USA > New York > Memories of the 149th Regt. N. Y. Vol. Inft., 3d Brig., 2 Div., 12th and 20th A. C > Part 12
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Soon after, this same regiment was ordered to the front and it was interesting to watch the conduet of men said to be brave. They were nearly all young boys, and as they took their places in line and waited the direction of their commander, their pale faces and ashy lips told how great was the conflict within. Most of them trembled like an aspen leaf from head to foot. and as they looked at each other and tried to laugh the very smile they gave had impressed upon it the inward agony they endured. It was feared. so great was their trepidation, they would be unable to go forward, but when the word of com- mand came the lips tightened, the eyes flashed, every nerve was strained, and they moved forward with almost mechanical case and firmness. As they advanced, a thousand men, obvery- ing their heroic conduct in sympathy and admiration, rose in their places and cheered, while their prayers ascended to God that he would spare these young men possessed of so much courage and manliness.
One of the best fighting men in the 149th Regiment was a young and tender boy who appeared too timid for heroic deeds. When in danger his lips whitened and his limbs trembled, but when the moment for action came he was as reliable as steel. Hi- ashes now sleep in the National Cemetery at Marietta in
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the State of Georgia, but the remembrance of his courage and steadfastness on this and other battlefields is treasured by his surviving comrades.
While lying in the hollow waiting to be ordered to the front, the men gathered behind trunks of trees to prevent being struck by glancing bullets. The position of the brigade in reference to the general line of the Union army was such, when the fu- rious cannonading took place preliminary to Pickett's charge, many of the solid shot and shell which missed their mark on the line west came down among the men at Cuhp's Hill. The question then presented itself : Which was more desira- ble, to be protected from bullets or shells? As each man solved the question for himself, he took a place at a tree at- cording to his determination. The predicament in which the men were placed, and the various answers given to the ques- tion, produced some merriment, notwithstanding the serious condition of affairs. After the advent of an unusual number of shell, one of which took off the top of a tree, one of the officers who evidently preferred to face bullets rather than shell took a seat accordingly. He had just disposed of himself with his back to a tree, when in came a two-and-a-half-inch shell. It struck a tree, glancing struck another, and then another, landing just at his feet unexploded. The officer picked him- self up rather hurriedly and got on the other side of the tree, much to the merriment of a thousand or more spectators.
At another time a solid shot came crashing through the trees and struck the body of an oak nearly in the center and came bounding back ricochetting through the ranks of a thousand men, and did not touch one of them,
The firing of the enemy did not cease during the day of the 3d, and was continued by skirmishers until the morning of July 4th.
In the evening of the 3d the 149th was ordered on duty in the works to be relieved at midnight. The men tried to keep awake, but it was impossible on account of their excessive fatigue. The writer believes he was the only person in the
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regiment who kept awake, and he did so with great difficulty. He could not sit down, and dared not stand still. The moon was shining, and as he moved about the enemy's skirmishers made a target of his head and caused him several narrow escapes. Everything went dancing and shifting before his eyes like a vision. He pinched his flesh, pounded his arms and legs, and struck his fists against the trees, in an effort to fight off sleep. The strain on the nerves by the conenssion of firearms during the day wearied the body beyond description, therefore, it is not surprising that this was the longest half night he ever experienced. Capt. Grumback. who took command of the regiment after Col. Randall was wounded, was aroused and told that it was two o'clock and the men should be relieved but he said it was only twelve.
At last the relief came and the regiment marched back to the old place of safety and the writer threw himself on the ground and knew no more until morning. It rained during the night, but his slumbers were none the less sweet by reason of the little stream of water which ran down the inside of his clothes from head to foot.
The men were awakened at daylight to a glorious Fourth of July, with the salutation, " The enemy has skedaddled, and we are masters of the field." Here had been fought a great battle and the Union men were victorious. To many it was the presage of other successes to follow. Soon came a tele- graphie dispatch imparting the news of the surrender of Vicks- burg, and the enthusiasm and joy of the army were unlimited. Soon after daylight the men commeneed traversing the battle- field, and then fully realized the great price paid for the victory. The impressions received during that morning walk will never be effaced from memory. It made the men sick both in body and mind. They had been nearly without food for forty-eight hours, yet it was with difficulty that they could retain food in their stomachs. The havoe in the Union lines was terrible, but among the enemy it was still more so.
