USA > Illinois > History of the Fiftieth Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry in the war for the union > Part 20
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He was very talkative and claimed to have snapped his revolver six times at the Colonel, Surgeon and Orderly as they were the first in the gap. but it missed fire. This was plainly a result of his imagination, as his two revolvers were found where he had thrown them into a wood-pile, empty of every shot. One of his men stated that he saw the Major shoot three times after we had charged into the yard. Whether this was so or not. this is true, the bullets, for a few mo- ments. flew thick and most uncomfortably close. The Major informed us that he belonged to Roddy's cavalry; that he had been up to Columbia, on Duck river, to see if the rail- road bridge had been rebuilt and, if so, his orders were to destroy it: that he was to report to Colonel Johnson, of his regiment, whose camp was only two miles beyond ; that all his men but two were armed with a musket or carbine and a six-shooting revolver. but he claimed they were conscripts and wouldn't fight : a statement hardly in keeping with the fact, as he had picked his men, or with the additional reason that conscripts would hardly be selected for so dangerous, as well as so delicate, a duty.
The men, however, talked different, and in taking their names we learned they had been in the army from the first commencement of hostilities: that they were picked from dif- ferent regiments for the expedition ; that they had been near Franklin, Tenn., and in our camps, of course in disguise, where they had purchased supplies of boots, shoes, and other stores.
The nearness of the enemy and the condition of our force made prompt action necessary ; in order to put distance between
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us and the already apprised enemy, for it was certain that word of our nearness would be carried by those who had escaped from us. Accordingly the march to the rear was commenced, the objective point being Hall's plantation, ten miles back. There we arrived at five p. m., and being joined by our reserves and guards, posted as before stated, we pushed on for Lawrence- burgh, which place we reached about seven o'clock p. m., where we remained until 12 o'clock, midnight.
The feet of our mules were in a desperate condition, but the men finding a lot of fresh hides, from cattle killed for the troops, hastily fashioned out moccasins, and fastening them on greatly relieved the pain and suffering of their dumb, but patient and . loyal friends. The march that night was a severe strain upon soldiers and animals. The night was at first intensely dark and rainy, and the road, in many places, so muddy as to be almost impassable. Major Fontaine was care- fully guarded. Mounted upon a white mule with Captain Cy- rus upon one side and Surgeon Pickett upon the other, he was watched as property beyond all value. From time to time his guards were relieved.
The Major was a genial gentleman and evidently a good soldier. He told us during the night march, of his war experi- ences, that he was at Winchester, Va., also at Vicksburg, in General Pemberton's service as a courier, and had carried dis- patches to General Johnston; that in order to reach the Gen- eral he was compelled to float down the river through our fleet, and. being in full uniform, was in great risk of capture; that on one occasion his dug out having run against the anchor chain of the steamer Hastings, a man supposed to be the watch, asked him where he was going; his reply being "to look after my lines ;" whereupon the guard requested him to bring him some fish in the morning, all of which he promised to do. He claimed that he had carried fifty pounds of musket caps into Vicksburg during the seige. That he had attacked us the day we left Iuka, shooting, through the foot, one of the 18th Mis- souri, who was riding with the orderly in advance.
Thus we passed away the night in one of the hardest
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marches in the regimental record, and at S o'clock on the mor- ning of the 16th, we rode into our camp at Lynnville, having marched fifty-four miles in twenty-four hours, with only one feed for our stock, and without sleep, save what was obtained in the saddle.
That this expedition was of great value is attested through the importance attached to it by the report given be- low from General Dodge to General Grant, as well as General Thomas' report to authorities at Washington, as follows :
From War Record :- From General G. M. Dodge's report to General U. S. Grant :
"PULASKI, TENN., Dec. 15th, 1863.
MAJ. GEN. U. S. GRANT,
Chattanooga :
"I captured a party of rebels to-day under command of Major Joe. Fontaine, Gen. Roddy's Adjutant. They had been on a reconnaisance along the line of Chattanooga and Nashville railroad. They tapped the telegraph and took off a number of dispatches and, I guess, got pretty well posted. Their orders were to examine thoroughly the railroad between Columbia and Nashville, and to endeavor to capture a train loaded with pris- oners from Chattanooga. They are evidently posted on the weakness of the force between Columbia and Nashville, and, no doubt, will endeavor to burn those bridges. I have a man in from Montgomery, Ala., eight days on the road. All troops in Alabama picking up conscripts are ordered to Hardee.
