USA > Illinois > Military history and reminiscences of the Thirteenth regiment of Illinois volunteer infantry in the civil war in the United States,1861-65, pt 1 > Part 12
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Confederate General Jeff Thompson, who, only six days ago, wrote General Van Dorn of the meeting of the Legisla- ture, and his doubts of its accomplishment, seems to be in such a condition of unrest as to think it necessary to promul- gate a proclamation to the effect that
WHEREAS, The forces of Abraham Lincoln are making such de- monstrations this day, that it is deemed unsafe and inexpedient for the Legislature of Missouri to assemble and transact business in this town.
M. JEFF. THOMPSON, Brig-Gen. Com'd'g Post.
On February 26th, 1862, Lieutenant-Colonel S. N. Wood reports to Colonel Wyman, at Rolla, his raid on Salem and vicinity, and of the affair at West Plains, which they sur- rounded and took, and where their mountain-howitzer sent a shell through both walls, and three partitions of the Court House, and then exploded.
CROSS HOLLOW, ARKANSAS, February 22d, 1862.
Major-General H. W. HALLECK.
GENERAL : My flank movements command Cross Hollow. The enemy evacuated and my cavalry drove the pickets and camped on the ground. All the traps have now been taken. I shall camp here till my Commissary train comes up ; my left resting on Cross Hollow, and my
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right on this Spring (Osage Spring) extending from road to road six miles. I will send my cavalry forward to take Fayetteville, which is only ten miles from their front pickets.
THE ARKANSAS HILLS ECHO THE SHOUTS
of my troops who rejoice at the glorious news from Fort Donelson. I am, General, with great respect, .
S. R. CURTIS, Maj .- Gen. Com'd'g.
HEADQUARTERS, ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, February, 28, 1862.
Maj .- Gen. S. R. CURTIS.
GENERAL : Carry out the general instruction of the 22d. Vary the details as circumstances may require. General Hunter will soon move with five thousand men on your right flank. All you have to do now is to hold your position and keep the enemy south of the Boston Mount- ains. I will turn them in a few weeks and cut off their supplies. I · have kept Colonel Wyman at Rolla. It will not do yet to weaken that post. I am, General, very respectfully,
H. W. HALLECK, Maj .- Gen. Com'd'g.
How the post of Rolla, numerically, could be weakened and still held, General Halleck does not say ; but he has talked and acted all along as though he considered the place perfectly safe as long as the garrison consisted of no more than the Thirteenth ; and even the regular and refugee loyal citi- zens had such perfect confidence in the prowess of our regi- ment, not to speak of the cordial friendship entertained by almost a year's association, that they protested against our leav- ing and going to the front; and they had got so accustomed to the methods of procedure of our Company Q that they much rather have their good things stolen by that organization than to sell them to new-comers.
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CROSS HOLLOW, ARKANSAS, March 4th, 1862.
Maj .- Gen. H. W. HALLECK.
GENERAL : I regret the delay of Wyman's regiment for many rea- sons. The enemy is said to be receiving large reinforcements. * * I am, General, with great respect,
S. R. CURTIS, Maj .. Gen. Com'd'g.
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Our release came at last. On March 5th, we had orders to march at 8 o'clock next morning.
Had we spent one more day here, it would have been exactly eight months since our first arrival. The regiment arrived at Rolla at daylight on Sunday, July 7th, 1861. We leave on Thursday, March 6th, 1862.
The morning was cold and stormy, and we took the road toward the front, at 10 a. m. in the midst of a severe snow- storm. When we reached a more wood-sheltered locality, the weather was more comfortable; but there had been enough storm to render the roads difficult of travel.
After nearly a year's stay at Rolla, we could not bid fare- well for ever, without much sober thought, accompanied by many pleasant and tender recollections ; and the day of gloomy weather accorded well with the depression of spirits observable among the men by their silence and quietness of manner ; and then the somewhat sad thoughts of what we were leaving, were smothered and driven back, by the future looming up before us with its responsibilities and possibili- ties.
We crossed the Little Piney, and camped on its thither bank, at 3:30 p. m., after marching fourteen miles.
Friday, the 7th, we broke camp at Little Piney, at about 7 a. m., and during the day crossed the Big Piney river, on a ferry-boat, made about twenty miles, and went into camp near the town of Waynesville. The weather had moderated, and was now warm. Fresh pork seemed to be abundant, which indicated disloyalty ; as Union pork stands a poor chance in a Secesh community. But disloyal pork affiliates in a most friendly manner with Union soldiers ; and our boys made the most of their opportunity.
