The 125th Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry: Attention Batallion!

by Robert M. Rogers

At last, on the eight of November, 1862, we reached Edgefield, on the Cumberland River directly opposite Nashville, a distance of one hundred and eighty three miles from Louisville, and went into camp. On the afternoon of our arrival, after camp had been established, the writer went over to a house near by, where there was, what had been the summer before, a vegetable garden. There were several of us in there, digging around with sticks to get a few onions that had been left in the ground. We were all busily engaged, when we heard a voice ring out "what in —— are you fellows doing in there? —— —— ye, get out of there and go to your quarters." We raised up, and saw a man of medium size approach one of the boys who was busily engaged in digging for onions, and hit him on the back, shouting at the same time: "Get out of here." The man had on a long military overcoat, all buttoned up, and it was impossible to tell who he was by his clothing. The boy whom he had struck quickly raised up, and with a well directed blow of his fist, knocked the unknown gentleman sprawling; he went one way, and his cap another. Gathering himself up, he shouted: "What do you mean, you rascal; I am General Sheridan." That was all he needed to say; his opponent was gone in a flash, and Sheridan after him, shouting out: "Stop that man! stop that man!" but the General's legs were not equal to the race, and the boy succeeded in getting to the camp, where, of course, it was impossible to find him. The rest of us slipped away as quietly and quickly as possible to our quarters, carrying with us the results of our search. But we laughed and laughed at the remembrance of it; who the boy was, that had so wilfully violated one of the sternest of army laws, that of striking his superior officer, we never found out, but we think he belonged to the 52nd Ohio, which regiment, as we have before stated, was brigaded with us. We would like to have been at Sheridan's headquarters, and heard his account of the affair, but perhaps he never told it, although knowing him as we did, we were firm in the belief that he must have done up a terrible amount of hard swearing at such an insult to his dignity, but he had only himself to blame for it. If we could have seen who it was, distinctly, he never would have got close enough to have struck any one, for we would have fled at the sight of him.

Before we reached Nashville we had received reports of how hard run the citizens of the place were for groceries, more especially coffee, and had heard remarkable stories of the prices paid for such articles. So we had been saving of our rations, thinking, perhaps, that when we arrived at Nashville, we could realize something for them. We had grown tired of hardtack, and visions of warm bread, butter, etc., floated through our minds. So to saving we went; but as a true chronicler, we must state that some of the boys did not show that true honesty which ought to pervade all business transactions, but had been boiling their coffee without grinding it, and afterwards drying it, and storing it away in their haversacks, blankets, or any way they could, so when we finally reached Nashville, there was a considerable quantity of this article in the regiment. The next day after our arrival, the writer and his partner, obtained a pass to go to the city. Tying up our coffee, which, by the way, made a considerable package, we started on our trip. We arrived in the city without any trouble, and as we were walking up a street, was accosted by a woman who wished to know if we had any coffee for sale. We instantly showed our stock, and informed her that she could have it at the rate of one dollar per pound. This seemed in our eyes an outrageous price, but she closed with our terms, and after weighing it in a store near by, paid us for it in good greenbacks. We do not remember, at this late day, how much it was we received, but we pocketed it, all the same, and started out to find a place where we could obtain a square meal. This was a difficult task, for most all the stores and restaurants were closed, but at last we managed to find a little store open, and in we went. We enquired for something to eat; the proprietor informed us, a fact which we could plainly see for ourselves, that his stock had run down somewhat, owing to the difficulties of obtaining a new supply, and the best he could do for us, he said, was to offer us some tripe, which he had in a jar. We were no way squeamish, and told him to bring on his tripe. He had but a small supply, but when we got through he had none. After the army fair of "hardtack and sow-belly," tripe seemed to us to have a royal taste. We paid him for his property and departed to look up some new field of adventure. Sauntering along the streets we came to a building in front of which we saw a good many of our boys, some going away with light bread in their arms, and others hurrying up to obtain some. We hastened our steps, and ascertained that light bread could be bought there for five cents a loaf. We immediately invested, and obtained as much as we could carry on our arms, piled up like stove wood. We were now ready to return to camp, so away we went. On the road back we met a number of our fellows coming along, and every one wanted light bread.

"What'll you take for a loaf?" was the enquiry.

