USA > New York > Wayne County > Military history of Wayne County, N.Y. : the County in the Civil War > Part 86
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DEPARTMENT OF THE GULF, HEADQUARTERS 160TH REG., N. Y. V., )
CAMP STEVENS, TRIBEDEAUX, LA., Jan. 15, 1863.
At a meeting of the officers and privates of Company C, 16oth Regi- ment New York Volunteers, called on learning of the death of one of their number, Sergeant Eugene D. Perrine, of Lyons, N. Y., the fol- lowing resolutions were unanimously adopted :
Resolved, That it is with the deepest regret and sorrow that we hear of the death of our friend, fellow soldier and officer.
Resolved, That as such, and especially by those who had longest and most intimately known him, he was highly esteemed in all his re- lations to us, in social, camp and military life, winning the love and con- fidence of the entire company and of all the regiment who had an op- portunity of becoming acquainted with him.
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Resolved, That we fully sympathize with the family and social circle at home, of which the deceased was so worthy a member, and in their loss we feel a loss, and in their affliction we feel afflicted.
Resolved, That we request the publication of these resolutions in the Lyons papers, and that a copy be sent to the family of the deceased.
Sergt. BENJAMIN W. RoYs, President.
Sergt. WILLIAM McMATH, Secretary.
DEATH OF CAPT. SCOTT .- By letters received from S. S. Morill, Hos- pital Chaplain at Mound City, Ill., and from Capt. Syms, of Company F, same regiment, we learn that Capt. J. G. Scott, of Company E, 25th Wisconsin Volunteers, died in hospital at that place on the even- ing of Wednesday, the 13th instant. His disease was intermittent fever. The day before he died Capt. Scott directed a letter to Isaac . Hodges, Esq., of this village, requesting him to get Dr. Cronie to go down and take him home, as he was fearful he should not recover while he remained in hospital. This letter, and the two announcing his death came to hand by the same mail. When the Twenty-fifth started out from Paducah southward, both the Captain and Lieut. Smelker accom- panied it a short distance in an ambulance, but being unable to proceed further, were sent back, one to Mound City and the other to Cairo. .
The death of Capt. Scott will be universally regretted by a large cir- cle of friends in this neighborhood, who knew him intimately. He was a young man of sterling abilities, and of a character above reproach. Possessed of a fine education and tireless industry, his promise of suc- cess in his chosen profession of the law was up to the time of entering the army most flattering. He came to this village and established him- self as a practitioner in March, 1862 ; the following August he entered the army, and during this brief sojourn he had acquired the esteem and confidence of all.
Capt. Scott leaves no relation ; he was alone in the world. No father, mother, sister or brother, to drop a tear over his remains. The only tie resembling that of kindred, which appears to have bound him to earth, was his affection for a gentleman residing at Ontario, New York-Alexander Sands-to whom, it seems, he was indebted for friendly aid during his early struggles for an education. To him he directed all his earthly effects to be sent, and his kindness he appears to have cherished to the last, in grateful remembrance.
The Captain's remains were interred at Mound City, on Thursday, the 14th. Platteville Witness, 21st April.
The intelligence conveyed to us in the above notice will be read with painful interest by a large number of our readers. Capt. Scott was well and favorably known in Wayne county, having removed to Platte- ville in 1861. Years ago the deceased came to Ontario, a poor, friend- less youth. Alexander Sands, Esq , of that village, becoming pleased with the boy's bright, manly bearing, took him into his family and brough him up to manhood, giving him every advantage that money and love could bestow; and that this kindness and fatherly care was cherished and remembered until the very latest moment of the brave young soldier's life, is sufficient reward for the kind benefactor.
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Through the influence of Mr. Sands, the deceased was taken into the office of Messrs. Ketchum & Cowles, of Clyde, and in 1860 he was admitted to the bar. In 1861 he removed to Platteville, Wis., where he soon entered upon an extensive practice. In August he enlisted as a private, and went to work recruiting men, and in five days suc- ceeded in raising an entire company, and was then elected captain, and followed his regiment-the Twenty-fifth Wisconsin-through all of its various fortunes up to within a few days of his death.
Immediately upon the news of his death reaching here, Mr. Sands left for Mound City, and had the body disinterred and brought to Onta- rio for burial. The funeral services occurred on May 17th. He was buried with military honors, and a larger concourse of people never be- fore assembled in this county than on this occasion.
