaged in the eastern suburbs of the 
 place. The 36th took the lead, and being incited thereto by the 
 noise of small arms in front, and by the personal presence of 
 Gens. Stanley and Wagner they double-quicked two miles, arriv 
 ing in time to meet the enemy and rescue the town and its small 
 squad of defenders from capture. 
 
 Opdyke s Brigade passed through the village a quarter of a 
 mile in the direction of Franklin, deploying as they advanced 
 arid formed to the right of the road and parallel with it, on 
 elevated ground. Clouds of Forest s cavalry were hovering 
 near, and forming in line of battle not more than a quarter of a 
 
OPDYKE S GALLANT DEFENSE. 633 
 
 mile away, preparatory to a charge upon the position held by the 
 36th. Not long had they to wait, for like waves angrily rolling 
 upon a storm- washed beach they dashed across the fields, raising 
 great clouds of dust, and charged impetuously upon Opdyke s 
 lines with a yell. But his men were all inured to the turmoil of 
 war, and to them this sudden dash of Rebel fury had no terrors. 
 A few rounds of musketry, poured with damaging effect into the 
 Rebel squadrons, checked the charge. But the marshaling of 
 battalions, the yell of combatants, the clangor of small arms and 
 the rumbling thunder of charging squadrons, never divested the 
 Federal troops of their presence of mind. Courageously they 
 maintained their position, reserving their fire until the enemy was 
 near enough to render it effective, then delivering their volleys 
 with fatal precision, laying many of Forest s hard-riding caval 
 iers in the dust. Checked in the assault, they finally gave way, 
 and broken and dismayed, retreated in confusion. 
 
 Soon after, Opdyke s Brigade was again threatened by cavalry, 
 which was seen forming in the edge of the timber, less than half 
 a mile distant. A Confederate general officer and his staff, whom 
 we subsequently learned was Gen. Cheatham, at the head of his 
 corps, was observed reconnoitering our position. His command 
 was just coming up, and formed in reserve, with the apparent 
 intention of supporting the cavalry. A cannon was wheeled 
 into position and tossed a few shells in that direction by way of 
 a complimentary salute, but he showed a want of appreciation 
 of the intended honor by hastily taking shelter behind a belt of 
 timber. 
 
 Observing bodies of cavalry massing in the open field east of 
 the town, Gen. Stanley directed Gen. Wagner to deploy his divi 
 sion at once, in such a manner as to hold the place and protect 
 the trains then being parked. Accordingly Gen. Bradley s Bri 
 gade was sent to a wooded knoll, about three-quarters of a mile 
 
(334 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 east of the pike, which commanded the approaches in that direc 
 tion. Lane s Brigade was deployed nearer the town, partially in 
 rear of Bradley and at the right of Opdyke, covering the trains 
 then being parked in his rear. Opdyke occupied his first posi 
 tion on the left of the line. At the time these dispositions were 
 made, it was not apprehended that heavy forces of infantry were 
 near, and it was supposed that sudden dashes of cavalry were all 
 that had to be guarded against. In front of Bradley, heavy lines 
 of what at the time was supposed to be Rebel cavalry were 
 advanced. Their numbers were certainly being augmented by 
 troops hurrying up from before Columbia, and ere long, from the 
 steadily accumulating mass of men seen both in the fields and 
 bordering timber, it became evident that much of Hood s army 
 was confronting the detachment holding Spring Hill. This 
 opinion was confirmed by a dispatch from Gen. Schofield, stating 
 that the eneny had been crossing Duck River, with their trains 
 passing around his flank, and marching northward on roads con 
 verging at Spring Hill. This left no longer any room for doubt 
 that Gen. Wagner s Division was then confronting a largely 
 superior force of infantry as well as cavalry. 
 
 Very soon our whole line was assailed, and skirmishes of greater 
 or less severity continued at intervals during the afternoon. While 
 Bradley s veterans on the right were manfully combating arid suc 
 cessfully resisting the solid masses hurled against them, Opdyke s 
 Brigade on the left was not entirely idle. Forest s Cavalry was 
 on the alert for opportunities to deal effective blows, and on detect 
 ing an apparently weak point in the line, a column of his hard 
 riders was sure to be hurled against it. 
 
 The position of the 36th, crowning an elevation overlooking 
 much of the field, disclosed the enemy s movements and enabled 
 it to be prepared for any emergency. Cavalry dashes upon our 
 
WORK OF BKADLEY S BRIGADE. 635 
 
 left, for the purpose of diverting attention and preventing re-in- 
 forcements from going to Bradley s assistance, were of frequent 
 occurrence. They came and went like summer clouds; now 
 sweeping down upon Opdyke, and then passing as suddenly away, 
 before there was time to concentrate in any strength against them. 
 Still our lines remained intact, and our troops and trains were 
 safe. 
 
 Gen. Bradley s Brigade, being the nearest to the enemy and 
 the most open to attack, received their fiercest assaults, and it 
 soon became apparent that his assailants fought too well for dis 
 mounted cavalry. About four o clock p. M., Cleburn s Division 
 of infantry, supported by cavalry, took up a position in front 
 and flank of Bradley, and commenced a vigorous attack, driving 
 the skirmishers upon the reserves, and, pressing forward to within 
 a few yards of our lines, poured a terrible cross-fire upon the 
 front and right. At the first onset, it seemed as if the Federals 
 must be overwhelmed and swept from their position and leave the 
 trains exposed to capture and destruction. But the 3rd Brigade 
 was largely composed of veteran soldiers, whose courage in times 
 of danger had often been tested, and whose coolness never for 
 sook them. The charging squadrons were befittingly received, 
 with sweeping volleys of musketry at short range, which shook 
 the Confederate line. They could not face such a withering storm 
 of lead, and soon fell back sullenly, fighting as they retired. 
 
 Being reinforced, they came on a second time, and while closely 
 pressing the front, assaulted the flank of the brigade with a force 
 sufficient to overlap its right, and double it back upon the road 
 and into the southern outskirts of the village. While encourag 
 ing his men and attempting to stay the retreat of his right wing, 
 Gen. Bradley was severely wounded and compelled to retire, 
 relinquishing the command to Col. Conrad, of the 15th Missouri, 
 
636 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 At this critical stage of the engagement, affairs on the right 
 wore a gloomy aspect. A cavalry force, passing around the left, 
 had gained our rear and was threatening the railroad station. 
 Gen. Stanley could spare but few troops to re-inforce Bradley, 
 lest he should thereby expose his train to capture or destruction. 
 A single regiment was all that could be spared, and Col. Olson 
 was despatched with the 36th to re-inforce the 3rd Brigade. 
 Their ammunition was nearly exhausted, and not finding their own 
 ordnance train, Capt. Beeman, the 3rd Division ordnance officer, 
 kindly furnished all that was required. On reaching the position 
 assigned them, they found the right wing being gradually forced 
 back upon the pike. Their timely arrival checked the retreat 
 and saved the right. Forming in a hollow a short distance south 
 of town, the shattered brigade rallied and re-formed in rear of the 
 36th. The efforts of the infantry were gallantly seconded by a 
 battery of eight guns upon the pike, and making a determined 
 stand, the over-confident enemy was again driven back with loss. 
 A supporting column, while crossing a cornfield, fell under the 
 enfilading fire of our artillery, stationed a short distance south 
 of town, which, striking them unexpectedly in fiank, cooled their 
 ardor and hastened their retreat. In this second assault and 
 repulse, the loss was severe on both sides. The enemy paid 
 dearly for their temerity, and left many dead and wounded* upon 
 the field. A part of the attacking force fled to the rear, out of 
 range of artillery ; another portion sought cover in a ravine, 
 crossing the field at our right, and about equi-distant between the 
 opposing lines, where they remained, concealed and sheltered 
 from our searching missiles, until night, when under cover of 
 darkness they succeeded in reaching their own linos. 
 
 This repulse seemed to have produced a marked effect upon 
 the enemy, yet another charge was organized and strong lines 
 
SOME DESULTORY FIGHTING. 637 
 
 formed further to the right for an assault. Acting under orders 
 from Gen. Wagner, Col. Olson retired his line one hundred and 
 fifty yards into the southern outskirts of the town, and there 
 awaited the Rebel onset. Their attack was not vigorously pressed? 
 and aside from a scattering fire at long range, but few shots were 
 exchanged, with trifling loss to either side. The enemy appeared 
 to be maneuvering for an advantageous and less exposed position, 
 from whence to demonstrate upon the road, and to assail in flank 
 and rear the single obstinate division, that up to this time had 
 successfully defied the efforts of a whole army corps and remained 
 masters of the field. 
 
 While the 3rd Brigade, assisted by the 36th, was thus hotly 
 engaged, and the 1st and 2nd were holding the town and pro 
 tecting the trains parked within it, a number of wagons passing 
 on in the direction of Franklin, without escort, were attacked at 
 Thompson s Station, three miles north of Spring Hill, the team 
 sters and train men dispersed, and the wagons with their con 
 tents burned. The appearance of Confederate cavalry west of 
 the town, threatening an attack in the rear, and the fierce assaults 
 upon the right, convinced Gen. Stanley that he was surrounded, 
 and that it would be no easy matter to escape the perils which 
 environed him. 
 
 Such was the condition of affairs when night put an end to 
 the desultory fighting. Our lines were a little withdrawn to 
 positions nearer town, with the flanks resting upon the pike, 
 the centre to the east thrown out in the form of an arc, its 
 convexity towards the enemy, to afford protection to the troops 
 and trains moving up from Columbia. Stanley s single division 
 was closely hemmed in by Forest s cavalry and two corps 
 (Cheatham s and Stewart s) of Rebel infantry. As darkness 
 was shrouding the landscape, a strong column of the enemy was 
 
638 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 observed crossing the road a half mile south of town, with the 
 apparent intention of blocking the road and disputing the pas 
 sage of the 23rd and the balance of the 4th Corps, then hurry 
 ing up from Columbia and momentarily expected at Spring Hill 
 While the combat was raging south of town, in the last Rebel 
 charge upon our right, Michael Divine, of Company E, was 
 struck by a rifle shot, receiving a painful and what proved to be 
 a mortal wound. His comrades carried him back a few yards 
 and laid him at the foot of a tree, the thick spreading branches 
 of which formed a temporary shelter from the winds and open 
 air. On retiring from this position, Divine was left where his 
 comrades had laid him. The sombre shades of night had cur 
 tained field and woodland, and quiet reigned in camp, when a 
 wailing cry of distress came up from the little valley, and through 
 the gloom of night was heard in the camp of the 36th. Great 
 sympathizing hearts swelled with emotion on hearing the plain 
 tive cry of a wounded comrade, and Silas Dyer, Henry Henness 
 and Patrick Connor volunteered to go to his relief, and, if possi 
 ble bring him within our lines. They passed silently down the 
 road to where poor Divine was lying, guided by his agonizing 
 moans. On their way they saw no Rebels, but in returning they 
 passed within arms length of a Rebel picket stationed by the 
 road side. Dyer even touched him, but he made no movement 
 or uttered a word until the party had passed, when he fired. 
 Other scattering shots were sent after the rapidly vanishing 
 party ; the bullets whistled about their heads like swarming bees, 
 but they reached the lines with their mangled burden unharmed, 
 and carried him to an ambulance. Poor Mike got his furlough 
 shortly after, and left the service forever ! But what shall we 
 say of the brave boys who entered the Rebel lines for the man 
 gled remains of a comrade? Worthy each one of them of a 
 
LIEUT. HALL S MISTAKE. 639 
 
 medal of honor. Worthy a place in the hearts of their com 
 rades, and a bright page in the history of their regiment. 
 
 To ascertain the position and strength of the Rebel column, 
 supposed to be upon the road, Gen. Stanley ordered Lieut. Col. 
 Olson to proceed cautiously down the road, keep it clear, and at 
 the same time hold the enemy in check, until the arrival of the 
 troops from Columbia. The night was intensely dark. Com 
 pany B was deployed as skirmishers, followed closely by the 
 remainder of the regiment moving with the utmost stillness and 
 prepared for sudden emergencies. They were nearly an hour 
 proceeding a half mile, at length reaching a small stream south 
 of town, spanned by a bridge. The low murmur of voices the 
 soft tread of men, sounding like summer zephyrs whispering 
 among the leaves, was heard in the advance, but whether pro 
 ceeding from friend or foe was a matter of uncertainty. When 
 last seen the latter was in strong force somewhere in this locality, 
 and if suddenly encountered, the flash of musketry would prob 
 ably be the first salutation to greet them. 
 
 On approaching the bridge, Lieut. Hall, of Company E, 
 observed the shadowy outline of an object, which on a nearer 
 inspection he was enabled to make out as that of a man on horse 
 back. Conjecturing that this was a big negro cook or supernu 
 merary for some officer, he rushed up, seized the horse by his bits, 
 pushed him partially from the bridge, and struck the rider a smart 
 blow with the flat of his sword, at the same time calling out, 
 "Why in h 1 are you blocking the way, sir?" The person 
 thus rudely accosted shouted to his escort, " Catch the d d 
 scallawag, catch him!" The Lieutenant recognized the voice 
 of Gen. Whittaker, who was at the head of the column just 
 then arriving from Columbia. Before the General s order could 
 be executed, the Lieutenant recollected that he had urgent busi- 
 
640 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ness at another part of the line, and suddenly disappeared in the 
 darkness. 
 
 Late in the afternoon the troops at Columbia commenced their 
 withdrawal from the north bank of Duck river, at which time the 
 most of the confederate forces had crossed higher up and marched 
 rapidly northward. Gen. Cox s Division of the 23rd Corps took 
 the lead and reached Spring Hill at seven p. M. This was the 
 column the 36th met at the bridge a half mile south of town. 
 
 Before reaching Spring Hill, Gen. Cox had encountered a col 
 umn of the enemy drawn up across the pike, and considerable 
 random firing in the darkness ensued before they were driven 
 away. The Third Division of the 4th Corps followed closely 
 after the 23rd Corps, and Gen. Kimball with the First Division 
 brought up the rear, and covered the retreat from Columbia. This 
 movement was protracted and the column long drawn out. 
 Hence Gen. Kimball s Division, comprising the rear guard, failed 
 to reach Spring Hill until two o clock in the morning. As fast 
 as the troops came up, they took up positions on the east side of 
 the pike and parallel with it to cover the movement to Franklin. 
 
 The trains were then drawn out upon the pike and pushed for 
 ward as rapidly as possible. The pickets reported the move 
 ments of Rebel detachments during the night. Many, crossing 
 the pike and marching west of the road, gained favorable posi 
 tions among the hills near Thompson s Station, to cut oif and 
 attempt the capture of the trains. The question of burning 
 them was seriously entertained, but finally it was determined to 
 push on fight any opposing force that should be encountered, 
 and save the trains, at all hazards. 
 
 At one o clock A. M., the trains began to move. The wagons, 
 including ambulances, numbered eight hundred. At the outset, 
 they had to pass singly over a narrow bridge, and so tedious was 
 
OUR SUCCESSFUL RETREAT. 641 
 
 the operation, that it was a matter of doubt if they could be put 
 upon the road until daylight. Unless this could be done and the 
 troops got well under way, they were sure of being attacked by 
 the whole Rebel army, which had come up and bivouaced but a 
 few hundred yards from the road, and within hail of our picket 
 lines. Their camp-fires burned brightly, and around them could 
 plainly be seen squads of Confederates, warming themselves, or 
 cooking a frugal meal, in preparation for the excitement of the 
 coming day. Should the conflict be renewed at Spring Hill, 
 and the columns be attacked while on the march, we would be 
 forced to fight under every disadvantage and against heavy odds. 
 
 Staff-officers hurried and assisted the teamsters, and every 
 thing promised well, when the train was brought to a sudden 
 stand-still. Word came that the head of the train was attacked 
 at Thompson s station, and there was danger of its entire 
 destruction. Again was Gen. Stanley advised to burn it, but 
 the value of the property and the interests at stake, warranted 
 the effort to save the train. Gen. Kimball was ordered to push 
 on with the 1st Division and clear the road ; while Gen. Wood, 
 with the 3rd Division, was directed to move with the train, on the 
 right, to guard against assaults from that quarter. Before Gen. 
 Kimball reached Thompson s Station, Maj. Stcele, of Gen. Stan 
 ley s staff, had gathered a squad of stragglers and driven off the 
 attacking party, who succeeded in burning only ten wagons. 
 
 Again was the train put in motion, and by the most herculean 
 efforts, the last wagon quitted Spring Hill and was upon the pike 
 at five o clock A. M. Much was due to the firmness and coolness 
 of Capt. John A. Beeman, who had charge of the ordnance train, 
 for the accomplishment of this result. Standing at the bridge, 
 over which but one wagon could pass at a time, he kept the road 
 clear of obstruction and repressed every indication of panic, 
 
642 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 which the nearness of the enemy and the hot-headed impulsive 
 ness of artillery and cavalry officers were at various times upon 
 the point of inaugurating. 
 
 Col. Opdyke s Brigade brought up the rear, and throughout 
 the long, anxious night his men lay by the side of the pike, 
 awaiting the passage of the troops and trains. Wearied with 
 the previous day s marching and fighting, those not on picket or 
 detailed for special duties, lay by the roadside, behind logs or 
 in the brush, and slept soundly. Such was the critical state of 
 affairs, that few of the officers slept at all. Before daylight, the 
 entire army was on the road, marching briskly towards Frank 
 lin Col. Opdyke s Brigade being the last to leave Spring Hill. 
 
 In the engagement at Spring Hill, our loss was about two 
 hundred men. Gen. Bradley s Brigade suffered the worst, hav 
 ing lost one hundred and fifty, in killed, wounded and miss 
 ing. The losses sustained by the other brigades and the detach 
 ment guarding the town, were slight, they having been principally 
 engaged with cavalry. This was the first time in its history that 
 the 36th had met a cavalry charge in force, and the ease with 
 which it was repelled did not heighten their opinion of this arm 
 of the service, and particularly of Forest s famed troopers. The 
 wounding of Gen. Bradley in the midst of the engagement, and 
 his retirement from the field, was a serious loss to the Federal 
 cause. By his conspicuous gallantry and the determined valor 
 of his brigade, incited by the example of their leader, a whole 
 Rebel division, commanded by Cleburn in person, who was justly 
 regarded as one of the most intrepid officers in the Confederate 
 service, was repeatedly repulsed and driven with loss from the 
 field. The position was held ; the trains saved, and the retreat 
 to Franklin effected in comparative safety and with trifling loss. 
 
CASUALTIES OF THE BATTLE. 643 
 
 The following casualties were sustained by the 36th in this 
 affair : Michael Divine, wounded since dead ; George W. Lan- 
 nigan, wounded, both of Company E ; Edward Hurr, Company 
 A, missing ; William H. Moss, Company H, missing. The 
 enemy s losses in the engagement, according to the statement of 
 their surgeons, were over five hundred. 
 
 Wood s and Kimball s Divisions, of the 4th Corps, followed 
 the 23rd, but were detailed as escort, and marched on the right 
 of the pike and parallel with it. The wounded were placed in 
 ambulances, which formed a part of the long cavalcade. At five 
 o clock A. M., the whole train was in motion, and Opdyke s Bri 
 gade, which had been held in reserve, was aroused, and quitted 
 Spring Hill without noise and without attracting the immediate 
 attention of the enemy, whose drowsy pickets and smouldering 
 camp-fires were but a few hundred yards away. Knowing that 
 the whole Rebel army was massed in the immediate neighbor 
 hood, it was expected that the march would be opposed, and the 
 struggle with a largely superior force would be a desperate one. 
 
 An attack might be made at any time, and when at last the 
 order came to advance, the men groped their way in the dark 
 ness, fearful of arousing the foe or of finding the enemy drawn 
 up across the road to intercept the retreat. But stillness brooded 
 over their encampment ; the expected night attack was not made. 
 The troops marched swiftly, and shortly after daylight passed 
 the smouldering remains of the wagons burned at Thompson s 
 Station. 
 
 Daylight revealed every wooded height and commanding eleva 
 tion in possession of Forest s cavalry, that frequently swept down 
 upon the flanks of the marching column, but Wood s and Kimball s 
 skirmishers brushed them away and easily repelled every charge. 
 Still they hovered near, like gulls in the wake of a ship at sea, 
 
644 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 or a fish-hawk seeking its prey, just beyond musket range, 
 apparently watching for weak points to strike the train. About 
 seven A. M. a spirited dash was made upon the column, which 
 was immediately repulsed by two regiments of Kimball s Divis 
 ion, aided by a section of artillery which was brought into posi 
 tion, and a few shells sufficed to drive the enemy behind the hills, 
 after which they molested the train and its escort no more. 
 
 Numbers of weary, foot sore stragglers, unable to keep up with 
 the main column, fell out and lingered by the wayside. Their 
 dejected and "gone up" expression of countenance, caused by 
 long marches, sleepless nights and the fatigues of battle, indi 
 cated that the physical machine was pretty well run down. Col. 
 Opdyke with his brigade closed the column, and did not allow a 
 single straggler to linger behind. 
 
 Soon was heard the confused murmur of excited pursuit, 
 resembling the wild sweep of a tornado heralded by clouds of 
 darkness and muttering thunders. The early gray of morning 
 revealed dense masses of confederates advancing up the pike in 
 hot pursuit, while other columns, equally as numerous, stretched 
 out like vast wings and marched through fields or on parallel 
 roads as if to encompass and close in upon the slender column 
 pushing its way to Franklin. The occasional hum of a bullet 
 announced their nearness, and on the crest of an elevation the 
 3Gth was formed behind trees, rocks and logs to retard the pur 
 suit which was becoming uncomfortably close. Their advance 
 had come up within easy range, and then was halted by a well 
 directed volley. Another brought them to an about-face and 
 sent them back upon their supports. Being re-inforced, they 
 came on with a yell, and then it was our turn to fall back, which 
 movement was executed in quick time, but in good order and 
 without loss. 
 
THE REGIMENT S REPUTATION. 645 
 
 In the meantime the 88th Illinois was formed on the 
 next ridge in a favorable position, through which the 36th 
 retired, with orders to halt at the first defensible point, and act 
 as Col. Olson should direct or as circumstances should require. 
 Thus was portions of the brigade alternately halted and formed 
 in secure positions from whence the head of the Rebel column 
 was assailed. The latter halting, would bring up artillery, 
 deploy in force, and when on the point of storming the hill, the 
 detachment holding it would hurriedly retire often hotly pur 
 sued by squadrons of cavalry. In this manner was mile after 
 mile of the road stubbornly fought over, and more than one gray- 
 backed trooper was made to bite the dust. 
 
 The sturdy resistance offered by Opdyke greatly retarded the 
 advance of the Rebel center. His force was too small, however, 
 to check the flanking columns, which were usually in advance of 
 their center, and once or twice, by doubling upon the road, they 
 came near cutting off the rear detachment. Alternate fighting 
 and retreating consumed the earlier hours of the day, and gave 
 time for the construction of defensive works at Franklin and 
 enabled the trains to cross the Harpeth without being molested. 
 
 For the judicious manner in which the retreat was conducted, 
 Col. Opdyke and his troops, comprising the rear guard, were 
 highly complimented by Gen. Scofield. Their intrepidity ; the 
 energetic measures adopted for getting forward the worn-out men, 
 and their stern resistance to the advance of the Rebel army, 
 closely dogging their footsteps, richly entitled them to the enco 
 miums so lavishly bestowed. The confidence reposed in the 36th 
 was evidenced by their being put in places of greatest danger. 
 It was the 36th that led the headlong dash into Spring Hill- 
 repulsing the Rebel charge and scattering Forest s Cavalry to 
 the winds. When Bradley s Brigade was being roughly handled 
 
646 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and on the point of giving way, the 36th hurried to its relief, 
 and restored the battle which was nearly lost. In the delicate, 
 as well as dangerous, duty of clearing the pike and holding it 
 open to enable the troops from Columbia to pass without inter 
 ruption, the 36th was selected ; and to the cool courage of Col. 
 Olson and the gallant 36th, in checking and delaying the march 
 of Hood s army until the works at Franklin were strengthened, 
 was Gen. Scofield indebted in a large measure for his successful 
 resistance and victory at the battle of Franklin. 
 
 CHAPTER XL1. 
 
 BATTLE OF FRANKLIN. 
 
 T IS with many misgivings that we attempt a detailed 
 account of the battle of Franklin as fierce and 
 bloody in proportion to the numbers engaged as 
 any of the many fights that occurred during 
 the war of the Rebellion. The details when truth 
 fully written and fully understood, give birth to 
 both pride and sorrow to those of the 36th who 
 survived the terrible ordeal of fire arid blood. Pride at the gal 
 lantry and heroic devotion displayed by every man of whatever 
 rank or station, who fought in its ranks, and sorrow for the num- 
 
THE AllRIVAL AT FR&NKLIN. 647 
 
 bers who sealed their devotion to their country by their blood ! 
 Sorrow arid weeping for the brave Olson, who was among the first 
 that fell with his face to the foe. AVords are feeble in commen 
 dation of him, one of the noblest of the country s heroes, and 
 feeble in expressions of a country s gratitude to those who sac 
 rificed so much for its salvation. 
 
 As has been stated, Gen. Scofield, with the 23rd Corps, then 
 temporarily under the command of Gen. Cox, proceeded direct 
 to Franklin. The trains followed under the immediate escort of 
 the divisions of Wood and Kimball, of the 4th Corps. The 
 troops marched by the side of the wagons, and repulsed every 
 attempt of Forest s cavalry to break the line or destroy the train. 
 
 So through the long dark hours the column made its way, and 
 just as morning was stepping out of the shades of night, gilding 
 the trees and hill-tops with golden light, the head of the column 
 entered Franklin. But few doubted that the rising sun was 
 ushering in a day of blood. From the celerity of the enemy s 
 movements, the characteristic persistence and energy of Hood, 
 at times approaching to rashness, it was generally believed that 
 his purpose was to strike in detail and destroy the separate Fed 
 eral detachments, then concentrating at Nashville; and no one 
 doubted his purpose of attacking as soon as his army, then closely 
 pressing our rear guard, could be brought up and formed for the 
 onset. 
 
 Recent rains had raised the Ilarpeth River, and the fords were 
 in such bad condition as to be nearly impassable. No wagon 
 bridge spanned the stream, and a detail was at once made, and 
 the town ransacked for planks to put the railroad bridge in 
 condition for crossing. At the same time a foot-bridge was built, 
 which fortunately proved available for wagons. The time occu 
 pied in the construction of the bridges, and the delay attending 
 
648 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the passage of the trains and public property, rendered it impos 
 sible to move the army to the north side of the river before the 
 enemy could come up with a force sufficiently powerful to make 
 an attack. Accordingly the troops were placed in position as 
 they arrived, on the south side and in the suburbs of the town. 
 The 23rd Corps on the left and center, covering the Columbia 
 pike ; its left resting upon the Harpeth, above Franklin. Gen. 
 Kimball, with the 1st Division of the 4th Corps, arrived soon 
 after nine o clock, and took up a position on the right of the 
 23rd Corps, its right flank extending to the river, below the 
 town. 
 
 At various times Franklin had been occupied and slight 
 entrenchments thrown up in its southern outskirts. But these, 
 by neglect, had become partially obliterated, and at this time 
 were of little account as defences. Long before the men com 
 prising this army had learned the use of pick-axe and shovel, 
 and regarded them as among the most effective weapons of war 
 fare. They no more thought of prosecuting a campaign suc 
 cessfully without them, than of winning a battle without powder 
 and bayonets. Of the 4th Corps, it had passed into an axiom, 
 that they were "always prepared." On this occasion, the men 
 worked like badgers. The thud of the pick and the clinking of 
 shovels succeeded the tramp of marching squadrons, and in an 
 incredibly short time, a winrow of earth and logs, a mile and 
 a-half in length, encircled the town, of sufficiently formidable 
 proportions to withstand a stout assault. 
 
 Wood s Division (the 3rd), as it filed into town, was directed 
 to proceed to the river and assist in crossing the wagons to the 
 north bank and take favorable positions for watching the fords, 
 resisting the passage of cavalry, which it was apprehended might 
 attempt to interrupt the line of march to Nashville. 
 
RESISTING HOOD S ADVANCE. 649 
 
 The town of Franklin is situated in the midst of a valley sur 
 rounded by an amphitheatre of wooded hills. Opdyke with the 
 rear guard reached these heights about noon, finding the balance 
 of the Second Division, under Gen. Wagner, halted a mile or 
 more south of town, and forming in support of these, prepared 
 to resist the advance of Hood. Soon after, compact masses of 
 confederates were observed streaming over the hills like dark 
 thunder clouds gathering for the tempest, and made immediate 
 preparations for attacking in force. The position occupied by 
 the Second Division was too extensive to be successfully held, 
 and the country being open and favorable for the movements of 
 the enemy, Gen. Wagner was obliged to abandon his position. 
 
 Coming down into the valley two of his brigades were deployed 
 a few hundred yards in advance of the main works Lane s to 
 the right and Conrad s to the left of the pike, with instructions 
 to hold it and keep the enemy in check as long as possible, and 
 not to retire until forced to do so at the point of the bayonet or 
 pressed to the rear by the weight of numbers. Here the men in 
 accordance with their usual custom, excavated shallow rifle pits, 
 or constructed slight barricades of rails, to aid in what proved 
 to be a fruitless attempt to stem the Rebel tide, which it was now 
 quite evident would descend from the hills upon them. 
 
 When the Second Division abandoned the heights, the First 
 Brigade passed to the rear of the entrenchments, and at about 
 four o clock p. M. halted within the town in reserve, Col. Opdyke 
 receiving instructions to use his own discretion as to position, 
 but to remain within supporting distance, keeping his men well 
 in hand, and to act as circumstances should require. The march 
 from Spring Hill had been hurried, and the tired and hungry 
 men very naturally appropriated the contents of sundry cracker 
 
650 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 boxes near at hand, and soon the inevitable coffee pot was swing 
 ing arid simmering over impromptu fires blazing up along the line. 
 During much of the afternoon, Hood s entire army was in 
 sight, blackening the summits of the hills, and apparently form 
 ing for an attack. At four o clock, a living wall of men and 
 glistening steel was seen marching rapidly down the hillsides 
 filling the valley and sweeping across the fields. Close behind 
 the first were other lines of troops ; the whole pouring tumultu- 
 ously onward, like the swift current of a river bearing its 
 burthen of seething waters resistless to the sea. At first the 
 confused murmur of voices and martial music, like sighing 
 breezes, filled the air, and as the tide flowed onward the swelling 
 cadences gathered strength and volume. At the near approach 
 of the crowding host, the earth grew tremulous beneath the tread 
 of many feet, and sounded like the low, hollow rumble of distant 
 thunder. Fascinated by the sight, the men gazed in silence 
 upon the advancing columns, now rapidly approaching the 
 entrenchments behind which stood a thin, firm line of Federal 
 soldiers, seemingly unconscious of danger. 
 
 The brigades of Lane and Conrad, occupying the shallow rifle 
 pits in the advance, for a moment stood their ground, and at 
 short range poured destructive volleys into the crowded ranks 
 of the enemy. Before their fire the first line faltered, but only 
 for a moment, when closing up, they rallied, and with a shout, 
 cleared every obstacle, charging over the temporary barricades. 
 Then for another moment there was a line of flashing fire, the 
 sound of interlacing bayonets, and the gallant Second and Third 
 Brigades went down before the swelling tide and were swept 
 away. Conrad s Brigade was the first to break. The older and 
 more experienced soldiers fled to the main line, but a regiment 
 or two of raw troops, composed largely of conscripts, seeing the 
 
A HAND-TO-HAND ENCOUNTER. 651 
 
 entrenchments in their rear wreathed with smoke and flame, 
 imagined themselves caught between two fires, and becoming 
 bewildered, threw down their arms and surrendered. 
 
 Lane s men soon followed, arid breathless with excitement 
 went flying to the rear in tumultuous confusion, incited thereto 
 by sharp thrusts from Rebel bayonets in the rear, skillfully 
 wielded by a legion of Hood s most experienced veterans, forcing 
 them back, to and over the entrenchments, where numbers halted, 
 and turning upon their pursuers, poured a volley into their 
 ranks which no more served to break the momentum of the 
 charge than so many pattering rain drops. Onward they surged, 
 and swarming over the works scores were spitted on Federal 
 bayonets as they leaped the entrenchments. Federals and Con 
 federates were commingled in a close hand-to-hand encounter. 
 Numbers finally triumphed over valor, and all who were left 
 of that portion of the 23rd Corps stationed in the works for a 
 distance of three hundred yards to the right of the pike, embrac 
 ing two or three batteries, broke and fled with the fugitives 
 from the two brigades. Artillerists galloped away with the 
 caissons, leaving their guns, and dashed recklessly through the 
 panic-stricken throng that went flying towards the bridges, leav 
 ing the green sward behind them fitfully strewed with dead and 
 wounded. The ground was literally swept with sheets of fire 
 and lead, and the air was full of shrieking missiles. 
 
 The charge and rout was but the work of a few minutes. The 
 grand panorama of battle with all its sickening details could be 
 traced with terrible distinctness by the men of the First Brig 
 ade, who were in position to see it all. Another such a charge 
 and the whole line of works would be swept of defenders, and 
 with the bridges in the hands of the enemy, not a man could 
 escape. Events of such thrilling interest for an instant struck 
 
652 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the beholders dumb. Only for an instant, however, for noble 
 Opdyke sprang to the front, and waving his sword, shouted, "Up 
 and at them, men !" Just at that moment Gen. Stanley dashed up 
 to the left of the line, and with soul-stirring enthusiasm urging 
 the men forward to the rescue. The efforts of these officers were 
 bravely seconded by the regimental commanders, and <Col. Olson s 
 orders rang out clear as the blast of a bugle, " Fall in, 36th! 
 Forward to the trenches !" The men throwing away their bread 
 and coifee, sprang to their arms, and grasping their muskets, 
 charged down upon the foe on the run. 
 
 We can imagine no more thrilling episode, than when these 
 devoted veterans, with heads bent to the storm and with bayonets 
 lowered dashed through the spray of balls, and with cold steel 
 charged home upon the multitudinous hosts swarming over and 
 within the ramparts. They had scarcely eaten anything for 
 twelve hours ; they had marched and fought all the previous day, 
 and far into the night ; on the retreat, as rear guard, they had 
 ran and fought incessantly, until from hunger and fatigue they 
 were haggard and weak. Yet, when the hurried order came and 
 the color-bearer stepped to the front and held aloft the old, tat 
 tered banner, the noble fellows shouted their stirring war notes, 
 and on the double-quick cheered and charged upon that line of 
 fj re right into the very jaws of death ; and as the enemy, stung 
 to madness at the terrible onset, hurled line upon line of fresh 
 troops upon them, they still fought, yielding not an inch until 
 they had repelled the foe. 
 
 The officers of the 23rd Corps and the broken fragments of 
 the brigades of Lane and Conrad, seeing that the 1st Brigade 
 was holding the enemy at bay, flung themselves across the track 
 of the retreating fugitives, and alternately threatened and entreated 
 their men to rally and turn back to the support of Opdyke. 
 
RALLIED BY THE 36TH. 658 
 
 Some w we heard to say, " For shame, men! Can t you follow 
 where the 36th can lead ?" Hastily reforming, they rushed down 
 to where the 1st Brigade was engaged, firing as they ran, and 
 co-operated with Opdyke in beating the exultant enemy back and 
 recovering the lost position and guns. Thank God the enemy 
 was repulsed ! was badly beaten and forced back over the entrench 
 ments with fearful slaughter, and with the loss of four hundred 
 taken prisoners. 
 
 The battle did not cease with the re-occupation of the works. 
 Wave after wave of their reserves coming up, poured terrific vol 
 leys into our lines, and a continuous shower of lead and iron 
 whistled fiercely over the parapet. If but a head, an arm or a 
 finger protruded above the works, that head, arm or finger was 
 pretty sure to be perforated with shot. Regular volleys could 
 not be discerned. It was an incessant crash of guns that was 
 never silent for a moment. Mingling with the sharper tones of 
 musketry was the louder explosions of artillery in a continuous 
 roar. The Federals were sheltered behind solid embankments, 
 while the enemy stood exposed in the open fields, and if their 
 fire was terrific, ours was equally so. The effect of shot and 
 shell was absolutely awful. Every discharge of grape and can 
 ister marked its course through their ranks by a lane of fallen 
 men. The distance was not more than from ten to one hundred 
 yards, and at every discharge men went down. 
 
 Col. Olson was everywhere among his men with words of 
 cheer and encouragement, and utterly regardless of his own life 
 and safety. Shortly after reaching the works he was struck by 
 a musket ball, which entered his breast and passed through his 
 body in the region of the heart. He fell instantly, but in fall 
 ing requested Lieut Hall, of Company E, to take him to the 
 rear. Assisted by Sergt. Yarnell, of Company G, they carried 
 
654 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 him to the shelter of a brick house standing near the works, when, 
 perceiving that he was failing fast, the Lieutenant called to Capt. 
 Biddulph to attend to the regiment as the Colonel s wound was 
 mortal. Yarn ell wrenched a window shutter from the house, on 
 which the bleeding body of their commander was placed and hur 
 riedly borne to the rear, while musket balls and cannon shot were 
 striking around them in fearful quantities. 
 
