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While on our recent march, the 21 Corps and the 3d division of the 6th Corps halted on Sunday, the 29th, thir teen miles from Orange Court House, for the night, and I improved the oppor tunity to visit a log house, which stood in full range of the enemy's guns, and over whose lovely roof (he solid shot hummed, and the ugly shell screeched) as they tore through the air on their er randa of death. Upon knocking at the door of the gloomy habitation, which had a deserted appearance, T was met by a trembling youth of fifteen years, who stood motionless and pale as a ghost at the side of a terrified and weeping group, of children. Entering the door, I found a clean and tidy, but comfortless and poverty-stricken apartment, whose fur niture consisted of an ancient room, dra ped in cobwebs and covered with dus, repeaking picture of the gad changes of war, whose harsh tones had silenced the hum of the implementa of peace, and beat the ploughshare into the sharp wound of death. An old bedstead, cov ered with clean comforters, a silent clock which refused to tick, an elf liking a glava, half a dozen antique chairs, where venerable forms carried one back to the time of the Pilgrim Fathers, with a bar rel and a few primitive cooking utensils, I completed the stock of enrtbly goods within this cheerless dwelling. One small window of four panes of glass emitted a feeble, gloomy light, too weak to penetrate to all the corners of the room. The rough-hewn logs were ce mented with clay, or, more properly speaking, Virginia mud, and the inter ior was whitewashed. I found the tears coursing down the cheeks of eight orphans, two boys and six girls, ranging in age from five to twenty-two years. The three youngest were barefooted, and the eldest girl in formed me that they had never worn any shoes. After had quieted their feare as much as possible, Brig. Gen. W. D. Terry, commanding Sd division 6th Corps, came in, and upon beholding their destitute condition, he very hu manely ordered Capt. Davis, his efficient prevont marshal, to place a strong guard around the house, and not allow a rail or any portion of the property to be dis turbed. He generously detailed sever al men to chop a quantity of wood for the use of the family, and our soldiers volunteered to do it freely, when they learned of the deplorable situation of the family. While sitting there before the log-fire, which burned brightly on the open hearth, casting its cherd-like shad ows on the wall, we ventured to ask some questions, as usual with Yankees, “whose inquisitive bump is acknowledged to be considerably larger than the rest of the human family. Not a book or newspaper could be seen, and upon inquiry we learned that not one of the family could read or write. [We asked them how they managed to occupy their time, and were told 10 spin ning and sowing. Not one of the fami ly knew what we meant by the Ameri can flag, and put it! I pulled from my pocket a small illuminated almanac adorned with the Stars and Stripes, had they ever beheld the emblem of their country. The eldest boy of fifteen, who performed all the hard labor of the small farm of thirty acres, had never seen a lo t sometive, and did not know what a lem on was. When asked if they ever heard of God, they replied they had—but none could tell where He was. Meat they had not tasted of any kind for two, months. Tea, coffee, butter, rice, sul _ gar, and molasses, they had not lasted for over two years. George Washing ton they never heard of until we inform ed them. As the family huddled togeth er in one corner of the room gazing at the strange and war-like group around them, while the artillery hoarsely boom ed, and the monkerry along our picket ine rattled, it was a tableaux whose dra ma shades tinted the stealed hearts pres ent with compassion and deep pity. More than one Yankee eye glistened with the moisture of the briny tear, which unnoticed stole slowly down from the windows of the soul. A tomblike silence prevailed for a moment or two, broken only by the sobs of the terrified children and the peal of the enemy ‘s cannon. The mother had been dead two years, and the father had been conscripted into the rebel army, where disease overtook him and hid him in his grave. The next morning at daylight we broke camp and resumed our march. Before leaving, Gen. Terry and Capt. Tilley, Quarter mraier of his division, gave the family $100 in payment for a few epil trails which our troops had burned. 1 Vocuanvuc, Mass. Dec. 20th, 1862. Evison Granpiax.