DESECRATING A GRAVE.
It was at a small plantation close by our camp here, that several of our boys visited, and struck a streak of unusual luck. At the house, there were two young ladies who
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walked uneasily up and down the galleries and seemed to keep a sharp lookout on the boys, seeming to watch their every movement ; and even when one of the politest and suavest of the Illinois soldiers, having a record for gallantry achieved among Dixie's fair daughters, approached and tried to engage them in conversation, he was snappingly repulsed, while the fair damsels seemed to regard the other soldiers with more interest than the one at hand. Chagrined, piqued, vexed and mortified, our hero drew off his forces to secure a better position ; and it struck him that the ladies had some strong reason for their close watch of his comrades ; and he set himself to fathom the mystery if he could. He, as well as the other boys had already discovered a new-made grave, in a secluded spot, and surrounded by older graves. Our boys were naturally somewhat suspicious of fresh graves, especially in "the land of cotton " ; for, many times they had proved to be cunningly arranged cache's containing no corpse, but articles of more or less value hidden for safety. The discarded ladies' man noticed an entire change of facial expression in the young ladies, as the soldiers approached, or receded from, the fresh grave. He, therefore, came to the conclusion that a sufficiently thorough post-mortem examination had not been made of the deceased, before burial, and that the public (the five soldiers ) were clamoring for an investigation.
Our philosopher called the boys and imparted to them his suspicions, and his reasons therefor. The whole five ap- proached the gallery, and our previously discomfited hero, of Company A, being the acknowledged spokesman, said :
"Ladies, what does that fresh grave contain ? "
"Why ! our aunt is buried there," replied the light- - haired one, in somewhat well assumed astonishment.
After each question and its answer, the military quintette of coroners would walk a little apart, apparently for consulta- tion and again approach with another interrogatory.
The man from Company G, in the coolest, matter-of-fact - way, now, asked :
"Ladies, how happened your aunt to die just then ?"
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"Why," replied the dark-complexioned one, with ill- concealed vexation, at such a preposterous question :
"Can't we uns die when we uns git ready, and not ax you Yanks ?"
Upon which tall Bob, of Company I, replied :
"Folks are not apt to die just as our regiment comes along, unless they get killed."
This philosophy seemed to stagger the blonde young lady, who seemed to be the mnilder of the two in disposition, and she said :
"Do you uns 'spect ter have we uns die afore the time, or wait 'till you uns git by, jest ter please you uns ?"
A Company C man now asked :
"Why do you not wear mourning for your aunt ?"
"Nun o' yer bizniz," snapped out she of the raven tresses ; "we had black rigin' all fixed up, and Bowen's critter company, and er lot o' them ere nasty ol' Thirteenth, up ter Rolly, raided down this a-way, und stole mighty nigh every dog-goned fixen we uns had."
The Company A man thought it high time to bring the inquest to a close ; and once more addressing the young ladies, said :
" Ladies, we are suspicious that you have arms and ammu- nition buried in that grave, with which to arm our enemies. We must examine that grave."
Not desiring to encounter the full force of the two cyclones already shadowed forth by the sharply accentuated uncom- plimentary epithets and taunts, to be found only in the vocabulary of a rebel Secesh woman, the boys politely raised their caps, bowed profoundly, withdrew from the dangerous proximity of the female storm-centers, procured a spade, rev- erently opened the grave of the young ladies' aunt, and exhumed about six bushels of very fine apples.
Sending to camp for enough extra pairs of trousers, by tying the bottoms of the legs, convenient receptacles were thereby fitted, in which to transfer the treasure-trove to camp. Before leaving, tall Bob drew deferentially near and said :
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"Young ladies, I like your aunt more than any woman I have seen about here."
It seems hardly worth while to wait until we are nearing Helena to relate a story which overmatches the above, and will be given now, as it is a companion piece to this, and is related in the company history of H Company, by its his- torian, Sibley, as follows :
The day but one before we reached Helena, Arkansas, as our regiment was passing through a suburb of the town of Clarendon, we passed a burying-ground, where there was a new-made grave, several of the boys sat down and agreed that the rebs had hidden bacon there, and to fool us, had made the mound. Warren Jennings, of G Company, com- monly called "Old Sly," stoutly asserted the contrary. "It was a grave," he said ; but the majority prevailed, and they got a shovel and took turns digging, "Old Sly" sulkily watching. It was a hot day ; but the boys soon reached a strong scent, and then said it was a grave, and were for filling it up. "Old Sly " however, took the shovel and now said, "It is bacon, I know it is." He soon came to a box, took off the lid, and reached down and pulled up a colored child, its teeth and eyes shining and grinning.