 Reaching the river, they were none too soon to secure about 
 the last vacant place in an ambulance, in which he was tenderly 
 placed by the side of a wounded color-bearer. Then, taking a 
 last look of their dying chief, they hurried back to the trenches, 
 resumed their position in the line, and fought bravely to the end. 
 The Colonel s life rapidly ebbed away, and in a half unconscious 
 state he feebly whispered, "Oh help me, Lord!" These were 
 his last words, and then his heart was still. His noble spirit had 
 taken its flight to that country where wars and battles are unknown. 
 When brave Olson fell, a cold tremor thrilled along the line. 
 At any other time than in the face of the enemy, and under a 
 murderous fire, the men would have sat down and cried like child 
 ren over his untimely fate. Brave, generous, earnest and faith 
 ful, none had stood by the men or been more true to the country 
 than he. Always present in the perils and hardships of the 
 36th, he had shared them all and won his way into the hearts 
 and affections of the men, making a record of glory that will 
 never be closed up or forgotten, though his mangled remains may 
 moulder and lay hidden from sight in an unknown arid unmarked 
 grave. The name of PORTER C. OLSON will live forever, and be 
 handed down along the imperishable ages, indissolubly linked 
 with the fame of the immortal THIRTY-SIXTH. 
 
 After Col. Olson was carried back in a dying condition, word 
 was passed along the line to cease firing. None appeared to 
 
CHARGE OF THE FIRST BRIGADE. 655 
 
 understand from whence the order came. Some paid no attention 
 to it, but continued to load and fire as rapidly as possible, while 
 others hesitated, wondering the while at the purpose of such 
 orders, while the enemy s shot poured in unceasingly. Capt. 
 Biddulph could scarcely realize that his superior officers were 
 either slain or disabled, neither could he understand the object of 
 the suicidal order to cease firing at so critical a period of the 
 engagement. Before assuming any responsibility, he directed 
 Adjt. Case to go to Col. Opdyke for further orders, and pro 
 ceeded to consult his brother officers. While talking with Capt. 
 Hemmingway, near the corner of the brick house which afforded 
 a slight obstruction to the Rebel volleys, he was struck in 
 the face with a musket ball, which buried itself in his head, 
 destroyed the sight of his left eye, and prostrated him to the 
 earth. He was immediately carried back, and being unable to 
 gain admittance to an ambulance, was left alone to care for him 
 self. Faint and bleeding, with the assistance of a wounded com 
 rade, he drifted with the crowd of disabled soldiers towards Nash 
 ville and proceeded two miles on foot before reaching a field 
 hospital. 
 
 The charge of the 1st Brigade was not entirely successful in 
 regaining the whole line at the first onset. Their numbers were 
 too small to occupy and successfully defend a position which a 
 large portion of the 23rd Corps had been obliged to abandon. 
 A small salient to the right of the Columbia pike for a short time 
 was held by the enemy, who determined to use it as an entering 
 wedge through which to break the Federal line and recover the 
 works. To that point their commanders directed their most 
 powerful efforts, and the head of a Rebel column was actually 
 again breaking over the parapets and widening the breach, when 
 enfilading volleys from either side was directed against them, and 
 
656 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 it became manifest that the crowding of men into the position 
 under a cross fire so deadly, was but rushing them to certain death. 
 But they fought gallantly, and for twenty minutes maintained 
 the unequal contest before being expelled and the continuity of 
 the line established. 
 
 A prominent feature of the charge and final expulsion of the 
 enemy from the works, was the conspicuous position occupied by 
 the regimental flag and the heroic devotion of the color-bearers. 
 In the wild dash from the position in reserve upon the forces 
 thronging into the entrenchments, the flag of the 36th, ever in 
 the front, was first borne by Sergt. William R. Toll, of Company 
 C, who fell severely wounded before attaining half the distance. 
 Sergt. Christ. Zimmer, of Company B, snatching the flag from 
 the grasp of his wounded comrade, rushed forward with it to the 
 trenches ; but while passing over the bullet-scathed interval, the 
 staff was splintered three several times, while its precious folds 
 were rent in tatters by scores of hissing missiles. Zimmer was 
 among the first to reach the works with the flag, and in the brief 
 hand-to-hand encounter and carnage that succeeded, held it 
 proudly aloft, waving defiance to the foe. 
 
 Observing the imminent danger which threatened the left of 
 the line from the Rebel force still holding a portion of the works, 
 Zimmer sprang forward, shouting, " Hurrah, boys ; follow the 
 flag to the left !" The inspiring words were scarcely uttered, 
 when three bold Rebel soldiers were observed upon the ramparts, 
 aiming at the color-bearer the muzzles of their pieces nearly 
 touching him as he hurried by. There was a crash a blinding 
 sheet of fire, and Zimmer fell, his bones shattered and blood pour 
 ing from gaping wounds. He was immediately taken to the rear 
 and placed in an ambulance, and it was by his side that Col. Olson 
 breathed his last. 
 
SEARS BRAVE DEFENSE OP THE FLAG. 657 
 
 Charles Sears, of Company B, was the next custodian of the 
 battle-scarred relic, and right gallantly defended his sacred trust, 
 never allowing it to go down before the storm fiercely beating 
 against it. Where the lines were pressed the hardest ; where 
 bullets flew the thickest, there the regimental flag flaunted defiance 
 to .the foe. At last the staff was shot away, but seizing the shat 
 tered stump, in a moment more the red, white and blue was wav 
 ing over the ramparts. A burly Rebel, reaching over the works, 
 seized the splintered staff, and endeavored to wrench it from the 
 hands of its bearer. "No you don t !" said Sears " unless you 
 take me with it," and a brief contest for its possession ensued. 
 A shot from other parties came to Charlie s aid, and he retained 
 possession of the flag. Then cutting the remaining fragments 
 from the staff, he placed them in his bosom, and running the 
 gauntlet of fire, for some distance on his hands and knees, brought 
 what remained of the sacred emblem safely from the field. 
 
 Disappointed and enraged at the dislodgement of his forces 
 from the works, Gen. Hood organized a second assault, and with 
 unparalleled recklessness and disregard of life, again and again 
 hurled his solid columns upon the entrenchments and against the 
 fire of equally brave men, whose pride, patriotism, and physical 
 and mental powers, now fully aroused, were determined to hold 
 their position. Before their fire, rank upon rank melted away, 
 only to be succeeded by others, more frenzied and determined 
 than the first, and they, too, went down 
 
 " In one red burial blent," 
 
 or shattered by shot were sent whirling to the rear, leaving the 
 ground for many yards in front of the works literally heaped 
 with dead and wounded. 
 
 Gen. Pat. Cleburne, one of the most dashing and fearless sub 
 ordinate commanders in the Confederate army, twice lead his 
 
658 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 division to the foot of the entrenchments and to the very muzzles 
 of our guns. Mounted on a white horse he was observed every 
 where galloping over the field, directing the charge, cheering and 
 animating his men, a conspicuous object, challenging ourfireand 
 exciting admiration. Heading the second charge, he spurred his 
 horse upon the works just to the left of the 36th. The forefeet 
 of his steed were on the parapet, in the act of leaping over, when 
 both horse and rider, pierced by a score of musket balls, fell 
 
 " Mustered from service forever !" 
 
 The daring intrepidity of the Confederate General, if not pru 
 dent, was at least gallant, and elicited expressions of commenda 
 tion from the most inveterate of his enemies. 
 
 A third and fourth time did the Confederate officers bravely 
 lead their men to the charge, displaying a recklessness and gal 
 lantry in keeping with the boldness and determination of Opdyke 
 and his heroic First Brigade. Their generals straightened them 
 selves in their saddles, while in each face was depicted a deter 
 mination never to quit the field alive. Field and staff officers 
 cheered, encouraged and fairly forced their men up to the works. 
 How any of them survived was absolutely wonderful. Yet in 
 their desperation and madness, numbers reached the parapet, but 
 all attempts at storming it were vain. This disastrous game could 
 not long be persisted in, and soon they began to waver, and then 
 retreated, but not in tumultuous confusion and disorderly rout. 
 
 One hundred wagon loads of ammunition belonging to the 
 4th Corps alone were expended. The air was still, and the 
 smoke, caused by the burning of such a vast amount of powder, 
 drifting lazily in the air, hung like a funeral pall over the fearful 
 drama of death, which under its sulphury folds was being enacted. 
 The sun (which at this season sets early) went down, and the 
 gathering darkness lent new horrors to the scene. A. spectator 
 
A DESPERATE DEFENSE. 659 
 
 looking upon it from the opposite side of the river, says, "It 
 seemed like a sea of fire, with its leaping billows of flame, reach 
 ing out their fiery tongues and fitfully flashing upon the sky." 
 The guns, foul and nearly choked, launched a spitting fire into 
 the darkness, for an instant lighting up the gloom, revealed the 
 smoked and powder-begrimmed faces of the men, who, haggard 
 and wan, looked like hideous spectres evoked from the regions of 
 despair. At unfrequent lulls in the firing, the groans of the 
 wounded and shrieks of the dying came wailing out upon the 
 damp, night air, appalling the stoutest hearts. Death in all its 
 hideous forms everywhere strewed the ground. No words can 
 fitly express, nor painter s art overdraw the awful terrors of that 
 bloody field. 
 
 The earth-works were from three to five feet high, and on them 
 was laid a head log, between which and the underlying earth 
 was a narrow opening through which the infantry fired. The 
 log completely hid as well as protected the heads of the Federal 
 troops, and while the Confederate masses were in full view and 
 entirely unprotected, our men were out of sight and danger, 
 except from such of the enemy as clung to the outside of the 
 ramparts, and used the opening under the head log in common 
 with our men to fire upon those within. Throughout the action 
 large numbers of the enemy lay close under the entrenchments, so 
 that the works. which sheltered us also sheltered them. To retreat 
 under a fire which was searching out every square foot of the field in 
 front, was certain death, and they chose to remain until after 
 dark, when many voluntarily surrendered and were suffered to 
 come over into our lines. Others refusing to yield, continued to 
 fire through the opening, and many were the hand-to-hand 
 encounters over and about the works. The crack of revolvers 
 and other small arms, kept up after the main contest had virtually 
 
660 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ceased, showed the temper of those so closely confronting each 
 other. 
 
 As the main object of making a stand at Franklin had been 
 accomplished with the repulse of the enemy, holding them in 
 check until the trains and military stores were removed and 
 placed upon the road to Nashville ; now that the unmolested 
 retirement of the army to that point was secured, and no possible 
 benefits to be gained by holding the place longer, the movement 
 upon Nashville was resumed. 
 
 The next problem to solve was the safe withdrawal of the 
 troops from the entrenchments to the north bank of the Harpeth, 
 which commenced as soon as the slackened fire of the enemy 
 indicated that they had retired from our immediate front. Gen. 
 Hood mistrusted that such a movement would be made, and 
 remained on the alert, with his columns in readiness to spring 
 upon our rear and embarrass, if not prevent, its accomplishment. 
 A straggling fire at long range was kept up, more for the pur 
 pose of diverting, and to discover, if possible, what was going on 
 within our lines, than with the hope of working disaster. 
 
 The artillery was first taken back, the wheels being wrapped 
 with blankets, and then dragged noiselessly across the bridges 
 and planted upon the heights commanding the river and town, 
 without attracting attention. Then the flanks were withdrawn, 
 and when well under way, whispered orders passed from man to 
 man along the line, to " leave the works at midnight." Opdyke s 
 Brigade, in the center, was held the longest, and the 86th was 
 the last to quit the entrenchments and cross the bridges. 
 
 While this movement was in progress, some thoughtless vaga 
 bond applied a match to a vacant house, and the flames spread 
 ing, lighted up the surrounding landscape and threatened a gen 
 eral conflagration, rendering it difficult for bodies of troops to 
 
A FIRE REVEALS OUR POSITION. 661 
 
 move without being seen. An old fire engine was found, and 
 under the personal supervision of Gen. Wood, a stream of water 
 was poured upon the burning building and the flames extinguished. 
 The fire had, however, lighted up objects sufficiently to discover 
 the movement to Gen. Hood ? who promptly set a column in motion 
 and pressed the retiring pickets vigorously. Gen. Wood, from 
 chosen positions on the north side, covered the crossing and held 
 the Rebels in check until the bridges were destroyed by the rear 
 guard. Hood brought up his artillery and furiously shelled the 
 position held by Wood, who, however, stood firm until three o clock 
 in the morning, and then moved leisurely northward, as rear 
 guard to the Federal army. Hood was unable to cross a sufficient 
 force to obstruct the march, and beyond a slight skirmish with a 
 detachment of Forest s cavalry at Brentwood, no force of the 
 enemy was encountered, and the army marched quietly to Nash 
 ville. 
 
 We have abstained from mentioning in detail the part taken 
 in this engagement by the larger portion of the 23rd Corps, and by 
 Kimball s Division of the 4th Corps, occupying respectively the 
 extreme right and left of our line. The 1st Division, upon the 
 right was securely posted behind breastworks of considerable 
 strength, and the enemy s fiercest assaults being directed against 
 the centre, rendered it a comparatively easy matter to maintain 
 the position. No direct attack was made upon this portion of 
 the line, and Kimball s efforts were mainly directed to keeping 
 up an enfilading fire upon the flank of the attacking columns. 
 At one time a Confederate brigade attempted to move obliquely 
 across the field in front of Col. Kirby s Brigade. One volley 
 was sufficient to dissipate this force, and that was the only firing 
 on the part of this brigade. In the charges upon our centre, 
 Rebel detachments were frequently thrown in front of the left of 
 
662 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the division, but a few rounds of grape and musketry were quite 
 effectual in clearing the fields and driving the enemy back upon 
 their reserves. 
 
 The left flank, held by the 23rd Corps, under the immediate 
 command of Gen. Cox, though fiercely assailed, was somewhat 
 out of the line of the main Ilebel assault, but by maintaining an 
 oblique fire upon the flank of the attacking columns, greatly 
 aided the centre in holding its position, and inflicted frightful 
 losses upon the enemy. Both Gens. Kimball and Cox mingled 
 freely in the thickest of the conflict, sharing in the dangers and 
 uniting their efforts with others in .bringing about a successful 
 result. 
 
 Of the intrepidity of Opdyke and the gallant 1st Brigade, 
 more than a passing notice should be given. The historian of 
 the "Army of the Cumberland" has well said, "With regard to 
 the second prominent feature of this battle, that seldom in the 
 history of the war has a single brigade made itself so conspicu 
 ous in saving an army." And again, "When he dashed on the 
 breach he gave expression to the courage and purpose of every 
 man in that self-appointed forlorn hope, while those near Gen. 
 Stanley shouted, We can go \vhere the General can. : Opdyke 
 rode forward until he reached the enemy, followed closely by his 
 brigade. He first emptied his revolver, then clubbed it in the 
 hand-to-hand conflict, and as the deadly struggle raged more 
 fiercely, he dismounted and clubbed a musket. His men fought 
 as did their leader, and with bayonets baptized in blood they 
 hurled the enemy from the entrenchments and saved the army." 
 Four regimental commanders fell in this charge, but other officers 
 of similar temper maintained the leadership. Col. Opdyke 
 escaped injury. Gen. Stanley also escaped for a time, but in 
 leaving this brigade to look after others, w?s pierced in the neck 
 by a bullet and was compelled to leave the field. 
 
THE FEDERAL LOSSES. 663 
 
 A few yards in front of our position at the commencement of 
 the action, was standing a small clump of locust trees, ranging 
 from four to eight inches in diameter. These were literally 
 mowed down by musket shot, and looked as though riven by 
 lightning. The enemy for a long time crowded in front of our 
 position, and there being scarcely a lull in the firing, the havoc 
 wrought in their ranks must have been great. 
 
 In the charge of the 1st Brigade and at different periods in 
 the action, we captured thirty-three stands of colors. Their 
 guards were cut down by scores, and falling upon their flags 
 drenched them with their life s blood, and when gathered up and 
 taken to Nashville, their dripping folds attested the desperate 
 nature of the conflict, of the cruelty of war and its dreaded hor 
 rors. We also captured seven hundred and two prisoners, while 
 one thousand seven hundred and fifty of their dead were on the 
 field. Nearly every building in the place was filled with their 
 wounded, and on the re-occupation of the town after three weeks 
 had elapsed, three thousand eight hundred of their severely dis 
 abled still remained in hospital. Their known losses in killed, 
 wounded and prisoners, aggregated six thousand two hundred 
 and fifty, including thirteen generals. 
 
 The Federal losses were one hundred and eighty-nine killed, 
 one thousand and thirty-three wounded, and one thousand one 
 hundred arid four missing, a total of two thousand three hundred 
 and twenty-six. The loss of the 4th Corps was one thousand 
 three hundred and sixty-eight, nearly all from Wagner s Divis 
 ion, which sustained more than half the Federal loss. The loss 
 sustained by the 36th, as near as could be ascertained, was as 
 follows : 
 
 KILLED. 
 
 Lieut. Col Porter C. Olson; Sergt. James H. Alston, Co. E; Corp. 
 Alfred Torablin, Co. P; Privates, Robert C. Crawford, Co. D; H. D. 
 H ogue, Co. G, and Nicholas Swickhart, Co. I, 
 
664 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 WOUNDED. 
 
 Adjutant Charles F. Case, (since dead). 
 
 COMPANY A. 
 
 Sergt. Geo. L. Peeler; Corp. Charles Olsyeskie, (since dead) ; Corp. 0. 
 D. Shaw, (since dead). 
 
 COMPANY B. 
 
 Sergt. Chris. Zimmer; Sergt. Henry B. Latham, (since dead); John 
 Keenan. 
 
 COMPANY c. 
 
 Sergt. Win. R Toll; Sam. A. Markwell; Ezekiel Witniner, (since 
 dead); James Reuford; Julius C. Wright; Jasper Connors; Harvey P. 
 Dounell, James M. Black. 
 
 COMPANY D. 
 
 William Kimler, (since dead) ; Ichabod Leigh, (since dead) ; Edward 
 Lars, (since dead) ; David M. Patten ; David A. Parkes. 
 
 COMPANY E. 
 
 Sergt. Thomas P. Titlow; Christ. Battermau; James C. Stokes; Geo. 
 W. Lannigan ; Andrew J. Brannon. 
 
 COMPANY F. 
 
 James Perkins, (since dead) ; Joseph Markham ; George W. Morgan. 
 
 COMPANY G. 
 
 John Smith; Charles Hapenstall, (since dead). 
 
 COMPANY H. 
 
 Sergt. Day Elmore, (since dead); Andrew J. Conroe; Lillburn B. 
 Agnew; Frederick Shultz, (since dead); David Hartman (since dead). 
 
 COMPANY I. 
 
 Abram V. Wormley; Geo. Smallberger; Phillip L. Franz. 
 
 COMPANY K. 
 
 Capt. Geo. G. Biddulph; Corp. Daniel P. Hammond: Daniel Howard ; 
 John P. Lenhart; Geo. M. Scales; Wm. P. McBride, (since dead). 
 
 MISSING. 
 
 R. J. Caldwell, Henry G. Hodge, Wm. H. Moss, William A. Rogers, 
 Abram N. Ammerman, Thomas Rugan, Robert Russell, John J. Jordan, 
 Thomas Ridgeway, Elias Bartlett, John Nemyer, Sergt. J. M. Gordon, 
 Hiram Bogardus, Edward Smith, John Simons, Phillip Brocher. 
 
 It was supposed that a part of the reported missing were either 
 killed or left in the trenches, fatally wounded, and were subse 
 quently buried by the enemy, and thus no definite knowledge of 
 their fate has ever been obtained. 
 
COL. PORTER C. OLSON. 665 
 
 The circumstances attending the death of Lieut. Col. Olson 
 have already been related. Porter C. Olson was born in the 
 town of Manchester, near Niagara Falls, A. D., 1831. His father 
 was by birth a Norwegian and his mother an American lady. 
 The family removed to Newark, in Kendall County, Illinois, 
 when Porter was a lad. The usual advantages derived from 
 country schools were improved by him, until he was fitted for col 
 lege, and he subsequently graduated with honor from Beloit Col 
 lege, Wisconsin. At the breaking out of the Kebellion, he was 
 teaching the public school at Lisbon ; but patriotism, duty and 
 ambition called him from the school-room to the camp. Through 
 his efforts, a company was recruited at Newark, made up of young 
 men from that locality and the neighboring town of Mission. He 
 was elected its Captain, and his company, with full ranks, was 
 among the first at Camp Hammond. He followed the fortunes of 
 the regiment in its tedious marches ; participated in all its fierce 
 encounters, down to the fatal field at Franklin. Modest and 
 unassuming, it required a personal acquaintance to fully under 
 stand and appreciate the many excellencies of his character. 
 Next to the lamented Miller, none stood higher or had a warmer 
 place in the affections of the men than Lieut. Col. PORTER C. 
 OLSON. 
 
 Another serious loss to the regiment, and one keenly felt and 
 deplored by all, was the wounding and subsequent death of Adjt. 
 Charles F. Case. He had been connected with the regiment 
 from the first, had served in the ranks as a private, and by merito 
 rious conduct and superior business qualifications, had by successive 
 promotions attained the rank of Adjutant. While moving over 
 the field in the discharge of his duty, he was struck in the knee 
 by a minnie ball. The dangerous character of the wound ren 
 dered amputation necessary. He was removed to Nashville, an <J 
 
 43 
 
666 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 placed in the old College Hospital. Tie never rallied from the 
 shock, but lingered from day to day until the night of the 17th 
 of December, after the battle of Nashville, when he was taken 
 with congestive chills and all hopes of his recovery were blasted. 
 Still his heroic spirit struggled for the mastery over pain and 
 death until the night of the 18th, when murmuring the words 
 he had sung for dying comrades on battle-fields before, 
 
 " Oh ! swing low, sweet chariot, 
 Oh ! leave me not behind," 
 
 he breathed his last. No words can befittingly express the sor 
 row of Company I when informed of his death. They had 
 known him as a private soldier and as an officer, had found him 
 possessed of a great heart, of manliness and high soldierly 
 qualities. 
 
CHAPTER XLII. 
 
 BATTLE OF NASHVILLE. 
 
 OOD S object in the invasion of Tennessee was 
 outlined in the general orders of Beauregard, 
 to u deal rapid and vigorous blows to strike 
 the enemy while dispersed, and by that distract 
 Sherman s advance into Georgia." Hood had 
 pledged his troops that they should eat their 
 Christmas dinners in Nashville; and to redeem that pledge and 
 accomplish the declared object of the campaign required rapid 
 movements. Well he knew that to allow his opponent time to 
 concentrate his scattered forces, would render the fulfillment of 
 his pledges difficult, and jeopardize the entire campaign. Hence 
 the rapidity of his movements, before which three defensive posi 
 tions, namely, Pulaski, Columbia and Franklin, had been aband 
 oned. 
 
 It was Gen. Thomas design on assuming command, to make 
 the Tennessee river his base of operations, but the tardy move 
 ments of the widely scattered detachments comprising his com 
 mand, prevented his assuming the offensive and offering battle in 
 the heart of the so-called Confederacy. The three veteran divis 
 ions of A. J. Smith and Winslow s cavalry, while on the way to 
 
668 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 join him, were temporarily diverted to Missouri to assist in the 
 expulsion of Price. Steedman was holding the Nashville and 
 Chattanooga Railroad, which it was not prudent to abandon until 
 the enemy s plans were developed and his objective point known. 
 The 4th and 23rd Corps, under Scofield, were to the front, in 
 the vain endeavor to check, or at least delay the advance of Hood. 
 
 It was not until the first of December that these detachments 
 were concentrated at Nashville, and that Gen. Thomas found him 
 self at the head of an army sufficiently numerous to assure him of 
 victory. His cavalry was without horses, and without a mounted 
 force equal in numbers and efficiency to that of Forest, with 
 which to follow up an advantage, a victory under such circum 
 stances would have been barren of permanent results. Hence 
 the necessity for the retreat upon Nashville and the unavoidable 
 delay of two weeks before the attack was made, during which 
 time Hood, confronting him only from the south, was deluded 
 into the belief that the city of Nashville was enduring all the 
 rigors of a siege. 
 
 Gen. Scofield s column, after the battle of Franklin, proceeded 
 to Nashville unmolested, the rear guard reaching the city at one 
 o clock on the afternoon of the 1st of December. On their 
 arrival, the different corps were assigned to positions on the defen 
 sive line, selected by Gen. Thomas. The 4th Corps, under Gen. 
 Wood, (who upon the wounding and retirement of Gen. Stanley 
 had succeeded to the command), took up its position on the Hills- 
 boro and Granny White pikes the key-point and center of the 
 defensive line. Gen. A. G. Smith was posted on the right, and 
 Gen. Scofield, now commanding only the 23rd Corps, occupied 
 the left. Gen. Steedman, with a considerable force, distributed 
 along the line of the Nashville & Chattanooga Railroad, to keep 
 open the communications and guard against flank movements, 
 
HOOD ON MONTGOMERY HILL. 669 
 
 was ordered to the general rendezvous, as soon as it was rendered 
 certain that Nashville was the object of Hood s attack. His 
 arrival with five thousand men, on the evening of the 1st, com 
 pleted the concentration of forces for the defense of the city and 
 for offensive movements. 
 
 Numerically, Gen. Thomas army was now superior to Hood s 
 numbering quite fifty-five thousand, of all arms ; composed of 
 detachments from almost every district, department and military 
 sub-division known in the west, with an infusion of raw, hun 
 dred-day infantry regiments and colored troops. Deducting the 
 losses sustained in the engagement at Franklin, Hood s army at 
 this time numbered not far from forty thousand. 
 
 The terrible castigation inflicted upon the enemy on the 30th, 
 induced Gen. Hood to proceed with more caution than usual, and 
 it was not until the 3rd of December that his infantry appeared 
 in force and commenced the construction of a line of works along 
 the heights, two and a-half miles south of the city. The outer 
 pickets were driven in, after skirmishing with the Rebel advance, 
 and the next morning the southern cross was discovered waving 
 from the summit of Montgomery Hill, within six hundred yards 
 of the Federal position. At once, from Forts Negley, Morton, 
 Confiscation and from salient points in Gen. Wood s front, near 
 est the enemy s position, an artillery fire was opened upon their 
 works. But, intent on making his line secure, and doubtless 
 husbanding his ammunition, the enemy continued to throw up 
 intrenchments, and responded but feebly to the Federal can 
 nonade. 
 
 After the completion of his works, Hood remained inactive in 
 his position, his army one of observation, rather than invasion. 
 But his cavalry was vigilant and untiring in its demonstrations 
 upon the posts still held by the Federals, above and below the 
 
670 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 city, and upon the block-houses along the line of the Chattanooga 
 Railroad. 
 
 The country, unaware of the insuperable obstacles to an imme 
 diate attack, grew restive at the apparent delay of Gen. Thomas, 
 and clamored for his removal. Gen. Grant expressed much 
 uneasiness in regard to the situation, fearing that Hood would by 
 a flank movement cross the Cumberland, march into Kentucky 
 and re-enact the Bragg and Bell campaign of 1862. Such AVUS 
 his anxiety and dissatisfaction with Thomas inaction, that he 
 assented to his removal and the placing of Gen. Scofield in com 
 mand. Conscious of doing all that was in the power of any man 
 in a like situation to do, and of the rectitude and wisdom of his 
 purposes, he was not to be driven into a movement against his 
 better judgment, or forced to commence offensive operations until 
 such time as his preparations were in a state to assure him of 
 success. He preferred to be relieved, rather than be responsible 
 for the results of a battle fought under unfavorable conditions. 
 Though the order relieving him from command was suspended, 
 there was no cessation in the importunities, urging an immediate 
 attack, and of positive orders to move without delay. 
 
 By the 9th of December, Gen. Wilson had mounted and armed 
 a force of cavalry sufficient for present needs, and all things 
 essential to a vigorous campaign were in readiness and an attack 
 was determined upon. But with the completion of his prepara 
 tions, came a terrible storm of rain and sleet, which, freezing as 
 it fell, covered the whole country with a sheet of ice, upon which 
 horses and men could with difficulty stand, much less advance up 
 steep slopes and fight to any advantage. In endeavoring to get 
 the cavalry in position, many horses fell upon the hard and slip 
 pery ice, some being killed and others permanently disabled. 
 The same cause that delayed the attack, held Hood as in a vice 
 
CONCERNING A NEW COMMANDER. 671 
 
 ice-bound on the storm-beaten hills, and he could not, if he would, 
 escape the fate that awaited him. 
 
 Death and casualties resulting from the battle of Franklin 
 wrought many changes in the field and line officers of the 4th 
 Corps. Gen. Thomas J. Wood, brave, intrepid and prompt, 
 commanded the Corps after the wounding of Gen. Stanley. Gen. 
 Wagner, also wounded in that engagement, for some time per 
 sisted in remaining at the head of his division, but was at last 
 obliged to succumb, and proceeded to Louisville for medical treat 
 ment. Brig. Gen. Elliott succeeded to the command of the 2nd 
 Division, and led it in the ensuing campaign. Not a field officer 
 was left with the 36th, and Capt. William Mitchell, of Company 
 A, the ranking officer present for duty, acted temporarily as reg 
 imental commander. A difference arose among officers, largely 
 shared in by the men, in regard to who was justly entitled to 
 the command. A decided preference was expressed in favor of 
 those who had remained with the boys, who had shared their 
 hardships, and in times of danger had remained at their posts. 
 Officers with commissions antedating the latter, whose qualifica 
 tions for detached service and courts-martial were pre-eminent, 
 the duties of which took them away from their regiment and out 
 of gun shot of the enemy, were not slow in pressing their claims. 
 Others, whose dissolute habits disgraced the badges they wore, 
 also coveted the honor of commanding the 36th. To such, a 
 decided hostility was at once manifested. To avoid complica 
 tions and difficulty, the regimental officers generally united in a 
 written request to Col. Opdyke to detail a field officer from 
 another regiment to take the command until these differences 
 were adjusted. Accordingly Major L. P. Iloldon, of the 88th 
 Illinois Infantry, was assigned to the command until the pro 
 motion of Capt. George W. Mossman, of Company F, to the 
 
672 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 vacant Majority, a position by gallant services fairly earned, and 
 one eminently satisfactory to the regiment. Sergeant Major 
 Warren C. Massey, after the death of Adjt Case, was promoted 
 to the Adjutancy, and held the position until the final muster 
 out of the regiment. 
 
 Picket duty at Nashville was not very onerous, and the men 
 of the 36th remained much of the time in their quarters, shel 
 tered from the rude winter storms that howled around. Throw 
 ing up entrenchments, picket duty, cutting wood, standing arpund 
 the fire smoking and discussing the probability of a " brail with 
 the Johnnies," were matters of such every day occurrence, and 
 so barren of adventures, that the journals before me epitomize 
 the events of a day in a single sentence. An extract from the 
 journal of Silas Dyer is an index of the whole. It is as follows: 
 " Was on picket to-day in close proximity to the enemy s skir 
 mishers, and although there was some firing between us, no one 
 was hurt except a number of sheep that unwittingly wandered 
 in range of our guns." It is fair to presume from the well known 
 gastronomic habits of the boys, they did not allow so much val 
 uable mutton to spoil. 
 
 On the 14th the weather began to moderate, and by noon the 
 ice had so far melted as to be no longer a hinderance to army 
 movements, and Gen. Thomas resolved upon attacking the next 
 day, for which immediate preparations were made. Gen. Wil 
 son with the greater portion of the cavalry was sent to the right 
 of Gen. A. J. Smith, to guard that flank and assist in turning 
 the enemy s position, and to follow up any advantage that might 
 be gained. The Corps commanders were called together for con 
 sultation, and to receive final instructions regarding the specific 
 movements of their respective commands. The general outline 
 of the plan of action resolved upon, was to throw a sufficient 
 
ACTION OP THE FIFTEENTH. 673 
 
 force upon the enemy s left and front to carry his position. At 
 the same time Gen. Steedman was to demonstrate upon their 
 right, to attract attention, hold their forces and prevent, as far 
 as possible, reinforcements from being sent to the left, where the 
 principal attack was to be made. 
 
 At daylight on the 15th the several commands began to move 
 to the positions assigned them by the orders of the day before. 
 A dense fog curtained the landscape, hiding the two armies from 
 each other, which, with the undulations of the ground, concealed 
 the movements of the national troops as they manoeuvred for 
 position. The troops in the entrenchments took up positions in 
 advance, being relieved by hundred-day men, quarter-master s 
 employes and irregular detachments, organized for that purpose, 
 marched from the city under Gens. Cruft, Miller and Donaldson, 
 and occupied the works. Gen. A. J. Smith advanced his divis 
 ions to the Harding and Charlotte pikes, skirmishing heavily 
 with the enemy s outposts, silencing a battery and menacing his 
 left. The 23rd Corps, when relieved by Gen. Cruft, moved 
 rapidly from the left to the right, taking position in the interval 
 between the 4th Corps and Gen. Smith s command, partially in 
 rear and in support of each. After the deployment of the 
 infantry, the cavalry under Gen. Wilson at once assumed posi 
 tion on the extreme right, reaching out and lapping around the 
 Rebel left. The 4th Corps, under Gen. Wood, was formed in 
 the following order : The 1st Division in the centre, the 3rd 
 Division on the left, and the 2nd Division on the right, in double 
 battle line, the first deployed, while the second held in reserve 
 was formed in column by divisions opposite the intervals in the 
 first. In front was a cloud of skirmishers, that under cover of 
 the fog advanced near to and in point blank range of the enemy s 
 first line, keeping up a close fire and picking oft those that showed 
 themselves above the works. 
 
674 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Great was the astonishment of the Confederates upon the 
 clearing up of the fog, at seeing long blue lines of Federal troops 
 drawn up in battle array and menacing them in front and flank. 
 At frequent intervals along the line batteries were in position, 
 occasionally trying the effect of shot at long range, or covering 
 the advance of skirmishers. Ammunition and ambulance trains 
 were snugly sheltered in ravines. The work of storming the 
 hills was mainly left to the infantry, who near at hand was massed 
 behind hills or in open fields, impatiently waiting the opening of 
 a conflict that in its effects was to be decisive of rebellion in the 
 west. The enemy s batteries, which during the twelve days of 
 nominal investment had been quietly perched upon the hill tops, 
 pointing toward the city and grimly overlooking the intervening 
 slopes, until now voiceless and still, suddenly aroused from their 
 lethargy, and the roar of cannon, like the sullen bark of watch 
 dogs awoke answering echoes from hill and valley. The skir 
 mishers, concealed from sight within the enveloping folds of misty 
 fog curtains, advanced well to the front, and established them 
 selves in close proximity to the Confederate line. From logs, 
 stumps and hillocks they poured a galling fire into the ranks of 
 their opponents, and in turn received the concentrated evidences 
 of Rebel wrath, in the form of grape-shot, canister and musket 
 balls. 
 
 When preparations for the attack were completed, and troops 
 in position to assail the front and flank of the enemy s line, Gen. 
 Steedman was ordered to advance against Hood s right, in sem 
 blance of an assault, with as much display of force and vigor of 
 movement as possible, in order to deceive the confederate com 
 mander as to the real point of attack. Gen. Steedman had already 
 organized a strong column for this purpose, composed of detach 
 ments from three brigades, including a large number of colored 
 
A GALLANT CHARGE. 675 
 
 troops, who for the first time in the west were to compete with 
 white soldiers and veterans of years of experience and dis 
 cipline. Prompt to the order, the column marched out and swept 
 gallantly up the slope of a hill in front, on the summit of which 
 the enemy s pickets were strongly posted. These were hurled 
 from their position, and rushing pell-mell down the opposite 
 declivity, were chased to cover behind a line of works, erected 
 on the south side of the Chattanooga Railroad. With one bold 
 dash this was carried, and almost before the enemy was aware of 
 the movement, the works were in our hands. This advance was 
 made in the face of a heavy fire, with scarcely a halt. So little 
 reliance had been placed in the colored soldiers ability to stand 
 fire, that a line was formed in reserve with bayonets fixed, for 
 the purpose of holding them to their work. But the result 
 proved there was no necessity for this, as the negroes were not 
 outdone in gallantry and steadiness, and no body of regulars 
 could have been under better discipline, or easier handled. 
 
 After capturing the works, Gen. Steedman thought to change 
 his feint to a real attack, and proposed to hold what he had 
 gained. It was only on this flank that the advance of the enemy 
 had been seriously opposed, and resistance offered to the con 
 struction of offensive works. The spirited advance and tenacity 
 of purpose displayed by Steedman, completely deceived the 
 Rebel commander as to the ultimate purpose of his adversary, 
 and he drew largely from his center and left, thereby greatly 
 weakening the force that was to meet the real attack, and hur 
 ried re-inforceinents to his right the point threatened by Steed 
 man but which in reality was only a diversion to attract atten 
 tion from combinations forming at other portions of the line. 
 Against the preponderating numbers now hurled against him, 
 the exposure to enfilading batteries, stationed on the surround- 
 
676 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ing hills and concentrated upon this single point, rendering it 
 untenable, Gen. Steedraan saw that the position could not be 
 held, and withdrew to the shelter of the hill in front, holding 
 himself in readiness to execute other movements in carrying out 
 the general plan of operations. The object of this first demon 
 stration was fully accomplished, for the continued roar of guns 
 away to the right, indicated that Scofield, Smith and Wood were 
 launching their thunderbolts and directing assaults against a 
 weakened adversary, and executing to the letter their part of the 
 grand plan so minutely set forth in Gen. Thomas orders. 
 
 When we heard the heavy booming of Steedman s artillery to 
 the left, and the almost instantaneous response of Rebel batter 
 ies, we knew that the time for action had arrived. From the 
 position of the 36th, on a high swell of land, contiguous to the 
 Hillsboro pike, the Federal formation could be traced through 
 out much of its extent. The position of the skirmish line, well 
 up towards the Rebel works, was indicated by little smoke-puffs 
 and the rattle of musketry. Thousands of anxious eyes watched 
 them as they crouched behind trees, or lay behind logs or in hol 
 lows, their muskets ever ready for use, if but the smallest patch 
 of Confederate gray was exposed to view. 
 
