USA > Wisconsin > History of the First Wisconsin Battery Light Artillery > Part 9
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From Proctor General Morgan sent an officer accom- panied by several men as an escort toward Mount Sterl- ing with written authority to purchase supplies, knowing that the officer would be captured by the enemy and the papers seized. This was to cause the enemy to think his objective point was Maysville. We will again quote from General Morgan's article in the Century War Book :
"Two roads run from Proctor to Hazel Green, the Ridge road, then destitute of water, and the North Fork road, which had water, but which the torrents of the previous rainy season had greatly damaged and in part destroyed. DeCourcey and Spears marched by the former, while Carter and Baird, with the wagon train. took the latter. It was largely through the energy of Baird that the wagon train was saved. After a day's halt at Hazel Green to rest and refresh the half famished men and animals the march was resumed toward West Liberty, sup- posed to be occupied by Humphrey Marshall. However, he was not there. During this march John H. Morgan attacked the rear of DeCourcey's Brigade and scattered a lot of cattle in- tended for the use of the retreating column. Morgan then passed around us and commenced blockading the defiles be- tween West Liberty and Grayson, and destroying everything that would feed man or beast. He did his work gallantly and well. Frequent skirmishes took place, and it several times hap- pened that while the one Morgan was clearing out the ob- struction to a defile the other Morgan was blocking the exit from the same defile with enormous rocks and fallen trees. In the work of clearing away those obstructions 1,000 men, wield- ing axes, saws, picks, spades, and block and tackle, under the general directions of Captain William F. Patterson, command- ing his company of engineer-mechanics, and of Captain Sid- ney F. Lyon. labored with skill and courage. In one instance they were forced to cut a new road through the forest for a distance of four miles in order to turn a blockade of one mile. At Grayson, however, on the 1st of October, John Morgan abandoned the contest to seek a new field for the exercise of his . superior partisan skill and high courage; and on the 3d we
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reached the Ohio River at Greenup, without the loss of a gun or wagon, and with the loss of but 80 men. Not only that, but, as General Bragg states in his report, we had detained General Kirby Smith and thus prevented the junction of Confederate armies in Kentucky long enough to save Louisville."
One morning we ran upon John Morgan's camp just as they were about to eat their breakfast, but they left hastily, leaving what they could not carry in their hands. At the headquar- ters mess we found a large kettle full of poultry, such as geese, turkeys, chickens, etc., which were still boiling and just ready to take out of the "soup." It is, perhaps, useless to say that the aforesaid poultry was taken out and put where it did the most good. Those Indiana boys would run a bayonet through a fowl and take it along for lunch, to be eaten at the next resting place. We arrived at the North Fork of the Kentucky River about 4 p. m. and found that while there had once been a bridge at that point there was now not even a streak of rust or a red chalk mark to designate a crossing place. The banks of the river were high and rocky, while the hills on either side of the river were still higher and sandy, being badly washed by the rains and floods of the last decade. Those long side hill roads were soon put in condition to travel. But the getting into the river and getting out when once in was another mat- ter, It was accomplished, however, and the passage made safely. The hill, after we came out of the river, was the longest, the steepest and the rockiest we had yet found, but by the aid of the infantry the siege guns were taken up without a halt. Each second man of the infantry would take his com- rade's gun and accouterments while the man so relieved would seize hold of a trace alongside the horses and pull with the latter, and such was the aggregate strength of the men thus employed that the heavy guns were taken to the top of the hill without a rest.
At one place where we bivouacked for the night General Morgan took possession of a residence, which had been hur- riedly deserted by the family, for his headquarters. Soon after night had set in the woman of the house returned and begged for assistance to find her children. She had been told and believed that the "Yankee" army was coming through the country burning property and killing everything and every- body, sparing neither age nor sex. and had hidden her chil- dren among the rocks in one of the many defiles in the imme- diate neighborhood. She saw the army come and take posses- sion of her home, and expected to see the flames issuing from it momentarily. As everything remained so quiet and orderly about the premises, she came to the conclusion that she had been misinformed and had ventured forth to find out what
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the enemy was doing. In her hurry and confusion she became lost, or, at least, could not again find her children, and as the mother instinct overcame all fear, she boldly came into the camp and appealed for aid to find her babies. Soon scores of "boys in blue" were scouring the defiles of the neighborhood, and succeeded in finding the lost and restoring them to the agonized mother. That woman held a very different opinion concerning the morale of the Union soldiers after that night than she had done before.