G. M. DODGE, Brig. Gen'l ..
From Gen'l Geo. H. Thomas' report to Lorenzo Thomas. From War Record :
January 15, 186-4.
"Adjutant General, U. S .:
Dec. 15th, 1863. a small party of rebels under Major Joe Fontaine, Roddy's Adjutant, was captured by General Dodge, near Pulaski. They had been on a reconnaisance along Nash- ville & Chattanooga and Nashville & Decatur railroads."
Of course when General Dodge reported that "I captur- od", he meant he captured by proxy.
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This raid was in many respects one of the most success- ful of the many participated in by the Fiftieth. In four days nearly one hundred and fifty miles had been covered, the com- mand being supported by the country. A brilliant movement in pursuit of an enemy accidentally discovered, followed up by an assault upon largely superior numbers, and all crowned with a success worthy of the gallant men and officers who planned and won the victory. That this was not accomplished without great privation and suffering was evidenced by the command as it rode into camp at daylight, after a twenty-seven mile march from midnight, presenting as it did, a woeful sight of men and mules, hungry. mud-bedraggled and sleepy. It being a six to one and a half dozen to the other which offered the most dilap- idated appearance, the mules or their riders.
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CHAPTER XV.
To Veteran or not to Veteran-The Question Settled -- Preparations for the Re- turn to Illinois - Waiting for Orders -The March to Duck River -- On the Way Home -- Reception along the Way-Crawfordsville-Home -- The Welcome-Happy Days- Recruiting-The End of the Furlough -- Haste- ning to Quincy -- Preparations for Departure to the Front.
1 HE time had come for settlement of the question as to whether or not the regiment would re-enlist, and thus be- come a veteran organization. The proposition upon the part of the government was extremely fair. A bounty of $302 and a return home for thirty days, possessed attractions not to be easily overcome.
Entering the service in September, 1861, the regiment, in order to perfect its three years service would necessarily have to continue in the field for almost another year, and this, coupled with the general belief that the war was approaching its end, furnished an argument in favor of re-enlistment hard to withstand. Its recent active service tended to enhance the desire of the regiment to see an end of the war and to be a par- ticipant therein. To be in at the death of the rebellion, and then to march home in triumph and receive from a grateful country the plaudit of well done, carried with it the influences so attractive in contemplation that many yielded to its pursua- sive influence. Then there was another and a higher impulse ' that moved the hearts of the men in the ranks, and that was duty: Active service, the experiences of the march, camp and
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battle, had moulded them from raw soldiers into the trained and uniformed rank of veterans in the field. And as they had at the start felt the sway of that imperious call of country they now were compelled to yield every objection to its further ap- peal to their patriotism. Around the camp fires at night, and during the duties of the day, the reasons for as well as against re-enlistment were presented, considered, and the result deter- minod without the influence of demand or command upon the part of the officers. For in this matter, as in many others, the volunteer soldier exercised a power never before, held by any other enlisted men in other countries or in other wars. In the strictest sense he was not a soldier, but a citizen engaged in the work of preserving and upholding law, and maintaining the public peace and quiet. So soon as his work was accomplished he intended to return to his home and take up the lines of peace which he had dropped at the summons of law and au- thority to battle.
The hope of the rebellion was, that the three years troops for the Union, tired of the war, would refuse to re-enlist and, re- turning home as their enlistment expired, would not only leave the armies of Lincoln weakened, but would, in a larger sense, create disaffection throughout the north. Again there was a feeling that as the war was approaching its end the honor of bringing it to a victorious close, would rest with everlasting grace upon the shoulders of those who finished it, so that the men who had borne the brunt of the battle could ill afford to have their successors win and wear the decorations which would come to them, without having been exposed to the danger, trials and sufferings met, overcome or endured by the men of 1861. While the regiment, as an organization, determined upon a re- enlistment, yet there were individual cases wherein men whose record as soldiers, was beyond reproach, who were compelled to differ with their more fortunate comrades.
