" They were
very easy to dodge, if you could see them in time. Well, one morning as
before remarked, Lieutenant John Whittaker, then in command of Company H,
and myself were sitting down eating breakfast out of the same tin plate.
We were sopping gravy out with some cold corn bread, when Captain
W. C. Flournoy, of the Martin Guards, hallooed out, "Look out, Sam;
look! look!" I just turned my head, and in turning, the cannon ball
knocked my hat off, and striking Lieutenant Whittaker full in the side
of the head, carried away the whole of the skull part, leaving only the
face. His brains fell in the plate from which we were sopping, and
his head fell in my lap, deluging my face and clothes with his blood.
Poor fellow, he never knew what hurt him. His spirit went to its God
that morning. Green Rieves carried the poor boy off on his shoulder, and,
after wrapping him up in a blanket, buried him. His bones are at
Jonesboro today. The cannon ball did not go twenty yards after
accomplishing its work of death. Captain Flournoy laughed at me, and
said, "Sam, that came very near getting you. One-tenth of an inch more
would have cooked your goose." I saw another man try to stop one of
those balls that was just rolling along on the ground.
Pages:
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295
296
297
298
299
300
301
302
303
304
305