In visiting the Confederate dead, the first thing that at-
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tracted attention was the pockets turned inside outwards and the haversaeks and knapsacks opened and ransacked. This. profanity of the dead, however, was largely the work of the enemy and not of the Union men.
It was surprising to behold the number of the enemy's dead, which were scattered on the ground, behind rocks, and even hanging on the limbs of trees. At one place on open ground were eight bodies in a space of eight feet square lying in all directions as they had fallen. From the appearance and sur- rounding-, they were of one company, and shot down at one time : probably in an effort to charge the works. One was a lieutenant, and next to him was an orderly sergeant ; they ap- peared to be in two ranks. Behind rocks and other obstructions were frequently seen two and even three bodies one upon an- other.
All over the side-hill were stone piles and little holes dug to cover the enemy while lying on the ground.
Most of the dead were shot in the lead or upper part of the body, showing they were lying or crawling when killed. Putrefaction had set in and many bodies were badly swollen and discolored. The remains of officers and the wounded were removed with a few exceptions where they could not be safely reached. Among the killed was one supposed to be Adjt .- Gen. Light of Johnson's staff. He and his horse were shot at the same time and very near the Union lines. When first seen his body was astride his saddle. He was small of stature and had a smart and intelligent look.
The dead fell in every conceivable attitude, some loading and firing, and some biting off the cartridge, with the paper still in their teeth. Some had a smile on their countenances. while others had a look of horror and despair.
It was surprising to see the evidences of the terrible character of the Union fire irrespective of the number of dead, which were many hundreds. The trees were stripped of their leaves, and in some instances of their bark. The trunks of trees looked like target boards, and many had not space upon them from
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the roots to high up in the branches where a man could put his hand and not cover a bullet hole. The ground was covered with flattened bullets, and the rocks were pitted with lead marks. The devastation in front of the works was a sight which will be long remembered by those who saw it on that Fourth of July morning. Yes ! it was a horrid sight which no pen can adequately describe.
After a little rest came the burying of the dead. Those of the Union army were carefully put in single graves, about two feet deep, occasionally wrapped in a blanket, but generally with no other covering than the damp cold ground. A little piece of board, from a cracker or ammunition box, was placed at the soldier's head, with his name, company and regiment marked with pencil. In a short time the 2d Division had quite an extensive cemetery of its own. The enemy's dead, with a very few exceptions, were buried indiscriminately in jong trenches dng near the spot where they fell.
At the commencement of the engagement Col. Randall ad- dressed the officers on the necessity of caring for the men and preserving them from injury. Among other things, he said, outside of the question of humanity, the government could not afford to have any person injured, if it could be avoided, on account of the expense entailed in supplying loves, caring for the wounded. paying pensions, etc., and counseled the officers that they could do no better service than in preventing the men from unnecessary exposure. Afterward his assiduity was nurelenting in olverving that the officers obeyed his instructions. If a man was exposed unduly, Col. Randall was sure to call the officer in charge to account. Owing to the ceaseless vigi- lance observed in caring for the men, it is a matter of just pride to state the losses at 7 killed, 50 wounded and 4 missing, total 61, while other regiments with no more exposure, and some with far less, suffered more severely. As usual in such cases one or two of the wounded died a few days afterwards. The total number of cartridges expended was about 300 rounds to a man. The colors showed over eighty bullet holes, with
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the staff once shot in two and repaired in the trenches, with splints and knapsack straps, by the color-bearer, William C. Lilly.
The 12th Corps remained on the battlefield during the night. of the 4th, and moved early the next morning in the direction of Littletown. The men were glad when the counand moved to rid themselves of the mud and stench ; the latter was per- ceptible for miles away.