 Directly in front of the 4th Corps was Montgomery hill, tow 
 ering a hundred feet above the surrounding hills, a position 
 strong by nature, fortified and strengthened by Hood and regarded 
 as the principal salient in the enemy s line. The ascent, except on 
 the left and rear, was rocky and precipitous, and covered with thick 
 underbrush and forest trees. The approaches were intersected 
 by abatis and sharpened stakes firmly planted in the ground. 
 The summit bristled with cannon, situated so as to enfilade the 
 approaches and cut down an approaching column. Up this 
 ascent, fronted and flanked by batteries,and these supported by 
 
TAKING OF MONTGOMERY HILL. 677 
 
 heavy lines of infantry must move the storming column. It was 
 rightfully conjectured that the enemy would put forth his heaviest 
 efforts to retain this position. During the formation of the 
 assaulting column, the summit was wreathed in smoke, and the 
 deep booming of heavy guns waved defiance and poured down a 
 continuous tempest of shot and shell. This was not endured on 
 our part in silence, for the eager gunners having sighted their 
 pieces, the very earth trembled with the thunder of artillery as 
 the guns hurled back a responsive tempest upon their position, 
 to divert, if possible, their fire from the approaches over which 
 our charging columns must advance. 
 
 The brigade of Col. Post, composed of heroes worthy of the 
 occasion, was selected for the work, and swinging around to the 
 left to take advantage of the ascent, they dashed up the hill in 
 the face of iron thunder-bolts launched Avith merciless skill on 
 their devoted heads. Forward was the word, and closing the 
 gaps in the line they pushed on and on, up and over the entrench 
 ments, gaining the summit of Montgomery Hill, the key-point 
 of the enemy s position. It was a perilous achievement, but 
 grandly executed. 
 
 Having secured the hill and Hood s advance line, Gen. Wood 
 brought forward his batteries, advanced his skirmishers, and 
 made preparations for carrying the second line of works. In 
 the long, thin skirmish line in advance of the 4th Corps, were 
 twenty-two members of the 36th with Lieut. Hall at their head. 
 They had gained a comparatively sheltered position in a clump 
 of timber not far from a three gun redoubt, situated in a pro 
 jecting angle formed by a heavy stone Avail, Avhich answered the 
 double purpose of a protection to the battery and as rifle-pits. 
 When from appearances it was judged that a general movement 
 of the whole line had commenced, Hall left the timber an4 
 
678 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 advanced his little detachment along the Hillsboro Pike to a 
 position at the right of the projecting salient, where the enemy 
 had constructed an abatis of rails, extending across the road, 
 which had been used as a picket station. He was in plain sight 
 and subjected to a heavy fire at short range. Abandoning the 
 road, his party took refuge behind the wall to the right of the 
 pike, and under its cover advanced along the edge of a field some 
 distance beyond the Confederate battery. Smith s charge on the 
 right was throwing the enemy into confusion. A general advance 
 of the Federal line in front increased their excitement, and little 
 squads of panic-stricken Rebels were filtering to the rear, and 
 fleeing to the valley to the left of the projecting salient. All 
 this Lieut. Hall took in at a glance, and he thus briefly addressed 
 his men : " Now, boys, is our time ! I believe we can take that 
 battery. The Johnnies are already more than half whipped. 
 How many of you are ready to go in ?" Not a man hesitated ! 
 In one solid body they rushed across the pike, scaled the wall in 
 rear of the guns, and in not the mildest terms or the politest 
 language, the surrender of the battery was demanded. Without 
 the firing of a gun or the slightest manifestation of resistance, 
 the Rebels threw down their arms and surrendered. The battery 
 was supported by the 20th Alabama Regiment, arid its com 
 mander delivered his sword to Lieut. Hall, who retained posses 
 sion of it and has it now, a highly prized trophy of his intre 
 pidity and daring. Private Case, of Company E, secured the 
 regimental flag, one of the finest in Hood s army. Intrusting 
 it to a discharged soldier and former comrade for safe keeping, 
 it was lost and no trace of it has since been obtained. 
 
 This brilliant dash resulted in the capture of one hundred and 
 twenty prisoners, with their arms, besides the battery of three 
 brass field pieces, with their caissons and ammunition. A man 
 
HALL BOSSES THE JOB. 670 
 
 was placed over each gun, with instructions to hold them until 
 they could be turned over and receipted for by the division com 
 mander or his representative. Meanwhile, the 4th Corps had 
 reached the enemy s lines and stormed various portions of their 
 works. A staff officer, of the rank of 2nd Lieutenant, attached 
 to the 3rd Division, entered the redoubt and bruskly demanded 
 the guns. u Not by a d d sight," promptly responded Hall. 
 "I am a staif officer, sir," was the lofty reply, u and you men 
 had better be careful what you do." To this menace, Hall 
 replied, " I am a Lieutenant, sir, and bossing this job, and if you 
 lay your hands upon these guns to take possession, I ll cleave 
 you to the earth. To the 2nd Division belongs the honor of 
 their capture, and to Gen. Elliott alone will I deliver them." 
 Hall had been upon the picket line during the day arid all the 
 preceding night. In reaching the Confederate position he had 
 forced his way through tangled thickets arid briar patches ; had 
 crawled through the mud ; a bullet had carried away a portion 
 of his hat, through which his disheveled hair protruded ; his 
 clothes were badly torn ; his face begrimed with powder and dirt, 
 and altogether he was a sight to behold. With little about him 
 but his indomitable pluck to prepossess one in his favor, no won 
 der the staff officer was deceived as to the rank of the person he 
 so unceremoniously accosted, whose prompt reply and readiness 
 to support his claim to the guns by arguments more potent than 
 words did not admit of further controversy. S. G. Dyer, E. S. Case 
 and one other, whose name has been forgotten, remained with the 
 guns until Gen. Elliott came up, and to him they were delivered 
 and his receipt taken for them. In the general advance, A. J. 
 Smith s left flank became involved with Gen. Wood s right, and 
 some of Smith s troops entering the redoubt soon after its cap 
 ture, conflicting claims as to the honor and fruits of victory arose. 
 
680 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 But abundant evidence as to whom the honor of this brilliant 
 achievement rightfully belongs, is not wanting, and the truth of 
 the statement here made must forever remain unchallenged. 
 
 In a line of battle miles in extent, composed of separate divi 
 sions and army corps, the movement and details cannot be taken 
 in from a single stand point, and the Battle of Nashville was not 
 an exception. 
 
 The booming of Steedman s guns on the extreme left was the 
 signal for A. J. Smith to commence the initiative of battle on 
 the right. His division moved rapidly behind its skirmishers, 
 upon the Harding and Hillsboro pikes, gradually wheeling to 
 the left, until his line was parallel to, and in advance of, the 
 Hardin road. 
 
 The converging lines of advance brought the wings of A. J. 
 Smith and the 4th Corps together, and the interval being closed, 
 Gen. Scofield rapidly passed in rear of A. J. Smith with the 
 23rd Corps, and forming on his right, moved in conjunction with 
 it against the enemy s left. A number of minor positions, situ 
 ated on a group of hills near the Hillsboro pike, were carried 
 after slight opposition, and the enemy driven, with loss of pris 
 oners, across the road and the valley beyond, to a second range 
 of hills overlooking the Granny White pike. The Confederate 
 commander having partially recovered from his surprise, collected 
 a heavy force with which to deal a counter blow, or at least check 
 the sweeping charges which Smith, Scofield and Wilson was hurl 
 ing upon his left. 
 
 One of Scofield s brigades, under Gen. Cooper, crossed the 
 valley and commenced the ascent of the hills, when a heavy force 
 coming up from the left appeared in his rear, and there was dan 
 ger of the brigade being crushed between two opposing forces, 
 but Gens. Cox and Couch promptly advanced against the latter, 
 
MOVEMENT OF FOUKTH CORPS. 681 
 
 giving them sufficient occupation in warding off their blows, as 
 to divert attention from Cooper and his brigade, which was in no 
 wise endangered, but gallantly executed the movement it had 
 commenced, and carried the left of a series of hills overlooking 
 and commanding the Granny White pike. In the valley the 
 resistance was obstinate, and a furious engagement continued 
 until dark, attended with considerable loss on both sides. The 
 enemy eventually was forced to retire, and occupied the hills 
 extending south from the position occupied by Cooper. Dark 
 ness put an end to further movements in this quarter, and after 
 entrenching the positions gained, the troops bivouaced for the 
 night. 
 
 The 4th Corps moved simultaneously with Gen. Smith against 
 the second line of works, in rear of Montgomery Hill. The 
 reserves were brought up and formed in line of battle, with the 
 intention of engaging the enemy with the entire corps. In front 
 of Gen. Kimball s Division was an elevation strongly forti 
 fied. The fire of Wood s batteries was concentrated upon this 
 hill for an hour, during which time Smith and Wilson were 
 assailing the enemy s left, crushing their lines and capturing one 
 after another of their salients and batteries. All being in readi 
 ness, the order to charge was given, and swiftly the column 
 moved to its appointed task. Scarcely had it started, when 
 word was given to double-quick. Cheer upon cheer swelled up 
 from the ranks ; the fatigues of last night s anxious watching ; 
 the strain upon the mind and muscle, incident to the excitement 
 of the occasion were forgotten, and Kimball s whole division, 
 with an impetuosity which nothing could check, ascended the 
 hill, stormed the ramparts, and captured colors, cannon and 
 prisoners. There was no pause from the commencement of the 
 charge until its brilliant and successful termination. 
 
 44 
 
682 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 At the same time Gen. Elliott carried the entrenchments in 
 his front ; captured hundreds of prisoners, and swept the terror- 
 stricken Confederates in disorderly rout before him. In this 
 general advance, the right of the 2nd Division of the 4th Corps 
 became commingled with the left of A. J. Smith, and shortly 
 after its surrender to Lieut. Hall, numbers of Gen. Smith s troops 
 entered the redoubt at the point of contact between the two corps, 
 and hence the conflicting claims to the honor and results of that 
 achievement. 
 
 After gaining complete possession of the enemy s line, Gen. 
 Wood was ordered to the Franklin pike, two miles distant, and 
 both skirmishers and reserves pushed on, the remnants of Con 
 federate organizations retreating in disorder before them, making 
 scarcely a show of resistance to the Federal advance. The ground 
 was cumbered with arms and military equipments, thrown away in 
 their hurried flight. Night came on before the corps had reached 
 its destination. The fighting for the day was over, and the tired 
 soldiers, having fought bravely, halted on ground wrested from 
 the enemy, and warmed themselves by their abandoned camp- 
 fires. Hungry and fatigued, without tents, overcoats or blankets, 
 they lay upon their arms on the damp, cold ground, and shivered 
 the long night through. A scanty meal was brought up from the 
 rear, but not half enough in quantity to satisfy the knawings of 
 hunger, resulting from an eighteen-hour fast. 
 
 On the extreme left, permanent advantages were gained, sub 
 sequent to the feint in the earlier part of the day. The works 
 contiguous to the Murfreesboro and Nolansville pikes were car 
 ried and firmly held, and the Rebel right kept in constant fear of 
 an attack in force. In these achievements, the colored troops 
 took a prominent part, endured the fatigues and shared the suc 
 cesses equally with the whites. 
 
LINCOLN CONVEY S THANKS. 683 
 
 During the day, the first and second lines of defense were cap 
 tured; the enemy forced back more than two miles to the base of 
 the Overtoil and Harpeth Hills, his left turned and one of his 
 two lines of retreat threatened. Seventeen pieces of artillery 
 were captured ; more than two thousand prisoners sent to the 
 rear, and thousands of small arms given up or thrown away. The 
 whole Federal army, elated with the success of the day, and con 
 fident of a complete victory on the morrow, bivouacked on the 
 field they had so gallantly won. 
 
 News of these splendid successes sped over the country on the 
 swift wings of lightning, and the joy of the people was unbounded. 
 President Lincoln telegraphed his satisfaction at the result to 
 Gen. Thomas and his brave army as follows : 
 
 Please accept for yourself, officers and men, the Nation s thanks 
 for your work of yesterday. You made a magnificent beginning. 
 A grand consummation is within your reach. Do not let it slip. 
 
 A. LINCOLN. 
 
 Gen. Grant, Secretary Stanton, and men high in civil and 
 military authority, showered their congratulations, while the firing 
 of cannon in every city and village, testified the general joy over 
 the result. The army had never wavered in its devotion to Gen. 
 Thomas. It had not felt nor expressed any uneasiness, and now 
 looked forward with calm assurance of a decisive result on the 
 morrow a consummation which it had never for a moment 
 doubted during all the days of delay, and in subsequent move 
 ments they felt as if the eyes of the nation and the world were 
 upon them. 
 
 One result, so disastrous in other respects to the enemy, was 
 his ejectment from all his carefully selected and strongly fortified 
 positions. His lines of retreat were also seriously threatened, 
 and in order to keep open the latter and maintain a semblance of 
 resistance, new positions were selected, and during the night his 
 
684 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 centre and right fell back to the new line. His right rested on 
 the Ovcrton Hills, covering the Franklin pike, his left remained 
 on the Brentwood range, near the Granny White road, in the 
 position held at the close of the day. His line was contracted, 
 his troops massed in close order along the base and on the slopes 
 of the hills, and his artillery planted at points most available for 
 effective use. During the night Hood s army was busy fortify 
 ing and strengthening this new position. In front of his picket 
 line large trees were felled, brush piled and obstructions of every 
 kind interposed against the Federal advance. A quarter of a 
 mile in rear of these temporary barricades their main line was 
 posted, earth-works thrown up and a stone fence improvised as a 
 means of defense. They were still busy with pick-axe and spade 
 when daylight revealed their new position. Orders were given 
 to advance rapidly at six o clock A. M., not to desist in the assault 
 should the enemy stand and accept battle, and not to linger in 
 the pursuit should they retreat. 
 
 At the very outset our skirmishers found themselves confronted 
 by a strong picket line securely posted behind the barricade, and 
 they knew it to be a hazardous undertaking to carry a position 
 both naturally and artificially strong, but by a common impulse 
 without orders they moved upon that treacherous line of fallen 
 trees, behind which lay hundreds of Confederate marksmen. 
 Fired by a common enthusiasm, lifted on a wave of common 
 excitement, they rushed forward in the desperate charge. Anx 
 ious thousands in reserve were watching them, when suddenly a 
 line of fire fringed the barricade, and volley after volley was 
 poured upon the advancing line. Some were wounded, and limp 
 ing painfully back were carried on stretchers to the hospital tents 
 already pitched behind sheltering elevations out of range of 
 Rebel cannon. Some were killed outright and left upon the field. 
 
MOSSMAN S GALLANT ACTION. 
 
 their cold, blank eyes gazing fixedly up into the azure heavens. 
 Others filled their places, and with cheering, rushed up the ascent, 
 and charging with cold steel upon the barricades, finally drove 
 every Rebel out of his hiding place. Then one long cheer 
 relieved the pent up excitement of the reserves, and was wafted 
 to the front as a testimonial of gratitude for the work they had 
 performed. 
 
 Among those of the 36th who had pushed their way to the 
 front were Joseph Scofield and M. Gr. Yarnell, of Co. G, who 
 took position behind a fallen tree. Though receiving marked 
 attention from Rebel batteries and marksmen in front, yet by 
 closely hugging the opposite side of the friendly log, they felt 
 themselves tolerably secure. But a grape shot passing under it 
 and through the accumulated rubbish, struck Scofield in the hip, 
 inflicting a dangerous, and what at the time was supposed to be 
 a mortal wound. Handing his trinkets and money to Yarnell, 
 and giving directions in regard to their disposition in case he 
 should not survive, he begged to be taken to the rear. Bullets 
 were hissing like serpents in the air and smiting the earth as 
 thickly as falling hailstones in a storm. The surroundings were 
 neither safe nor pleasant, but knowing that his comrade must 
 have immediate attention or bleed to death, Yarnell ran to the 
 rear in the midst of flying shot that perforated his blanket and 
 clothes, and somehow reached the reserve unharmed. On learn 
 ing the critical condition of Scofield, Capt. Mossmari, of Co. F, 
 with as unselfish devotion as ever animated human being, with 
 out waiting for a lull in the firing, unmindful of everything but 
 the sufferings of a wounded comrade, rushed across the bullet 
 swept interval, and taking Scofield in his arms, brought him 
 safely from the front. No one expected to see him face that 
 storm and return alive. A sigh of relief and murmur of applause 
 
686 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 involuntarily ran along the lines as he returned unharmed. 
 Such acts of individual heroism ultimately have their reward, 
 and when at a later period a Major s leaves decked his manly 
 shoulders, the soldiers he commanded felt they had been honora 
 bly won. 
 
 The account of the second day s operations before Nashville 
 has been more graphically written, its prominent features more 
 faithfully brought out by the historian of the " Army of the 
 Cumberland," than anything we may write in regard to it, and 
 assuming all the responsibility resulting from the crime of liter 
 ary piracy, we shall copy such portions of the narrative relating 
 to the closing scenes of the Battle of Nashville as suits our pur 
 pose, making such additions and inserting such items of personal 
 history as have come to hand. 
 
 " The 4th Corps advanced promptly as ordered toward the 
 Franklin road. Here the Corps was deployed, Elliott s Division 
 across the road facing southward, Beatty s on the left, Kim- 
 ball s in reserve behind Elliott, and then it advanced rapidly. 
 Simultaneously with the movement of the 4th Corps, Gen. Steed- 
 man advanced on the left and Gen. Smith on the right. The 
 former soon found that the enemy had left his front, and press 
 ing forward, took position between the Nolansville turnpike and 
 Gen. Wood s left, his own right resting on the railroad and his 
 left on the Nolansville road. To cover his rear against dashes of 
 cavalry, he ordered Mitchell s brigade of Craft s Division from 
 the defenses, to occupy Riddle s hill. Gen. Smith advanced with 
 two divisions, Girard s and McArthur s, going into position under 
 the fire of the enemy s artillery, about eight hundred yards from 
 his main line. The 23rd Corps was at right angles with this his 
 new offensive line facing eastward. Gen. Smith s right was oppo 
 site very strong intrenchments of the enemy, in fact, was at the 
 
SECOND DAY BEFORE NASHVILLE. 687 
 
 base of the hill upon which they rested. He simply held posi 
 tion until one P. M., waiting for Gen. Scofield, who was to take 
 the initiative against Hood s left. There being an interval between 
 his left and Gen. Wood s right, the latter threw into it Kimball s 
 Division, and completed the continuous alignment of the infantry 
 from left to right. In the meantime, the artillery from all parts 
 of the line kept up a measured fire, and even muskets were used 
 freely to induce the enemy to expend his limited ammunition." 
 
 " The Brentwood Hills, rising about three hundred and fifty 
 feet above the general level of the country, consist of two ranges, 
 terminating on opposite sides of Brentwood pass, through which 
 the road to Franklin courses, and situated about nine miles from 
 Nashville. These hills were the background of Gen. Hood s 
 army. His line of battle coursed over the detached hills in front, 
 covered in great part by native forests. Overton Hill commanded 
 the Franklin turnpike, running along its base, and was intrenched 
 around its northern slope, half-way from base to summit, with a 
 flank running around its eastern descent, while the approaches 
 were obstructed by abatis. This position was exceedingly strong, 
 and the troops holding it were heavily re-inforced during the fore 
 noon." 
 
 Little progress could be made while this point was held, and 
 an effort was made for its possession. The position was recon- 
 noitered, and the northern slope decided to be the most feasible 
 for an assault. Col. Post s Brigade, supported by Col. Streight, 
 was selected to lead off, and Gen. Steedman dispatched two bri 
 gades of colored troops to co-operate in the assault. At three 
 p. M., the columns moved up the steep ascent, under cover of the 
 batteries, which formed a convergent fire upon the enemy s posi 
 tion, that was continued as long as it could be done with safety to 
 the advancing troops. The second division was held in reserve, 
 
688 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and the eyes of every man in it were riveted upon the long, black 
 lines moving in solid columns, and then deploying in line 
 advancing steadily towards the enemy s works, frowning above 
 them, preceded by a strong line of skirmishers, to draw their fire 
 and annoy their gunners. The troops had nearly reached the 
 position ; the movement promised success, and the reserves were 
 beginning to breathe more freely. The leading men in each col 
 umn reached the parapet and a few had gained the works, when 
 suddenly a tempest of artillery and musketry broke upon them. 
 So close and deadly was the fire, as to cause our brave boys to 
 waver, and as the storm continued, they broke and fled to the 
 rear, with heavy loss. The survivors, bleeding but not disheart 
 ened, reformed at the base of the hill, in readiness for another 
 assault, but under another leader, as Col. Post was severely 
 wounded and unable to lead his brigade. 
 
 Again we copy from Van Home s History an unfailing resource 
 when the material furnished by the survivors of the 36th fails 
 us or is inadequate to fill out the details : 
 
 "The advance on the right soon followed the attack upon 
 Overton Hill. It had been anticipated that the 28rd Corps, fac 
 ing east, would first advance ; but there was so much delay that 
 Gen. McArthur requested permission to carry the strong position 
 before him. Col. McMillen was ordered to charge with his bri 
 gade and take by storm the hill upon which rested the left flank 
 of the main line of the enemy. McMillen was directed to ascend 
 from the west, while the remainder of the division attacked in 
 front. Col. McMillen ordered his men to refrain from firing and 
 cheering, until they had gained the works. A heavy line of skir 
 mishers moved rapidly forward, and as it advanced, the artillery 
 in sympathy gave roar after roar in quick repetition, while between 
 these sheets of flame and smoke, in the stern silence of desperate 
 
INFLUENCE OF SUCCESS. 689 
 
 valor, the brigade moved up the hill. The enemy opened with 
 musketry and the death-dealing, short-range missiles of his artil 
 lery. But on, without halt or waver, moved the columns, and 
 soon the position was carried, with three general officers, a 
 large number of lower grades, and a corresponding number of 
 men, as prisoners, together with twenty-seven pieces of artillery 
 and twelve stands of colors. " 
 
 " The shout of these divisions in victory, called forth respon 
 sive cheers from those charging on the right and left. Wilson 
 with his dismounted troopers swept eastward and gained the hill 
 against which the 23rd Corps was advancing. A brigade of Cox s 
 Division crowned a fortified position on the right of the salient 
 of the enemy s left flank, capturing eight guns and from two 
 hundred and fifty to three hundred prisoners." 
 
 " The noise of Smith s victory induced Wood and Steedman 
 to renew their assault on Overton Hill their entire commands 
 rushing forward and sweeping all before them, on the summit 
 and beyond, as they moved in rapid pursuit. Beatty s Division 
 crowned the hill and captured four pieces of artillery, a large 
 number of prisoners and two stands of colors. Kimball s Divi 
 sion cleared the intrenchments in its front, and captured a large 
 number of prisoners and small arms, while Elliott s carried the 
 line throughout its front, and captured five guns, many prison 
 ers and arms. This general charge was resistless and the enemy 
 was hurled from every position, in utter rout and demoralization. 
 The success of the first day was the inspiration of the second, 
 and officers and men vied with each other in personal daring and 
 persistent steady courage." 
 
 The part taken by the 36th in the second day s engagement is 
 so interwoven with other regiments, that it is difficult to partic 
 ularize any single incident peculiarly its own and separate it from 
 
690 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the achievements of the whole division. The 2nd Division moved 
 as a unit ; triumphed as a unit and where all did well, it is 
 impossible to discriminate and say that any one regiment or 
 detachment is entitled to brighter laurels than another. We 
 think, however, that the detachment of skirmishers detailed 
 from the 36th are justly entitled to worthy notice, from the fact 
 that they took the initiative and were the first to reach the barri 
 cade of fallen timber, behind which the enemy s pickets were 
 securely laying, and when the wild tempest of shot beat against 
 them, none clung to the position with greater tenacity than the 
 boys of the 36th. It was they that inaugurated measures for 
 the expulsion of the enemy from their intrenched position and 
 opened the way for the final charge. On gaining the picket line, 
 their reserves were observed at work strengthening the line and 
 rendering a stone wall impervious to shot by covering it with 
 earth. After some solicitation on the part of Lieut. Hall, a 
 single gun was dragged by hand up to the skirmish line, planted 
 behind an enormous stump, which served as a parapet, and solid 
 shot and shell were hurled in rapid succession against the wall, 
 mingling earth and rock in one common ruin. A passage many 
 yards in extent was opened and cleared of defenders, through 
 which the 2nd Division, when the final charge was made, was 
 enabled to pass with trifling loss. 
 
 When the works were finally carried, and a glorious victory 
 achieved, there was no halting for congratulation or for the col 
 lection of trophys. On charged the exultant Federals in swift 
 pursuit, up the Franklin pike. A disorderly, panic-stricken 
 rabble crowded the road in front, without the semblance of mili 
 tary order and discipline. Each was intent on his own individual 
 safety. Artillery was brought up and planted on commanding 
 elevations, and frequent discharges of shell served to heighten 
 
"SAMBO" GETS "CATERGES." 691 
 
 the confusion of the retreat. Numbers who had sought shelter 
 in ravines or houses by the way-side were gathered up as the vic 
 torious columns marched along, and sent as prisoners to the rear. 
 
 The colored soldiers joined in the pursuit with as keen a zest 
 as the most enthusiastic of the veterans. In passing a house 
 near the road, a tall, lank and not altogether subdued Rebel was 
 observed still in possession of his Enfield rifle and military 
 accoutrements. A member of the 36th ordered him to throw it 
 down and surrender, which he reluctantly proceeded to do. Just 
 then a colored soldier came up on a full run, and with a broad 
 grin on his face, indicating his satisfaction at the aspect of affairs. 
 Approaching the 36th boy, he thus accosted him, "Dis am high 
 ole fun. Aint we jess morn makin dem Rebbils git? Say, sah, 
 has yer enny caterges ? I me plum out, spended dem in de com- 
 plemens ob de season wid dem Rebbils." He was directed to 
 appropriate the contents of the cartridge box of the surrendered 
 Confederate. Johnnie was slow in complying with the demand 
 to deliver, and looked daggers at the sable son of the South, 
 muttering something that sounded like u d d niggers." Ethio 
 pia soon replenished his ammunition, and dashed on, enthusiastic 
 and happy. 
 
 The defeat of Hood was most signal and complete. Along 
 his line of retreat evidences of disaster marked the way. Small 
 arms were thickly strewn along the road, his dead were left 
 where they had fallen, and his wounded were uncared for. In 
 the pursuit, squads of careworn and dejected prisoners were 
 gathered up and marched to the rear. A dozen Federals would 
 not hesitate to charge a body of ten times their number, and gen 
 erally brought them unresisting into our lines. Darkness inter 
 rupted the pursuit, and the 4th Corps bivouacked upon the Frank 
 lin turnpike a mile from the village of Brentwood. 
 
692 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 No defeat was more crushing to the Confederate cause in the 
 west, or victory to the Federal arms more complete, than this last 
 struggle of rebellion about Nashville. Its army had fought with 
 distinction, and covered itself with glory on many a historic 
 field. In all the battles of the west, from Belmont, Shiloh, Stone 
 River, Chickamauga, Atlanta, Franklin to Nashville, where it 
 found an honored grave, it had fought with distinction. Its 
 patient endurance of hardships, its persistence, bravery, fortitude 
 in defeat, and the tenacity with which it had clung to their cause, 
 from friend and foe alike challenged admiration and respect. 
 Lee s army in the east and Hood s in the west were the only 
 remaining supports of the rebellion. One of these was now 
 broken, its remnants fleeing southward a disorganized rabble, and 
 from the crushing effects of this defeat it never again recovered. 
 The immediate fruits of this victory were four thousand four hun 
 dred and sixty two prisoners, including one Major General, three 
 Brigadiers, two hundred and eighty officers of lower grade, all 
 the wounded upon the field, fifty-three pieces of artillery, thou 
 sands of small arms, and twenty-five battle flags. 
 
 We have failed, after a careful inspection of reports and other 
 memoranda, to obtain a complete list of casualties of the 36th in 
 this engagement. The losses, however, were small, and if we 
 are unable to present the names of all, it is not from a lack of 
 effort on our part. 
 
 COMPANY C. 
 
 Orderly Sergt. David S. Irvine, killed; Corp. David II. Henderson, 
 wounded in the head; Sergt. John A. Porter, thigh. 
 
 COMPANY G. 
 
 Joseph Scofield, thigh. 
 
 COMPANY K. 
 
 G. A. Underwood, killed. 
 
CHAPTER XLIII 
 
 PURSUIT OF HOOD. 
 
 GREAT battle had been fought a victory, decisive 
 in its results, had been won. The vanquished enemy 
 was in full retreat, and the next duty a sad one 
 was to care for the wounded. The night was dark ; 
 the scene of conflict spread over a wide area of field, 
 woodland and mountain. Details ranged the blood- 
 besprinkled field groping their way by the light of torches and 
 lanterns in the search for wounded comrades. They were found 
 lying singly or in pairs ; under trees or in secluded nooks, utter- 
 ring but few words of complaint or moans of distress ; patiently 
 awaiting the arrival of the stretcher-bearers, to carry them to the 
 field hospitals, there to receive such care and attention as the 
 nature of their wounds demanded. Wounded Confederates 
 received the same humane treatment, and all the long night, sur 
 geons were engaged in their melancholy labors, and such as 
 could be found in that gloomy midnight search were cared for. 
 
 Orders were issued for the collection of captured and aban 
 doned property, for its preservation and care, while such a dis 
 position was made of the forces as to insure a vigorous and effect 
 ive pursuit. For more than three years, this very army, under 
 
61)4 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 various leaders, had confronted us at every turn ; had annoyed 
 us on every march, and fought us on many a well-contested bat 
 tle-field. It had done all that heroic fortitude and valor could do 
 to vindicate their cause. The whole north was filled with fear 
 ful evidences of its persistent courage and daring. Every neigh 
 borhood, and nearly every fireside, was darkened with the shadow 
 of death. The wailing cry of widows ; the tears of orphaned 
 children ; the anguish of broken hearts, were terrible witnesses 
 of their indomitable bravery, the perseverance and energy of the 
 now discomfitted and flying foe. All were keenly alive to the 
 necessity of a vigorous pursuit which would terminate forever the 
 career of an army that had inflicted upon the country such 
 unnumbered woes. 
 
 The people, not being aware of the want of preparation, and 
 of the lack of many essentials for following up and obtaining 
 decisive results from a battle and victory, were clamorous for an 
 immediate advance. During the fifteen days of nominal invest 
 ment, the popular cry assumed something of the proportions of 
 the "On to Richmond" clangor of 1861. To this Gen. Thomas 
 gave no heed, but when the echoes of popular feeling were 
 responded to by Gen. Grant and the military authorities at Wash 
 ington, the case assumed a different aspect, and when offensive 
 operations were finally inaugurated on the 15th, many essentials 
 to a complete and decisive triumph were still lacking. The 
 rainy reason had set in, the roads were miry, the creeks and 
 rivers were full to overflowing. It was in the power of a retreat 
 ing enemy, though badly defeated, to destroy all the bridges in 
 their rear, and without adequate preparation for bridging the 
 streams, delays must ensue. A single pontoon train was all that 
 Gen. Thomas had at his command. This, when thrown across 
 an otherwise impassable stream, must necessarily remain until 
 
THE PURSUIT OF HOOD. 695 
 
 the whole army had crossed, compelling delay at the crossing of 
 the next until the pontoon, no longer needed at the former, could 
 be taken up, transported to and laid over the latter. This was 
 precisely what did occur, and was the only favorable circumstance 
 that enabled a single fragment of Hood s army to escape. In 
 addition to these favoring conditions in Hood s behalf, at the very 
 outset, the pontoon train set out on the wrong road, and had 
 proceeded a considerable distance when it stuck in the mud and 
 was otherwise delayed before it could be placed on the right road. 
 
 The pursuit commenced early in the morning of the 17th. 
 The 4th Corps, which had bivouacked on the turnpike, pressed 
 forward directly toward Franklin, through the little town of 
 Brentwood and over the Brentwood hills. The cavalry followed 
 the Granny White pike to its junction with the main Franklin 
 road, and filing past the infantry, took the advance. Among 
 the men the feeling was quite general that the victory of yester 
 day, it properly followed up, would result not only in the cap 
 ture of Hood s entire army, but in the speedy termination of 
 the war. A return to their homes, now more than ever, was 
 regarded as an event of the near future. The object to be gained 
 was worth any effort, any privation, any sacrifice. On every side 
 were heard expressions of hope, mingled with shouts of exultation. 
 
 A division of cavalry, under Gen. Johnson, was sent to inter 
 sect the Harpeth river at the crossing of the Hillsboro road, 
 with orders to pass over, and moving rapidly up its south bank, 
 endeavor to reach Franklin and cut off the enemy s retreat. 
 The main column continuing on the turnpike, came upon the 
 Rebel rear guard strongly posted in front of a narrow opening 
 or gap in the hills, four miles north of Franklin, for the purpose 
 of checking our cavalry advance while the remainder of their 
 army was crossing the Harpeth river. Detachments were sent 
 
696 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 to the flanks of this plucky rear guard, and when all was in 
 readiness, a simultaneous charge was made in front arid flank, 
 arid the position carried at the first dash. Four hundred pris 
 oners and three flags were taken ; the remainder fled precipitately 
 to Franklin, where another stand was made to dispute the pas 
 sage of the Harpeth river. The bridges were destroyed, and 
 our only hope of effecting a crossing for the infantry and artil- 
 lery centered in the pontoon train, which was many miles in the 
 rear, floundering slowly along through the mud. The infantry 
 and artillery began to come up, and preparations were made for 
 the shelling of the enemy from the town, when they suddenly 
 decamped and retreated southward towards Columbia. Soon 
 thereafter Johnson s Division was seen approaching from below, 
 which was the cause of Hood s hurried exit. The town was 
 occupied by Johnson, and later in the day Hatch crossed his 
 division at one of the least dangerous fords. The infantry came 
 up about noon, but the river had risen so rapidly after the cross 
 ing of the cavalry as to be impassable until the pontoons should 
 be laid or a bridge constructed. The 4th Corps encamped on 
 the north side, and with such material as was at hand, set about 
 the building of a trestle bridge ; but this was not accomplished 
 before night, and the whole infantry commands remained in their 
 camps, Steedman on the banks of the river near Wood, and 
 Smith and Scofield at the intersection of the Franklin and 
 Granny White pikes. 
 
 Thousands of wounded the maimed victims of the late battle 
 at Franklin crowded the hospitals and residences, and were left 
 to the mercy and care of their victorious enemies a change 
 most gratifying to the majority, for the poverty of the South in 
 medicines and the wretched management of their Sanitary 
 Department was not conducive to the alleviation of suffering and 
 
PURSUIT OF THE ENEMY. 697 
 
 the healing of wounds. For the first time we began to realize 
 the extent of the damage inflicted upon the enemy in that engage 
 ment. Long winnows of fresh turned earth indicated the num 
 bers and final resting place of slain thousands. We were told 
 that some of the trenches contained the remains of nearly whole 
 regiments mown down almost to a man by the sheets of fire 
 and lead that leaped from our intrenchments. and that days of 
 laborious sepulture were necessary before the defaced and swollen 
 bodies of the dead were hid away in the bosom of our common 
 mother, Earth. 
 
 Gen. Wilson remained at Franklin with the cavalry a short 
 time, to arrange the details of pursuit. Flanking columns marched 
 on parallel roads to the right and left of the Columbia pike, endeav 
 oring to pass around the enemy s flanks, and, sweeping down 
 upon the line of fugitives, cut off the rear guard, which was the 
 only organized detachment connected with Hood s flying army. 
 With a bravery and skill worthy its traditions of valor and glo 
 rious antecedents on other fields, it presented an insuperable bar 
 rier against direct assault, and moving rapidly, prevented success 
 ful flanking. A spirited skirmish line, and a skillful arrange 
 ment of artillery warded off attacks and covered the broken col 
 umn in its retreat. 
 
 Still the cavalry pressed it closely, and late in the evening 
 compelled it to stand at bay. A strong position was taken in 
 an open field not far from the crossing of the West Harpeth, 
 while the main body went into camp on the other side of the 
 stream, little imagining that pursuit would be continued in the 
 night and break the repose they so much needed. The thick fog 
 and falling darkness delayed movements somewhat, and enabled 
 the enemy to strengthen its line and place batteries in favorable 
 positions. A reconnoissance was ordered, and as soon as it was 
 
 45 
 
698 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 satisfactorily ascertained that the force confronting him was 
 only the Rebel rear guard, Gen. Wilson ordered a charge upon 
 both flanks. While the columns were being organized for the 
 assault, the artillery on either side were eloquent in expressions 
 of mutual hostility. When all were in readiness, a regiment of 
 regular cavalry formed in column by fours and dashed upon the 
 center of the Rebel line in a wild sabre charge. The clang of 
 steel in a close hand-to-hand encounter and the pattering fire of 
 small arms succeeded the deep-voiced thunder of cannon, and 
 rolled out in swelling cadences upon the mist-laden air. At the 
 same time the flanking detachments charged down upon the Rebel 
 lines, carried the position, arid threw the rear guard into inex 
 tricable confusion. The routed fugitives streamed unresisting 
 to the rear. Federals and Confederates were promiscuously 
 commingled, and many were the feats of daring and narrow 
 escapes attendant upon this midnight melee. Across the West 
 llarpeth the fugitives poured, their assailants close upon them, 
 and attacking the main Rebel encampment, threw the whole mass 
 into an uproar. Darkness shrouded the movements of the Fed 
 erals ; doubt, fear and uncertainty magnified their numbers, and 
 being pressed from all sides, the enemy fled away in terror, aban 
 doning their camp, trains, and much of their artillery and equip 
 ments, to their ubiquitous and invincible foes. The routed force 
 proved to be the two Divisions of Stevenson and Forest, that 
 had suffered the least of any in Hood s command, and were still 
 possessed of much of the spirit arid dash of other days. Gen. 
 Wilson s command proceeded no further that night, but bivou- 
 aced by the Rebel camp-fires. The constant strain and excite 
 ment of the last three days disposed the men for rest, and despite 
 the rain, the cold, and other discomforts of the situation, they 
 slept soundly. 
 
