Emilius Oviatt Randall. 125
WHIP-POOR-WILL.
Whip-poor-will, to which reference is made in preceding
pages of this issue, was the youthful
newspaper venture of two
lads, Wilson Lindsley Gill and Emilius
Oviatt Randall, aged re-
spectively fourteen and fifteen years.
Fortunately a complete file
of this paper is in the possession of
Mrs. E. O. Randall, through
whose courtesy we are able to present
accurate information con-
cerning it together with extracts and
illustrations.
The paper was published monthly and
extended through
twelve numbers, January to December,
1866. Each issue con-
tained four pages three columns wide,
the printed matter of each
page occupying a space of seven by ten
and one-half inches.
Advertisements were few and
subscriptions must have been
about the only source of revenue. The
matter was almost entirely
original. The scissors and paste pot do
not appear to have been
used extensively in the office of
publication.
While contributions are indicated and
the names of the
authors are sometimes given, the young
editors were so modest
that they left no distinguishing mark to
enable the reader to
tell from the pen of which came the
comparatively large portion
of their joint writings. Some of the longer articles bear an evi-
dent resemblance to the later style of
Mr. Randall.
"What I Saw South," running
through the issues of June,
July and August, is known to have been
written by him. It is
an account of a visit that he made with
his father to Washington,
Alexandria, Richmond and Petersburg in
1865, shortly after the
close of the Civil War, and includes a
brief reference to the
Grand Review of the Union troops in the
national capital.
"What I Saw South" is
reproduced in full as a very interesting
portrayal of impressions made by the
scenes witnessed on the
mind of a boy at the age of fifteen and
faithfully described by
him one year later.
In looking over the file one is tempted
to quote at length.
Aside from the personality of the
editors, it is interesting as an
early Ohio example of public school
journalism, which certainly
ranks well with similar ventures of
today. The only illustration
126
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
is the one here reproduced, the bird
that gave the paper its name,
which appeared regularly at the top of
the first page of each of
the twelve issues. Following are a few
extracts from Whip-
peer-will.
(From Whippoorwill for January, 1866.)
WHIP-POOR-WILL.
"What's that?" Not a bird
exactly, but a New Paper. "A
new paper!"
"I should think we had papers
enough already."
"What do we want of another?"
Wait till you learn what it
is, and our reasons for intruding upon
you.
1. We are boys, and we want a boy's
paper, aye and a girl's
paper too, one through which we can
talk, and can be talked to.
Young as we are, we shall be men soon,
and we want to do and
learn those things that will make us
worthy of our age and
nation.
2. We are a small body, and can push
ourselves in where
larger bodies cannot so well go; and in
a small way we intend
to make ourselves greatly useful. There
are many kinds of birds
and all are useful in their place, and
we will sing you songs, and
tell you stories you never heard before,
for we intend to fill our
columns with original matter.
We have promise of able and interesting
writers to help us;
we own type and press, and have the will
and ability to do all we
engage to do. But we will not boast; we
will try you, and if
you will try us we feel sure you will be
satisfied.
Terms. Monthly at 50 cts. a year but if
you feed our bird
well, you shall hear his song twice a
month, and then we shall
ask you ONE DOLLAR a year.
WHIP-POOR-WILL.
This is a very singular and celebrated
bird, universally known
over the United States, for its favorite
songs during the evening.
Yet personally he is little known, so
modest and retiring are his
habits.
So with us, we are as yet little known
but we hope to make
our songs so interesting as to secure
the acquaintance of many.
Emilius Oviatt Randall. 127
To most persons the songs of this bird
seem like the voice
of an old friend.
So we hope to come to you with such
pleasant notes as not
only to interest and please you, as you
gather around your eve-
ning firesides, but also to instruct and
cheer you.
(From Whippoorwill for April, 1866.)
COLUMBUS PUBLIC SCHOOLS.--We do not
think any city of
the State can boast a better system of
public instruction than
Columbus. There are 53 of these schools
giving employment to
65 teachers, who have under their
tuition at least 4,000 pupils.
The closing exercises of the winter term
called together a large
audience. The public hall of the High
School building was
crowded to excess, and many went away
unable to gain admit-
tance. Being only a boy, the door-keeper
at first refused us ad-
mittance; but we were determined that
WHIPPOORWILL should
have a representation in the crowd. As
we were about to turn
away in disgust at the contempt shown, a
gentleman of the press,
one of the teachers to whom we were
known happened at the
door, and we were promptly admitted.
