USA > Maine > First Maine bugle, 1890 (history of 1st Maine Cavalry) > Part 8
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" At the battle of Shepardstown, Virginia, July 16th, 1863. in which the vigilance, promptness, and intrepidity of this reg- iment made it possible for a division to hold the field and win the day, two incidents occurred that I will relate. Charlie H. Bell and George P. Andrews, both of this town, were on the skirmish line together, and were seeking partial shelter behind a low ridge. They would flatten themselves upon the ground while loading their pieces, then raise themselves upon their knees, with side to the enemy, and fire over the crest of the
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ridge. While Charlie Bell was thus shooting, an unfortunate shot from the enemy struck him in the other end of his prone body, and inflicted a severe wound. His manly pride, how- ever, was superior to the pain of his wound, and, in tones of despair, clapping his hand upon the wound, he exclaimed, ' O George ! just my luck ; shot where I can never speak of it !'
" In the same battle, at another time, Peter Como, of Com- pany K, saw one of the enemy presenting himself as a good mark. Peter rose to his feet, drew a bead on him, and called to his comrades to ' Watch and see that Johnny jump.' (When a man is shot with a bullet, he is likely to jump or fall dead, and many do both.) It subsequently appeared that the Johnny was playing the same game, that two minds were running in the same channel, so Peter fired, and so did Johnny. But it was Peter who jumped, and his first words were, ' By golly, the wrong boy jumped !' He had received a slight wound.
"I will relate an instance of remarkable marching by the regiment, and its unexpected escape from capture. In the autumn of 1863, the armies of Gen. Meade and Gen. Lee were watching each other from the opposite banks of the Rapidan River, when Gen. Lee conceived the idea of advancing, and Gen. Meade of retreating. This regiment was in camp near Warrenton, and. in pursuance of orders, started early one morning, marched all day, and just at dark arrived at a point far to the southwest of Culpepper Court House. The next morning, before daylight. it started again, to return over the same route, helping to cover the left flank of our retreating army, and arrived near Warrenton again at dark. The third morning, before daylight, I was ordered to proceed with this regiment to the Blue Ridge and along its base, to find out and report any movements of the enemy in that direc- tion. The regiment started early, and proceeded to Chester Gap, through which a pike crosses the Blue Ridge to Front Royal. Only a few guerrillas and spies had been encountered. At Chester Gap I left Capt. Paul Chadbourne with his com- pany I, to picket and observe. With the rest of the regiment
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I proceeded along the bases of the mountains southward, to Little Washington, where I again halted, and selected a de- tachment containing the best horses to proceed to Sperryville, where a pike crosses the mountains to the Luray Valley. At the same time I sent Lieut. William Harris with twelve picked men back to Warrenton, with a report of where I was and what I was doing, and that I should return to Warrenton as soon as the detachment returned from Sperryville. That de- tachment returned about an hour before sunset. I gave it an hour to rest, and then started with the whole command to return. We arrived at Chester Gap after dark. Capt. Chad- bourne had seen the detachment with Lieut. Harris pass at the proper time, but had not seen anything else of importance to report. I then decided to send Capt. Chadbourne with a detachment to Warrenton that night with an additional report, and to go into camp near Amissville with the rest of the regi- ment, and wait till morning. We had got nearly to our pro- posed camping place, when the detachment with Capt. Chad- bourne, in advance, was fired into, and came back upon the head of iny column in some confusion. Capt. Chadbourne re- ported to me that a large force was encamped in our imme- diate front, and, upon examination, I soon discovered that our regiment was completely cut off by a whole rebel corps, com- manded by Gen. A. P. Hill. I at once deployed two com- panies to resist attack, and ordered Lieut. Col. Boothby to conduct the rest of the regiment back to Chester Gap, put out pickets. and hunt up a guide. As soon as the rest of the regiment got out of the way, I withdrew the two deployed companies, and followed. A party pursued us, from whom we captured two prisoners, whom we took with us several miles and then abandoned. They were not mounted. When I rejoined Lieut. Col. Boothby at Chester Gap, he had found a colored boy for a guide, who could conduct us by private roads and paths through woods, across the head waters of the north fork of the Rappahannock River. I directed Lieut. Col. Boothby to take the guide and conduct the regiment in the direction indicated, while I remained behind to call in the
