Democratic Sentinel, Volume 10, Number 20, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 18 June 1886 — THE BATTLE OF SHILOH. [ARTICLE]

THE BATTLE OF SHILOH.

Reunions of army organizations call to mind old associations, and thrill me often with recollections of my experiences during the war. I have noticed since its close the popular impression exists that at Bhiloh the entire army was routed, and fefl back in the fore part of the day, and that no part of that grand army held the enemy to exceed two hours. Now, sir, from my standpoint, in com-, mon with a part of my brigade, members of the Seventy-first Ohio, Fifty-fifth Illinois, and the Fifty-fourth Ohio; we saw matters in a very different light, and as no historian or General has done us justice for what we did on April G, I deem it my duty to correct the impression, and let the world know what a mere skirmish line accomplished without reserves or artillery. Our camp was amid a peach orchard in bloom. We had been there some three weeks, doing fancy band-box duty. As a few straws or leaves accumulated in camp a detail was made to clear it. Hence we had made no. preparation for the reception of the enemy. Although the flower of the rebel army lay some twenty miles away, in co.uyJ'Mn.d of one of their ablest generals, we had no pickets out! ■*' It was quite early on that memorable lovely morning of April G, 1862, that heavy cannonading was heard far down to the right from our camp. It increased rapidly and seemed to near us. My brigade consisted of the Seventy-first Ohio on the right, the Fifty-fifth Illinois in the center, and the Fifty-fqurth Ohio on the left, and was the First Brigade of Sherman’s Division. When we took our places at the front our brigade was isolated from the rest of the division, and sent to the extreme left flank to guard a ford on Lick Creek. The remainder of the division was sent to the right. Our position was* on the nearest ridge, a little over on the north side. Every part commanded the. ford. The creek ran in a northeasterly direction into the Tennessee, and our line was nearly parallel with that river for some miles. A ledge of rocks on the south side rendered it impossible for an army in column to cross except at this ford. . At 9:30 a. m. we could begin to hear musketry, and we were all in line, eager for the fray. AlO a. m. we were saluted by a twelve-pound' battery* on the bluff; we hugged mother earth, but they threw the shot into the tree-tops. Very soon, a little past 10 a. m , General Chalmers, at the head of his brigade, pa-sed at the ford and did not attempt to cross, but moved down the creek until the center of his command rested on our left flank, and concen-

trated his fire upon our line. We had to get out of that, a 3 a “military necessity,” or soon they would have saved us the trouble. In that We were outgeneraled. We moved over to the next ridee north. He moved back and crossed the ford, and ordered a halt in a valley, at some twenty rods distant. Now, reader, our skirmish line was strung out the length of two regiments, the Fifty-fifth lilinois and the Fiftyfourth Ohio, and they covered our front with a full battle line, with a gap on our right, left by the Seventy-first Ohio. Such was the situation in David Stuart’s brigade when the ball opened. David Stuart was acting as Brigadier; Scott, Lieutenant Colonel; Oscar Malmburg was acting Colonel of the Fifty-fifth Illinois; C. F. Thurston Adjutant, and N. P. Sanger Major. I saw our position would allow them to flank us easily. My position in line happened to be in the rear of an oak tree four feet thick. It might have been ordained to grow there before the world began for our benefit. It proved a splendid “minie halter, ” and several stepped in rear of it to load and deployed to fire. Tne rebs were partly ambushed by young bushes and dead leaves, the color of their uniforms, so that after the first fire I could see naught but a line of smoke, although the musketry was a solid roar, mingled with peals from the batteries. I will notice some incidents as I proceed, as they occurred. After a half hour they seemed to fall back, and our company’s officers rushed forth and called to us to “Come on, they are retreating.” Soon a volley from the second relief sent them back. The enemy was relieved at intervals of half hours all through. Some of the boys in my company had boasted before they were near the enemy that when they should be in action we would not see them crouchiDg behind logs and stumps, but they would stand out in bold relief. Glancing to my right I saw Sergeant S. D. Cronchbrest. I said,“Stephen, you are a splendid mark.” At that instant he fell, and such was the fate of nearly all who did likewise. As the south wind cleared the smoke, I saw that many brave boys had fallen. One of my shoes was covered by clotted blood. I looked to the rear, and there Mr. Ford lay, his head in reach of my feet, a mass of blood. I said to myself he is surely dead, but he afterward turned up, recovered. After some two and a half hours of fighting a breeze cleared away the smoke in front, and I saw some eight or ten rebs in a clump of bushes flaunting their colors. It made my blood boil, and I said now is my opportunity. I brought mv gun to the side of the tree and tired twelve well-directed rounds at the color-bearer, praying he would take one or more of them to heart, and at last the colors fell to earth. The battle raged and ’both parties stood where they did at first. I and nearly all of our men had eighty rounds of balls, and by this time our boys had acquired confidence and felt that we could hold the fort if the good Lord or somebody would bring cartridges, for ours were growing few, and the rebs kept up a bold front. Our water had given out and there was not a cracker in the pai’ty. We had left them all in camp for the* Johnnies, and I doubt if they thanked us for them. After six hours of terrible fighting our skirmish line ’said, “If you come over this line you will come over us dead. ” I noticed the tiring in parts of our line was less. I knew then some were out of cartridges. I had three left. I looked around and found I was alone on the line; all had leaped to the rear. I fired my last ball and followed them, and found them trying to drink a creek drj, I helped them. We then moved up the steep hill, Indian file. Qur company cook fell beside a big tree and we left him for dead, but he turned up all right in due time.