DEATH OF A FORMER RESIDENT .- Rev. Aaron Van Nostrand, form- erly rector of St. John's (Episcopal) Church in Clyde, died at Paines- ville, Ohio, on the 27th of February last, aged thirty-two years. He died from disease contracted while acting as Chaplain of the One Hundred and Fifth Ohio Regiment, in Tennessee. He had been rec- tor of St. James' Church in Painesville for the three years previous to last fall, when he was induced to accept the chaplaincy of the regiment mentioned above. He remained in camp until January, when he returned home in feeble health; but he or none of his friends anticipated but that he would soon regain his health and return to the regiment where he had so many warm friends who were urging his return. The fune- ral discourse was pronounced by Rev. W. A. Fiske, Rector of Grace Church, Cleveland, (formerly of Lyons.) The remains of the deceased were forwarded to Jamaica, Long Island, where his parents reside, for interment. March 13, 1863.
DEATH OF EDDIE FOSTER .- Eddie Foster, whose death was an- nounced in last week's Republican, was the youngest child of the late Reuben P. Foster. He enlisted under Col. (then Captain) Alexander D. Adams, in May, 1861, and was with the regiment until after the Bull Run battle, when he was discharged on account of physical dis- ability. Since that time his health has failed gradually but too surely, until at last he fell a victim to that terrible scourge, consumption.
Eddie was emphatically a good boy-affectionate, considerate, gen- erous. The announcement of his death, though not unexpected, has saddened many a heart and moistened many an eye. Truly might it be said of him:
" None knew him but to love him- 1
None named him but to praise."
His remains were received at the railroad depot-where they were brought from Batavia, where he died-by the resident members of Company B, Twenty-seventh Regiment, his former comrades, and in their charge conveyed to the cemetery in this village. August 14, 1863.
IN MEMORIAM .- Lieut. James W. Snedaker, who was killed during the present Virginia campaign, was the eldest son of the late Sheriff of Wayne county. In a good situation at home, and with no inducement to enter the service except to aid in defending the rights of his country,
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he enlisted on the first call of the President for 75,000 men, as a pri- vate, and served two years in the Twenty-seventh N. Y. Volunteers. He volunteered to carry the colors of his regiment at the first battle of Bull Run, and was left on the field for dead, having been rendered in- sensible from the concussion of a cannon ball and reported killed.
While his friends were mourning his death, a letter was received from him, declaring that he would not return home until the disgrace of Bull Run was washed out in rebel blood. At the very first engagement on the Peninsula, (where he was again acting as volunteer color-bearer,) and in the first fire, he received a flesh wound in the thigh, from a rifle- ball, which passed entirely through the leg. Resting the flag upon his arm, he bound up the wound with his pocket-handkerchief, and contin- ued with the regiment, carrying the colors during the whole engage- ment, which lasted about three hours, the blood from his wound filling his boot so that it ran over at the top, and (as one of his comrades states,) his foot leaving a print of blood at every step.
At the termination of the action, when the rebels were put to flight, and just as the regiment was ordered to fall back, young Snedaker handed the flag to a friend next to him, saying, " Take this flag-I am going to faint." As he sank back upon the ground, this friend leaned over to assist, and he observing the the flag lowering, cried out, " Hold up the flag ! Don't let it go down now !". And thrusting the fore-fin- ger of each hand into the hole on each side of his thigh, to stop the flow of blood, he was carried off the field insensible.
He recovered and returned to the regiment, and remained with his comrades until they were discharged. He was in eleven severe battles but escaped harm, except as before stated.
He re-enlisted as a private in the One Hundred and Eleventh, after just five months residence at home, during which time he had become engaged in a profitable business. He was detailed to assist in obtain- ing recruits to fill up the regiment, and Col. MacDougal tendered him a captain's commission, which he declined, accepting, however, a sec- ond lieutenancy.
He resided at Clyde, and the town is indebted to his re-enlistment and his efforts to get others to join him, in a very great measure, for the readiness with which her quota for all the calls were more than filled. His Colonel and companions all unite in giving him credit for the utmost coolness and bravery. He was killed by a rifle-ball through the head, at night of the second day's fighting. His body fell into the hands of the enemy, and was ruthlessly stripped and left on the field. Lyons Republican, July 8, 1864.
From the Lyons Republican.
