and children, flocked to the roadside. The band struck up, and they
accompanied the regiment for a mile or more, crowding and jostling each
other in their endeavors to keep abreast of the music. The boys were
wonderfully amused, and addressed to the motley troupe all the commands
known to the volunteer service: "Steady on the right;" "Guide center;"
"Forward, double quick."
Reached Huntsville at five in the afternoon.
16. Just after sunset Colonel Keifer and I strolled into the town,
stopped at the hotel for a moment, where we saw a rebel officer in his
gray uniform running about on parole. Visited the railroad depot, where
some two hundred rebels are confined. The prisoners were variously
engaged; some chatting, others playing cards, while a few of a more
devotional turn were singing
"Come thou fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing thy praise."
By his timely arrival General Mitchell cut a division of rebel troops in
two. Four thousand got by, and were thus enabled to join the rebel army
at Corinth, while about the same number were obliged to return to
Chattanooga.
20. At Decatur. The Memphis and Charleston Railroad crosses the
Tennessee river at this point. The town is a dilapidated old concern, as
ugly as Huntsville is handsome.
There is a canebrake near the camp, and every soldier in the regiment
has provided himself with a fishing-rod; very long, straight, beautiful
rods they are, too.
The white rebel, who has done his utmost to bring about the rebellion,
is lionized, called a plucky fellow, a great man, while the negro, who
welcomes us, who is ready to peril his life to aid us, is kicked,
cuffed, and driven back to his master, there to be scourged for his
kindness to us. Billy, my servant, tells me that a colored man was
whipped to death by a planter who lives near here, for giving
information to our men. I do not doubt it. We worm out of these poor
creatures a knowledge of the places where stores are secreted, or compel
them to serve as guides, and then turn them out to be scourged or
murdered. There must be a change in this regard before we shall be
worthy of success.
21. A detachment went to Somerville yesterday. While searching for
buried arms forty-two hundred dollars, in gold, silver, and bank-notes,
were found. The money is, undoubtedly, private property, and will, I
presume, be returned to the owner.
Fine, large fish are caught in the Tennessee. We have a buffalo for
supper--a good sort of fish--weighing six pounds.
General Mitchell has been made a Major-General. He is a deserving
officer. No other man with so few troops has ventured so far into the
enemy's country, and accomplished so much. Battles if they result
favorably are great helps to the cause, but the general who by a bold
dash accomplishes equally important results, without loss of life, is
entitled to as great praise certainly as he who fights and wins a
victory.
Colonel Keifer and I have been on horseback most of the afternoon,
examining all the roads leading from Decatur. On our way back to camp we
called at Mr. Rather's. He was a member of the Alabama Senate, favored
the secession movement, but claims now to be heartily sorry for it. He
received us cordially; introduced us to Mrs. Rather, brought in wine of
his own manufacture, and urged us to drink heartily.
23. A beautiful day has gone by and a beautiful starlit night has come.
The camp is very still. The melody of the frog, if melody it can be
called, and the ripple of the Tennessee, are the only sounds to be
heard. Thoughts of home and the quiet evenings; of youth and the gay
visions; of the thousand and one pleasant scenes in life; of what we
might have been and where we might have been, had the cards of our life
been shuffled differently; of the deeds we might do, if peradventure the
opportunity were offered, and the little we have done; all come up
to-night, and we chew the cud over and over, without being able to
determine whether it is bitter or sweet.
The enemy, three hundred strong, made a dash on our picket last night,
wounded one man, and made an unsuccessful effort to retake a bridge.
24. Our forces are on the alert. I lay down in my clothes last night, or
rather this morning, for it was between one and two o'clock when I
retired. The division is stretched over a hundred miles of railway, but
in position to concentrate in a few hours.
Before leaving this place, the rebels built a cotton fort, using in its
construction probably five hundred bales.
To-day we filled the bridge over the Tennessee with combustible
material, and put it in condition to burn readily, in case we find it
necessary to retire to the north side.
A man with his son and two daughters arrived to-night from Chattanooga,
having come all the way--one hundred and fifty miles probably--in a
small skiff.
25. Price, with ten thousand men, is reported advancing from Memphis.
Turchin had a skirmish with his advance guard near Tuscumbia.
