■■—■ — dT 'I from f^e T^agon TJ?peef0 ^earb of o (Seatmenfaf (Keunton U I tfOV) if t^aifiptntb. The time was the year of grace 1880, the place a summer resort in Boston Harbor. A group of men smoking and lazily watching the waves as they splashed at their feet. One of the party, as he knocked the ashes from his pipe, said that he always liked to come down and see the boys and hear them talk over old times, even though he had not much to say about them himself. "Why don't you?" 1=: / 10 »ai "Well, I don't feel like saying much when I get among those who bear the scars of battle. I think that I ought to be quiet, and that my place now is — as it was in the war days — in the rear." Some one remarked that, according to his way of thinking, the question was not what a man's duty was, Init did he do it well and to the best of his ability. The first speaker smiled as he retorted, " There is something in that, but you know we of the trains had to live under a load of dis- repute. We were bummers, thieves, stam- peders, and so on, and I — well, I was only a regimental quartermaster, and, like the blind fiddler, got more kicks than halfpence." H I i £t^£A " Very likely ; but if the regimental quar- termasters had not done their duty it would have gone hardly at the front. Look at Brooks Station, where Burnside got his trains snarled up, and we nearly starved to death ; look at the fall advance in '63, when the flankers grew careless, and away went our ammunition train." " That is so. I had a narrow escape once myself. Had I failed to get through it might have made serious business." " How was that ? " '^^^ ft It was in '64, and I was running a pretty long train of ammunition. We had been breaking through as best we could, and all felt pretty tired one evening, when down comes an orderly with a note from Gen. Warren. I read it and whistled. It simply said " Bring up the reserve ammunition for the Fifth Corps. Have it here before daylight. The bearer will conduct you on a safe road." Well, there I was, the train going into park, everybody tired out, night coming on. '^ and this order staring me in the face. I told my wagonmaster to pick out the freshest mules, we hitched them into the wagons and pulled out. As we swung into the road I asked the orderly where the officer commanding the train escort was. " There is no escort," said he. I pulled up my horse and stared at him. " Does Gen. Warren expect me to cavort round at night with an ammunition train, in a strange country, and not a solitary guard?" Says the orderly, " I know nothing aljout that. You have your written orders, and I was in- structed to pilot you on the road." " Well said I, " is this the road ? " " Yes," said he. We went on. It grew darker and darker as we rode. After we had gone about three miles we came on a cavalry outpost. I found their officer did not seem to have a very defi- nite idea of his own whereabouts, so I rode back to my train. As we moved on he called out, " A little beyond the road forks; take the right hand road." My guide shook his head. " We do n't want to go to Fredericksburg," said he. " And I do n't want this train to go with me to Richmond." Kut my guide seemed cjuite sure of himself, and I gradually dropped to the rear, ordering each driver to keep well closed up on the wagon ahead of him. I was talking with my wagonm.aster when the train suddenly halted. I galloped to the front and found my guide dismounted and searching along the roadside. "What is the matter?" fF^.' " I don't know, but when I passed on my way down there was a picket stationed here, and I can 't find him now." We rode on for half a mile, and not a picket could we find. "What kind of a guide are you?" said I. "Well, I came on this road, and my orders are to bring you on the road I came on, so we '11 go ahead." I felt very uncomfortable, for it was evident that my guide had completely lost his bearings, and from the little I knew of the country I mistrusted that we were outside our lines, and were moving between the armies. After an hour's driving we heard some cavalry on our right, and I felt sure we were all done for. Very soon after we heard shots behind us. I promise you that string of wagons moveJ lively. I had gone to ihe rear to keep things well closed up, when the train suddenly lialted. I galloped to the front and found my guide conversing with a party of cavalry. He ealled out, "All right, it's our own patrol." W'e found we were two miles from Warren's headquarters, so 1 rode on ahead to find him and see where I was to deliver my load. I found Warren in a little house, showed him his order, and reported that I had ihe ammu- nition up. " ) wish you had not brought it, we had to fall back this afternoon, and you have been travelling all night outside our lines." " Well," said I, "what do I do with it now ? " '* Go round to the back of the house, you will find my adjutant-general, and ^ i I iafeS gS*:"'? 'SSteiS i^^'r.'i All ■sm he will give you the necessary instructions.'' 