The compositions were excellent; the
rhetorical exercises
were first rate; and the gymnastic
exercises were beyond all
praise. The performances were
interspersed with choice music.
The papas and mamas left highly
gratified with the performances
of their little ones.
Ancient philosophers, as well as modern
ones, had some
hard nuts to crack. The Stoics, it is
said, spent much time dis-
cussing the following problem:
"When a man says 'I lie'. does
he lie, or does he not lie?" If he
lies, he speaks the truth; if he
speaks the truth, he lies. Can any of
our readers throw any
light upon the subject?
(From Whippoorwill for July, 1866.)
THE GRAND PICNIC.
A picnic, Noah Webster, LL. D., says,
FORMERLY meant
an entertainment at which each person
contributed some dish, or
128 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
article, for the general entertainment.
We are glad he put in that
word "formerly," or we should
have put in an objection to the
definition. The world changes, and so do
picnics.
A picnic NOW is an entertainment given
by the children
and young folks to give the old people a
holiday, and afford them
an opportunity of taking a ride and
spending the day in some
delightful country grove. Such an
entertainment was given by
the pupils of the High and Grammar
schools of this city, on
Friday, June 8th.
A long train of cars left the depot
about 9 A. M. One was
filled with baskets, bread and butter,
cakes, pies, candies, tin
cups, and old bits of newspapers. The
others were crowded with
as merry a group of young folks as you
ever did see, taking with
them their labor-worn teachers and
care-worn fathers and
mothers.
Having proceeded about thirty miles in
an easterly direction,
the smoking locomotive suddenly snorted
and stopped. Here they
all thought it best to get out and take
to the woods. A walk of
about a quarter of a mile through the
grove, and the whole party
found themselves aproaching the
formidable embankments of
an old fort, built as some suppose about
two thousand years ago
by some of the descendants of Shem, who
were driven in their
canoes by a storm across Behring's
Straits. The party, however,
did not stop to discuss questions of
antiquity, or technical points
of the right of possession. A
reconnoitering party, sent out in
advance, discovered no occupants but a
company of cows quietly
feeding. The baskets were placed in a
central position within
the walls- the invading force well
arranged - an assault made;
and the fortress carried by storm
without the loss of a single one.
Upon calling the roll a few double ones
were missing, but they
were afterward discovered walking arm in
arm about the out-
side of fortification.
The place to which the young folks
brought their guests was
found to be one of the most delightful
kind. The old fort
stretched its venerable arms in a great
circle of a mile in length
around a broad terrace, smooth as a
house-floor, covered with
one of Nature's softest and most
beautiful carpets of green.
Emilius Oviatt Randall. 129
Venerable oaks and other forest trees
spread their broad branches
above, welcoming all to their refreshing
shade.
Stragglers continued to come in until
about one o'clock,
when the band struck up the dinner call,
and there was a general
rush to the provision stands. The
baskets and lemonade tubs
stood the drafts like a solvent bank,
until the last hungry urchin
was satisfied.
The amusements consisted of walking on
the embankment
or running down its steep sides,
pitching quoits, fox and geese,
going it blind, and kissing the girls.
This last we would say,
however, by way of explanation, so far
as we could see (what
took place in the more private walks,
and for which nobody was
responsible, we cannot say), was
confined to the more juvenile
classes, not yet instructed in the
higher proprieties of life.
But everything comes to an end but
circles, and picnics, alas,
continue only for a day. The shadows of
the old oaks had
lengthened before the descending sun,
when the bugle of the
musician-an old hand-bell brought along
for the purpose-
sounded the home-call. Weary of limb but
light of heart, the
little folks escorted their teachers and
parents back to the cars,
and returned them safely to their homes;
and if there is any
meaning in rosy cheeks, and laughing
eyes, and bounding steps,
all said, "Hurrah for picnics
forever !"
(From Whippoorwill for September, 1866.)
THE ATLANTIC CABLE.
Since our last issue, the Atlantic Cable
has been successfully
laid, and it may be considered the most
wonderful piece of
workmanship ever accomplished by man.
The arrival of the "Great
Eastern" at Heart's Content, New-
foundland, was hailed with joy. The
following dispatch was re-
ceived by the President:
HEART'S CONTENT, July
27.
