USA > Massachusetts > Thirteenth Massachusetts Regiment [circular no. 13] > Part 5
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It may be stated here as an interesting fact that General Reynolds, like his confrere, General Wadsworth, both being men of large means, turned his pay as a major-general into the national treasury, declining to receive any emolument for his services ; and there was a pervasive rumor at the time of General Hooker's resignation, that the command of the Army of the Potomac was first tendered to Reynolds, who with characteristic modesty declined the honor, and with a generosity equally characteristic recommended the appoint- ment of his friend Meade instead.
Our halt was a long and an anxious one. The sounds of conflict increased in volume and seemed to be drawing nearer. At last a staff officer came flying down the road, and delivered some message whose purport was immediately made plain, for there followed the hurried words of command : "Fall in!" and then : " Forward, double quick !"
The leading brigade, Cutler's, of Wadsworth's division, was near- ing the Coderi house on the left of the road, when the men were
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directed to tear down the rail fence, and thereupon were deployed into the field and across the ridge, taking the direction of the Cham- bersburg pike, where Buford's cavalry were desperately struggling to check the rebel advance.
At some little distance to the left could be seen McPherson's wood and the ridge beyond where the cavalry fight was raging, while at the right, like a sentinel at the outpost, was perceived the Lu- theran seminary, from whose tower Generals. Reynolds and Buford but a few minutes before had observed the advancing hosts of the enemy and became convinced that the bulk of Lee's army was at hand and a pitched battle must ensue.
Cutler's troops were at once formed in line of battle, and, briskly advancing, soon encountered the foremost of the rebel column - Davis' Confederate brigade, the Fifty-sixth Pennsylvania Regiment delivering in their faces the first infantry fire that opened the engage- ment. The battle of Gettysburg was on !
And at once the conflict was fiercely raging, as the troops on either side rapidly arrived and went into action. The thunder of the bat- teries, the crashing of exploding shells, and the continuous rattle of the musketry filled the peaceful valley with unwonted sound, while the clouds of smoke that quickly overspread the field blotted out the beauties of the landscape that had charmed us but so brief a period before.
This would be the place perhaps to depict the varying changes of battle, to rehearse the thrilling episodes and hairbreadth escapes that pass before a soldier's eyes, or of which he may be himself the subject, and to analyze the world of sensations that he is supposed to experience when under fire, but I forbear to encroach on the historical novelist's domain or risk giving umbrage to the shade of Stephen Crane, whose imaginative genius has supplied in his much lauded " Red Badge of Courage " so minute and circumstantial a thesaurus of such mental and physical vicissitudes as to make the " real thing " seem trite and commonplace. Besides, only a rapid survey of the main features of the battle can now be permitted.
Our small force, already encountering double its own number, was now being hard pressed by the enemy, when Meredith's " Iron Brig-
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ade," Wisconsin, Michigan, and Indiana regiments, came up, and charging with a "wild West " yell into McPherson's wood, held by Archer's rebel brigade, swung around the latter's right, capturing 1,200 of the " graybacks," together with their chief. It was at this moment that General Reynolds was killed, whose fall was mourned by the whole army ; and it was well said of him as of an old-world hero : " No man died on that field with more glory than he. Yet many died there and there was much glory."
The writer was standing near by as Archer's disconsolate " Johnnies," under Federal guard, were being marched off the field and into the road ; and despite the seriousness of the moment, with shot and shell whizzing through the air, and wounded and dying comrades all around us, there was a general laugh as the officer at the head of the column, in the shrill accents and inimitable patois of the South, yelled out this unique command, which could not certainly be found in " Har- dee's Tactics " : " By twos, into fours, right smart - git ! "
It was during this battle that our comrade Roland Morris, color sergeant, was killed. His death was unusually pathetic, inasmuch as the colors had been taken away from him a few days prior to the battle because of his leaving the ranks, without permission, to visit some friends he had made during our early service in Maryland. The morning of the battle, with tears he begged the colonel to return the colors to him, and after being admonished not to repeat the offence they were returned to him. He was a student in Heidelberg when the war broke out and hastened home to join the Thirteenth and went with it to the front. He was an attractive young fellow, of great popularity among his comrades, so that his death made a deeper impression than ordinary.
