RETURN OF OLD ACQUAINTANCES--THE WOUNDED COLONEL--I VISIT
WASHINGTON--MILITARY DISPLAY--EPAULETS--ARISTOCRACY--SPIRIT OF JOHNNY
BULL--SOLDIERS' FREE LIBRARY--CONTRABAND CAMP--NEGRO
TESTIMONY--PATIENT CHARLEY--PAINFUL POSITION--BROTHER'S LAST
CONVERSATION--RETURN TO THE ARMY--CHRISTIAN COMMISSION--GENERAL
HOWARD'S SPEECH.
About a week after we arrived at Harrison's Landing a number of our absent
ones joined us, among whom were Mr. and Mrs. B., Nellie, Jack, my wounded
darkie friend from Williamsburg Hospital, and last and least of all came
that pusillanimous coward, Colonel ----, whom I had assisted in carrying
from the field at the battle of Williamsburg, and whom Doctor E. had
ordered back to his regiment under penalty of being reported to his
superior officer. The next day after the arrival of this individual I
received a message requesting me to appear at the headquarters of the ----
regiment. I started immediately, and found to my astonishment that it was
this Colonel who desired an interview with me.
He had been gone on furlough ever since the battle of Williamsburg, and
had played his cards so well that he had been promoted to the command of a
brigade. He had also managed, by false representations, to have the
following notice inserted in the leading newspapers of his native State,
viz.: "Colonel ---- was severely wounded at the battle of Williamsburg,
while gallantly leading a desperate charge on the enemy's works, and was
carried from the field, but no sooner had the surgeons bound up his wound
than the noble and patriotic colonel returned again to his command and led
his men again and again upon the foe, until the day was won; when he sank
upon the ground, exhausted from loss of blood and fatigue, and was carried
the second time by his men from the field."
The paper in which this false statement was published found its way to
camp, and Doctor E. replied to it, somewhat changing the editor's
sentiments with regard to the conduct of the "noble and patriotic
colonel." He, the colonel, had now returned to wreak vengeance upon Doctor
E.
Going to his tent I found the colonel alone. He arose as I entered, and in
rather an excited manner spoke as follows: "I am informed that you are
one of the persons who carried me off the field when I was wounded at
Williamsburg, and witnessed the infamous conduct of Doctor E., and heard
the insulting language which he used toward me." I did not reply, but
stood gazing at the man before me. He looked me in the face for the first
time since I entered, and discovering the smile of contempt which I could
not suppress, he seized me roughly by the arm and exclaimed: "See here
boy, what do you mean? Why do you not answer me?" I replied with provoking
coolness and the same sarcastic smile: "Pardon me, sir, I was not aware
that you asked me a direct question; I understood you to say that you were
informed that I was one of the persons who carried you off the
battle-field at Williamsburg. I have the honor to inform you that thus far
your informant was correct."
"Then you saw the treatment which I received, and heard the abusive
language which Doctor E. made use of on that occasion?"
"I saw Doctor E. examine you carefully and thoroughly, and when he could
discover no cause for your being brought there, I heard him say--'Colonel,
you are not wounded at all. You had better let these boys carry you back
to your regiment;' and when you so suddenly recovered your strength and
sprang to your feet, making use of threats and profane language, he said:
'If you do not return to your regiment within fifteen minutes I will
report you to General ----.'"
Suddenly relaxing his grasp of my arm, he assumed a fawning tone and
manner, and taking a paper from his pocket he asked me to put my name to
it, and he would reward me handsomely. I took the document from his hand
and read it carefully. It was drawn up, as near as I can remember after
the following manner: "This is to certify that Colonel ---- has been
infamously treated and maliciously slandered by Doctor E., while said
colonel was suffering from a wound received at Williamsburg battle. Two of
the undersigned carried him bleeding from the field, and witnessed the
cruel treatment and insulting language of Doctor E."
After reading the document, I said very calmly and decidedly, "Colonel, I
must decline signing this paper."
By this time I had become indignant, and determined to cut short the
interview; so touching my hat in mock respect, I left him to his own
reflections.
Now it came my turn to visit Washington--and the very next boat that left
the landing bore me over the quiet waters of the James river. In due time
I reached the Capital, and spent three days in visiting the hospitals in
Washington, Georgetown and Alexandria, and various other places of
interest.
I was commissioned with numerous orders and had any amount of messages to
deliver for officers and others; as many of our men were in the different
hospitals in those cities, and I was expected to find them and deliver
letters, packages, etc.
