USA > Pennsylvania > History of the Fifteenth Pennsylvania volunteer cavalry which was recruited and known as the Anderson cavalry in the rebellion of 1861-1865; > Part 15
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Will Ward's Hunt for His Brother, the Major.
something to lighten it. Sitting down by my side, he conversed with me on the affairs of my brother's Regiment, frequently alluding to "the gallant conduct of the two Majors-the noble Rosengarten and Ward," as he styled them, "whose heroic con- duct would long be cherished by their companions in arms." He several times referred to the noble example they set by leading their comrades as they had done-an example which was not lost, for after they fell, their comrades fought equally well. Every man of those 300 fought as though all depended on him.
Their commanding officer, Colonel Palmer, was a prisoner in Castle Thunder. Their Lieutenant-Colonel was low on a sick bed. Their Majors, who led them, both shot, and still they fought like heroes. General Rosecrans sent messages to Frank's parents, and after bidding him good-bye, I rode with Lieutenant Maple to the headquarters of the General's bodyguard.
After supper, finding it would not be safe to ride to Nashville that night, I turned into a comfortable bed, which the boys made for me on the floor. About 10 o'clock I heard quite a stir, and rising I found that an orderly from General Rosecrans had come for a detail of his bodyguard, for the purpose of sending a new countersign to the whole army. As near as I could learn, the countersign in use had got into possession of someone in whom the General had not the utmost confidence ; and now, in the dark- ness of night, these men started to headquarters, from there to proceed to the different divisions as directed. The detail had left but a short time when a bright light shone through the window, and on going to the door we found that the next house to us, about forty yards off, was on fire. It was set on fire and was the eighth house burnt in Murfreesboro that night. Many were the speculations as to who did it. Some said it was the East Ten- nessee boys, as they swore revenge; others thought it was some scoundrels doing it for pure devilment; while others thought it was done by secessionists as signals to their friends. As some spies had been arrested and brought in that day, it did not seem unlikely. Some of our men got on the roof to keep the sparks off, and after the house had fallen in, we all turned into our blankets and were soon asleep again. How comfortably one can lie down to sleep when a strong military guard is posted around the house !
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Feeling very sore and not able to ride horseback to Nashville, I had made arrangements to ride in the military mail, and left in- structions to call me early ; so about 5 o'clock I was awakened, and found Lieutenant Maple had made me a cup of coffee and fried some bacon, determined that I should not go away empty. After breakfast I started off with one of his men who was to accom- pany me up to the post. The moon was shining brightly, and riding out of the gate we struck through a patch of woods for a short cut, when, after going a short distance, we were stopped by a clear voice singing out : "Halt! who goes there?" "A friend." "Advance and give the countersign !" "I don't need a countersign," said my companion, who appeared used to such things. "I am one of General Rosecrans' bodyguard, and go where I please." "Not at present, I guess. If you can't give the countersign, you can go to headquarters of the guard." My guide tried to bluff him off, but it would not do. The guard called some of his men and sent us under a file of loaded rifles to the headquarters of the Captain of the pickets. He was a Pennsylva- nian, of the Seventy-eighth. I produced my pass and papers showing my errand-the taking home of my brother's body. My papers were fortunately of a very high order, and after a closer examination than I had hitherto undergone I was allowed to proceed. We soon arrived at the post office, and after waiting about an hour, the mail wagons-two army wagons without springs, and drawn by four horses each-made their appearance.
Bidding my guide good-bye and delivering the horse to him, I got into the first wagon. There were the mail agent, the driver, myself and something that looked like a woman, for she was dressed in a wrapper. Her hair was cut short like a man's, and her features were very coarse. She was a spy-a woman who had been captured in men's clothes and was being sent to Nashville. Fixing her a comfortable seat on the mail bags, I made myself snug, and we soon started. After fording Stone River we took the pike, which, fortunately, was pretty clear of wagon trains. Shortly after we passed Lavergne some rebel cavalry appeared in the road, but we were not aware of it until we were safe in Nashville. There were only about twenty-five of them, and they did not succeed in doing any damage. We had a pleasant ride,
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Will Ward's Hunt for His Brother, the Major.
except the losing of a linchpin and the wheel coming off, which detained us for a short time.