DEATH OF MAJOR ENNIS .- There was a painful rumor in our village on Wednesday to the effect that Major Thomas J. Ennis, of the Sixth Iowa Regiment, was killed in a recent engagement near Atlanta.
This was confirmed, we grieve to say, by a despatch received yester- day morning announcing that the body of Major E. had been sent on to his friends here. No braver or better officer than Major Ennis has ever entered the service. Enlisting as a private he won his way to
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high honors by his gallant behavior on the field and his irreproachable conduct in camp. Beloved and honored by his command, esteemed and trusted by his superiors in rank and respected by all who knew him, the tidings of his death will sadden many a heart and bring tears to many an eye.
Few sacrifices more costly than such a life as his have been laid upon our country's altar.
From the Troy Daily Whig.
MAJOR T. J. ENNIS .-- We have just been apprised of the death on the field, of Major, T. J. Ennis, Acting Colonel of the Sixth Iowa regiment, The regiment belonged to the Fifteenth Corps and was en- gaged in the recent fierce battles before Atlanta. Major Ennis re- ceived a mortal wound in the action of the 27th, and expired on the following day. For so young a man his military career was of the most striking character.
He enlisted as a private from Iowa immediately after leaving col- lege and participated in all the battles of the west under Grant and Sherman from Pittsburgh Landing and Vicksburgh to the recent one in which he heroically yielded up his young life to his country. Not a scratch had he received until the time of the severe battle of Lookout Mountain last November ; there he was severely wounded in his limb and compelled to return home for a time to recruit, and it was during that furlough that he visited his friends in this city, when we had the pleasure of meeting him ourselves.
As tidings came that Sherman was getting ready to move he grew impatient and hurried back to the field against the protestations of friends ; he could not wait for his wound to heal when he knew that his regiment was marching. He was as brave as the bravest yet as modest as a girl, and one could see that a volume of character was shut up in his unpretending demeanor.
To have risen in a little more than two years from the ranks to the command of his regiment is evidence of high merit which few young men who enter the army at nineteen are fortunate enough to furnish.
Major Ennis was endeared to a circle of friends whose love for him was devotion.
They saw in him the brightest promise for the future, and fondly hoped he would have been spared to crown all those promises with the full performance of which he was capable. They as well as himself offer a rich gift to our common country in surrendering the life whose thread has been severed on the sharp edge of battle. He was born in Lyons in this State, and will be buried there to-morrow. With a heart swelling with grief may his college chums repeat those touching lines :
" Green be the turf above thee, Friend of my better days ;
None knew thee but to love thee, None named thee but to praise."
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MISCELLANEOUS. From the Lyons Republican, June 12, 1863.
LINES SUGGESTED BY THE DEATH OF HENRY H. BUTTS, AND RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED TO THE BEREAVED FAMILY.
He fell not when the battle's din resounded far and wide,
When his brave comrades marched to win the victory-or died;
When serried columns, file on file, with flashing steel and bated breath,
Fought nobly for the good old flag, or bravely died the death: But who shall say his sacrifice was not as good and great As that of those who 'mid the strife have met a soldier's fate? Did he not give up earthly hopes,-home, friends, and life beside,
Unto the service of the land for which, at last he died? Some "flash their souls out with the guns, and take their heav'n at once," but he Fought fiercely with a fell disease, nor gained the victory ;- For in the hospital where pain and gloom and suffering brood, He breathed his last,-and yielded back his brave young soul to God! O, not in vain the sacrifice is made! The glorious shout Of a free nation yet shall ring the joy and triumph out, And when ye hear it, mourning friends, be comforted, for he Fell battling for the cause of Right,-for Law and Liberty! D. E. CADWELL.
From the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. DECORATION DAY-REMEMBERING THE HEROES.
It was finished; the work of our busy hands, For the loved and loyal band
Of heroes, who offered their life, their all, For our struggling native land.
All day we had toiled, with willing hearts, But the tribute seemed so slight,
And we thought of the gift they had left to us, In a land of freedom and light.
Heavy the hearts in many a home, As the evening shadows fall, For the dearest treasure it ever held, Was given at our country's call.
And to-morrow, a mother's eye will dim, And the widow's sigh ascend, While the orphan's prayer is offered up, To the mourner's truest friend.
And over the graves of the martyred dead,
And beneath the living's feet, We scatter the flowers and strew the wreaths We to-day have rendered meet.
