USA > New Jersey > New Jersey troops in the Gettysburg campaign from June 5 to July 31, 1863 > Part 5
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General Hooker had designed to attack Hill at Fredericksburg and put his army in such position as to interpose between Lee's main army and Richmond, but he was overruled by General Halleck. Com- pelled therefore to fall back and await the develop- ment of Lee's plans, he moved his army with marked skillfulness and ability. All the authorities agree as
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to the general correctness of the views advanced by Hooker, but he was in almost every instance balked in his designs by the military authorities in Wash- ington, and refused the cooperation which he deserved. He did not permit himself, however, to be influenced by the clamorous appeals sent to him ; he was forced in a defensive position by Lee's movements, and as though aware of the intent of Lee to draw him into a battle, he steadfastly pursued the one course of cov- ering the Capital against any possible designs the rebel chieftain might have in that direction, and putting himself in position to watch every movement his wily antagonist might make.
CHAPTER V.
EWELL AT WILLIAMSPORT-JENKINS' RAID IN PENN- SYLVANIA - CONSTERNATION THROUGHOUT THE NORTH-NEW JERSEY VOLUNTEERS GO TO THE DEFENCE OF HARRISBURG-HOOKER ADVANCES TO A NEW LINE OF OBSERVATION-INCIDENTS OF THE MARCH-EXECUTION OF DESERTERS-AN INSTANCE OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN'S MERCY AND WHY IT FAILED.
T HE rebel leaders seemed to have everything their own way after the defeat of Milroy at Winchester. General Lee was the ruling spirit of his own army, and unlike the Union commander, was not hamp- ered by those in power at the seat of government. He gave wide latitude also to his lieutenants, and thus practically there were four independent armies, acting with a common impulse. Ewell's brilliant exploit had won for him the admiration of his troops, and they hailed him as a worthy successor to the idolized " Stonewall" Jackson. The complete rout of Milroy's forces stimulated the advancing columns and embold- ened them to a wonderful degree. The fleeing team- sters, contrabands and non-combatants generally who had escaped from Ewell's clutches, created consterna-
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tion and dismay among the farmers of Western Mary- land and the Cumberland Valley, by the wonderful stories their imaginations conjured up, and these in turn spread the alarm by gathering together their valuables, live stock, and portable property, and fleeing toward Harrisburg. The whole country was in a state of alarm, and Jenkins with two thousand of his impetu- ous cavalrymen, started on a tour of the Valley to prevent the loss of so much material and supplies, of which Lee's army stood in great need. He entered Greencastle on the 16th of June and at night of the same day halted at Chambersburg. He levied on everything of value he could find - horses, cattle, forage, medical stores, and went so far as to seize a number of free negroes whom he sent South to be sold as slaves. It is said in behalf of Jenkins' fairness toward the people whom he thus despoiled, that he paid for the goods in "honest" Confederate money. This is true only in part; he deliberately confiscated the greater part of the supplies seized, making no offer of compensation.
The alarm which prevailed throughout the North on the advent of Jenkins with his bold raiders in Penn- sylvania, was increased by the apparent slowness with which the Army of the Potomac moved toward the enemy. This feeling found vent in hysteric appeals to the government and sharp criticism of the Union commander, as the defenceless condition of Pennsyl- vania made its territory a fine field for depredations
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of all kinds. On the 15th of June Governor Curtin addressed an appeal to the Governor of New Jersey for aid as follows :
HARRISBURG, June 15, 1863.
GOVERNOR JOEL PARKER :
This State is threatened with invasion by a large force, and we are raising troops as rapidly as possible to resist them. I understand there are three regiments of your troops at Beverly waiting to be mustered out. Could an arrangement be made with you and the authorities at Washington by which the service of those regiments could be had for the present emer- gency? Please advise immediately.
A. G. CURTIN, Governor Pennsylvania.
On the same day a dispatch was received by Governor Parker from the Secretary of War, detailing the movements of the rebel forces in Virginia which had been sufficiently developed to show that General Lee with his whole army contemplated moving forward to invade the States of Maryland, Pennsylvania and other States. The President, to repel this invasion promptly, had called upon Ohio, Pennsylvania, Mary- land and Western Virginia for one hundred thousand volunteers for six months, unless sooner discharged, and realizing the importance of having the largest possible force in the least time, desired immediate infor- mation as to what number, in answer to a special call of the President, the Governor could raise and forward, 6
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of militia or volunteers, without bounty, for the period named, and to be credited on the draft of the State.