It is almost needless to say that the resurrectionists jumped out of the grave and left in a hurry.
The luxury of apples was a delicious dessert after fried bacon, lobscouse, and hard-tack. But six bushels of apples among a thousand men would not have much of a show towards going round and giving each a taste of even the core, or a bit of paring, and it was not to be thought of, and no distribution was attempted, except to a few of the particular chums of the apple foragers.
Comrade Nelson E. Chapel records that, at this camp Colonel Wyman ordered Captain Dutton and a squad, to go up town and empty three barrels of whisky on to the ground.
Saturday, March 8th .- Had reveille at 4 o'clock, and left Camp "Reb Russet" (named by the boys in honor of the apples ) at daylight. The weather, which in the morning had
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been beautiful, made a change in the afternoon, which: brought rain in torrents ; and the last of the day's march o: twelve miles, was through mud and water, sometimes ankle. deep. The marching in mud and rain for an entire day once in a while, would not amount to much in the way of discomfort, if it were not for the inevitable discomfort of the following night. If the soldier, after marching all day, in mud and storm, could come into camp to find a good rail fire. a piece of hard-tack, a cup of hot coffee, and a dry bed to sleep in, he would laugh at talk of hardship and exposure.
This camp was near Lebanon, Missouri, and it was here that we got the first rumors of the fight, and our victory, at Pea Ridge ; and it served to divert the minds of the boys, and cheer them while surrounded by so many discomforts.
Sunday, March 9th, sky clear, but our ten miles was made over horrible roads.
Monday, March roth, roads so bad that a late start, at 10 a. m. was considered better policy, than forced marching when the weather and roads were at their worst. We went into camp not more than ten or twelve miles from our last night's camp.
Tuesday, March 11th, 1862, Comrade Chapel's diary says : "During the night, we got word that a fight was going on near Springfield, between Generals Curtis and Sigel, and ' Old Price ' and that we were wanted there as soon as possi- ble; so we were five miles on our way by sunrise. We marched the first fourteen miles in four hours. During the day we marched over some very pretty country, including several small prairies that served to remind us of Illinois. We marched twenty-six miles and camped at 3 p. m. within six- teen miles of Springfield. We have learned that the fight had taken place at Sugar Creek, Arkansas, and Price was thor- oughly cleaned out."
Wednesday, March 12th, clear and bright, and we got an early start, and reached out for Springfield, which we reached, and, in the best form which the Thirteenth was capable of putting on, the regiment, with guns at a "right shoulder,"
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and band playing "Jefferson's Liberty," looked its very best.
Colonel Wyman led us through the town, and two and a half miles beyond, where we went into camp. This camp was called " Camp Bush" ; and as we are to spend one day here for rest, we shall find it a convenient opportunity for learning something about the great fight, which, although we could not participate in, we see the evidence of on every hand, in the great numbers now passing through here, of the wounded and prisoners.
The battle of Pea Ridge, Arkansas, was fought on the 6th, 7th and Sth of March, 1862. It commenced the same day that the Thirteenth left Rolla to take part in it. General Curtis' force consisted of the Twenty-fifth, Thirty-fifth, Thirty-sixth, Thirty-seventh, Forty-fourth and Fifty-ninth Illinois ; Second, Third, Twelfth, Fifteenth, Seventeenth, Twenty-fourth, and Phelps' regiment, Missouri ; Eighth, Eighteenth and Twenty-second Indiana ; Fourth and Ninth Iowa, Third Iowa Cavalry, Third and Fifteenth Illinois Cav- alry, First, Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Missouri Cavalry, Batteries B and F Second Missouri Light Artillery, Second Ohio Battery, First Indiana Battery, Battery A Second Illinois Artillery.
Union : two hundred and three killed, nine hundred and seventy-two wounded, one hundred and seventy-four missing. Confederate : eleven hundred killed, twenty-five hundred wounded, sixteen hundred missing and captured.
Union Brigadier-General Asboth and Acting Brigadier- General Carr wounded. Confederate General B. McCulloch. and Acting Brigadier-General James McIntosh killed.
It is an advantage not to write history close by the events of which that history is composed. Later on, the light of many contemporaneous events can be turned on, throwing into conspicuous relief, causes, reasons, and results, which are so necessary to a clear understanding of what is imper- fectly understood at the time.