The military display made in Washington is certainly astonishing,
especially to those who are accustomed to see major generals go round in
slouched hats and fatigue coats, without even a star to designate their
rank. But cocked and plumed hats, scarlet lined riding cloaks, swords and
sashes, high boots and Spanish spurs, immense epaulets, glittering stars,
and gaily caparisoned horses, are to be seen by the hundred around
Willard's hotel and other places of resort.
I noticed that some in particular wore painfully tight uniforms and very
small caps, kept on by some new law of gravitation, as one portion rested
on the bump of self esteem and the other on the bridge of the nose. "Miss
Periwinkle" says of this class of military heroes: "They look like stuffed
fowls, and ride as if the safety of the nation depended upon their speed
alone."
Chaplain A. H. Quint manfully defends the multiplicity of epaulets in
Washington, and very appropriately remarks: "Willard's is the news depot.
Consider how easily a hundred, interested to read the bulletin there,
could assemble. First, the general-in-chief is in Washington, and has a
staff necessarily. Secondly, the quartermaster general, the adjutant
general, the military governor, the paymaster-general, and the
surgeon-general, have each a staff. Thirdly, what military force there is
in the city has officers. Fourthly, there is a multitude of surgeons
easily mistaken for army officers, as they wear uniforms. Add to these the
convalescent officers just able to move about, and you have hundreds
necessarily in Washington. And of course the display of epaulets is
great."
Notwithstanding the "troublous times," there are generally gay times at
the Capital. Levees and public receptions are frequent, except during the
reign of terror, when some bold dash of rebel cavalry is made upon the
devoted city, and then there is a genuine panic for a short time.
In Washington I think there is as much of the aristocratic spirit as you
will find in the United States. People there are respected and graded
according to their uniform; everything is regulated according to caste,
and it is as David Crocket says about dining: common people dine at
twelve, common clerks in departments at one, head clerks at two,
representatives at three, heads of departments at four, senators at five,
ambassadors at six, and the President--well, he doesn't dine till the next
day.
In one of my rambles I visited the Senate chamber. It was unoccupied,
except by a few specimens of young America, who were playing leapfrog over
the seats and desks. I leisurely surveyed every item of interest--sat in
Sumner's chair, and recalled the scene enacted there a few years previous,
and in imagination thrashed Brooks until he was a fit subject for a
hospital--then giving him a farewell _coup de pied_, I betook me to the
picture galleries.
After admiring Pocahontas sufficiently, and gazing at expiring heroes, who
all "appeared to be quitting their earthly tabernacles in convulsions,"
ruffled shirts, and a tremendous shower of bomb-shell, until my head
ached; I then turned for relief to the noble form of "The Father of his
Country," which looked out from the canvas in all the princely majesty
which characterized that _great_ and _good_ man. I stood wrapped in
profound reverence, when a friend drew my attention to two paintings which
I had not noticed before. They represented the surrender of Lord
Cornwallis and General Burgoyne. I felt a warm current of blood rush to my
face, as I contemplated the humiliating scene--the spirit of Johnny Bull
triumphed over my Yankee predilections--and I left the building with
feelings of humiliation and disgust.
Next in order, I visited the "Soldier's Free Library," in Fifth street,
under the superintendence of John A. Fowle, Esq. He has accumulated over
two thousand five hundred volumes of well selected historical,
biographical and religious works. The soldiers in the different hospitals
have the free use of the library, which is open daily. The room is nicely
furnished, and the pictures hanging on the walls give it a cheerful,
home-look, and the soldiers come there by the score. It is an excellent
arrangement. Thanks to the benevolent hearts and hands that have provided
such a luxury for the soldier.
An hour's walk through the contraband camp was amusing and instructive.
Here were specimens of all grades of the negro character, from the genuine
pious, cheerful trusting christian, to the saucy, lazy, degraded creature,
which generations of slavery has made almost on a level with the beasts of
the field. But all of them kind-hearted, merry-tempered, and quick to feel
and accept the least token of kindness.
Their cheerfulness is proverbial; old women, with wool white with age,
bent over the wash-tub, grinned and gossiped in the most cheerful
manner--girls romped with their dusky sweethearts, and mothers tossed
their babies with that tender pride and mother-love which beautifies the
blackest and homeliest face.
All were happy, because they were free--and there seemed to be no room for
anything like gloom or despondency in their hearts. Men, women, and
children sang, whistled and laughed together--and whether their songs were
of heaven, or of hoe-cakes, they were equally inspiring.
