USA > Indiana > Reunion of the 9th regiment Indiana vet. vol. infantry association, 1892-1904 > Part 7
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LIEUT. JOHN M. HELMICK,
of Company E being next called for, responded by saying: I am always glad to meet my old comrades of the Ninth on any occasion: Our companionship in suffering, trials and danger, under the flag of the 9th Indiana from 1861 to 1865 made us akin, and cemented us into a band of brothers, and while we live I feel this tie will bind the old regiment together as it bound us together in unity of feeling and purpose as we tonched shoulder to shoulder upon the bloody fields of Shiloh, Stone River and Chicamauga. . A few days ago I visited Chicamauga and saw once more the spot at the Brotherton House where the gallant Lieutenant Nickerson, then commanding my company, fell like a hero, and of the many other comrades who at the same time went down before the cruel missiles of grim war in death or desperately wounded. I saw again the old spot where our regiment fought so stubbornly for hours in the Kelly field. And in fact noted the different positions and important ones too that our 9th Indiana occupied during that two days of awful fighting. And the spot from where it finally retired in the darkness of night from our last position on Snodgrass Hill very near to where the Government Observatory Tower has been built. I studied with keen interest the great battle field care- fully, and am more than ever convinced that the old 9th did its full duty in the first day's desperate fighting without cover, and were really the first of the troops in the main line in the Kelly field to inagurate the work of hastily throwing up as we did that nightor rather in the early morning of the second day, log and rail barricades with dirt covering them, as a partial pro- tection from the enemy's musket firing. Our example was contagious and other commands immediately on our flanks right and left, followed our example and the rebels found the slight barrier thus built in a few minutes was not an easy po- sition to drive determined troops from. And ever after, this plan of hastily throwing up a protecting barricade or breast- work whenever an attack seemed imminent'and was generally re- sorted to by our troops and much life saved in consequence. I also visited the Stone River battle field and our National Ceme- tery there. Comrades of the old Ninth, your government has not forgotten your brave conduct. The heroie fight you made there in that rail-road eut, where you stubbornly and at such fearful cost, held intact and unmoved the left of the Union line, is marked for the study of future generations of your country- men by the monument of Hazen's Brigade. Uncle Sam has built a substantial stone fence around the monument and the sacred plat of ground that forms the resting place of our dead
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comrades who yielded up their lives on that fateful spot. A spot where so many of the heroes of the Ninth fell, there lies our gallant Color Sergeant and the host of other heroic com- rades of the Ninth Indiana, who fell with faces to the foe. My comrades, we can not if we would disguise the fact that as a regiment we are fast passing away-dying. Men who grasped our hands here at Delphi eight years ago have gone on before us to that other and unseen shore. Now comrades, since our lines are thinning let us draw closer to the center, and fill up the ugly gaps that cruel death makes in our ranks, and keep the touch of elbows to the end. Recalling the days of battle march and camp as I do now on my return from our great bat- tle fields, I will say comrades, your faces look good to me, and I have a warm spot in my heart for each of you. May God bless you.
A Glee Club, composed of the following singers: Mrs. Em- ma Taylor, Mrs. Bell Gwin, Mrs. Addie Best, Miss Jessie Griffith, Miss Nellie Collins, Albert H. Barnes, Joseph Taylor, George W. Julien and Sam Barnett, sang "Rally Round the Flag Boys" which the audience received with hearty applause.
ASBURY S. MC CORMICK
being called for said: Everybody here in Delphi knows me and knows that I am no speechmaker. I went out from here in 1861 as one of the boy soldiers of Company A, and I am glad to-night that I can say my regiment made at Shiloh, Stone River, Chicamauga and on other bloody battle fields a record that I can be proud of, and that Carroll county and Indiana can be proud of. The heroism displayed by the Ninth Indiana regiment during the war is notorious in history. I, like sev- eral other of my comrades, have just returned from a trip South, and I saw the spot where our line stood at Stone River and I want to remind you right here we held that position there on Rosecrans' left at the railroad and we were about all the troops who were able to hold their place in line. That historic spot is marked by the monument to the dead soldiers of Hazen's Brigade. I visited Chicamauga and hot as it was, I walked over the battle field and hunted up the five different important positions held by our regiment during the memorable 19th and 20th of Sept. 1863. I had little or no difficulty in locating our positions. And we are now determined to locate our regi- . mental monument on Snodgrass Hill just a few feet from the Observation Tower that the Government has built. On that spot our Ninth Indiana, sadly ent down in numbers by two days hard fighting, and the loss of many of our noble companions in arms, in the darkness of night and in the face of overpow-
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ering numbers of the enemy, made its last stand and held its position till it received orders to follow up Thomas' main army. We honestly think we were the very last troops withdrawn from the Union line on that part of the field.