It will be recalled that Company A was the color company at the time, and the commanding officer of that company, whose modesty makes it a condition that his name shall not be specifically mentioned, though we all know and love him, has furnished me with the follow- ing account of the event and of other occurrences of that memorable day which is herewith transcribed in his own words :
The writer will ever remember how our beloved comrade, Color-Ser- geant Morris, on the morning march from Marsh creek was the life of
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the company, full of fun and making us all feel " gay and happy " with his jokes and high spirits. . How little did he or any of us imagine that in a few short hours he would answer to the last roll-call on the field of honor ! As we approached Gettysburg we could hear firing ahead of us. We were advanced across the field to the Lutheran seminary and there heard with deep regret that our esteemed commander, General Reynolds, had been killed.
We hastily threw up breastworks here, but did not long occupy them, as orders soon came for us to advance to the front. We reached an oak grove near the Mummasburg road. Across the road was a barn occupied by some of the rebels who made us their mark; and it was here and from one of their sharpshooters that Morris received his mortal wound. I saw him when he was shot; he leaped into the air and fell to the ground, strug- gling and crying in agony. The rebel bullet passed through his breast apparently. I detailed two comrades to take him to the rear, and I never saw him again.
There was a sunken road in our front, and in this a rebel brigade found themselves involved as they attempted to charge us. But they couldn't stand our fire when they ascended the bank, and a large number of them threw down their arms and surrendered. I remember, as one of those comical sights that will intrude even in the most serious of moments, per- ceiving Sergeant Whiston, of Company A, holding in each hand two rebel officers' swords which in their eager haste to surrender. their owners had thrust upon him, his face wearing such a look of helpless bewilderment and his attitude denoting such utter incapacity to know what to do with his prizes, that it was impossible to subdue the temptation to laugh. I have often wondered what became of those four swords, but could never learn. It was now getting late and the regiment was being thinned in numbers, when a staff officer rode up and asked who was in command. I found that I was the ranking officer and was told by him to order the men to fall back. This we did as far as the railroad cut, where we received a heavy fire. A corporal who had the colors was severely wounded here and I took the flag and carried it along to the main street of the town where I had to run the gauntlet of the rebels, who were now pouring in in large numbers. In the doorways of the houses were many of our officers and men who offered to make room for us; but I felt that having command of the color company it was my duty to save the colors. I finally reached Cemetery hill, where I found a small number of the regiment who, like myself, were worn out with the fatigue and excitement of the day.
The story of the First Corps' heroic struggle to hold Seminary ridge until Meade could concentrate his scattered army on Cemetery ridge, which Reynolds' last report advised, and which recommenda-
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tion Hancock later in the day confirmed, is written in history indeed, but it cannot be too often repeated as an instance of persistent cour- age and intelligent and deliberate self-immolation.
With but a little more than 8,000 men it held Seminary ridge against three times its own number for hours of almost incessant fighting, until the Eleventh Corps came to its assistance, and it left nearly one-half of its men dead and wounded on the field. Even after the Eleventh Corps had retreated to Cemetery hill, it obstinately refused to yield until, with its flanks enveloped and pressed by the Confederates in overwhelming numbers, it sullenly fell back.
In the first day's battle Massachusetts was represented by three regiments only, the Twelfth, the Thirteenth and the Thirty-third, veteran organizations, whose losses speak for their soldierly conduct ; that of the former being 119, of the latter 45, while the Thirteenth lost 185 out of a total of 284 officers and men reporting for duty that morning. This last far exceeded the losses of any one of the 24 organizations of this State that took part in the actions of the following days, though all were quite decimated.
It may not be out of place to state here, nor is it a mere figure of speech to say, that the blood of the sons of the old Bay State, which has been so freely spilled in the cause of American liberty heretofore, was poured out in torrents on the aceldama of Gettysburg, the total sum of Massachusetts' killed and wounded there being 1,218, with 319 missing, exceeding the casualties respectively of all other States excepting those of New York and Pennsylvania.
How the remnants of the First Corps reached Cemetery hill, the haven of refuge they were ordered to seek, is mainly a history of individuals which only the survivors can tell. It was not as an army corps, nor as brigades, hardly even as regiments, that they got there, but for the most part singly or in twos and threes, some rushing through the town and right into the arms of the Confederates, who were already pouring into its streets ; others following the railroad cut outside the village, which proved a safe avenue of escape.
