A small town named Summertown, or Summerville, was here entered, and the road extended down the mountain on the south side, on which the troops descended. We were then within three miles of Chattanooga, and again moved forward in a southerly direction, or rather a southeasterly direction, leaving the town to our left, and went into camp a short distance from Rossville, Sept. 9, and the following day moved forward as usual in a southeasterly direction. We found that the city had been evacuated by the Confederates. On our way between Chattanooga and Ringgold, Ga., we found a patch of the finest sweet potatoes I ever saw. Whenever I hear the song, “Marching through Georgia,” containing the lines,
“How the turkeys gobbled, which our commissary found,
How the sweet potatoes even started from the ground,”
I am reminded of that sweet potato patch away down in Georgia.
A Projecting Rock on Lookout Mountain.
We were getting in the vicinity of the enemy again, and now moved forward in a southerly direction but without encountering the enemy in large force until after passing Ringgold, Ga. I distinctly remember camping there one night, only a few days prior to the battle of Chickamauga. While there some of the Co. C boys got into a drug store, which seemingly had been abandoned, where they procured something to drink that was stronger than water; so much so that several of them became intoxicated. They were quite hilarious, and one of them became almost sick in consequence, and another, who also had unwisely imbibed, procured a bottle of medicine from the store with which he tried to treat the man, whom he claimed as his patient, and who was lying down. He opened the bottle and tried to pour some of its contents into the mouth of his patient, who refused to swallow, and soon his face was besmeared with the stuff, which was as black as tar. His face presented a ridiculous spectacle. The division surgeon was sent for, and was told to hurry up as we had a very sick man in our camp. He soon arrived, and found the man lying on a blanket with his eyes closed, his face being rather pale excepting where it was besmeared with the black tarry medicine, and presenting a comical appearance. The doctor made a brief examination of the patient, stepped back and smiled, saying to the boys, “The man will be all right in the morning,” and rode away. The following day we went in the direction of Lee and Gordon’s Mills, Crawfish Springs, and the upper Chickamauga. We remained in this vicinity a few days, watching and skirmishing with the enemy, then retraced our steps, going slowly in the direction of Chattanooga. Some firing continued with the enemy, which was Sept. 17 and 18. By that time Rosecrans’ army was concentrated on the north bank of Chickamauga Creek and the skirmishing became more general.
CHAPTER VII.
Beginning of the Battle of Chickamauga.
Major General Rosecrans commanded the Army of the Cumberland at the battle of Stone River and also at Chickamauga. What I saw of Gen. Rosecrans, and also what I learned about him otherwise, convinced me that he was brave in battle, and capable in command of a small army, and patriotic. But he possessed a passionate gallantry, which we saw displayed on battlefields by a few of our generals. A commander possessing these qualities will generally become easily discouraged, and relinquish a contested battlefield with but slight occasion for doing so.