Better than all the garlands wrought, Than all the anthems sung, Better than all that can be said By the most gifted tongue,
Will be the tender thoughts we bring, Of those we see no more, And the kindly greeting each shall give, To the heroes of days of yore.
Silently over it all we muse, And marvel what words can tell, The praise that is due the noble hearts, That suffered, and conquered or fell.
ORRA L. STODDARD, Pultneyville
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SAD CALAMITY AT THE BARRACKS .-- On Saturday last, as the com- panies were in ranks in the barracks, preparatory to bringing in their bedding (which was out airing,) and while Capt. Kreutzer's com- pany was coming in and replacing their bedding in the bunks, one of the men climbed up to his bunk, one of the highest tier on the north side of the building, and was arranging his bed, when the board of which he had hold broke loose and he fell backward to the lower floor, a distance of eighteen feet, striking on the head of John Snyder, one of Capt. Birdsall's men, breaking his neck and killing him almost instantly. Snyder was standing in his place in the ranks of his company, just formed in front of the gallery and parallel to it, waiting their turn to go out for their bedding.
· Deceased was a resident of Rochester, and leaves a family, to whom his remains were sent. Dr. David was in the barracks at the time the accident occurred, and at once went to the aid of Snyder, but in vain ; life was extinct within five minutes.
The incident, so sudden and unexpected, produced a solemn impres- sion upon the soldiers and spectators who gathered round the dying man. February 21, 1862.
ON FURLOUGH .-- Sergt. James B. Wiley, of Savannah, a member of Co. B, One Hundred and Eleventh Regiment, has arrived home from " the front," on a furlough of forty-five days. He was wounded in one of the battles of the Wilderness, and fell into the hands of the enemy. A few days after he was captured he was sent by his captors to a spring near the camp for a pail of water. Thinking it a favorable opportunity, he concluded to take his chance of escape, and risk those of receiving a rebel bullet. So he quietly set down his pail, and bade adieu to his newly-formed grayback acquaintances. He succeeded in eluding the vigilance of the pickets, but had not gone far when he was "gobbled up " by a band of guerrillas. They robbed him of a gold watch, all his money, his coat, and everything of value about his person. Apparently well satisfied with their plunder, and as their victim was wounded, they let him go, and once more he started on his way, reaching our lines after a three days' weary tramp. His wound not dressed, his stomach a vacuum, and his clothing scanty, his physical endurance had nearly given out when he reached the goal for which he risked his life. He traveled all the way home minus a coat; but he brought good accounts of the gallant conduct of "our boys" in the One Hundred and Elev- enth, and says those who are unhurt are in no ways daunted by the severe losses in the regiment. June 10, 1864.
THE DUTTON MONUMENT, to be placed over the remains of Col. William Dutton, is completed, and will very soon be placed in the family burial lot in the Leavenworth Cemetery in Wolcott. This monument has been furnished by Mr. E. B. Wells, of Clyde, and it may for a few days longer be seen at his shop. As a specimen of appropriate and tasty design, elaborate execution and good workmanship, it must rank among the first productions of the kind in this section of the State.
The monument is of handsomely clouded American marble, and is composed of four pieces, or five if we include the limestone base. It is a trifle over fourteen feet in height. On the front of the base is the
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word "Dutton," in raised letters. On the fourth section, or spire, is a beautifully carved American eagle, his wings outspread, grasping with his talons a bundle of spears and an olive branch-emblems of war and of peace-and supporting the national ensign, while in his beak he carries the motto, "Union and Liberty." Just below, on the die, or third section, is an elaborately chiseled shield, surrounded by an olive wreath-upon the upper portion of the shield the insignia of Colonel Dutton's rank, and on the lower portion his name in raised letters-" Will- iam Dutton, Col. 98th, Reg. N. Y. S. V." Below this is a sword, cross- ing a scabbard; and then the following inscription, very artistically arranged and delicately chiselled, as follows: "Born in Watertown, Conn., Jan. 14, 1823. Graduated at West Point, June, 1846. A Member of the Legislature of the State of New York, 1852. Appointed Colonel 98th Regt. N. Y. S. V., Jan. 22, 1862. Commanded Third Brigade, Casey's Division, until April 20, 1862. In the Reconnois- sance of Savage Station, May 24, 1862. Died in Service, July 4, 1862."
