USA > New York > The Ninth regiment, New York volunteers (Hawkins' zouaves); being a history of the regiment and veteran association from 1860 to 1900 > Part 16
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271
REPULSING A CHARGE.
resulted. The firing ceased shortly after and the position was gained without further oppo- sition.
This cessation it was afterward learned was due to a charge made by an Ohio Brigade (the IIth, 12th, and 23d Regiments), which com- pelled the battery to limber up and hastily withdraw and also temporarily clearing that part of the line of the rebel infantry.
Battery E, 4th U. S. Artillery, occupied the position vacated by the rebel battery, and the "Ninth" moved into line to its support.
Being on the extreme left of the army, the brigade was formed like the letter L, the Ninth being the base line, while the 103d and 89th New York were formed at right angles to it, extend- ing toward the rear. The battery faced down the line towards the left. The Ninth and 103d, with about two companies of the 89th, had arrived on the line when the enemy, who were concealed in a close thicket of laurel on the west slope of the mountain, suddenly dashed from their cover, and made an impetuous charge on the battery, yelling and discharging their muskets as soon as the forces were sighted. Without hesitation Colonel Kimball grave the order: "Right wing, attention! Fix bayonets! By the right flank by file left, double quick. March!" and led the way through
272 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
and between guns and limbers into the thick brush on the right of the battery beyond the view of the remainder of the regiment, to a position where he could strike the flank of the charging rebels. Meanwhile the battery was firing double charges of canister at point blank range, the enemy being so close that it was unnecessary to aim but simply point the guns after each discharge. The 103d after a mo- mentary . unsteadiness, stood up to the work like good fellows, firing volley after volley, while the two companies of the 89th opened a steady, well-directed fire, the other companies joining in as each arrived on the line, the entire movement being as coolly and methodically performed as though on drill in winter camp.
At this point an incident occurred which will illustrate the coolness under fire of Major Jardine who temporarily commanded the 89th New York.
Shortly after the Ninth relieved the Ohio Brigade on the summit of the mountain, the left of the regiment being close to the battery, and the 89th following by the flank up the steep ascent, the sudden and unexpected dash of the enemy was so unlooked for that for an instant there was a halt in that part of the 89th not yet on the line, when Major Jardine sprang upon a stone wall on the left of the Ninth and
273
JARDINES COOLNESS UNDER FIRE.
running diagonally toward it (the 89th) cried out: "Eighty-ninth New York, what in' h-1 are you about? Continue the movement!" In the meantime the battery men had picked themselves up from the grass and made their guns talk with grape and canister. Although the regiment had orders not to fire without command, Corporal Charles Curie, of Company C, acting sergeant and left-general guide, cocked his musket to await orders to fire, when Jardine, hearing the lock click, turned toward him, and said to Curie: " Put down that hammer. You know what the orders are. We want to meet the charge with the bayonet. You ought to be promoted for that."
Major Jardine then jumped down from the wall and resumed command of the 89th, which he retained until after the battle of Antietam. He was subsequently presented by the officers of that regiment with a magnificent gold medal in appreciation of his meritorious services during the campaign.
For a moment bullets seemed to fill the air and matters assumed a serious aspect, but the supporting line stood firm and poured in such withering volleys that the enemy recoiled and fell back suffering great loss.
As darkness set in the Ninth was detailed for picket duty, and that night guarded the ex-
274 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
treme left of the army. The howitzer battery of Company K was in reserve, supported by several companies to enfilade any attacking party who might attempt to surprise the picket line. General Reno's command kept up a con- tinuous fire with the enemy in his front for some two hours after dark, but on the left all was comparatively quiet throughout the night.
Among the drummer boys who enlisted in the regiment at its organization was J. C. Julius Langbein. Although but thirteen years of age he was bright, intelligent and manly, but so small in stature and so feminine in looks that he could easily have passed as a girl. He at once received the sobriquet of "Jennie " from all the men, which name clung to him during his term of service and for years afterward. It may prove of interest to here produce part of a letter written by one of the wounded officers of the regiment to Ist Sergeant Green, of Com- pany F, relating an incident which occurred during this battle-Company F being then de- tached from the regiment on garrison duty at Plymouth, N. C. :
NEW YORK, December 3rd, 1862.