General Morgan says that we brought all of the wagons through with which we started, but such was not the casc. One day between West Liberty and Grayson we came to a place where the road ran along the side of a hill, and was at one point very narrow, in fact so narrow and so rocky that it was necessary to keep close to the upper side or the wagons would run off the bank. To aid in keeping the wagons in the road a trench had been dug in the rock on the upper side for the wagon wheels on that side to run in. On the upper side the bank was some feet higher than the road bed; on the lower side was almost a precipice for 10 or 15 feet and then a steep declivity covered with growing brush and rocks for a distance of 50 yards. Colonel DeCourcey, feeling some anxiety lest the teamsters might prove unequal to the occasion, took a position on the bank just opposite the narrowest place that he might give directions to the drivers as they came along. The first wagon to attempt the passage was the one that hauled the engineer's outfit for building and repairing the roads. As the driver approached Colonel DeCourcey began gesticulating like a runaway windmill, and shouting to the driver to be careful and "hug the bank," etc. The lead mules were, of course, frightened, and pulled so hard away from the bank that the wheel missed the trench on the upper side and the wheels on the lower side of the wagon dropped over the ledge, and wagon, mules and tools rolled over and over through the brush and among the rocks to the bottom of the defile, while the driver escaped by jumping from the saddle early in the engagement.
Said driver was not at all sparing of his doubtful compli- mentary remarks concerning the interference of that "one- eved _" who was responsible for the catastrophe. Colonel DeCourcey, thinking that the passage of that place could as well be made without him as with, quietly withdrew. The wagon was so badly broken that it was abandoned, together with the tools, the mules being the only things about the whole outfit that was worth saving, and, strange to say, they were not injured in the least, and behaved, when released from the wreck, as if that was their accustomed manner of going down hill.
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We reached Grayson about 3 o'clock in the morning. We had expected to find a Confederate force here to contest the "right of way" with us. The column was halted about half a mile from town, and the little army put in position for offen- sive or defensive operation. The utmost silence was enjoined. All orders were given in an undertone, lest the enemy's pickets should hear. The guns were run to their positions by hand, and all was as still as if there had been no army within a dozen miles. Everything was in readiness before daybreak, and all was eager expectation as to what daylight would reveal to our vision. Suddenly voices were heard in our front. Could it be that the enemy were coming to attack us? Before any action was taken, however, we could begin to distinguish the spoken words and found they were anything but of a belliger- ent indication. They were, in fact, of a decidedly friendly import, and were something like this: "Hellow, Jack; mighty glad to see you ;" "How are you John ; how are the folks?" etc. It was the home of some of the Kentucky boys in our army, and they could not resist the temptation to venture forth to see if, perchance, they might not find some of their friends without being detected by the enemy. They were not long in discovering that there was no enemy there, as he had left the day before. It did not take long to spread the news of our arrival among the Graysonites. and they began turning out to welcome us to their town ..
Here all fears of further annoyance from the enemy was at an end. The "promised land" was in sight and we were about to enter therein and enjoy the fruits thereof.
We had left Cumberland Gap on the night of the 17th of September without a pound of flour or meat. not a box of crackers or hardtack, and not a grain of corn or oats for our horses and mules. There was a reasonable supply of coffee and beans, but much of the time there was no time or opportunity to cook the latter. We would frequently begin our march in the morning before it was fairly light with a light breakfast. if any at all, and without knowing what we were to have for dinner or where it was to be had, but we generally managed to get the dinner and very nearly on time, too. There was con- siderable quantities of pigs and poultry as well as mutton in the country. and corn was just passing out of the milk or "roastingear" stage, although much was found that was excel- lent for roasting. This corn was gathered and carried along with us in the wagons to be used whenever opportunity per- mitted. The hardest of it was made into a coarse meal by grating it on graters made out of tin plates by punching holes through the bottoms, leaving the underside rough and sharp. It was no uncommon thing during that march to see men sitting on the loaded wagons industriously "grating" corn for
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the approaching meal of their mess. Some days the men were undoubtedly hungry, with nothing in sight or in hand to satisfy it, but, as a whole, none suffered seriously. The horses, which were half famished when we started, had gained in strength and flesh daily during the march. Mrs. S. S. Luce, of Gales- ville, Wis., one of the warmest friends of the Battery, upon being told of the manner of making meal of the green corn on upon the march, wrote the following poem to commemorate the same:
GRATING CORN.