Arriving at Nashville, at noon, I went at once to the under- taker's and found my brother's body in the coffin I had at first sent for him. Lieutenant McClure had ridden back, after Frank's death, in less than four hours and secured the same coffin that I had sold when I heard that he was recovering. His comrades had shaven him and put on a clean linen shirt and collar, so that he looked much more like himself than when he died. After giving orders for the shipment of the coffin, I went, in company with some friends, to the levee, to see about going to Louisville by boat. We found the "Parthenia" advertised to leave positively the next morning at 7. I asked the Captain how long he would be in going around to Louisville. "Five days," was the answer. Having had some experience in that line myself I knew that five days meant at least seven, and although I needed rest, I deter- mined to take the railroad, and wagon where that was gone. That boat never reached Louisville. She was attacked and burned by the rebels on the same day she left. We went from the levee to camp, where I again stayed all night. How different was this evening from that of the 9th, when we were all in high spirits at the prospects of the Major's recovery ! I saw all of my friends, and after bidding them good-bye, retired. I was awakened early and had a cup of coffee.
Although I was not a novice in camp life, yet I had never made coffee without a mill to first grind it in, but I learned that morn- ing how it was done. One of the men took a clean, coarse towel, and putting the coffee into it, drew it through his hand until the coffee in the towel was in a little bag, quite tight. Laying this down on a piece of cord wood, he proceeded to beat it with a stick, until it was ground quite fine, and better coffee I never drank. We walked into town to the depot, where I found my brother's body as well as that of Colonel Housen, of the Seventy- seventh Pennsylvania, which I had agreed to take home to his friends. The cars were so crowded that they put on a cattle car without cleaning it, for the accommodation of passengers. See- ing the coffins put on safely, I took my seat in this car, and was soon leaving Nashville at the rate of twenty miles an hour. We arrived at Elizabethtown at 4 P.M. The depot and bridge having
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been burned, we stopped about a mile out of town, where a num- ber of wagons were waiting to take passengers to different houses to stop over night. I soon made a bargain for myself and charge, but it was dark before we got them out of the cars and into the wagons. It was raining and we had to get them up a steep bank. It was a rough, ugly job-the coffins were metallic-but willing hearts and hands accomplished it.
While we were looking after the dead, the other passengers had been making arrangements for the night, and in the confu- sion a fight had occurred between two men who lived in the neighborhood. They were allowed to fight it out until one cried "enough!" Judging from his appearance, I should certainly say he had had enough. His eyes were closed and his face covered with blood. We rode about a mile and pulled up before quite a substantial-looking farmhouse. We laid boards over the coffins to protect them as much as possible from the rain, and hurrying into the house were soon before a comfortable fire. The host was a well-to-do farmer named Kurtz. Part of the house was one of the first forts built in Kentucky when Daniel Boone and other early settlers had to protect themselves from Indians. On the same ground that Boone and these brave pioneers had to defend themselves, stockades are now built to keep off a foe almost as destructive as the Indians. There were seventeen of us who stopped at this house. We could not all be accom- modated with supper at once, and while those at the first table were putting themselves outside of corn bread, etc., the rest of us were entertained before a good fire by our host, who gave us a history of their present troubles. It seemed as if those at the table were a long time getting enough to eat, but when our turn came I ceased to wonder. I took my seat next to the hostess, who poured the coffee and sent it around by the little darkies in white bibs. We had roast turkey, stewed chicken, and a dish of stuffing, which was served up like mashed potatoes. The cooking was excellent. The conversation turned on Morgan, and as this was one of the points on the railroad where he had done the most damage, there were many anecdotes of interest. Our hostess told, with a good deal of animation, her experience with one of Mor- gan's gang.