—The time had been when news from Vicksburg would have been eagerly sought after by your readers, but the glory of the place de parted on the dth day of July 1083. As I have been « citizen of it since that time, I have had a good opportunity of wooing the vast change brought about by Yankee rule. The dirty, Glidy mud ragged rebel army, and a few citizens ‘equally no miserable, filled the horrible [Hooking streets. ‘Thees were soon dis posed of, when the work of regeneration began. Streets were cleaned, houses and side-walks repaired, so that today the city has a neat and tidy appearance. The government has constructed a new Depot building all several large ware houses. The R. R. ie only in operation from here to Highleok River, a distance of twelve miles, put to amount of bus iness transacted at the Depot, would lead oma in the belief that the road had im mediate connection with the eligul New York, ‘The restrictions on trade do not seem to be adhered to very closely here, judging by the contents of some of the stores opened lately. There is one arti cle of merchandise, that is gloriously scarce though, and that in whiskey. So scarce is this, that the inhabitants are taken to be a temperate class of people. I heard a man say this morning, that he saw them while saleing the beverage at 85:00 a pint. There may be many ob jections to mars' the liquor traffic favor of it. There is a recruiting office here, where refugees from rebel con scription come up and declare their al legiance to Uncle Sam, and are willing to show that they are in earnest, by ‘entering the ranks of the army, these men will make the best of soldiers. The idea has just dawned upon them that they have been misled. When our own army recruit in the enemies country, it is a sure sign that rebel patriotism is on the wane. General McPherson has is sued a conscription order that has rather of a severe effect upon that class of indi viduals who have rushed down here from the North to escape the draft, in addi tion to their being pressed into the ser vice, they get no pay, which makes their case one degree worse than to be drafted. The enlisting of colored sol diers 13 carried on extensively in this district, new regiments are being formed . Various points along the river. The competition for recruits is quite inter esting, as recruiting parties from differ ent regiments often come in conflict with each other, but I have not heard of any serious collisions yet. I believe that it is a general rule now, not to stop to argue with a native African long on the proprie ty of his becoming a soldier, but to make him come, and impress into his mind by degrees, the duty which he owes to Abraham. Regiments that were organized in the summer, have lost heavily by sickness and desertion, these are being filled up to the maximum number. The 12th La., has a recruit ing party near Grand Gulf Miss, they are doing well, and send up every fome days a fine looking drove of A. D. chaps, S A. Reg, The Youngest Soldier the Camber a Army of it Last evening at the Caledonian supper Gen. Rosecrans exhibited the photograph of a boy who he said was the youngest soldier in the Army of the Cumberland his name is Johnny Clam, 12 years of age,a member of Compay C, 22d Michigan Infantry. His home is at Newark, Ohio. He first attroted Rose crans’ attention during a review at Nash ville, where he was acting as marker for his regiment. His extreme youth (he is quite emall of his age and intelligent appearance interested the General, and, calling him out, he questioned as to his name, age, regiment, de. Gen. Rose crans spoke encouragingly to the young soldier, and told him to come and see him whenever he came where he was. He saw no more of Clem until Satur day last, when he went to his place of residence—the Burnet House—and found Johnny Clem sitting on his sofa, waiting to see him. Johnny had exper ienced some of the vicissitudes of war since last they met. He had been captured by Wheeler's cavalry near Bridgeport. His captors took him to Wheeler who saluted him, with— “ What are you doing here, you d—d) lit the Yankee scoundrel .* Said Johnny Clem, stoutly— Gener al Wheeler, Tam no a d—d scoun drel than you are, ah.” Johnny said the rebels stole about all she had, including his pocket book with only twenty-five cents. But I would not have cared for the rest,’? he added, “if they hadn't stole my bat, which had” three bullet below in it received at Chick ‘amanga.”” Hoe was finally paroled and sent North. ‘On Saturday he was on his way to Camp Chase to join his regiment, having been exchanged. Gen. Rosecrans observed that the young soldier had chevrons on his arm, and asked the meaning of it to and he was promoted to a corporal for shooting a rebel colonel at Chicks mange. The colonel was mounted, and stop ped Johny at some