88 Nort Caroxina Troops, 1861-’65.

though the retreat was a long way over an open, level field.
Soon after this we went to Greenville and thence to Wash-
ington, crossing the Tar in canoes in high water, when the
regiment threatened the town and waked up the enemy’s
gunboats again ; we lost one man killed and several wounded.

But the main object, on the part of the Confederate au-
thorities, of these operations in Eastern North Carolina, to-
wit: to gather in the supplies of this rich section, having been
accomplished and General Lee making preparations for his
second invasion, Pettigrew’s Brigade, early in May, 1863,
became a part of Heth’s Division in A. P. Hill’s Corps.
Thus after more than a year, perhaps well occupied, both
in doing arduous, but less conspicuous service as in be-
coming thoroughly efficient for the sterner activities of ac-
tual battle, the Forty-seventh Regiment is at length, and
henceforth to the end, will be with the Army of N orthern
Virginia. Tt was well it had a thorough training, for soon
it was to go through fiery trials, its ranks to be torn by shot
and shell, to be depleted of its officers, leaving it to be led in
great emergencies by a Captain, and the companies some
times by a private. Whenever and wherever tried it was
equal to the emergency. It responded with promptness to
the command “Charge!” to the very end.

It was early in May, 1863, when we arrived at Hanover
Junction, thence we marched to Fredericksburg, thence to

Pettigrew, delivered his strict commands against interfering
with private rights and property, and right well were these
commands obeyed. As we passed through Hagerstown, the
eyes of our men were dazed by the fullness of an opulent city
but no one dared to loot it. On 29 June we camped near
Cashtown, and on the 30th were marchine rapidly into Get-
tysburg with the avowed object of shoeing our barefooted
men. Already the non-combatants had pote (as they

always do when danger is far off) to the front, and we were
almost at our destination when a person in

; : citizen’s dress,
on a farm horse, rode leisurely from the adj

acent woods up

Forty-SEVENtH REGIMENT. 89

to the fence, on the other side of which we were moving, in-
quired for our commander, and paced up to the head of our
column. On his arrival there the command “Halt!” rang
down our line. Was this a spy? “About face—quick time,
march !” and back we went; but not without several shots at
long range being fired at us from both sides of the road. So
we escaped the ambuscade that had been set for us.

GETTYSBURG.

Early on 1 July the Forty-seventh was in the line which
opened the battle of Gettysburg. It is remembered that
Company A had eighty-two trigger pullers, each with forty
rounds of ammunition, and the other companies were per-
haps as large. The morale of the men was splendid, and.
when it advanced to its first grand charge it was with the
feelings of conquerors. We were met by a furious storm of
shells and canister and further on by the more destructive
rifles of the two army corps confronting us. One shell struck
the right company, killing three men, and exploding in the
line of file closers, by the concussion, felled to the earth every
one of them. The other companies were faring no better.
Still our line, without a murmur, advanced, delivering its
steady fire amid the rebel yells, and closed with the first line
of the enemy. After a desperate struggle this yielded and
the second line was met and quickly broken to pieces. The
day was a hot one, and the men had difficulty in ramming
down their cartridges, so slick was the iron ram-rod in
hands thoroughly wet with perspiration. All expedients were
resorted to, but mainly jabbing the ram-rods against the
ground and rocks. This, with the usual causes, undressed
our advancing line; still all were yelling and pressing for-
ward through the growing wheat breast high, toward a body
of the enemy in sight, but beyond the range of our guns,
when suddenly a third line of the enemy arose forty yards in
front, as if by magic, and leveled their shining line of gun-
barrels on the wheat heads. Though taken by surprise the
roar of our guns sounded along our whole line. We had
caught the drop on them. Redoubled our yells and a rush,
and the work is done. The earth just seemed to open