Once on the hill, by that law of attraction and cohesion which makes like seek like, each of the various organizations gradually - gathered its own together. The Eleventh Corps was already there,
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and its batteries in position ; apparently our foes had no stomachs for following up their victory on discovering such to be the fact. At all events we were not disturbed, although at our right toward Culp's hill sounds of a fierce conflict were heard. But at last night fell, and so closed the first day of Gettysburg.
SECOND AND THIRD DAYS' FIGHTS.
Thus far our regiment had had its full share in the glorious work of the First Corps, and had duly rendered its meed of sacrifice. What remained for it to do was done in the same spirit of devotion, although our part henceforth was to be blended with the collective energies and movements as of a vast machine, the workings of whose inner elements, however useful and essential, are mainly unseen.
During the night the various scattered army corps began to pour in and assume their assigned positions on Cemetery ridge. The dawn of the second day presented a formidable sight to the Con- federates on the opposite heights. Meade's army was seen strung along from Cemetery hill to Little Round Top, a distance of three miles, his cannon occupying the high points of advantage, while strong entrenchments, showing the herculean labors of the night, and bristling with infantry, presented an embattlement front that seemed impregnable.
And so did it appear, according to their testimony, to more than one of Lee's generals if it did not to himself. But Lee had no al- ternative than to pursue the offensive to the bitter end. It was not until four o'clock in the afternoon of the next day, however, that the first of the elaborate movements he had planned began by Long- street's assault on our left. The action gradually extended along the entire line, resulting in a general repulse except only at Culp's hill, where a temporary success was gained.
Supporting batteries, being shifted from one part of the line to another to meet emergencies as they arose, always exposed, but relieved from participating in the actual fighting on account of our hardships of the previous day, these constituted our chief contribu- tions to the operations of July 2 and 3.
No one who observed it will ever forget the dramatic event of the
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last day. All that morning the mutual preparations for the final struggle were apparent to both the contending armies. That a re- newed assault on our lines was intended and was inevitable was the general expectation, but where was it to fall and how?
We had long to wait, but the delay, every moment of it, was precious to General Meade, and was taken advantage of to strengthen our lines, get extra ammunition to the front, and bring up fresh troops.
The long silence that preceded the rebel advance was wearing to the strained nerves and oppressive to the mind. It was literally felt, like the ominous stillness which frequently precedes some tremen- dous convulsion of nature when the elements seem to be gathering their forces for some awful outburst. At last, at one o'clock, the signal came, the blow fell; one hundred and fifty rebel guns thundered from Seminary ridge and Meade's ninety cannon replied.
It is a waste of words to try and convey an adequate impression of that hideous volume of sound that for two hours rolled through the little valley and prolonged its reverberations among the sur- rounding mountains. When it ceased, long lines of gray-clad men were seen filing down from the opposite slopes and forming into columns of assault.
The story of Pickett's magnificent charge has been told repeatedly, both in verse and in prose, and is too familiar to require recital here. We witnessed a portion of the assault and had nearly taken part in its repulsion, but arrived at the point which we had been summoned to strengthen only in time to see the remnants of the shattered rebel brigades flying across the fields to the shelter of their lines.
We shared, however, in the mad cheering and shouting of our comrades in celebration of the victory their valor had so signally won. For, although there was still some desultory fighting in differ- ent parts of the field, Pickett's defeat was the deathblow to Lee's plans and practically ended the battle of Gettysburg.
No battle decisive of a campaign or of a war was ever more beset with afterdoubts and recriminations than that of Gettysburg. The mistakes of generals are always fruitful themes for criticism. Both - Meade and Lee have been condemned, the first for not following up
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the repulse of Pickett with a counter-assault, and the latter for hav- ing ordered that ill-fated attempt, and also for delivering battle at all at Gettysburg.
However pertinent the strictures in the latter instance may be, it should be remembered in Meade's favor that he had held command of the army of the Potomac but two days when the battle opened, was known to only a small portion of his troops, and was obliged to master, and at a supreme moment, the details and plans of a most important campaign of which he could previously have had but an imperfect knowledge.
Under such circumstances and considering the tremendous respon- sibilities he must assume if he imperilled his assured victory by an attempt to extend it where the chances of success were clouded by extreme doubt, it is no wonder that the Union commander hesitated to order the return stroke at the moment when it could only be effective - and that was at once- and so lost his opportunity. In less than an hour Lee had strengthened his lines and reformed his battalions, and was prepared for the assault that he fully expected would follow.