Said she : "We had a horse that looked first-rate, but wasn't
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Will Ward's Hunt for His Brother, the Major.
good for anything much, for after going a few hundred yards he would fall down on his knees. Well, he was standing hitched up right in front of the door, when one of Morgan's fellers rode up on a first-rate bay horse, but he was played out. You see when they get near a settlement Morgan gets some of his fellers that's smartish about horses, and takes all the horses in the command that are used up, and puts these fellers on 'em, and they ride to wherever there is any good stock, get the best, and then leave the used-up stock in place. That's how he rides, so he's always got good stock. Well, you see when we heard that Morgan was going to take the town we sent all the stock but this poor horse down to my son's, who lives kinder out of the way. Well, this feller of Morgan's rode up and very politely asked me to exchange horses. I refused and made a great deal of fuss about it, but all the time I was wanting him to take the old horse away, for I liked his one. Well, he stripped the riggin' off his animal and soon had it all on mine, and he might have got into town without finding out he was fooled if it had not a' been for one of them little niggers, who began grinning and hollered : 'I say, Mister, you'll get your head broke, you will; he falls on his knees,' and he had a prac- tical illustration of it, for, putting spurs to him, he started off at a trot, but did not go far till he came down on his knees. He turned round, and coming back to the house, put the fixin's on his own horse and left."
I was among those who were fortunate enough to have ar- ranged for a bed. About half of the party slept on the floor, but all slept soundly. We were called before daylight for breakfast, which was as good as the supper. It still rained hard with no prospect of stopping very soon. The old farmer and his darkies were hitching up. The first wagon had four horses and was full of seats, and carried fourteen persons. The next one had three horses. There were two coffins in it-one of a young soldier named Piper, and the other of Colonel Housen. The last wagon had my brother's coffin in it, and was drawn by two poor-looking horses, but much better than they looked. After we got through Elizabethtown we met a great many teams of all descriptions, hurrying along to Colesburg. The road was an awful one. About four miles of it lay in a ravine, and the rains had raised what was only a little run to quite a respectable creek. It was rough, rock
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bottom, and I feared a breakdown. The darkies who drove the wagons with the coffins were very careful, and drove slowly but surely. We came upon a large spring wagon that was hauling passengers. The rough road had been too much for it, and the spokes had said "good-bye" to the felloes, and the passengers were now footing it. Fortunately they had only a mile to walk. We took their baggage in our wagon and were soon at Colesburg Station, which consists of one house, all else having been burned. Here all was confusion-the ground full of teams; the rain pouring down in torrents ; passengers going east hurrying their baggage from wagons to cars; passengers going west hurrying from cars to wagons. Getting help I soon had the coffins safe in the baggage car, in which I was also obliged to ride, although quite sick from my drenching and nausea. We reached Louisville in safety at 2 P.M., whence I shipped the coffins by Adams Ex- press and felt greatly relieved. After getting dinner and drying my clothes, I went to see Joe McCann, an intimate friend of both Charlie and Frank, and stayed with him until it was time to take the omnibus for Jeffersonville.
It began to snow as we left Louisville on the 14th, and before I reached home we met snow thirteen inches deep at Crestline. We arrived in Pittsburg on the 16th, just eleven hours behind time. I expected the bodies by the next train, but they did not arrive, and on telegraphing to Cincinnati I learned that they had not arrived there yet. They finally reached here on Monday evening, the 19th. We opened, at the depot, the rough box and took out the metallic coffin. On removing the covering from the glass plate I found that Frank looked even more natural than when first put in the coffin. While in the snowstorm the body was no doubt frozen and had that appearance. We put the coffin in the hearse and took him home, but how unlike the return for which we had hoped !
We buried him the next day, in the afternoon. It was a rainy, sleeting day, horrible under foot. The military turned out, and the first notes of the "Dead March" from a full band made us more mournfully realize than before that we had seen him for the last time on earth. When about half way to the cemetery we passed the railroad depot where Frank was employed at the breaking out of the war. The flag was at half-mast, and quite a
Will W'ard's Hunt for His Brother, the Major. 177
procession of the workmen who knew him, and had worked there under him, joined the cortege at this point, and notwith- standing the dreadful weather, walked the whole distance. These men had left their work to show their respect for him, and it was a tribute that his friends appreciated more than any other shown his memory. The ceremonies at the grave were, like all other military funerals when well conducted, very impressive. The last salute, fired after we got back to the carriages, told us that all was now over.
Frank Biddle Ward was born December 1, 1842, in Pittsburg, Pa. From school he went into the employ of Clark & Com- pany, the great railroad shippers, where he had been about three years. When the war broke out, he enlisted immediately as a private in the Duquesne Grays, Captain Kennedy, for the three months' service. At the end of that time he re-enlisted as private in the Anderson Troop, better known as Buell's Bodyguard, in which he soon became Orderly Sergeant. When the troop was raised to a Regiment, he was promoted to a Captaincy and after- ward to Junior Major. He was mortally wounded at the battle of Stone River, December 29, 1862, and died January 11, 1863, as true and gallant a soldier as ever rode to death.