Miss Jessie Griffith rendered with fine effect the solo-"The American Flag" arousing such enthusiasm that she was obliged to return and sing again the closing verse.
SECRETARY WHITEHALL.
addressing the President said: Mr. President, I rise to a question of privilege, sir. My comrades will recall the fact that we had in the Ninth Regiment a company designated on the Rolls as "K," but more familiarly known to the boys as "The Shenanigans" and I suppose as a matter of fact we will have to admit they were pretty good fighters. They also had a habit of acquiring personal property of secesh antecedents, without purchase, in fact some of them would doubtless have tried to carry off certain portions of the South- land itself had they not realized that the desired chunk of real estate was too hefty for a haversack, and too big to be concealed by a gum blanket. Secesh poultry always seemed to have charms irresistible for the Shenanigans and they often tickled their throats with "Turkey on Toast" while other good men of the regiment gnashed their teeth-on Uncle Samuel's hardest of hard-tack. The Chief of the tribe of Shenanigans has grown old and rery gray, and to-day sir when you, our hon- ored President, detailed the chieftan of the Shenanigans to make fitting response to the warm words of welcome which greeted our coming, he, you will remember, demurred and said "he was growing old and gray" and would furnish a sub- stitute and therefore called upon the overtaxed and much abused secretary to take his place, and out of respect for the gray hairs of our venerable comrade, your humble servant sir, did attempt to fill his place, and though his place was as much too large for us as the pants Uncle Samuel used to give us to fill, we rattled around in the place to the best of our ability as his substitute. And turn about being fair play I now demand the privilege of calling upon the gray-haired chief of the Shenanigans, Capt. D. B. MeConnell, to stand up and face, this good looking audience and tell them how things look down in Dixie now. as compared to Dixie "Endurin de Wah, " and remember, Captain, there can be no substitute in this.
C.1PT. DYER B. MC CONNELL.
In reply to what. this substitute of mine has said, I have to say that in times past I have spoken so frequently to the good
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people of Delphi that I thought it would be giving my young friend from Chicago, where the folks avail themselves of about everything that offers and some that don't, a very good oppor- tunity to display his youthfulness and his versatility. And now you see how he gets back at me for this little act of kind- ness on my part. I believe I did rather rashly admit he was our much-abused secretary and now that I gave him a good chance to speak and myself an opportunity to rest while I lis- tened to him, I am thus called to account in this public man- ner. However now that I am on my feet I will take occasion to say, supplemental as it were to what my said substitute said to the good people of Delphi this afternoon for their glad greet- ing and very hearty welcome to our regiment or rather such of us of the regiment as are fortunate enough to be here to enjoy that welcome, we keenly enjoy your welcome. I assure you there are many other of our comrades who by reason of ailments brought on by their splendid service with us are kept away and not a few perhaps by reason of not feeling able to spare from their scant earnings the expense of coming here. I will say that I am not at all surprised at your cordial greeting of this company of veterans. For Delphi and Carroll county during and since the war have never in a single instance to my knowl- edge failed on all occasions to exhibit a tender consideration for the soldiers of the Union. Like several of my comrades present I have recently returned from a trip to Chattanooga, where we attended the dedicatory exercises at Chicamanga National Park. I heard my friends, expressions in public and private from representative confederates, that tend to induce me to accept the oft repeated statement that the "War is over." Myself and comrades on our recent trip to Dixie saw abundant evidence of the fact that the great mass of southern people now love and respect the old Flag, I mean the Stars and Stripes. Why should they not love and revere old Glory? Their fathers mingled their blood with the blood of our fathers in the former conflicts of this republic in maintaining and consecrating that flag of the stars and stripes as the emblem of Liberty and our Federal Union. Though the men of the South differed rad- ically from the men of the North on the question of Slavery and State Rights, for all that they venerated the flag of our fathers. Why we have it from the lips of those who fought under the other flag, that the old flag always appeared dear to them. By many friends of secession it was urged that the South retain as its flag the stars and stripes, and fight under it, claiming it was as much their flag as it was ours, and their people had been taught for years to love and revere that dag
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and their troops in other wars had bravely fought and died un- der the stripes and stars. Had the confederates clung to and fought under old Glory, I believe that it would have made them well nigh invincible. Fighting as they did under the flag which they had not been taught to love, we must admit we found they made a fight worthier of a better cause.