26. Turchin's brigade returned from Tuscumbia and crossed the Tennessee.
27. The Tenth and Third crossed to the north side of the river, and
Lieutenant-Colonel Burke of the Tenth applied the torch to the bridge;
in a few minutes the fire extended along its whole length, and as we
marched away, the flames were hissing among its timbers, and the smoke
hung like a cloud above it.
28. Ordered to move to Stevenson. Took a freight train and proceeded to
Bellefonte, where we found a bridge had been burned; leaving the cars we
marched until twelve o'clock at night, and then bivouacked on the
railroad track.
29. Resumed the march at daylight; one mile beyond Stevenson we found
the Ninth Brigade, Colonel Sill, in line of battle; formed the Third in
support of Loomis' Battery, and remained in this position until two in
the afternoon, when General Mitchell arrived and ordered the Ninth
Brigade, Loomis' Battery and my regiment to move forward. At Widow's
creek we met a detachment of the enemy; a few shots from the battery and
a volley from our skirmish line drove it back, and we hastened on toward
Bridgeport, exchanging shots occasionally with the enemy on the way.
About five o'clock we formed in line of battle, on high ground in the
woods, one-half mile from Bridgeport, the Third having the right of the
column, and moved steadily forward until we came in sight of the town
and the enemy. The order to double quick was then given, and we dashed
into the village on a run. The enemy stood for a moment and then left as
fast as legs could carry him; in fact he departed in such haste that but
few muskets and one shot from a six pound gun were fired at us; one
piece of his artillery was found still loaded. We captured fifty
prisoners, a number of horses, two pieces of artillery and many muskets.
The bridge over the Tennessee had already been filled with combustible
material, and when the rear of the rebel column passed over the match
was applied; the fire extended rapidly, and we found it impossible to
proceed further.
The fright of the enemy was so great that, after getting beyond the
river a mile or more, he threw away over a thousand muskets, and
abandoned every thing that could impede his flight. Unfortunately,
however, before a raft could be constructed to convey our troops across
the river, the rebels recovered from their panic, backed down a railroad
train, and gathered up most of their arms and camp equipage.
A little more coolness on the part of our troops would have enabled us
to capture twenty-five or thirty cavalrymen, who came riding into
Bridgeport, supposing it to be still in the hands of their friends. As
they approached, a few scattering shots were fired at them by the
excited soldiers, when they wheeled and succeeded in making their
escape.
30. The troops are short of provisions; there is a grist mill near, but
the owner claims that it is out of repair, and can not be put in running
order for some days, as part of the machinery is missing. On inquiry, I
found that the owner of the mill was a rebel, and that the missing
machinery had probably been hidden by himself. I therefore said to him
that if he did not have the mill going by noon, I would burn it down;
by ten o'clock it was running, and at three in the afternoon we had an
abundance of corn meal.
A detachment of the Third under Colonel Keifer crossed the river and
reconnoitered the country beyond. It found no enemy, but returned to
camp with an abundance of bacon--an article very greatly needed by our
troops.
Started at nine o'clock P. M. for Stevenson; marched all night. Whenever
we stopped on the way to rest, the boys would fall asleep on the
roadside, and we found much difficulty in getting them through.
MAY, 1862.
1. Moved to Bellefonte.
2. Took the cars for Huntsville.
At Paint Rock the train was fired upon, and six or eight men wounded. As
soon as it could be done, I had the train stopped, and, taking a file of
soldiers, returned to the village. The telegraph line had been cut, and
the wire was lying in the street. Calling the citizens together, I said
to them that this bushwhacking must cease. The Federal troops had
tolerated it already too long. Hereafter every time the telegraph wire
was cut we would burn a house; every time a train was fired upon we
should hang a man; and we would continue to do this until every house
was burned and every man hanged between Decatur and Bridgeport. If they
wanted to fight they should enter the army, meet us like honorable men,
and not, assassin-like, fire at us from the woods and run. We proposed
to hold the citizens responsible for these cowardly assaults, and if
they did not drive these bushwhackers from amongst them, we should make
them more uncomfortable than they would be in hell. I then set fire to
the town, took three citizens with me, returned to the train, and
proceeded to Huntsville.