Hard service, broken health, or worse than all, misfor- tune at home, through death or because of mismanagement of business affairs, justified their refusal, and it is no reflection upon either their courage or patriotism, that they felt the ' ne-
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FIFTIETH ILLINOIS INFANTRY.
eessity of declining a service beyond that contemplated by their original enlistment. Without thought of injury to their feel- ings the term "Stoten-bottle" was applied to them; a title which will cling to them unto the end.
By the 20th of December muster-out and muster-in rolls were rapidly approaching completion, and on the 24th Captain Cyrus was detailed to act as a recruiting officer in behalf of the veteran organization.
The discharge from the service was in the usual form, with the exception that the reason assigned was for the purpose of re-enlisting as a Veteran Volunteer, and each discharge bore the date of December 31st, 1863.
On the 26th of December Lieutenant Colonel Gaines, with two enlisted men from each company left for Illinois under orders to act as recruiting officers for the regiment. The mail carried the intelligence north that the regiment had veter- aned, and the letters carried joy into many a heart and house- hold. In addition to this letters went out for broad cast dis- tribution, in which the loyal sons of Illinois were urged to en- list and thus fill up the ranks of the "Blind Half Hundred," receiving therefor "not only the high honor of serving in one of the best regiments in the service, but also a bounty of #302, good clothes, and $13 a month, with lots of fun." There is no question but that this sowing of the letters brought forth a bountiful harvest.
The enlistment having been perfected the next thing looked for was the appearance of the mustering officer. It will always remain in the memory of each man of the regiment how wearily the days went by. Every morning, indeed almost every hour of the day and night, rumors of his coming were set afloat until the starter of the news was often treated with a roughness bordering on violence.
The draft in Illinois was to begin on the 5th of January, and the men were anxious to be home before that time, so as not only to receive accessions to the regiment, but also to assist in trimming up the copperheads and their allies, whom, it is un-
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derstood, were preparing to resist the government in its effort to fill the decimated ranks at the front.
But the days came and went. and no mustering officer ap- peared. All papers were ready for him, and Surgeon Kendall inspecting each company, stood the meu in line and bade them raise their arms, when up they went quickly, then to swing them, and round they went, then jump, and a high article of performance was furnished. Some of the men having had a doubt as to their acceptance, but the good Surgeon, remember- ing how loyal to duty these bronzed and duty loving men had been, laughed approvingly at their antics and departed with the cheering words, "I guess you will do," and with him all doubting, for the one great ordeal had been passed.
On the 30th of December, by direction from brigade headquarters, and pursuant to special regimental order No. 45, commanders of companies A and B were ordered at once tc commence the erection of barracks for their commands.
With the 31st of December came word that within the next few days the mustering officer would appear and complete the work of re-enlistment. There was nothing to do but to wait. The day wasintensely cold, and by night the ground was frozen. It was a hard night for the picket, whose duty is, at the best, lonely and dreary. Severe as was the storm for the northern soldiers who were out in it, it had all the elements of a freeze out for the rebels. The Fiftieth were comfortably settled in their quarters, and those not on duty, sitting before roaring fires, that threw out heat and joy to all within reach. All at once there broke upon the wintry air a shout, the clank of sabres. and the trampling of horses' feet, and before time was given to open the doors of the houses in which the Fiftieth were quarter- ed, from the inside, they were pushed open and in rushed, half frozen, a number of Kilpatrick'scavalry, who were on their way
to Pulaski. They had suffered terribly, and leaving their horses to shift for themselves, were received with warm hearted hospitality by the members of the Fiftieth. Soon they were served with hot coffee, hard tack and everything else at the dis- posal of their hosts, and when fully supplied with good cheer, .
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FIFTIETH ILLINOIS INFANTRY.
they were rolled up in blankets, and occupied the beds gener- mely surrendered to them.
January 1, 1864, will always be remembered as the cold- rt day of the war. In fact in the memory of the oldest inhab- itant it stands alone on the calendar of the century. Early morning found the Fiftieth out caring for the poor horses who had bunched up in the street the live long night. covered with frozen mud, the saddles and equipments, including carbines. were welded to them by the icy blow of winter. After great care the poor horses were stripped and led away to be watered and ind, the cavalry men cleaned up their accoutrements and, after a good hot breakfast. resumed their march. As they rode away one of the Fiftieth boys called out lustily, "who wouldn't be a cavalryman at $13 a month."