HARPETH RECROSSED. 699 
 
 Early in the morning of the 18th, Wilson s troopers were in 
 their saddles, and the column headed in the direction taken by 
 the retreating foe, the pursuit being urged with all the rapidity 
 the execrable condition of the roads would permit. Fear had 
 lent wings to the enemy s flight, and all night long the terrified 
 fugitives fled along the pike like sheep, thinking the remorseless 
 <% Yankee cavalry " were at their heels. They never halted until 
 the deep, foaming waters of Rutherford s Creek was passed and 
 placed between them and their dreaded pursuers, and the bridge 
 spanning the stream effectually destroyed. On through Spring 
 Hill the cavalry division held its way, but saw no enemy 
 except sick and foot-sore stragglers, who, unable to keep up or pro 
 ceed further, were left behind. The head of the column reached 
 Rutherford s Creek shortly after Hood s rear guard had passed, 
 and just as the broken fragments of the bridge were disappear 
 ing from sight, floating down stream. 
 
 Rutherford s Creek, for the present impassable, stopped the 
 pursuit, and interposed a more effectual barrier to our advance 
 than any rear guard that could be extemporized from Hood s 
 dispirited followers. The 4th Corps was enabled to cross the 
 Harpeth at Franklin, and early in the morning set out on the 
 march over the road it had recently passed in retreat. The 
 u natives," then so jubilant over the idea of the "Yanks" being 
 driven from the country and hurled back upon Nashville 
 and to the Ohio river, now experienced an entire revulsion of 
 feeling. The tables were turned, and a more forlorn and discon 
 solate set of bipeds were seldom seen. As the boys floundered 
 along through the mud and rain, every spot was familiar, for 
 they had recently fought over every inch of the ground and 
 taken the lead in Hood s advance. All day they plodded on, 
 over roads not a whit improved by the passage of Rebels before 
 
700 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 them, and towards night came up with the cavalry and camped 
 near them on the north bank of the creek. 
 
 The next day was passed in vain efforts to effect a crossing. 
 The pontoon train was far in the rear, and a very uncertain 
 dependence at best. Logs, timbers from the ruins of the rail 
 road bridge and other material were collected for the construc 
 tion of some sort of temporary means of crossing ; the Con 
 federates in the meantime having disappeared in the direction of 
 Columbia. Casualties of battle, desertion and other causes had 
 diminished their number more than half, and the commands of 
 Wilson and Wood were deemed sufficient to keep up the pursuit. 
 Accordingly A. J. Smith proceeded no farther than Spring Hill 
 and Scofield halted at Franklin. Subsequently their commands 
 were distributed at various points for the occupation of the 
 country. 
 
 On the 20th a clumsily built floating bridge was completed. 
 A division of cavalry and Wood s command were enabled to 
 cross, and proceeding opposite to Columbia found the place 
 deserted, the enemy gone, and the bridge over Duck river 
 destroyed. Another uncertain delay was inevitable, and the 
 enemy found time to recuperate and organize a rear guard, com 
 posed of the .best of his remaining troops, under the lead of his 
 most skillful subordinates, and to this alone was he indebted for 
 the escape of the remainder of his army. 
 
 On the 21st the pontoon train reached Rutherford s Creek, and 
 the remaining troops and trains were enabled to pass over and 
 proceeded to Duck river. The weather now turned extremely 
 cold, the mud was frozen, and the roads became exceedingly 
 rough. The pontoons were brought forward, and against a swift 
 current and floating ice were thrown across the river, over which 
 the infantry passed on the 23rd and the cavalry on the 24th, and 
 
THE PURSUIT CONTINUED. 701 
 
 the pursuit again resumed. While encamped near Columbia, a 
 teamster of the 36th, while watering his mules, discovered a sec 
 tion of artillery in the river, which the subsidence of the water 
 left partially exposed. It was found that the enemy in his hasty 
 retreat had thrown into the stream several fine pieces of ordnance, 
 which were fished out and subsequently removed. 
 
 The enemy wisely improved every hour of our enforced delay, 
 and were a long distance in advance. It was an impossibility to 
 deploy, march in parallel lines or proceed, except on a single 
 narrow pike ; hence the column was long drawn out, the cavalry 
 in advance, the infantry in rear, with its mighty coil of men and 
 horses pushing on in pursuit. Not a hostile force was encount 
 ered until reaching Linnville, when the cavalry struck a part of 
 the Rebel rear guard, and a hot skirmish ensued. Another 
 detachment was encountered at Buford s Station. At both places 
 the enemy made a short stand, but was speedily driven, a num 
 ber of prisoners taken and other losses sustained. The cavalry 
 followed in close pursuit, and the head of the column was so near 
 at hand as to prevent the destruction of bridges over Richland 
 Creek. Pulaski was abandoned, and the enemy pursued toward 
 Lamb s ferry over an almost impracticable road and through a 
 country devoid of sustenance for man and beast. In the after 
 noon he was found entrenched at the head of a long, narrow 
 ravine, through which the road passed. The advance, a single 
 light brigade, charged recklessly up the road and was met with 
 a withering fire from infantry and artillery, and driven hurridly 
 back, with the loss of one gun and several men. Reinforce 
 ments coming up, it was then the enemy s turn to retreat. In 
 the charge which followed, many prisoners were captured, but 
 the gun taken from us in the first charge they managed to get 
 away with and retain in their possession. 
 
702 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 The 4th Corps kept well closed up with the cavalry, and had 
 a stand been made and determined resistance offered, were close 
 at hand to share in the conflict. The pursuing column moved 
 so rapidly as to leave the supply trains far in the rear, and both 
 men and animals suffered for a want of something to eat. The 
 road from Pulaski southward was strewn with abandoned wagons, 
 limbers, small arms, blankets and other paraphernalia of a hope, 
 lessly demoralized army. The command reached Lexington, 
 thirty miles south-west of Pulaski, on the 28th, when it having 
 been definitely ascertained that Hood had made good his escape 
 across the Tennessee river, the further pursuit was abandoned. 
 At every halting place his wounded were left in hospital, and 
 these fell into our hands. 
 
 With the termination of the pursuit the different subdivisions 
 of the army were directed to go into winter quarters along the 
 line of the Tennessee river. The 4th Corps was ordered to 
 Huntsville and Athens, to remain until spring, in the meantime 
 making preparations and holding themselves in readiness to pros 
 ecute to a successful close the war in the west. 
 
 On the 30th of December, Gen. Thomas announced in Gen 
 eral Orders, the termination and results of the campaign, as 
 
 follows : 
 
 PULASKI, DEC. 29th, 1864. 
 
 SOLDIERS : The Major General commanding announces to 
 you that the rear guard of the flying and dispirited enemy was 
 driven across the Tennessee river on the night of the 27th inst. 
 The impassable state of the roads, and consequent impossibility 
 to supply the army, compels a closing of the campaign for the 
 present. 
 
 Although short, it has been brilliant in its achievements, 
 unsurpassed in its results by any other of this war, and is one of 
 which all who participated therein may be justly proud. 
 After having received at Franklin the most terrible check that 
 
THOMAS GENERAL ORDER. 703 
 
 army has received during this war, and later at Murfreesboro in 
 its attempt to capture that place, the enemy was finally attacked 
 at Nashville, and although your forces were inferior to it in num 
 bers, was hurled back from the coveted prize, on which it had 
 been permitted to look from a distance, and finally sent flying, 
 dismayed and disordered, whence it came, placing the broad 
 waters of the Tennessee river between you and its shattered, 
 diminished and discomfitted columns, leaving its artillery and 
 battle-flags in your victorious hands lasting trophies of your 
 noble daring, and lasting monuments of the enemy s disgrace 
 and defeat. 
 
 You have diminished the forces of the Rebel army since it 
 crossed the Tennessee river to invade the state, at the least esti 
 mate fifteen thousand men, among whom were killed, wounded 
 and captured, eighteen general officers. 
 
 Your captures from the enemy, as far as reported, amount to 
 sixty-eight pieces of artillery, ten thousand prisoners, as many 
 stand of small arms several thousand of which have been 
 gathered in and the remainder strew the route of the enemy s 
 retreat and between thirty and forty flags, besides compelling 
 him to destroy much ammunition and abandon many wagons. 
 Unless he is mad, he must forever abandon all hope of bringing 
 Tennessee again within the lines of the accursed rebellion. A 
 short time will now be given to prepare to continue the work so 
 nobly begun. 
 
 By command of Major General Thomas. 
 
 W. D. WHIPPLE, Assistant Adjutant General. 
 
 With the subsequent operations of the cavalry, how it defeated 
 one after another the scattered detachments of the enemv, how 
 it overrun much of the States of Alabama, Mississippi and 
 Georgia, and its agency in bringing about the final collapse of 
 the rebellion, we shall have no more to say. Its movements 
 w r ere distinct and separate from the infantry command to which 
 the 36th was attached, and foreign to the objects of this history. 
 
CHAPTER XLIV. 
 
 HUNTSVILLE, EAST TENNESSEE AND NEW ORLEANS. 
 
 HEN the pursuit was abandoned, the 36th had 
 reached Lexington, a straggling Alabama 
 village, but a few miles distant from the Ten 
 nessee river. The march had been a hurried 
 and exceedingly fatiguing one, far in advance 
 of the trains. The command lay in camp 
 three days at Lexington, without rations, except the scanty sup 
 plies gleaned from a poor and partially devastated country. A 
 small provision train having come up, and the men being some 
 what rested, the march was resumed on the 81st, in the direction 
 of Athens. Sugar Creek was crossed on the 1st of January, 
 1865, and marching five miles the regiment halted and remained 
 in camp two days, awaiting the construction of a bridge over Elk 
 river, which was completed the 4th, and the troops were again 
 on the march, reaching Athens and passing through the town, 
 without halting, on the 5th. 
 
 The country was mostly low and marshy, alternating with 
 pine barrens. The weather was mild but stormy. Frequent 
 rains had flooded the low lands, filling the rivers and smaller 
 
WINTER QUARTERS AT HUNTSVlLLE. 705 
 
 
 
 streams, rendering their progress over the half submerged swamps 
 disagreeable and slow. Yet these obstacles were not insur 
 mountable, and the command reached Huntsville, its place of 
 destination, the 6th of January. 
 
 There being no enemy in the country to watch or to combat, 
 the building of winter quarters was the first and about the only 
 business in hand, to which all parties went diligently to work. 
 The music of axes rang through the forest aisles ; pine trees 
 were cut and split into clap-boards and puncheons, indicating a 
 determination to keep comfortable during the dreary months to 
 come. While some were at work in the woods, others carried 
 the material to the place selected for the camp. A ruined build 
 ing a mile or more distant, furnished brick for fire-places and 
 chimneys, and a continuous procession of men were on the road, 
 carrying brick by every imaginable mode of conveyance some 
 with their burdens on their heads (none were observed with bricks 
 in their hats), others carrying them in their arms, and yet others 
 with ingeniously contrived frames strapped to their backs or 
 shoulders. "Many hands made light work," and it is needless 
 to say that in an incredibly short time material was collected and 
 a compact and well ordered city of square, wooden cabins sprang 
 into existence as if by magic. These cabins were clean, healthy 
 and comfortable, and when decorated according to the taste of 
 the occupants, were altogether in harmony with the pleasant 
 surroundings. 
 
 That restless expectancy manifested by soldiers in the earlier 
 stages of the war, had been toned down by years of hard service. 
 The men of the 36th had learned that waiting was an essential 
 element of war, and they gradually settled down to the monotony 
 of camp life, not only with indifference but with a cheerful phi 
 losophy. On many a battle-field the regiment demonstrated its 
 
706 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 heroic valor; its reputation for courage, endurance and all the 
 qualities of good soldiers had passed into history, and they could 
 now afford to rest on their laurels. The usual routine of guard 
 duty, an occasional drill, and now and then a review, with foot 
 races, foot and base ball, was all that broke the tedium of idle 
 hours. Three-fourths of the time was the men s own, and it was 
 an interesting study to observe how differently persons would 
 manage to pass away the time. 
 
 We have already wearied our readers with pictures of camp 
 life at Hammond, Rolla and at Rienza, and will not go over the 
 same routine of duties and diversions which filled up the winter 
 hours at Huntsville. 
 
 Thus slowly moved on the leaden-weighted hours in this win 
 ter encampment, though pleasant in many respects, upon the 
 whole lazy, tedious and uneventful. Towards spring, that 
 peculiar phase of warfare in the South-west, called "bush whack 
 ing," was carried on to some extent, disturbing the quiet along 
 the Tennessee. The cavalry were sent out to look after these 
 sui generis warriors, and so effective were their operations against 
 these well nigh ubiquitous knights of the shot gun that their 
 depredations were confined to points remote from the posts. 
 
 Huntsville in ante-belliori times was a beautiful little city. Its 
 surroundings were romantic, and all things combined to make 
 this one of the few favored localities in the sunny South. Stately 
 mansions dotted the country, and from the higher undulations 
 the eye took in a landscape rich in all the quiet charms sugges 
 tive of comfort, peaceful habitations and pleasant homes. Well 
 cultivated and well fenced fields with their waving wealth of 
 tasselcd grain were everywhere. Now all was changed ! Every 
 thing bore evidences of the rude touch of war. Fences were 
 swept away, out-houses torn down, and the paling which pro- 
 
THE 36TH MOVES NORTH. 707 
 
 tected from intrusion the lawns and gardens of opulent planters, 
 one by one disappeared. Gardens were turned out to the com 
 mons, and a naked plain, like some broad, western prairie, took 
 the place of fields, orchards, and lawns. Here and there the 
 dilapidated walls of former mansions stood out in sharp relief, 
 either blank and bare or tenanted by swarms of the " universal 
 darkey," reveling in filth, rags and wretchedness. To add to 
 the general desolation, when the army took up its line of march 
 to East Tennessee on its way to North Carolina and Virginia, 
 the fine barracks built from the ruins of abandoned Southern 
 homes, were consigned to the flames. 
 
 The 36th left its winter encampment in the neighborhood of 
 Huntsville, March 28th, and proceeded by rail to Chattanooga. 
 From mere wantonness the barracks were burned, and while 
 waiting for the train to be made up and get under way, the 
 negroes that had gathered about the abandoned encampment for 
 plunder and cast off garments, were liberally sprinkled with 
 flour, in token of the lively regard of their liberators. 
 
 Southern railroads, in times of peace none the best, during 
 the rebellion were simply execrable. Box cars, platform cars, 
 mud dumpers, old, battered and rickety, formed in mournful 
 procession after a wheezy locomotive, was the rule, and on these 
 men and material were packed like cattle taken to the shambles. 
 The rails, ties and road-bed, equally battered and awry, wound 
 in and out, up, over and through the grand old Cumberland 
 hills, that seemed to rise and fall like the waves of the sea. 
 Among these everlasting rock-ribbed hills slowly moved the train, 
 its freight of Union soldiers looking like moving cargoes of 
 indigo. No train ever reached Chattanooga without accident, 
 and this one on which was packed the 36th was not an excep 
 tion. Luckily no heads were smashed, no bones broken or lives 
 lost, on the trip to Chattanooga. 
 
708 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 From thence through East Tennessee railroading was precari 
 ous business. It would be folly in us to attempt an enumeration 
 of the perils of "riding on a rail " through " Secessia" in the 
 days of rebellion. Like Doesticks with his rooster, " language 
 could not come up to time" to express the jolted, jammed, 
 bruised and battered condition of the boys on their arrival at 
 Knoxville. 
 
 The tedium of the trip was, however, relieved by the sponta 
 neous demonstrations of loyalty, and expressions of gratitude on 
 the part of the simple, Union-loving Tennesseeans. They were 
 returning in large numbers from their enforced exile to the homes 
 from whence they had been hunted like beasts of the forests,because 
 of their fidelity to the government of their fathers. The most com 
 mon way of testifying their gratitude, and one highly appreciated 
 by the boys, was the bounteous repasts set before them at every 
 stopping place, to which they were freely welcome. Not a man 
 of the regiment was allowed to pass through the country hungry. 
 
 Near the crossing of the Houlston river the train was wrecked. 
 Many men were more or less injured, and a few killed. Some 
 time was spent in repairing damages, then, speeding eastward, 
 they reached Bull s Gap at eleven o clock at night, and went 
 into camp. April 4th the march was resumed to Blue Springs. 
 The final collapse of the rebellion rendered their presence unnec 
 essary, and the expedition to Carolina and Virginia was aban 
 doned. 
 
 Gens. Stoneman and Gillam had driven Breackinridge from 
 the country ; the last vestige of secession had disappeared, and 
 multitudes of persecuted Union refugees were returning. There 
 was now no foe to combat ; the army was among friends, and 
 quiet prevailed in East Tennessee. There was little for the men 
 to do but listen to the click of the telegraph, announcing the 
 
LEE HAS SURRENDERED. 709 
 
 success of our armies in the East. Reports of Federal victories 
 burdened the wires, and were flashed to the country s remotest 
 corners. 
 
 Not all the excitements born of these years of bullets and gun 
 powder, died with the echoes of the last gun fired in the cam 
 paign of Nashville. There came a time when all the concen 
 trated joy that fired the souls of men, burst forth with an inten 
 sity that language is feeble to express. The 10th of April came 
 and went, and the shadows of night gathered like a shroud about 
 the camps. Each bright camp-fire sent up its spire of flame, 
 which fitfully fluttered its brief hour away then died, and 
 smouldering embers were all that was left to mark the place of 
 its cheerful gleaming. The boys had told their last tough yarn ; 
 the last refrain of 
 
 " When this cruel war is over " 
 
 had died upon the heavy air ; they had smoked their good-night 
 pipe; had "turned in," and unconditionally surrendered to the 
 drowsy goddess of slumber, when over yonder, in that little seven 
 by nine telegraph office, click click click, catches the prac 
 tised ear of the operator, and told of a great event being heralded 
 over the world. A joyous shout breaks the stillness of the night, 
 and U LEE HAS SURRENDERED!" thrills to the remotest corners 
 of the camp. 
 
 The scene that ensued beggars description. A wild delirium 
 of joy seized the men, and cheer on cheer rang like chiming bells 
 through the camps. A single shot was let off by some one ; 
 then another and another ; then came a fusilade of fire-arms, 
 put in as thickly as rain drops pattering upon the house tops 
 succeeded by a general crash of all the guns the men could lay 
 their hands upon, uniting in one stupendous volume of sound. 
 
 The enthusiasm was contagious, and cannon were wheeled into 
 position and joined in the matinee. Soon every battery was in 
 
710 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 full play,. rolling out their sheets of flame, arid mingling their 
 thunders with the crash of small arms, until the very hills shook 
 as if in terror. A thousand torrents of flame flashed from the 
 guns, and blazing bon-fires lit up the landscape with a sapphire 
 glow, and the grand and terrible seemed commingled. It was 
 rifles and revolvers, muskets and columbiads shooting and shout 
 ing, until not forty rounds of ammunition were left in the regi 
 ment. There was hand-shaking and hugging, laughing and cry 
 ing for very joy. Grave old burghers, who through four years 
 of tumult had remained as cool as icebergs, could not control 
 themselves now nor did they try. A little knot of Christian 
 heroes drifted a.way from the exultant throng, and the voice of 
 prayer and thanksgiving went up from their midst, praising God 
 that the black war clouds were now being rolled away. Then 
 the voice of singing was heard, and a thousand voices caught up 
 
 the chorus, 
 
 " For we are going home." 
 
 The war, as to actual campaigning, was now practically ended. 
 The battles had been fought and the national armies had come 
 out of the contest victorious. A few days in camp at Blue 
 Springs, awaiting the result of negotiations with Johnston for 
 the surrender of the last armed force of rebellion, and then the 
 enquiry naturally arose, " When will we go home?" At length 
 orders came to proceed to Nashville, and the command marched 
 to Bull s Gap, eleven miles to the then terminus of the railroad. 
 The weather was exceedingly warm, the march hurried, and cases 
 of sun stroke and in one instance death from the extreme heat, 
 was reported. At last the reward of four years of bloodshed had 
 been wrenched from a vindictive foe that had contended desper 
 ately to the last. The record of blood was now all written, and 
 Peace, the object of all these years of toil and danger, for which 
 the nation yearned, seemed now at hand, and the political out- 
 
LINCOLN S ASSASSINATION. 711 
 
 look was bright with hope and promise. Exultation filled the 
 whole atmosphere and warmed the souls of men. 
 
 Alas ! these bright hopes born of victory were destined to be 
 suddenly blasted. Rebellion had not yet finished its fiendish 
 work ! The last act in the drama of treason was riot played until 
 the night of the 14th of April, when, following the report of 
 the assassin s pistol, there went up through all the land a voice 
 of mourning for a President slain ! 
 
 The sad tidings of President Lincoln s assassination spread 
 rapidly, and was heard by the soldiers at Blue Springs with the 
 profoundest regret. Their joy at the stamping out of rebellion 
 was succeeded by overpowering grief at the great calamity that 
 had overtaken the country. Not a patriot but felt that if the 
 fatal missile had but entered his heart, and thereby saved a life 
 so precious, the sacrifice would have been cheerfully made. Old 
 soldiers sunburned, grizzled and stern, that a thousand times 
 and in a thousand forms had encountered danger and death, with 
 out the quiver of a muscle, the blanching of an eye or a murmur 
 of complaint now bowed their heads and wept like children ! 
 History has failed to record a national sorrow so deep, so univer 
 sal, so heartfelt and profound, as filled the hearts -of the people, 
 and followed the funeral cortege of the martyred President from 
 Washington to Springfield, and to the final resting place of the 
 dead. 
 
 One who was with the regiment says, u No pen can portray the 
 gloomy forebodings which oppressed us all. Our conversation 
 was hushed, and oh how sad, how very sad our hearts ! In all 
 my career as a soldier, nothing is so indelibly impressed upon my 
 memory as the deep grief which pervaded the command." 
 
 While the people were burying the body of their President, 
 business almost entirely ceased. Bells tolled, and every house 
 
712 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 was draped in mourning. Bishop Simpson, who pronounced the 
 funeral oration, closed as follows : " Hushed is thy voice, but 
 its echoes of liberty are ringing through the world, and the sons 
 of bondage listen for joy. Prisoned thou art in death, and yet 
 thou art marching abroad, and chains and manacles are bursting 
 at thy touch. We crown thee as our martyr, and humanity 
 enthrones thee as her triumphant son. Hero, martyr, friend, 
 farewell!" 
 
 The regiment proceeded by rail via Chattanooga to Nashville, 
 and encamped in a beautiful grove, near to a fine spring of water, 
 welling up from unknown depths and gushing from the hill side. 
 
 Capt. Campbell, of Company B, for a long time had been held 
 by the enemy as a prisoner of war, and then placed on detached 
 service, until after the death of Col. Olson and the return of the 
 regiment to Nashville. In the meantime he had been commis 
 sioned Lieutenant Colonel, and at this time joined the regiment 
 and assumed command. He had not been connected with any 
 of the ambitious schemes of officers seeking promotion, or mixed 
 up in the difficulties which had at various times agitated the regi 
 ment. His antecedents were creditable ; his character as an offi 
 cer was good, and his appointment to the command gave very 
 general satisfaction. 
 
 Gradually the shadows which clouded the hearts of men at the 
 death of Abraham Lincoln, melted away, and again the soldiers 
 were cheerful and happy. Troops were being mustered from the 
 service by the thousand, and each day the men of the 36th were 
 allured with the pleasing hope that the hour of their final muster 
 and discharge was near at hand. Stern-visaged War no longer 
 stalked abroad in the land, and most of the duties pertaining to 
 active campaigning had vanished, with its ghostly phantom. The 
 restless spirits in the regiment could not be kept down, and 
 
DANGEROUS CAMP SPORTS. 713 
 
 various expedients for fun were resorted to, to pass away the time. 
 One of these, which for a time had its run, was the burying of 
 canteens, filled with powder, deeply in the ground, connecting 
 them with a fuse or train of powder, and in the middle of the 
 night, when all was still, came an explosion that would set the 
 whole camp in a ferment. At once, phantoms of torpedoes, 
 buried bombs, &c., took possession of their startled imaginations, 
 and none knew but that the whole of the late Confederacy was 
 honeycombed with instruments of destruction, ready to blow 
 them into u Kingdom come " at the touch of a match or the mak 
 ing of one false step. 
 
 At length this species of deviltry was repeated too often for 
 comfort. The scattering of dirt and falling of rocks were not 
 always as safe, to life and limb, as desirable, and unusual efforts 
 were made to detect and punish the rogues. Col. Campbell took 
 the matter in hand, and patrolled the camp until nearly midnight. 
 He had just passed the quarters of Company B, when suddenly 
 the earth opened just behind his coat tails. He heard a fearful 
 noise, and turning around saw the gravel-stones flying in every 
 direction. He hastened to the spot not a soul was in sight. 
 Peering into their quarters, every man was snoring, and appa 
 rently sleeping as sweetly as sleep the innocent. 
 
 Gen. Stanley, having recovered from his wounds, resumed 
 command of the Corps. Drilling, parades and reviews were the 
 order of the day. Orders were very strict, the requirements of 
 the revised Army Regulations were scrupulously exacted, and 
 the soldiers were obliged to be very circumspect in their behavior. 
 
 At length came orders, not for muster-out, but to proceed to 
 New Orleans, and on the 15th of June the troops proceeded by 
 rail to Johnsonville, on the Tennessee river, where transports 
 were in readiness to take them to their destination via Cairo and 
 
 46 
 
714 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the now historic Father of waters. The trip was uneventful and 
 monotonous. Soldiers soon tire of low, woody banks, and vast 
 expanses of sand exposed to view on the subsidence of spring 
 freshets. One day on a lower Mississippi st.eamer, as it steadily 
 plows its way through turbid waters beaten to foam beneath the 
 ponderous steamer s wheels, is sufficient to take all the romance 
 out of the thing, arid leave it a very dull and stupid affair. 
 At this time the rude impress of war was visible on every hand. 
 From Cairo to the Gulf, dilapidated ruins marked the site of 
 former mansions, unsightly weeds indicated neglected plantations 
 and fields run to waste, and all the works of man along the fer 
 tile river banks, told of the march of armies and the rude shock 
 of war. Island Ten, Fort Pillow, Memphis, Helena, Vicksburg, 
 Port Hudson and Baton Rouge were gazed at, more for the 
 historic events connected with their names, than their pleas 
 ant situations or romantic surroundings. The ever changing 
 scenery on the rivers and lakes of the North and East have more 
 of interest and enjoyment to the tourist in a single day, than will 
 be found in weeks of voyaging along the dead, dreary and mon 
 otonous rivers of the South. The steamers reached New Orleans 
 just before dark June 23rd, stopping at the upper wharves, but 
 early the following morning the boats dropped down the river five 
 miles, to the "old battle ground," where the troops debarked and 
 established their camp. 
 
 Why the 4th Army Corps was not mustered out of service 
 with other troops early in the year, has never been explained to 
 us. Perhaps in the process of reconstruction, those having it in 
 charge required men of known courage, firmness and skill to 
 perform the delicate work. Some there were who considered 
 their moral obligation to the country had been fulfilled with the 
 dispersion of the armed cohorts of treason, and expressed dis- 
 
PHIL. SHERIDAN S PETS. 715 
 
 satisfaction at being held for further service ; but by far the larger 
 portion, much as they would have delighted to revel in the bliss of 
 home, accepted with calm philosophy whatever was imposed upon 
 them, without a murmur. 
 
 Camp Chalmette was located on beautiful as well as historic 
 ground, being upon the old battle field where Gen. Jackson suc 
 cessfully repulsed the invaders of his country in 1814. Many 
 of the live oaks scattered over the plantation yet bore marks of 
 that sanguinary engagement. Here the regiment remained, 
 basking in the fierce blaze of a Southern sun, and drinking tepid 
 Mississippi River water for some weeks. Gen. Stanley being 
 placed in command of the District of Texas, the 4th Corps was 
 ordered to proceed by sea to that State for duty. Transporta 
 tion being limited, it required a full month to effect the movement 
 to Metagorda Bay. At the special request of Gen. Sheridan, 
 the 36th was left at New Orleans, for head-quarter and other 
 special duty. "Phil Sheridan s pets," was the appellation 
 bestowed upon them by other soldiers envious of the distinction 
 and favor bestowed upon them. Be it said to Gen. Sheridan s 
 honor, that he never forgot the gallant soldiers who faithfully fol 
 lowed him from State to State, and carried their battle flag through 
 so many fields of blood. During his entire connection with it, 
 the 36th enjoyed the distinction of being the favorite regiment 
 of the gallant Phil Sheridan. 
 
 In a few weeks the camp among the live oaks, orange groves 
 and half tropical vegetation of the field of Chalmette was 
 abandoned, and the regiment removed to the city and quartered 
 in the Anchor Cotton Press, on Chapatola street, near Depart 
 ment Headquarters. At this time business was stagnant and the 
 city dead. The prophecy " that grass would grow in her streets " 
 if she went off into the Rebellion, was literally fulfilled. As 
 
716 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS 
 
 there was no interference by the military in local affairs, the citi 
 zens began to return to their former avocations, business revived 
 and her wharves presented the bustle of former days. Those 
 who had been actively engaged in rebellion were required to take 
 the Amnesty Oath. Some yet yearned for the Confederacy and 
 came up to the Provost Marshal s office with countenances and 
 words indicative of a perversion of the term Amnesty Oath to 
 " d d nasty oath!" 
 
 During the earlier stages of the Rebellion, the hatred of the 
 South towards the North was openly expressed by all classes, 
 except the negroes and a few Unionists. They had been educated 
 to this by the vituperation and falsehood of their leaders and 
 vaporing politicians, and for years had despised " Northerners" 
 with an intensity only equaled by their hate. When they com 
 menced the war, the very idea that their States would be traversed 
 by Union armies was scouted. u Oh no ! her sacred soil would 
 never be touched by the despised Yankee." It took many a stun 
 ning blow and many signal defeats before they gave up the delu 
 sion that "one Southerner was the equal in battle to five Yan 
 kees." Public feeling at the North had settled down to the deter 
 mination to conquer the Rebellion at whatever cost, but to say 
 that a feeling of hate pervaded the minds of the people to any 
 great extent, would be falsifying history. But in the South, a 
 different feeling existed, one of malignity, that manifested itself 
 in "bushwhacking;" outrages upon prisoners, and the dread hor 
 rors of Libby and Andersonville. 
 
 Many, after the surrender, who had been instrumental in stir 
 ring up the passions of the people and " firing the Southern 
 heart," either through fear of a " judgment to come," or because 
 they hnd become sincere converts to their own teachings, and 
 always actuated by hatred of the land that gave them birth, fled 
 
SOUTHERN SELF EX-PATRIATION. 717 
 
 the country, like Cain after killing his brother. Those who had 
 thus voluntarily expatriated themselves, were generally the 
 vaunted chivalry we had heard so much about, but seen so little 
 of; the die-in-the-last-ditch fellows, whose boastings, threatenings 
 and denunciations had not prevented a million and a-half of the 
 hated and despised "abolitionists" from pressing heavily the 
 "sacred soil." It was not a fine sense of honor that led them 
 to abandon the country and desert the people they had deluded 
 and finally led to destruction, for when they became traitors they 
 had lost honor. But their arrogant pride and insatiate vanity 
 would not permit them to accept the inevitable, make wise use 
 of the future, and by manly effort seek to repair the damages 
 inflicted by the war. 
 
 Brazil, Mexico and the islands of the Gulf, afforded them a 
 temporary asylum. Wherever they went the curse of God fol 
 lowed them. Nowhere was there found a land like that they ha 1 
 left, or a government like that they had sought to destroy. 
 Gloomy, dejected often pinched by poverty, they wandered like 
 ghostly shadows, neglected, if not despised, by those whose hos 
 pitality they sought. Months after, when they saw that not a 
 drop of blood was shed ; no punishment inflicted upon the leaders 
 in the great crime of treason, they were amazed at the magnan 
 imity of their conquerors, and one by one, homesick and repent 
 ant, their chivalric ideas all gone, they returned, expressing a 
 willingness to accept the situation, and set themselves diligently 
 at work to reconstruct what but a fe\\ short months before they 
 were zealous to tear down. Others had learned nothing from the 
 lessons of the war, and returned as arrogant and rebellious at 
 heart as ever. These were promptly taken and sent to Fort Jack 
 son under arrest, until the wishes of the Government in their capes 
 were known. Eventually all were released some to peaceful 
 
718 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 citizenship, others to foment disturbances, from which the country 
 to this day is not free. 
 
 Though not the regular provost guard, yet in the delicate and 
 sometimes responsible duty of arresting these arch Rebels the 
 36th was always selected. The Rebel archives captured in the 
 West was sent to Washington under a guard selected from the 
 36th. Paymasters with large amounts of money, often sent long 
 distances, and to remote corners of the department, always felt 
 safe if escorted and guarded by the 36th ; or, when the peace 
 and quiet of the city was threatened, the 36th was always called 
 upon to suppress the disturbance. 
 
 In the performance of these and like duties, the summer months 
 glided away. Autumn came with its golden glory, and with it 
 the time for the final muster out of the regiment from a service 
 to which for more than four years they had added bright lustre. 
 Before proceeding North, Col. Campbell received very nattering 
 letters from his superior commanders, commendatory of himself 
 and of the regiment which he commanded. We can give only 
 extracts, as our space is limited. 
 
 Glorious Phil Sheridan wrote : " Before your departure for 
 your home in the North, and your muster out of the service, I 
 desire to express to you my thanks for the admirable manner in 
 which you have conducted yourself as a soldier and a gentleman 
 during the recent rebellion. I have known you personally since 
 the earliest part of the war, and have always found you a faith 
 ful and patriotic public servant. You deserve not only my 
 thanks, but the thanks of your neighbors and the country." 
 
 Gen. Sherman never paid a more deserving compliment than 
 when he penned the following : kt During the past four years, 
 so eventful in the history of our beloved country, it has been my 
 fortune to be associated with you and your gallant regiment. I 
 
MUSTERED OUT OF SERVICE. 719 
 
 know that the record made by you and your command is second 
 to none in its devotion and loyalty to the cause for which you 
 left your peaceful homes. The bloody fields of Pea Ridge, Per- 
 ryville, Stone River, Chickamauga, Mission Ridge and the 
 Atlanta campaign, together with the closing battles in the West 
 at Franklin and Nashville, have shed undying glory upon the 
 scarred veterans of your regiment. When I look back upon the 
 past, the forms of brave and gallant men and officers who laid 
 down their lives freely upon the altar of their country, arise 
 before me so vividly that it is with feelings of pride and sorrow 
 that I recall their names. Col. Silas Miller and Lieut. Col. Por 
 ter C. Olson should be household names amongst the veterans of 
 the 36th, at whose head they yielded up their lives whilst lead 
 ing them to victory." 
 
 The regiment was mustered out of service at New Orleans, 
 October 8th, 1865, and as soon as transportation could be obtained, 
 it proceeded to Springfield, Illinois, and the men received their pay 
 October 27th. Within the next succeeding two or three days the 
 veteran survivors of an organization with a record of glory unsur 
 passed by none, were heartily welcomed home by expectant 
 friends, and then the record of the 36iH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS 
 was closed. 
 
 To do honor to their returning braves, to rejoice and welcome 
 them back to their midst as citizens, was for many days the occu 
 pation of the people. Not so young in years, not so elastic of 
 step as four years before when they left Camp Hammond, and in 
 numbers how infinitely less ! but in experience how rich, and 
 how greatly endeared to welcoming friends. Oh, it .is befitting 
 these war-scarred heroes to meet around the social board, and 
 at their annual reunions call up reminiscences of the past, to tell 
 of scenes of trial, of long marches, of hissing mirinie balls, of 
 
720 
 
 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 screaming shell, of gleaming bayonet and of the cannon s awful 
 roar. To call up the memory of fallen comrades, who sleep in 
 honored graves far away from loved ones. They died for their 
 country ! and yet their graves are immortal graves ! Their mem 
 ory will be cherished by men as long as love for exalted services 
 or disinterested patriotism shall sway the impulses of the human 
 heart. 
 
 " Oh ! if there be on this earthly sphere, 
 A boon, an offering Heaven holds dear, 
 Sure tis the last libation liberty draws 
 From the heart that suffers and bleeds in her cause." 
 
 CHAPTER XLV. 
 
 COMPANY A CAVALRY. 
 
 ROM the first, the operations of the two cav 
 alry companies recruited with and for a time 
 forming a part of the 36th, were more or less 
 detached from the infantry ; yet so far as we 
 could do so, we have not separated the infan 
 try and cavalry portions of the regiment, but 
 have regarded the achievements and glory of each as the common 
 property of the whole. The time came at length when the rad 
 ical difference in the nature of the duties required of the two arms 
 of the service, and from their widely divergent fields of action, it 
 became necessary in order to preserve the harmony of the story, 
 
COMPANY A CAVALRY. 721 
 
 to break the connection and drop one until the career of the other 
 had been recorded. Notwithstanding the imperative orders 
 assigning them to another regiment, and years of hard service, 
 separated from each other, yet the cavalry boys never forgot the 
 36th, or proved unfaithful to their first love. The tie that bound 
 them to the regiment was too strong to be ever broken, and to-day 
 every man of them would repel with scorn any proposition to 
 disconnect their history and their achievements from the story of 
 the 36th. 
 
 In accordance with the original design of this work, we now 
 return to the cavalry. We will not recapitulate or refresh the 
 memories of our readers with a review of events anterior to quit 
 ting Rienzi, for with these they are already familiar. We pro 
 pose to take up the history of each company separately, treating 
 of events in the order in which they occurred, and giving such 
 details as we are able to gather from the meagre materials at hand. 
 First in order is Company A, and we will begin at the point 
 where we left them in the early autumn of 1862. 
 