Some critics, too, have sought to belittle Meade by ascribing the credit of the victory to this or that general, rather than to him. The axiom is well established, however, that the commanding officer who plans or approves the various operations of a battle or campaign is entitled to claim the superior honors if victory is the result, as he must suffer the discredit in case of defeat.
The discussion of this question developed considerable acrimony some years ago, which was typically and humorously illustrated by a little ballad that went the round of the newspapers at the time, entitled, " The Hero of Gettysburg."
It represented a stranger meeting several old soldiers on the battlefield, each of whom claimed that title for his favorite corps commander, Meade's name, much to the bewildered visitor's sur- prise, not being mentioned at all. He thereupon expresses a thought that will be satisfying and convincing to a very large class of the people when in the concluding stanza he says :
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" So I have come to the conclusion That the hero of the fight, Was each. man who did his duty, And I know you'll say I'm right."
The losses of both armies at Gettysburg have been variously com- puted, but the following is believed to be a fair statement : Meade's returns give Federals killed, 3,072 ; wounded, 14,497; missing, 5,434 ; total, 23,003. Lee reported Confederates killed, 2,592 ; wounded, 12,709 ; missing, 5,150 ; total, 20,45 [.
As an instance of Lee's defective returns, however, we actually held over 13,000 prisoners, 8,000 more than he admits ; and some Confederate generals since the war have acknowledged that their total losses amounted to fully 35,000 men.
The striking feature of the field of Gettysburg to-day is the im- pressive and imposing array of monuments which characterizes its remarkable embellishment. Each of these memorials has a heroic as well as a pathetic history. They mark with an accuracy never before attained in battlefield preservation the positions held by the different organizations engaged on the Union side during the three days' engagement. The Confederate positions have likewise been indicated by markers.
The patriotic liberality of the general government, together with that of the 18 States represented by troops engaged in the battle, has accomplished in this spot of hallowed memories one of the most unique, decorative, and preservative effects ever conceived for per- petuating an historical event. There are over 600 of these monu- ments and markers, all of them strikingly appropriate, and some of them are costly works of art. Massachusetts has 24 of these memo- rials.
It is worthy of note that one of our own regimental associations, the Second Massachusetts, first suggested the idea of marking these positions by placing a stone there commemorative of its part in the action. This was dedicated in 1879, and excited a spirit of emula- tion with the result as stated.
In the national cemetery, which contains 17 acres, and is situated on Cemetery hill, the government in 1869 erected a granite memo-
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rial shaft, which is 60 feet high and 25 feet square at the base. This magnificent monument dominates the scene, and fittingly stands in the centre of the impressive rows of headstones that mark the 3,575 graves of Union soldiers resting there, and of which 1,608 com- pose the unknown dead. Massachusetts has 159 of her patriot sons buried in the national cemetery.
This beautiful burying-place of the nation's heroes was dedicated on the 19th of November, 1863, when Edward Everett delivered the scholarly oration that has been long forgotten, and Abraham Lincoln spoke the simple, tender, unstudied prose poem - so like himself - that is immortal.
GEORGE E. JEPSON.
REFLECTIONS OF A PRIVATE.
Prior to the meeting of Grand Army in Washington, this year, a circular was issued by the First Corps, part of which is as follows :
ORGANIZATIONS COMPRISING THE FIRST ARMY CORPS.
INDIANA - Cavalry : Third (detachment). Artillery : Sixteenth battery. Infantry : Seventh and Nineteenth.
MAINE - Cavalry : First. Artillery: Second, Third, Fifth, and Sixth batteries. In- fantry : Fifth and Sixteenth.
MARYLAND - Artillery : Battery A. Infantry : First, Fourth, Seventh, and Eighth.
MASSACHUSETTS - Infantry : Twelfth, Thirteenth, and Thirty-ninth.
MICHIGAN - Infantry : Twenty-fourth.
NEW HAMPSHIRE - Artillery : First battery.