As the Fiftieth was mounted, it was deemed advisable to avail itself of the privilege allowed of enlisting and placing on the rolls, as cooks and assistants, men now known as Ameri- can Citizens of African descent, and on the 1st day of January the following companies provided themselves with cooks, viz : Company A, three; B, two; D, three; E, three; F, three; G, three; H, one; I, two and K, three-twenty-three men in all. Although enlisted on the 1st of January, they were not muster- od until the 28th of April following. Of the number one died at Rome, Ga .. one was discharged for disability, one deserted before muster and four after. the remainder served faithfully until the end of the war, and were, as the company rolls show, mustered out with the regiment. There is no risk in giving ex- pression to the opinion that the members of the regiment will always recall with pleasure, the true and really valuable service performed by these humble men, and that their good wishes Allow them wherever they may be.
The day, although cold, was enlivened by the 39th Ohio marching through the streets, under torn and tattered flags. and keeping step to the inspiring strains of Yankee Doodle, bound for home. It goes without saying that the Fiftieth look- ed on and just cussed the fates that hold them back, but their ill-feeling was somewhat molitied when the news came, with-
(16)
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HISTORY OF THE
in the next few days, that four of the 39th had frozen to death on their way by rail to Nashville.
On the 3rd the 27th Ohio pulled out for home, followed on the 5th, by the 48th, the last of the Ohio brigade.
On the 5th Generals Dodge, Crook and Smith visited Lynnville and from them it was learned that the railroad had been completed from Nashville to Duck river, distant from Lynnville twenty miles.
On the 6th, the 5th Iowa cavalry, dismounted, marched by on their way home, and other regiments followed. And now there came a change to the regiment; it gave up worrying about home, having wisely concluded to bide its time. Instead of hungering for home, it hungered for good things to eat. The country round about was covered with foraging parties and paid high tribute to the no longer disgruntled boys in blue. Sometimes small parties went out through the lines without orders or permission, and if discovered in this clandestine act, were subject to punishment. But they took the chances all the same, and frequently returned bringing in with them in addi- tion to forage, some skulking butternut, who was at once turned over to the officer in command, while the gallant soldier was generally rewarded with some punishment for being absent without permission.
The 10th of January had now arrived and no mustering officer, and although every effort at hand was made to hurry him up, nothing but failure was reaped until the 15th, when Major Hanna, taking a small force as a body guard, set out for Pulaski, and returning, brought the long looked and wished for officer, who arriving at 4 p. m., at once commenced the muster, with the result that the same evening companies A, B, D and I were mustered and ready to move.
In view of an early departure north the companies met and nominated their officers for commissions under the veteran organization.
On the next day, the 16th, the remaining six companies were mustered, and all arrangements for a start having been completed. the regiment gaily took up its line of march for
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FİFTİETH İLLİNOİS INFANTRY.
"God's Country," as the boys expressed it. The camp was left in charge of the "stoten-bottles," and never was trust placed in safer hands.
The march had no sooner commenced than it settled into a race, for just as the regiment stretched its line into the road, there came, with shoutings and blare of trumpets, the 66th Ill- inois on its way from Pulaski home. If it expected to find the Fiftieth waiting by the roadside as it had for many days, for orders to leave; waiting and grumbling; it was doomed to disappointment, for right in its front marched the Fiftieth.
C
As the railroad accommodations were limited to one reg- iment to the train, and as there was only one train a day, it followed that the regiment last at Columbia would have to re- main over one day. Time was, in this case, an important fac- tor. It was twenty-four miles from Lynnville to Columbia, and both regiments swung out with route step along the pike leading from place to place, As the 66th had lately seen more marching service on foot than the Fiftieth (owing to the latter having been mounted) it soon became apparent that they would not only overtake, but might capture, the right of way. Without declaring his intention, Major Hanna, having found a comfortable camping ground, well supplied with wood and water moved from the pike and halted, as for the night, going at once into bivouac. As the 66th swept by with laughter and shouts, under flying colors, and to the inspiring music of fife and drum, the rage of the apparently beaten regiment was hardly held within bounds. Yet there were some of the cooler heads who counseled patience.