We turn on the light, therefore, but only those veterans who have survived for twenty-nine years will be able to read
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what that same night in "Camp Bush " brought forth not far off, as told by General Pope, as follows :
NEW MADRID, MISSOURI, March 14th, IS62.
General H. W. HALLECK.
GENERAL : To my utter amazement, the enemy hurriedly evac- uated the place last night, leaving everything. * * * *
I am, General, with great respect,
JOHN POPE, Com'd'g Post.
And again Halleck to Stanton, same date :
HEADQUARTERS, ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, March 14th, 1862.
EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War.
GENERAL : * * * * The enemy has evacuated his post and in- trenchments at New Madrid, leaving all his artillery, field batteries, tents, wagons, mules, etc., and an immense quantity of military stores. * * * * This was the last stronghold of the enemy in this State. There is
NO REBEL FLAG NOW FLYING IN MISSOURI.
I am, General, with great respect, H. W. HALLECK, Maj-Gen. Com'd'g Dep't.
This continual snatching away of victories which bob up just ahead of the skirmish-line of the Thirteenth, both to the right and left, was desperately provoking, while we were almost literally double-quicking to catch up with one. This evacuation of New Madrid, within a week after the victory at Pea Ridge, seems to have resulted from that vic- tory, the importance of which is thus shown, and must have greatly cheered General Curtis. And it would greatly have cheered us, had we known, that when we left " Camp Bush " and three days afterwards reached the State line of Arkansas, we left nothing formidable behind us.
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CHAPTER XII.
TOO LATE, BUT CURTIS WHIPPED MCCULLOCH WITH HIS INDIANS, WHO WERE ALLOWED TO MUTILATE WITH THEIR SCALPING-KNIVES.
A FTER resting a day at Camp Bush, we left the camp at 6 a. m. on Friday, March 14th, made a short halt at the old battle-ground of Wilson's Creek, and saw many reminders of that battle. After making eighteen miles over bad roads, went into camp at Dug Springs, where some of the boys luxuriously slept on straw which they found three and a half miles away. Passed many rebel prisoners during the day being taken to Springfield, some of whom were Indians.
Saturday, March 15th .- Marched through mud and water sixteen miles and made our camp in an orchard near the head of Crane Creek. On Sunday, March 16th, made nineteen miles over bad roads, passing many wounded men in ambu- lances, being taken back to Springfield. We made our camp to-night near Cassville. Comrade Reuben Hevenor records that we crossed Platt Creek ten times to-day.
Monday, March 17th .- Notwithstanding bad roads, we made twenty-four miles. The latter part of the march took us over parts of the late battle-ground, where were evidences on every hand of the prevalence of the " besom of destruc- tion " which follows artillery practice in great battles. The splintering of great trees, the lopping off of their tops and branches, as though they had been nothing but reeds, the
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ground furrowed by shot and shell, spent cannon-balls, dead horses, muskets, and broken artillery wagons, were all to be seen by one sweep of the eye. Nearly all of the dead had been buried.
On Tuesday, March 18th, there is' recorded in Comrade Wilson E. Chapel's diary this interesting and worthy to be preserved record :
"This morning our knapsack wagon was discharged, and for the first time in our (military) lives
WE PACKED OUR KNAPSACKS ON OUR BACKS.
Made but seven miles and camped on Sugar Creek, Sigel's old ground, and near where he and his troops now were.
Wednesday, March 19th .- A severe march of twenty-four miles, between 1 a. m. and dark, brought us back to Keets- ville, where we went into camp for fifteen days, which will give us time to look up some matters which must be recorded before commencing the Arkansas Campaign.
In one of the opening chapters of this history, in speaking of the Confederate conspiracy with the Indians, of which the massacre of the white settlers in Minnesota was the first fruits, the writer then said : "We shall have occasion, in another part of this work, to trace the causes, and fix the responsi- bility where it belongs."
On March 9th, 1862, one day after the closing of the battle of Pea Ridge, Confederate General Earl Van Dorn, under flag of truce, asked permission of General Curtis to bury his dead. In addition to the granting of the permission asked, General Curtis instructed his adjutant-general to say :
"The General regrets, that we find on the battle-field, con- trary to "civilized warfare," many of the Federal dead, who were tomahawked, scalped, and their bodies shamefully mangled, and expresses a hope that this important struggle may not de- generate to a savage warfare."
Colonel Cyrus Bussey, and Adjutant John W. Noble, of
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the Third Iowa Cavalry, made affidavits that eight of the men of their regiment
WERE SCALPED.