These appeals were not as promptly responded to as the authorities hoped for. In Pennsylvania, where the greatest danger existed, the people seemed to feel their utter helplessness, and looked longingly, anxiously, for the advance of the Army of the Potomac. Philadel- phia was lethargic to a wonderful degree, and General Couch, who had been sent to Harrisburg, for the purpose of organizing a defensive force for the safety of the Capital, found himself without troops, and with slight prospects for getting any. Governor Parker of New Jersey promptly replied to the appeal of Gov- ernor Curtin, promising all the assistance in his power, and on the 17th issued the following proclamation :
EXECUTIVE CHAMBER, - TRENTON, N. J., June 17, 1863. 5
Jerseymen ! The State of Pennsylvania is invaded ! A hostile army is now occupying and despoiling the towns of our sister State. She appeals to New Jersey, through her Governor, to aid in driving back the invading army.
Let us respond to this call upon our patriotic State with unprecedented zeal.
I therefore call upon the citizens of this State to meet and organize into companies, and to report to the Adjutant-General of the State as soon as possible, to be organized into regiments as the militia of New Jersey, and press forward to the assistance of Pennsylvania in this emergency.
MAJOR-GENERAL A. T. A. TORBERT, Brigadier-General Commanding First N. J. Brigade. (From Photograph after the War.)
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The organization of these troops will be given in general orders as soon as practicable.
[L. S.] Given under my hand and privy seal this seventeenth day of June, eighteen hundred and sixty- three.
JOEL PARKER.
Attest :
S. M. DICKINSON, Private Secretary.
The presence in the State of a number of the nine months' regiments, whose terms of service had or were about expiring, caused the Governor to issue a special appeal to these troops as follows :
STATE OF NEW JERSEY, EXECUTIVE CHAMBER, TRENTON, June 17, 1863. S
Soldiers ! The Governor of Pennsylvania has re- quested your services to assist in repelling an invasion of that State. Your term of service has expired. You have performed your duty, and your gallant conduct has reflected honor on yourselves and the State that sent you forth.
It will take time to organize and send other troops to the aid of Pennsylvania. You are already organ- ized and drilled. The hard service you have seen in Virginia has made you veterans-far more efficient than new troops can possibly be.
I regret any necessity that may detain you from your homes, but can this appeal from a sister State, in her hour of danger, be disregarded ?
Your State and United States pay will be continued.
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You will not be required to go out of the State of Pennsylvania, and will return as soon as the emergency will admit. Your response to this appeal will add to the fame you have already achieved.
JOEL PARKER.
On the very day the proclamation was issued, the Twenty-third Regiment, then in camp at Beverly undergoing the necessary preliminaries for being mustered out, were called together, and its Colonel, E. Burd Grubb, made a straightforward, practical and patriotic appeal to his men, who responded at once. Numbers of men who were not in camp at the time hastened to join their comrades, and that same evening the regiment, three hundred strong, marched through Philadelphia to the Harrisburg depot, receiving a grand ovation on the way. The next day they reached the threatened city, being the first armed force to arrive, but to the surprise of the men of the Twenty- third they were received with exceeding coolness. From the "Notes of an officer" in Foster's "New Jersey and the Rebellion," the following extract is taken: " Our men were refused canteens of water by the citizens, and one person who did not conceal his secession proclivities came very near being 'torn out,' so exasperated were our troops at his undisguised sympathy with the rebels. It required all Colonel Grubb's influence to prevent violence. The fellow at last procured a flag, hung it out, promised to behave in future, and was finally let off, a pretty badly scared
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man, who took good care not to ventilate any more disunion sentiments during the occupancy of the city by the Jersey Blues." A very different reception was experienced by Captain William R. Murphy, of Com- pany A, First New Jersey Militia, whose command also volunteered for the emergency. In a dispatch to Governor Parker he says:
" At Philadelphia and here (Harrisburg) we have received every attention because we are Jerseymen. 'A citizen of New Jersey' is a prouder title than that of a 'Roman citizen.'"