I recall a story which is said to be true, that during the civil war, a hot-headed young officer of southern birth and ed- ucation and imbued with a hatred of the Union, who was at- tached to the staff of Stonewall Jackson, procured a Union flag and to show his contempt for it, rode up and down the road upon which Jackson's troops were camped trailing it in the dusty road, until at last in passing some Virginians he heard the command short and sharp, "Raise that flag or I will shoot you." And seeing that a soldier had a . bead" on him. he raised the flag from the dust, and rode to Gen. Jackson's head- quarters and demanded the arrest and punishment of that soldier who threatened to shoot him for trailing the flag in the dust. Lee's hard fighting lieutenant simply, quietly said, "They didn't shoot you did they?" "No sir. " .. Well young man, those men have been taught from childhood to love and honor that old flag, and it makes them cery mad to see it trailed in the dust, and you better not try it again or they will shoot you sure. "
The Captain then narrated several incidents that he and his associates observed during the parade and other exercises at Chicamauga on the day of dedication, showing that the love by the vast majority of the southern people for the old flag was strong and deep. The comrade also quoted from the oration of General Gordon which he said he believed came from the heart of a true American.
Judge McConnell then said: Ladies and gentlemen, since I have shown a disposition to talk, and have actually talked, I hope our youthful and much-abused regimental seribe is now satisfied. I now insist that if for your further entertainment and especially for the enjoyment of these young Americans, I see fit to call to my aid a substitute I have the right to do so. And I now propose to call upon a young gentleman who hap- pens to be in town to-night, and who, I know, will be pleased to contribute toward the enjoyment of these old soldiers and their friends by performing some sleight-of-hand tricks which lay in the shade anything ever attempted by any Shenanigan of my acquaintance. I now call up my second substitute and introduce to you
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PROFESSOR MORRISON.
The Professor said: I am not a speaker, nor a musician, and do not even claim to be a magician, though I do confess that I can perform some sleight of-hand tricks. I will just say to these old soldiers I was not one of you because I was born too late to be with you. As a rule magicians have apparatus and traps of various kinds to aid them in deceiving the eye, but I have nothing as you see but my naked hands. I am not giving shows but am in other business. The Professor then proceded to make a handful of silver half dollars vanish from sight and reappear again in a very mysterious manner, and creep out from some very unexpected places. He also showed some very interesting tricks with cards and wound up with a happy ventriloqual effort that brought down the house and put the small boy in ecstacies. The Glee Club next sang the "Army Bean" and on being called upon to make a few remarks
CAPT. TOM MADDEN
said: Misfortune seemed to dog his footsteps quite a good deal of late-he had only "hashed" up one speech for this whole reunion, and had delivered that with great satisfaction to him- self and the audience this afternoon. And he was really now exceedingly sorry for this large and intelligent andience that they had missed hearing his after dinner address, but under the circumstances he felt obliged to disappoint a large circle of his old and intimate friends, who not knowing that he had al- ready delivered his speech, had undoubtedly come out in the eve- ning to hear him unloose a regular literary cyclone as it were. While he was exceedingly sorry for their sakes, he could not re- call his able effort of the afternoon. he was dead sure that his old time friend and comrade, Major Carter, had something that was just startling in the way of a speech as he had been most fortunate in overhearing the Major rehearsing it in that fine manly tone of voice which he always carries around with him, and he would now beg leave to yield the floor to
MAJOR CARTER
Said: He could usually vouch for the veracity of Madden, but it was now quite evident to him that the magician had cer- tainly hypnotized the Captain. At any rate he was "way off" when he accused him of rehearsing a speech to inflict on his comrades. Madden's imagination must have got the advant- age of him. However the Major said he would take occasion to say that he was very glad to be able to again greet his old comrades of the Ninth.