NEW YORK - Cavalry: First and Second. Artillery: Batteries C, E, F, H, and L (First Light). Infantry : Fifteenth (Engineers), Sixteenth, Eighteenth, Twenty-first, Twenty-second, Twenty-third, Twenty-fourth, Twenty sixth, Twenty.seventh, Thirtieth, Thirty-first, Thirty-second, Thirty-fifth, Fiftieth (Engineers), Seventy-sixth, Eightieth (Twentieth Militia), Eighty-third (Ninth Militia), Eighty-fourth (Fourteenth Brooklyn), Ninety-fourth, Ninety-fifth, Ninety-seventh, One Hundred and Fourth, One Hundred and Fifth, One Hundred and Forty-seventh, and First Battalion Sharpshooters.
NEW JERSEY - Cavalry : First. Artillery: First battery. Infantry: First, Second, Third, Fourth, Twenty-second, Twenty-ninth, Thirtieth, and Thirty-first.
PENNSYLVANIA - Cavalry : First. Artillery : Batteries A, B, F, and G (First Light), and C and D (Independent). Infantry : First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth, or First Rifles ( Reserves), Eleventh, Fifty-sixth, Eighty-fourth, Eighty.eighth, Ninetieth, Ninety-fifth, Ninety-sixth, One Hun- dred and Seventh, One Hundred and Tenth, One Hundred and Twenty-first, One Hundred and Thirty-fifth, One Hundred and Thirty-sixth, One Hundred and Thirty-seventh, One Hundred and Forty-second, One Hundred and Forty-third, One Hundred and Forty- ninth, One Hundred and Fiftieth, and One Hundred and Fifty-first.
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RHODE ISLAND - Cavalry : First. Artillery : Battery D (First Light).
UNITED STATES - Artillery : Batteries D (Second), B and E (Fourth), and C (Fifth). Sharpshooters : Second.
VERMONT - Infantry : Twelfth, Thirteenth, Fourteenth, Fifteenth, and Sixteenth. WISCONSIN - Infantry : Second, Sixth, and Seventh.
WEST VIRGINIA - Infantry : First.
HEADQUARTERS FIRST ARMY CORPS, WASHINGTON, D.C., October, 1902.
DEAR COMRADE :
The committee from the resident members of the old First Army Corps, to which has been assigned the duty of preparing for a reunion and camp-fire, express the hope that you may find it possible to let us see your face on that occasion, grasp you by the hand, and, with us, hear the praises of the old First Corps sounded forth once more.
This much we have quoted from the circular because it recalls an experience some of the Thirteenth had at the last meeting of the Society of the Army of the Potomac in Boston. It is the custom at the annual meeting of that society for each corps associa- tion to hold a meeting and elect a president, which officer, by virtue of such election, becomes a vice-president of the parent society. Some of us, having previously joined the First Corps Asso- ciation, felt a deep interest in its doings at the time of the meeting, and a still deeper interest when we learned that the name of Captain Moses P. Palmer was suggested as a candidate for the presidency. The members of the Thirteenth outnumbered all others at the hour of the meeting. Our candidate had been an excellent officer, with a fine record as a soldier, had lost a leg during his service, and was a gentleman highly esteemed in the neighborhood where he lived and where he often had been honored by election to prominent civil positions.
When it was discovered that Captain Palmer was likely to be elected, a cold wave came over the meeting, and it was found nec- essary, if the plan already cut and dried was to be carried out, that - the meeting must be held without our presence. Accordingly, by
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some mysterious arrangement, the meeting was dissolved, and an election took place elsewhere than in the room assigned for the pur- pose, as we have reason to believe.
We made a business of attending meetings of this society for a few years, but it was evident we were not wanted ; so when we read such circulars as the one issued this year, our minds are filled with doubt and uncertainty about its sincerity.
Very few survivors of the First Corps would care to listen to a recitation of praises of what it did as suggested in the paragraph quoted above.
When the Society of the Army of the Potomac met at Concord, N.H., it received an invitation to enjoy the hospitality of a certain club, and we were told by a member of the First Corps, who was addressed as " Major," that being only a private soldier we might find it embarrassing to accept the invitation, inasmuch as there would be only commissioned officers present, and that we might be lonely. Knowing no reason why we should be lonely among the members of any corps or any army in which we served, we declined to avail ourselves of this very thoughtful suggestion. A prominent member of the club, a distinguished officer during the war, an old and a very particular friend, insisted upon our going, and told with glee the story we have just related to several persons in the club and within hearing of the " Major," whose advice had been so free, and we were taken to task by him for having repeated to others a confiden- tial communication, concluding with the remark, "You are no gentleman."
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