From Malvern Hill to the South of the James.
Engagement at Clay's House.
Bermuda Hundred Line.
Christmas Dinner.
Our Southern Women.
Close of 1864.
June 15 Pickett's division marched from the vicinity of Malvern Hill up
the James, crossing the river the morning of June 16, on a bridge near
Dreury's Bluff, then passing over the battlefield of that name, which
battle we had fought one month before, reaching the Petersburg
turnpike. When near Port Walthall Junction, the head of the column was
fired upon by the enemy, who had possession of the road. The division
was immediately formed in line of battle on the turnpike, sending out
skirmishers, driving the enemy and regaining our first line of works,
which had been vacated that morning by the troops having been called to
Petersburg. The next day commenced heavy skirmish firing. Company D was
on the skirmish line the day before capturing some prisoners, among
them an Englishman, who came back saying rather excitedly that he was
forced into the army, which nobody believed, for the armies of the
enemy were to a considerable extent made up of foreigners. It was
often remarked by our men that we were fighting all Yankeedom and the
rest of mankind. And this reminds me of the story told by a Confederate
of another who like himself had in the battle of the third day at
Gettysburg gone over the enemy's line behind the stone fence, reaching
a point almost on the crest of Cemetery Ridge. Seeing the mighty host
gathered and gathering to envelop the few rebels left, this Confederate
cried out, "Do we have to whip the world?" Listening for a moment, he
heard a Federal officer say: "Attention, World! By nations right wheel,
by states, fire!" He concluded it was time for that poor Confederate to
cut dirt, and he stood not on the order of his going.
Let it be remembered that we were now engaged in what is known as the
battle of Clay's House. One of our batteries to our left was now
throwing shells at the enemy in our front, endeavoring to enfilade
their line, during which time I was ordered by Colonel Flowerree to go
along the line of the regiment and tell the company commanders to get
their men ready for the assault. I had proceeded nearly half way when a
misdirected shell from the battery referred to exploded over me, a
large fragment grazing my head, burying itself at my feet. Had it
struck my head, there would have been one less Sergeant-Major in the
Confederate army, and this story would not have been written. A moment
later I saw J. B. Young of D Company fall with a severe wound in the
head. In a few moments the charge became general, and the enemy's
intrenchments were carried. General Lee was riding close in the rear of
our battle line at the time of the charge referred to, and meeting one
of our regiment badly wounded and being carried out by the litter
bearers, said to the wounded man, "I hope, my good fellow, you are not
badly hurt."
This charge was the subject of a complimentary letter from General Lee
to General Anderson, which is as follows:
"General, I take great pleasure in presenting to you my
congratulations upon the conduct of the men of your corps. I
believe that they will carry anything they are put against. We
tried very hard to stop Pickett's men from capturing the
breastworks of the enemy, but couldn't do it. I hope his loss
has been small."
This reminds me to say here and now, without intending the least
disparagement of others, that the 7th Virginia regiment was never
ordered to take the enemy's line that it did not take it, never gave up
or lost a position it was ordered to hold, and never left a position or
battlefield unless ordered to do so. Once when bodily taken by the
Federals and carried into captivity, the reader might consider an
exception to the statement just made.
The charge last above referred to was not without its casualties,
though I have nothing to show the division, brigade or regimental
losses. In the 1st Virginia six men were wounded, and I remember that
Sergeant William Parrott of Company I and J. B. Young of Company D were
severely and Private William Davis of Company C mortally wounded.
During the remainder of June and for several months following we
remained on this Bermuda Hundred line, occasionally shifting position
from Howlett House on the James to Swift Creek near the Appomattox,
until about the middle of July, then settling down on a high piece of
ground behind a skirt of timber midway between Howlett House and Swift
Creek. Here we worked hard to strengthen our lines.
Company D now had but a single commissioned officer, Captain Bane.
Lieutenant Stone was still a prisoner, Lieutenant Walker had been
disabled at Gettysburg and retired, and Lieutenant Mullins had died of
the wound received at Howlett House in June. It was on this line that
Sergeant T. S. Taylor was elected a lieutenant and E. Z. Yager made
orderly sergeant of the company. These selections were well made, and
the confidence reposed not misplaced.
[Illustration: Rev. J. Tyler Frazier]
At or near this time there appeared on our lines a man representing
himself to be a citizen of Alabama, who proposed then to do what could
not be done, but in some degree has since been accomplished--to build a
machine to navigate the air, carry shells and drop them on the Northern
armies, and in their cities. He requested donations from each of the
soldiers of one dollar, and of the officers five dollars each to enable
him to build his machine. We concluded he was a crank, refused to
contribute and the man departed. This fellow was only a little ahead of
his time.
At an early hour of July 30th occurred the famous explosion of the mine
at Petersburg. Though several miles away, it so shook the earth that
the pickets and other men awake at the time felt the shock. The fearful
artillery fire which followed convinced us that an important event had
occurred. Later in the day we learned what had happened, seeing also a
full account of the occurrence in the Richmond papers the next morning.
I well remember the comments in the Richmond Examiner (a partisan
paper) on the retaking of the line by the division of General Mahone.
