Among the killed of our regiment that day was George Curtin, the popular leader of the regimental band. This was a fight in which it was all “front” and no chance for the musicians to get to the rear.
After this affair there was a lull in active operations for a while, the picket firing and artillery duels along the intrenched front furnishing spice enough to relieve monotony.
In the latter part of October we “slewed” around to the left again, the object being to get possession of the South Side railroad. The second corps encountered a large force of the enemy on the 27th on the Vaughn road near Hatcher’s Run, and a fiercely contested battle took place. Portions of the 5th and 9th corps were also engaged.
Gen. Winslow’s regiment, the 186th New York, joined the 9th corps that day and were near enough to hear some of the fighting and get a smell of powder but I believe did not take a hand in the affair.
In November, Gen. Hancock was called to Washington by the secretary of war to organize a new corps for the army, which it was intended should be made up principally of veterans who had served their time and been discharged. The men of his old command who had served under him so long were greatly attached to him and regretted his departure exceedingly.
In a report to Gen. Grant he mentioned among other things the losses of his corps as 25 brigade commanders, 125 regimental commanders and over 20,000 men. Comment is unnecessary.
BIG BOUNTY MEN.
The army received large accessions of recruits during the fall of 1864. The big bounties had induced all sorts of characters to enlist. A large per cent. were professional “bounty jumpers,” who were ready to desert to the enemy at the first opportunity.
The 5th New Hampshire of our division, a regiment that had an enviable record as fighters, had their depleted ranks filled up with conscripts, substitutes and bounty takers who deserted in such numbers to the “Johnnies” that their pickets used to joke our men about sending over the colors of the regiment, and one day a huge placard was hoisted on the rebel intrenchments which read something as follows:
“Headquarters 5th New Hampshire vols. Recruits wanted.”