" MY DEAR JACK .: * * * Now, Jack I must tell you of my experience with .' Jennie' the drummer, during this fight.
Just as we were coming on to the line I noticed that he was with my company and was keeping pretty close to me. There was no firing on our part of the line just at the time. I noticed the boy particularly as it was such an unusual circumstance to see him away from his own company that I was obliged to.
275
KEEPING HIS EYE ON THE LIEUTENANT.
He stood around while the brigade was forming and when the rebels burst out of the woods, and we were ordered to lie down temporarily, he squatted down right beside me. Of course, I was all alive to catch any order that might come from ' the old man,' but I saw what was going on all the same.
About the time the rebel yell began to change its tone a little and their fire slackened up, Jennie very deliberately straightened up and looked all around surveying the situation. Saying to him pretty sharp, 'Sit down you d-d little fool, you'll get your head knocked off,' he looked at me with a kind of queer expression, hitched up his trousers and with the reply, 'that's what I came here for,' walked off towards the left where most of the firing was.
After the rebels had been repulsed and things quieted down, he drifted back to my vicinity again. It was getting quite dark by this time, so dark that we could see the fire pour out of the muzzles of the guns and spatter like melted metal as it struck the ground. As soon as the firing had entirely ceased we sat down-tired, hungry and cold-and were exchanging confidences in relation to cur respective condition of emptiness, when one of the sergeants of the battery brought us something to eat and also blankets to sleep under. After eating and chatting for some time-Sullivan his name was ; E. of the 4th U. S. Artillery-we rolled ourselves in his blankets, and I, at least, tried to sleep. All this time the heaviest kind of a musketry fire-the heaviest and steadiest I ever heard-was being kept up on our right where our center was forcing its way up the mountain. At that time our line was like a bow with the concave side toward the enemy. I was in such a condition of nervousness, owing to the lack of grub and the mental and physical strain of the three preceding days, that I could not get to sleep at once, but I tried to rest and lay quiet so as not to disturb ' Jennie' should he be asleep.
After lying quietly for a time he raised himself to a sitting posi- tion and after appearing to listen to the musketry for a while, said quietly: 'Are you asleep, Lieutenant?' I answered that I was not asleep: . That's an awful heavy fire, Lieutenant,' he said, ' but I think the boys are driving them. It appears to be coming up the hill.' Then le heaved a deep sigh and lay down. He repeated this performance several times before I dropped off to sleep. In the morning he rolled up the blankets, took them over to the sergeant, and I suppose went to his company, as I saw him only once again during the day, when he came to tell me that the 'mess ' had something to eat and that I had better get up toward the right where it was or it would be all gone.
Now Jack, I would like to know what you think of that for a fourteen year old drummer boy. I thought the thing over a good deal after I was wounded and I had nothing else to do but think, and I honestly think that boy believed it his duty, inasmuch as I was only a second
276 NINTH REGIMMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
lieutenant and was for the first time in command of a company in action, to keep his eye on me and see that I did not go wrong or do anything to bring discredit on the regiment. He was apparently satisfied with the way I behaved myself during the fight and went back to his own company with the consciousness that he could trust me to do what was right.
In my next I will tell you something about the big battle, Antietam.
Remember me to Captain Flusser and also to Captain Hammill and Lieutenant Perley.
Yours sincerely, -_ "
The next day the Ninth was relieved and placed in reserve for a much needed rest. There were no rations obtainable, the wagon trains were not permitted to come forward among the moving troops on the roads and the men were forced to forage in the potato and cornfields, which had previously been visited by the rebels, consequently the supply obtained from these sources was decidedly slim.
About 5 P.M., on the 15th, the regiment was ordered forward, and before moving down the western slope of the mountain came upon the scene of the previous day's heaviest fighting. The result of battle was here visible in all its ghastly horror.
The enemy's dead were so numerous that at one point -a sunken road where they had made a determined stand - their bodies had to be removed from the road to make a passage- way for the troops. They were piled in heaps on either side. Their limbs contorted and their faces black as negroes, presenting a most
277
DEATH OF GENERAL RENO.
horrible sight. It was near here about sunset that the lamented Reno lost his life while supervising his lines. He was in all respects a most admirable officer and his untimely de- cease was regretted by the entire army.