point on the field, crying, * Stop, you little Yankee devil. Johnny halted, bringing his Austrian rife oan “order,thus throwing the c colonel off his guard, cocked his piece, (which he could easily do, being so j short.) and suddenly bringing 140 his shoulder, fired, the colonel falling dead with a bullet through his breast. The little fellow told his story simply and modestly, and the General determin ed to honor his bravery. He gave him the badge of the “Roll of Honor,” which Mrs. Saunders, wife of the host s of the Burnet Hovee, sewed upon John ny's coat. His eyes glistened with pride as he looked upon the badge, and like Johnny seemed to have grown an inch or two taller, he stood so erect. He left his photograph with Gen. Bonecrane, who exhibite it with pride. We may again hear from Johnny Clem, the youngest soldier in the Army of the Cumberland.—Cin. Times, —_ Old Elias Keyes, formerly First Judge of Windsor county, Vi., was a strange composition of folly and good fence, of natural shrewdness and want of cultiva tion. The following sentence, it is anid, was pronounced upon a poor, ragged fellow, convicted of stealing a pair of boots from General Curtix, a man of eon alth in the town of Windaor » *eaid the judge, very gravely before pronouncing the sentence of the court, undertaking to read the fellow « lecture, “you'r a fine fellow to be or raigned before the court for stealing ' They say you are poor—no one doubte d who looks at you. And how dare you, being poor, have the impudence to steal a pair of boots? Nobody but rich peo ple have a right to take such things without paying. Then they pay you a worthless ; that is evident from the fat that no one has ever asked justice to be done to you—all, by unanimous consent, pronounced you guilty before you were tried. Now, you might know you would be condemned. And now you must know that it was an aggregation that you stole them in that large town of Windsor. In that large town to commit sach an act is horrible—and not only go into Wind sor to a tent, but you must steal from that great man, General Curtis. This cape the climax of your iniquity. Base wretch! Why did you not go and wear the only pair of boots which some poor man had, or could get? And then you would have been let stone—nobody would have troubled themselves shout j the act. For your iniquity for stealing in the great town of Windsor, and from the great General Curtis, the Court sen tences you to three months imprison. nent in the county jail, and may God give you something to eat ! Among the achievementa of Arno can invention is a practicable steam ear riage of buggy, for common roads. It is a Boston product, and has been run at agricultural faire, on race courses, and even the country roads of Massachusetta, for some months past. The vehicle is not unlike an ordinary wagon, with a double seat in front. Just behind the seat are the boiler and engine, occupy ing about the same spice as the reservoir of a soda water fountain. The furnace hangs within a foot of the ground, and when the door is open, a fresh current jofir is admitted to the fuel while the carriage is in motion. The motive pow er is applied to the axle of the hind wheel, by means of cog-work, main to that of the city-est dummy engine, but is different in sew specta. The steering indows by a crank, which deflects the front wheela to the right or left, at the pleasure of the driv er. With a pressure of 20 Ibe. wo the Linch this engine will propel the cares with a two-horse power, win safe , rate of traveling. Plank mm mac cadamized roads offer the best opportuni ties for speed of course ; but any sandy, or muddy, or steep road, can be travers ed by the steam carriage as readily on by a pair of horses. A fire well built to the furnace in the morning, lasts seven or eight hours, when a few shovels are of coal suffice to replenish it. A sufficient quantity of water could be easily carried to supply s team for in whole day , but the owner prefers to wrink water whenever it is wanted. The engine needs water ing about as often as a horse, and takes in about the aame quantity, and requires about the same time in filling The cos of running it estimated at one cent mile. ‘The cost of the carriage and en gine, the only specimens ever made, were nearly 84,000 , but the inventor says that he can make them for about $800 each. The maximum spre of the machine is intimated at a mile in ac ute soit an half, with smooth coal and everything to favor.
Newspaper Details
The Buchanan County Guardian
Independence, Iowa, US
Tue, Jan 12, 1864
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Tom T.
USA 05 Sep 2026
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