As the respective regiments marched out on the Baltimore pike, the losses could be more fully appreciated. Some of the regiments and companies had new commanding officers, and comrades who had been accustomed to march in the ranks and cheer the men with their smiles and jokes were not there. and the survivors were sad in spite of their efforts to be gay and cheerful. One regiment was noticed standing by the roadside, which went into the fight at least five hundred strong, but did not now exceed a hundred. The survivors looked sad and mournful, and many eyes in the moving column were filled with tears.
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MENDING THE FLAG. THE 119TH AT CULP'S HILL, GETTYSBURG, JULY B, 1863.
CHAPTER XVII.
LITTLETOWN TO PLEASANT VALLEY.
IT was Sunday afternoon when the command arrived at Littletown ; the stores and business places were closed, the streets deserted, and every- thing was quiet and orderly, but it was muddy and lowery, and when the brigade piekets filed into the fields through the deep grass and growing BRIGADE POST-OFFICE. corn, they were wet through from head to foot with moisture. At ten o'clock they were posted, and the reserves located on the roads leading into Littletown. Most of the men had thrown away their woolen blankets during the recent engagement and were fortunate if they had even a rubber one. They were worn out with fatigue and excessive nervous strain, and when their duties permitted, sought rest by lying on the cold wet ground. Soon after the pickets were posted a driving storm came on and continued late the next morning. The men were so fatigued they were. not disturbed by the rain until little streams of water man through their clothes, and then they leaned against the trees and sat with their heads bowed on their breasts and dozed while the rain wet them to the skin. It was a terrible night and the suffering of the piekets was great,
At daylight they were aroused and put in line to repel cavalry, but after a little, there being no disturbance, part of them went down to a neighboring farm-house for food. The
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prices charged were one dollar a loaf for bread and fifty cents for a canteen of milk. An officer went to that house and put a corner on that bread and milk, and the prices immediately went down to twenty-five cents a loaf and ten cents a canteen.
The 12th Corps remained at Littletown from Sunday until Tuesday. On Monday a party of officers visited the village in search of food and necessaries. At a private house they were invited by a woman to partake of some pies which she had been baking. Being very hungry, they also accepted the fur- ther proffer of half a dozen bisenits, about as large as a dollar. made from pie crust, and a glass of milk. The pies were made in saucers, one of berry and two of cherries with the pits in. Cherries were very plenty in Pennsylvania at the time and seemed to grow wild, they were found everywhere in such abundance. The material of the repast was not expensive, and not over palatable even to hungry men, but was accepted with pleasure being so cordially presented. Before retiring one of the officers, through politeness, inquired the price and was in- formed that it was just seventy-five cents each. The bill was paid, one of the party remarking they were a set of " damned Dutch thieves" : but as friend Mose would say, " It was all for the sake of the Union".
At five o'clock on Tuesday morning the corps resumed its march on the old route towards Frederick City, and went into camp in a field of tall wet grass just before arriving there. having made a distance of thirty miles through deep mud and a heavy rain. In order to save the roads for the artillery and wagon train, the infantry marched through the fields, letting down the fences and cutting a course through the standing grass, corn and grain. It was much harder marching on the broken ground in the fields than in the roads, therefore, con- sidering the mud and rain, the march was a remarkable one.
The command had been on the move about three weeks, and the officers and many of the men had not changed their under- clothing. As a result, every person, irrespective of rank, was covered with vermin and suffered accordingly. Troops on the march usually make short halts of five or ten minutes for rest
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every three or four miles. Early in the day when the column halted, some poor fellow who had suffered about as long as he conkl endure it, jerked off his shirt and removed the cause of his discomfort, amid the jeers and laughter of his companions ; but before night such scenes passed without notice as nearly every person had his turn in vermin hunting. It is no exag- geration to say that as many as fifty men in a regiment were seen at a time engaged in this humiliating occupation. The officers suffered even worse than the men, because they were separated from their baggage and had less opportunity to ob- serve the rules of cleanliness. It was a straight thirty days before the officer- and many of the men had a change of under- wear. Perhaps this experience was as marked at this time as any in the history of the regiment.
