— that rather would he spill his life's
blood in its defence, and, dying, wrap his
body in its gorgeous and defiant folds.
Bat, alas ! when that unmannerly cannon
ball from the Cleveland artillery on the
hill went crashing through the camp, this
heroic Captain forgot all about the flag he
had received with such exquisite gallantry
the night before, and led the column^-out
of danger as fast as their legs could carry

theuL

♦

" Go on with the Fiffht-Don*t Stop for Ke."
In the fight at Great Bethel, Orderly
Sergeant Goodfellow, of Colonel Allen's
regiment, was mortally wounded in the
breast. He handed his musket to a com-
rade, and several flocked around him.
" Oh," said he, " I guess I've got to go,"
and he placed his hand upon the womid.
" Oh, dou't mind me, boys," he continued,
" go on with the fight ; don't stop for me ! "
and pressing away those who attempted to
support him, he sank down upon the
ground. Just at that instant his Colonel
passed, and looking up to him he gasped,
"Good bye, Colonel!" Colonel Allen
turned ghastly white as he observed it
He bit his lips, too much moved to speak,
and rushed on to avenge his death.



" Oh, fbr Four Beglments I "
It b a &ct acknowledged even by the
rebel commanders themselves, that at the
battle of Bull Run, the fortunes of the
day were for a time evidently against
them. Between two and three o'clock
large numbers of men were leaving the
field, some of them wounded, others ex-
hausted by the long struggle ; some of the
best Confederate officers had been slain,
and the flower of their army lay strewn
upon the field. The result of that hour
hung trembling in the balance. Among
other high officers wounded was Colonel
Hampton ; but there was at hand the
General whose reputation as a commander
was in the die, on this battle, — Gen-
17



eral Beauregard, — ^who promptly led the
Ham])ton Legion into battle. Just at this
critical moment, General Johnston was
heard to exclaim in agonizing energy to
Greneral Cock, " Oh, for four ReffimenU ! "
His wish was answered, for in the dbtance
the rebel re-enforcements appeared. The
tide of battle turned in their favor by the
arrival of Genenil Kirby Smith, from
Winchester, with four thousand men of
General Johnston's division. General
Smith heard, while on the Manassas rail-
road cars, the roar of battle. He stopped
the traui and hurried his troops across the
fields, to the point just where he was most
needed. They were at first supposed by
the rebels to be Federal troops, their ar-
rival at that point of the field being so en-
tirely unexpected. Cheer after cheer
went up from the Confederate lines, and
by them the battle was won.



Ben. PhiUips, the Hoary Old BloodhoTind.

An old Virginia trapper of considerable
notoriety * in his way,' Ben. Phillips by
name, and for many years a resident of
Hampton, was coming up the road near
that town one afternoon, armed with a
double-baiTeled gun. Seeing a buggy
some distance ahead of him, he slipped
into the woods and waited its approach.
He soon discovered two Federal oflfictrs
seated in a buggy, and saw from their dis-
tressed appearance that they were hi no
condition to do him much damage. They
hailed him as they passed, asking who he
was, to which he responded in a way to
suit his own purpose. As soon as they
passed on, the old man let fly both barrels
of his gim in rapid succession into the
J[)ack of the buggy. A* death-yell was
heard, and one of the officers leaped out
and took to the woods. The other fell
forward, and the buggy passed on. Ben.
had previously killed, at different times,,
nine of the Federal scouts, — affording a
good specimen of Virginia Chivalry; a
hoary old bloodhounds



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2G6 THE BOOK OP ANECDOTES OP THE REBELLION.

Western Besimants on a Chargo at Port fire, or in returning fire. This was a new
Bonelson.



At the battle of Fort Donelson, Gener-
al Wallace ordered the Eighth Missouri



thing to the rebels, and in which thcj
were not prepared to imitate. Seeing
that our brave Zouaves were comparative-



and Eleventh Indiana to retake the hill ly unharmed by their fiercest volleys, they
from which the first brigade had been ; began to give ground, and were evidently
driven in the morning. Colonel Smith, panic-stricken.

commanding the second brigade, rode up, { ^ On, men, on ! ^ cried Ck)lonel Smidi.
and in a clear, loud, ringing voice, gave " Forward, 2k)uaves ! " repeated McGinnis.
the word of command. Colonel McGin- 1 With a cheer which made the old hills
nis, as calm and self-possessed as if on ring again, and which struck terror to the
dress parade, repeated the order, and in ' hearts of the retreating rebels, the two
double-quick the two regiments, the Mis- regiments rushed up the hill, driving the
souri in the lead, moved forward. The enemy straight into their entrenchments,
hill proposed to be stormed was about a So soon as they were farily behind their
mile to the right of the Union position fortifications the rebels opened upon the
when the order was given. As they went Eighth and Eleventh with grape shot and
forward they met bands of straggling shell. Here several of the Eleventh were
soldiers of the various regiments that had killed while lying flat upon their &ces.
been engaged in the morning, and who One of the rebel gunners, a Hoosier from
would shout out — I Evansville, and who knew the Eleventh