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pickets, and followed as soon as the column got out of the way. There were places in the woods where the regiment had to march in single file, which resulted in extending the column to great length, and as there were delays in getting over bad places, with increased gait afterwards, the column would be- come broken into parts, and a race to close up would result. Scratched faces and lost caps in the dark thicket resulted of course, and I do not think it will be possible for any comrade who was there to ever forget the torments of that night's ride for freedom. Having fairly gained the north side of the Rappahannock River, our young guide had passed beyond the limits of his knowledge of the country, and it was necessary to find another guide. We fortunately discovered a country house, in which we aroused a very large, coarse-looking white man. We did not know whether he was friend or foe, but presumed that he was the latter, and he was equally ignorant as to who we were. I questioned him minutely regarding the country, the roads, distances, and prominent objects, before he had gained any idea as to where we wanted to go. I then gave him a horse to mount, and, unnecessarily, perhaps, gave him twenty dollars from my pocket, for I wanted to have him by purchase as well as by capture. Besides, I felt very grate- ful for a guide that night. In indicating to this guide the route I wished to take I acted upon the presumption that our forces still held Warrenton. I had no means of knowing, what I afterwards discovered, that our forces had fallen back out of Warrenton, and that the whole rebel cavalry was in posses- sion of the town. My object was to avoid the rebel forces and reach Warrenton before morning. The most direct road led too near the camp of the enemy. I therefore selected a more cirenitous and obscure route. We had passed the point of danger, as I hoped, and reached a road with which I was acquainted. so I dismissed the guide, after concealing him in a thicket, at his request, till the column got by him, because he said, . Some of those fellows will take the horse away from me if they see me,' and I guess he was right. My next de- sire was to run into our pickets, because I knew that if our
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forces held Warrenton they would picket against the rebel forces that we had just encountered. I was, therefore, hoping to run into our pickets, even to be fired at by them. But instead of meeting our pickets, a turn of the road revealed to us a camp of cavalry as dead and silent as those small hours of the morning were. Then I knew, beyond a doubt, that we had not 'got out of the woods,' but were still in rear of the rebel cavalry. I called for a volunteer, and was about to instruct him how to ride into the camp and ascertain whose it was, when I learned that Major S. W. Thaxter, brave and impatient with delay, had ridden into camp with a feeling of assurance that it was part of our cavalry. After getting into the camp, Major Thaxter demanded, 'What regiment is this ?' A drowsy soldier answered from beneath his blanket, The Twelfth.' 'The Twelfth what?' demanded Major Thaxter. ' The Twelfth Virginia, you damn fool !' was the reply. (No other Southern State had twelve regiments of cavalry.) Major Thaxter returned in haste, and reported in a very loud whisper, ' Colonel ! Colonel, it is the Twelfth Vir- ginia Cavalry!' It then became apparent to all that our way to Warrenton was blocked, and that our course must be changed. That rebel regiment was supposed to be in a per- feetly secure position, being between their infantry and the body of their cavalry. , It did not have so much as a camp guard on duty. We could have captured it without resistance, if we could have got away with our plunder. But the truth is, we were not hunting for regiments to capture, but rather to escape capture ourselves. We were the ones who were out of place and in supposed danger. I at once ordered a stone fence beside the road to be thrown down, and started the column across the country northward. New Baltimore became my objective point. I wanted to get there before morning. It was necessary to get round and beyond the enemy before daylight. We, therefore, directed our course northward by the heavens, across fields, fences, pastures, swamps, and ditches, until we came to a plantation house, in which we found an aged white man and a small colored boy, from whom we
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learned something more definite of the battle of the preceding day, and the changed positions of the forces. I took the boy, our third guide that night, and he conducted us to New Balti- more by a route I indicated to him, so as to avoid the Warren- ton pike, and thus keep on the flank of the enemy, instead of getting behind him again, in case he had advanced as far as New Baltimore. We, therefore, approached that town from the west just before sunrise, and just in time to see one rebel trooper, who, perhaps, had been to visit his home or sweet- heart, skipping over the hill towards the enemy. I then knew that we had practically ' got out of the woods,' and I at once dispatched Major George M. Brown to find and report to su- perior authority what we had seen and knew. He found army headquarters near Catlets Station, and Gen. Meade subse- quently assured me of the very great importance and value to him of the information I sent him. After dispatching Major Brown, I moved leisurely with the regiment to Bristow Sta- tion, and learned that our army was falling back to Centre- ville. Our reappearance was a surprise to our friends, because they believed that the regiment had been captured, and officially reported it as captured. If it had not been important for us to get back to our army as soon as possible, to report what we had discovered, we could have escaped more easily by taking more time, and giving the enemy a wider berth. The corps of A. P. Hill, that we encountered and escaped from, arrived at Bristow Station the next day, where it attacked our Second Corps, and was repulsed. This narrative would be incomplete without an account of the adventures of Lieut. Harris and party, who were sent back from Little Washington with a report. The party had passed the point where we ran into Hill's corps before it arrived there. Proceeding to War- renton, it ran into the rebel cavalry, which had already got there. The party then turned to come back to the regiment. and ran into Hill's corps, which had begun to arrive in the meantime, and was thus hemmed in between two hostile forces. Lieut. Harris concealed his party in a thicket till after dark, and captured two of the enemy who happened to
JOHN P. THOMPSON. Co. H, Ist D.C. Cav. Co. M, Ist Maine Cav. Mt. Tom, Mass.