So the 66th marched by and a short distance beyond, it, too, went into camp, fortunately for the Fiftieth, around a bend in the road, feeling secure in the belief that it had an unobstruc- ted way open to the railroad and home. Of one thing it was certain, it had run down the Fiftieth, and, as it were, captured the honors. Waiting until the night had fully settled and, from observation taken, satisfied that the 66th, secure it its position, had settled itself for the night, the Major rode back and ordered his command into line. His scheme was thus
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readily disclosed; there was to be a night march in which the sleeping 66th would have no winning part. Quietly moving along the pike the rival camp was reached and nearly passed without discovery ; when, all at once, the assembly sounded, and such a tumbling into ranks as there was, but without avail, for the Fiftieth, with blood up, fifes playing and drums beating, with swinging step swept on its way beyond the reach of the pursuing regiment. Arriving at Duck river, it crossed over on flat boats or by fording, many of the men rushing through the icy water, so anxious to be first in position at the depot, one and a half miles distant, which point was reached by the entire regiment at 11 o'clock p. m.
Happy in. having overcome the 66th so handsomely, the regiment built fires by which the men who had forded the stream could dry themselves, and all awaited the coming train, which arrived shortly after midnight, and by one o'clock a. m. was on its way again to Nashville. Owing to numerous delays occasioned from the disabling of the engine, it was five o'clock p. m. of the 17th before the regiment had reached its quarters in a church at Nashville. At daylight on the 18th it boarded the Louisville train, and that city, 185 miles distant was reach- ed at five o'clock in the afternoon. Here were found a number of regiments awaiting their pay.
In consultation among the officers it was decided to pre- pare the muster and pay-rolls at once, and by the next morning, 19th, they were complete and ready for the paymaster. When the company officers appeared with their rolls before that offi- cer he inquired, "When did your regiment arrive?" and when . told "Last night at five p. m.," he asked "Are your muster rolls all signed and ready?" the answer was, "Yes, Sir." "When did you prepare them?" ,"Last night." To which he replied, "Well, if you are ready, I will pay your regiment; any set of officers who will work all night for their men shall be paid at once."
So by night the regiment was paid off, each private re- ceiving two hundred and eight dollars. Here the regiment re- mained until the 20th, when it marched through five inches of
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snow, to the river. and crossing over to New Albany, at eight a. m., there remained until two o'clock in the afternoon, when its train pulled out for Lafayette, Indiana. When hardly twenty- five miles on its way, a car jumped the track, detaining it all night. At six p. m., the next day, Crawfordsville was reached. and a grand reception and splendid supper at the depot, beau- tifully decorated with flags and flowers, was tendered by the loyal women, and accepted with grateful thanks, the whole feast being supplemented with an eloquent speech of welcome, pronounced by Major General Lew. Wallace, who commanded the division of which the Fiftieth was a part, at Donelson. After an hour most happily spent. the regiment re-entered the train and proceeded on its way. Ill fortune seemed, however, to attend its way home, for an accident at the State Line de- tained the train several hours, so that it was not until dark on the evening of the 22nd that Springfield was reached. Two hours later the train bearing the tired, but happy, men nearer and nearer to their homes and loved ones, was on its way to Quincy, which place marked the destination of the reg- iment, and was reached at three o'clock on the next morning, the 23rd, where a committee on reception from the Soldiers Aid Society, headed by Hon. Harrison Dills, received it in due form, and escorted it to the Court House for quarters. Every attention possible looking to the comfort of the returned veter- ans, was shown by the authorities and citizens, more especially by the loyal ladies.
The Quincy Whig and Republican thus mentions the current events of the day :
"The regiment of Adams County boys arrived home this morning. Notwithstanding the unseasonableness of the hour they were met at the depot by a committee appointed for that purpose, and welcomed in a brief speech by Harrison Dills, Esq .. and escorted to the Court House. that being the only place that could be procured in the city. About 340 of the regiment have enlisted, of whom 305 are now here, the others being detained from various causes, but will arrive soon.
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