1 found the adjutant-general asleep, and he waked up quite crusty. " Get it out of here, we don 't want it." " Where do I take it ? " " Turn the train over to Gen. Bumside." " Please give me a written order." " Bother- ation," said he, but he scrawled a hasty note, and I left him. Day was ju.st breaking when I found Bumside and made the transfer. ] tell you 1 felt relieved when I found myself on the road with my empty wagons. That is all, it 's not much to tell of, but it was considerable to go through. Warren afterwards was quite complimentary on my promptness in obeying orders. ^6« (teomBfcr'B ^fotg. Why, ye see, it was like this. They 'd been tiyhting at Bull Run, where I'ope got licked so like 'tarnation, and the trains was all down to Centerville, when along comes Jake Thompson, the wagonmaster. " Rule," sez he, "ye 11 have to liitch up and drive towards the field. They want us to load up with some o' the wounded." So Ned Sykes, Mike Sul- livan, and myself, we hitched up and strung out into the road, Jake riding that bay mare o' his and p'inting the way for us. There was consid'ble dunnage all along that had been 5*A hove away, I s'pose for lack o' sufficient trans- portation, but we headed right en for Grove- ton. We picked up a young surgeon some- wheres, and he rode alongside o' Jake. I had the leading wagon, so I had a good chance to see what was going on. Well sir, we by- and-by gets where they was a lying tol'able plenty, and we collared a lot o' body-snatchers as was a cavorting round promiscuous and gets our three wagons loaded up. Sez the surgeon to Jake, " Drive thenn to Centreville, and then come back for some more." So we heads round to the eastward, and by- and-by we fetches Centreville. " ^'ou must have passed through their lines, then." !Si®L;: I'll Pr'aps we did. I did n't see more'n one or two Johnnies and they did n't do anything hut stare at us. As I was saying, we gets to Centreville, and drives up to a hospitah The surgeon in charge comes out, and sez he, "Wot have ye got here?" Jake told him. '• All full here," sez he, " I helieve every wounded man has been brought to this hospital. Take them over there." And he points to a flag as was a dying over to cur right. Jake drives us over there and we found their .surgeon was off somewheres, but his deppity would n't hardly look at us. Leaving them with him was out o' the ques- tion. He wanted to get rid o' some as he had, let alone taking in fresh ones. Sez Jake, msK •'^fflBS^i^' ^.SS&il " Where do I go now ? " Sez he, " The be«l thing you can do is to carry ihem to Alex- andria. Ye may git rid on 'em on ihe way, but there's no sight round here." So we heads for Alexandria, Jake a softly whistling to hisself. He rides alongside o' 'em for a spell and sez he, "If ever I light eyes on that there young rip of a surgeon as has set me on this cock-a-doodle errand there '11 be a chance for )iim to try some of his own medicines on his carcass." Well, we cussed together for a spell, and liy-andby I 'lights and runs back to see how Ned and Mike took it. Well, sir, I found 'em jist rank. They 'lowed they 'd had no grub, and this kind o' racket was no ways satisfactory. I ^|«ww** tlid n't much admire it myself, \ ul thinks I it 's kinder rough on the passengers, so I runs back, and as I hops in the saddle I calls to Jake and asks him had n't we belter at the next L'ood chance water the mules and kind o' Icok over the load ? He thought it a good idea, so when we came to a good place we lyatered up. They was a feeling pretty blue, but were mighty patient and real glad of the water, it seemed to brighten them up a bit. Well, sir, would you believe it, when we got to .-Mexandria nary a living sight could we find o' getting shet of our passengers. " All full." " All full." Jake led us round from place to place, and at last he got discouraged an' sez he, '■ Boys, the only thing 1 see as «5 we can do is to head for \Yashinglon." Ned Sykes he swore up and down he 'd go no farther, but Jake and I sort o' pacified him. Mike he did n't say much 'cept as how it was downright killing the team. However at last we pulled out of the cussed town and halted and got some supper and fixed up our freight. We got some old straw for 'em to lay on and made "em as comfortaljle like as we could. Then we started. Jake had tried to get a surgeon to go with us, but he could n't get one, so we lit out all by our- selves. I tell ye that was a tough ride. Them wounded men seemed to have give up altogether, and it was tough I tell you to hear 'em groaning and lamenting as the W wagons jolted over tlie rough road. We went into park, and during the night two on 'em died. I tell ye Jake he was puzzled. He concluded 't was best to bury 'em, so we had that job in the morning before we started out. Well sir, we got into Washington at last, and blame me if it were n't just as bad as Alexandria. " All full." " No room here." " Take 'em away, we 've more now than we know what to do with." .^nd so we drew up and down the streets till Jake told me as his patience was about given out. list then we reins up in front of another hospital and after a heap o' jawin' they 'greed to take 'em in. So we unloaded, and precious glad we all were. Jake he takes us oft" and we 17 draws rations, and tlien we drove out into the skirts o" the city and made a camp. We siaid there tliiee days and jolly times we had. But we had earned them, for of all the drives I made in the service, that there drive from Ale.\andria to Washington was the meanest, miserablest trip I ever got on. " What did they .say when you got back to the train ? " Oh ! the fiuartermaster growled at first, but when Jake 'spbined to him he sorter jawed gently to hisself and sez he, " Do n't let it happen again," which we were n't no ways an.xious it should. I LIBRfiRY OF CONGRESS I II 014 433 388 3