 At that time the bulk of the Confederate army was with Bragg, 
 operating in Tennessee and Kentucky. A large force, however, 
 remained in Mississippi, under the command of Price and Van 
 Dorn, confronting General Grant and attempting to attack in 
 detail the detachments scattered over Western Tennessee and 
 Northern Mississippi. Learning that detachments had been sent 
 to Cincinnati and Louisville, and believing that a large portion of 
 Grant s army had been drawn eastward and the country denuded 
 of troops, the Confederate commanders regarded this as a favor 
 able opportunity to drive out the National forces and re-possess 
 Corinth. 
 
 Upon the development of this plan, Gen. Grant temporarily 
 abandoned Rienzi, Jacinto, Tuscumbia and other posts, and con- 
 
722 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 centrated their garrisons in and about Corinth, but leaving a 
 detachment at luka, under Col. Murphy, with instructions if 
 threatened in force, to destroy such stores as could not be removed, 
 and to fall back upon the main army. This order was neglected, 
 and a body of rebel cavalry dashed upon the place, drove out the 
 garrison and captured the medical and commissary stores remain 
 ing there. For such causeless negligence and the weak defense 
 interposed to the Rebel occupation, Col. Murphy was placed in 
 arrest, but one of those changes in commanders at this time so 
 prevalent, effected his release, and subsequently placed him in a 
 position to do the country an irreparable injury. 
 
 Price was now well to the front. His cavalry raided the coun 
 try, and by frequently assailing the picket posts, kept the army 
 in a state of unrest. It was determined to attack him on three 
 sides, and thus insure his signal defeat. Gen. Grant marched to 
 the north of luka via Burnsville, to strike the left wing of the 
 Rebel army, while Gen. Rosecrans, with Stanley s and Hamil 
 ton s Divisions, pursued a more southerly route through Jacinto. 
 
 Company A Cavalry accompanied the latter, and though 
 exposed to a drenching rain, the men were prompt to obey every 
 order, and generally were found in the extreme advance. When 
 told that the object of the expedition was to attack Price, their 
 old enemy, the greatest enthusiasm prevailed, and they pressed 
 eagerly forward, encountering the enemy s pickets and engaging 
 them at three P. M. of the 18th. A severe skirmish ensued, in 
 which the Rebel outposts were driven in with some loss. 
 
 The country was broken and badly intersected with ravines. 
 Captain Jenks was directed to reconnoitre the road leading to 
 the left, which order he proceeded to execute in a satisfactory 
 manner. So dense and impenetrable were the thickets, that no 
 discoveries were made until reaching open ground, a mile or more 
 
BATTLE OF JACINTO. 723 
 
 to the left of town. The enemy was found strongly posted, and 
 having accomplished the object of the reconnoisance, and not 
 wishing to expose his men needlessly to a fire that was fast 
 becoming uncomfortable, the Captain returned with his company 
 arid reported the result of his observations. While engaged in 
 this somewhat hazardous exploration, the horse of private John 
 C. Goodwin was shot from under him, and many were the nar 
 row escapes from the random shots of the enemy. 
 
 The action soon commenced on our right, where the 5th Iowa 
 Infantry was drawn into an ambuscade, and its ranks terribly 
 thinned by a galling fire from an unseen foe. Other troops 
 advanced to their support, and the engagement became general. 
 The thunder of artillery and crash of musketry were incessant, 
 and rolled up in one vast volume of sound that rivaled the most 
 stupendous efforts of nature. Our cavalry boys described it as 
 "perfectly awful!" For two hours the work of death went 
 steadily on. At times our line wavered and bent before the heavy 
 Confederate masses that were hurled against it. In one of these 
 charges an Ohio battery was captured, after every horse was killed 
 and one hundred out of one hundred and fifty men disabled. 
 The opportune arrival of supports, and the destructive fire of 
 musketry to which they were subjected, forced the enemy to 
 retire and the battery was regained. During the progress of the 
 battle this battery was taken and retaken three times, but at the 
 termination of the engagement remained in our hands. 
 
 The battle raged with unabated fury until dark, when the enemy 
 fell back, leaving the Federal forces in possession of the field. 
 The men slept upon their arms, expecting a renewal of the engage 
 ment in the morning, but during the night Price retreated, leav 
 ing about three thousand dead, wounded arid prisoners in our 
 hands. The Federal losses amounted to seven hundred and four- 
 
724 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 teen, among which were the following members of Company A : 
 Nathaniel Duff, wounded, since dead ; and Martin Glenn. 
 
 Failing to effect anything by a division of their forces, the two 
 Confederate commanders formed a junction at Ripley and pre 
 pared for a movement upon Corinth. Gen. Rosencrans proceeded 
 to the latter place on the 27th, accompanied by Company A as 
 escort, and having in the meantime been promoted to the rank 
 of Major General, he assumed the main command, and called to 
 his assistance the garrisons from neighboring posts. Yet with all 
 his efforts he was able to muster only about twenty thousand 
 men to hold the position against more than twice that number. 
 But elaborate fortifications had been recently constructed in addi 
 tion to those formerly erected by Beauregard, by the aid of which 
 the General hoped to combat successfully any numbers the enemy 
 might send against him. 
 
 On the 3rd, our outposts on the Chewalla road were driven in 
 with considerable loss. Fighting continued all day, and being 
 in the midst of thick timber our skirmishers maintained a stub 
 born resistance and retired slowly, in the evening taking posi 
 tion near Corinth, under cover of the forts. These were very 
 strong, and located upon ground unusually favorable for the use 
 of artillery. During the night the enemy succeeded in posting 
 several batteries within a few hundred yards of the town, and 
 before daylight, guided by the blaze of our early camp fires, 
 they threw a number of shells with such accuracy as to fill the 
 non-combatants (of which there were large numbers) with dis 
 may. At daybreak a charge was made upon these guns, one or 
 two of them captured and the rest withdrawn. Heavy skirmish 
 ing continued until ten o clock, when Price s columns in dense 
 masses appeared upon the Bolivar road, and moved with such 
 incredible velocity and momentum as to threaten our army with 
 
ACTION AT CORINTH. 725 
 
 extermination. A dozen batteries directed their heaviest fire 
 against these crowding masses, causing huge vacancies in their 
 ranks, which were no sooner made than filled again. The enemy 
 bent their heads to the pitiless storm, brushed back the Federal 
 skirmish line without an effort, and fell upon the reserves with 
 merciless fury, driving Davie s Division from its hastily con 
 structed breastworks, and swarmed around the forts which like 
 volcanoes were pouring a ruinous shower of shot and shell into 
 their devoted ranks. Clearing every obstruction, they at last 
 gained possession of Fort Richardson, but while yet cheering 
 over their fancied success, an Illinois infantry regiment dashed 
 in among them and hurled them from the fort. 
 
 The head of one of the charging columns broke through the 
 rifle pits, passed between the forts and penetrated to the center 
 of the town, and for a few moments held possession of Gen. 
 Rosencrans headquarters. A battery that had been stationed 
 near, retired to an elevated position in the rear, and then open 
 ing upon them with grape and shell at short range, forced them 
 back, when being assailed in front and flank by our infan 
 try, now advancing all along the line, they retreated to the. 
 forests. Price s entire column was eventually broken and his men 
 throwing away their arms, scattered in dismay. A number of 
 the enemy s dead were found in front of Gen. Rosencrans quar 
 ters one laying near the main entrance. 
 
 Scarcely was this charge repulsed, when Van Dorn appeared 
 upon the Chewalla road. He had been delayed in his advance by 
 unlocked for obstructions and was too late to co-operate with 
 Price. His command was largely composed of Texans and Mis- 
 issippians, whose gallantry and daring exceeded anything the Fed 
 erals had heretofore encountered. Advancing in the teeth of a 
 withering fire, without a tremor or break in their lines, and with 
 
72H THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 a courage that seemed irresistable, they reached the foot of our 
 works. A Texan colonel, carrying a flag at the head of his bri 
 gade, lead the assault. He had leaped the ditch and entered our 
 lines, when he fell, pierced by a dozen balls. His followers 
 paused, and a portion of Gen Stanley s Division arose and poured 
 a terrific fire upon the Texans and drove them back. Supports 
 coming up, they came on a second time, and a severe hand-to- 
 hand fight ensued, in which the bayonet was freely used. At 
 length every assault was repulsed, and in three hours the dis- 
 comfitted foe was in full retreat, followed and galled by a fire 
 from the forts and batteries, which sent blazing shell through the 
 forest into the disordered mass of bleeding humanity, struggling 
 to get away from the cruel missiles that were rending them to 
 pieces. Says one, " their flight could be traced by blood-stained 
 garments, mats of human hair and pools of blood, where the men 
 had lain down and died." 
 
 We buried 1,423, including some of their most valued officers, 
 and their wounded numbered over 5,000. Their aggregate loss 
 amounted to 9,423, while that of the Federals reached 2,359. 
 Many thousand stand of arms and several pieces of artillery were 
 left in our hands. Very few battles of the war were more obsti 
 nately contested or so bloody as the battle of Corinth. 
 
 Company A took a prominent part in this engagement and was 
 constantly flying from point to point where most needed, and 
 during the attack upon headquarters, were warmly engaged. .In 
 this charge Orrin Squires was severely wounded in the hip, from 
 the effects of which he was subsequently discharged. 
 
 At daylight on the morning of the 5th, Company A started 
 in pursuit and closely followed the flying enemy for three days, 
 capturing a great many prisoners and a large amount of muni 
 tions of war. At Ripley, Gen. Rosencrans received orders to 
 
COMPLIMENTS FROM ROSECRANS. 727 
 
 give up the pursuit, and on the tenth, with his escort returned to 
 Corinth. 
 
 Several members of the company were mentioned by name in 
 general orders for their coolness, efficiency and bravery ; among 
 others, private Henry B. Douglas, who was on detached service. 
 We copy from the Report : " It is due to private H. B. Douglas, 
 of Company A, 36th Illinois Cavalry, who acted as my orderly, 
 both in this battle and that of luka, to say that no man was 
 exposed to more danger or exhibited more bravery than he did 
 in the performance of his duties." The whole company was 
 highly complimented by Gen. Rosencrans, both personally and 
 in general orders. They were in the saddle almost constantly 
 for ten days and nights. Their horses were worn out, and by 
 the General s order, one hundred fresh ones were turned over to 
 the company for their use 
 
 About the last of October Gen. Rosencrans was ordered to 
 take command of the "Army of the Cumberland," superceding 
 Buell, whose management of the campaign against Bragg had 
 caused dissatisfaction. He tried hard to take his escort with 
 him, even apptying to the Secretary of War for permission to 
 do so, but was refused. Company A had become very much 
 attached to the General, were sorry at the separation, and the 
 kind relations existing between them are among the pleasant 
 memories of the war. 
 
 Gen. Grant s army was now designated as the 13th Army 
 Corps, and being reinforced, a movement was projected against 
 Price and Van Dorn, who, after their disastrous repulse at Cor 
 inth, had collected the fragments of their broken army in the 
 vicinity of Holly Springs. Gen. Grant advanced from Bolivar 
 and Jackson along the line of railroad, on which he depended 
 for supplies. On the 29th of November the advance under Gen 
 
728 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Hamilton entered Holly Springs unopposed, the enemy retreat 
 ing to a strongly fortified position on the Tallahatchee river. 
 Holly Springs was made a supply depot, and a large amount of 
 munitions, commissary and quarter-master s stores were collected, 
 sufficient for the wants of a large army. 
 
 Simultaneous with Grant s advance, Gen. Hovey crossed the 
 Mississippi from Helena with a force from Curtis department, 
 to co-operate in the movement and strike Van Dorn in flank and 
 rear. His cavalry encountered the enemy at Oakland, and in 
 the engagement that ensued was successful. This caused Van 
 Dorn to abandon his position on the Tallahatchee and retreat 
 southward toward Jackson, Gen. Grant closely following as far 
 as Oxford. 
 
 The Rebel Generals realizing their inability to successfully 
 resist the Federal advance, determined to divert Grant from his 
 purpose by demonstrating in his rear. Accordingly Van Dorn 
 with twenty-two regiments of cavalry, charged into Holly 
 Springs, capturing its garrison^ with an immense amount of 
 government property. Col. Murphy was in command of the 
 post, and though warned of the contemplated attack, made no 
 preparations for defense or effort to repulse it. He had one 
 thousand five hundred men in garrison, and in a few hours could 
 have drawn reinforcements from neighboring posts and been 
 ready with three thousand men to confront the enemy. Instead of 
 which, scarcely a picket was posted, his men were sleeping in 
 their quarters unconscious of danger, and with not a shot fired or 
 note of alarm given . The garrison was only aroused to a knowledge 
 of the situation by the yells and noise of charging squadrons, and 
 one by one they were taken prisoners as they issued from their 
 quarters in a drowzy, half dazed condition of men just awaken 
 ing from sleep. A few companies of the 2nd Illinois Cavalry, 
 
PROMOTIONS OF JENKS AND WILLIS. 729 
 
 after a gallant fight, cut their way through the enemy and made 
 their escape, the rest were obliged to surrender, and were paroled 
 on the spot. A general destruction of military stores, including 
 a number of the principal buildings, then took place. The 
 amount of property thus burned was valued at $2,500,000, 
 exclusive of one thousand bales of cotton. 
 
 Among those captured and paroled, were seventeen members 
 of Company A, viz : Sergt. Jerome B. Marlett, Sergt. Henry B. 
 Douglas, Corp. James Surby, John C. Goodwin, Fred. Elderkin, 
 Eugene D. Odell, Richard Larkin, William Fox, E. Newell, 
 Lawrence Tucker, Arnold Sarbrock, Irwin Benton, James Bar 
 ber, Allen Mo wry, Nicholas Hettinger, James Kirkpatrick and 
 James Allen. They had been sent by Gen. Hamilton from the 
 front for horses to supply the waste of the campaign, and arrived 
 at Holly Springs just in time to be taken. Arnold Sarbrock 
 managed to get out of the place, and there was a fair prospect 
 of escape, when he was beset by a squad of armed citizens, who 
 took him prisoner, and, hurrying back to town, he was paroled 
 with the others. 
 
 About this time, Capt. Jenks was promoted to the Lieutenant 
 Colonelcy of the 36th, and subsequently left the company to 
 assume the duties of his new position, bearing with him the 
 good will of the men, whom he had so ably commanded from the 
 time of their enlistment. As a gentleman and gallant soldier, 
 his memory will ever be held in grateful remembrance by the sur 
 viving members of Company A. Lieut. George A. Willis was 
 promoted to the vacant Captaincy. For the able manner in which 
 he had discharged the duties of Adjutant, the company enter 
 tained a high regard for him, and his subsequent career was cred 
 itable to himself and highly satisfactory to the command. Sec 
 ond Lieut. A. C. Ferre had been previously promoted to First 
 
730 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Lieutenant, and Sergt. Albert Collins to the rank of Second Lieu 
 tenant. 
 
 On Gen. Rosencrans leaving the Army of the Mississippi, 
 Company A was ordered to report to Gen. Hamilton for escort duty, 
 and accompanied that officer to Holly Springs and Oxford, in the 
 expedition designed to operate in the rear of Yicksburg, but 
 which, owing to the incompetence and perfidy of Col. Murphy, 
 was abandoned. During this weary campaign, Company A had 
 plenty of hard riding, scouting and skirmishing to do, until after 
 its return to Grand Junction. 
 
 From Grand Junction, the Company proceeded by easy marches 
 to Memphis reaching the city Jan. llth, 1863 and encamped 
 in its outskirts. In a day or two, they were ordered to move 
 into the city and report to Gen. Hamilton as Headquarters 
 Guard. For the next three months their duties as soldiers were 
 monotonous and uneventful. The boys diaries describe the 
 weather as "absolutely fearful." At one time the snow was 
 eight inches deep. This was succeeded by days of .sunshine ; of 
 rain and mud of unknown depths. At the foot of the bluffs on 
 which the city is situated, the turbid water of the Mississippi 
 rolled majestically gulfward, bearing on its bosom thousands of 
 steamers, transporting troops and supplies to the armies menac 
 ing Vicksburg, and for months our cavalry company were only 
 passive spectators of the stupendous events transpiring on the 
 banks of the great river. Meanwhile Gen. Hamilton was suc 
 ceeded in the command at Memphis by Gen. Hurlburt. Many 
 things of an unpleasant character grew out of this change of 
 commanders, resulting in the resignation of Hamilton arid his 
 retirement from the service. 
 
 An important change was made in the status of the company, 
 near the close of the preceding year, by an order of Gov. Yates, 
 
15TH ILLINOIS CAVALRY. 731 
 
 consolidating the various independent companies from Illinois 
 into a regiment designated as the 15th Illinois Cavalry. The 
 following extract is sufficient for our purpose, and will show the 
 scope and purpose of the order. 
 
 GENERAL HEADQUARTERS, STATE OF ILLINOIS, ^) 
 
 GENERAL ORDERS, ) ADJT. GEN. S OFFICE. 
 
 No. 250. / SPRINGFIELD, DEC. 25, 1862. j 
 
 The companies of Illinois Volunteer Cavalry organized and 
 mustered into the service of the United States, and now, or lately, 
 commanded by the officers herein designated, are hereby attached 
 to the battalion of Illinois Cavalry now commanded by Major 
 Warren Stewart. 
 
 Capt. WILLIAM FORD, Company A Cavalry, 53rd Regiment 
 Vol. Infantry. 
 
 Capt. ALBERT JENKS, Company A Dragoons, 36th Regiment 
 111. Vol. Infantry. 
 
 Capt. SAMUEL B. SHERER, Company B Dragoons, 36th Reg 
 iment, 111. Vol. Infantry. 
 
 Capt. W. C. WILDER, Kane County Cavalry, formerly Capt. 
 C. B. Dodson. 
 
 Capt. OSCAR H. HUNTLEY, Company K, 1st Regiment 111. 
 Cavalry. 
 
 Capt. FRANKLIN T. GILBERT, Company A Cavalry, 52nd 
 Regiment 111. Vol. Infantry. 
 
 Which said companies, with those heretofore forming the com 
 mand of Major Stewart, aforesaid, and one other, now at Camp 
 Yates, Springfield, Illinois, are declared to form the 15th Cav 
 alry Regiment Illinois Volunteers. * * * * 
 
 This order was confirmed by the War Department, and there 
 after Company A Cavalry was designated on the army rolls as 
 Company I, 15th Illinois Cavalry. The change was distasteful 
 to the boys, whose attachment and love for the 36th became more 
 enduring as the months rolled on. Between the infantry and 
 cavalry existed a fraternal feeling, cemented by many brilliant 
 achievements and months of service together on common fields 
 
732 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 of glory. The change excited but little feeling, so long as the 
 Company remained on detached service ; but when on the 1st of 
 April, 1863, it was ordered to report to Major Wilson, and was 
 thereafter to be attached to his battalion, the supreme disgust of 
 the men was openly expressed. No longer were they to put on 
 style about headquarters, but were to share the sterner duties of 
 troopers lives. 
 
 The routine of guard and picket duty was now and then broken 
 into by dashes of Rebel cavalry upon our outposts. In one of 
 these sudden eruptions the 15th lost three men made prisoners 
 and two severely wounded. To put an end to these annoyances, 
 an expedition into Secessia via Hernando was ordered, and on 
 the 21st of April a force of two thousand, horse, foot and artil 
 lery, set out from Memphis for their chastisement. The cavalry 
 was under the command of Major Wilson, with Capt. Willis 
 Company in advance. About ten miles out a Rebel flag of truce 
 from Gen. Chalmers was met. The flag was not allowed to pro 
 ceed, to discover the nature and strength of the expedition, but 
 was turned back with an answer befitting the occasion. 
 
 This matter disposed of, the expedition continued to Foster s 
 plantation, the home of a notorious guerrilla captain. His farm 
 was pretty thoroughly swept of mules, horses and negroes. At 
 Hernando a squad of " butternuts " w r ere observed running for 
 dear life into the woods. The boys gave chase, and succeeded 
 in inducing a dozen or more to return as prisoners of war, being 
 pursuaded thereto by a few flourishes of sabres and six-shooters, 
 by men disposed to use them should other arguments fail. 
 
 The next day a flag of truce arrived from Memphis, and Capt. 
 Willis and his company was detailed to carry it through. The 
 Sunflower river was too deep to be forded, and after some delay 
 it was crossed in a " dug out," that was found on the other side. 
 
ESCORTING THE FLAG OF TRUCE. 733 
 
 This was secured by one of the men passing over on the over 
 hanging branches of trees. Once across and fairly within the 
 enemy s country, both citizens and soldiers on picket seemed 
 ignorant of the meaning of a white flag, and either fled to the 
 woods like will-o -the-wisps, or stood quaking with fear until 
 made to understand that the visit was not a hostile one. 
 
 During the day the company fell in with a battalion of two 
 hundred Rebel cavalry, commanded by one Capt. Mitchell, who, 
 upon becoming acquainted with the object of the mission, under 
 took to escort the flag to Gen. Chalmers headquarters. The 
 two commands proceeded together, the blue and the gray inter 
 mixed, apparently on the best of terms, canvassing the merits of 
 the respective armies, trading horses, jack-knives and counter 
 feit Confederate money for greenbacks. One of the men writes, 
 " I think a Rebel Lieutenant was considerably gulled in a horse 
 trade." Before separating, the Confederate Captain, who like 
 many of his confreres was given to boasting of always being vic 
 torious over the Yankees, challenged Major Wilson and Capt. 
 Willis to meet him at a designated point one week from that day, 
 with fifty men. The challenge was promptly accepted, and 
 Major Wilson and Capt. Willis were on time at the appointed 
 place, but the braggart Capt. Foster failed to put in an appear 
 ance, thereby showing his wisdom as well as a want of courage 
 in keeping at a safe distance from an equal number of Federal 
 troopers. They, however, did not return empty handed, but 
 took prisoners a Rebel Lieutenant and a squad of men who were 
 found prowling over the country. None of them could give any 
 information as to the whereabouts of the boasting Captain. 
 
 Early in the spring the theatre of active operations was trans 
 ferred to Vicksburg, then the only bar to the free navigation of 
 the Mississippi. The war in other portions of the West Ian- 
 
734 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 guished, and every man that could be spared was sent to the 
 front. A vast army gathered around the fated city to assist in 
 its reduction. 
 
 At length Gen. Lauman s Division including Capt. Willis 
 Cavalry Company, received marching orders, and on the 17th it 
 embarked on the steamer Luminary, one of a numerous fleet of 
 transports, and moved southward towards Vicksburg, a point 
 above all others of absorbing interest to the country. The fleet 
 was convoyed by a single gun boat, for the river, though in our 
 possession, was not entirely safe, as was evidenced by the shot- 
 riddled pilot houses on most of the steamers then navigating 
 the lower Mississippi. 
 
 In rounding a bend just before reaching Greenville, a village 
 on the eastern or Mississippi side of the river, after the gunboat 
 and a number of the transports had passed, a dozen shot were 
 fired in quick succession into the Crescent City from a concealed 
 battery on shore, and a number of men were killed and wounded. 
 The Luminary was a short distance behind, and instead of 
 steaming down past the battery and receiving its share of shot, 
 headed for the shore above. Horses were saddled, and arrange 
 ments made for landing quickly as soon as the gang planks were 
 shoved out. Twenty or thirty troopers, mostly from Capt. 
 Willis Company, and under lead of that oflicer and Lieut. 
 Ferre, mounted their horses and prepared for a tilt with the 
 Johnnies. One man belonging to another company, while lead 
 ing his horse from the boat, was crowded from the gang-plank 
 by his horse and drowned. 
 
 The force that was firing into the boats was composed of a 
 mixed command of mounted guerrillas, cavalry and artillery, 
 numbering about three hundred. Across the bend ran a levee, 
 and by following this, it was thought to get in rear of the bat- 
 
INVOLUNTARY EXPLOIT ON SHORE. 735 
 
 tery and cut off the enemy s retreat, whenever the gunboat should 
 turn back and shell them from their position. About half a mile 
 from the landing, a second levee intersected the first at right 
 angles. The company entered an extensive plantation, with 
 numerous corn and cotton fields, and were riding rapidly along, 
 when they were regaled by a volley from behind the second levee. 
 Armed only with sabres and revolvers, Capt. Willis ordered the 
 men to draw sabres and charge, which was done with a yell. The 
 enemy did not wait to feel the temper of our weapons, but broke 
 and fled across the fields, with our boys at their heels in close 
 pursuit. A poorly mounted butternut fell somewhat behind, and 
 Corp. Beebe, being well mounted, went for him with his heavy 
 dragoon sabre, seeing which, the badly scared "Johnnie" yelled 
 to his companions, " For God s sake, boys, hold on, and drive 
 this Yank away from me, or I m gone up, sure !" A few sur 
 rendered ; others scattered in every direction through woods 
 and swamps, over fences and fields, until the frightened fugitives 
 joined their battery, and then their numbers were too great and 
 their position too strong to be attacked successfully. The wild 
 screech of shell added to the excitement, and for a time made 
 things lively. Shot whizzed in close proximity to the ears of 
 the men, but no one was hurt. 
 
 A battalion of infantry was also landed, and assisted in chas 
 ing the battery five miles. On their return, learning that bush 
 whacking and firing into boats was the principal occupation of 
 the inhabitants of Greenville, some houses were fired and part of 
 the town destroyed. This act, by some, was attributed to Com 
 pany A, but it was well understood at the time that the infantry 
 alone were guilty of the burning. 
 
 Re-embarking, the fleet reached Young s Point on the 19th of 
 May, the day succeeding the investment of Vicksburg. The city 
 
736 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 was in plain sight, and the flashing of guns, the sullen roar and 
 smoke of battle, filled the men with awe. All doubts were dis 
 pelled about their being in time to share in the siege and fall of 
 the beleagured city. 
 
 This extraordinary siege was maintained for nearly two months. 
 By night and by day great guns were pounding heavily at its 
 gates. Many valuable lives were sacrificed, and it seemed at times 
 as if the great tragedy would never end. But as the siege pro 
 gressed, men became more hopeful and confident. The hills on 
 which the city is located are miniature mountains and of them 
 selves continuous lines of almost impregnable fortifications. We 
 cannot enter into details of the siege, or attempt to record -the 
 many gallant deeds enacted in field and intrenchment during 
 its progress. 
 
 On the 20th, the transports proceeded up the Yazoo to Ham s 
 Bluff, and Lauman s Division debarked, and, passing around 
 the rear of those already in position, was assigned to the extreme 
 left of the line. A portion of the company were detailed as 
 orderlies and despatch-bearers, and were on detached service 
 during the siege. One of these, John W. Evarts, witnessed the 
 tragic death of Capt. Bradley, an aid to Gen. Lauman. They 
 were riding together on the grand rounds of picket inspection. 
 About ten o clock at night, in passing an advanced post, a shot 
 was fired from the bushes on the roadside, and a rifle ball pene 
 trated the Captain s heart. He fell from his horse, uttering the 
 words, "I m killed!" and was dead. Evidently the shot was 
 fired by a sharp-shooter, laying in ambush to pick off any that 
 should pass by. Such acts, commencing with the assassination 
 of Ellsworth, and carried on by the Rebels, branded them and 
 their cause as infamous. 
 
PRAISE OF CAPT. WILLIS AND COMPANY. 737 
 
 The cavalry, except those detailed for orderlies and escort, 
 were combined in one division, and employed in scouring the 
 country in rear of Vicksburg, and watching the movements of 
 Gen. Johnston, who was concentrating a force at Jackson and Yazoo 
 City, with the avowed object of raising the siege and rescuing 
 Pemberton from his dilemma. His efforts to carry material aid 
 by stealth into Vicksburg were thwarted, and at one time the cav 
 alry intercepted and captured about a bushel of gun caps that 
 were being secretly conveyed to Pemberton. 
 
 The superior ability of the Rebel Gen. Johnston, was fully 
 recognized, and he, of all the Confederate commanders, was the 
 only one Gen. Grant had any reason to fear. Gen. Sherman, 
 his ablest subordinate, was selected to guard the rear and coun 
 teract any movement looking to the relief of Vicksburg. Capt. 
 Willis and his company were almost constantly in the saddle, 
 scouting the country and skirmishing with the advance of John 
 ston s army. It was engaged in several artillery duels near the 
 Big Black, and elicited much praise from Gen. Sherman for gal 
 lantry and courage. 
 
 Forty-eight days of exhausting service under the fiery heat of 
 an almost tropical sun, followed by sleepless nights upon the 
 picket line, had its effect. Sickness, suffering and death pre 
 vailed to a fearful extent, and the remains of many a brave man 
 was coffined and buried in rough soldiers graves near the 
 entrenchments. Still the energies of the army was never known 
 to flag. The world s records have designated but few places 
 where more determined foes faced each other on fields of battle 
 than at Vicksburg. But sickness, exhaustion, and above all, 
 starvation began to tell upon the stubborn defenders. Fre 
 quently in the lull in firing, bits of pleasantry were indulged in 
 between the Federal and Confederate pickets, who were in easy 
 
738 THIRTY-SIXTfi ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 speaking distance of each other. A Federal picket one day 
 called out to his gray -backed opponent: 
 
 " Hello, reb, who is in command over there ?" 
 
 " General Starvation," was the reply. 
 
 Starvation forced an unwilling surrender on the Fourth 
 of July, and Gen. Logan s Division was the first to enter the 
 city. J. M. Kennedy, one of the 36th boys, on orderlv duty, 
 was among the first to traverse the streets, and to water his horse 
 in the Mississippi river. After the surrender, Confederate and 
 Federal soldiers mingled together, roamed over the vast circuit 
 of the battle-field, talking over the incidents of the campaign. 
 Many an intimacy was formed never to be forgotten, and many 
 an eye was moistened as former acquaintances and friends, lately 
 in arms against each other, met and talked about the peaceful 
 days of the past, and the events each had participated in since 
 this cruel war of brother against brother had been inaugurated. 
 
 Immediately after the surrender, arrangements were made for 
 attacking Gen. Johnston. The 9th, 18th and lf>th Corps 
 marched from their positions, crossed the Big Black and con 
 verged at Boulton. Johnston had received notice of Pember- 
 ton s surrender and was in full retreat for Jackson. The weather 
 was fearfully hot, but the army pressed forward, skirmishing 
 with the enemy s rear guard, until the 10th, when it was sud 
 denly confronted by a strong line of fortifications. Gen. Sher 
 man disposed his troops for the investment of the place, and with 
 his field guns shelled the city of Jackson and the works defend 
 ing it. 
 
 Capt. Willis Company was so exhausted and worn out by 
 hard service that it remained at Vicksburg to rest and recruit. 
 Eight or ten of the detailed men were, however, along, and par 
 ticipated in the fatigues of the inarch arid horrors of the battle- 
 
WILLIS* COMPANY IN NEW ORLEANS. 739 
 
 field. Through a misapprehension of orders, a portion of Lau- 
 man s Division met with disaster, and two brigades were literally 
 annihilated. One of them, J. M. Kennedy, has given us a 
 graphic description of the siege of Jackson, the massacre of two 
 of Lauman s brigades, the flight of Johnston and the occupation 
 and destruction of the city. As but few of the Company whose 
 history we are recording, participated in the campaign, we will 
 not enter into details. Gen. Sherman pursued the enemy as far 
 as Brandon, and failing to overtake him, returned with his com 
 mand to Vicksburg, July 27th. 
 
 Royal S. Rutherford, a member of the Company, a patient 
 and faithful soldier, sickened while on the march, and died. His 
 remains fill one of those unknown patriot graves so common in 
 the South. Flowers may never be strewn over these nameless 
 graves, but the memory of their occupants will ever remain fresh 
 and green in the hearts of surviving comrades. 
 
 Saturday, July 25th, Capt. Willis Company, with other troops, 
 left Vicksburg en route for New Orleans. They were detained 
 at Port Hudson some time, and did not reach their destination 
 until the 17th of August. The usual raid upon the Company 
 for clerks and orderlies for general officers and headquarters was 
 made soon after its arrival, and its ranks depleted by details for 
 eight or ten of its best men. 
 
 Tt being reported that Rebel batteries were annoying passing 
 transports from the west bank of the .Mississippi, Gen. Herron 
 was sent to Morganza bend with a division of the 13th Corps, 
 to protect navigation and put a stop to the incursions of guer 
 rillas. Capt. Willis Company was with the expedition, which 
 reached Morganza September 7th. Gen. Herron was sick much 
 of the time, and did not remove his headquarters from the steamer 
 Iberville. Detachments were sent into the country and across 
 
740 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 to the Atchafalaya river, where an irregular force of bushwhack 
 ers and Rebel rangers, numbering from two thousand to three 
 thousand, under Gen. Green, were met and held in check. 
 Skirmishing between the belligerents was an every day occur 
 rence, and the duty required of Company A was severe. 
 
 At one time a. Federal outpost was surrounded and surprised, 
 and after a hot engagement, in which fifteen men were killed and 
 thirty wounded, were at length obliged to surrender. Among 
 those taken prisoner was 0. C. Switzer, of Company A Cavalry. 
 Continued sickness secured for Gen. Herron a thirty days leave 
 of absence, and Gen. Dana, coming up from New Orleans, 
 assumed the command. 
 
 The orders from Washington to establish the flag in Texas at 
 the earliest possible moment, was regarded by Gen. Banks as 
 imperative. One expedition for this object had failed, and it 
 was now determined to make a second attempt somewhere on the 
 Gulf coast. For this purpose the force at Morganza was with 
 drawn and Gen. Dana placed in command of the new expedition 
 to Texas, which put to sea about the last of October. Eight or 
 ten of our cavalry boys accompanied it, in the capacity of order 
 lies and detailed men, and passed a delightful winter on the banks 
 of the Rio Grande and the Texas coast. The company, how 
 ever, were destined for another field of action, and, as soon as it 
 could be refitted and equipped, crossed the Mississippi and pro 
 ceeded to Berwick Bay, Vermillionville and Opelousas, where 
 Gen. Franklin, with a considerable force, was holding the Teche 
 country, with his headquarters at New Iberia.. He was con 
 fronted by several thousand of Kirby Smith s and Dick Taylor s 
 southwestern brigands, who kept the country in a constant tur 
 moil and the cavalry on a continual scout and chase from plan 
 tation to plantation, after their well-nigh ubiquitous foes. This 
 
RE-ENLISTMENT. 741 
 
 period of their history is replete with startling adventures and 
 feats of individual prowess and daring. In one of their forays, 
 the 6th Texas Confederate Cavalry was surprised, and the whole 
 regiment, except twenty-five men, made prisoners. We have no 
 material from which to compile this part of the company s his 
 tory, and are reluctantly compelled to pass it by with a brief 
 notice, as unsatisfactory to ourselves as it will doubtless be to 
 many of our readers. 
 
 At the beginning of the year 1864, the aspect of the Rebel-- 
 lion had materially changed, and our armies occupied positions 
 far in advance of the previous year. The Mississippi ran " unvexed 
 to the sea." With the hope for the speedy overthrow of the 
 Rebellion, came a fresh demand for greater sacrifices on the part 
 of the soldiers of the Republic. They were called upon to " vet 
 eranize," or, more properly, re-enlist for another "three years, 
 or during the war " term. Under the spur of large bounties 
 and a home furlough, great numbers prolonged their term of ser 
 vice. The proposition created intense excitement in Company 
 A, and for days this subject was uppermost in the minds of the 
 men and most thoroughly canvassed in all its bearings. The 
 result w r as, that all but about half a dozen of those present for 
 duty re-enlisted for three years more. The announcement 
 secured immediate orders for veteran furloughs, and on the 18th 
 and 19th of January, the company marched from New Iberia to 
 Brunswick Bay, and from thence by rail to New Orleans. 
 
 Delays in the making out of muster-rolls, accounting for prop 
 erty, and in securing transportation, kept them in the city until 
 the llth of February, before they were fairly launched upon the 
 Father of Waters, "homeward bound." They happily survived 
 the perils of riding by steamer and by rail, and merry as larks, 
 they reached Aurora February 25th, 1864. Tis useless to 
 
742 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 recapitulate the warm greetings of friends, the happy re-unions 
 and unceasing round of festivities to which the boys were sub 
 jected for the next thirty days- These are all treasured in their 
 hearts, never to be forgotten. 
 
 After the departure of the veterans to their homes on furlough, 
 the non-veterans and detailed men, on their return from Texas 
 were attached to the 2nd Massachusetts Cavalry, and formed a 
 part of the mounted division under Brig. Gen. Lee, who marched 
 ,his command via Franklin, New Iberia and Opelousas, through 
 the beautiful Teche country to Alexandria, on Red river. Here 
 the unfortunate expedition under Gen. Banks, known as the 
 Red river campaign, rendezvoused. A fleet of gunboats and 
 transports under Admiral Porter moved up the river in conjunc 
 tion with the land forces, in the direction of Shrieveport. Lee s 
 cavalry led the advance, fighting its way and driving the enemy 
 steadily before them throughout the march to Natchitoches, 
 which was reached March 31st. 
 
 The larger boats comprising Porter s fleet, owing to the low 
 stage of water and increasing difficulties of navigation, were left 
 behind at Grand Ecore, four miles from Natchitoches. The 
 lighter boats and transports succeeded, though with great diffi 
 culty, in reaching Springfield, where it was hoped communica 
 tion would be had with the land forces. But on the way to 
 Springfield the enemy was encountered in strong force, who 
 thwarted every attempt to proceed, and obliged Gen. Banks to 
 retreat after sustaining a humiliating defeat. 
 