LEANDER H PAUL, Co. F, Is: D.C. Cav. Transferred to Navy. Camden, Maine.
JOHN M. WARREN Co. H, Ist D.C. Cav Co. M, Ist Maine Cav. Northampton. Mass
0
MAJOR DANIEL S. CURTISS Ist D.C. and Ist Maine Cav. (Deceased.)
HARRISON J. JACK. : Serg't Co F, Ist Maine Cav n. red near Richmond, Va., on " gren Raid, March 1, 1864.
JOHN B PERRY, Co. E, Ist D C. Cov. Co. 1, Ist Maine Cav. Northampton. Mass.
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wander into the same thicket. In the night he abandoned his horses, equipments, and sabres, and with his firearms and pris- oners escaped through the enemy's camp undetected, made his way across the river, and had a fair prospect of escaping northward, when he was met by a party under guerrilla White, who attempted to take him. Lieut. Harris took position behind a stone fence, posted his two prisoners on top of the fence, and notified White that if he fired at the party, he would be likely to kill two of his own men. Whereupon, White abandoned the attempt to capture him, and moved off. Lieut. Harris then proceeded as far as Thoroughfare Gap, where he was met by Mosby with a large force, to whom he had to surrender. He and his party were taken back to near Warrenton, where, after dark, Lieut. Harris effected his personal escape, and being far within the enemy's lines, concealed and sustained himself more than a week without being detected; and, finally, when Lee again fell back to the Rappahannock, made his way into our lines near Warrenton Junction.
" When I joined the regiment in 1861, I took with me to Augusta the recruits from Washington County, among whom were a dozen Eastport boys, most of whom had been my pupils in the Boynton School. They were boys literally, and all of them rendered gallant services, and all but two survived the war, and returned to their homes. Those two I desire to mention by name. Young Leslie B. Gardner, mild-mannered and courteous, whose devotion to duty excelled his strength, succumbed the first summer in the field, and died in hospital, deeply lamented by all his comrades. The other, the young- est of them all, was James E. Stayner, whom many will re- member as a pale-faced. light-haired boy, a clerk in a drug store. He was delicate as a girl, but his intelligence and gallantry won him a commission. The first battle in which he wore his new uniform, was that of Dinwiddie Court House, where Sheridan says we bore the brunt of the fight, and he christened it there by baptism in his own young blood. Ilis death on that victorious field was as gallant as his short life had been noble.