The Twenty-seventh Regiment, Colonel Geo. W. Mindil, on arriving at Cincinnati, learned of the threatened invasion of Pennsylvania, and the command was immediately tendered to the President who accepted it, and it remained in the vicinity of Pittsburg and Harrisburg until the danger had passed. Ten companies of New Jersey Militia and one battery of light artillery also volunteered for the emergency. These companies came from all parts of the State, three from Trenton, commanded by Captains William R. Murphy, Company A; George F. Marshall, Com- pany B; James C. Manning, Company C; Company D of Lambertville, Captain Hiram Hughes; Company E of Morristown, Captain George Gage; Company F of Newark, Captain William J. Roberts ; Company G of Mount Holly, Captain J. Fred. Laumaster ; Company H of Newark, Captain Timothy Colvin; Company I of Trenton, Captain Joseph A. Yard; Independent Company of Camden, Captain James M. Scovel ; Light
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Battery of Rahway, Captain John R. Chapin. These commands all reported to General Couch at Harris- burg, and the militia companies were organized into two battalions, commanded respectively by Captains Murphy and Laumaster.
These commands remained in the State until all danger was over, and received the thanks of Governor Curtin for their valuable and patriotic services.
While Jenkins' raid was in progress Ewell remained at Williamsport to rest his men, amuse himself by a feint upon Harper's Ferry, but principally to await the arrival of Longstreet's corps, which had been making a rather bold attempt to draw on a battle with the Army of the Potomac.
This apparant inaction on the part of the enemy was a source of mystery to the Union commander. He was flooded with dispatches from Washington, which reflected the excited views of the people North, together with orders for the movement of his army which, in turn, were countermanded soon after. The North was alarmed, reasonably so. The Government at Washington appeared to be panic-stricken. Hooker alone seemed to have his head firmly set upon his shoulders. It was not yet clear to his mind that an invasion of Pennsylvania, further than a cavalry raid on a large scale, was intended, and he therefore deter- mined to halt his army, then approaching Centreville and Manassas, and await developments. The informa- tion he sought came to him most unexpectedly.
The Union cavalry had given little attention to the
COLONEL JAMES N. DUFFY, Lieutenant-Colonel 3d New Jersey Volunteers, Assistant Inspector-General on Division Staff. (From a recent Photograph.)
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rebel horsemen since the fight at Brandy Station, quietly following the movements of the army in its march toward Washington. Longstreet, unobserved, had taken position along the easterly slope of the mountains, and to Stuart's cavalry had been detailed the duty of guarding his flanks and defending the gaps. General Pleasonton had been scouting along the Blue Ridge with Gregg's division of cavalry, when, on the 17th of June, he decided to go through Aldie Gap. The rebel cavalry had no suspicion that Pleasonton was in that vicinity, and had made a long march of forty miles for the purpose of occupying it themselves. Kilpat- rick's brigade was in the advance, and the opposing forces soon met in deadly conflict.
Kilpatrick's force was a small one comprising the Second New York, First Maine and Harris Light-in the latter command were two companies from northern New Jersey, recruited by Kilpatrick himself. The First Rhode Island had been detached that morning with orders to join him at Middleburg. Forming the Second New York Kilpatrick boldly charged the enemy. This small force could not long withstand the shock, and as they galloped back to find a rallying point, the First Maine, supported by the Harris Light, rode upon the enemy with such tremendous force as to drive them from their defensive position, capturing a battalion of dismounted men before they could reach their horses, while the mounted rebels were sent reeling down the hill. They made no stop until they reached Middleburg, where Stuart had encountered
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Duffie's division. The next day, the 19th, Pleasonton occupied Middleburg and Philemont, and after a series of brilliant encounters with the enemy succeeded in holding the positions he had gained. Stuart was forced to fall back behind Longstreet's infantry column, and the latter was compelled to take a more westerly route for his line of march.
Hooker promptly availed himself of the advantages thus gained by Pleasonton. On the 18th he occupied the gaps, the Twelfth Corps being ordered to Lees- burg, the Fifth to Aldie and the Second to Thorough- fare Gap. The other corps of the army were formed in a second line in reserve.
An amusing, if ghastly, incident is related by a former Sergeant of Company K, Twelfth New Jersey, which occurred on the march to Thoroughfare Gap, with the Second Army Corps. The heat was oppres- sive. Men became utterly exhausted not alone from the severe marching, but their inability to get water. The streams were all dried up, and the little water the men had in their canteens had been churned to a disagreeable and nauseating degree of temperature. While the column was crossing Bull Run battle-field, murmurings of discontent arose from the ranks, the men being exceedingly fatigued and in a complaining mood. As the column moved on the body of a dead soldier was discovered, one of the arms protruding from the mound of earth which covered the remains and pointing upward. A soldier with a penchant for absurd remarks-and there were many such in the
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army -caught a glimpse of the uplifted arm and shouted out : "Say, boys, see the soldier putting out his hand for back pay!" The remark was infectious. Men forgot all about their sufferings, and the ghastly joke broke up all the disaffection which had previously existed.