. " Boys, you'll catch hell there on the Indiana when they approached, cried out,
hill ! " " We were cut to pieces there this j ** Here comes those — Zouaves— fire
morning 1 " " There are seven regiments . low, boys, if you wish to do any good ! "
there all armed ! " etc, etc They accordingly depressed their gmis,

But the two regiments moved steadily and began to throw shells right into our
onward, notwithstanding the foreboding ranks. Night intervening, our men were
fears so freely and earnestly expressed by drawn back a few hundred feet under the
those who were just freed from the field brow of the hill, where they slept with
of strife — and not a soldier of the little their arms in their hands, ardently wishing
brigade seemed to hesitate or falter in the for the morning, when, under the protec-
least. tion of our guns, which General Wallace

ordered up, they expected to storm the

fortifications.

Alas ! for the poor wounded soldier on



" No mMXx was thero dinnayed —
Take the hiUr' Wallace said.

The ravine was reached, the two regi-



ments in line, the Missouri in the lead, the battle-field I Every possible aid was
and up the hill they start. When about given them, yet all night long their groans
half way up they were met by a most could be heard, and their cries for water
fearful volley of musketry, while a sheet and for help. Many of the Eleventh
of flame seemed to burst from every bush i wounded lay out in the open field exposed



and tree and log, and the leaden messen-
gers of death sped in every direction.
Our men saved their lives by their fiuth-
ful practice of the Zouave drill — throwing
themselves flat on their fiices when the
rebels poured in their hottest volleys —
loading while on their backs, and never,
indeed, upon their feet except when upon



twenty-four hours to the cold and the ten-
der mercies of the rebels, who stripped
many of them nearly naked.



Whia-a-s And Whist.
One of the most daring feats performed
in connection with the Island No. 10 strug-
gle, was the planting of a battery by the
the advance after receiving the enemy's \ boys of the Forty-third Indiana, at Bud-



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GREAT CONFLICTS, INDIVIDUAL HEROISM, ETC.



267



die's Point, on the Missouri shore — ^in the
very eyes and teeth of the rebels. Until
they opened fire, the rebels did not i^pear
to be aware, even, of their new position.
Their gunboats soon fired up, however, to
attack them, as the new position would cut
them off fit>m an important military depot,
unless the Federals were driven away.
Their attack by five heavy gunboats was ter-
rific. So thick and fast they sent their shot
and shell that the Union artillery were at
times for fifteen or twenty minutes unable to
show a head above the parapet to load or
fire. The Federal guns, however, were
well manned, and though only two against
twenty, the enemy finally hauled off. On-
ly one man — an artillery man — was killed
on our side. The men in the pits took
the thing very coolly. In the intervals
between the discharges, more or less of
them would rise up to look around ; but
when the smoke on one of the boats told
them that shot or shell was coming, the
cry was " DoMm I " and every head disap-
peared. Notwithstanding the hissing,
screaming and whistling of the shot, round
and conical, and the bursting of shells
around and over them, they indulged in
jests, and many of them were found deep-
ly engrossed in games of cards. The
remnants of shells fell into several of the
pits. One pit was knocked in by a thirty-
two pound shot, and buried the men in it
a foot deep in sand. They kicked out,
and laughingly dug their pit anew.

Capital Bofltt to Save Sprinarfleld.

Previous to the attack on Springfield
by Major Zagonyi, Major White of the
Prairie Scouts was captured by the enemy,
but was recaptured on the same night by
a detachment of Home Guards, and pro-
ceeded to Springfield, then held by only
eleven men. Of these he at once assumed
cofiunand.

WbQe holding the town with this scant
force, the rebels sent in a fiag of truce,
asking permission to bury their dead.
Nine of his men were on picket duty —
his "whole garrison fbroe consisted of him-



self and two others. At first he scarcely
i knew what to do, for had the enemy sup-
posed there were no greater force in town
they would have retaken it, and perhaps
massacred every man. In this strait he
resorted to a ruse, which met with good
success. Getting the bearer of the flag



Mi^ Zagonyi.

into the hospital, under the pretense that
it would be unsafe were any of his men
to see him, he told him that General Si-
gel was in command of the town, and it
would be necessary to send the request to
him. He then took one of his men out-
side, gave him proper instructions, and
then re-entered and engaged the confeder-
ate in conversation. In an hour or so,
the man returned, and expressing General
SigeFs regrets that, being mounted, he
could not return a written answer to the
request, gave the desired permission to
bury the dead. The flag soon left. Arm
in the belief that an immense National
force were encamped on the south and
east of the tovm.