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"On the seventh day of April, 1865, during our pursuit to Appomattox, we had the enemy on the run near the town of Farmville. My brigade had the advance. Rufus A. Smith, of Company I. First Maine, was one of my orderlies. I sent him with a message to Col. Clark of the Thirteenth Ohio, who was moving too far to the right, and too much in advance. It happened that Gen. W. H. F. Lee's brigade of rebel cavalry was in our left front, and many of his men wore our army blue. The orderly mistook that rebel brigade for the Union regiment, and, riding deliberately up to it with his message, was taken prisoner. Two days later the surrender of Appomatox occurred. In the mean time, the orderly, as a prisoner, had been robbed of his shoes, half his clothing, and every article of value about him, and was half famished with hunger. He was released as soon as the terms of surrender were signed, and lost no time in getting back to his friends. It was towards evening when he joined us. I was sitting near a camp-fire thinking. The events of that day evolved too much for quick consideration. It was delicious to feel the security of peace, that we were no longer confronted by an enemy, that there would be no more wounding nor killing, nor pursuing the enemy, nor fleeing from him, but that the blue and the gray might mingle as friends, and vie with each other in acts of kindness, as they sometimes did. As I was thus sitting and thinking, my lost orderly approached from behind me, and. quietly passing to the front of me, took the position of . a sol- dier. Then with real dramatic effect, and in a manner as composed as if nothing unusual had happened, he saluted me and said, . Sir, I have to report that I could not find Col. ('lark.' That cool young soldier has become a valuable citizen in his native town of Dayton of this state, and I had the pleasure of dining with his happy and prosperous family only a few weeks since.
" I will give one more illustration of war. Private William L. Foss, of Machias, was one of our earliest recruits. After serving out his time he re-enlisted. He never missed a duty. and never grumbled. Just before the last campaign of the
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army. I detailed him for special messenger, as a slight reward for his faithful services. His special duties did not require him to unduly expose himself in battle, but his fearless, unsel- fish, gallant nature impelled him to do so. In a charge at Briery Creek, during the pursuit to Appomattox, Foss was seen in the very front, but was missing after the charge was over. The regiment marched on to Appomattox. and gained the most advanced and most exposed position the morning of the ninth of April. It was directly between the rebel army and Lynchburg, and, with the brigade, was posted across the road by which that army hoped to escape. The regiment held the post of honor, received the first attack, and fired the first Union shot on that memorable morning. It also kept on firing till all firing ceased and victory and peace were proclaimed. Then we came marching back with victory on our banners, and peace in our hearts and throughout the land. We were re- crossing the battle-field of Briery Creek, where Foss was last seen in the van of the charge, when his well-known horse that he had ridden so often and so fearlessly, was discovered pierced by three bullets. Near the dead horse was a fresh grave, that told a sad tale. A few handfuls of earth were removed, and the face of Foss was revealed. We, living, stood in the pres- ence of his death. His gallant life had been tolled, that we might live on to victory and the enjoyment of victory. Now William L. Foss was only a dead soldier! Only one of the many thousand who were sacrificed by the war. It is, there- fore, most fitting, as I stated in effect when I began, that these annual reunions of those living should be held to honor and keep alive our memories of so many comrades who fell at our sides."
POEM BY LIEUT. TOBIE.
Capt. Bibber then introduced Lieut. Edward P. Tobie, now of Pawtucket, R. I., who read the following original poem, prepared for the occasion : --
THE LAST MAN OF THE OLD FIRST MAINE .. The years are passing swiftly by ; Our comrades, one by one, Are being slowly mustered out, Their earthly service done :
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And as we meet each year, to taste Reunion's pleasures sweet, Our hearts are saddened, as we miss Some one we loved to greet.
We miss some well-remembered form We miss some features dear, We miss some kindly voice and tone We dearly loved to hear.
Each year our ranks are growing thin The time is coming fast, When only one of us is left, Of all our comrades - last ;
When only one of all who made The gallant old First Maine Is left on earth - for all the rest The bugle calls in vain.
I see him bending 'neath the weight Of more than four-score years, A man at peace with heaven and earth Who has for death no fears ;
A man who's held in high esteem, All over our grand State, Is loved and honored everywhere, Revered by small and great.
His history is known to all, His deeds of long ago Are treasured up as household words Which it were well to know.
Large-hearted, social, kind, and true, 'Tis pleasure him to meet --- At every home a welcome guest Whom all delight to greet.
His aged eyes are gleaming bright, With light as from above, And all alike look up to him With reverence and love.
He loves to sit the livelong day, With children at his knee, And tell them stories of the war That made four millions free.
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And while they listen unto him, As well they love to do, They learn from him the lessons grand, Of patriotism true ;
Of loyalty to duty ; of Devotion to the right; Of love of country that shall dare, When she's assailed, to fight.
And older ones as well as young Delight to hear him tell How nobly his brave comrades fought, How gallantly they fell.
And as he tells the tales of camp, That you and I oft tell, The same old smile lights up his face, We used to know so well.