There seems to be some uncertainty as to the manner of his death, some persons assert- ing that he was picked off by a rebel sharp- shooter, while at the present date (1899) others as positively assert that he met his death in a manner similar to that of "Stonewall " Jackson -- was mortally wounded by his own men. In the gathering darkness, and being at the ex- treme front to assure himself that his lines were correct, he is said to have been mistaken for an enemy. To signify the high estimation in which the General was held by his superiors, we quote a well deserved tribute to his memory, in an article on "The Second Bull Run," written by Major-General Pope for the Century Maga- sine:
"I rode along the front of our line. and gave the same information to Heintzleman and Reno. I shall not soon forget the bright and con- fident face and the alert and hearty manner of that most accomplished and loyal soldier, Gen. J. L. Reno. From first to last in this campaign Le was always cheerful and ready ; anxious to anticipate, if possible, and prompt to execute with all his might the orders received.
" He was short in stature and upright in person, and with a face and manner so bright and engaging at all times, but most especially noticeable in the fury of battle, that it was both a pleasure and a com- fort to see him. In his death, two weeks afterward, during the battle of South Mountain, when he led his troops with his usual gallantry and daring, the Government lost one of its best and most promising
278 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
officers. Had he lived to see the end of the war, he would undoubt- edly have attained one of the highest, if not the very highest position in the army.
" His superior abilities were unquestioned, and if he lacked one single element that goes to make a perfect soldier, certainly it was not discovered before his death."
General Cox in his report, says :
"A 'little before sunset Reno came up in person, anxious to know why the right could not get forward quite to the summit. After a few moments' conversation with me he passed on to Sturgis. It seemed to me he|was hardly gone before he was brought back upon a stretcher, dead. He had gone to the skirmish line to examine for himself the situation there, and had been shot down by the enemy posted among the rocks and trees."
The 9th Corps followed hotly on the rear of the flying enemy, crossing Little Antietam Creek near Keedysville, and fording another small stream near Locust Spring.
It was now nearly II o'clock, and the men were thoroughly exhausted by the severe marches of the past week, and were delighted to hear the command "Halt!" given for the night. Stopping at the foot of Red Hill, they threw themselves on the ground, too fatigued to put up any shelter, and awaited the forth- coming of rations, but were again disappointed, as no wagons could be found, and they passed another night nearly famished.
About 8 A.M., of the 16th, the rebels opened their batteries upon the Union forces, who re- plied spiritedly until II o'clock, when the enemy retired.
The position of the bivouac occupied by the
279
GETTING INTO LINE OF BATTLE.
Division, appeared to be in the rear of Hooker and the rest of the right wing of the army. At frequent intervals during the greater portion of the day the latter were hotly engaged with the enemy.
At 5 P.M., the regiment was ordered forward, and reaching the line of battle already forming in front of the enemy, were moved by General Rodman to the left, and soon after dark arrived at the extreme left of the army.
The night was very dark, and the flank was still further extended by a staff officer, the greatest caution being observed as they ad- vanced-absolute silence being preserved-the other regiments of the brigade moving in a similar manner, but more to the rear, forming a kind of echelon by the flank on the "Ninth." While passing through a cornfield the heavy tramp of men was heard coming down the hill to the left of the Ninth, and they prepared to meet the enemy.
"Fix bayonets!" commanded Kimball. It was instantly executed, and the men firmly faced the expected attack, while General Rod- man rushed forward to assume charge of the threatened assault. The command "Halt!" was several times repeated and heard above the noise made by the approach of the sup- posed enemy, then all became quiet. A few paces distant the Zouaves were met by the
280 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
Io3rd New York, who, if they had continued to advance a moment longer would have received a volley from the regiment, and a terrible slaughter would have resulted. The Zouaves again moved ahead, a detail from Company B feeling the ground in advance, and on reaching the position selected, halted and lay down. The battery of Company K was divided-three guns, under command of Captain Whiting, being placed on the right of the brigade, the re- maining ones on the left, under Lieutenant Morris. The orders to Captain Whiting were, if attacked by infantry to open fire at once, but if by artillery only, to remain silent.