Albert, the Dniminer Boy of the Maeeaohn-
â– ette Twenty-third.

Albert Munf>on, of Marblehead, was a
little hero, fifteen years of age, who could
merrily play Yankee Doodle and the Star
Spangled Banner, and, struck by his bold
and inspiring manner. Colonel Kurtz ap-
pointed him as a drummer in one of the
companies of the Massachusetts Twenty-



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268 THE BOOK OF ANECDOTES OF THE REBELLION.

third. Hid father was attached to the
same regiment.

They saDed in the Bumside expedition ;
and at the battle of Roanoke Island, af^er
a weary march through slime and water,
they came in sight of the enemjr's battery.
"Who will go and take it?" asked the
General commanding. "The Massachu-
setts Twenty-third," was the quick reply.
"Forward, then, double-quick!" and in
the teeth of a galling fire they rushed to
their death as it had been to their bridal.
The father fell wounded by his side, but
the son heeded him not ; his whole soul
had lost itself in the work before him.
" Look at tliat child ! " said one ofRccr to
another ; " no wonder we conquer wheti
boys fight so."

" Didn't I say they should run to the
old tunes ? " and seizing a disabled revolv-
er for a drum-stick, he struck up, in a
wondrously defiant way, our impudent
old strain of Yankee Doodle. A flying
rebel heard it, and looking back, took sure
aim at Albert, A man near the boy saw
the deadly aim, but tried to pull Albert
down, but he stood his ground, and the
ball did not fail to do its fatal work. His
knightly Colonel's arms held the brave
boy, and all bent eagerly to hear his last
words ; — " Which beat — quick, tell me ? "
Tears ran down the blackened faces, and
one, in a voice husky with sobs, said, " We,
Albert, the field is ours." The ears death
had already deadened caught no sound,
and his slight hand fluttered impatiently
as again he gasped, " What ? tell quick ! "
" We beat 'em intirely, me boy," said a
big Irish sergeant, who was crying like a
child. Albert heard then, and his voice
was as strong as ever as he answered,
"Why don't you go after 'em? Don't
mind me, I'll catch up — I'm a little cold,
, but running will warm me." He never
spoke again.



Xn. Brownell, tha Heroina of Newb«n&.
Mrs. Brownell, wife of Orderly-Sei>
geant R. S. Brownell, of the Fifth Rhode



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gii::at conflicts, individual heroism, etc.



269



Mrs. Reynolds accompanied her husband
through the greater part of the campaign
through which the Seventeenth passed,
sharing with him the dangers and priva-
tions of a soldier's life. She was present
at the battle of Pittsburg Landing^ and
like a ministering' angel attended to the
wants of as many of the wounded and
dying soldiers as she could, thus wmning
the gratitude and esteem of the brave fel-
lows by whom she was surrounded. Gov-
ernor Yates, hearing of her heroic and
praiseworthy conduct, presented her with
a commission as Major in the army, the
document conferring the well-merited hon-
or being made out with aU due formality,
and having attached the great seal of the
State. Probably no lady in America ever
before had such a distinguished military
honor conferred upon her.



SailBgnaxd fbor Body and SooL
Charlie Merrill, a young Massachusetts
soldier, had an ounce ball pass through
his head during the battle of Fredericks-
burg. It entered near his right eye and
was extracted behind his leil ear. Anoth-
er ball would have entered a vital part of
his body had it not been arrested by a Tes-
tmnent, in which it lodged. When this safe-
guard was shown the President, he sent
to the hospital a handsome pocket Bible,
in which, as an evidence of his warm re-
gard, he caused to be inscribed : '< Charles
W. Merrill, Co. A., 19th Massachusetts,
from A. Lincoln."



One of the Uoct Bxilllant Aohievements
of the War.