These barbarous atrocities seem to furnish a fitting text for a consideration of the Indian question, as connected with the Slaveholders' Rebellion.
By the light of comparatively recent history, it is impossi- ble to avoid the conclusion that, by the aid of a Slaveholders' Rebellion, long promised in the United States, Rome was ready to strike a deadly, and decisive blow for the destruction of civil and religious liberty in America. America's neces- sity was to be Rome's opportunity, when the Monroe doctrine could be ignored with impunity. The Slaveholder's Rebellion was to occupy all the powers of the Union ; the Indian nations, from the Canada line to the Rio Grande, were to revolt against the United States Government, simultaneously with the Re- bellion, all of which were to engage our forces by a combined power so formidable as to afford Rome the needed opportu- nity of using the bayonets of Roman Catholic Europe, in placing a Roman Catholic prince on an imperial throne in Mexico, on our very borders ; presuming that Catholic Mexico would hasten to obey her behests.
The imperial chariot of Rome was ready to move before the slaveholders of America, with their Indian allies, were ready to co-operate. Mexico was overawed by European co- horts long enough to thrust Maximilian on to a hastily im- provised throne, and the semblance of an imperial court stalked through the ancient "halls of the Montezumas."
Maximilian had no troops that he could spare to assist the Rebellion, when they were needed. Jefferson Davis was overmatched at home and could not lend a man to help sus- tain the insecure throne across the river, and a direct interpo- sition of divine Providence sent a Russian fleet accidentally near our Pacific coast at the right time to prevent a naval fleet from Protestant England seizing our cities and harbors . on that defenseless coast, the conspirators, having once
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before failed to stab us in the back, by secretly backing Mexico against us in the Mexican War of 1846. Only a few of the Indians revolted, and that few were controlled so as to be useless to the rebels.
Treason's hand was finally shaken from the throat of our nation, but a four-thousand-million saddle of bankruptcy was left on its back, which made it impossible to immediately drive Rome's Empire from Mexico ; but mountainous Mexico had reared a liberty-loving race of people who had tasted the sweets of political liberty ; and while still willing to wear the iron collar of Rome's religion, utterly refused to wear the political shackles of monarchy. They overthrew the throne, tossed the Imperial crown into the smelting-pot, and igno- miniously shot the usurping Emperor.
THUS LAY MINGLED IN A LAST EMBRACE, THE ASHES OF THE LAST AMERICAN EMPIRE, AND THE FRAG- MENTS AND DUST OF ITS INTENDED DEPENDENCY, THE AMERICAN SLAVEHOLDERS' CON- FEDERACY.
As corroborating and substantiating the above position and claims, it seems timely and appropriate to take the evi- dence of no less distinguished personages than one Arch- bishop of the Romish church, one Romish Cardinal, and the Sovereign Pontiff, Pope Pius IX., himself.
The article following is taken from the public prints of the time of the document found in the records captured at the time of the evacuation of Richmond, and is as follows :
POPE AND REBEL.
Pius IX.'s Recognition of Jeff Davis-A letter unearthed at Washington.
Washington Dispatch: "For twenty-five years it has been charged and denied, and denied and charged, that the Vatican was in sympathy with the South during the war. In
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his political history of the Rebellion, McPherson, who, in matters of doubt, always, and naturally, leans to the north- ward, says that the church took no official action, although Archbishop Lynch went to Rome as agent of the Confederacy. He also gives a letter from Cardinal Antonelli, addressed to A. Dudley Mann, J. M. Mason, and John Slidell, Commis- sioners of the Confederate States of America, acknowledging on behalf of the Pope the receipt of a manifesto from Jefferson Davis, and expressing the hope of the Pope that war between the States may be speedily terminated."
This is all I can find in history on the subject, beyond numerous general assertions and denials that the Pope did officially recognize the Confederate Government and gave Jefferson Davis his august blessing. That Davis sought the same has never been disputed, and that he received it has been claimed by nearly all the historical writers on the Con- federate side. High functionaries of the church have re- peatedly denied that the Pontifical benediction was ever pronounced upon the Confederacy, and their denial has been accepted as final.
At the Treasury Department the other day, Mr. Crites, of Nebraska, the chief of the division of captured and aban- doned property, showed me a time-worn paper, which was found among the records captured at the time of the evacua- tion of Richmond, that will settle the controversy forever. It has lain all this time in the pigeon-holes of the department, unknown and unnoticed, while the historians and theologians have been disputing its existence. Attached to it is the fol- lowing letter of transmittal :
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