The brigade was still on the extreme left of the army, and, from the nature of the ground and the conditions under which the dispositions for battle were made, was the last one to arrive at its designated position in the line; conse- quently it was long after dark before its march- ings, manœuvres and changes of positions came to an end, and the tired men were permitted to lie down and seek what rest was possible to prepare them for the pending battle of the morrow.
The subsequent events of "the bloodiest battle of the war" can best be described by quoting a letter written to Colonel Hawkins, at his request, by Lieut. Matthew J. Graham, on September 27th, 1894.
CHAPTER X.
LIEUTENANT GRAHAM'S LETTER DESCRIPTIVE OF THE BATTLE OF ANTIETAM - ATTACK ON THE STONE WALL - GREAT BRAVERY OF THE TROOPS - OR- DERED TO RETIRE AND LIEUTENANT-COLONEL KIMBALL'S PROTEST -GENERAL WILCOX IN PERSON PEREMPTORILY ORDERS KIMBALL TO FALL BACK - ASSISTANCE TO THE WOUNDED - MCCLELLAN'S, BURNSIDE'S, FAIRCHILD'S, AND KIMBALL'S RE- PORTS - MR. KIRKLEY'S STATEMENTS OF TOTAL KILLED IN THE CIVIL WAR, AND PROPORTION OF WOUNDED TO KILLED - GENERAL LONGSTREET'S COMMENTS ON THE BATTLE AND COMPARISON WITH OTHER NOTABLE ENGAGEMENTS - PERCENT- AGE OF REGIMENTAL AND BRIGADE LOSS OF THE NINTH REGIMENT.
NEW YORK, September 27, 1894.
COLONEL. RUSH C. HAWKINS.
MY Y DEAR COLONEL :- In response to your suggestion offered at the meeting of the Association on the 24th inst., I will try to write down my recollections of the movements of, and the various positions occupied by our regi- ment, the Ninth New York Volunteers (Haw- kins' Zouaves), just prior to, and during the Battle of Antietam, on the night of the 16th and the day of the 17th of September, 1862.
Thirty-two years is a long time to look back.
282 NINTH REGIMMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
Particularly is this so if one indulges in reminis- cences which require the element of accuracy. But I think it will not be necessary for me to try to recall any of the principal happenings of that time ;- of that day particularly. What I write will be, I think, merely a statement of what I saw on the evening preceding, and on the day of the battle ;- incidents which were impressed on my mind then, and which have been vividly in view of my memory ever since. In doing this I may fall into error; I may transpose actions and incidents; but I shall strive to avoid these, giving due consideration to the fact that when talking over these matters with other members of the regiment, I frequently find that their recollections and mine do not always agree.
The last movement which the regiment made on the evening of the 16th toward the perfecting of the line of battle, was after dark-in almost absolute darkness. The sky was cloudy, and the air charged with moisture-a heavy mist, or, more properly, a light drizzle-not fog. We were extending the line toward the left. It
was too dark to see either one's comrades, the bushes through which we forced our way, or the stumps and inequalities of the ground over which we stumbled. The movement completed, we halted and lay down, as we had stood, in line.
283
THE POSITION AS SEEN AT DAYBREAK.
Only a short time before this I had appeased my hunger with a conglomeration of stuff, the chief ingredient of which was green 'corn-a tomato can nearly full of it-which had been prepared and given me by Dick Rivers (who has since gone to his reward), and conse- quently, or otherwise, I slept the sleep of the just. I was awakened in the morning at early daylight by one of the sergeants, who informed me that the enemy were about to open fire on us.
Upon looking about me I found we were in a cornfield, the ground behind us rising gradu- ally until it formed a considerable ridge. It was timbered, but not thickly, from within a few paces in rear of our line back as far as I could see from our position. The field sloped very gradually from our front until it ended in bushes, and in what appeared to be swampy ground ; beyond that toward the front the hills were quite high and appeared to be very steep and bluffy.