I found a young lady there, from the North, who had come to Washington
with the intention of nursing the sick soldiers, but her sympathies being
divided between sick America and down-trodden Africa, she decided to teach
the contrabands instead. She seemed delighted with her employment, and the
little black faces were beaming with joy as they gathered around her to
receive instruction.
One colored man stood listening to the questions which were being asked
and answered, and looked as if he would like to give in his testimony. I
turned to him, and asked: "How is it with you? do you think you can take
care of yourself, now that you have no master to look after you?" "Gosh
a-mighty, guess I can! Ben taking car' of self and massa too for dis
fifteen year. Guess I can take car' of dis nig all alone now."
While at one of the hospitals in Alexandria, the head steward told me the
following touching incident, which occurred in that hospital. Said he:
"A young man had been placed under our care, who had a severe wound in the
thigh. The ball passed completely through, and amputation was necessary.
The limb was cut up close to the body, the arteries taken up, and he
seemed to be doing well. Subsequently, one of the small arteries sloughed
off; an incision was made, and it was taken up. 'It is well it was not the
main artery,' said the surgeon, as he performed the operation. 'He might
have bled to death before it could have been taken up.' But the patient,
(Charley, as we always spoke of him), got on finely for a time, and was a
favorite with us all.
"I was passing through the ward one night, about midnight, when suddenly,
as I was passing Charley's bed, he spoke to me: 'H----, my leg is bleeding
again.' I threw back the bedclothes, and the blood spirted in the air. The
main artery had sloughed off.
"Fortunately, I knew just what to do; and in an instant I had pressed my
thumb on the place, and stopped the bleeding. It was so close to the body
that there was barely room for my thumb, but I succeeded in keeping it
there, and arousing one of the convalescents, sent him for the surgeon,
who came in on a run.
"'I am so thankful,' said he, as he saw me, 'that you were up, and knew
what to do, for otherwise he must have bled to death before I could have
got here.'
"But on examination of the case, he looked exceedingly serious, and sent
for other surgeons. All came who were within reach, and a consultation was
held over the poor fellow. One conclusion was reached by all. There was no
place to work, save the spot where my thumb was placed; they could not
work under my thumb, and if I removed it he would bleed to death before
the artery could be taken up. There was no way to save his life.
"Poor Charley! He was very calm when they told him, and he requested that
his brother, who was in the same hospital, might be called up. He came and
sat down by the bedside, and for three hours I stood, and by the pressure
of my thumb kept up the life of Charley, while the brothers had their last
conversation on earth. It was a strange position for me to occupy, to feel
that I held the life of a fellow mortal in my hands, and stranger yet to
feel that an act of mine must cause that life to depart. Loving the poor
fellow as I did, it was a hard thought; but there was no alternative. The
last words were spoken. Charley had arranged all his business affairs, and
sent tender messages to absent ones, who little dreamed how near their
loved one stood to the grave. The tears filled my eyes more than once as I
listened to those parting words. The last good-bye was spoken; then
turning to me, he said: 'Now, H----, I guess you had better remove your
thumb.' 'Oh, Charley! how can I,' said I. 'But it must be done, you know,'
he replied. 'I thank you very much for your kindness, and now, good-bye.'
He turned away his head. I raised my thumb--once more the life-current
gushed forth, and in three minutes he was dead."
Having heard and seen considerable on my little pleasure trip, and my
leave of absence having nearly expired, I prepared to return once more to
duty, and on my way to the boat I was fortunate enough to meet with some
of the Christian Commission delegates, who were going to Harrison's
Landing on the same boat, and had quite a supply of good things for our
sick and wounded. May God bless the Christian Commission--it is doing a
noble work, not only for the sick and wounded, but for our soldiers
generally.
General Howard, of Maine, that noble christian patriot of whom I have
spoken in a previous chapter, was one of the speakers at the great meeting
in Philadelphia, January twenty-eighth, the second anniversary of the
United States Christian Commission. He delivered a most touching and
appropriate address on that occasion, and as it expresses my own
sentiments, both with regard to the Christian Commission and the religion
of Christ generally, I will quote a portion of his speech, for the benefit
of my readers who may not have read it elsewhere:
"I may be allowed to speak freely to the friends who are here to-night.
Let me tell you one thing which I need not suppress if I could, and that
is, that I feel in my heart a deep and abiding interest in the cause of my
Redeemer. I know that this is also the cause of the Christian Commission,
and therefore I love it, and identify myself with it; and I doubt not that
you love it, and will do everything to sustain it, for a like reason. And
now I ask you, as I am to go back to the field to take up my cross anew,
and to stand up night and day, evening and morning, for the cause of Him
I love, that your earnest, importunate prayers may follow me, and that
God would bless the soldiers, that evil may be repressed among them, and
that when they go into battle they may go without a fear, because they
know in whom they have believed.