 The country beyond Natchitoches was one of the most dismal 
 to be found. Houses, like angels visits, u few and far between," 
 and those that were found along the way presented the irresista- 
 ble conviction that the occupants would lose little of comfort 
 and protection from the weather, and would be gainers in the 
 
ENGAGEMENT AT SABINE CROSS ROADS. 4;> 
 
 way of space by living wholly in the open air. The road fol 
 lowed the crest of a low pine ridge. It was on this road that 
 the Federal army marched on its way to disaster near Mansfield. 
 
 On the 7th, Gen. Lee pushed his cavalry to Pleasant Hill, and 
 about three miles beyond encountered the enemy who gave battle, 
 and in the hot skirmish which ensued a number were killed arid 
 wounded on both sides. The enemy gave ground slowly, and 
 stubbornly contested every inch. As the sun went down they 
 made another stand at St. Patrick s Bayou, and in the action 
 there were sixty- two of the cavalry killed, wounded arid missing. 
 
 On the 8th, fighting continued with more or less severity all 
 day, and the line of march was marked with blood. At three 
 p. M. the enemy was found massed at Sabine cross roads, a short 
 distance west of Mansfield, and an engagement, which in its 
 results and losses sustained will rank among the great battles of 
 the war, continued until darkness put an end to the slaughter. 
 Early in the action the cavalry was thrown into disorder, and 
 galloping to the rear, rushed through the infantry lines and 
 added to the confusion. Of the twenty-six pieces of artillery 
 brought into action, eighteen were captured. The unwieldy 
 train, which had been kept close up with the advance, was aban 
 doned to the enemy. The Federal loss in this battle was about 
 three thousand. The enemy lost about one thousand. 
 
 The enemy followed up their advantage, and were pressing 
 the disorganized fugitives, when, just at nightfall, they struck 
 Gen. Emory s Division of fresh troops, who maintained their 
 position like an unbroken wall, and after an hour s hard fight 
 ing, repulsed them, killing Gen. Monton in the first onset. To 
 Emory s firmness and the gallantry of his division, the army 
 owed its safety. 
 
744 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Gen. Banks continued his retreat to Pleasant Hill, and there 
 formed his troops in a position of his own choosing, and awaited 
 the approach of the enemy. Wearied with the previous day s 
 fighting, they advanced slowly, and did not make their attack 
 until four p. M. The conflict that followed was a desperate one, 
 and after three hours of carnage, the Rebels were fairly beaten 
 and driven from the field. 
 
 Foiled in their attempt to annihilate Banks, they turned their 
 attention to the fleet. Commodore Porter, having heard of the 
 disaster, turned his prows down the narrow channel, up which 
 he had wriggled with so much difficulty. The enemy in large 
 numbers recklessly charged upon the passing gunboats, and rifle 
 shot and musketry rattled upon the sides of the iron-clad vessels 
 like hail. Commodore Porter laughed at their insane efforts, 
 and opening the port-holes, mowed them down with his broad 
 sides. 
 
 Although but few of the members of Company A participated 
 in the Red River expedition, yet it is undoubtedly true that in 
 no other campaign did the boys endure greater privations and 
 such continued hard service, or take part in more fiercely con 
 tested battles than those. Among the wounded was John C. 
 Goodwin and James Allen. Goodwin fell into the enemy s hands, 
 but his wounds being too severe to allow his removal, he was 
 paroled and subsequently brought from the field and cared for 
 during the retreat. After suffering for weeks, his arm was ampu 
 tated, but no surgeon s skill could save him, and he died at New 
 Orleans, April 23rd, 1864. The names of those of Company B 
 who participated in this campaign are as follows : Joseph Allen, 
 Henry Beebe, Stephen Estee, J. C. Goodwin, Chauncey Hol- 
 lenback, J. M. Kennedy, Ole Langland, Joshua Rathbone, and 
 George Stewart. 
 
RETURN OF MAJOR SHERBR. 745 
 
 "Fall in for dress parade/ was the not overly pleasant sound 
 which greeted the veterans of Company A as they entered the 
 cavalry depot on their return to New Orleans from veteran fur 
 lough. Some thought it rather rough and in marked contrast 
 with the gentle treatment they had lately experienced in Illinois. 
 But as soldiers, they soon got rid of their "Miss Nancy notions," 
 and toned down to their every day duties with the regularity of 
 a clock. Many recruits were added to their ranks, and to drill 
 the awkward squad in the rudiments of war and teach them mil 
 itary discipline, was a work which mostly fell upon the non-com 
 missioned officers. A season of unusual quiet succeeded the 
 return of the Red river expedition, and " all quiet on the Mis 
 sissippi," became as stereotyped as the quiet which at an earlier 
 period characterized the Potomac. 
 
 In July, Major Sherer was welcomed back to the Company, 
 and in .a few days thereafter orders were received to report to the 
 regiment, then stationed at Helena, for duty. Though nomin 
 ally a part of the 15th Cavalry since 1862, they had been upon 
 detached service, and were not fully incorporated with the regi 
 ment until now. The term of service of the non-veterans hav 
 ing expired, Major Sherer proceeded with them to Springfield, 
 and they were mustered from the service of the United States 
 August 24th, 1864. 
 
 While stationed at Helena, the troops were scourged with sick 
 ness, and at times there were scarcely well ones enough in camp 
 to care for the sick. Helena, above all other places in the South 
 west, gained the unenviable notoriety of being the graveyard of 
 Federal soldiers. Early in January, 1865, the 15th was relieved 
 by the 87th Illinois Volunteers, and proceeded to Brownsville, 
 not far from Little Rock in Arkansas, via White river and 
 Duvall s Bluff. 
 
 48 
 
746 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Meanwhile changes in the field officers of the Company 
 occurred, caused by the expiration of the term of service of 
 Lieut. Ferre, and the appointment of Lieut. Collins to Cap 
 taincy of Company F. Sergt. Daniel Dynan succeeded Lieut. 
 Ferre as 1st Lieutenant, and Sergt. Jerome B. Marlett was pro 
 moted to 2nd Lieutenant October llth, 1864. They continued to 
 hold these positions until the consolidation of the 15th with the 
 10th Cavalry, January 26th, 1865. 
 
 When once fairly settled in camp at Brownsville, the winter 
 rains kept the men in their barracks, apparently as firmly rooted 
 as though they had grown there and expected to remain for the 
 next century. One of the boys writes, " It rains some every 
 day, and some more every night. We have sprinkles, showers 
 and storms, that have been the order ever since our arrival. In 
 addition to these we have had several more rainy days days 
 when it rained all day, all night, the next day and next night, 
 and then it set in for a rainy day." Roads became impassable, 
 and the whole country was reduced to a pulpy condition, any 
 where from six inches to as many feet in depth. 
 
 By a special order from Department Headquarters, dated Jan 
 uary 26th, 1865, the 10th and 15th Illinois Cavalry regiments 
 were consolidated and designated as the 10th, with Col. James 
 Stewart in command. Capt. Willis was promoted to Major, and 
 our Company was lettered M, under the following commissioned 
 officers : Daniel Dynan, Captain ; Jerome B. Marlett, 1st Lieu 
 tenant ; and George Gunter, 2nd Lieutenant. 
 
 As soon as the mud blockade could be broken in the spring, 
 the regiment was ordered to New Orleans, where they arrived 
 March 26th, 1865. 
 
 The usual amount of rejoicing over the surrender of Lee and 
 the downfall of the Rebellion, was indulged in, and nowhere 
 
MARCH THROUGH TEXAS. 747 
 
 were there more sincere mourners over the Nation s calamity in 
 the assassination of President Lincoln, than in Capt. Dynan s 
 Company. Fears of an outbreak were entertained, and the mil 
 itary were under arms for several days, but happily there was no 
 occasion for their services in quelling disorders. 
 
 A part of the 10th Cavalry took part in the operations against 
 Mobile, but our company remained in its camp near Greenville, a 
 suburb of New Orleans. In June, the regiment, together with a 
 strong detachment of other troops, proceeded to Shreveport by 
 steamer. Here James McMullen * died in the general hospital, 
 being the first death among the veterans of the company. 
 
 July 8th, the regiment broke camp and started on a long, 
 tedious march through Texas to San Antonio. The march for 
 the first few days was through dense pine forests. Noiselessly 
 the horses trod over the brown carpet of needle-shaped leaves 
 that strewed the forest paths, while the sighing of winds through 
 the tree tops, sounded strange and weird to men accustomed to 
 the free, fresh winds of the prairies. On reaching the high and 
 almost boundless prairies of Central Texas, the boys were at 
 home again, and marched cheerily along. The country was com 
 paratively well settled. The Southern soldiers were generally 
 at home, and naught inimical to the flag and those who carried it 
 was manifested. 
 
 At Austin, the capitol of the State, there was a public flag 
 raising, followed by a speech by Gen. Merritt, and much latent 
 Union sentiment cropped out and showed itself on the surface. 
 At New Braunfels there was another flag-raising and many 
 demonstrations of loyalty on the part of the German settlers. 
 They were outspoken in their Union sentiments, for which they 
 had suffered much during the dark days of Rebellion. Two 
 companies of militia were organized, followed by a speech from 
 
748 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Gen. Merritt, and then dancing with the German girls. Thus a 
 pleasant day was passed at New Braunfels. 
 
 The regiment reached the mongrel Spanish, Mexican and border 
 desperado town of San Antonio on the 2nd of August. At this 
 time the city contained 8,000 inhabitants, and as the troops 
 marched through its narrow streets, almost every house was 
 decorated with flags, and much enthusiasm was manifested. Camp 
 was established near San Pedro Springs, and the long march 
 through the heart of Texas was ended. The country was quiet 
 and there was little for the military to do. The months glided 
 imperceptibly away, with drills, reviews and dress parades, until 
 Nov. 22nd, 1865, when the regiment was mustered out of ser 
 vice and proceeded to Springfield for final discharge and pay, 
 thence returning to the peaceful avocations of <]uict citizenship 
 of the Republic they had helped to save. 
 
 VETERANS COMPANY A. 
 
 Daniel Dyann Joseph Carl 
 
 Joseph Ingham George L. Dorr 
 
 Jerome B. Marlett William H. Fox 
 
 Isaac Rice Martin Glenn 
 
 James Surby Gilbert Heath 
 
 George Gunter Nicholas Hettinger 
 
 Charles O. Dorr Jesse .Hollenback 
 
 Robert Fralick Thomas Hampson 
 
 James J. Hume Ira Jacobs 
 
 Edward W. Stewart Oliver H. Judd 
 
 Simeon Bailey James E. Kirkpatrick 
 
 James S. Barber Truman Lillie 
 
 Erwin H. Benton Joseph R. Loomis 
 
 John Beebe Ezra Littler 
 
 John Carl Richard Lark in 
 
 James McMullen Thomas B. Robinson 
 
 George II . McCabe Thomas J. Slosson 
 
 Joseph F. McCroskey Eleazer Todd 
 
 Allen Mowrey Lawrence S. Tucker 
 
 Eugene Newell Charles Weaver 
 
 Eugene D. Odell Orrin Z. Whitford 
 
 Aaron Pricket Darius D. Williams 
 
LIST OF RECRUITS. 
 
 T49 
 
 Emmett S. Arnold 
 Silas S. Austin 
 Levi R. Austin 
 John Absher 
 John Brolzman 
 Jacob Barnheardt 
 Lott H. Bell 
 Charles H. Buck 
 Alfred C. Duff 
 Burdett O. Dewey 
 Stephen V. Estee 
 William Ellis 
 Mark D. Flowers 
 John B. Flannigan 
 Charles T. Finley 
 John W. Fisher 
 Thomas W. Flagg 
 Frank Fox 
 Henry M. Fowler 
 Frank H. Goodwin 
 John C. Goodwin 
 George A. Gibson 
 James R. Gillett 
 James Giles 
 Willis W. Mintern 
 Horace A. Miller 
 Franklin W. Moore 
 Isaac Nave 
 Alexander Niceler 
 Thomas Neal 
 Richard M. Northam 
 Roswell H. Niles 
 Washington Need li am 
 Conrad Ott 
 Isaac S. Olliver 
 Benjamin F. Pearsons 
 John B. Reed 
 Thomas Robinson 
 Nahum Robinson 
 John H. Rowe 
 John Willis 
 Hiram Weston 
 Andrew I). Weston 
 Thomas F. White 
 George J. Williams 
 
 RECRUITS. 
 
 Sidney H. Beebe 
 David B. Clark 
 Reuben L. Crossno 
 Henry P. Converse 
 Christopher Colhnan 
 John Cooper 
 Henry Caruth 
 James A. Durham 
 James Green 
 William D. Hawkins 
 Henry Hart 
 George W. Hammond 
 Thompson Harrell 
 Thaddeus C. S. Hawkins 
 William C. Holland 
 William M. Howell 
 James E. Hollenback 
 Samuel Jackson 
 Charles A. Jordan 
 George W.^Lannius 
 Frederick Miller 
 Joseph Moore 
 Thomas J. Mills 
 Giles T. Moser 
 Henry B. Shelden 
 John Sanders 
 Wilson A. Smothers 
 Finnis E. Shepperd 
 Henry Stubbs 
 John W. Swaftord 
 John Schoolcraft 
 Edwin Scrafford 
 John R. Slaight 
 Daniel W. Town send 
 James Trippe 
 Win. A. Thompson 
 Myron F. Tarble 
 Lucien F. Town 
 William Todd 
 William Venande 
 Warren T. Wilder 
 James S. Wood 
 Levi Wood ford 
 Willett G. Young 
 Edmund H. Young- 
 Andrew Yeldham 
 
CHAPTER XLV1. 
 
 COMPANY B CAVALRY. 
 
 ITH the exception of Company B Cavalry, we 
 have now followed the varying fortunes of the 
 noble phalanx of brave men, who early 
 responded to the bugle call, and went forth 
 from Carnp Hammond twelve hundred strong. 
 
 We have noted the return of their shorn bat- 
 *ur 
 
 talions and skeleton ranks, with scarcely enough left to chant the 
 praises and epitaph the graves of their buried comrades. In 
 resuming the story of Company B, it will be necessary to go 
 back to the autumn of 1862, and to Perryville, where we left 
 them in full career of victory. Perhaps no band of men of equal 
 numbers who drew sword in the defense of their country, was 
 made up of better material, or accomplished as much as they, with 
 as little loss of life. 
 
 During Bragg s somewhat leisurely retreat from Kentucky, 
 the policy^ of Buell was to fight him as lightly and harry him as 
 little as possible, and the pursuing columns were restrained from 
 accomplishing all they wished, or all they might. Company B 
 was always in the advance, skirmishing with the enemy s rear 
 guard, scouting the country, and obtaining valuable information 
 
SHERER AND COMPANY AT LANCASTER. 751 
 
 as to their movements and designs. Aside from the usual inci 
 dents and excitements of the chase, nothing of moment occurred 
 until nearing Lancaster, on the afternoon of the 14th, when the 
 enemy was found in line of battle, with artillery and infantry 
 supports. Company B was deployed as skirmishers, and boldly 
 assailed them with the leaden compliments of the season, until 
 darkness put an end to the rambling skirmish, in which one of 
 the enemy was known to have been killed. 
 
 At two o clock the next morning the men were again in the 
 saddle, reconnoitering the Rebel position. It was found that 
 the main body had left, and only a rear guard of cavalry remained. 
 At daylight permission was asked and obtained to make a charge, 
 and with only fourteen men Capt. Sherer broke their picket line, 
 dashed through town, and after a short but severe fight put their 
 rear guard to flight, killing one, wounding one severely, and 
 capturing thirteen prisoners. 
 
 The inhabitants of Lancaster were loyal, and warmly greeted 
 the little squad of cavalry who were the first Federals to enter 
 the place. During the preceding night the town had been occu 
 pied by five thousand Confederate infantry and cavalry, who had 
 withdrawn but a half mile when their rear guard was so hand 
 somely charged and put to flight. Soon after the 2nd Michigan 
 Cavalry came up, and were somewhat chagrined as well as indig 
 nant to find that all the honor connected with the brilliant dash 
 belonged to a mere handful of the 36th. The demonstrations of 
 loyalty on the part of the people, and their expressions of admir 
 ation of the gallant conduct of the boys, has never been forgot 
 ten by them, and is often referred to as a bright spot in their 
 soldier experience. For gallant conduct at Lancaster, as well as 
 at Perryville, Gen. Carlin in his official report paid a fine com 
 pliment to Capt. Sherer and his Company. 
 
752 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 At Crab Orchard the pursuit of Bragg was virtually ended, 
 and the Company remained in camp at that place several days, 
 receiving orders in the meantime to report to Brig. Gen. Wood 
 ruff as escort. The army then retraced its steps to Lebanon, 
 where communication by rail was opened with Louisville. Mean 
 while Gen. Buell was superceded in the command by Rosecrans, 
 who, after garrisoning the most important places, proceeded with 
 the main army to Nashville. 
 
 November 7th, while on the march from Tyree Springs, an 
 army sutler was met, who reported a band of guerillas but a 
 short distance ahead, who had captured a number of wagons, and 
 confiscated his goods, chatties and effects. Gen. Woodruff 
 ordered Company B to press forward and endeavor to overhaul 
 and punish the band of depredators. The supposed guerillas 
 proved to be two or three thousand of John Morgan s freebooters, 
 who, learning of our approach, stationed a regiment in ambush 
 along the rocky sides of a ravine overlooking and commanding 
 the road passing through it. When nearly at the foot of the 
 hill, the first intimation of an enemy near at hand was a volley 
 from double barrelled shot guns fired at short range from behind 
 overhanging rocks, almost over the heads of the Federal troopers. 
 Their shots ranged high, and only three of the men were wounded. 
 The Company attempted to storm the hill, but its almost perpen 
 dicular sides could not be scaled by cavalry. Forming the Com 
 pany in an open space or field on the opposite side of the ravine, 
 a spirited skirmish was maintained until word could be sent to 
 Gen. Woodruff, who dispatched an infantry force to the enemy s 
 rear, and drove them from their advantageous position. In this 
 skirmish Ephraim Gardner. and 
 
 were wounded, the Captain s horse was shot, and the blankets 
 and clothing of most the men perforated with buck shot. 
 
PURSUIT OF MORGAN. 753 
 
 Somewhat chagrined at being unwittingly drawn into the Rebel 
 ambuscade, the men were anxious for an opportunity to wipe out 
 the fancied cloud upon their good name, and go in pursuit of the 
 marauders. 
 
 Permission was granted, and the next morning, having been 
 joined by detachments from other commands, they started out in 
 quest of Morgan. Proceeding up the Gallatin pike to Sanders- 
 ville, they learned that their wily adversary had left the road for 
 Murfreesboro, and was to cross the Cumberland at Shackle 
 Island. After a rapid march they were overtaken at the river, 
 and stinging volleys of carbine shot sent into their rear, chang 
 ing an orderly retreat into a wild stampede. Two of the gang 
 were made prisoners, and three horses with their equipments, 
 two carbines, two revolvers and other property captured. 
 
 The next day the Company reached Nashville and encamped 
 in the environs of the city. On the 15th, Gen. Davis assumed 
 command of the Division, and Company B was soon after detailed 
 as his escort. Scouting parties were constantly patrolling the 
 country, who made it lively for Morgan s and other prowling 
 bands. About the middle of November a detachment was sent 
 by Gen. Carlin into Cheatham County, under the command of 
 Col. McKee, in quest of guerillas. Lieut. Reynolds, with 
 twenty men from Company B, accompanied the expedition, and 
 after many adventures, returned on the 20th with forty- six pris 
 oners and thirty horses. 
 
 A similar expedition, for the purpose of clearing the country 
 of the guerillas infesting the valley of the Cumberland, left 
 Nashville November 27th, under the command of Capt. Sherer. 
 This, on account of the lively incidents attending it, is worth 
 mentioning somewhat in detail. The inhabitants had been pre 
 viously warned against harboring "bushwhackers," and threat- 
 
754 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 ened with the iron hand of military power in case the warning 
 was unheeded. These notices had produced little effect, and 
 scarcely a day passed that some unsuspecting Federal soldier was 
 not waylaid and shot, or Union citizens murdered in cold blood. 
 Nameless and numberless outrages were perpetrated, compared 
 to which the atrocities of Digger Indians would be regarded as 
 acts of humanity. So bold did these deperadoes become, and so 
 numerous and flagrant their outrages, that it was determined to 
 give their aiders and abettors a foretaste of what they might 
 expect if these depredations were continued. 
 
 Every trooper knows the nature of such service. Many hun 
 dred times have they seen from one to three gaunt specimens of 
 the genus "butternut" often shoeless, hatless and coatless, break 
 for the nearest timber, on the approach of cavalry to some sus 
 pected house. None better understand what " tall running " 
 means than the troopers engaged in such service, nor can better 
 appreciate the fun and excitement of chasing these fellows, and 
 their forlorn, hang-dog expression on being overhauled and com 
 pelled to march back, often over long, muddy or dusty roads on 
 foot to Nashville, perhaps to be immured within the vermin 
 infested walls of some guard house for months. Once, however, 
 a squad of the boys were badly sold. The day was dark and 
 stormy, but we doubt if even comrade Strang would offer that as 
 a sufficient excuse for chasing a darkey five mile through the 
 mud, and when overtaken, find him on his way to a negro prayer 
 meeting. 
 
 At another time squads were marched through woods, thick 
 ets and across lots in order to surround a house where it was 
 suspected guerillas were harbored. None were there, however, 
 only women and children just ready to sit down to a sumptuous 
 repast of sweet potatoes and hot corn dodgers. The boys were 
 
AMUSING INCIDENTS. 755 
 
 disappointed at the way the adventure had u panned out," and 
 just then were attacked with a sudden spasm of hunger. Deter 
 mined to avenge themselves in some way, no second invitation 
 was needed to induce them to share the smoking viands before 
 them. Their hostesses had the satisfaction of looking on, but 
 not a crumb was left for them. 
 
 Another source of amusement, if not of wonder and amaze 
 ment, was the immense number of cats and gaunt, yellow dogs 
 which infested the cabins of the " natives" as tenants in common. 
 
 Private Strang tells us of the way three bushwhackers were 
 taken in and cared for by the advance guard. " We were 
 approaching Harper s shoals, and discovered three fellows on 
 horseback on another and converging road. They did not see us, 
 and were soon hid from view behind a skirt of timber. There 
 were three of us, and we did not hesitate to " go in," spurring 
 our horses down one hill and up another to reach the point of 
 intersection. The distance and rate of speed were calculated to 
 a nicety, and we met face to face at the corners, a trio of as hard 
 looking cut throats as ever infested the highway. Their looks 
 did not belie their bushwhacking profession, and after a brief 
 examination of the muzzles of our cocked revolvers, they were 
 persuaded to give up their arms and entrust their precious car 
 casses to our care. Their arms were as various and unique as 
 their apparel. The one consigned to my charge had a butcher 
 knife strapped to his hips and a double barreled shot gun, with 
 each barrel charged six fingers deep." 
 
 Arriving at the shoals, a considerable force of the "Johnnies" 
 were discovered on the opposite bank of the river, who maintained 
 a steady fire upon the cavalry. A detachment of infantry coin 
 ing up sent a volley of minriie balls among them with charming 
 effect, scattering the long-haired, ragged chivalry like sheep. 
 
756 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 About that time a wagon load of whisky was captured, and the 
 boys all adjourned to inspect it. Their verdict was, " Too good 
 for the Johnnies," and that, too, was taken along. The next day 
 other prisoners were taken in, with horses and six wagon loads 
 of wheat. The whole country about Cooperstown, Turnersville, 
 Port Royal and Clarksville was thoroughly scouted, and on the 
 1st of December the command returned to Nashville with twenty- 
 five prisoners, twenty barrels of whisky, six loads of wheat and 
 a large number of horses and mules, without a single casualty to 
 the men and but one horse captured by the enemy. 
 
 During the period of these minor operations, Gen. Rosecrans 
 was untiring in his efforts to consolidate his army and prepare 
 for an advance. On the evening of the 25th of December the 
 several commands were ordered to march the next morning, and 
 thereupon the movement upon Murfreesboro was begun. Gen. 
 Davis, in command of the right wing, led the advance in the 
 direction of Nolansville, and at daylight forty men of Company 
 B, with fourteen of the 2nd Kentucky Cavalry, under Capt. 
 Sherer, headed the column. Rain fell in torrents during the fore 
 noon, greatly to the discomfort of the men, and adding to the 
 hardship of the march. The Confederate cavalry pickets were 
 encountered five miles from Nashville, and a slight resistance 
 offered, but they were easily driven back, until being reinforced 
 they seemed more disposed to dispute our progress. After some 
 skirmishing, these were driven two miles, when two more squad 
 rons were added, making their numbers too formidable for a direct 
 attack. 
 
 The country was broken and covered with dense thickets of 
 cedar. By sending detachments through the woods, and con 
 cealing their movements, they were enabled to strike the enemy 
 unexpectedly in flank, leading them to suppose that a new force 
 
ENGAGEMENT NEAR NOLANSVILLE. 757 
 
 was coming in from another quarter, and in this manner they 
 succeeded in imposing upon and driving largely superior num 
 bers. The constant changing from one flank to another, through 
 thickets unbroken by a single trail, was fatiguing both to men 
 and horses. A few men remained on the pike keeping up a show 
 of pursuit, while the balance of the Company were assailing the 
 Rebel flanks. Subsequently the enemy was reinforced by three 
 other squadrons, increasing their numbers to five or six hundred. 
 By keeping up the same tactics, these, too, were driven, but not 
 without considerable opposition. Shots were freely exchanged, 
 and the popping of carbines resounded among the hills and val 
 leys along the line of march. 
 
 In the vicinity of Nolansville a heavy force of artillery, 
 infantry and cavalry were found in position, arid it became nec 
 essary to send back to Gen. Davis for help. The division came 
 up and formed in line of battle, and after a sharp artillery fire 
 Carlin s brigade advanced and dislodged the enemy. They 
 retired to a new position on a range of rocky hills, over which 
 the road passed through a depression known as Knob s Gap. 
 Our batteries were brought to bear upon them, and the roar of 
 cannon drowned the sound of contending elements or of charging 
 squadrons. Carlin s brigade rushed across the fields upon the 
 enemy s battery, captured two guns and carried the heights to the 
 right, while Post s brigade cleared the ridge upon the left. Night 
 put an end to the engagement, and Sheridan s and Johnson s 
 Divisions coming up, McCook s whole command bivouacked near 
 Nolansville for the night. 
 
 During the day, Company B drove the enemy steadily before 
 them ; captured a number of prisoners ; killed the captain of a 
 company of Texas rangers, and took many horses, wagons 
 and mules. This was the most trying march and the severest 
 
758 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 day s work that the company had ever accomplished. The horses 
 were so nearly used up, that when formed in line at Nolansville, 
 many laid down from exhaustion, and could not be moved. Gen. 
 Davis complimented Capt. Sherer and the company highly, say 
 ing, k so effectually did Capt. Sherer s company, of the 36th 
 Cavalry, drive back and manoeuver out of position this greatly 
 superior force, that the infantry were not permitted to fire a shot 
 until at Nolansville." No single company could have accom 
 plished more. 
 
 A dense fog prevailed the next morning, and the army was 
 not in motion much before noon. The Cavalry Division, under 
 Stanley, moved cautiously, and skirmished with the enemy but did 
 not press him to an engagement in a fog so dense that it was difficult 
 to distinguish friend from foe. When the fog lifted, artillery arid 
 infantry moved to the front and pushed the Confederates beyond 
 Triune. Company B was held in reserve that day and did not 
 participate in the engagement. Their horses had not fully recov 
 ered from the severe labors of the day before. 
 
 The 28th being the Sabbath, and the army needing rest, there 
 was no advance. It was, however, a day of preparation for the 
 conflict, which all felt was near at hand. Company B fired off 
 the damp charges in their pistols and carbines, cleaned their arms 
 and loaded anew. 
 
 Early on the 29th, the camps were instinct with life, arid the 
 army put in motion. Gen. Stanley, in -command of the Cavalry 
 Division, lead the advance, and pressed the enemy closely for six 
 miles. Company B moved across to the Murfreesboro Pike, and 
 were in the extreme advance until reaching Stewart s Creek, 
 when the Anderson Troop and one or two other cavalry regi 
 ments, under Col. Stokes, took the lead. The enemy was found 
 a mile or two beyond in battle array, and when the fact was 
 
BATTLE OF DEC. BOTH. T59 
 
 reported to Gen. McCook, he ordered Company B to accompany 
 Col. Pense to the front, to make a thorough reconnoissance of 
 their position. The Anderson Troop charged across a field, and 
 received the fire of two Rebel regiments, concealed behind a 
 fence. A number of saddles were emptied, and Majors Ward 
 and Rosengarten and six men were killed. Company* B was just 
 at the left of the Anderson Cavalry, out of the line of the Rebel 
 fire, and suffered no loss. A confederate force of 5,000 or 6,000 
 infantry, with cavalry and artillery, was developed, and then the 
 cavalry retired to Overall Creek, where the infantry arrived at 
 dark, and the whole right wing went into camp in the neighbor 
 hood. 
 
 Very early on the morning of the 30th, the army moved for 
 ward, and as the columns approached the Rebel position, they 
 were obstinately opposed. Post s Brigade, of Davis Division, 
 was on the right, and Capt. Sherer was ordered to report with 
 his company to him for duty, and was placed upon the extreme 
 right flank of the army. Advancing about three-fourths of a 
 mile, Carlin arid Post became engaged, and the company was 
 deployed as skirmishers as well as flankers. Throughout the 
 fore part of the day, a continuous fire was kept up with Hardec s 
 advance. When hardly pressed, Davis would send a regiment of 
 infantry to help them, but after swinging into position, he assailed 
 the Rebel line with artillery, forcing it back. Johnson coming 
 up with his Division, Capt. Sherer showed him Hardee s position 
 and where to align his division, on Davis right, while Sheridan 
 formed on the left. These three divisions opened upon the enemy 
 with artillery, and for one or two hours before dark, cannon 
 responded to cannon, and at several points where the lines 
 approached each other, the sharp tones of musketry mingled with 
 the basso voice of heavy artillery. During the afternoon, Car- 
 
760 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 liri s Brigade charged a Rebel battery and drove the gunners 
 from their pieces, but the supporting infantry enfiladed them with 
 a terrific fire of musketry, and it fell back to its former position 
 with heavy loss. Gen. Davis in his report of this day s opera 
 tions, made favorable mention of Company B, saying they 
 answered the purpose of a brigade. 
 
 This day, which may well be termed the first act in one of the 
 most terrible tragedies of the war, was fruitful of personal adven 
 tures, some of which have been related to us. While upon the 
 skirmish line, a Rebel captain of artillery, was observed to be 
 particularly active and skillful in handling his guns. A line of 
 rail fence ran from the thicket, where some of the cavalry were 
 stationed, to the immediate neighborhood of this battery. Sergts. 
 Duncan and Harvey conceived the idea of advancing under cover 
 of the fence, to a position within easy range for giving the John 
 nies a lesson in Yankee marksmanship. Capt Sherer held their 
 horses while they crept along the fence. Their first shots were 
 too long ranged to produce an effect, except to cause a sudden 
 dodging as the missiles went hissing by their ears. Getting a 
 little nearer, the second shots accomplished their object, and the 
 captain of the battery was seen to fall, causing no little conster 
 nation among the gunners. They however changed the direction 
 of their fire, arid for a few moments the shot flew lively through 
 the cedars behind which the boys were posted one passing under 
 the arm and through the poncho of Capt. Sherer. 
 
 At five o clock A. M. December 31st, the horses were bridled 
 and prepared for action. The early dawn of the morning dis 
 closed solid masses of the enemy advancing rapidly from the 
 timber, who charged Johnson s Division and surprised and routed 
 it. Without halting they bore down upon Davis s right, while 
 other columns heavily massed pressed him in front. His division 
 
A DESPERATE STRUGGLE. 761 
 
 stood its ground until nearly cut to pieces, and then broke and 
 retired in confusion. Sheridan and Negley, outnumbered by 
 thousands, assailed in front and flank, each in turn were obliged 
 to bend beneath their thronging legions, and the whole of Mc- 
 Cook s Corps was broken and forced from one position to another, 
 and at last doubled upon the left. 
 
 Company B retired in good order from the scene of Davis dis 
 aster across a cotton field, and then turning left about, they drew 
 their sabres and deployed as skirmishers to stop the fugitives, 
 rally the infantry and check the rout. But as well attempt to 
 stay the resistless current of a river as to stop the panic-stricken 
 fugitives, fleeing before the wave of Rebel fire that was rolling 
 up behind them. Shot and shell went screaming over their 
 heads or plunging through the half formed ranks, and soon began 
 to hail in frightful quantities around the cavalry. The Captain s 
 sabre was broken by a grape shot, some of the men unhorsed, arid 
 others wounded. It was useless to attempt a stand at that point, 
 and they, too, were borne back with the crowd. Another attempt 
 was made to form in the timber, but without success, and the 
 retrograde movement was continued to the railroad, where form 
 ing in front of it, a final stand was made, and the enemy repulsed 
 after a desperate struggle. 
 
 During the remainder of the day Company B was mostly 
 employed in gathering up the stragglers and reforming the divis 
 ion. In a charge upon our position on the Nashville pike, five 
 of the Company were captured. Capt. Sherer called a portion 
 of the 4th Michigan Cavalry to aid him, charged back upon the 
 enemy arid recovered the boys from their hands. It was an 
 exciting charge, attended with much risk and danger, and was 
 not accomplished without loss. Just at night the 4th Regulars, 
 
 49 
 
762 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 the 2nd Michigan and Company B charged upon and broke the 
 enemy s line, and drove it from the field. 
 
 Among the casualties of this terrible day was James Knox, 
 who was struck by a grape shot in the hip arid left for dead upon 
 the field. lie eventually recovered, and was discharged in con 
 sequence of wounds. John Davis was also severely wounded in 
 the arm, by which he obtained his discharge some months after. 
 
 In the operations of the three succeeding days, Company B 
 was deployed on the left as skirmishers, guarding that flank, 
 collecting stragglers and directing them to their commands. 
 At one time enough for two regiments of those who were drifting 
 to the rear were halted, returned to their places in front, and made 
 available in the subsequent fighting. 
 
 The new year was ushered in with a continuation of the car 
 nage that had crimsoned the last days of the old. There were 
 assaults and counter assaults on the left, the assailants on either 
 side generally being driven back with loss. Our artillery was 
 splendidly served,- and whole columns melted away before its 
 fire. The men stood their ground as if rooted to the position, 
 and all efforts to break the lines were repelled. 
 
 Similar demonstrations were made the next day, but without 
 decisive results until four o clock P. M., when concentrating their 
 strength for a last grand effort against Beattie s Division, the enemy 
 attacked with the greatest persistence and fury, and was rolling 
 it back in disorder, when battery after battery was sent to its aid 
 until fifty eight guns were playing upon them. Gen. Davis also 
 "went in" with his division, and finally the enemy was hurled back 
 to his former position, leaving the ground thickly strewn witli 
 dead and wounded. Following up our success, a large force 
 crossed the river, and threw up earthworks. The cries and groans 
 
POSSESSION OF MURFREESBORO. 763 
 
 of the mangled wrecks of humanity which covered this portion 
 of the field were enough to appal the stoutest heart. 
 
 It was rainy, cold and disagreeable throughout the third day 
 of the new year, and beyond occasional outbursts of artillery, quiet 
 ness prevailed. Towards evening Gen. Thomas advanced the 
 centre, gained a part of their entrenchments and severed the 
 Rebel line. During the night Bragg retreated, and almost before 
 being aware of the fact we were masters of the field. The 
 dead were collected and buried, the wounded cared for, and on 
 the 5th we took possession of Murfreesboro, shelling the Con 
 federate rear as it disappeared. After ten days persistent fight 
 ing we had gained a victory, but at what a cost! One thousand 
 five hundred and thirty-three heroic men, had attested their devo 
 tion to country by yielding up their lives, while seven thousand 
 two hundred and forty-four were writhing in agony on beds of 
 pain. That the enemy s losses were equally heavy, was poor 
 consolation for the bloody sacrifice. 
 
 Our commissary trains came in soon after, and a threatened 
 famine was averted. Some of the troops had subsisted for days 
 on horse-flesh. Company B established its camp near the Shel- 
 byville pike, a short distance south of Murfreesboro, and then 
 succeeded a season of rest. No duty was required of them, 
 except occasionally to escort general officers over the late battle 
 field. 
 
 The transfer of the company to the 15th Cavalry was first 
 known on the 17th of January, and created general dissatifaction 
 and disgust. Not a man but expressed himself as bitterly opposed 
 to the change. A formal protest was made to Gov. Yates, and 
 letters written, favoring the revocation of the order, but with 
 out effect. Henceforth they were mustered for pay as Com 
 pany K, 15th 111. Cav., but scarcely a member would acknowl- 
 
764 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 edge his connection with that regiment. Lieut. Barnard tendered 
 his resignation, which was accepted on the 23rd, and Sergt. 
 Charles M. Harvey was promoted to the vacancy, being the 
 only change in the commissioned officers until the succeeding 
 year. 
 
 About the last of January, the enemy s cavalry was exceed 
 ingly active, demonstrating upon our flanks and rear and menac 
 ing our communications. Davis Division, with all the available 
 cavalry was directed to move to the rear of the Rebel force and 
 intercept its retreat. At Salem, a part of the cavalry was 
 despatched to Unionville and Rover, while the main command 
 continued to Eaglesville. The first detachment captured a Rebel 
 regiment at Rover, numbering three hundred and fifty men. 
 Company B led the advance to Eaglesville, charged the town, and 
 took a number of prisoners. Forty-six were taken during the 
 day. The command reached Franklin, Feb. 2nd, and occupied 
 it until the arrival of the infantry. 
 