His Excellency, President Johnson, Washington, D. C.:
Sir:-The laying of the Atlantic Cable
was successfully completed
this morning. I hope that it will prove
a blessing to England and the
United States; and increase the
intercourse between our own country
and the Eastern Hemisphere. Yours faithfully,
(Signed) CYRUS W. FIELD.
Vol. XXIX -9.
180 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
The distance run by the "Great
Eastern," while paying out
the cable, was over a hundred miles a
day, and she was fourteen
days out. The total length of the cable
is one thousand eight
hundred and sixty-six miles.
A message of seventy-seven words was
sent by the President
to Queen Victoria, and was read by her
FIFTEEN MINUTES
after leaving this country. Think of the
President of the United
States, conversing with the Queen of
England, across the Atlantic
Ocean. Now instead of the European news
being ten or twelve
days in coming from Liverpool, it is
flashed across the ocean
with the speed of lightning.
Surely this is a fast age.
CLEANLINESS.- The Board of Health and
the City Council
have both been at work, and the result
is, that, aided by frequent
deluging showers, our streets and alleys
are well cleansed and
nuisances generally abated. No case of
cholera has yet been re-
ported to have occurred in our city, and
the sanitary measures
employed in the past being continued, we
hope to record the fact
that our citizens escaped this fearful
pestilence.
(From Whippoorwill for October, 1866.)
THE GREAT FLOOD.-September will long be
remembered as
the month of one of the greatest
freshets ever known at this
season of the year. The Scioto broke
over the levees, and the
bottom land west of the city was like a
great lake. Fences were
swept away, hogs and sheep drowned, and
crops destroyed. The
damage along the river is immense. Large
crowds were attracted
to the bridge on the National Road,
watching with wondering
eyes the moving mass of waters,
freighted with the strange
products they had snatched from the farm
lands over which they
flowed.
ELECTION.-Tuesday, the 9th of this
month, is the annual
election of this State. Candidates are
anxious, stump speakers
are busy, and editors are putting in
their best licks. All are ex-
tremely anxious to save the country. We
sincerely hope they
will succeed.
|
(131) |
132 Ohio Arch. and Hist.
Society Publications.
(From Whippoorwill for November, 1866.)
OUR PAPER.
Y. M. C. A. - The young men of Columbus
have now com-
pleted their organization-"The
Young Men's Christian As-
sociation." Their rooms, on the
corner of High and Broad
streets, are nicely fitted up. Regular
meetings are held the sec-
ond and fourth Monday evening in each
month. It is designed,
as soon as funds can be raised, to have
a library for the use of
the members.
A Debating Society is now organized in
connection with the
Association. These debates are held
every Thursday evening,
and the meetings are all open to the
public. As the design of the
society is to benefit the young, we hope
the institution will be a
prosperous and useful one. All the young
men of the city should
avail themselves of its privileges.
(From Whippoorwill for December, 1866.)
FAREWELL.
This is the last number of the WHIPPOORWILL
for the pres-
ent, and hereafter his monthly visits
will be suspended. Our
reasons for suspending the publication
were given in our last,
and we hope they were satisfactory.
We have endeavored to make his monthly
songs interest-
ing to our readers, and hope we have
succeeded. In his small
way, we trust he has done some good.
We have met with much better patronage
than we anticipated.
We began as an experiment, to see if
such a paper could be sus-
tained. We were agreeably disappointed,
and feel grateful to our
friends for the kindness and generosity
they have shown us.
The past year has been an exceedingly
pleasant one to us,
and we regret that we must part with our
bird, even temporarily.
We hope all faults will be overlooked,
remembering that we are
but boys and have not had the experience
of older persons.
And now as our WHIPPOORWILL bids
you farewell and re-
tires from public life, we hope he has
the good wishes of all, and
will always have a pleasant place in
your memory. Should he
ever appear before the public again, as
we hope he will, may he
Emilius Oviatt Randall. 133
receive the same welcome that thus far
has been given to him.
We hope by attention to our studies to
prepare ourselves to make
our bird still more worthy of patronage
when he shall again
appear.
(From Whippoorwill for June, July and
August, 1866.)
WHAT I SAW SOUTH.
[By E. O. Randall.]
In May, a year ago, I accompanied my
father, who was go-
ing to labor for the Christian
Commission, on a trip to the camps
of the Union Armies about Washington and
Alexandria.
