“Oh,” said John Shannon. “You are away off. There isn’t any enemy within miles of us.”
While the boys were debating, the long roll sounded at headquarters, “bur-r-r-r rat-tat-tat-bur-r-r.”
The boys were astonished and startled, but they knew then what the noise they had heard meant, and each man jumping for his musket and cartridge box, fell into line without the word of command. In less than five minutes the regiment was in line ready for orders. This was about 6 o’clock in the morning. After waiting impatiently for some fifteen or twenty minutes, we received orders from Gen. McClernand, commanding our division, to move to the left a little and out in front to support Gen. Sherman’s division, whose troops were the first to receive an attack from the enemy, which was so fierce, desperate and sudden that some of his troops were surprised and thrown into a panic. They rallied, however, and checked the foe. Soon heavy musketry and cannonading were opened on our immediate left. Again we were moved to the left to aid the troops now in mortal combat, and taking our position in the woods we awaited the enemy.
Now, out of the forest in front march the gray line of battle, four columns deep, with arms at a right shoulder shift. On the columns march, without a break in their ranks, carrying a flag which appears to be the stars and stripes.
When they got near enough for our soldiers to open fire on them, we begin to get uneasy and want to commence firing. The men in the ranks realize that the first volley is needed now to check the oncoming foe. Jim was one of the nervous fellows and said to Will: “What does it mean? Why don’t our officers give the command to fire?”
Will replied: “You know the orders are not to fire until the command is given.” But even Will believed we were making a mistake in not firing, now that the enemy was in range.
The strain for those few minutes becomes too intense. A few of the men commence to shoot without orders, when an officer rushes down the line shouting: “Cease firing, those are our troops.”
Two or three men of Will’s company, who had no fear of an officer, and who now at this supreme moment seemed to know more than their officers, had been firing, among them Jim, who answered the officer: “The hell they are! You will find out pretty d—d soon they are not.”
Will said: “Better obey the officer, Jim; but I can’t blame you for swearing a little just now.” The soldiers obeyed and ceased firing.
Five minutes of terrible suspense, with that gray line advancing nearer and nearer; then suddenly a most destructive volley of musketry was poured into our ranks, and our men fell like autumn leaves. Did we wait for orders to “fire?” No! Every man opened fire, loading and discharging his gun as rapidly as possible, the roar of musketry from either side being terrific. The underbrush is mowed down by bullets. Men are shot in several places in the body in a moment. The dead lie where they fall, and the wounded drag themselves to the rear. Our rapid firing has now checked the onward march of the enemy in our immediate front, but the regiment and battery upon our right were not so fortunate, and with unearthly yells the enemy charge the battery. The gunners fight like heroes, manning their guns until bayoneted. The boys thought it was Schwartz’s battery. The horses all being killed or wounded the cannon could not be taken away and were captured. It is related of an officer of this battery that, later in the day, he rode up to Gen. Grant, and touching his cap, said: “Sheneral, I vants to make one report. Schwartz’s battery is took.”