Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 5, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 January 1912 — Recalls Fierce Battle On Its Forty-Ninth Anniversary. [ARTICLE]

Recalls Fierce Battle On Its Forty-Ninth Anniversary.

I thought it might be in place at this date, January 1, 1912, to remind the generation that it is now on the stage-of action that forty-nine years ago the 31st of December and the Ist and 2ad pf January, that being the last day of 1862 and the first two days of 1863, the battle of Stone River, Tenn., was fought, in the midst of snow and rain. The federate were commanded by General Rosecrans and the confederates by General Bragg. During this three days’ conflict each army matle charge after charge while from 70 to 100 pieces of artillery belched forth death. The battle was fought on ground'where artillery could be used with great advantage by both sides. The loss on the federal side in this battle was nearly eleven thoqsand dead and wounded, while the confederates lost near ten thousand. The reader can thus see that the combined loss of the.two armies in killed/ wounded and missing was enough to make a city ten times the size of Rensselaer. These men and boys were the very flower of the north and south, ranging in ages from 16 to 37 years, the major part from 17 to 23. This was only one battle out of 2,100 that was fought during Ahuse almost four years Of strife, while there were In addition numerous skirmishes that resulted in as many deaths as there were at San Juan 'hill during the Spanish-Ameri-can war. I speak of this loss at this time to remind those who are lighthearted at this holiday period that on that terrible New Year forty-nine years ago that there was much more grief than joy.