"Ten cents a loaf," was the reply. The consequence was that we did not go far until our bread was all gone at double the price we had paid for it. We then concluded to go back and get some for ourselves, but here was where we missed it, for on our again apply-for bread, we were told it was all gone, and no more could be had. We had contemplated having a good supper out of that light bread, which was of good quality, but we had foolishly let our desire for speculation run away with our supper. There was nothing left for us to do but return to camp without any, so away we went, cheering ourselves with the thought that if we had no bread, we had some money, which, as we had never yet been paid off by the Government, was something to be glad of.

CHAPTER XIII.

The Saturday after our arrival at Edgefield the regiment received orders to prepare for inspection the next day, Sunday. So at it we went, cleaning up our guns and making their barrels shine like silver. This was done by laying the gun barrel in a strap in a bed of ashes and pulling the strap up and down, rolling the barrel with the foot. After a short application of this kind, the barrel would be thoroughly cleaned, the friction with the ashes having removed every particle of rust and dirt. Our brass breast plates and belt plates were also scoured up, and we endeavored by every means in our power to clean up thoroughly, and we succeeded, as we thought, splendidly. This was our first regular inspection, and we were anxious that the inspecting officer should make a good report on our appearance. So we worked busily all day, and at last felt confident that we would get a good report out of him. Sunday morning came, bright and beautiful, and at the hour specified the bugle sounded the assembly. We formed in line by companies and moved out to the color line, where we took our places. "Attention, battalion," came the order from the adjutant, "by companies, right wheel, march!" "Rear rank, open order, march," and there we were ready for inspection. The inspecting officer, who seemed to be very much of a dandy, with long gauntlets of white leather on his arms, and everything about him looking as if he had just come out of a band-box, in company with our colonel, commenced going down the lines. The appearance of the men was good, the condition of the arms, considering the kind they were and the long march we had just closed, were pronounced satisfactory. But when he went behind us, and commenced examining our cartridge boxes, Oh! that he had only kept his prying fingers and inquisitive eyes off of them. In order that the reader may understand the reason why, we must go back a little. When we went into the fight at Perrysville, each man had forty rounds of ball cartridges issued to him, with which to fill his cartridge box, and strict orders were given not to waste or destroy them. But the battle was fought, Bragg retreated, we went to Crab Orchard, and then turned back for Nashville. No enemy was near us, as far as we knew, and as we were tired of carrying the cartridges, we very quietly threw the most of them away, and in their place had put our razor, shaving soap, tobacco, or any other little article that we could stuff in, so that when our cartridge boxes were opened by the inspecting officer on that bright Sabbath morning, his astonished gaze, instead of resting on villainous lead and powder, done up in paper, found in their place the implements of the dressing-room and toilet table. It was too bad, we never thought he would look in the boxes, so we had let them remain in statu quo. As he passed down the lines of the companies his astonishment increased. The colonel was heartily ashamed of us, and to tell the truth we were a little ashamed of ourselves. But the "cat was out of the bag," or more properly speaking, the cartridges were out of the boxes, and as a matter of course the good report which we had desired was gone. In truth the regiment was in a deplorable condition for ammunition.

At dress parade, that evening, our colonel reprimanded us severely for our gross neglect of orders, and we felt as if we deserved it. A fresh supply was issued to us the next day, and the boxes filled up.

The center of the rebel army at this time was at Murfreesboro, and the principal part of their army was massed there, thirty-two miles from Nashville. We had now been in camp since the eighth of November; no movement of any importance had been made. We had broken camp, however, at Edgefield, once during this time, and marched with our division to Mill Creek, five miles south of Nashville, and had again gone into camp. While here we were placed in the division commanded by General Robert Mitchell, and on the twenty-sixth of December, when the army moved forward to meet the enemy at Stone River, our division was ordered back to garrison the city of Nashville. We arrived inside of the fortifications of the city just at nightfall and went into camp temporarily. We had now been four months from home, had had one battle and a weary march, so we were noways displeased with the order, and we concluded that at last we would now get some of the pleasures of a soldier's life, if there were any. The next few days were passed in selecting proper camps for us.

Nashville at this time was a very important post of the Union Army, and here were stored immense quantities of supplies, food forage and ammunition, while our direct line of communication, north, was over the line of the Louisville and Nashville rail road, with John Morgan on hand to sever that line whenever opportunity offered. We found the city somewhat recovered from the panic into which it had been thrown, on the receipt of the news of the fall of Fort Donelson at the mouth of the Cumberland, the river on which Nashville is situated, and perhaps it would be interesting to insert here a description, by a resident, of the panic which the receipt of the news of the fall of Fort Donelson caused, showing the terrible destruction of property, and the ravages of the retreating rebel army.