And, as he tells of battle scenes, Of full a score of fights, The same old fire beams in his eye We saw on Brandy's heights.
The glory of the old First Maine Will brighter shine, because He tells how bravely and how well We fought in freedom's cause.
The history of the country, too, Will clearer be, by far, Because he tells, and tells so oft, The stories of the war.
The closing years of his long life Pass quietly away ; Peace reigns supreme, and happiness Beams on his face alway.
Surrounded by his loved ones true, Whose care for him ne'er ends, He knows no want that's not supplied At once, by loving friends.
He spends his days in pleasantness, And, like the ancient sage, Enjoys, in all its blessedness, A happy, green old age.
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He lives in blissful consciousness Of duty nobly done To God, to country, and to man, To each and every one,
And has no fear of what may come Beyond the shores of time ; His faith in God is bright as day, His trust in him sublime.
At length the summons comes to join His comrades gone before ; His prompt response as fearless is As when, in days of yore
He sprang at sound of bugle call And rushed into the fight, Fearing not danger, pain, nor death. But braving all for right.
It comes at midnight - he responds Without a fear or doubt : And with a smile the old First Maine At last is mustered out.
A male double quartette, under the direction of Prof. B. L. Whelpley, then sang "The Soldier's Farewell," receiving much applause.
REMARKS BY DR. SHEAHAN.
Capt. Bibber then called upon Comrade John P. Sheahan to act as toastmaster. Comrade Sheahan introduced himself in a characteristic manner, as a member of Company K who was raised to the rank of corporal for distinguished services, and after serving three weeks in this official capacity, resigned and was reduced to the ranks. He wished only to establish his reputation for veracity. "I promised the veterans at their last reunion that the people of Eastport would feed them well. Haven't they done it?" An emphatic " Yes" was the re- sponse. "I promised also that you would be waited upon by the handsomest ladies of the State of Maine. Has not that been fulfilled ?" Another still more emphatic " yes " re- sponded. .
-
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REMARKS BY GEN. CILLEY.
Toastmaster Sheahan then announced the first toast: -
" The Rank and File,"
and called upon Gen. J. P. Cilley, who responded as follows : - " At Auburn, last year, the comrades of Eastport promised to open their houses to us, give us the best of the land, and have the prettiest girls in Maine wait on us. To-day Eastport has more than redeemed her promise. At the very first we re- ported to, and were assigned homes, by a lady of Juno-like beanty and majesty. Eastport's care for us was not only gen- erous and full, but through it all ran a delicacy of flattery most enjoyable, but impossible to set forth in words. I can give one sample which will indicate the flavor of such flattery, After having breathed and realized in some degree the home flavor and extent of your hospitality, I, with my comrades, went to the wharf to welcome an expected portion of our regiment. While waiting, your Baptist clergyman, Rev. Mr. Whitcomb, who had commenced conversation with me as one of the new family of Eastport guests, asked me ' what church at the pres- ent time was under my charge ?' (great laughter). Could kindness be better illustrated or flattery more insidious ?
" My subject is : . The. Rank and File of the Regiment.'
" I wish to say that the rank and file were the regiment. I cherish with pride, -sentimental it may be, but sentiment as an ingredient of pride only exalts and confirms it, -- the fact that my name stands on the rolls of the regiment from Sept. 3d, 1861, to Oct. 4th, 1861, as an enlisted man and private of Com- pany B. One thing more I cherish with more than pride : that men of this regiment, in their season of affliction from death of wife or children, or when pecuniary loss has distressed them, or sickness discouraged them, have written me for sym- pathy, asking no assistance, only seeking the solace of giving utterance to their sorrows and desiring a word of encourage- ment that above the clouds the sun still shines. I rejoice in this. It awakens in me that oneness of experience that pos-
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sessed me when we advanced, dismounted, through the woods on the right of the Boydtown Plank Road, Oct. 27th, 1864, and I footed it on the same level with you ; and Serg't. Gurney, when I reproved him for wasting his ammunition, turned the same rebuke on me, showing he was correct and I was wrong. Or, at St. Mary's Church, June 24th, 1864, where, with bat- talion front, we brought our mouths to the same level, and drank from the muddy brook we crossed by wading -a type of fellowship and oneness more impressive than drinking from the same canteen.
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