Requiescat in pace!
12
AT NASHVILLE.
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JOHN M. DAVIS, COMPANY B, PHILADELPHIA.
T HE peculiar circumstances surrounding the organization of the Fifteenth Pennsylvania Cavalry furnished some occa- sion for discontent. Enlistments were made under assur- ances that the Regiment was to be used as a bodyguard and for special service as orderlies and couriers, though just what sort of service this term implied was by no means clear to any member of the Regiment. These assurances, however, by the acting offi- cers, who were non-commissioned officers and privates of the Anderson Troop detailed by General Buell under charge of Capt. W. J. Palmer, were offered as a special inducement to enlist in a Regiment to be under the immediate eye and direction of the Commanding General of the Department.
It was unfortunate that so much emphasis was placed upon this inducement by the recruiting officers. Governor Curtin subse- quently remarked that it was bad policy to take 1000 young men out of the State, each of whom presumably possessed the requisite qualifications to be a commissioned officer, and put them into one Regiment. It was with this understanding of special headquarter service that all enlistments were made.
The Regiment arrived at Nashville with former non-commis- sioned officers and privates of the original Anderson Troop tem- porarily in command. Captain Palmer was detained in Richmond, having been captured during the battle of Antietam. The chronic unrest which sometimes breaks out among volunteers manifested itself, and the Regiment, animated with a patriotic and warlike spirit, looked on its arrival at Nashville to its promised assignment to special headquarters duty. When it arrived there, December 24th, General Rosecrans,who had only recently superseded General Buell, was busily engaged with his plans for the movement of his army toward Murfreesboro, and the Regiment was ordered to the front on December 26th.
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Immediately a spirit of "wanting to know" what they were to do, whether the specific understanding given at enlistment was to be observed and respected, manifested itself. The boys were totally unaware of the military situation or of the purpose of the rebel commander to make a stand at Stone River and fight. They merely knew they had arrived at the place where they were to be fully officered and assigned to special duty under the Command- ing General. The regimental officers, knowing of the promises made to the Regiment and knowing the discontent existing, did nothing to reassure the men of the Regiment or calm its restive spirits.
The organization of the Regiment had been ordered by General Buell, not by General Rosecrans, and General Rosecrans was prob- ably unaware of the special conditions under which the Regiment had been enlisted. A portion of the men conceived they had been deceived and misled by false assurances, and when the Regiment was ordered forward the crisis came. Captain Palmer was not there to say, "It's all right, boys; come on !" Had he been there he would probably have expressed such a sentiment, and the boys would have followed, but there was no one among the commis- sioned officers to speak the right word at this critical hour. The boys wanted the word spoken. Most of them were eager for battle. They were patriotic and wanted to distinguish themselves and make a proud record for their Regiment-a Regiment of men, as Governor Curtin said, "each of whom was fit to be an officer ;" and the Governor was not far wrong, in the opinion of not a few military men who followed the course of the Regiment in its later glorious career.
A division of sentiment arose when the order to march was received. The order was discussed from tent to tent and Company to Company, and the outcome was that when the forward move- ment began a large part of the Regiment remained behind, waiting for some assurance from someone that they were to be assigned to specific duty, whatever that line of duty was. A day or two later about one-half of the remainder, under the command of Captain Atkinson, Assistant Adjutant General on staff of Briga- dier-General Smith, and Lieutenant-Colonel Wood, Tenth Illinois Volunteers, marched forward. Meanwhile all the officers, except Lieut. Geo. S. Fobes. Quartermaster, and a detail to guard the
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camp property, had gone forward, leaving the remainder of the Regiment without officers-an unfortunate matter.
Had one or a few officers remained with the boys, had they told them a battle was imminent, the result probably would have been that every man of them would have seized his carbine and belt and marched to the front. Two-thirds of the Regiment in two detachments-the first, under the command of Majors Ward and Rosengarten-did so; the second, under the command of Captain Atkinson and Colonel Wood, as stated. The remaining one-third being without officers, or a calm word of encouragement or assur- ance, were provided with temporary quarters in a large building, then known as the "smokehouse," where they were provided with rations until the affairs of the Regiment could be straightened out.