The Union army halted on the line just established for several days. The position was an admirable one, fully protecting the Capital and giving the army a good base for future operations. In the event of Lee moving still further from Richmond Hooker possessed splendid opportunities for attacking him in the rear and threatening his line of communications. This Hooker was desirous of doing, but all his requests for cooperative movements were refused, and his sugges- tions treated with contempt. His relations with the government were of the most unpleasant nature, and he was continually thwarted in his designs.
The halt of the army at this juncture was not unwelcome to the troops. Ignorant of the intense excitement throughout the country, accustomed to place little reliance in the "grapevine" stories which reached them, they surrendered themselves to the comforts of camp life, utterly unmindful of the desperate activity which at that time was making of Harrisburg a fortified city, and even awakening Philadelphia to a sense of insecurity. The customary duties of camp life were at once instituted, and for the first time in its history an execution for desertion took place in the Army of the Potomac. Three men of
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the Twelfth Corps, two belonging to the Forty-sixth Pennsylvania and one to the Thirteenth New Jersey, were shot in the presence of the whole of the First Division on the 19th of June, at Leesburg. The reasons which impelled this action were given by General Slocum in an address at Gettysburg, on July 1, 1887, at the unveiling of the monument of the Thirteenth Regiment. As the incident related furnishes additional evidence of the kind heart of President Lincoln, it is worthy of reproduction. Desertions had been alarmingly frequent, particularly under General Burnside, and heroic measures were necessary in order to put a stop to them. General Slocum said :
" Mr. Lincoln, in the kindness of his heart, was con- stantly pardoning these men. He could not sign a man's death warrant.
" The corps commanders of the Army of the Potomac had a little conference, and they agreed that they would take the thing into their own hands and put a stop to it. . They agreed that they would shoot some- body as speedily as they could. We all pledged our- selves to that. It so happened that I had at the time three of these men in my corps. They were tried ; they were convicted upon incontestable evidence, and when we got up here to Leesburg, before the battle of Gettysburg, as all of you remember who were there, their graves were dug and the men were placed at the head of the graves and they were shot. They were sentenced to be shot between the hours of nine and
LIEUTENANT-COLONEL WILLIAM HENRY, JR., Commanding First Regiment N. J. Volunteer Infantry. (From a War-time Photograph).
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one. I gave the order that the troops should be brought out, and the moment the hands of the clock pointed to nine those men should be executed. I did so because I anticipated that a telegram would come from Mr. Lincoln, if he could possibly reach me. The wire had been built well up: they were within a few rods of me; I knew what was coming. Before ten o'clock I received a message from Mr. Lincoln saying if such a man, giving his name, has not been shot, ' you will suspend his sentence.' I sat down and telegraphed back to Mr. Lincoln, 'The man has been executed, pursuant to his sentence.' Then we came up here and fought the battle of Gettysburg. Great battles were fought out west ; the whole country was in a state of intense excitement; and when we were ordered west after the battle of Gettysburg we went up to Washing- ton to take the cars. I went to bid Mr. Lincoln good- bye; it was the last time I ever saw him. As I entered his room he said to me, without hardly waiting for me to greet him, ' General Slocum, the last message that I received from you gave me more pain than anything that has occurred since I took my seat as President.' I was astonished at his words and I said with surprise, ' Mr. Lincoln, I don't remember ; what was it?' Said he, ' You were up there at Leesburg and I telegraphed you to suspend the sentence of a man who was condemned to death, and,' said he, ' the wife and the sister of that man sat here at this table opposite me and I had to open your telegraphic answer and read it to them.' Said he, 'it caused me more pain than almost anything that has
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occurred since I became President of the United States.'
"Now, think of it, gentlemen ; think of what had intervened-three or four months, all crowded with great events, and yet the first thing that came into the mind of that great man when he saw me was this incident, this failure of his to save the life of one man."