From home we went directly to
Washington. We spent
the first day in the hospitals, and then
the director of the Com-
mission sent us to Alexandria, Va. From
here we went about
four miles southwest to Camp
Convalescent, the largest one in
that vicinity. Here were long rows of
barracks, and thousands
of sick soldiers; while in the country
around the victorious
armies were encamping as they came up
from the south. The
country was very hilly and the soldiers
were scattered about on
the hills, each division or corps by
themselves.
Here were congregated regiments and
divisions from Grant's
and Sherman's armies, and legions of
Sheridan's Cavalry fresh
from the battle fields of the Shenandoah
Valley. It was esti-
mated that at least 250,000 soldiers
were encamped upon these
hills. It was a grand sight and one I
never shall forget, to look
off from one of these elevations and see
the sides of the green
hills covered with white tents,
stretching away for miles in every
direction, and view the men in blue
uniform with bright guns
and bayonets, going through their drill.
The summits of the highest hills were
crowned with forts,
which added much to the warlike scene.
The soldiers who had just returned from
the campaigns of
the south were very destitute, many of
them were without coats
or hats, many without shoes, stockings
or blankets, and a great
many without shirts or change of raiment
of any kind. Many
of Sherman's men who came into camp
while we were there, were
like the man that married the maid in
"The House that Jack
Built", all tattered and torn, and
some of Grant's men said they
134
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
had marched from Richmond and even
fought battles barefoot
and coatless. But some told harder
stories than this, saying that
what few clothes they had, if left on
the ground, without being
tied to the tent poles, would CRAWL off.
The soldiers had lived in camp so long
that their habits of
neatness had turned up minus. Instead of
their beef coming
from a clean cellar, it was hauled in a
dirty wagon and thrown
into tents on the dirty ground, and
there left till ready to cook.
Then they would wipe it off with their
dirty blankets, which did
not improve it much; then broiling it
over their camp-fires, they
would eat it as heartily as though
cooked in one of Stewart's
latest improved stoves by a master cook.
Here the Christian Commission had
erected a chapel, in
which the soldiers held meetings. They
also had a reading and
writing room.
I have said the soldiers were very
destitute, and the Govern-
ment was not prepared to supply so large
a number immediately.
The Sanitary and Christian Commission,
as far as possible, sup-
plied them, but, of course, among so
many men, they had to make
a little go a good ways, but still they
did a great deal for the
comfort of our brave defenders.
Our business was, in part, to distribute
these goods. We
would take a haversack, fill it with
tracts, sewing-bags, needles,
thread, stockings, combs, pencils, pens,
writing-paper, envelopes,
handkerchiefs, and such little trinkets
as would be useful. This
we strapped across our shoulders, and
then took our arms full of
newspapers and pamphlets. After loading
ourselves in this style,
we started out and visited some
particular division or brigade,
distributing the things to the
soldiers-giving one needles and
thread, another paper and pens, to
another a comb, etc., as they
most needed, and throwing the papers
into the tents which were
greedily received by the inmates. In
this manner we would go
through the camps until our supply was
exhausted. We would
then return, and after resting, take
another load and go out
again - making two or three trips a day.
If any wanted cloth-
ing they came to the rooms after it, as
it would be too heavy for
us to carry.
We would frequently give them food, and
sometimes I would
Emilius Oviatt Randall. 135
take a large pan full of pickles out to
them, and it would not be
long before I would have a large crowd
around me, and I am
sorry to say they were not very polite
on such occasions, but
went in more after the grab and scramble
style,--sometimes
completely upsetting the pan on the
ground; but that didn't hurt
the pickles any, for then there would be
a general rush and
snatch, and down their throats the
pickles would go, dirt and all.
But you cannot imagine how grateful they
were for these things,
frequently offering me their hard-tack
in return, which I gener-
ally declined, as I hadn't any teeth to
spare.
While we were here, we visited Gen.
Meade's headquarters,
and made him an evening call. He kindly
received us and intro-
duced us to Generals Barlow and Webb. We
also visited the
home of the late rebel Gen. R. E. Lee.
It is a beautiful place,
situated on Arlington Heights, on the
high bank of the Potomac
river, and from the portico of the house
is a fine view of Wash-
ington City. The garden was encompassed
by a row of graves
of Union officers; and near the house
was a cemetery where near
THREE THOUSAND of our soldiers are
buried. The prop-
erty had been confiscated by our
Government and was used by
the officers of the army.