Have you heard how Morgan's forces Lately left the Cumberland, Where against the Southern rebels Vainly they had hoped to stand ?
But a foe more dire than traitors Menaced them on every side; With pale want and cruel famine They no longer could abide.
Long and drear the march before them- Rough and difficult the way ; With guerrilla bands awaiting To attack them night and day.
But they boldly faced each danger- Toiling, suffering as they marched,- Weary, fainting oft with hunger, And with thirst their lips are parched.
When each day's drear march was ended, With tired limbs and garments torn, You might see each gallant soldier, For his supper, grating corn.
Ah! how oft fair scenes of plenty Rose before the mental sight; And sweet dreams of home and kindred, Thrilled each soldier's breast at night.
Still they toiled and nobly suffered- Still they grated golden corn; And at night still dreamed of dear ones- Faced new dangers on each morn.
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Till at last the march was finished, All its keenest sufferings o'er,- In a Northern land of plenty They shall grate their corn no more. Aye, this war hath made heroes, And we think of them with pride, While we mourn with deepest sorrow Those who have so nobly died.
When we reached the Ohio River, at Greenup, we, for the first time in 50 days, felt that we were free from the dan- ger of attack or surprise from the enemy.
Of this retreat the Cincinnati Commercial said: "Reliable information reached this city last night of the arrival of Gen- eral G. W. Morgan at Greenupsburg, Kentucky, on the Ohio River. Greenupsburg is about 15 miles above Portsmouth, and, as any map will show, is the point within easiest reach of General Morgan, provided he had to strike the river above Maryville.
"General Morgan left Cumberland Gap on the night of the 17th of September, the force of the rebel General Stevenson being at that time within three miles of his front-that is to say, south. He was apparently cut off from the Ohio by the forces of Bragg, Kirby Smith, John Morgan and Marshall. General Morgan left the Gap amid the explosion of mines and magazines, lighted by the blaze of the storehouse of the Com- missary and Quartermaster. The rebel commander Steven- son was entirely surprised. At 5 o'clock on the evening of the 17th (a few hours before the evacuation) General Morgan sent official communications to Stevenson, and the officers of the two armies remained in friendly chat, under the flag of truce, for more than an hour. All the guns at the Gap were brought away except four 30-pound Parrotts, which were too heavy for transportation. The trunnions were knocked off.
"During the march northward our army was constantly en- veloped by the enemy's cavalry-at first by Stevenson's men and then by John H. Morgan and his gang. Our Morgan main- tained the offensive throughout, and on one occasion marched 24 successive hours. Three nights in succession were the rebel Morgans driven from their supper. The rebel Morgan first assailed the rear of our force, but changed tactics, passing to the front, and blockading the roads and destroying subsis- tence. For a period of three days our troops had no water but that found in stagnant pools, and the quantity thus found was very small. Humphrey Marshall was expected, by the way, but declined to risk himself in an effort to check the march of our Cumberland army, which made a march the most arduous and hazardous of the war."
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On Saturday, October 4th, the army forded the river, it being very low at the time. The water was deep enough, how- ever, to come into the beds of the wagons and above the bot- toms of the limber and caisson chests, so the latter were taken off and, together with the ammunition that was carried in wagons, as well as other articles that would be damaged by getting wet, were put in a barge and ferried across. Then the batteries and the wagon train, followed by the infantry regi- ments at a right shoulder, forded the stream. Our Battery lost one mule in the passage, which was drowned by getting water into its ears; or at least that was the verdict of the "quest" that afterwards sat on the bank of the river to ascer- . tain the cause of suspended animation in said mule. The wife of Colonel Bird, of the 1st Tennessee Regiment, rode on horse- back by her husband's side through the river, as she had done all the way from the Gap.