"I assert that the highest type of courage is christian courage. When your
spirit yearns up to God in prayer, 'Oh, Lord, be my protector, and in this
peril let me run under the shadow of thy wing,' then you will fear no
evil, though you walk through the valley and the shadow of death. My
friends, these things are realities with me. By the blessing of God, by
his spirit, he has enabled me to have a clear conviction that should he
take me away I shall go to be with him. Not because I am good, or holy, or
righteous; but because I have a Saviour; an all-sufficient Saviour, who is
able to save even the chief of sinners unto the utmost. Therefore, I am
able to say that I can go into the battle fearing no evil. And would to
God, for their sakes, that every officer in the army and every soldier in
the ranks could declare, in sincerity from the depths of his heart, that
God had done such great things for him! These, to me, are settled, solemn
convictions; and I speak them freely and frankly, as I am encouraged to do
on this auspicious occasion.
"It may seem to some that it is expressing one's feelings too publicly;
but I think it well for me to bear such testimony in a work like yours,
which contemplates this great and all-important result, the promotion of
heart religion and the salvation of souls. And especially do I feel this
in these times of excitement and terror--over the mere temporal
accessories of war, the dreadful sacrifice of lives, the horrible sights
of wounds, the caring for the sick and wounded, the lamentations for the
dead--amid all this I fear that the still, small voice has not always been
listened to; the silent and beautiful, though wonderful work of the Spirit
of God has not been seen, and its importance felt as it should be in our
land. This the Christian Commission is striving to accomplish; it seeks to
keep alive the spirit of Christianity among our soldiers. Their agency is
the leaven in our armies. May they leaven the whole lump!
"It is this only that will prepare us for our liberty. This bond, the bond
of christian love, is the true bond after all that shall permanently unite
us. There is no other. We speak of the claims of commerce and trade, of
corn and cotton, that will unite the sections of our country; but these
are temporary, fluctuating, perishing links. The religion of Jesus Christ
is the lasting bond that connects not only Maine with Massachusetts and
Massachusetts with Connecticut, but Maine with Texas and Florida with
Wisconsin.
"We boast of being an asylum for all nations. From England, Ireland,
France, Germany, Russia, and almost every country beyond the ocean, come
men, women and children, who settle down in our midst. How shall we cause
them to assimilate to us? How shall we ever make them good and useful
citizens? Will it be, think you, by merely giving them land on which to
settle? Will they become one with us because they grow in material wealth
and prosperity? No, no! Nothing but an education, a true education of
heart and morals, such as the religion of Jesus Christ imparts, can ever
truly and safely assimilate all these heterogeneous elements, and enable
us to be truly one people.
"The gospel has its victories to achieve for us as well as the sword. Many
of the rebels hated us worse before the war than they do now. They respect
us much more than they once did, after seeing that we are not afraid to
expose our bodies to be burned, if necessary, in a just cause--the cause
of our country that we love; that we shrink from no sacrifice of money,
time or life in order to maintain and perpetuate the beautiful Government
that our fathers bequeathed to us. But this is not all. They have felt,
too, the power of the spirit of kindness and love, of which the religion
of Jesus has borne so many fruits in this struggle.
"They have been astonished at the kindness which has been shown to them
when they have fallen into our hands. It was this that demoralized them at
Vicksburg. In the West the rebels are not so violent as they were. When
they come into our lines now they say they were forced to fight, that they
are Union men, and always were Union men. And they are coming in every
day. We have just heard that when General Rosecrans took command of the
Cumberland army, eight thousand delivered themselves up to us. And do they
hate us? No! We have melted them down by christian kindness and love. And,
my friends, this is the way to disarm them. I believe, and say it with
emphatic assurance, that if we all have the spirit of the Master in our
hearts we shall demoralize them wherever we find them!
"I do not advocate any shrinking back or checking of the terrible steeds
of war. No! Fill up the ranks. Make the next campaign more vigorous than
any that has gone before it, so that it shall be, by the Divine help,
perfectly impossible for the rebels to keep the field. But let us wield
this power along with the alleviating and saving influences of the
religion of Christ. Let these, as diffused by the Christian Commission and
in other ways, follow our armies everywhere, blessing friend and foe
alike, and we shall then cause the enemy to come within our lines, not
only by the eight thousand, but by the sixteen and sixty thousand. It is
this that will ruin their cause, and finally break down their
opposition."