After remaining here and working among
the soldiers for
about two weeks, we returned to
Washington, where we stopped
two or three days to see the sights of
the city, and where we
also saw the Grand Review, which is
beyond my capacity to
describe. The two armies--Grant's and
Sherman's, including
Sheridan's cavalry - were each six hours
in passing the Review
stand. It was, indeed, a grand sight to
see the great Generals,
followed by their brave soldiers,
marching through the streets,
cheered by the thousands of people that
had gathered from all
parts of the Union.
In the next number our readers may find
an account of our
trip to Richmond and Petersburg.
Leaving Washington, we went by railroad
to Baltimore. At
5 o'clock P. M. we left the wharf on
board the steamer Adelaide.
The water was still; the moon shone
brightly, and we had a
pleasant ride down the Chesapeake Bay.
136
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
At 9 o'clock the next morning we arrived
at Fortress Mon-
roe, and a formidable looking place it
is. As we were not allowed
to enter the fort, we contented
ourselves by looking at the mas-
sive stone wall that surrounds it. The
fort was now more impor-
tant than ever, as the ex-president J.
C. Davis was making it his
home. Here we changed boats, and at 10
A. M. we embarked
on a smaller steamer for a ride up the
James river. Shortly
after leaving Fortress Monroe we passed
Hampton Roads, where
the famous naval fight between the
Merrimac and the Monitor
took place; and projecting above the
water, as though it were a
monument of remembrance for that event,
was the top of the
mast of the Cumberland which was sunk
during the battle.
About noon we arrived at City Point
which was Gen. Grant's
headquarters during the siege of
Richmond. As it was only
about six weeks after the capture of
Richmond, the appearance
of things had but little changed. From
City Point to Richmond
the trip was full of interest. At
several different points the rebels
had sunk old boats, and all sorts of
things, to prevent the Union
boats from ascending the river. Of these
obstructions enough had
been removed to allow a safe passage
through. We frequently
saw little red sticks projecting out of
the water, and noticed that
our boat always kept a respectable
distance from them, and on in-
quiring what they were, we were told
that they marked the places
where torpedoes were concealed below the
water, and which had
not yet been removed. We passed the
famous Dutch Gap Canal
built by Gen. Butler, but it was not
deep enough to permit large
boats to go through. We also passed
several sunken boats, por-
tions of which were visible above water.
These boats had be-
longed to the rebel navy, but were now
"played out". One of
them, whose strong iron side lay above
the water, attracted more
attention than the rest. This was the
Rebel Ram Virginia, said
to be one of their finest gunboats.
At 5 o'clock P. M. we landed at
Richmond, and hiring an old
negro to "tote" our baggage,
we made our way to the Powhatan
Hotel.
After refreshing ourselves with supper,
we took a walk to the
burnt district, which included about
one-third of the city. A
desolate looking place it was; nothing
remained but old, half-
Emilius Oviatt Randall. 137
fallen, brick walls. We could look the
length of a street and see
nothing but black, half demolished,
walls, heaps of ruins, some
of which were still smoking.
The next day we visited the Capitol
building. It stands in
the center of a small, finely shaded
park. It is an old brown,
brick building, with high stone steps,
and large doors on each
side. From one side, we had a fine view
of the James River and
Belle Island. We went into the Senate
Chamber and Legislative
Hall, where the Rebel Congress met, and
passed their laws.
The Senate Chamber is quite large, has a
gallery on one side,
but was very poorly furnished. The desks
were not much bet-
ter than the benches of a country
schoolhouse, and were covered
with old faded velvet; the chairs were
rickety and worn out; the
curtains of the windows were old and
ragged, but partly on ac-
count of being torn to pieces by
visitors who wished to take a
piece home with them. Worse than all,
the floor was carpeted
with an old rag carpet, and a poor one
at that. Here we were
shown the chair in which Alexander
Stephens sat while presiding
over the Senate, and which Jeff Davis
used when he came in to
hear the debates and speeches. The
Legislative Hall was no bet-
ter, showing how awful "hard
up" the Southern Confederacy
was. We went up on the top of the
building, from which we had
a fine view of the city and surrounding
country.
We also visited the residence of the
late President Davis. It
is a large fine house, with high stone
pillars in front, and mag-
nificently furnished within-but I think
his present home is more
appropriate for him. It was now Gen.
Halleck's headquarters.
We also visited Libby Prison, Castle
Thunder, and Belle Island,
where so many of our brave soldiers,
after suffering what no pen
can describe, actually died from
exposure and starvation.