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CAPT. J. M. WHARTON
being called for said: Comrades, you all know how a battle begins. The skirmishers are first sent out and then follows the musketry and artillery. In this case you are trying to call out a mere skirmisher, while the big guns are "booming" and that you know is not military. All I can say boys this evening, is that we are enjoying this reunion. It seems good to meet one another again. I have met comrades to-day that I have not seen before in 31 years, and that I was glad to see them, you know goes without saying. We thank the people of Delphi for this pleasant greeting.
After Bugle Calls by John W. Jackson, the Glee Club sang "Marching Through Georgia." Paul Hamling being called for told how he captured the "oldest rooster in Tennessee."
SAM KESSLER
of Company ( being called for said that like other comrades, he too had lately been journeying in Dixie and had taken in the dedication and made some rather pleasant acquaintances among the southerners. And he called to mind a talk he had on the cars with a quiet old gentleman whom he found intelli- gent and quite interesting. He had been lieutenant of Cavalry under Gen. Wheeler, and in speaking of Chicamauga this ex- confederate detailed an incident which happened just prior to the hard battle there. He said his Captain then in command of the company, had under orders made a dash against one of the Union out-posts and lost his life while leading the charge, which was a wild and seemingly reckless one. On hearing this story I recalled the incident myself and that my Company C of the 9th were the men who fired on that squadron of Cavalry. This old gentleman gave it as his opinion that his Captain was the first man shot at Chicamauga, this happened I think the day before the two armies met in deadly encounter Since it is claimed that the Ninth Indiana fired the last gun at Chicamauga or last volley at the enemy; when this old confederate officer told me of this dash in which his Captain was killed, it then struck me as a possible thing that our regiment might have in fact fired the first, as well as the last gun on Chicamauga bat- tle field. The old gentleman gave me the name of his Cap- tain who was killed in this dash made against a part of our regiment, as "Captain Joseph Helmenstien, of the 4th Georgia Cavalry, killed Sept. 17th, 1863."
CAPT. GEORGE R. MARSHALL.
of Company A being next called for said: I have been hoping the Major would fail to see me and that I would escape being
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called upon, but now that I am on my feet I will say I recall that Cavalry charge which Kessler speaks of. It was just a day or two before the main battle occurred when the armies were moving around to get into position. I was there and my Company A was with me, and I remember Lieut. Niekerson was there but whether he had a company I cannot say. Sam Beatty of my company was on the skirmish line and was one of the men who fired into the company of cavalry that charged down onto us. I remember our company had just been forag- ing and we had a nice layout for breakfast in our mess, con- sisting of hog and hominy and honey, with Georgia sweet po- tatoes as a sort of side dish and were not expecting a call from the rebs or anybody else and didn't care about seeing anyone just then either, when just as we were ready to sit down to our feast along between four and five o'clock in the morning this Johnnie Cavalry made this unexpected dash into our lines and we were surprised you bet, and they were right on to us almost before we realized what was coming, and for a few moments it seemed as if the whole confederacy had broke loose and was swooping down on us at breakfast time without an invitation, the boys jumped for the guns and took to stumps and trees for shelter and began shooting. One fellow seemed to be after Gen. Hazen and chased him inside our lines and in his wild ride his horse was shot down under him and the man himself taken prisoner, and the story was then told that Gen. Hazen took him to his tent and gave him his breakfast and had a talk with him about their forces. While we were dodging in the bushes I remember of hearing the Johnnies say where is your log and here is your sweet potatoes and here is your honey," but they didn't get time to eat it for our boys rallied quickly and drove them back and we found a place for that breakfast after all, but for a few moments I thought the breakfast was a "goner."
MAJOR JAS. D. BRADEN.