When we were half-way up they showered us with balls. On the top of the ridge Colonel Malmburg formed us, a handful of in a hollow square. We all thought we were to be sacrificed to the enemy, but as soon as they saw the square they ceased firing. We remained a short time, until we saw them ranging a battery at us, when Colonel Malmburg moved us slowly toward the landing, getting something to eat on the way, and we finally met the cheering news that General Nelson, of Buell’s command, had arrived across the river, and would cross as fast as possible. Cheers rang through the forest. It was then near five o’clock, and all was quiet in the woods, as all the balance of the army had fallen back hours before. We moved back to the deep ravine that Grant speaks of as the place where the second attempt to turn his flank occurred, and we supported the siege guns on the line a half mile from the lauding. This line was established as a military necessity quite early in the day, as the army commenced to fall back, under orders of‘Webster, Chief of Artillery, and was composed of guns in sections. I say there was no water in this ravine as per General Grant’s story. On Saturday, at G p. in., it began to rain, and the rebs made their debut across the run at the same hour, and formed a line. Our folks did not molest them until they opened with some twelve-pounders. Two volleys and then a volley from our entire line silenced them, and we heard no more from our neighbors. There was no sleep for us that night, as every fifteen minutes our gunboats on the river,sent a shell creeping through the treetops, while the rain poured iu solid sheets, and at daylight it was still raining. At Ba. m. we were relieved, and near the landing we had the best breakfast I ever ate. Roll -call told a sad tale; our company left camp Sunday morning with fifty-seven men, and to answer in their place now were but nine. After all was over we were introduced to Stuart as bis “immortal nine,” and all the regiment was drawn up in line before Sherman’s headquarters, and received quite a demonstration. A few days after, part of my brigade marched out iu front eight miles to a rebel hospital. As we rested in a valley a flag of truce came over the bill, borne' by some dozen rebels, members of the regiment that engaged us on Sunday, the 6th. We soon entered into conversation about the battle, and many questions were asked; in fact, all hatred was forgotten, and it was the most interesting inquiry meeting I ever attended. They asked what kind of guns made a hole in them big enough to throw a rabbit through. They were most eager to know if our men were not all in line on the ridge. v They explained to us that some half hour alter the ball opened they-urged • Chalmers to chase that skirmish line and take it. He paid no attention 'until they grew desperate, when he said it was simply a Yankee trick; that the deep ravine in our rear was full of Yanks, and we were trying to pull the wool over their eyes and draw them in to charge. They also said Chalmers had orders to take his command

to the left flank of the Union army, and wipe out a small brigade at the ford, then to go on to the landing, and destroy all the transport trains, and all the appurtenances of Lincoln’s army. He would then have been in the rear, the front would have been taken care of, and they would have had it all in a nutehell.— Scotty, in Chicago Ledger.