Describing the slaughter of the Federal soldiers in the crater, it
said: "The slaughter was so great that General Mahone sickened at the
sight and told his men 'for God's sake to stop,' and the next time we
hope General Mahone will shut his eyes." The official report of General
Mahone of the retaking of the line and the crater was not furnished by
him to his superior officer, but was found by his family among his
papers after his death, and published a few years ago. An incident
related by the General in his report is worth reproducing here. The
General states that his division was on the Confederate right and a
mile or more from where the explosion took place; that the same was
not unexpected, but just when and where it would occur no one could
certainly tell; that on that morning he was lying on the ground, and on
hearing the noise sprang to his feet, looking in every direction to
locate from whence the sound came, when he discovered a Confederate
soldier at full speed coming towards him. The men along the line were
endeavoring to stop him, but without success, so seeing the man was
following a path which led near by where the General was standing, he
planted himself in the path of the fellow, who was without hat, cap,
shoes or coat, and said: "Now stop long enough to tell me what has
happened." "Why, Mister," said the soldier, "don't you know that hell
has busted?" Evidently this man thought the infernal regions had
accidentally exploded.
Between the lines of the two armies as now situated lay a strip of
woods, where our men and the Union soldiers were in the habit of
meeting to exchange newspapers, coffee and tobacco, now and then
playing cards. Our officers on finding out what was going on concluded
there was too much familiarity and sought to break it up; so when one
of the officers located some of the men engaged in a game of cards with
a Union soldier, this Federal was made a prisoner and brought into our
lines. The Union soldier was highly indignant at what he considered
taking advantage of confidence, for both parties by their acts had
waived the fact that they were in the field as deadly foes to each
other, and in their hearts our own men had a feeling of the same sort.
A little later one of the Union soldiers, thinking to get even, induced
a Confederate to meet him between the lines on pretense of exchanging
papers, when he attempted his capture, but in the scramble the
Confederate proved too much for his captor, dragging him toward our
lines, when the Union pickets began firing at the Confederate, who let
his man go and escaped. These incidents put a stop for the time being
to communication and traffic between the opposing soldiers.
At another time some of our men under the lead of an officer, about
daybreak crept over to the Federal skirmish line and between the men in
their rifle pits, taking the line in flank and reverse, and raked it
for a long distance, bringing out more than a hundred prisoners,
including the commanding officer of the line.
How tender the fellow feeling of one soldier for another, though on
opposite sides, is shown by the following incident: The Union soldiers,
well knowing that we were scarce of food, at dusk one day called to
one of our men, "Say, Johnnie, are you hungry?" "Yes," replied the
Confederate, "have had but little to eat for two or three days," to
which the Union soldier said, "Bring your haversack over here and I
will take you to the sutler and fill it," but the Confederate demurred,
giving as his reason that he was afraid he would be captured. Being
assured, however, upon the honor of a soldier that he should have a
safe return, he went, and the Union soldier filled his haversack and
returned him safely to our lines.
The enemy was reported shifting about in our front beyond and behind
the timber, where we could not see him, and supposing he might be
preparing for an attack upon us, by order of the Colonel, with Pitts of
Company C and Crawford of Company D, I went to the front, outside our
pickets, where I ran upon a scouting or observation party of the enemy,
by whom we were fired on, and came near being gobbled up, but escaped
and returned within our lines. We had a close call.
Wishing to visit some friends in Captain David A. French's artillery
company, then stationed near Chaffin's Bluff north of the James, three
miles away, I obtained a pass and put off on September 28, spending the
night with friends, finding myself the next morning almost in a
hornet's nest, for on the morning of the 29th the Federal troops
advanced and captured Fort Harrison, a mile to the front of the camp of
French's company. I followed the battery, witnessing the fight, in
which the Federals advancing from Fort Harrison were repulsed. French
lost several men, among them Adam Johnston, killed. I did not tarry
long, but set out for my command, meeting on the way a part of our
division, the 24th Virginia regiment among them, on their way to
reinforce our troops in front of Fort Harrison, where they were
defeated in the attempt to recapture the fort.
As already stated, the line from the Howlett House to Swift Creek, some
three miles in length, was held by Pickett's division, four thousand
strong; the skirmish line or rifle pits of the opposing forces were
close together, say 30 yards apart, and the main lines but a few
hundred yards away. Our line was so thin and so drawn out that when
thrown into the trenches it made scarcely more than a strong skirmish
line. We were frequently in the trenches expecting attack, and the
morning following the battle of Winchester we were sure the enemy was
coming, but he was content with firing a shotted salute. At this time
desertions from our ranks, as well as from the ranks of the enemy,
became more frequent and punishment more sure. Numbers of the enemy
came into our lines and were sent to the rear and the same course was
pursued by the enemy with men deserting from us. Now and then a man
instead of going over to the enemy would go home and hide and when
caught would be tried and shot. This happened to a mere boy, a member
of Company B of our regiment, who was executed October 18, 1864. At
this distance from the war, a half century, such a thing may shock the
reader, but war at best is a horrible thing and discipline must be
enforced. It was not strange that some men deserted and went home. Many
had families dependent on them for food and support. The soldier's pay
for a month, in Confederate currency, with the necessaries of life
advanced to enormous figures, would not buy a half bushel of wheat for
his family. The cry of his children for bread reached his ears and this
was more than his heart could bear. He became dissatisfied--anxious for
the suffering ones at home. He was willing to bare his breast to the
storm, and undergo the hardships and privations of camp life and the
dangers of the battlefield, if he knew his wife and children were kept
from starving, but their appeals for food moved him; he would obtain
leave to go if he could, otherwise he would go without leave; but it
will be seen if this were permitted the army would soon be depleted,
and the cause we were fighting for lost. The dilemma was therefore a
trying one to many a good man.