Paint Rock has long been a rendezvous for bushwhackers and bridge
burners. One of the men taken is a notorious guerrilla, and was of the
party that made the dash on our wagon train at Nashville.
The week has been an active one. On last Saturday night I slept a few
hours on the bridge at Decatur. The next night I bivouacked in a cotton
field; the next I lay from midnight until four in the morning on the
railroad track; the next I slept at Bridgeport on the soft side of a
board, and on the return to Stevenson I did not sleep at all. My health
is excellent.
5. Captain Cunard was sent yesterday to Paint Rock to arrest certain
parties suspected of burning bridges, tearing up the railroad track, and
bushwhacking soldiers. To-day he returned with twenty-six prisoners.
General Mitchell is well pleased with my action in the Paint Rock
matter. The burning of the town has created a sensation, and is spoken
of approvingly by the officers and enthusiastically by the men. It is
the inauguration of the true policy, and the only one that will preserve
us from constant annoyance.
The General rode into our camp this evening, and made us a stirring
speech, in which he dilated upon the rapidity of our movements and the
invincibility of our division.
8. The road to Shelbyville is unsafe for small parties. Guerrilla bands
are very active. Two or three of our supply trains have been captured
and destroyed. Detachments are sent out every day to capture or disperse
these citizen cut-throats.
10. Have been appointed President of a Board of Administration for the
post of Huntsville. After an ineffectual effort to get the members of
the Board together, I concluded to spend a day out of camp, the first
for more than six months; so I strolled over to the hotel, took a bath,
ate dinner, smoked, read, and slept until supper time, dispatched that
meal, and returned to my quarters in the cool of the evening.
We have in our camp a superabundance of negroes. One of these, a
Georgian, belonged to a captain of rebel cavalry, and fell into our
hands at Bridgeport. Since that affair he has attached himself to me.
The other negroes I do not know. In fact they are too numerous to
mention. Whence they came or whither they are going it is impossible to
say. They lie around contentedly, and are delighted when we give them an
opportunity to serve us. All the colored people of Alabama are anxious
to go "wid yer and wait on you folks." There are not fifty negroes in
the South who would not risk their lives for freedom. The man who
affirms that they are contented and happy, and do not desire to escape,
is either a falsifier or a fool.
11. Attended divine service with Captain McDougal at the Presbyterian
Church. The edifice is very fine. The audience was small; the sermon
tolerable. Troubles, the preacher said, were sent to discipline us. The
army was of God; they should, therefore, submit to it, not as slaves,
but as Christians, just as they submitted to other distasteful and
calamitous dispensations.
12. My letters from home have fallen into the hands of John Morgan. The
envelopes were picked up in the road and forwarded to me. My wife should
feel encouraged. It is not every body's letters that are pounced upon at
midnight, taken at the point of the bayonet, and read by the flickering
light of the camp-fire.
Moved at two o'clock this afternoon. Reached Athens after nightfall, and
bivouacked on the Fair Ground.
13. Marched to Elk river. A great many negroes from the neighboring
plantations came to see us, among them an elderly colored man, whose
sanctimonious bearing indicated that he was a minister of the Gospel.
The boys insisted that he should preach to them, and, after some
hesitation, the old man mounted a stump, lined a hymn from memory, sang
it, and then commenced his discourse. He had not proceeded very far when
he uttered this sentence: "De good Lord He hab called me to preach de
Gospil. Many sinners hab been wakened by my poor words to de new life.
De Lord He hab been very kind to me, an' I can nebber pay Him fur all He
done fur me."
"Never pay the Lord?" broke in the boys; "never pay the Lord? Oh! you
wicked nigger! Just hear him! He says he is never going to pay the
Lord!"
The preacher endeavored to explain: the kindness and mercy of the Lord
had been so great that it was impossible for a poor sinner to make any
sufficient return; but the boys would accept no explanation. "Here,"
they shouted, "is a nigger who will not pay the Lord!" and they groaned
and cried, "Oh! Oh!" and swore that they never saw so wicked a man
before. Fortunately for the poor colored man, a Dutchman began to
interrogate him in broken English, and the two soon fell into a
discussion of some point in theology, when the boys espoused the negro's
side of the question, and insisted that the Dutchman was no match for
him in argument. Finally, by groans and hisses, they compelled the
Dutchman to abandon the controversy, leaving the colored man well
pleased that he had vanquished his opponent and re-established himself
in the good opinion of his hearers.