 The Rebel Gen. Wheeler, made a descent upon Fort Donclson, 
 and while operating there, Gens. Morgan and Minty were sent 
 from Franklin to cut off his retreat. Company B, as usual, took 
 the lead, and had the honor of capturing a colonel, one major, 
 and about thirty of Forest s Cavalry. They ran out of provis 
 ions ; the country was destitute, and for days they subsisted on 
 parched corn. Wheeler was repulsed from Fort Donelson, and 
 retreated precipitately. Making a wide circuit to the west, he 
 eluded Morgan and Minty, and the command returned to Frank 
 lin and then to Murfreesboro, with little to compensate them for 
 the fatigues of the expedition. 
 
 February 28th, Company B accompanied a foraging expedi 
 tion, and at Versailles skirmished with a detachment, driving it 
 .several miles, and on the return, acted as rear guard. A scout 
 
EXPEDITION TO ROVER. 765 
 
 to Eaglesville, March 10th, was replete with incidents, similar 
 in many respects to expeditions of this kind generally. Another 
 to Rover, shortly after, was too noted and well remembered to 
 pass unnoticed. While other detachments were operating at 
 various points, Capt. Sherer was sent with one hundred and sev- 
 teen men towards Rover, to reconnoitre. Shortly after leaving 
 camp he encountered one hundred Confederates, and kept up a 
 running fight for several miles. They being joined by two hun 
 dred others, were likewise driven, until within half a mile of the 
 town a Rebel regiment was discovered with artillery in position. 
 A few shots were exchanged while our skirmishers were devel 
 oping their strength. The enemy were too numerous to be 
 attacked, and were throwing out flanking columns, for the 
 purpose of surrounding Capt. Sherer s detachment, when a retreat 
 was ordered. Our skirmishers were too much spread out to be 
 readily withdrawn, and the enemy poured down the pike and 
 captured four of them. Wheeling suddenly, a counter-charge 
 was made and two of the men recaptured. Another made his 
 escape, but Daniel Porchette was held a prisoner. Sergt. Mc 
 Queen, with twelve men, was holding the rear, when the enemy 
 charged a second time hurrying the retreat materially. One 
 man s horse giving out, he fell into the enemy s hands, but 
 McQueen, charging back, recovered him, and retired unharmed. 
 At the second charge, John Gilbert was pretty badly scared, and 
 putting spurs to his horse, started for Triune at the top of its 
 speed. Upon the Captain ordering him to halt, he turned slightly 
 in his saddle and excitedly said, " Cap, them dog ond Texican 
 Rangers are all over God s creation, and you d better lite out !" 
 Reconnoissance in various quarters, developed the fact that the 
 enemy was gathering in strong force, in the immediate neigh 
 borhood. The pickets were frequently fired upon, and, on the 
 
766 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 morning of the 21st, driven in. Company B was sent as a 
 support, and unexpectedly struck the Rebels in flank. A few 
 volleys put them to flight, and in their retreat they were galled 
 by Sheridan s artillery. For gallantry at Rover and on various 
 other occasions, Capt. Sherer was allowed twenty days absence, 
 and visited Aurora. On his return, the company presented him 
 with a fine sabre, to replace the one broken at Stone River, and 
 with it many expressions of their appreciation and kind regards. 
 
 As the spring advanced, indications of increasing activity on 
 the part of the belligerents began to appear. The army at Mur- 
 freesboro was fairly beleaguered by bold and enterprising foes. 
 The following entry in an officer s diary illustrates the state of 
 affairs within our lines. " Enemy reported to be moving to our 
 left. Division ordered to the front. Saw the enemy s pickets. 
 Horse race indefinitely postponed." 
 
 May 19th, Capt. Sherer was ordered to proceed with his Com 
 pany, by a circuitous route, to the rear of a Rebel picket post, 
 seven miles distant, on the Shelby ville pike, while four companies 
 of infantry and one of cavalry, was to co-operate from another 
 direction. On approaching the post, the infantry were to march 
 in the woods parallel with the pike, and far enough from it for 
 concealment, with a view to reaching the enemy s flank undis 
 covered. The position was on elevated ground, where two roads 
 met, and where a church, blacksmith-shop and other buildings 
 were located. 
 
 The infantry moved too near the pike and imprudently showed 
 themselves before Company B and the other cavalry could get into 
 position. Capt. Sherer hearing the firing that followed, broke 
 through their chain pickets, galloping rapidly through the brush, 
 until supposing himself far enough to outflank the enemy ; then 
 wheeled to the left, in the direction where the infantry were 
 
YANKEE CUNNING. 767 
 
 engaged, thinking to sweep off the videttes before their reserves 
 could come up. A negro informed the Captain that instead of 
 pickets alone, reserves and all were at the corners. Seeing it was 
 useless to contend with so large a force, he endeavored to retrace 
 his steps, and was surprised to see a large force gathered in his 
 rear and charging down upon him. Finding himself surrounded, 
 he determined to cut his way through those at the corners. 
 Galloping down the lane he came to a gate, which caused a 
 momentary delay, during which the dense column of dust in the 
 rear was rolling up frightfully near. The skirmish with the 
 infantry was over and the latter had retreated. The force now 
 gathered at the corners outnumbered his ten to one. The lane 
 was full of armed men, and across a field to the right the timber 
 was packed with cavalry. To charge this multitudinous host was 
 now the only desperate resort, and on he went with the speed 
 of the wind. Lieut. Harvey with the first platoon cleared the 
 lane, and reaching the corners, turned south to hold the enemy 
 in check while the others were extricating themselves from the 
 trap into which they had unwittingly entered. Sergt. Duncan 
 with the second platoon turned north, and Sergt. McQueen with 
 the third followed, and when fairly on the road to Nashville, 
 Harvey came on bringing up the rear. The audacity of the 
 movement astonished the Rebels, who, seeing the great cloud of 
 dust in rear of our cavalry, supposed the whole outfit to be Yan 
 kees, and their efforts were mainly directed in endeavoring to 
 get away, instead of fighting the squad that charged them. Cit 
 izens coming in the next day reported the force at the corners, 
 through which Harvey charged, as four hundred. That in the 
 charge two of the enemy were killed, six wounded, and their 
 Colonel s horse shot. They thought until the dust had cleared 
 away, that the whole force was Yankees, that a general advance 
 
768 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 was being made, and significantly added, "Youans will never 
 come that over weuns again." 
 
 Shortly after this adventure, the Company was ordered to 
 report to Gen. Crittenden for escort duty. Gen. Davis feelingly 
 bade them good bye, and highly extolled their bravery and the 
 many gallant acts they had performed. 
 
 The question of an advance was finally determined, and on 
 the 24th of June Crittenden s Corps was put in motion. Thomas 
 and McCook had marched the day before. The booming of can 
 non in front was the music that heralded the advance of the 
 army. To enter into details of the incidents of the march, and 
 the numberless skirmishes in which the Company was engaged, 
 would vary but little from what has already been written of sim 
 ilar adventures, and would swell this chapter to an immoderate 
 length. Crittenden s Corps was the first to enter Chattanooga 
 after its evacuation by Bragg. Company B lead the advance, 
 and were the first Federal soldiers in the city, except pris 
 oners of war captured in former campaigns, that had been taken 
 through on their way to Southern prison pens. They took a 
 colonel and a number of Rebel stragglers prisoners, with ordnance 
 stores and other property, including a wagon load of " Cherry 
 Bounce." 
 
 Longstreet, with reinforcements from the Rebel army in Vir 
 ginia, joining Bragg, materially changed the aspect of affairs, 
 and our army, scattered over a wide territory, was in a critical 
 position. The Rebel commander at once discontinued his retro 
 grade movement, and turning about, sought to recover the posi 
 tions he had abandoned, and to crush in detail our scattered divis 
 ions. The changed situation caused deep solicitude and anxiety 
 on the part of our commanders, who sought to extricate the 
 army from its perilous position, and every effort was made to 
 
CARRYING DESPATCHES. 769 
 
 concentrate the different corps and interpose a barrier to the re-oc 
 cupation of Chattanooga by the enemy . Orders and despatches 
 were flying between headquarters and the subordinates in the 
 field. The cavalry were on the wing night and day, and scarcely 
 a breathing spell was given to those on detached service. 
 
 At two P. M. of the llth, Capt. Sherer was sent with despatches 
 to Gen. Wood, and in the gloom of night, the wrong road was 
 taken. Ere long he found himself within the enemy s picket 
 lines, and while endeavoring to extricate the party, Sergt. Perry 
 and private Mann fell into their hands as prisoners of 
 war. After wandering in the darkness through woods, hills and 
 ravines, Gen. Wood was found at daylight and the despatches 
 delivered. On the 12th, Company B was sent to the front, and 
 engaged all day the enemy s cavalry. After dark they went 
 into camp at Gordon s Mills. From that time until the 19th, 
 there was sharp and almost constant skirmishing, and often 
 the deep-voiced cannon mingled in the fray. Company B par 
 ticipated in many of these, and at other times were carrying 
 despatches to every part of the widely extended field of oper 
 ations- 
 Early on the 19th, the battle of Chickamauga opened near 
 Gordon s Mills. Bragg had evidently expected to get into Chat 
 tanooga in advance of our army, but in this he was foiled, and 
 massing his forces, he hurled them in great fury against separate 
 corps. A desperate struggle ensued with varying success, but 
 without decisive results. Ten men of Company B were assigned 
 to Gen. Sheridan, and shared in the fortunes of his intrepid 
 division. The balance were constantly on the wing, carrying 
 orders and reconnoitering. At one time, while passing a gap 
 through which the enemy had penetrated, the whole detachment 
 narrowly escaped capture. 
 
770 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Through the dull hours of the succeeding night, our army was 
 concentrating upon the left, to overlap Bragg s right, and cover 
 the road to Chattanooga. Portions of Crittenden s and McCook s 
 Corps were sent to Gen Thomas assistance, and it was owing to 
 the weakening of these corps and the strengthening of the left, 
 that they met with disaster the succeeding day, while Thomas 
 with great difficulty was enabled to hold his position. The right 
 wing met with disaster and was driven with immense loss from 
 the field some even retiring to Chattanooga. During the night 
 Company B conducted Gen. Crittenden to Gen. Rosecrans 
 headquarters at the Widow Glenn s. While the right was retir 
 ing in disorder, Company B found an abandoned battery and 
 attempted to drag it from the field, but the enemy came swarm 
 ing up on every side arid they were forced to leave it, after spik 
 ing two of the guns. So close were the Confederates upon them, 
 that the boys were obliged to scatter in every direction. A squad 
 of three bore off the corps flag and saved it from capture. Three 
 several efforts were made to cross over to Gen. Thomas posi 
 tion, but Rebel troops were found blocking the way, and 
 it was with difficulty they escaped capture. At one time, but 
 three men were left with Capt. Sherer. Learning from Gen. 
 Davis that Crittenden, McCook and Rosecrans were in Chatta 
 nooga, weary and despondent, the company made its way into 
 town after dark. 
 
 Desultory fighting continued for several days, but no general 
 engagement. Gradually our lines were withdrawn to the environs 
 of the city, arid strong entrenchments thrown up. The enemy 
 located their camps and batteries on the summits and sides of the 
 surrounding hills, and closely invested the place on all sides 
 except the north. Then succeeded a few days of rest for Com 
 pany B, that during the excitement and vicissitudes of the pre- 
 
LACK OF FOOD AND FORAGE. 771 
 
 vious month had become worn down and exhausted. Capt. 
 Sherer was taken sick, and for many days his life was despaired 
 of. Then followed the long, gloomy days of starvation that 
 characterized the Siege of Chattanooga. Food and forage were 
 consumed, and only one long, mountain road over which supplies 
 could be drawn. As the wants of the men were first to be sup 
 plied, forage was out of the question, and thousands of horses 
 and mules starved to death. 
 
 At a later period Gens. Crittenden and McCook were relieved 
 from their commands, and Company B escorted them as far as 
 Stevenson. The General very feelingly took leave of his faith 
 ful escort, and bestowed many encomiums upon their fidelity and 
 gallantry. Gen. Hooker having arrived at Stevenson on his way 
 to the front, the Company was commended to his consideration, 
 as being competent and worthy for any position to which they 
 might be assigned. During the next few weeks they were 
 entrusted with the execution of many important duties, one of 
 which was the conducting of a large herd of starving animals 
 from the beleaugered city to where forage could be obtained. It 
 was a tedious job, and many died upon the road, but by far the 
 larger portion reached Stevenson in safety. 
 
 While at Stevenson, orders were received for the Company to 
 report to Gen. Hooker for duty, then in the valley, directly under 
 the frowning summit of Lookout Mountain. So near was the 
 enemy that men could be seen at their games of cards, or in the 
 performance of the usual avocation of soldiers in camp. At 
 times fierce cannonading was indulged in by the belligerent 
 parties facing each other. Old Lookout was often wreathed in 
 smoke and flame, and made to tremble at the explosion of hostile 
 cannon. Shot frequently struck in close proximity to the Gen 
 eral s quarters or rolled with fearful momentum through the 
 camp, fortunately without loss to Company B. 
 
772 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 The dangers, excitements, success and glory attending the 
 ever memorable day of Lookout Mountain and the battle above 
 the clouds, November 24th and 25th, 1863, were shared by the 
 Company. The story of Lookout has been often told, and most 
 grandly by that inimitable word painter, B. F. Taylor, whose 
 sentences are sparkling poems, and we will not attempt with our 
 sluggish pen to repeat it. At times the firing of guns was most 
 terrific. A hundred thousand eyes from the valley below sought 
 to penetrate that fog curtain and trace the sweep of Hooker s 
 battalions up the rocky ascent ; and when early on the morning 
 of the 25th the rocky buttresses were scaled, and the flag of 
 glory floated from the highest mountain height, a tempest of 
 human voices went shouting to the victors in a prolonged and 
 joyful expression of satisfaction at the result. Capt. Sherer 
 acted as aid to Gen. Hooker, and throughout the engagement 
 was ever at his side. The Company was in the thickest of the 
 fray, toiling up the rocky ascent with the storming column, and 
 when night found us in secure possession of the mountain, and 
 the victory virtually won, they bivouacked at the "white house," 
 midway between the base and summit of the mountain. 
 
 Ere the morning light had tinged the east and kissed the wav 
 ing folds of the flag proudly floating from the summit above them, 
 Hooker s columns were in motion. A dense fog concealed the 
 mountain, and covered the landscape. The morning was well 
 advanced before the retreat of the enemy was rendered certain, 
 and the General enabled to take in fully the situation. The 
 pursuit was pressed in the direction of Rossville, followed by 
 more or less fighting throughout the day. Capt. Sherer being 
 sent back for ammunition, was just crossing Lookout Mountain 
 when Granger s, Thomas and Sheridan s Divisions made their 
 famous charge up the steep sides of Missionary Ridge. The 
 
BRAGG 11ET11EATING. 773 
 
 sight was inspiring beyond conception, one never to be forgotten, 
 and for a time held him spell bound an excited spectator of one 
 of the grandest panoramas of battle and victory of the whole war. 
 
 Among the many incidents of the day, the following is related 
 of Henry P. Mann, a private of Company B. While on his 
 way to Chattanooga with despatches from Gen. Hooker, he had 
 descended the mountain about half w r ay, when he unexpectedly 
 encountered a squad of nine Rebel soldiers. There was little 
 time for deliberation, but thinking the boldest was the easiest 
 way out of danger, he charged single handed, and by represent 
 ing that supports were near, induced them to throw down their 
 arms and surrender, and brought them in triumph to the Com 
 pany quarters. 
 
 A succession of brilliant victories to the Federal arms around 
 Chattanooga, put Bragg in rapid retreat, Gen. Hooker following 
 closely, capturing many prisoners and guns on the way. At Ring- 
 gold, he found the enemy in position to dispute his advance. Two 
 infantry charges were made and repulsed with loss, but the artillery 
 coming up, the enemy was shelled from his position and retreated 
 to Dalton. Here the pursuit was abandoned and the troops 
 recalled to Chattanooga. Gen. Hooker established his headquar 
 ters in Lookout Valley, and there for some time Company B 
 remained inactive. 
 
 Thirty-five of the company re-enlisted as veterans and imme 
 diately returned to Illinois on furlough. Meanwhile, all efforts 
 failing for the revocation of the order attaching it to the 
 15th Cavalry, the men with a bad grace submitted to the 
 change. One of its results was the tender to and acceptance of 
 a major s commission by Capt. Sherer, to date from July 29th, 
 1863, a tardy, though deserving recognition of the services of a 
 true soldier and gallant officer. He was ordered to report to his 
 
774 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 regiment at Helena, Arkansas, and on the 12th of February, 
 1864, his connection with Company B ceased. Samuel B. 
 Sherer was born in Montrose, Susquehanna County, Penn., Jan. 
 7th 1838. His father died when he was ten years of age, and 
 without friends or influence, he fought successfully his way 
 through life. When eighteen years of age, he came west, as a 
 locomotive engineer. When the war broke out, he was employed 
 in the post-office at Aurora. Taking a deep interest in the suc 
 cess of the National cause, we found him at Camp Hammond, a 
 2nd Lieutenant of Company A Cavalry. Since the Chicago fire, 
 he has been a resident of that city. His past military experi 
 ence has been duly appreciated by his fellow citizens, and at this 
 time he holds the commission of Major, in the 1st Regiment 
 Illinois State Militia. 
 
 Lieut Francis E. Reynolds succeeded to the Captaincy, but 
 his resignation being accepted a few days thereafter, he was suc 
 ceeded by Sergt. William Duncan, whose personal bravery and 
 brilliant exploits had attracted the notice of his superiors and 
 gained the confidence of the company. 2nd Lieut. Charles M. 
 Harvey was promoted to 1st Lieutenant, and Sergt. John A. 
 McQueen was commissioned and mustered 2nd Lieutenant, to 
 rank from February 28th, 1864. 
 
 Unfortunately the connection of our story at this point is broken 
 and its interest impaired, despite our efforts to secure a report, a 
 diary, or an interview with any of the survivors, that would 
 throw light or information upon the history of the company 
 during the Atlanta campaign. We are informed that this was 
 the most eventful period of its career. Those who are person 
 ally acquainted with Gen. Hooker, and the part he took in the 
 bloody march through Northern Georgia, must know that his 
 escort and staff were at no time idle, or in want of opportunities 
 for personal adventures and deeds of daring. 
 
PERSONAL ADVENTURES. 775 
 
 Two or three incidents have come to us second-hand, arid 
 we will give them. The fatigues of the campaign had told 
 heavily upon the company s horses, and it became an object 
 of solicitude on the part of each trooper to secure a remount, 
 and when expeditions in the country were made, no planta 
 tion or stable escaped a general search from the prying eyes 
 of the boys. Their sharpness in trading their worn-out crow- 
 baits with citizens for fresh, spirited animals, must redound 
 to their lasting credit. 
 
 In the neighborhood of Burnt Hickory, Sergt. Arnick, and 
 the brothers Alfred and Albert Small, were sent to reconnoiter 
 the enemy, arid took occasion to engage in commercial pursuits 
 as opportunity offered. The position of the enemy was unknown. 
 They followed a trail a short distance up a mountain-side, and 
 then diverging from it, ascended obliquely, without path or trail 
 to guide them through the thickets which clothed the mountain. 
 There was a change in the course of the range, and crossing the 
 nose or elbow of the hills, they suddenly came to a plantation, 
 and a large mansion surrounded by negro cabins, with stables in 
 the rear. Amick sent his comrades to the stables, while he rode 
 up to the front of the house. Seeing army saddles in the porch, 
 he called the proprietor and demanded whose they were. He 
 replied "the Major s." "Please tell the Major I wish to see 
 him," and presently both came to the door. To Amick s sur 
 prise, he found the major to be a Rebel officer. Just then, see 
 ing a cavalry camp near by, he found himself fairly within the 
 Confederate lines. Judging the boldest course to be the safest, 
 he brought his revolver to bear upon the major and ordered him 
 to surrender. The other boys coming up with three fine horses, 
 they were saddled, and mounting their prisoner, they plunged 
 into the brush and rode rapidly away. The alarm was given, 
 
776 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and the Confederate troop quickly saddled and set out in pursuit. 
 In his haste, Amick became confused and lost his way, but while 
 wandering in the woods, he came upon two citizens, mounted 
 and armed with shot-guns, whom he took prisoners, and with 
 cocked revolvers at their heads compelled them to pilot him into 
 the Federal lines, with three prisoners and five fresh horses. 
 
 Notwithstanding Johnston s stout resistance, our army steadily 
 pushed him back, and on the 25th of May he was found at New 
 Hope Church and Dallas. The 20th Corps was in the center 
 and led the advance. In the afternoon Hooker approached 
 Pumpkin Vine Creek, and found the bridge crossing it in pos 
 session of a cavalry force, which was speedily driven oft", but not 
 before they had fired the bridge. The fire was extinguished, 
 and a barn near by torn down arid the material used for its 
 repair. A hot fire from the woods was kept upon the men at 
 work, but as soon as the last plank was laid, Gen. Hooker with 
 Company B crossed over, charged the enemy and drove them 
 some distance until they were reinforced and it was considered 
 unsafe to venture further. The retreat was sounded, and all 
 retired except George Winchester, who was particularly anxious 
 to get in another shot. He soon came up with the Company, 
 
 remarking, as he took his place in line, " I ll teach the d d 
 
 son-of-a-gun to shoot at me." A dead Rebel was afterward found 
 on the spot, amd it was believed that George had actually taught 
 liim. 
 
 Atlanta was at length reached after more than three months 
 continuous fighting. Our forces were closing in upon the city, 
 and the belcaugered enemy was contending desperately for its 
 preservation. The hostile lines were near to each other, often 
 within short range. Gen. Hooker, always brave, often rash, on 
 the evening of July 24th, passed in front of his entrenchments 
 
COMPANY B HOWARD S ESCORT. 777 
 
 and just in rear of the outer picket line to inspect the enemy s 
 position and works. A number of shots, fired by Rebel sharp 
 shooters, passed very near, but without heeding the hissing 
 bullets cutting the air around him, he continued the reconnois- 
 sance. John Baker, his orderly, and a member of Company B, 
 was just in rear of the General, and at the second discharge was 
 shot through the body and killed. This was the first member 
 of the Company that was killed outright by the enemy. 
 
 At last Atlanta was taken, and the remnants of the Confed 
 erate army under the command of Hood, gathered at or near 
 Lovejoy s Station, on the Macon Railroad, but made no hostile 
 movements, and a period of quiet and rest ensued. Gen. 
 Hooker was relieved from the command of the 20th Corps, and 
 succeeded by Gen. 0. 0. Howard, who retained Company B as 
 his escort. There being no longer any hope of rescinding the 
 order of assignment to the 15th Cavalry, from henceforth we 
 will designate it as Company K, 15th Illinois Cavalry. 
 
 The latter part of September Hood began to manifest unusual 
 activity, and shifted his position from our front to the flank, while 
 his cavalry were found raiding in the rear arid menacing our long, 
 slender line of communication. When, on the 3rd of October, 
 Hood was reported in person with his whole army in the neigh 
 borhood of Marietta, Gen. Sherman was not taken by surprise. 
 Succeeding the capture of Atlanta, his army had undergone many 
 changes. New organizations and commanders took the place of 
 old. Gen. Thomas was despatched to Tennessee with the 4th 
 and 23rd Corps ; and the 14th and 16th Corps were broken up 
 and merged into the 15th and 17th, forming a single grand divis 
 ion, known as the Army of the Tennessee, commanded by Gen. 
 Howard. Company K still remained with that officer as escort 
 and body guard, but its duties were so infinite that with truth it 
 
 50 
 
778 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 may be said it was independent, and attached to no particular 
 command or commander. 
 
 At length the railroad was tapped, and communication with 
 the outer world cut off. Leaving Gen. Slocum with the 20th 
 Corps at Atlanta, Sherman proceeded with his available forces to 
 break the blockade and restore his line of communication, which 
 taxed the ingenuity and energy of the army to its utmost to 
 accomplish. For more than a month Sherman was chasing 
 Hood from position to position, but could not succeed in drawing 
 him into a pitched battle. 
 
 During this period of activity and ceaseless marching, Com 
 pany K was almost constantly on the move. First to Marietta, 
 where the distant rumble of Corse s cannon at Allatoona was 
 faintly heard, while Sherman signaled from the top of Kenesaw, 
 over the heads of his enemy, for him to stand firm as help was 
 near ; and when in reply Corse signaled back a victory, the whole 
 army felt relieved. 
 
 On the llth of October we find the Company at Kingston, on 
 the 12th at Rome, the 13th at Adairsville, the 14th at Resaca, 
 the loth and 16th at Snake Creek Gap and Taylor s Ridge, on 
 the 17th at Lafayette, and then at Grayville, in the neighborhood 
 of Chattanooga. Let the reader examine a map and follow the 
 various meanderings of the Company, he will be astonished at 
 the length of its marches and extent of territory traversed. 
 
 The consummate skill and vigor of Sherman, the celerity of 
 his movements, together with two or three repulses, taught the 
 enemy a lesson and he wisely withdrew to Gadsderi. Having 
 driven Hood from the railroad, and all arrangements being com 
 pleted, Sherman in turn abandoned it, sent the troops destined 
 to operate under Thomas to Chattanooga, while he returned to 
 Atlanta. 
 
THE ARMY LEAVES ATLANTA. 779 
 
 
 
 Early on the morning of November 15th his columns were 
 again in motion headed eastward, Atlanta was left tenantless, a 
 heap of smoking ruins, and the march to the sea was commenced. 
 Gen. Sherman in his memoirs, in describing the scene, says : 
 Away off in the distance on the McDonough road, was the rear 
 of Howard s column, the gun barrels glistening in the sun, the 
 white topped wagons stretching away to the south, and right 
 before us the 14th Corps, marching steadily and rapidly, with a 
 cheery look and swinging pace that made light of the thousand 
 miles that lay between us and Richmond. Some band by acci 
 dent struck up the anthem of John Brown s soul goes marching 
 on, the men caught up the strain, and never before or since 
 have I heard the chorus of Glory, Glory, Hallelujah ! done 
 with more spirit or in better harmony of time and place." 
 
 The right wing, under Gen. Howard, after leaving Atlanta, 
 pursued a southerly course, in the direction of Macon, reaching 
 the Ocmulgee River on the 18th, and crossing it on pontoons. The 
 15th Corps then diverged to the east, towards Gordon, while the 
 17th continued to the neighborhood of Macon. Gen. Howard 
 marched with the former column, and Company K led the advance. 
 But little opposition was encountered, and an abundance of supplies 
 was obtained from the bountiful harvest of the preceding sea 
 son. Capt. Duncan was put in charge of Gen. Howard s scouts, 
 and Lieut. McQueen throughout the march was in command of 
 the company. Duncan, with his usual intrepidity and daring, 
 was generally many miles in advance of the marching column, 
 in the heart of the enemy s country, and frequently within their 
 lines. Disguised as a Rebel officer, or an unsophisticated coun 
 tryman, as suited his purpose, he was enabled to examine the 
 routes to be followed and ascertain the whereabouts, strength and 
 intention of the enemy, and faithfully report the combinations 
 
780 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 being formed to obstruct or resist the march. There is no romance 
 more thrilling than the story of Capt. Duncan s adventures in 
 the Great March. He had learned the vernacular of the South 
 erners perfectly , and under his disguises could find out all he desired 
 relative to the country and plans of the enemy. At the wayside 
 houses, he was served with the best the country afforded, while 
 negroes were set to watch his horses, to keep the u Yanks" from 
 stealing them. 
 
 Milledgeville, the capitol of Georgia situated about one hun 
 dred miles from Atlanta was the first objective point. Two 
 days in advance of the army, Capt. Duncan, with five compan 
 ions, entered the city, and finding that the military had fled and 
 the frightened inhabitants were in the highest state of excite 
 ment, too intent in caring for their own precious selves, to 
 bestow any attention upon him, his party removed their disguises, 
 went boldly to the mayor and demanded the keys of the city, 
 which were promptly surrendered. There were at the time over 
 one hundred Rebel soldiers, including stragglers and conval 
 escents enough to have exterminated the scouts, had not their 
 fears got the better of their judgment. Before leaving the city, 
 the Confederate authorities released the convicts from the State 
 Penitentiary and armed them, so Duncan, finding that institu 
 tion empty, set fire to and consumed it, together with arsenals and 
 magazines. Negroes from the country in vast crowds came flock 
 ing in, greeting the scouts with such exclamations as, "* Tanks be 
 to Almighty God, de Yankees hab come." 
 
 The next morning, Sergt. Amick, with five other scouts came 
 in as a welcome reinforcement, and in the evening, Duncan was 
 further re-inforced by Gen. Slocum, with the 20th Corps. In 
 coming up, the General from a distance saw the commotion in 
 the city, caused by the influx of negroes thronging the streets, 
 
THE MARCH THROUGH GEORGIA. 781 
 
 and taking them for Confederate troops, threw out his pickets, 
 brought up his batteries, and deployed his men, in anticipation 
 of a bloody engagement. Overtaking an old negro, the General 
 inquired the number and character of the forces in the city, 
 when the astonished darkey replied, " Bress yer heart, massa, de 
 Yankees am dar!" Gen. Slocum was exceedingly crestfallen 
 and enraged at the audacity of the scouts in getting before him 
 and reaping the glory of capturing the capitol of Georgia, and 
 at once ordered their arrest, but about that time the boys were 
 not to be found, except one, and he by a clever ruse escaped. 
 
 The story of the Great March has been told often and well. 
 It is not the design of this sketch to repeat it. It was like a 
 grand, triumphal procession, through one of the most fertile regions 
 of the South. There was but little opposition encountered, and 
 scarcely a foraging party was driven in or molested. 
 
 As the army neared Savannah, its destination was apparent to 
 those who wished to avoid the track of the invader. The scouts and 
 foragers were usually many miles in advance, and none were posi 
 tively sure of escaping the prying eyes of the dreaded Yankees. At 
 one point a train of heavily laden cars was captured by Lieut. Mc 
 Queen, just as it was on the point of moving away on a branch 
 road, that would have taken it beyond the sweep of the Federal col 
 umns. The locomotive and cars were destroyed, and among the 
 captured was a Confederate colonel, the President of the Georgia 
 Central Railroad, and a number of soldiers and prominent cit 
 izens. 
 
 The right wing, under Gen. Howard, reached the Ogeechee 
 river December 8th, 1864, and found the bridges burned and all 
 boats destroyed. In anticipation of such a condition of things, 
 an illy constructed canoe or " dug out " had been brought from the 
 interior, and was the only craft at hand for crossing. Gen. 
 
782 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Sherman was anxious to communicate with the fleet, which he 
 had reason to believe was awaiting him somewhere off the coast. 
 Capt. Duncan, Sergt. Amick and Corp. Quimby volunteered to 
 take a message to the fleet, and as soon as darkness had shadowed 
 the landscape, they started down the river on their perilous voy 
 age. They passed under King s bridge while it was yet burning, 
 saw Rebel pickets stationed along the banks, and heard the prayers 
 and singing of negroes who were holding a meeting at one of the 
 wayside plantations. In the rice swamps were millions of wild 
 ducks, chattering a good-night quack previous to retiring. 
 Towards morning the ebb tide set in, arid finding it difficult to 
 make headway against it, they hauled their boat on shore, and 
 cautiously approached the negro quarters on McAllister s planta 
 tion. Awakening the inmates of a cabin, they gave them to 
 understand that they were Yankees, and in need of food and rest. 
 The poor slaves were only too glad to supply their wants, and as 
 daylight was approaching, assisted in concealing the boat in a 
 cypress swamp and themselves in a belt of timber, where by laying 
 close during the day they were not discovered. 
 
 At night the faithful negroes, having supplied them with food, 
 piloted them back to their "dug out," and being warned of tor 
 pedoes and other obstructions to the navigation of the river, the 
 scouts were off with the tide. The moon shone brightly, and they 
 proceeded rapidly arid blithely along, when suddenly a dark cloud 
 gathered over the face of the moon, and the darkness seemed 
 intense. Turning a bend, a dark object loomed athwart their 
 path, and before they were aware of it they were alongside a 
 Rebel gunboat which was anchored in the stream. The sentinel 
 was heard walking the deck, and the hum of voices from those on 
 board was wafted to their ears. Silently they pushed away from 
 the dangerous craft, and when the cloud passed, they were at a 
 safe distance from the hostile vessel. 
 
DANGEROUS TRIP TO THE FLEET. 783 
 
 Just below was Fort McAllister looming up in the bend of the 
 river, but it was passed without molestation, and their little itp dug 
 out" swept gracefully through the narrow intervals between the 
 spiles driven across the river. They heard and saw the Confed 
 erates at work strengthening the fort, but chose not to exchange 
 compliments with them. The ebb tide setting against them, they 
 lay by on an uninhabited island the greater part of the next day, 
 and being without food or fresh water, their sufferings became 
 intense. When the tide began to flow, they embark e*d again and 
 rushed rapidly seaward. Soon the heavy ocean swells tossed 
 their boat, the headlands disappeared, and they began to realize 
 their critical situation. Hungry, thirsty and nearly exhausted, 
 hope and courage forsook them. Looking seaward, the masts of 
 vessels appeared in sight, which proved to be a part of the Fed 
 eral blockading fleet. When the man at the masthead saw the 
 strange craft approaching, a boat was sent to meet the boys. If 
 ever men were happy, these half dead-scouts were at sight of 
 the stars and stripes. They were taken to the flag ship, and their 
 frail "dug out" was hoisted on board and subsequently carried 
 to Washington, where the curious relic hunter may find it in the 
 Navy Yard, a highly prized memento of one of the most daring 
 adventures of the war. 
 
 We are reminded that our " History " has already overstepped 
 its proposed bounds, and we are compelled to pass over many 
 incidents that we doubt not would be full of interest to the reader. 
 The storming of Fort McAllister, the investment of Savannah, and 
 the surrender of the city with its vast arsenals and store-houses, 
 have all been told by others and need not be repeated here. We 
 have before us the diary of Lieut. McQueen, and from it we learn 
 that while on the march from Pocotaligo through South Carolina, 
 Daniel Reynolds was captured by the enemy January 30th, 1865, 
 
784 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 and was never heard of afterward. Capt. Duncan returned and 
 again took command of the Company, while Lieut. McQueen 
 was placed in charge of the scouts. 
 
 From Pocotaligo, the righj; wing, under Gen. 0. 0. Howard, pur 
 sued its toilsome march, over roads rendered almost impassable by 
 frequent rains and Rebel obstructions ; through forests and 
 swamps ; crossing swollen streams on hastily constructed tempo 
 rary bridges the others having been burned by the enemy. Com 
 pany K wate usually in front, and in conjunction with the scouts 
 captured many prisoners, horses and mules. The haughty South 
 Carolinians were enraged at seeing their State overrun and rav 
 aged by the "greasy Yankees," and each angle of the road, 
 crossing of a river or swamp, became the scene of spirited 
 engagements. The coolness of the well-trained Northern sold 
 iers and their confidence in themselves, gave them decided advan 
 tages over the hot and impetuous Southerners. 
 
 On the 17th of February, Columbia, the capitol of the State, 
 surrendered, and Gen. Logan hastened to take possession. The 
 Confederate Gen. Wade Hampton, left the city as Col. Stone 
 with the advance entered it. Vast quantities of liquor were left 
 in the place, and very many of the men, not being properly 
 restrained, became intoxicated, and with passions stimulated, riot 
 and confusion ensued. Cotton and merchandise of every desrip- 
 tion littered the streets, some of it on fire. A high wind arose, 
 and it is perhaps true that a few of the drunken, untamed spirits, 
 instead of exerting themselves to extinguish the smouldering fire, 
 assisted in its spread. At nine o clock at night, much to the sur 
 prise and regret of Gen. Sherman, the central and most com 
 pactly built portion of the city was found to be on fire. The 
 howling wind, the raging flames, the falling walls, the explosion 
 of fixed ammunition stored in various places along the track of 
 
LIEUT. MCQUEEN S SERVICES. 785 
 
 the devouring element, and the agonizing cry of helpless women 
 and children, all formed a picture of horror, never to be forgot 
 ten. Hearts were touched at the sights and sounds around them, 
 and officers generally exerted themselves to stay the conflagra 
 tion and rescue people and property from its ravages. 
 
 Prominent among these was Lieut McQueen, who was instru 
 mental in rescuing many buildings from the flames and their 
 contents from pillage. One of these was the residence of the 
 venerable Dr. Reynolds, with whom the Rev. A. Toomer Porter 
 and family were temporarily stopping. Mr. Porter, in relating 
 his experience during that fearful night, says : " Helpless, almost 
 hopeless, not knowing what terrible fate awaited us, in this 
 extremity God raised up a devoted friend in the person of Lieut. 
 John A. McQueen, of the 15th Illinois Cavalry which was the 
 escort of Gen. 0. 0. Howard. During the entire stay of the 
 Federal army in the now blackened and ruined city, this devoted 
 officer never forsook us giving us all the protection he possibly 
 could, and it was only when the last company of United States 
 soldiers had departed that he took his leave." On parting with 
 him, Mr. Porter placed in the hands of McQueen, a letter 
 addressed to Gen. Wade Hampton, or other Confederate officer 
 into whose custody he might fall, to be used by him should the 
 chances of war throw him into the enemy s hands. 
 
 Numerous and exciting were the adventures of the Company 
 and scouts on the northward march from Columbia. On the 
 21st, near Anderson s Cross-roads, they surprised and captured 
 a part of Butler s Brigade, and on the same day skirmished with 
 a mounted party of twenty, wounding one and routing the 
 remainder. On the 23rd, while on the road to Camden, learn 
 ing that a company of militia were between them and the town, 
 a party of but seven men surprised the camp, took the company 
 
78(3 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 prisoners and destroyed their arms. In this affair, Quimby was 
 wounded in the thigh. February 15th, the advance, comprising 
 Company K and a part of the 4th Ohio Cavalry, under Oapt. 
 Duncan, captured Caniden. A lively skirmish ensued, but Gen 
 Corse coming up with his Division, the Rebel cavalry was driven 
 so rapidly, as to rescue a number of our prisoners who had been 
 removed to that place for safe keeping. The railroad bridge, two 
 thousand bales of cotton and other property was burned. The 
 fire appeared likely to spread over the town, but by McQueen s 
 exertions it was extinguished. Among the houses saved by him, 
 were the residences of Mrs. Reynolds, Mrs. Kennedy and Bishop 
 Davis. 
 