We were now in a thoroughly loyal country and among friends where was no danger of surprise or attack from the enemy, however much we may have been in danger from over attention from our new-found friends. We had heard nothing from the outside world for the last three months, and did not know if the Government at Washington yet lived or not, but were not in the least surprised to learn that it still existed and was yet "on top." We also learned for the first time that while we were "prisoners of war" in the mountains of Tennessee and Kentucky the battles of Groveton and Gainesville, Va .; the second battle of Bull Run; the battle of Bolivar, Tenn .; of Richmond and Mumfordsville, Ky .; of Chantilly. Harper's Ferry, Turner's and Crampton's Gaps, Va. : of South Mountain and Antietam. Md .; of Iuka and Corinth. Miss .. and dozens of lesser battles and skirmishes had been fought, and that Pope had made a successful campaign into Virginia. But we were the heroes of the hour to the loyal people about us, and noth- ing they could do for us was withheld. We were ragged and dirty, but heroes all the same. We, ourselves. were very much like the client in court who was not aware of the sufferings he had endured until he heard the plea of his counsel before the jury. We were sensible of the fact that we had suffered from hunger. thirst and fatigue: true we had marched and worked roads almost continually, day and night ; that we were obliged to "grate corn" to make bread; to use water from stagnant ponds to quench our thirst ; that we were oftimes allowed but three or four hours of sleep in the 24, and frequently less than that. but we did not realize how much we had suffered and endured until we saw it in the papers. Our lack of knowledge of our own condition was. perhaps, owing to the fact that we had been too much engaged in search of a way out of "the wilderness" to pay any attention to the accommodations along
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the way. It mattered little to us now, however, what our sufferings had been; they were over and we were more in dan- ger from a surfeit from a too liberal supply of the good things of the land than we had been from starvation in the mountains of Kentucky.
As we marched from Haverhill to Portland the farmers and citizens turned out generally and brought of their abundance to supply our supposed pressing necessities in the line of good things to eat. The first night we camped at Sciotoville, where we were treated right royally by her people. At Wheelers- burg and at Webster, two hamlets on the route, the road was barricaded with tables groaning under the "best the market afforded," and scores of ladies on hand to serve cake and cof- fee while we helped ourselves to the substantials. This was heaven to the Northern-raised boys, but to the mountaineers of the South + did "not fill a long-felt want" very satisfac- torily. They liked the pie and the cake, the coffee and the chicken and the turkey, the roast pig and other dainties, and stored away "right smart" of them; but there was a dearth of their beloved "corn pone." The light bread was, in the par- lance of one of the most disgusted of the lot, just "d-d cot- ton bread. it had been the intention to take the army to Portland for the purpose of taking the cars for camp Denni- son, noor Cincinnati, but when we arrived at the railroad the plans had been changed and we went into camp near Oak Hill for the purpose of fitting up with new clothing, equipments, getting pay, etc.
It was here at Oak Hill that many of us first met up with a persimmon, and a driver fed a green one to a connoneer, who thus describes the result : "I think you will remember me; I am the boy the smooth-headed driver of the right of the right says ate the green persimmons, and wants to know what my remarks were, as if I said anything, with my mouth puckered up like a burnt boot. A few minutes later I met Cap. Foster and he threatened to put me in the guard house for making faces at him. but after a great effort I stammered out 'persim- mons!' A broad smile crossed his face, he chuckled, then laughed, and said I was excusable. All the same, I would like a good mess of ripe persimmons now."
There was. of course, much newspaper criticism of General Morgan's generalship indulged in. but the loyal press of the country spoke in the highest terms of his successful retreat. The New York Post ranked it with the retreat of Xenophon, and the Herald demanded that he be given an independent command. General Von Moltke, the eminent German soldier, whom General Morgan had met in former years, while the latter was in Europe. after the war had ended. wrote to Gen- eral Morgan a complimentary letter in which he ranked the
SAMUEL HOYT.
