The horrors of war were indeed sickening, as the rebels had every position in their favor and their fire was very destructive. Dead soldiers and horses lay in the woods as we passed; broken gun carriages lined the road, and blankets, haversacks and rifles lay around the ground in large numbers. One sight which the writer witnessed gave evidence of true heroism. As the man-of-war’s men filed down the road dragging their guns, one old Jack Tar who had lost his right leg and from which the blood was still oozing, was strapped upon his gun, while his comrades were gently cheering him up. As he passed our regiment he looked up with as cheerful a face as he could command, and, reaching out his arm, patted his gun as affectionately as one would a favorite child. Such heroism should not go unrewarded. Many of our command displayed unflinching courage, and the record of the Sixth Connecticut at this battle was indeed gratifying to its general officers.
We had about 4500 troops engaged, composed of the following regiments: 6th Conn.; 4th New Hampshire; 47th and 55th Penn. regiments, in the first brigade under Col. Chatfield. The 7th Conn., 76th Penn., 3d Rhode Island, and 3d New Hampshire,
composed the second brigade under Brig. Gen. Terry, besides the Jack Tars from the frigate Wabash. The total loss to the whole command is not within my knowledge, but the Sixth suffered a loss of five killed, twenty-nine wounded and three missing. Orderly sergeant Robert B. Gage, of Co. “I,” who displayed great bravery on the field, was killed by a rifle ball in the side.
We arrived at Mackay’s Point about eleven o’clock at night, tired and footsore, and bivouacked on the banks of the river till morning, when we commenced to embark, which was completed at sunset, as the wounded were all brought in and tenderly cared for. We returned to our old camp at Beaufort, where we again settled down to the routine of drills, etc.
On the 30th of October our corps commander, Maj. Gen. Mitchel, died of yellow fever after an illness of a few days. The whole command mourned his loss as a brave and efficient general; one who had endeared himself to the soldiers by his many good qualities of heart and his pleasing address. The funeral was attended in St. Helena church at Beaufort. It was quite an impressive scene. The Forty-seventh Pennsylvania regiment acted as escort and was followed by the First Massachusetts cavalry and four pieces of the regular battery, besides detachments from all the other regiments in the command, the naval officers, headed by admiral Dupont, officers
of the army on horseback, together with the agents of the government, made up the funeral cortege.
During the winter months of 1862-3 the Sixth remained at Beaufort, steadily increasing in drill and guarding the island from attacks from the main land. While thus comparatively inactive the members cast about for something to relieve the dull monotony of the season, and it was resolved to form a society for our mutual improvement. Having obtained consent of our commander, the society called “The Young Men’s Literary Association of the Sixth C. V.” sprang into existence. The officers elected were: President, Timothy H. Eaton, of Co. “A;” Vice President, Robert McLavy, of Co. “E;” Secretary, James A. Wilson, of Co. “K;” Treasurer, Charles K. Cadwell, of Co. “F;” Executive Committee, Clark M. Loomis and Charles M. Morris, of Co. “F.” We held many interesting debates in the Chapel tent on the leading questions of the day. As the society increased in membership we found our quarters much to small, and, by the consent of the commander of the post, we obtained permission to occupy one of the churches near our camp for our sole use, which we dedicated Chatfield Hall. This we fitted up as well as our limited means would allow, and, by the help of some of our generous officers, we added a small library. The society rapidly increased in interest, and members were admitted from other regiments, and many exciting
debates, which would have reflected credit on the floor of Congress, were heard within this place. The Glee Club of the Sixth, composed of Benjamin Terrell, of Co. “F,” sergeants Whiteley, Deming and Edward Yates, and corporal Cummings, of Co. “G,” rendered some fine music on several occasions. Regular meetings for prayer and conference were also held, and many of these meetings were largely attended, with gratifying results. Exhibitions of various kinds were given by the boys, including arts of ventriloquism, negro minstrelsy, tableaux, &c. Thanksgiving day was spent in a variety of out-door sports, such as ball-playing, pitching quoits and running races; and at the close of the day we had a “Mock dress Parade,” in which privates acted as the general officers, being dressed as oddly as possible, some with only underclothes on, others with coats and pants turned inside out and with knapsacks under their coats. All orders from the “Col.” were obeyed directly opposite to the command. A large number of visitors were present and were convulsed with laughter at the proceedings, while the participants maintained as much decorum as when on a real parade.
New Year’s day, 1863, found us still at Beaufort, with the privilege of “half holiday.” The day was beautiful and the ushering in of the new year was pleasantly greeted by all, with many a hope and
prayer that we should soon see the close of the war. A variety of games were gotten up to make time pass pleasantly, the first of which was a target practice. The first prize of ten dollars was awarded to a private in Co. “A,” the second best, a prize of five dollars, was awarded to a private of Co. “K.” The jumping feats were next in order, with a large number to compete. The prize of five dollars was awarded to Joel C. Osborn, of Co. “F.” Following this came the “hop, skip and jump.” Corporal Cummings, of Co. “G,” jumped, hopped and skipped thirty-three feet and four inches, and was declared the winner of the first prize of five dollars. The second best, a prize of two dollars and a half, was given to a private of Co. “I.”