 February 27th, Capt. Duncan was ordered to proceed with his 
 Company across Lynch s Creek, and destroy the railroad bridge 
 at Sparrow swamp. It was a long and dangerous march, but 
 the orders were carried out to the letter. The sun had set, and 
 darkness was coming on when a point was reached where four 
 roads met, not far from Mt. Elon. A halt was ordered, and the 
 Captain and Lieut. McQueen were consulting as to the propriety 
 of going into camp, when suddenly a force of Rebel cavalry 
 dashed in upon them. "Who are you?" asked the Rebel com 
 mander. " The 15th Illinois," was Duncan s reply, " and who 
 are you ?" "Butler s command !" and pop, pop, pop, from pistol 
 and carbine was the next salutation, and men were seen to fall on 
 both sides. The Confederates outnumbered Duncan s command 
 three to one, and after emptying their revolvers both parties fled 
 precipitately from the scene of the encounter. The Confederates 
 left their commander, Brig. Gren. Aikin, dead on the spot, and 
 several others killed and wounded. Of Duncan s party, Henry 
 Irish was killed ; Thomas Crayon, Daniel Reynolds and Henry 
 Ilanley were wounded or captured. Lieut. McQueen was shot 
 
INSTANCE OP REBEL GRATITUDE. . 787 
 
 through the body, but managed to retain his position in his sad 
 dle until reaching a negro s cabin, he could go no further, and 
 directed his comrades to leave him there. 
 
 The negroes, thinking he would die, made known his situation 
 to the white people in the neighborhood, and the letter of the 
 Rev. Mr. Porter secured for him good treatment and immunity 
 from harm. At various times squads of Confederate soldiers and 
 militia came with the avowed intention of killing him, but the 
 letter was the means of saving his life. Mrs. Reynolds, and 
 other ladies at Camden, hearing of McQueen s critical situation, 
 and gratefuJ for his services in saving their homes from the tiaines, 
 sent him many comforts in the way of food and clothing. 
 Eventually he was removed to Camden, and cared for by those 
 friends whom God had raised up in the heart of the Confederacy. 
 The Rev. Mr. Porter, of Columbia, hearing of McQueen s dan 
 ger, hastened to his assistance, performing a part of the journey 
 on foot. No efforts were spared. for his comfort and recovery. 
 As soon as he was able, a mule and buggy of quaint pattern 
 and ancient date was procured, and by Mr. Porter he was con 
 veyed to Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, then at Raleigh, N. C., and 
 by that officer was unconditionally released without parol. 
 Mr. Porter has kindly furnished the writer with twenty-four 
 sheets of manuscript, giving fully the interesting story of Lieut. 
 John A. McQueen, from which we are able to give only the fore 
 going extract. It is a pleasure for us to note the disinterested 
 kindness of these good people, so in contrast with the heartless- 
 ness of Wurtz, the commander at Andersonville, and of Jeff. 
 Davis, who gloated over the suffering and death of Federal pris 
 oners of war. 
 
 The 15th Corps, with which Gen. Sherman then was march 
 ing, reached Laurel Hill in North Carolina March 8th. Satisfied 
 
788 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 that Wilmington had been approached from the sea, and ought 
 to be and perhaps was in our possession, the General called his 
 favorite scout (Corp. Pike) and sent him in disguise to convey 
 intelligence of our approach. The distance was about one hun 
 dred and fifty miles, and to guard against failure it was deter 
 mined to send another message, and Gen. Howard was called 
 upon to furnish a man to carry it. Sergt. Amick and Quimby, 
 of Company K, were selected. The despatch was written in the 
 smallest space possible and concealed in the end of a plug of 
 tobacco, so that in case of mishap, it could readily be chewed up 
 without exciting suspicion. Pike had set out nine hours in 
 advance, and the prospects of his reaching Wilmington first were 
 in his favor. The scouts found it difficult getting into the Rebel 
 lines, but when fairly among them, their Confederate uniform 
 and Southern accent warded off suspicion. Indeed, much of the 
 way Wade Hampton s soldiers escorted and assisted them. The 
 lady of the house where they stopped for breakfast was garrulous, 
 and had many questions to ask relative to the war and the hated 
 " Yankees," and finally asked, "Where do you suppose Sherman 
 will go to next?" For once forgetting the character of a Rebel 
 officer he had assumed, Amick replied, " We never know until 
 we get there." Quimby, ever on his guard, gave such a look 
 that Amick at once comprehended the nature of his thoughtless 
 reply. Ten miles further on, while negotiating for a fresh horse, 
 a Rebel captain and two men rode up from the direction they had 
 come. From his actions and the questions asked, Amick sus 
 pected that the lady where he had breakfasted had communicated 
 to him her suspicions. To put an end to his questioning, Amick 
 suddenly drew his revolver, and levelling it at the officer, said, 
 " T believe youans are Yankee spies ; so surrender! Tf my sus 
 picions are correct, youans will hang as sure as fate ; so prove 
 
COMMISSION OF SERGT. AMICK. 780 
 
 yourselves clar." The Confederate officer taken by surprise, 
 protested his loyalty to the South, and fairly proved himself a 
 genuine Rebel. Amick apologized for his seeming mistake and 
 passed on. Near Wilmington it was with difficulty they avoided 
 Rebel pickets, and were once chased into the swamps. Reaching 
 Wilmington they communicated with Gen. Terry two days ahead 
 of Pike. In an hour or two transports were sent up Cape Fear 
 river, and on the 12th the whistle of a steamboat thrilled through 
 the Federal camps at Fayetteville. Gen. Sherman in his memoirs 
 says of this adventure, "I also called on Gen. Howard for 
 another volunteer, and he brought me a very clever young ser 
 geant, who is now a commissioned officer in the regular army." 
 The fact is, the commission was given Amick by Gen. Sherman 
 as a reward for his pluck and success on this occasion. 
 
 The city of Fayetteville, North Carolina, was captured by our 
 cavalry company, re-inforced by details from other commands, 
 numbering in all about one hundred men, under the command of 
 Capt. Duncan. The Confederate Generals Hampton and Har- 
 dee, with other officers, were at breakfast, and would have been 
 taken prisoners, had Capt. Duncan known of their presence in 
 town. Duncan passed through the city and skirmished with the 
 enemy s cavalry, stationed on a hill beyond, when Gen. Hamp 
 ton by a circuitous route joined his command, and charging down 
 upon Duncan with an overwhelming force, scattered his detachment, 
 killing some and making others prisoners, among them, Capt. Dun 
 can. We copy from Sheridan s memoirs, as follows : " While the bat 
 tle of Averysboro was in progress, and I was sitting on my horse, I 
 was approached by a man on foot, without shoes or coat, and his head 
 bandaged by a handkerchief. He announced himself as Capt. 
 Duncan, who had been captured by Wade Hampton in Fayette 
 ville, but had escaped. On my inquiring how he came to be in 
 
790 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 that plight, he explained that when he was a prisoner, Wade 
 Hampton s men had made him " get out of his hat, coat and 
 shoes," which they appropriated to themselves. He said that 
 Wade Hampton had seen them do it, and he had appealed to him 
 personally for protection, as an officer, but Hampton answered 
 him with a curse. I sent Duncan to Gen. Kilpatrick, and heard 
 afterwards that the latter had compelled the Rebel prisoner Col. 
 Rhett to march on foot the rest of the way to Goldsboro, in retal 
 iation." 
 
 In all of the subsequent operations in the campaign through 
 the Carolinas, the Plato Cavalry (Company K) bore a conspicu 
 ous part. A full account of all its marches and exploits would 
 fill a volume. We are not informed of its operations after leav 
 ing Goldsboro, and can only add, that perhaps no company of 
 cavalry in the whole volunteer service has a brighter or more 
 glorious record. The company was included in the order of con 
 solidation with the 10th Illinois, but retained its letter K. It 
 was mustered from service Sept. 23, 1865, and at this time, 
 many of its members, though scattered far and near, are among 
 the most honored and trusted citizens of the Republic they did 
 so much to save. 
 
 VETERANS 
 
 Myron J. Ainick Nathan H. Lark in 
 
 Edwin E. Balch Abijah A. Lee 
 
 Nathaniel Brow a John A. McQueen 
 
 Henry Ball William Meehan 
 
 George W. Campbell Henry Nelson 
 
 Charles Cooley Thomas C. Pennington 
 
 Walter S. Clark George J. Pettingill 
 
 William J. Christie Jeremiah Phelan 
 
 Robert Collins William H. Pease 
 
 Robert N. Chrysler George Perkins 
 
 William Duncan Peter I). Porchette 
 
 Eugene H. Griggs Aimer A. Pease 
 
 John Gilbert Daniel Reynolds 
 
 Robert Gallaher Earle Robinson 
 
 Jerry Hickey John Wagner 
 
COMPANY RECRUITS. 791 
 
 RECRUITS. 
 
 George W. Clark Henry P. Mann 
 
 Thomas Cray 011 Morgan McNall 
 
 Thomas Dougherty John Powell 
 
 James M. Dougherty William H. Rowe 
 
 Robert J. Eakiii Willett Richardson 
 
 Henry Eschrich Willis Richardson 
 
 Henry L. Forbs Alfred Small 
 
 Charles M. Harvey Albert Small 
 
 Henry H. Hanley Jacob P. Thompson 
 
 Henry Irish Morris D. Vanockcr 
 
 James Moore Hiram Waite 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 JOHN A. PORTER. 
 
 In the list of killed and wounded at the Battle of Resaca, was 
 the name of John A. Porter, of Company C. As given on page 
 585, it simply states that he was stunned. It should have stated 
 that he was severely wounded in the head, and we will add that 
 he lay insensible for hours and has never fully recovered from 
 its effects. 
 
 LIEUT. ELLIOTT S NARRATIVE. 
 
 Among the officers of the 36th captured at Stone River was 
 Lieut. John F. Elliott, of Company K. Before the battle a 
 couple of officers had made a wager, and deposited a ten dollar 
 Confederate note with him. The note was what was known as 
 u fac-simile" by the boys, which passed current in the South 
 except with the sharper classes. While at Atlanta, Lieut. Bur- 
 rett, of the 21st Michigan, wanted to borrow money of Elliott, 
 who gave him "fac-simile." Burrett went to a Jew clothing 
 store, where his money was closely inspected and pronounced 
 counterfeit, and he was arrested under a criminal process. 
 Elliott considering himself partly to blame, voluntarily made a 
 full statement of the matter, but instead of affecting Burrett s 
 release, he was also held for trial, with the " comforting " assur 
 ance that if found guilty, the necks of both should " stretch." 
 
LIEUT. ELLIOTT S NAKRATIVE. 793 
 
 On the 26th of February, 1863, the prisoners were notified 
 that they would be taken to Richmond for exchange, and Lieuts. 
 Elliott and Burrett were rejoiced that their names were on the list. 
 They were marched to the depot, and while waiting for the train, 
 the two officers were receiving the congratulations of their friends 
 at their escape, when two Confederate officers came in great haste 
 from the prison and called for Burrett and Elliott. Burrett 
 responded, and was taken back to prison, but Elliott not answer 
 ing, they concluded he had made his escape, which opinion was 
 strengthened by remarks from the rest, to the effect, " He s 
 gone" "I don t blame him" "I would have went, too, had I 
 been in his place." 
 
 Elliott was the first to get aboard, but he knew he would soon 
 be found out, and determined to escape. A comrade, who 
 had been robbed of his uniform and was clad in "butternut," 
 exchanged with him ; Gen. Willach gave him a map of the 
 country ; another gave him a pocket compass, and Capt. Camp 
 bell, of the 36th, contributed nine dollars Confederate money. 
 These, with seven small biscuits, comprised his outfit. 
 
 At Conyers, the third station east of Atlanta, the train 
 halted, and bidding his friends a good bye," he stepped down, 
 walked boldly to the platform and then moved leisurely away, 
 without attracting notice. Pursuing a northerly course, he soon 
 entered the timber, and traveling all night, reached the Chatta- 
 hoochee. Shortly after crossing the river, he came to a cluster 
 of negro huts, and though nearly daylight, all was quiet, until 
 attacked by a large dog, that seemed determined to dispute his 
 passage. Keeping him at bay with a stick, he hurried away, 
 fearful that the noise would arouse the natives. 
 
 After daylight, he sought a place of safety, and finding a 
 vacant house, he ate his last biscuit and laid down on some straw. 
 
 51 
 
794 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 The tramping of cattle and the distant voices of women, con 
 vincing him of the insecurity of the situation, he started on 
 again, and after going about a mile, left the road and plunged 
 into the woods. Collecting some bark and forming a shelter, 
 then gathering a quantity of leaves, he laid down and slept until 
 near sunset. His feet were swollen, he was lame and hungry, 
 but he dare not take the risk of inquiring for food. He traveled 
 due north all night, more slowly than on the previous night, and 
 came to a cabin, the occupants of which were not up. Conceal 
 ing himself behind a rick of tan bark, he soon saw smoke curling 
 from a chimney, and presently a woman came out. Becoming 
 satisfied there were no men around, and goaded on by hunger, he 
 approached the house and asked for breakfast. The woman asked 
 him questions, relative to where he was from, his destination and 
 business. His answers, framed for the occasion, enlisted her 
 sympathy, and she readily prepared a breakfast of corn dodgers, 
 crust coffee and bacon, which in his nearly famished condition 
 was a meal fit for a prince. 
 
 He then began seriously to reflect upon his situation, and saw 
 the necessity of framing a story that would last him in his trip 
 through the Confederacy. Though not approving of falsehood 
 as a general rule, on this occasion he followed the old maxim, 
 "The truth should not be spoken at all times." Thereupon, to 
 his surprise, he found his name to be J. Clark, of Northern 
 Georgia ; was at New Orleans when the war broke out : enlisted 
 in the 1st Louisiana Regiment ; had been absent from home three 
 years; his regiment was in Tennessee. With the knowledge of 
 his Company officers he ha.d been home, and was now returning 
 to his regiment. Did not claim to have a furlough, as these were 
 only granted when men were sent home to die. In short, he was 
 away on "French leave," but was getting back as fast as he 
 could. 
 
ELLIOTT S ADVENTURES CONTINUED. * 795 
 
 Satisfied with the plausibility of his story, and of his immunity 
 from danger while adhering to it, he proceeded boldly by day, 
 and towards night passed a wood chopper, who asked if he was 
 going to the village (Jasper). Without answering the question, 
 Elliott asked frhat was going on there. " Oh," said he, " they 
 are having a great time. The Conscripting officer is there, and 
 there is much excitement." Having learned that Jasper was 
 three miles distant, he passed on, but did not go through the vil 
 lage. At ten o clock he left the road and lay down upon the wet 
 ground at the foot of a large tree. In about two hours he awak 
 ened cold and stiff, and then moved on. The country was moun 
 tainous, the road wound over hills, through valleys and across 
 streams. Coming to a vacant camp where fires were burning, he 
 lay down and slept until daylight. 
 
 The country was covered with dense forests. Without paying 
 much regard to roads he traveled in the direction of Blairs ville. 
 Coming to a house and seeing a little girl in the yard, he asked 
 for food. She ran into the house and the mother came out and 
 invited him in. Inside was an old man and a sick Confederate 
 soldier. His prompt answers relative to army life were evidently 
 satisfactory, and the people became quite communicative. From 
 them he learned of the Rebel occupation of Knoxville, the point 
 of his destination, and the position of their forces stretching from 
 thence westward to Fayetteville. When opportunity offered, he 
 consulted his map, and decided to change his course westward, 
 taking his chances of breaking through the enemy s lines a,t 
 Dalton and reaching Corinth. At night he found himself on the 
 summit of a mountain. Icicles were hanging from the rocks, 
 and the surroundings were cold and cheerless. Sheltered by a 
 shelving rock, and with a bed of pine boughs, he passed a not 
 altogether comfortable night. Towards morning it commenced 
 
796 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 to rain, and though dreading to face the storm, he finally left his 
 shelter and was soon drenched to the skin. Almost famished, 
 shivering with cold, and alone in the mountains, his thoughts 
 turned to God, and he prayed long and fervently for His pro 
 tecting care and guidance, for his wife and child in Illinois whom 
 he might never see again. 
 
 Refreshed in mind, if not in body, he followed a mountain 
 stream, and came to a small clearing. Advancing towards the 
 house, he approached a woman who eyed him keenly, and asked 
 her for dinner. She drew a long sigh, when he asked her what was 
 the matter. u Why," said she, u when I saw you coming I took 
 you for a Yankee." "A Yankee!" said Elliott, "What put 
 that in your head ?" "I don t know," was her reply; "I never 
 saw one in my life, and don t know how one could get in here ; 
 yet something told me you was a Yankee." She questioned him 
 closely, and notwithstanding his protestations of being a South 
 ern man and on the "right side," it was with considerable hesi 
 tation she finally consented to give him something to eat. Her 
 heart and sympathies were all with the South, and after being 
 persuaded he was one of its soldiers, they parted the best of 
 friends. 
 
 While fording a deep, rapid stream, he was met by a man, 
 who, as usual, asked if he was going to the army. " Yes, I am 
 trying to get to my regiment," was Elliott s reply. " Well, if 
 you hurry up you can get a ride to Chattanooga, as there is a 
 company of cavalry to start from town this evening." He 
 thanked the man for the information, but chose to let the cavalry 
 go on without him. A drizzling rain set in, and night coming 
 on he entered a cornfield and crawled into a shock of corn, to 
 give time for the cavalry to leave. About three A. M. he resumed 
 his walk, and soon came to the town, and found some of the 
 
ELLIOTT S ADVENTURES CONTINUED. 797 
 
 cavalry still there, detained, perhaps, by the rain. Following a 
 back street he passed through unmolested. At daylight he con 
 cealed himself in the hollow trunk of a chestnut tree, from which 
 he had a full view of the road. Soon a squad of cavalry 
 passed, and leaving his tree he followed after, but was discovered 
 by another squad coming in from a cross road. They halted 
 a moment for him to come up. Thinking him a poor infantry 
 soldier, they had some fun at his expense, then galloped away. 
 Thus he pressed forward, sleeping in the woods at night and 
 keeping himself informed of movements arbund him. At Spring 
 Place he unexpectedly ran upon a crowd of men at a store, talk 
 ing treason and in many ways evincing their hostility to the 
 "Yankees." There being no way to avoid them, he marched 
 up boldly, and thus disarmed suspicion. During a heavy rain 
 storm he entered a negro cabin for shelter. In the evening the 
 subject of the war was talked about. Having always had a kind 
 master, the negro s sympathies were all with the South. He 
 had lived in Tennessee, but during Mitchell s raid his master 
 went South, and his fellow slaves north he and two geese being 
 the sole tenants of the plantation. " Wai," said he, " dem Yanks 
 am awful smart. One day a little Yank comd along wid a goose 
 under his arm, and said, Uncle, want ter buy dis goose ? sell 
 uin cheep. I axed him how much for he want. l Half dollar. 
 Wai, I hab a silver half dollar, and two geese out in de pen. I 
 buys de goose, an took he to de pen, an what do you tink ? why 
 dat cussid Yank had done gone and stole one ob my geese and 
 den sel urn to me ! Golly, you can t hide nothing from dem 
 Yankees," and thus the evening was whiled away until bedtime. 
 A breakfast of musty bacon, and bread from unbolted corn meal, 
 for which his negro host thought six bits would do, and which 
 Elliott thought certainly ought to. 
 
798 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 He approached Dalton slowly and with great trepidation, but 
 finally determined to push boldly through. The sun had set, 
 and twilight rendered objects a little indistinct, as he sauntered 
 listlessly through town. Crowds of officers and men were met, 
 the former respectfully saluted, and he passed on unrecognized 
 and unmolested, thus taking a great weight off his mind. 
 
 Thus for days he made his way gradually westward, avoiding 
 the camps of soldiers and large towns, fording streams the water 
 of which was icy cold, sleeping in the woods and only approach 
 ing houses when hunger drove him -to them. Reaching the north 
 end of Pigeon Mountain, it was with great difficulty he could 
 proceed, owing to sore feet and general exhaustion. He deter 
 mined to depart from his usual course and seek a night s lodging 
 in a farm house. One was found, and a middle-aged lady met 
 him at the door. A cheerful fire blazed in the chimney, and 
 everything was neat and tidy. His feet paining him much, 
 warm water was brought, which gave relief after bathing awhile. 
 The good woman was quite alarmed at seeing his feet swollen 
 nearly to bursting. Her husband proved to be an intelligent 
 man, kindly disposed to the soldiers and an ardent Rebel. An 
 excellent ;mpper was prepared, and when ready to retire, Elliott 
 was shown into a clean room and to a feather bed a luxury he 
 had riot indulged in since leaving home two years before. 
 
 While traversing the mountains near McLemore s Cove, he 
 Approached a house arid asked for permission to stay over night. 
 u No sir," was the prompt reply, and the man explained that 
 straggling soldiers had nearly eaten him out of house and home. 
 But on Elliott s reasoning with him arid offering to pay for bene 
 fits received, he concluded he might remain. In the course of the 
 evening, the old man s Union sentiments would occasionally crop 
 out. He stated that he was born under the folds of the stars 
 
ELLIOTT S ADVENTURES CONTINUED. 799 
 
 and stripes and he hoped to die under them, adding, " you sold 
 iers are fighting to destroy the best government the world ever 
 saw." Elliott wanted to reveal his true character, but concluded 
 it was not prudent to do so. 
 
 Lieut. Elliott continued his course west, by way of Lebanon, 
 Big Spring, etc. He subsequently fell in with a Union man, 
 named Winchester, who was returning to his farm near Corinth 
 from whence he had been driven the year before. On the 22nd, 
 they passed through Moulton, beyond which their wagon was 
 disabled by the breaking of an axle. Nearing Russellville, he 
 approached a fine mansion and asked for dinner. A young 
 woman met him at the door with an emphatic " No, sir !" to his 
 request, and slammed the door in his face. Choking down his 
 feelings, he called at another and was politely invited in. Every 
 thing looked so aristocratic that Elliott had some scruples about 
 accepting the invitation, but hunger overcame his doubts, and he 
 sat down to as splendid a dinner as he ever ate in the South.. 
 
 Winchester, his traveling companion, reached his farm and 
 halted, but Elliott hastened on. His nearness to the Union lines 
 heightened his anxiety and nerved him for a final effort to escape. 
 His adventures were numerous. He wandered into swamps; 
 was set upon by blood-hounds ; was nearly drowned in crossing 
 Bear Creek. Finally, after varying fortunes, he reached the 
 railroad, three miles south of Rienzi. The country looked 
 familiar, and he was congratulating himself that his hardships 
 were nearly over, when he attracted the attention of two mounted 
 men, who chased him into the woods and swamps. Again strik 
 ing for the road, he unexpectedly found himself within thirty 
 rods of the old regimental drill grounds of ten months before. 
 Making a wide circuit, he came upon the Corinth road, north of 
 Rienzi, arid peering through the bushes, saw the two horsemen, 
 
800 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 apparently looking for him. After a very narrow escape through 
 a swamp, he again came upon the guerilla horsemen, who were 
 determined to take him, but a swift run enabled him to reach 
 the picket post of the 66th Illinois. 
 
 Gen. Dodge, who was in command at Corinth, after hearing 
 his story and studying the rout over which he had passed, 
 expressed his surprise, as well as admiration, of the indomitable 
 pluck that had carried him safely through. The General could 
 refuse nothing to a 36th boy, and furnished him with clothing, a 
 pass and a furlough home, after which he joined the 86th at 
 Murfreesboro, April 20th, 1863 and took command of Company 
 K. A written sketch of Lieut. Elliott s adventures reads like a 
 romance. We have been obliged to leave out most of the details 
 and present only a slight sketch of his wanderings through pov 
 erty-stricken and war-blighted "Dixie." 
 
 FOURTEEN MONTHS IN REBEL PRISONS. 
 
 Elisha E. Lloyd, of Company E, 36th Illinois Volunteers, 
 soon after getting into line at the Battle of Chickamauga, and in 
 the midst of the Rebel charge which swept our ranks with dis 
 aster, was stunned by a musket ball striking his belt-plate, 
 felling him to the ground. When he awoke it was to the unpleas 
 ant consciousness of being a prisoner of war. He was taken to 
 the rear and confined with others in a pen until the following 
 day, when he was marched to Tunnel Hill, and from thence by 
 rail to Atlanta. A ration and a half of bean meal bread, and a 
 pint of cornmeal obtained at Petersburg, Va., was the sum total 
 of food furnished him by the great and magnanimous Confed 
 eracy until his incarceration in Libby prison. 
 
 In October following he was removed from Libby to Castle 
 Thunder. On being searched, an old pass that came into his 
 
STORY OP ELISHA E. LLOYD. 801 
 
 possession at Murfreesboro, was found in his boots. For so 
 grave an offense he was immured three days in a dungeon, with 
 out food or water. From thence he was taken to the Royster 
 House, which for once did not want for guests. Here the pris 
 oners were subjected to insults and barbarities absolutely fiend 
 ish, but the prolific source of suffering, overshadowing all others, 
 was want of food. 
 
 The following incident illustrates the nearly starved-to-death 
 condition of the "guests" at this famine-haunted hotel. The 
 person whose duty it was to call the roll, one morning was 
 accompanied by a dog. A little familiarity and patting of 
 Towser kept him quiet until his master had left, when he was 
 killed, cooked and eaten inside of thirty minutes. Lloyd asserts 
 that it was the most toothsome meal he ate within the Confederacy. 
 
 By some strange intuition a certain indefinable something 
 which draws people of like sentiments towards each other- 
 Lloyd became satisfied that one of the guards was a Union man. 
 Hunger made him desperate, and as opportunity offered, he 
 broached the subject of escape. By solemnly promising not to 
 expose his confederate in case of recapture, he was allowed to 
 pass out unchallenged and unnoticed. In a short time he was 
 recaptured and returned to his former quarters. For refusing to 
 divulge the name of his accomplice, he was not allowed food for 
 four days. 
 
 On the 23rd of November, many of the prisoners were removed 
 to Danville, Va., and placed in No. 5 Prison. From all accounts 
 given of Major Muffett, the officer in charge, he must have been 
 liberally endowed w r ith many of the fiendish attributes of the 
 Devil himself. To inflict and witness human suffering, was to 
 him the height of enjoyment. 
 
802 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 At length four of the prisoners endeavored to effect an escape. 
 At ten o clock at night, while Lloyd was knocking down the 
 guard, his three comrades rushed through the gate and got away. 
 The brief struggle and outcry in disarming the guard was fatal 
 to Lloyd s hopes of escape, and the gleam of muskets athwart 
 his path was a sufficient inducement for him to change his mind, 
 and running back and mingling with the crowd he was not rec 
 ognized. For a while the excitement was great. The Major 
 was furious, and endeavored in vain to discover the instigators 
 of the escapade. In the tumult he lost his revolver, and Lloyd 
 picking it up, secreted it about his person. The prisoners were 
 threatened with starvation unless the revolver was given up. 
 Knowing the Major s ability and perfect willingness to execute 
 his threat, the revolver was surrendered, and for his part in the 
 matter Lloyd was bucked and gagged and deprived of food for 
 two days. 
 
 In addition to brutal treatment and the gnawings of hunger, 
 the small pox broke out among the prisoners, and two hundred 
 and fifty men were down with the loathsome disease at one time. 
 To fill the cup of human misery, a general vaccination was 
 ordered, resulting in the death of all who were thus treated. 
 The arms of many rotted off, and one in particular whose arm 
 and back rotted away before death came to his relief. Thus the 
 long winter passed, and April s sun appeared, when the few that 
 remained alive were loaded into cattle cars and taken to Ander- 
 sonville. 
 
 The story of Anderson ville, with all its sickening horrors, can 
 never be told. With here and there an exception, its victims lie 
 mouldering in the silent villages of the dead ! Language is 
 feeble to express the sad, sad story. We will let Lloyd tell his 
 bitter experience in his own words only regretting that the pre- 
 
LLOYD S STORY CONTINUED. 803 
 
 scribed limits of our work will not permit us to produce the 
 whole. 
 
 Andersonville prison comprised eighteen acres of land, inclosed 
 with a stockade of pine logs, thirty feet in length, fifteen feet 
 of which were in the ground. Fifteen feet within, posts were 
 set, to which boards were nailed, to indicate the "dead line. 1 
 The penalty of getting beyond this line, was to be shot down 
 like dogs. We were told to divide into messes and then we could 
 draw our rations. This was quickly done, and we told them to 
 "bring on their grub." It came at last a quantity of black 
 u Nigger beans," a half pint to each, and this was to last twen 
 ty-four hours. April passed and May came, but with it no change 
 for the better. To such desperate straights were we reduced, 
 that stealing food and clothing from each other was a common 
 occurrence. Men were even murdered for a meal of victuals. 
 
 In May, a company of about one hundred men was formed, for 
 mutual benefit and support. It was called Company E, of the 
 f36th 111. Vol., and I was placed in command. All were sol 
 emnly pledged to obey me, or any other officer in command, in 
 all things consistent with each others welfare. A project for 
 excavating under and beyond the stockade was entered into with 
 the greatest enthusiasm. Permission was obtained to dig a well, 
 and a shaft was sunk one hundred and ten feet, but failed, as was 
 expected, to reach water. A tunnel was then commenced in the 
 side of the well, thirty-five feet below the surface. The dirt was 
 hauled up at night and carried to the stream, whence large quan 
 tities were washed to the outside of the stockade. This excited 
 the suspicion of the Confederate guards, and yet the tunnel would 
 not have been discovered but for the treachery of one of our 
 own number, who revealed the whole project for a loaf of bread. 
 
804 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 Company E was then formed in line and informed that not one 
 should have a morsel of food until the ringleader was pointed 
 out. Not one faltered or betrayed an intention of being false to 
 his promise. At last, I thought it better for one to suffer, than 
 so many noble fellows should starve, so calling the officer, I told 
 him I was the leader and had instigated the plot. The remainder 
 of the company were dismissed, while I was held in custody 
 and sentenced to be shot. Being informed that the sentence 
 would be executed that night, I obtained permission to write to 
 friends, but changed my mind, and told the guard it would make 
 no difference with them, as they already thought me dead, and I 
 would not now add a fresh pang to their sorrow. They said I 
 should not be let off so easily, and instead of mercifully putting 
 an end to my suffering, they fastened a fifty pound ball to my 
 leg. I was not relieved of this until June 26th, when, it is 
 needless to say, my ankle was cut to the bone. 
 
 At that time there were thirty-two thousand prisoners of war 
 confined within the prison pen, and deaths from starvation and 
 scurvy averaged one hundred and twenty per day. The brook run 
 ning through the enclosure was fed by a spring on the west side 
 between the dead line and stockade. All the filth within the 
 prison pen accumulated along this stream, and we had to strain 
 the water through our teeth to keep the maggots out. The spring 
 was pure and wholesome, but whenever a person presumed to 
 reach after a drink, his hands and arms were shot, and many 
 killed. 
 
 I have seen fifty men at a time lying in the filth bordering 
 the stream, with their feet in the water to cool them, their limbs 
 swollen and bursting open to their knees with dropsy and scurvy, 
 and at the same time filled with maggots. I have seen men s 
 eyes, ears and mouths filled with maggots, and still possessed of 
 
LLOYD S STORY CONTINUED. 805 
 
 life. I have seen men sitting in filth, picking from thence undi 
 gested beans, and eating them the second time, all caused by 
 sheer starvation. These things seem hardly possible, arid I should 
 scarcely venture to make the statements were I alone and not 
 supported by witnesses who saw and shared these sufferings 
 with me. 
 
 On the llth of July six of our own men were hung by their 
 comrades for murdering fellow prisoners. Oh ! how hunger 
 inflames and intensifies the brutal passions of men, and wliile 
 enduring its excruciating pangs they look and act more like 
 fiends than human beings. 
 
 I was taken sick with scurvy and dropsy, and was unable to 
 take a part in plans for an escape. I could not walk ; my teeth 
 became loose, my gums decayed, and I began to think my days 
 were numbered. My messmates, ten in number, one after 
 another died, until only John Cotton, of Plainfield, Illinois, 
 remained. One afternoon he said, " Well, Lloyd, which of us 
 goes next?" I told him I thought the Rebs could not kill me. 
 He replied, that he wished he could think so ; " And do you 
 really think you will get out of this alive ?" On my answering 
 in the affirmative, he said, " When you get home, please send 
 these things to my wife and children," and while saying this he 
 handed me a small box containing a heart and three crosses. 
 " These are the last and only gifts I can send to my dear ones at 
 home. Take them, Elisha, and tell them the fate of their father, 
 and that his last moments of prayer were for them." The reader 
 can imagine what were rny feelings at separating with the last 
 of my messmates. The next day the poor fellow faintly called 
 me, saying, " Well, I am now going ! May God bless my wife, 
 my little ones at home ! Good bye!" and then he breathed 
 his last, and I was alone. 
 
THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 While in this condition a member of my own regiment, also a 
 prisoner, found me, stating that he had been trading with the 
 Johnnies, and was in possession of a stock of onions, potatoes, 
 &c., that if I would give him my note of hand for five dollars he 
 would give me value received in vegetables. The note was 
 accordingly drawn and signed, and I came into possession of 
 two onions and two potatoes. However meagre the supply, the 
 investment was a good one, for from that time I began to improve. 
 
 A sick companion near me grew worse, and it was evident he 
 must soon die. He was in possession of a good pair of boots, 
 which he told me I might have after he was dead. He grew 
 gradually worse, and when he had ceased to breathe, 1 went for 
 the boots, but got only one, another fellow getting the other. 
 1 told him he must give me that boot. He replied that if 1 was 
 able to whip him, 1 could have it, but not without. Well, at it 
 we went, and I beat him out of the boot. It was not much of a 
 fight, as neither of us could stand at the time. Subsequently, 
 I sold the boots for $250 Confederate money, a part of which I 
 gave to the party with whom I had contended. With the money 
 arising from the sale of the boots, 1 purchased potatoes and 
 onions, and was thereby kept from starvation. We were fre 
 quently deluded into the belief that an exchange of prison 
 ers would soon be effected, and no one can imagine the happi 
 ness derived from such a hope. Then would come news of fail 
 ure of efforts for our release, and sorrow and depression would 
 take the place of former joy. Many were the prayers that went 
 up from that prison pen, that the gates of hell would open and 
 swallow up Old W T urtz, Jeff. Davis and the Southern Confeder 
 acy. I believe there was one time I prayed myself. 
 
 About the 1st of October, exchanges were made, the well and 
 healthy being taken and the sick ones left. I was removed to 
 
LLOYD S STORY CONTINUED. 807 
 
 what was called the hospital a rudely constructed shed, that 
 served as a shelter from the fiery rays of the sun. 
 
 About the middle of November, a comrade who could walk 
 informed me that a list was being taken of all who could walk a 
 mile and a-half, for the purpose of exchange. Being forewarned 
 was to be forearmed, and when they came to me and said, " Well, 
 Yank, how far can you walk ?" I replied about two miles. My 
 name was taken, and the next morning, when called upon to go 
 outside, I could not walk and did not know what to do. Kind 
 comrades helped me, and I succeeded in reaching the gate. The 
 prison officer spoke harshly to me for deceiving him, but finally 
 I was put into a wagon, taken to the railroad and loaded into a 
 cattle car. After many vicissitudes by rail, we arrived at Savan 
 nah. While passing the gas-house, men and women crowded its 
 roof and showered bread and cake upon us, and were arrested 
 by the Rebel authorities for so doing. One man, in the act of 
 giving me bread, was knocked down with the butt of a gun. 
 May Heaven bless the noble men and women of Savannah. 
 Their kindness will never be forgotten. It was the only ray of 
 sunshine that broke through the sombre clouds and cast a benig 
 nant gleam during all the dark months of my captivity. 
 
 We reached the exchange boats, Nov. 20th, 1864, and were 
 once more under the protecting folds of the stars and stripes. 
 To us, the transformation was as from hell to Heaven. No words 
 can express our joy at the change. Once in the hands of friends, 
 our clothing was renewed, coffee and nourishing food (at first in 
 small quantities) were given us, and then we steamed out upon 
 the ocean to Annapolis, but many a poor fellow died before 
 reaching the friendly shore. 
 
 We were carried out, and to the hospital on stretchers. Great 
 crowds of anxious men, women and children were at the landing, 
 
808 THIRTY-SIXTH ILLINOIS VOLUNTEERS. 
 
 looking for fathers, brothers, husbands and friends, and many 
 were the heartbroken cries of sorrow on failing to recognize the 
 ones for whom they sought. At the hospital we were the recip 
 ients of every care and attention that loving hearts and willing 
 hands could bestow. The women nurses connected with the 
 sanitary commission fulfilled all my pre-conceived ideas of angels 
 from Heaven. 
 
 There was nothing to cloud our happiness now except the 
 thought of the suffering ones left behind, and of those who died 
 of starvation and inhuman treatment. More than sixteen thou 
 sand were thus inhumanly murdered by old Capt. Wurtz and 
 Jeff Davis. The former has met with his deserts, while the 
 latter finds plenty of toadies that would go many miles to hear 
 him speak. I would not go an inch except to see him hanged. 
 While patriotism remains, I implore the American people not to 
 forget the nameless graves of their sainted dead at Andersonville. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 263658 
 
. C. BEBKELEY LIBRARIES