The stories of individual bravery which are furnished by the annals ofthe conflict, are alone enough to fill a volume, but will probably neverbe written. The heroic Major knew that he was inviting death, but henever faltered. Indeed, his own words were to that effect, for he saidto his officers, "It is the same as saying we must be killed, but we'lldo it." And his words proved prophetic, for he fell, and but few cameout of that engagement alive.
The twilight was falling, veiling every object in its uncertain light,the trees cast their dark shadows over the path which General Jacksonhad chosen. As his men, ever watchful, saw the result of their firstvolley, they became exultant at their success, and again theyloaded their guns, discharging them at the form of the leader of theapproaching party, who had thus singularly fallen into their hands. Theyknew that they had wounded an officer, and as he fell from his seat,they rushed forward to learn his rank and name, if possible. Alas,to their consternation, they discovered that their beloved commander,General Jackson, had received three wounds. His steed, mad with fright,plunged wildly forward, and dashed into the depths of the thicket,tossing him against the limbs of the trees in his path, and bruising himmost severely.
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While his men were sorrowfully conveying him to the rear, a Unionbattery belched forth its {182}fire down the road after them, one manwas wounded, and the General fell to the ground. He was borne to anhospital but lived only one week, after having endured amputation of hisarm.
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Bounties had been offered in all the Northern States. New York wasoffering liberal sums to recruits. The new levy for 300,000 men orderedin April had not been filled, and trouble was anticipated, as a drafthad been threatened. But in Chicago no such fears disturbed her people.
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Ralph {184}found that city full of activity. Groups were gathered onevery street corner discussing the war and their hopes of its probableearly ending. The South had suffered severely in loss of men and means,and so had the North. Many a family could point to the "vacant chair"and lament the dear one who had gone, never to return. Death had beenbusy at every fireside and the cruel war had wrought the havoc.
But the spirit of patriotism was not dead, but burned more brightlythan ever, and those who had lain down their lives were embalmed inthe hearts of a grateful people. They fell in a sacred cause, and theirmemories will live forever.
Ralph walked through the streets with a hopeful step. He had won hismother's free consent to go to the front, but little did he dream howfar from willing the consent she had spoken was. He knew, too, that herblessing accompanied him everywhere, and he wished he could see her now,and tell her how happy he was. Turning down a street near the river, hesaw a crowd standing round an office, on whose front was a big poster,with the words--"Recruits wanted--Enlist here!" Stepping in at the door,he saw a motley crowd of men pushing and jostling each other in theirdesire to be among the earliest to be enrolled. A military man sat ata desk, with a huge book open before him, and two officers sat near atdesks, writing busily.
Ralph made known his business as soon as he could engage the officer'sattention. He was questioned as to his age, occupation, and many otherparticulars.
"You say you've been in the army already?" the officer queried, while helooked earnestly into the boy's face. "How is it that you are here now,trying to re-enlist? Why did you not serve your time?"
"I got sick, really sick, sir," as he saw a smile flit over the other'sface. "I did not want to come home, but the doctor said I would surelydie if I remained. I received a discharge and went home to mother, andshe cured me all up, and I am well--well, and stronger than ever. Andnow I want to go back to {185}the boys in the army, and help them finishthis contract they have taken, to bring the South back into the Union.Yes, I want to enlist 'for the war.'"
As the boy concluded, his eye grew bright, his cheeks were flushed, andhis form seemed to expand with the strength of his emotions.
The officer seemed to enjoy his earnestness, and writing down his name,age, and place of birth, passed him over to the doctor for examination.He passed satisfactorily, and thankfully he heard the verdict of thedoctor. He was sent to military headquarters, and then he was assignedto the Seventy-second Illinois Infantry. That regiment was the first oneorganized by the Board of Trade of Chicago. It was then at Milliken'sBend, after having tried in vain to make the Yazoo Pass. A canal hadbeen ordered dug by General Sherman in a bend opposite Vicksburg, intowhich he was confident he could divert the river, but this plan waschecked by the sudden rising of the river, and it was only by a miraclethat entire regiments escaped drowning.
The attempt afterward made by General Grant to enter this Pass hadproved equally disappointing, even though an embankment which theConfederates had thrown up had been as promptly blown up by him. Hisboats entered the streams, whose banks had heavy growths of timber, onlyto find that the Confederates had cut down trees of immense bulk, andthrown them across the channel. But General Grant kept on, removing thefallen, trees that blocked the way, but he at once discovered that hewas placing himself in a trap, for the rebels were felling trees andthrowing them across the channel behind him, so that he could not getout again. They had also raised earthworks at a point where two riversmet, and they were well guarded.
There was one forlorn chance left, yet untried, and that was to go upthe Yazoo a short distance, in boats, and pass into Big SunflowerRiver, and then descend that stream into the Yazoo again. This hazardousexpedition was intrusted to Generals Sherman and Porter, to carryforward.