In the morning the rain which had been falling during the pre- vious day and night seemed to come down more copiously than before. The roads and fields were deluged ; it was water above. below, and everywhere. In a furious rain the ed Division marched through Frederick and halted just outside for noon. The 7th N. Y. Militia ocenpied the place, and were trying to protect themselves from the storm by leaning boards taken from a lumber-yard against the fence. They looked like wet chickens in a hen-coop, and made a sorry mess of it in their gay uniforms bedraggled and muddy. The men were inelined to jeer and make remarks at their sorry plight, but were re- strained by the memory of their gallant services performed in behalf of the government on prior occasions.
At noon the rain ceased, the sun came out and the men took off their shoes, wrung the water from their stockings, and dried their clothes before fires made to cook coffee. The halt lasted a little over two hours, and the men drew rations and received mail from home.
The afternoon was hot and sultry ; so the men were grateful when, at five o'clock. they were halted for the night on a road leading westerly to Bucketsville, one mile south of Jefferson.
In the suburbs of Frederick the column marched into an open field where from the limb of a small scrubby tree was
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hanging the corpse of a Confederate spy. It was reported that he had been captured a day or two before while hovering about the Union lines in the vicinity of Frederick by a squad of cavalry. Plans of forts and valuable information in reference to the Union army were found in his shoes and, his guilt being conclusive, he was executed. It was also rumored that he had on his person the sum of ten thousand dollars which was divided among his captors giving to each a thousand dollars. Many of the men expressed a regret that they were not one of his captors. Every one in passing the horrid spectacle seemed possessed with a desire to have a trophy. When the 149th passed the clothes had been removed from the poor wretch piece by piece, except a small portion of his shirt around his neck, and the tree on which he hung had commenced to dis- appear bit by bit. His knees were drawn up and portions of the body were badly swollen and putrefied. The sight was loathsome, disgusting, and sufficient for a lifetime.
As one of the experiences of a soldier, it seems proper to state that soon after leaving Acquia Creek, the writer was taken with tooth-ache which continued without intermission night and day for a month, except during the excitement of battle. This annoyance, added to the fatigue of ordinary duty, so wore npon his strength that on arriving at Jefferson he could hardly stand. Borrowing the Adjutant's horse, he rode back to the village and got a physician to pull it, but the doctor was unskillful and broke off the top of the tooth leaving the nerve, like a teat, protruding. The matter remained in this shape, twice as bad as before, until the army arrived at Pleasant Valley. Reader ! did you ever have the tooth-ache ? Well, you describe it. It was Sheol !
After leaving Jefferson the division crossed the Middleway Valley, passing through Bucketsville, a small rusty little ham- let just under South Mountain, during the forenoon. It then passed over South Mountain by a steep hilly road through Crampton's Gap, and entered the upper end of Pleasant Valley, where it camped for the night. The halt was made early in the day to enable the men to clean their guns, dry their powder
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in the sun, and make preparations for battle expected on the morrow.
The upper end of Pleasant Valley is rough and not as beau- tiful as the southern portion. Good houses and well cultivated farms were passed, however, on the road to Roarstown, another dirty little place similar in character to Bucketsville. In pass- ing through this place the next morning bunting was displayed and the people appeared loyal. The route through the Blue Ridge was along the course of a small stream, and the beauti- fil scenery would have been enjoyed by the men if their inter- est had not been absorbed with the constant expectation of meeting the enemy.
When the column issued from the Gap about noon at Kee- dysville, quite a smart little place with mill privileges, the dis- charge of artillery and musketry could be heard as if elose at hand. The division was closed in mass on top of a hill back of the town and awaited orders. Battle was expected imme- diately and it was difficult to see how it could be avoided. The men were weak, sick and broken down, and certainly felt no eagerness for the contest. After a little the sound of artillery receded, and the march was resmed over Antietam Creek and through the suburbs of Sharpsburg.