I do not know of a person now living who could give a better description of the ground where we bivouacked than Lieutenant Horner. He was officer of the guard that night, and, therefore, had better facilities for observing than any of us; and this is equally true con- cerning our movements on the day of the
284 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
battle. Circumstances made it necessary to detail him as acting adjutant, but while he had an excellent chance to observe the nature of the ground, I think he had neither the time nor the inclination to dwell much on the beauties of nature. The ground over which the regiment advanced that day was not a path of roses.
There was considerable activity among some men in grey on the top of one of the hills in our front. They were apparently shoveling and leveling the ground. My impression was that they were preparing a place for their battery to stand; that they had gotten their guns up there and were obliged to prepare a platform or level space for them so that the recoil would not force them down the hill.
On our right also the hills were quite abrupt. One spur which attracted my notice was thrust boldly and precipitously out into the low land. On our left the land was considerably elevated, but the hills were not so steep. Down in the swamp, or what I thought was a swamp, there was a little scattering picket firing. From the general appearance of the ground in our imme- diate front I was sure there was a stream near, but did not suppose for a moment that it was between us and the hill from which the enemy were preparing to open fire on us. The ground in our front looked to be impassable by reason
283
THE ENEMY OPENS FIRE.
of its apparent swampy nature. It did not occur to me that the Antietam was no near, and I am still inclined to the opinion that the men in grey with the battery were on our side of the creek. They finally got their guns fixed to their satisfaction and fired one shell as a trier. It struck and exploded in the spur on our right front which I mentioned above. This spur may have covered our right wing. When the shell exploded there was a general laugh along my part of the line at the bad shot. Another shot followed in a moment or two which was better, but still did no damage. A third shot was right - the pieces falling right among us. When the men in grey saw the effect of this shot they opened fire in such a furious style as to give the impression that they had a dozen guns there, and every shell seemed to land in or near our line. At this time the regiment had not been called to attention. The men formed in line instinctively and awaited orders. Colonel Kimball came up from the left, followed by Captain Barnett. The Colonel gave the command : "By the right of companies to the rear!"
Some of the men with whom I have talked about that particular movement insist that we were then in the line faced to the rear. I re- membered that on the previous evening we
286 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
extended our line to the left. In the morning we faced toward the place where the enemy should be-that is, faced to the right from the direction we had been marching the night be- fore. At the above command I put myself on the right of my company, where I found Ser- geant Forbes, and broke by files to the rear. While moving to the rear, perpendicular to our line of battle, I spoke to Captain Childs, who was toward my right, to the right of my com- pany as I was then moving, and who was leaning against a tree, wounded. I said to him: "Get on the other side of the tree, Cap- tain; get to leeward." My company was be- tween "E" and "G" that day; Libaire on my right and Childs on my left. At the same time I remember that Captain Barnett came from- toward the left of the regiment-the then left. He commanded the company on the right flank of the regiment. Also, that when we made our next forward movement we were followed by the 103d; not preceded by them. I am inclined to think that we were a little mixed as to formation.
At the command march we moved directly to the rear into the woods, up the slope of the ridge, and after we had passed out of sight of the enemy, they did not appear to be able to find us with their shells, and after a few moments they ceased firing.
EXTENDING THE LINE TOWARD THE LEFT. 287
A number of our men were hit before and during the execution of this crawfish move- ment, but the exact number I do not know. We had coffee there on the ridge in the woods. There were some farm out-buildings and a barnyard there but I do not remember that there was a dwelling house. We shortly after- word moved forward, out of the woods, on to an open grassy slope, starting in a direction as though to continue our line to the left, but gradually swinging around toward the right, until at last we were moving in a direction perpendicular to our line of battle of the morn- ing. This movement was made in echelon by companies or divisions, the 103d following us, Kimball and Ringold riding together part of the way in front of our regiment. While moving across this sloping meadow we passed our battery, or a part of it. They were "in battery " farther to our left, and were occasion- ally firing a shot. They moved off further to our left as we went forward, and again went " in action," still in plain sight. I do not recall seeing either Whiting or Morris with the battery. I saw only Shields, and I think that is why I had the impression that I saw only part of it .*
*On the night before the battle the battery had been divided, part of it being placed on the right of the brigade and the remainder on the left.
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