The {186}situation was desperate. The channels were narrow, there wasno solid ground on which to plant troops, the cane-brake was dense andnearly impassable, and they actually had to pick their way through thedark and uncanny swamp by the aid of candles. It was inviting deathtoo openly to proceed, for, added to natures horrors, the whole regionswarmed with sharpshooters to whom every step of the way was familiar,and whose unerring aim told heavily all along the lines of the Federals,who were glad to escape from the narrow pass.
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Commodore Farragut, with one gunboat and his flagship, had shot by thebatteries at Port Hudson, and several boats had passed Vicksburg. Onthe night of April 16 Commodore Porter ran by the batteries, but thewatchful enemy had provided for this move, and suddenly setting fireto huge heaps of wood on the bank, a brilliant flame darted up to theheavens, and by its light for an hour and a half they sent a heavyfire into the fleet, which as industriously returned the courtesy as itsteamed past its {188}adversary. But the Federal fleet met with no losssave the sinking of one transport.
This was some of the history of the campaign which the regiment to whichRalph was sent had taken part in, and the thought of joining it gave himunbounded delight.
"I was not contented, dear mother," he wrote to her a few days later,"until I was back with the boys in blue. This is a lovely country. Whenthis war is over, I'll bring you down here, and we'll spend our dayswhere nature has done so much for her creatures."
Down the river they steamed. When they reached Milliken's Bend,Louisiana, their corps united with Grant's army in its memorable marchon Vicksburg. Ralph was on the alert to see all that he could of thecountry. But there were no signs of aught but desolation. Fences hadbeen torn down, and consumed to cook the camp fare on marches; here apile of charred timber told where a house had once reared its statelyhead; a few half-starved animals roamed round an old, deserted place,in search of the food they needed. Poverty, devastation and ruin wereevident everywhere, and spoke plainly of the blight that followed inthe wake of the armies that had tramped over and destroyed the beautifulhomes of former days.
The morning of May 16, they reached Champion's Hill, where they foundsevere work. General Sherman had been left at Jackson to destroy therailroad, and the factories which were making goods for the Confederatesoldiers. He performed this task with thoroughness. He now receivedor
ders from General Grant to send forward an ammunition train, so asto be ready for the battle that must take place soon. He was notdisappointed. At Champion's Hill, on rising ground, he found GeneralPemberton waiting to receive him, with 23,000 men drawn up in line.His force held the vantage, as they were stationed on high ground,commanding three roads, and thus it was admirably calculated for adefensive point.
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For hours the fighting went on. The Union force's made a overwhelming{190}charge, and the rebel lines wavered, but speedily regained theirposition. It was a desperate duel, and fought to the death. GeneralPemberton had a splendid army of well-disciplined men, and when the twolines met with impetuosity, the day seemed lost to the Federals. GeneralLogan saw the danger threatening them, and pushing forward on the rightwith his magnificent division, he passed the rebel General's left flank,and secured the only road by which the latter could make his retreat.
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The enemy were dismayed. Cut off from escape, they knew defeat wasinevitable. The movement of Logan had been so sudden and brilliant thatthere was not a moment of grace given them. But that General was notconscious that he held the road in his grasp, and when General Hovey,who was besieged vigorously by the Confederates, a few moments later,shouted for aid, Logan fell back to his assistance.
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Now was their chance, for the road was left unguarded, and a dashwas made by General Pemberton, whose flying columns were {192}in fullretreat, without giving a thought to his dead and wounded, left uncaredfor on the field. He also abandoned thirty guns, and crossed the BigBlack River.
The battle was over, and to the opportune move of the brave Logan wasdue the hard-won success of the day. Four hours of hard fighting hadbeen followed by the usual harvest of dead and maimed. Nurses andhospital stewards succored all whom they could find, but wounded menwere lying between the lines and in every corner, groaning with theanguish of uncared for injuries. Among those lost on the Confederateside was General Tilghman, who fell early in the day.
The soldiers found a brief rest in sleep. Ralph had thrown himself onthe ground in a state of perfect exhaustion. He would not confess, evento himself, that he had overrated his strength. But when the stars cameout, and the silence of night succeeded, nature asserted her rights, andhe slept undisturbed by dreams of carnage and bloodshed, but his visionswere of home and its charms.
"Wake up, young fellow!"
He sprang to his feet, while a man of about forty, who had been shakinghim violently, said, with a hearty laugh:
"You're something of a sleeper. Rip Van Winkle is nowhere. Reveillehas sounded, the regiments are ready to move as soon as we get a cup ofcoffee, and you've been sleeping through it all, as sweetly as if youwere in your little bed at home. It's a mighty fine thing to have aclear conscience."
And the pleasant-faced soldier gave Ralph a gentle push as he gatheredhimself up, and made a jump for one of the fires that were burning indifferent spots, kindled by the hungry men to boil their coffee, or cooka bit, before they took up the march again. The other followedclosely at his heels, and sitting on a fallen log they were soon busy"fortifying their inner man," amid much laughing and chaffing going onaround them.