The Colonel of the 7th regiment, having instructions to capture a
prisoner to obtain certain information wanted, and going to the
skirmish line, where Company D under Captain Bane was on picket,
instructed him to secure such prisoner. Bane called for volunteers for
this enterprise and three men responded, among them John W. East, who
agreed to capture the prisoner by playing the role of deserter, which
he did by going over to the enemy. The Federal picket called our men up
next morning and told them East had deserted the night before. This was
no less than a ruse on John's part to desert and go over to the side of
the enemy.
Among the inducements offered by the Federal officers to our men to
desert was that if their homes were within the Federal lines they
should be sent home and protected or given government employment at
good wages, but love of cause and country were more potent than all the
inducements offered on the other side.
A. L. Sumner, of Company D, an illiterate man, heard someone read from
a Richmond paper one morning in November, 1864, that Mr. Lincoln had
been re-elected president of the United States, and had called for a
large number of additional men. Sumner sat with his head bowed, when a
comrade approaching and seeing that something was troubling him,
inquired the cause. Sumner responded, "Don't you know that Abe Lincoln
is re-elected and has called for a million men, and that Jeff Davis
says war to the knife? What shall we do?"--A pertinent inquiry.
Christmas, 1864, was approaching and extensive preparations were being
made by city, town and country to furnish the army of Northern Virginia
a Christmas dinner, the women taking the lead--God bless them! The
newspapers urged the movement forward, committees were appointed to
collect and forward the good things to the soldiers. The papers
proclaimed that Virginia, devastated as she was by an invading host,
was yet able to feed her soldiers; that the cattle upon a thousand
hills were hers. Though the cattle were not there, the day came, and
with it a bountiful supply which made us glad, and we thanked our
benefactors and took courage.
The credit for our Christmas dinner was due the women. In every
movement for the uplift and betterment of our race, and in every worthy
cause, woman is the first to espouse, the last to forsake. Having once
fixed her affections upon the object of our cause, her love therefor
became as fast and enduring as the rock-ribbed hills. The wives,
mothers and sisters of the men gave their husbands, sons and brothers
to the cause, suffered untold agony and sorrows, depriving themselves
of every comfort, to the end that the soldiers in the field might be
clothed and fed. For them no sacrifice was too great. The Southern
woman, accustomed to the indulgences and refinements of life, became
familiar with the coarsest of personal apparel, and a scarcity of food
which she had never known, and she bore these things without a murmur.
She followed the plow, reaped the grain, took it to the mill, nursed
the sick and wounded, buried the dead, and rendered thousands of
kindnesses to our suffering soldiers, only recorded in the hearts and
memories of the recipients of these loving deeds, and of Him whose eye
is never shut. In the days of "reconstruction," when men were awe
stricken, not knowing whither to look or what to do, these women stood
with resolute trust in God, giving words of encouragement to the
sterner sex; and became, as it were, the strong vine entwined around
the sturdy tree when shaken by the storm. These Southern women were the
only portion of our people who never surrendered. They are today the
purest type of Anglo-Saxon womanhood on the face of the earth.
Memorial Day originated with our Southern women, whose custom it is to
strew flowers, mementoes of their undying love, on the graves of the
gray and the blue alike. They are the guardians of the graves of our
noble dead.
"This place of burial is
Hallowed by woman's prayers;
A nobler epitaph than this
Could not be theirs."
Things now began to look dark. General Sherman was marching through
Georgia to the sea; Hood's army had been defeated at Nashville. The
situation was grave in the extreme. With all this came strange
presentiments. The dark clouds that had been for some time overhanging
us were settling down. The patriotism, enthusiasm and untold sacrifices
of the past four years seemed all for naught, and our men could not be
required to shoulder a heavier cross than was now the lot of the
Confederate soldiers. But a patriotic people and a valiant soldiery
might yet accomplish success, looking we were, but in vain, for foreign
intervention, or something else to turn up. If to satisfy the Northern
people and gain our separate existence meant to give up slavery, the
army was ready to see it abolished. In fact, the great bulk of the army
was ready to make almost any sacrifice required for independent and
separate government. Our forefathers had resisted British tyranny, we
were resisting Northern aggression upon the sovereignty and reserved
rights of the States of the Confederacy.
Dark and discouraging as were these days, the spirit of the army was
yet unbroken, and the men were willing to fight it out, although it
appeared but a question of time when we should all go down.
Thus closed the year of 1864, and to us it seemed final overthrow must
come, for our foe was growing stronger, we weaker. Our star was surely
on the wane.