During the time which intervened between the beginning of the campaign and the halt of the army on the line extending from Leesburg to Thoroughfare Gap, most of the nine months regiments returned to New Jersey. They were mustered out of the service at the following places :
Twenty-first Regiment, on June 19, 1863, at Trenton. Twenty-second, on June 25, at Trenton. Twenty-third, on June 27, at Beverly. Twenty-fourth, on June 29, at Beverly. Twenty-sixth, on June 27, at Newark. Twenty-seventh, on July 2, at Newark. Twenty-eighth, on July 6, at Freehold. Twenty-ninth, on June 30, at Freehold. Thirtieth, on June 27, at Flemington. Thirty-first, on June 24, at Flemington.
The Twenty-fifth Regiment, which had served with the Ninth Corps, at Newport News and Suffolk, was mustered out on June 20, at Beverly.
CHAPTER VI.
FROM THE RAPPAHANNOCK TO GUM SPRINGS-EXPERI- ENCES OF THE SEVENTH NEW JERSEY. REGIMENT AND THE SECOND BRIGADE-USELESS NIGHT WORK -AN ALL-NIGHT MARCH.
I N THE foregoing pages the larger events of the campaign have been detailed with considerable minuteness and the army, as a whole, treated as a great machine, subject to the direction and control of its commander-in-chief ; but this machine is composed of a large number of individual parts, and the manner in which they performed the severe tasks given them is a matter of great interest. At this first break in the progress of the army a favorable opportunity presents itself to introduce the recollections of some of those who participated in the march, enduring its fatigues, deprivations and hardships.
The Second New Jersey Brigade, Colonel George W. Burling, commander-comprising the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and Eighth New Jersey Regiments, the One Hundred and Fifteenth Pennsylvania, and the Second New Hampshire-formed the Third Brigade of the Second Division, Third Corps. An officer of this gal- lant brigade who was wounded at Gettysburg details
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in the following interesting manner the experiences of that command :
"On the eleventh day of June, 1863, the Second Brigade broke camp near Falmouth, Va., and with the rest of the Third Corps, under command of General Sickles, marched up the Rappahannock river toward McLean's Ford, and Rappahannock Station on the Orange and Alexandria Railroad, arriving at the lat- ter place at sunset the next day, and bivouacking on the north bank of the river. The only incidents of the march of these two days were the oppressive heat and the intolerable choking dust of the latter part of the march, especially when the column turned off upon a by-road, which led through a dense young growth of trees, to go to McLean's Ford. The close proximity of the river to our halting place, gave the men an oppor- tunity to indulge in the luxury of a bath, and to relieve the choking, parched sensation with good drafts of cof- fee, before sinking down by their stacks of muskets for the long, good, undisturbed night's sleep. It was refreshing to the tired foot soldier to be allowed to sleep until he had enough, without being rudely awakened in the early morning by the sound of the " assembly." That was one of the few times in our experience in the Army of the Potomac that we were not aroused from our slumbers by some command, before we had fully rested from the fatigue of a long march.
" A slight stir was occasioned soon after sunrise by the galloping of horses about the field. The neighing
COLONEL SAMUEL L. BUCK, Com'd'g 2d Regt. N. J. Vols., Inf. (From a War-time Photograph.)
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of the animals, and the shouts of the awakening soldiers as the horses jumped over the long lines of sleeping men in their wild career, caused no little excitement and apprehension ; but no one was touched by the ter- rible hoofs of the mad beasts, which seemed almost as miraculous as that so many should escape injury in battle with a shower of deadly missiles flying all around.
"The regiments of the brigade were moved out of the open field during the day to the shelter of the sur- rounding woods, from the increasing heat of the Sum- mer's sun. It was sultry and hot.
"At sundown a detail from the Seventh was made, of which Captain William R. Hillyer, of Company K, had charge, to construct a line of rifle-pits to command the approaches to the river. Having been supplied with picks and shovels the detail accompanied by the engineer proceeded to the river, on the bluffs over- looking which the pits had been marked for excava- tion. It was very slow work. The stiff, unyielding red clay seemed to resist all efforts to make an indenta- tion into it with the picks, wielded by the nerveless arms of tired soldiers. The urging and stimulating commands of Captain Hillyer, with the constant shak- ing of the drowsy workers, scarcely sufficed to produce more than a beginning of the ditch laid out. The night's work was useless, and the men all felt that the task was an unnecessary one. Another element con- ducive to drowsiness was the inky blackness of the night, made more complete by the glimmering of
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