14. Resumed the march at two o'clock in the morning, and proceeded to a
point known as the Lower Ferry. Ascertaining here that the enemy had
recrossed the Tennessee, and was pushing southward, we abandoned pursuit
and turned to retrace our steps to Huntsville. Leaving the regiment in
command of Colonel Keifer, I accompanied General Mitchell on the return,
and reached camp a little after dark.
16. Appointed Provost Marshal of the city. Have been busy hearing all
sorts of complaints, signing passes for all sorts of persons, sending
guards to this and that place in the city, and doing the numerous other
things necessary to be done in a city under martial law. Captain
Mitchell and Lieutenant Wilson are my assistants, and, in fact, do most
of the work. The citizens say I am the youngest Governor they ever had.
17. Captain Mitchell and I were invited to a strawberry supper at Judge
Lane's. Found General Mitchell and staff, Colonel Kennett,
Lieutenant-Colonel Birdsall, and Captain Loomis, of the army, there. Mr.
and Mrs. Judge Lane, Colonel and Major Davis, and a general, whose name
I can not recall, were the only citizens present. General Mitchell
monopolized the conversation. He was determined to make all understand
that he was the greatest of living soldiers. Had his counsel prevailed,
the Confederacy would have been knocked to pieces long ago. The evening
was a very pleasant one.
A few days ago we had John Morgan utterly annihilated; but he seems to
have gathered up the dispersed atoms and rebuilt himself. In the
destruction of our supply trains he imagines, doubtless, that he is
inflicting a great injury upon our division; but he is mistaken. The
bread and meat we fail to get from the loyal States are made good to us
from the smoke-houses and granaries of the disloyal. Our boys find
Alabama hams better than Uncle Sam's sidemeat, and fresh bread better
than hard crackers. So that every time this dashing cavalryman destroys
a provision train, their hearts are gladdened, and they shout "Bully for
Morgan!"
19. Rumor says that Richmond is in the hands of our troops; and from the
same source we learn that a large force of the enemy is between us and
Nashville. Fifteen hundred mounted men were within seventeen miles of
Huntsville yesterday. A regiment with four pieces of artillery, under
command of Colonel Lytle, was sent toward Fayetteville to look after
them.
20. The busiest time in the Provost Marshal's office is between eight
o'clock in the morning and noon. Then many persons apply for passes to
go outside the lines and for guards to protect property. Others come to
make complaints that houses have been broken open, or that horses, dogs,
and negroes, have strayed away or been stolen.
23. The men of Huntsville have settled down to a patient endurance of
military rule. They say but little, and treat us with all politeness.
The women, however, are outspoken in their hostility, and marvelously
bitter. A flag of truce came in last night from Chattanooga, and the
bearers were overwhelmed with visits and favors from the ladies. When
they took supper at the Huntsville Hotel, the large dining-room was
crowded with fair faces and bright eyes; but the men prudently held
aloof.
A day or two ago one of our Confederate prisoners died. The ladies
filled the hearse to overflowing with flowers, and a large number of
them accompanied the soldier to his last resting-place.
The foolish, yet absolute, devotion of the women to the Southern cause
does much to keep it alive. It encourages, nay forces, the young to
enter the army, and compels them to continue what the more sensible
Southerners know to be a hopeless struggle. But we must not judge these
Huntsville women too harshly. Here are the families of many of the
leading men of Alabama; of generals, colonels, majors, captains, and
lieutenants in the Confederate army; of men, even, who hold cabinet
positions at Richmond, and of many young men who are clerks in the
departments of the rebel Government. Their wives, daughters, sisters,
and sweethearts feel, doubtless, that the honor of these gentlemen, and
possibly their lives, depend upon the success of the Confederacy.
To-day two young negro men from Jackson county came in with their wives.
They were newly married, and taking their wedding journey. The vision of
a better and higher life had lured them from the old plantation where
they were born. At midnight they had stolen quietly away, plodded many
weary miles on foot, confident that the rainbow and the bag of gold were
in the camp of the Federal army.