An incident occurred to the rebel forces
stationed in the shore batteries at Island
Na 10, which illustrates how easily, fortu-
itously, or perhaps it ought rather in this
case to be said providentially, an army
may be caught in a position from which it
is impossible to escape. About five thou-
sand men were stationed in and about the
shore batteries. On Sunday night, as
soon as they saw the Pittsburg run the



blockade in safety, and knowing that the
transports to convey General Pope's forces
across the Mississippi had been got through
the slough, and that very soon a strong
force would be in their rear, they aban-
doned their camp and all its contents on
Monday afternoon, and left for Tipton-
ville, only five miles distant by land, but
by the river fifteen miles below New Ma-
drid, hoping thence to escape by their
transports. But on reaching the little
town, what was their surprise to find the
gunboats Carondelet and Pittsburg moored
to the shore. On the left was a swamp
through which runs the outlet of Reelfoot
Lake, in front were the gunboats, on the
right was the Mississippi, and they found,
when too late, General Paine, with a
strong force, posted in their rear. The
rebels were caught in a trap from which
there was no possible escape, A blood-
less victory, with two thousand prisoners,
was the inmiediate result. Great num-
bers fied to the swamps, but were soon
glad to surrender, raising the whole num-
ber of prisoners taken there, at the Island,
and other places, to near ^ve thousand
men. Thus, what the rebels acknowl-
edged to be the key to the Mississippi, a
position strong by nature, and fortified
with consummate skill and great expense,
and defended by five thousand men and
one hundred cannon in battery, most of
them very heavy, and numbers of them
rified, was taken, and the whole army cap-
tured by General Pope and Conunodore
Foote, without the loss of a single man.
History will record it as, taken all in all,
one of the most wonderful and brilliant
achievements of the war.



Sooroee of Kerxlment in Oamp.

The funniest animal in the world is a
little negro whea he ^ lets himself out,*'
and their antics are a continual source of
merriment in camp — a monkey is nowhere
in comparison. Nor are they lacking in
shrewdness, and that readiness in repartee



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2T0



THE BOOK OF ANECDOTES OF THE REBELLION,



which characterizes the native-bom Irish-
man.

A Chaplain in Greneral Grant's army —
when the latter was falling back from Ox-
ford, Mississippi, after Van Dom's move-
ment on Holly Springs — gives an account of ^
the motions of two little yellow fellows who
had caught an old mule, and were follow-
ing the rear of a regiment in advance.
The older was probably ten years of age,
and the other — his brother — a year
younger.

Passing through a strip of woods, the
younger, who rode behind, holding to his
brother with both hands, had his cap
knocked off by the protruding limb of a
tree, and he began to cry. " Riding up,"
says the Chaplain, *' I told him not to cry,
and asked a soldier to hand him his cap,
which was done cheerfully. The little
fellow was *^ all right " in a moment, and
politely thanked us. * Now,' says I, ' you
must take better care, and not lose your
cap again. When you are traveling under
trees, hold on- to your brother with one
hand and your cap with the other."

The older one turned around, and with
a very dignified and grateful air said,
"Thanky, Sar; thanky, Sar. Dat's jist
it, Sar. Dat's what I tell *im, Sar. But
ye see, Sar, he never trabble none before,
Sar!"

The Chaplain concluded that, under
this combined advice, the little fellow long
since became an experienced ^ trabbler."



in his justification as follows : That boy
Harvey is de most ungratefulest nigger I
ever saw. He had*nt no good place, and
I brought him up to the Major, and intro-
duced him to de Major, and spoke well of
him to de Major, and got him a good
place wid de Major, and now he's puttin'
on more airs dan de Major."



Black SQualUk
The Lieutenant-Colonel and Major of

the Ohio Regiment of Infantry, had

each a < contraband' as servant. 'Jun'
belonged to the Lieutenant- Colonel, and
* Harvey ' to the Major. One day the
Lieutenant-Colonel, hearing a disturbance
in the rear of his tent, went out and found
Jim and Harvey engaged in the amicable
occupation of throwing boulders at each
others' heads. After quelling the dis-
order the LieutenantrColonel demanded
an explanation of the row. Jim replied



Failed to Hold his Positloii: Gtaneral Palmar
to Oeneral Pope.

As the Army of the Mississippi, under
Greneral Halleck, was approaching Cor-
inth, General Pope, commanding the left
wing, threw out a force toward Farming-
ton, and General Palmer was ordered to
occupy the ground with his brigade, the
rest of the force returning to camp. The
next morning the enemy, under Generals
Price and Van Dom, made an advance in
force, and General Pope sent an orderly
to inquire if Palmer could hold his posi-
tion.

" Tell General Pope that I can hold my
position against Uie world, the flesh* and
the devil!"



G€Q. POptt.

Before long, however, the rebels — fo*
they were many thousand strong — com-
pelled the brigade to fall bade upon the
reinforcements which were ordered up.

The afiair being over. General Palmer
rode to the head-quarters to report, and his



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GREAT CONFLICTS, INDIVIDUAL HEROISM, ETC.