After remaining in Richmond four or five
days, seeing the
sights of this now desolate and fallen
city, we left for Petersburg.
Along the railroad from Richmond to
Petersburg was a continued
line of earthworks made by the rebels to
protect their capital,
but these were now useless and
unoccupied. After an hour's ride
we arrived at Petersburg, which you will
remember was shelled
by the Union army just before the
capture of Richmond. A
battered looking place it was - windows
and doors knocked in,
138
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society
Publications.
chimneys knocked off; roofs smashed in;
holes as big as a wash
tub made through the sides of the solid
brick walls. In many
instances, shells had gone entirely
through a house, and you can
imagine they played smash inside. A
shell had gone through the
gasometer and blown up and destroyed the
whole establishment.
We asked a little darkey who was
standing by, what they did
for light after their gas factory was
blown up;
"0 we's had de light ob de shell's
fuses as da came flyin' ober
de tops ob de houses," he replied.
Our last number left us in Petersburg,
conversing with a little
darkey.
We asked another old negro, who kept a
barber shop, if many
folks were hurt during the shelling.
"Not many. Da kept out ob de way
right smart."
"Where did the people stay during
the shelling?"
"De wimmin an' chilern' stayed out
in de woods, de men
folks da kept in de cella's."
"Did you stay in the city ?"
"0, yes, I was here all de time,
an' a mighty narrer 'scape I
had, too. I woke up in de night an'
heerd de shells whizzin'
pass de winder' an' flyin' ober de
houses all round. Thinks I'd
better be gwine out of dis are place; I
jumped out of bed, waked
up my ole moder, an' we went down into
de cella' quick time.
We hadn't been dar not five minutes,
afore a shell comed through
de roof an' struck de bed I'd just been
sleepin' in an' blowed
up de whole consarn an' eber thing else
in dat part ob de house
sky hi' up to de moon."
Cannon balls, pieces of shells, etc.,
lay scattered about in the
streets and gutters, like so many
stones, and the children used
them for playthings.
The next day we went out to the
earthworks, where the bat-
tle was fought. The earthworks were
about a mile and a half
from the city. They were made in the
following manner: Two
rows of stakes were driven into the
ground three or four feet
apart and filled in with sand bags,
barrels of sand, logs and all
sorts of things. Behind this they dug a
ditch four or five feet
deep and ten or twelve feet wide,
throwing up the dirt to cover
Emilius Oviatt Randall. 139
the parapet in front, which made it very
strong, not penetrable
even by shot or shell. Sometimes they
used nothing but dirt in
making the embankment.
In these ditches they made underground
huts or cabins, by
digging down about three feet, and
making a hole five or six
feet square, then driving in timbers
around the edge of the hole,
slanting so as to meet over the middle
of the hole; this was all
covered over with dirt. In these mud
huts the soldiers lived for
nearly two years, and curious looking
places they were.
These intrenchments extended clear
around the city, a dis-
tance of thirty miles. Every four or
five miles a fort was made;
in the same manner that the earthworks
were, except that they
were built on a much larger and stronger
scale, which gave the
intrenchments a more formidable
appearance.
In front of the Rebel earthworks, about
a mile off, were the
Union intrenchments. They were made like
the ones just de-
scribed. All of these were now deserted
and useless.
Although the battle was fought nearly
six weeks before we
were there, yet the horrible effects of
war still remained.
Guns, bayonets, knapsacks, blankets,
half-demolished cannon,
shells, cannon balls, dead bodies, legs,
arms and heads, lay scat-
tered about, and the ground was
perfectly covered with minie
balls.
Dead men all equipped, with their guns
lying at their sides,
lay just as they had fallen in the
battle. Those that were buried,
thrown into long ditches and covered up.
Some were only half
buried, leaving an arm, leg, foot, and
sometimes a head sticking
out, which was horrible to look at.
Here we saw the remains of the rebel
fort known as the
mine, blown up by Burnside, who dug a
tunnel from the Union
intrenchments to the rebel line under
this fort, and blew the
fort, men, cannon and all into the air,
killing a great many.
In a short time after coming on to the
battle field, I had my
pockets full of balls, and my arms full
of rusty old guns and
bayonets, but soon found that it would
not be so easy to carry
such a load of stuff home, and was
obliged to leave all, but two
or three bayonets, which I smuggled
through the lines by putting
them in my umbrella.