Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 245, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 October 1910 — AROUND THE CAMP FIRE [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

AROUND THE CAMP FIRE

WEE INCIDENT OF CIVIL WAR Young Soldier Crawls Along Burned Bridge at Night and Compels Enemy to Retreat. The bravest and coolest act that came under my observation during five years’ military service at the time of the Civil war, was that of Isaac B. Hardy, a soldier nineteen, years of age, who has been for. many years a resident of Santa Barbara. March 3, 1865, Gen. Sherman, on his march through the Carolinas, arrived' before Cheraw, on the great Pedee river. Here the Seventeenth corps,, with my regiment, the Sixty-fourth Rlinois, known as the Yates Sharpshooters, in the lead ns skirmishers, held the center, writes Brig. Gen. J. S. Reynolds in Los Angeles Times. I was ordered to immediately advance the skirmishers at a double quick through the town to the west, end of the only bridge there over the 1 river, and, if possible, prevent the I enemy from destroying it We reached the bridge after the exchange of many' shots with fleeing squads of the enemy’s cavalry, who had been guarding the roads leading into tm town,, but already the farther end of th«<

bridge was on fire, and many of the cavalry had to ride through the smoke and blaze to escape. The sharpshooters kept the enemy away from the bridge while our pioneers crossed over to the fire and extinguished it. Only a charred stringer was left of the burnt span connecting with the shore abutment. When the pioneers returned and the sharpshooters stopped firing, a line of infantry formed on the opposite bank of the river and commenced firing on our men. Then we were ordered to deploy the sharpshooters along our shore and drive the enemy from their position. Our rifles did good execution, and the enemy retired out of range. At dusk they again moved down to the river and a brisk fire was kept up from both sides till near midnight, when it slackened to only an occasional shot from either side. About 1 o’clock we heard the report of one of our Windsor rifles at or near the farther end of the bridge, and this report kept up as fast as a lively soldier could load and fire. . Our men recognized the gun and, as the enemy had commenced a brisk fire, our entire line opened fire on the opposite shore, avoiding sending their bullets too near the bridge. Here follows young Hardy’s modest narrative of his midnight trip into the enemy’s lines. “I walked over to about the middle of the bridge; then I crouched down and went forward very quietly, keeping in the shadow of the raiding, till I reached the end of the bridge. I could not see any one right near the, bridge, but I could plainly see thei enemy lined up at the water’s edge down the river, and I thought it would! be fine to get a flank fire on them. “I discovered a single stringer that connected the bridge with the land, and I crawled along this until E reached the abutment on the shore., Here I found a place to sit astride come cross-timbers, where, by leaning over to one side, I had a good view of the rebs, and they were not likely to see me. "As soon as I commenced firing at them they opened fire pretty lively on the bridge and at the abutment where I was, but the timbers protected: me. The place was much hotter than I expected, but I kept on firing at them as fast as I could. I could hear our sharpshooters’ bullets strike the bank. \ Tt was not long till they fell back to higher ground, and from there directed their fire across the road that led from the bridge. I still had a good range on them and kept on firing. They pretty soon moved back diagonally to the road, and stopped, firing. Then I could not see them, and! I got out on the road, and there they* were just disappearing into the darkness. I fired at them and they fired) hack at me. They were soon out off sight I guess that is the last we will] see of these Johnnies.”

Isaac B. Hardy in 1865.