On the opposite side we read: " Erected by the Members of his Reg- iment, 1863." And on the right : "Integer vitæ, scelerisque purus."
The expense of the monument is about $500, which is made up by the subscriptions of members of the Ninety-eighth Regiment. Janu- ary 29, 1864.
From the Lyons Republican.
PROPOSITION FOR A COUNTY MONUMENT.
HONOR THE DEAD .- Our villagers and others in the county have, on repeated occasions, welcomed home in a becoming manner the brave volunteers who went forth at the call of the President, upon the completion of their term of service. Cannon have been fired, flags hung out, speeches made, and tables spread with choicest viands, that our brave soldiers might realize that, although absent, they had not been forgotten, and that right gladly did we welcome them back to their homes and firesides. This was well. They had done patriots' work, and many of them had shown the spirit of heroes. Their praises are on every tongue, and generations to come will rehearse their deeds. The welcome we give to them is hardly necessary to their fame; it serves rather as a measure of the spirit and patriotism of those who have remained at home. A true people will honor abundantly those who imperil their lives for free institutions and the nation's integrity.
But the ranks of the returning regiments were not full. Of those who went forth with these returning soldiers, full of life and hope, not a few sealed their patriotism with their blood. They were not here to march with their comrades beneath the arch of welcome. Yet no one will forget them. To the living we may show in glowing faces the grat- itude and approbation cherished for them. To the dead we owe no less, even more. While we welcome the living, is the fitting time to honor the memory of their fallen companions.
A county monument, to bear the name of every soldier from the county who has fallen or may fall in this war for the Union, would be a fitting recognition of departed valor, and an incentive to noble deeds on the part of others. The proposition to erect such a one is not new.
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Abler pens than our own have already discussed its feasibility in these columns. It needs only a starting, and a little after-management. Every citizen of Wayne county, who deserves to be called by such a name, would deem it a privilege to contribute to the fund necessary for its erection. It might cost ten thousand dollars. It would speak forever of patriotism and the estimate in which it is held. It would be a per- petual incentive to young men to imitate the deeds so signally honored.
And now is the time to inaugurate the movement. In the eclat of the welcome,-while we have among us so many veterans about to re-enter the service of their country, and before the recollection of their welcome-home has worn away,-let us remember the departed. Lists prepared for the purpose and left at public places could not fail to be extensively signed, and the subscription once started would soon reach a handsome aggregate. While we welcome the living, let us honor the dead among the soldiers of the Republic. March 25, 1864.
Here is another item referring to the monument. Is the fifty dollars yet on interest ?
THE WELCOME-HOME .- The Welcome-Home Festival, at Towar's Hall, last Thursday evening, was numerously attended by returned sol- diers and others, and passed off quite satisfactorily. Colonel Underhill presented the flag to Sergeant Manchester, in a neat little speech which quite charmed the auditors, and made the bluff old soldier blush like a girl; while Major Roys responded for the Sergeant in a few eloquent and telling words. Then came the supper-an abundant and excellent one, thanks to the ladies !- and then an old-fashioned dance, in which nearly all joined-young and old, native and foreign born, high and low, -and such sport was never seen before.
The net profits of the festival were about fifty dollars, which goes to the Monument Fund. January 4, 1866.
RESIGNATION AND APPOINTMENT .- Mr. William Edwards, of Sodus Point, has resigned the Collectorship of that port, after holding the office for about four years, discharging its duties, as we are assured and have reason to know, with fidelity and acceptability, and his son, Major Charles G. Edwards, has been appointed in his place.
Major Edwards is well known to most of our readers in his native town, as a business man and a soldier. At the first call of the Presi- dent, he enlisted as a private-refusing to accept an office, although urged so to do by many of his friends-and was engaged in the first battle of the war at Rich Mountain. He was severely wounded in the battle of Perryville; but recovering, he distinguished himself at Chica- mauga and Mission Ridge, and was with Sherman in his glorious march "down to the sea." He rose from the ranks step by step, until he reached the position of Major, being afterward brevetted Lieutenant- Colonel by the President for gallantry and good conduct. Such men as he has proved himself deserve such official favors as the government has at its disposal, and we are glad to hear of Major Edwards' appointment to the position mentioned above, as a partial recognition of his services in behalf of the restoration of peace and the suppression of the rebellion. December 14, 1865.
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