A halt was made for a short time on a portion of the battle- field of Antietam, where the graves of the dead could be seen and many evidences of the battle. Some of the men in the brigade were engaged there, and pointed out different places of interest. and related personal experiences. It was not an opportune moment for sight-seeing, however, as the movements of the enemy could be heard and the attention of the men was diverted in that direction. After a short time the division pro- ceeded to the turnpike, leading north from Sharpsburg, where it halted, loaded arms, threw out skirmishers, deployed the 3d Brigade at right angles to the turnpike and moved forward cantiously in the direction of the moving enemy. After ad- vaneing about a mile it halted and pushed piekets and skir- mishers well out to the front. From the picket line could be sven the smoke of firearms in the vicinity of the enemy, but he
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was himself concealed by intervening objeets. After a little the division built a beautiful line of breastworks, and then rested on its arms during the night undisturbed except by a false alarm which soon passed away.
Early in the morning the march was resumed in the direction of Fairplay, where the command arrived about noon. The 149th was then deployed as skirmishers, under cover of which the brigade advanced in line of battle towards Williamsport. The skirmish line had not gone far before it found the enemy in force and well prepared to receive it, so it was halted and remained in close proximity to him during the day and night, resting on its arms.
Early the next morning the enemy receded and the regiment was drawn in and marched to a piece of woods. While getting breakfast a musket was accidentally discharged, wounding a man named Kelley of Co. C through the thigh.
After breakfast part of the regiment was again detailed as skirmishers and advanced a mile and a half to an orchard and creek at the foot of a hill. The enemy was found in force on top of the hill resting behind works constructed by him, with pickets and skirmishers in front. The latter could be distinctly seen, and every time a man showed himself the enemy gave him a shot. The balls came pretty freely and the position of the skirmish line would have been precarious but for the pro- tection of the apple-trees, a stone wall, and two or three farm buildings behind which the men concealed themselves. It was expected that an advance would be made at once upon the en- emy and preparations were made accordingly, but for some reason it was not ordered, and the day settled down into con- tinuous skirmish firing. The enemy was very active and sharp- sighted, and when any one showed himself a discharge of fire- arms was sure to follow. The best marksmen were put forward. and when any of the enemy made an appearance they sont their compliments. It was a good deal like squirrel-shooting, and before night became interesting and many exciting incidents occurred.
One of the officers moving among his men was frequently
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fired upon by the enemy who were gathered along a fenee and under some bushes. Two or three men were selected and placed behind a stone wall at the corner of a barn to silence or remove these pests, but for a long time no satisfactory results were obtained. There were some bantering and chatting between the officer and his men, which resulted in the officer accepting a challenge to try his hand while the men loaded and handed him their pieces. The first shot or two seemed no better than those of the men, which caused a great laugh, but having obtained the range of their rifles, the way those Johnnies few from cover was a caution.
There was some difficulty in obtaining rations on the march. and the men were faint and hungry, so there was some com- pensation for the risks on the skirmish line, as the men were enabled to obtain food at the farm-houses out of reach of the command. At a house in the skirmish line a lady baked biscuit and other eatables during the day for the men. She had then and ever will have their thanks for her thoughtful kindness.
The skirmishers were relieved about dark the following day, and joined the brigade about a mile and a half in rear. At midnight the division was aroused and marched silently to the right of the Ist Division of the leth Corps, and made prepara- tions to resist an expected attack in the morning. Morning eame, but no enemy, so the men built entrenchments with the understanding that if the enemy did not come before eleven, they were to advance upon him. The ground was soft, the men worked with a will, and in a short time had formidable works constructed. At eleven, instead of an advance, there came a heavy shower of rain which totally precluded any movement. On Tuesday morning at five o'clock the men were again in line and, all except the 2d Division, moved in line of battle on the enemy. The men watched the different commands as they deployed and moved forward in breathless expectation of hearing the opening roar of the approaching contliet. Five minutes passed, no report ; ten minutes passed with like result. Finally one, two, and three hours elapsed, and still no sound of battle. Towards noon Gen. Geary returned and quietly in-
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