The boys, for boys they were, were not yet soldiers. They had been gathered from farms, countingrooms and colleges in July, August and September, and after drilling at Carlisle and partici- pating in the battle of Antietam were hurried to Louisville, where they were mounted, and then took their long, weary ride through Kentucky and Tennessee without their regimental commander. Had the Regiment not been composed of 1000 men "fit to be officers," possibly the spirit of "wanting to know" might not have developed into a refusal of one-third to march until told a battle was being fought and of the remaining third to not march at all.
It was an unfortunate incident, but it was not cowardice that animated them. They were brave, and proved their bravery in many an hour of peril. Alone and unsupported, the Fifteenth Pennsylvania Cavalry during the remaining thirty months of en- listment rode through Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina, within the enemy's lines, most of the time scouting and fighting and acting as the eyes and ears of the Commanding General, who never in his long subsequent life ceased to speak in the highest terms of eulogy of the valiant, fighting Fifteenth.
After the battle of Stone River the two detachments, consti- tuting about two-thirds of the Regiment, returned to the vicinity of Nashville. In February, 1863, Colonel Palmer, released from imprisonment, returned and took command, and removed the en- tire Regiment to Camp Garesche, near Murfreesboro, where re- organization followed, and when the Regiment was mounted and
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At Nashville.
entered upon the career of activity and independent scouting in which it earned a name and fame that made it known throughout the Army of the Cumberland for bravery, fearlessness and for its achievements along the front and flanks of the Army of the Cum- berland.
A CLOSE CALL.
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CORP. DARWIN E. PHELPS, COMPANY G, SPOKANE, WASH.
A FTER the battle of Stone River the Murfreesboro road be- came so cut up, from the heavy hauling of army supplies, as to render it almost impassable in places. Something had to be done to keep the line open.
I was relieved from acting as courier for General Mitchell, Post headquarters, Nashville. Comrade N. G. Pinney was with me, and we were both ordered to report to Capt. Harry Bruner, Chief Wagonmaster of the city. The Captain sent me down to the wharf at night to look after the teamsters engaged in hauling sanitary stores, they being in the habit of falling asleep and neg- lecting their duty. After having been thus employed for a few nights I was sent out on the Murfreesboro road to take charge of the repairs from Nashville to Lavergne. I had some thirty mule teams and forty negroes. A detachment of the Eighty-fifth Illi- nois Infantry was sent along to protect us, as it was death to any Yankee soldier captured working negroes, especially on the public roads. There was nothing more aggravating to a rebel than that our repairs were made by taking the rails from the fences along the route and laying them crosswise on the road; this made the bed good and solid. Where rails were scarce we cut down the cedar trees and used them in the same way. This, with earth shoveled over it, made a good road, although a little rough, hardly suitable for fast trotting.
About this time Pinney joined me, and I was glad to have hını, for at night it was quite lonely camping in the cedars by myself. I camped near the darkies, as I wanted to be where I could keep an eye on them, as they were liable to stampede at any time, so terribly afraid were they of the rebels. Outside of that they seemed perfectly happy and contented.
One night I was awakened by the strangest sound. After listen- ing some time, I made out that the darkies were having some sort
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A Close Call.
of a dance. From where I was it sounded not unlike the beating of a pheasant, only much louder. I decided to go and see what was up. I soon came to where they were congregated; every darkey was on hand. They had formed a large circle, with one of their number in the center -- a darkey who was supposed to repre- sent a sheep. All the darkies composing the circle kept up a constant thumping on the ground with the right foot, at the same time patting the knee with the hands. This made the queer sound I had heard. After this had been kept up for some time, a big buck sang out, in a deep bass voice, "Along come de wolf." The darkey inside the circle let a bellow out of him that sounded like the bleating of an old sheep and darted around the circle, as though frightened and trying to escape. Then there would be a rush, and in the confusion yells and laughter followed. I couldn't tell or see what became of the poor sheep, but after things got straight- ened out again and they were all in their places, there was a new sheep, and the fun would continue as before. After looking on for a time I became tired and slipped off to my blanket at the foot of a tree, and was soon fast asleep once more. I can't say how long they kept it up, but they seemed to enjoy it immensely.
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