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retreat from Cumberland Gap as the greatest strategic achievement of the war. Colonel Capron, of General Kirby Smith's staff, also pays a high tribute to the enterprise and dexterity of General Morgan in getting out of there.
While at Oak Hill quite a number of Tennessee and Ken- tucky soldiers deserted and returned to their mountain homes. They did not desert the Union cause, nor were they disloyal to the flag of their country, but they felt that their families needed their services more than the Government did just at that time. And, furthermore, they could not seem to under- stand why their homes should be abandoned to the enemy. It is safe to say that they all joined their regiments again as soon as the latter returned to the South. Q. M. Sergt. L. A. Paddock, of the Battery, also deserted at this place, and was never heard of or from by any of his former comrades afterwards. He had been put under arrest while on the march from the Gap and was apprehensive that a court-martial might go pretty hard with him. so he "skipped." Lieutenant Anderson had also been placed under arrest by Captain Foster while on the march, and had filed charges with General Morgan against him, which the General was disposed to ignore, owing to his former valuable services at Tazewell, Tenn. General Morgan. however, sent for Anderson, and the next day the latter's res- ignation was promulgated and he soon left the Battery. Thus ended the career of Lieutenant Anderson in the Army of the West. He returned to his native State, Maine, re-entered the army in the cavalry service and rose to the rank of Captain therein; was wounded in one of the prominent battles of Vir- ginia. He there proved a very valuable and efficient officer. He probably found more congenial company associations, for he certainly possessed the qualifications to have become a bril- liant officer in the artillery service. His old associates were glad to learn that he not only had. but that he merited. a name for bravery on the field, and that he lives to enjoy the result of the service rendered his country.
We were sadly in need of clothing, some of the men in the Battery having absolutely no trousers. some of whom wore drawers, while others wore the army overcoat, which served as a whole wardrobe. Complete outfits of clothing, undercloth- ing, blankets, boots and socks were issued at Oak Hill, but no pav.
Captain Foster went to Cincinnati to meet his wife, but soon rejoined us.
On the 25th of October, as the Battery was on the point of starting on an expedition up the Kanawha River toward Gau- ley Bridge, and after he had mounted his horse to go with the Battery. Lieutenant Webster was ordered to resume com- mand of the siege battery and to refit the same and to organize
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and equip another battery as soon as possible, which were to follow us as soon as they were ready.
In the meantime the army had moved to Gallipolis, on the Ohio River, and was busily engaged in preparing for service in the field. While here, Henry Poifar, F. J. Miller, William Farrell, Augustus Peterson, A. W. Clark and W. B. Potter were discharged on Surgeon's certificate of disability and left the Battery and the service.
Lieutenant Webster thus relates an incident that occurred while at Gallipolis, which illustrated the sterling, inborn hon- esty of one of the most popular of the Battery boys-we were all boys then.
"The 'boy' in question was in convalescent hospital and was out of money, not having received pay for several months. His clothing was in very bad order and he needed many things for his comfort. On Sunday evening he attended church, and as he arose to receive the benediction he observed a purse lying in the seat just in front of him. As two young men had left the seat a short time before the close of the service, the purse undoubtedly belonged to one of them. He took the purse and contents and put it in his pocket. But his conscience was not easy, so in the morning he came to me and said: 'Web,' he always called me by that name, except when on duty, 'I want to tell you something. Last night I found this purse of money in the church, on the seat just in front of me. Two young men, soldiers, had been sitting in the seat and had gotten up and gone out before the meeting was dismissed. and I think it belongs to one of them, but I do not know who they were nor where to find them. and I want to know what to do with it ?' Said I: 'Can't you find use for it ?' 'Yes,' said he, 'but it is not mine and I cannot use it. It is mighty tempting, though, I can tell you, for I do need a little money awfully just now.' He afterwards found the owner of the money and restored it to him. and he was not more delighted to receive it than was our comrade to restore it to him. When the owner of the purse offered him a liberal share of the money for his honesty he promptly refused it. because he had done nothing but his duty and did not want pay for doing that. That boy was our late comrade, William McKeith."
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