Said: Comrades, it is astonishing how we differ on these matters. Now I have no doubt but Captain Marshall and Com- pany A saw this affair as he has described it, but Company C, which was then under my command, saw it from the stand- point of comrade Kessler, as for my company, we were station- ed at the road and it was just about the break of day and Gen. Hazen had gone quietly out in front of us to take an observa- tion, when this body of Cavalry either by design or accident made this charge. It was talked at the time that they were after the capture of Hazen, and some fifteen of them were close after the General as he ran into our lines and they dashed past our
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skirmishers and through our company, and one fellow in par- ticular in the rear of my company in answer to my demand to surrender, whipped out his revolver and shot at me and then dashed on toward our rear and what became of him I don't know, it was a wild reckless dash and I have often wondered what it was made for, unless it was in the hope of bagging our general.
John C. Barnes, of A, next told how Lieut. Jim Wharton was cleverly tricked out of a captured goose on the chase after Hood, near Pulaski, Tenn.
LIEUT. JOHN BANTA
Said: Boys, the war is over, and the Union saved, and we are all happy so far as heard from. I have attended all our reunions I believe and am always glad to see you. You all seem to me to hold your own pretty well. Major Carter however seems to be growing just a little feeble .- Laughter.
CAPT. CASE
of the 46th Indiana was called upon and said he was extreme- ly glad to greet the Ninth Veterans and hoped they were hav- ing an enjoyable reunion. As an ex-soldier and as a citizen of Delphi he was pleased to have them in reunion at Delphi, and hoped to meet them again at some future time in another such a meeting as this one.
Secretary Whitehall then told a joke on the army Chaplain who had accepted an invitation to an officer's Champagne sup- per and of his heroic efforts to get back to his quarters. The audience enjoyed the Chaplain's confusion.
While the Glee Club sang "John Brown" the crowd dis- persed, having evidently enjoyed the Campfire.
SECOND DAY-MORNING SESSION.
Meeting called to order; President Milroy in the chair. Pur- suant to motion adopted yesterday afternoon, Capt. McConnell read the correspondence between himself and other Indiana Commissioners and Gen. Boynton and others of National Com- mission relative to the location of the Ninth Indiana monument on Snodgrass Hill. Comrade A. S. McCormick moved that this correspondence, or so much thereof as Capt. McConnell may deem proper or of interest to the comrades of the Ninth Indiana and their friends, be published in our annual report,
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which motion was unanimously carried and the following is now here inserted:
LOGANSPORT, Ind., July 17, 1895. Gen. I. V. Boynton, Nat'l Park Commission, Chattanooga, Tenn.
DEAR GENERAL :- I enclose copy of inscription for the mon- ument for my regiment. I liad some difficulty in locating the monument. Some of the members of my regiment wanted it on Snodgrass Hill, others preferred the Kelly Field line, (but for the over-crowded position, that was my preferrence, ) and again others wanted the position at the Brock Field. Some insisted strongly for the position at the Hill, others protested earnestly against that position, finally it was left to me. I, de- clining to decide, left it to the Indiana Commission, and they all chose the Hill.
Now General, I am not satisfied with the stake set for my regiment on the Hill. It should be set at least thirty feet, perhaps fifty, to the south-west, more south than west, facing south-west. I have studied the case with care, and I am sat- isfied that would be nearly the correct position. I now know that accuracy is not attainable, but I would be glad to be near- ly right as to this point,
Since seeing you last, I have met Major Steele of the 101st Ind. He had made some published statement recently which I did not see, claiming that the 101st was the last regiment on the Hill, to leave the field, and I was informed that he quoted you as assenting to that claim. (Several paragraphs refer ex- clusively to the 101st Ind., and are excluded. )
The Major further stated that he heard no firing in his vicin- ity after he came upon the Hill, The conclusion is inevitable that the 101st was on some other part of the Hill, I see that General Brannan speaks in his report of his withdrawal hav- ing been covered by the 68th and 101st Ind.
Of course they were not placed in the low ground west of the little grave yard to cover the withdrawal. That they were up there some where is clear, but where they were is not clear to me, and neither Major Steele nor Captain Williams could make it clear.
The only troops we saw up there except those captured, was your regiment. I talked with men in your regiment when we took our position. They were standing in line, and when Su- man attempted to withdraw his regiment after the capture on our right front, we encountered your regiment again. Your men jeered us for giving up a position, which they said they
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