25. This in-door life has made me ill. I am as yellow as an orange. The
doctors say I have the jaundice.
JUNE, 1862.
3. Have requested General Mitchell to relieve me from duty as Provost
Marshal; am now wholly unfit to do business.
We have heard of the evacuation of Corinth. The simple withdrawal of the
enemy amounts to but little, if anything; he still lives, is organized
and ready to do battle on some other field.
5. Go home on sick leave.
* * * * *
25. There were three little girls on the Louisville packet, about the
age of my own children. They were great romps. I said to one, "what is
your name?" She replied "Pudin' an' tame." So I called her Pudin', and
she became very angry, so angry indeed that she cried. The other little
girls laughed heartily, and called her Pudin' also, and then asked my
name. I answered John Smith; they insisted then that Pudin' was my wife,
and called her Pudin' Smith. This made Pudin' furious, and she abused
her companions and me terribly; but John Smith invested a little money
in cherries, and thus pacified Pudin', and so got to Louisville without
getting his hair pulled. I saw no more of Pudin' until she got off the
cars at Elizabethtown. Going up to her, we shook hands, and I said,
"Good-by, Pudin'." She hung her head for a moment, and tried to look
angry, but finally breaking into a laugh she said, "I don't like you at
all any way, good-by."
27. Reached Huntsville. The regiment in good condition, boys well;
weather hot. General Buell arrived last night. McCook's Division is
here; Nelson, Crittenden, and Wood on the road hither.
JULY, 1862.
2. We know, or think we know, that a great battle has been fought near
Richmond, but the result for some reason is withheld. We speculate,
talk, and compare notes, but this makes us only the more eager for
definite information.
I am almost as well as ever, not quite so strong, but a few days will
make me right again.
3. It is exceedingly dull; we are resting as quietly and leisurely as we
could at home. There are no drills, and no expeditions. The army is
holding its breath in anxiety to hear from Richmond. If McClellan has
been whipped, the country must in time know it; if successful, it would
be rejoiced to hear it. Why, therefore, should the particulars, and even
the result of the fighting, be suppressed. Rumor gives us a thousand
conflicting stories of the battle, but rumor has many tongues and lies
with all.
General Mitchell departed for Washington yesterday.
The rebels at Chattanooga claim that McClellan has been terribly
whipped, and fired guns along their whole line, within hearing of our
troops, in honor of the victory.
A lieutenant of the Nineteenth Illinois, who fell into the enemy's
hands, has just returned on parole, and claims to have seen a dispatch
from the Adjutant-General of the Southern Confederacy, stating that
McClellan had been defeated and his army cut to pieces. He believes it.
My horse is as fat as a stall-fed ox. He has had a very easy time during
my absence.
To-morrow is the Fourth, hitherto glorious, but now, like to-day's
meridian sun, clouded, and sending out a somewhat uncertain light. Has
the great experiment failed? Shall we hail the Fourth as the birthday of
a great Nation, or weep over it as the beginning of a political
enterprise which resulted in dissolution, anarchy and ruin? Let us lift
up our eyes and be hopeful. The dawn may be even now breaking.
The boys propose to have a barbecue to-morrow, and roast a corpulent,
good-natured Ethiopian, named Cæsar. They are now discussing the matter
very voluminously, in Cæsar's presence. He thinks they are probably
joking; but still they seem to be greatly in earnest, and he knows
little of these Yankees, and thinks maybe his "massa tole him de truff
about dem, after all." "The Fourth is a great day," the boys go on to
say, "whereon Yankees always dine on roast nigger. It is a part of their
religion. It is this which makes colored folks so scarce in the North."
Shall Cæsar be stuffed or not? That is really the only question. One
party claims that if Cæsar be stuffed with vegetables and nicely
roasted, he will be delicious. The other party insists that Cæsar is
sufficiently stuffed already; vegetables would not improve him. They
have eaten roast nigger both ways and know. So the discussion waxes hot,
and the dusky Alabamian has some fear, even, that his last day may be
drawing very near.
4. Thirty-four guns were fired at noon.
5. An Atlanta paper of the 1st instant says the Confederates have won a
decisive victory at Richmond. No Northern papers have been allowed to
come into camp.
6. McCook moved toward Chattanooga. General W. S. Smith has command of
our division.