That is a marked trait of the American soldier, be he from North orSouth. No amount of hardship, no deprivations, can destroy that love offun which is inborn. He is always ready to {193}see the comic side ofall situations, as he merrily laughs at danger, and jokes almost in thevery presence of death.
That day General Pemberton was overtaken at the Big Black. Here he hadstationed his main body on high land, but on the east of the stream theground was low and wet, and on this spot the remainder of his commandwas held.
"We have got to dislodge Pemberton from his position," Ralph heard acomrade say. "He has a splendid view of all we are doing, and can make astanch resistance. But we'll soon set him running again, and he'll haveto find a better lookout than the one he now occupies."
"See!" shouted Ralph. "General Lawler is leading the attack on theirright flank. They give way--they fall back! The General is in his shirtsleeves, and looks as if he were in earnest!"
"Shouldn't wonder if he was. He's a hard one to tackle, and won't standon ceremony. He don't go into battle in a full dress suit. Just lookover there. Pemberton is retreating, skedaddling. His men have set fireto that bridge, and how is he going to cover the retreat of his rearguard down there in the bayou?"
"He's not trying to save them at all, but is looking after No. One. ByGeorge, he's off, and has left those poor fellows to be captured, orshot down, he don't care which."
It was true. He ran away in mad haste, making no effort to cover theirretreat, but abandoned the panic-stricken men in the lowland to theirfate. Wild with terror, with no leader to direct, many of them flungthemselves into the river, only to sink beneath the waters, and thosewho were left were taken prisoners by the Federals. {194}
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CHAPTER XVIII. CROSSING THE RIVER.
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ENERAL {195}GRANT set to work at once building bridges by which to crossthe Big Black. General Sherman's corps were soon busy felling trees andlaying planks. A raft bridge was now constructed, and a bridge was alsohurried together, with cotton bales for pontoons. The next step was tocut trees on each side of the river in such a manner that their trunkswere not severed, but clung to the stumps. In falling across the stream,their boughs met and grasped each other firmly, and the planks laidacross them made a secure road, over which the troops passed, while thetwo Generals, Grant and Sherman, sat on a log and watched the livingmass of blue-coats march over, with the smoky, ruddy light of pitch pinetorches throwing their weird shadows over the scene. It was a wild andpicturesque panorama. The vast body of human beings moving fearlesslyacross the swaying structure, the fitful gleams of light reflecting fromtheir muskets, the two great generals sitting there as calmly as thoughwatching a festive procession--the somber depths of the forest on eitherside, where danger lurked in many shapes--what heart could fail to beimpressed by the solemn spectacle?
By the morning of the 18th that vast army had crossed to the west sideof the river, but the rebel general had not waited to receive them, butflown, without attempting to give them battle. He hastened to the cityof Vicksburg, behind whose walls he found shelter. He was speedilyfollowed by Grant, who got his army in position, placing General Shermanon the right of the line, General McPherson on the left of Sherman, andMcClernand next, his command touching the river below Vicksburg. Sharpresistance was offered, and the Confederates lost ground in {196}askirmish on the 19th, but made an onset which almost regained it forthem, but the National troops checked their assault and moved to a moreadvantageous position. The Federal forces were nearly famished, forrations for five days had to do duty for three weeks, eked out bywhat they could confiscate from the people as they marched through thecountry, one of General Grant's first steps was to make roads in therear of his line, so that supplies could be obtained more easily. Theseroads ran through swamps and miry places, where no team could force itsway.
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"We are expecting an attack from Johnston. He has been laid up with thewound he received at Seven Pines, and has all the Mississippi forcesunder him," Ralph's captain said to him. "Our line of defences isthrown out six or seven miles, so I hear," answered Ralph. "We are wellprepared for them."
"That is true, but we may look for an attack in our rear. McClernandreports that he has taken two forts, and is in imminent danger, andsends a request for reinforcements at once."
Ere he finished speaking, the ball was opened vigorously.
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The {198}river heights were fortified strongly, earthworks rearingtheir heads for miles, bristling with guns, against which the Union armyhurled its strength in vain. Grants purpose was to carry the works bystorm, but though splendid courage was shown, and the color-bearers atmany points reached the breastworks and pla
nted flags upon them, theyproved impregnable.
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When {199}Ralph saw their efforts, he could not repress his enthusiasm,but shouted--"Hurrah! Our flag is floating on the breeze. We shall soonbe in the city!"
His excitement was contagious, and with a ringing shout the advancingmen hurled themselves vigorously against the obstructions, only to bedriven back slowly but surely.
"General Grant has just received a dispatch saying that McClernand hastwo forts of the enemy in his possession. A brigade has been sent to hisaid, and firing has been resumed-Boys, at them with a will!"