271



appearance was the signal for a hearty
laugh from the officers present

"How is it, Palmer?" said General
Pope, as he entered the tent

** Well, General," said the gallant Pal-
mer, " I can stand the world, but the devil
was too much for me ! "



Hooaier StraiffhtforwardnAss.
An Indiana Chaplain at one of the
camps near Corinth selected, for singing,
the hymn commencing —

* ShfOw pitjf Lord, Oh, Lord, ibrglTe ;
Let » repenUnt rebel Uts/

He had scarcely uttered the last word
of this line, when a private soldier in his
congregation — an old man and a zealous
Christian — earnestly cried out, " No, Lord,
unlesb they lay down their arms." While
the clergyman was offering the concluding
prayer, a rifle shot was heard as if from
our pickets a mile beyond. The report
of the gun was immediately followed by
an exclamation fr*om the same venerable
Hoosier — ^*' Lord, if that's a Union shot,
send the bullet straight ; an' if it ain't, hit
a teee with it, Lord I "



Strooff Profbssioiial nixiatitttion.
The New York One-hundred and Sev-
enth supported Cotheren's battery, at the
battle of Antietam. During the hottest
part of the fight, the enemy massed them-
selves opposite our frx)nt, for an assault on
Cotheren's position. The battery was
short of ammunition, and so reserved their
fire, while throughout the whole field
there came a luU in the tumult Tho
rebels advanced in a solid mass, with a
precision of movement perfectly beautifril.
It was a moment which tried the nerves of
the bravest In the mean time one of the
lads — a noted sporting character fix)m
Ehmra — ^becoming quite interested in the
aflair, had climbed a rock where he could
view the whole scene. He occupied the
place unmindful of the bullets which were
-buzzing like bees all around. The rebels
came on until the boys could see their



faces and then Cotheren poured the can-
ister into them. The advancing column
was literally torn to pieces by the fire.
At this, the lad on the rock became fran-
tic in his demonstrations of delight, and
as one of the battery sections sent a
shrapnel which mowed down a long row
of Johnnies, he swung his cap, and, shout-
ing so that the flying rebs. could have
heard him, sung out, Bull-e-e-e-e! Set
'em up on the other alley ! "



Bnooimter of Picket Wits.

At times, the rebel and Union pickets
were quite communicative, as the follow-
ing dialogue which occurred at Yorktown
between Joe D., of Leeds, Wisconsin, and
one of the graybacks, when within ten
rods of each other, will show. The pju*-
ties were separated by a low, deep swale,
covered with water and thick brush, com-
pletely concealing the parties. Joe hear-
ing a noise on the other side, yelled out in
a loud voice.

Hallo, Mike! Have you got any to-
bacco?

Secesh — ^with a strong Hibernian accent
— ^Yes, be jabers, and whiskey too.

Joe — Come over, we'll have a quiet
smoke !

Secesh — ^I'U meet you half way.

Joe agreed to do so, and advanced some
distance through brush and water, and
then stopped.

Secesh — ^Where the divil are ye ? Are
ye comui' ?

Joe — I'm half way now. Can't go any
frirther without swimming.

Seceshi— Hav'nt ye a boat ?

Joe — No, I have not

Secesh — Where's yer gunboat ?

Joe — Down taking care of the Merri
mac

Secesh — ^Then come over in that big
balloon.

[Much laughter along the rebel lines.]

Joe — ^Have you a boat ?

Secesh — ^I have, sure, and I'm coming
over.



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L72



THE BOOK OP ANECDOTES OP THE REDELLION.



Joe then inquires the news of the day,
and if his companion had a Norfolk Day
Book.

Secesh replied — ^I have. Have you got
a Tribune?

Joe answered that he had not

Secesh — Where is General Buell ?

Joe — Buell's all right, and surrounds
Beauregard.

Secesh — Where's General Prentiss ?
Where's Saxton?

Joe — Where's Johnston?

[Another rebel laugh.]

Joe — How about Island No. 10 ?

Secesh — That's evacuated.

Joe — How is it that you left one hun-
dred guns and six thousand prisoners ?



Genenl Saxton.

Secesh^Sure, they (the prisoners) were
not much account.

Joe — How about Fort Pulaski ?

Secesh — That be blowed ! It was only
a rebel sand bank. But tell me, what
made ye leave Bull Run ?

Dick B. (Union) — We had marching
orders !

This caused gi*eat laughter among the
ixjbels, some exclaiming, " Bully Boy ! "

Dick B.— Where's ZoUicoffer^

Secesh — Gone up the spout

Joe — Why don't you come over ?

Secesh — Can't get through the brush !

At this moment a rebel bullet came