Si Klegg, Book 4: Experiences of Si and Shorty on the Great Tullahoma Campaign — John Shaqi
Si Klegg, Book 4: Experiences of Si and Shorty on the Great Tullahoma CampaignMcElroy, John
History
Si Klegg, Book 4: Experiences of Si and Shorty on the Great Tullahoma Campaign
McElroy, John
United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Fiction
"How about the last day," inquired Si, "over the river on the left, when
we tore you all to flinders with artillery, and run you back over the
hill and took your guns?"
"O, that wuz Breckinridge's Division," said the prisoners, negligently,
as if dismissing a matter of little consequence. "They'uns desarved all
they'uns got. They'uns wus sent for t' come over and help we'uns lick
yo'uns the fust two days, but they'uns wouldn't come. I'm jest glad
they'uns kotched hit good an' hard ez they'uns done got hit. But we'uns
's now got heaps more men than we'uns had at Stone River, an' they're
all together over thar by Tullyhomy. Lordy, you jest orter seed 'em az
I did. I wuz on the top of a mounting on gyard, whar I could see for
a hundred miles in every direction, an' I seed men marchin' toward
Tullyhomy till my eyes ached a-lookin' at 'em. Yo'uns 'll stir up
a mouty sight wuss hornets' nest at Tullyhomy than yo'uns did at
Murfreesboro.
"Well, we'll knock seven kinds o' brimstone out o' your hornets' nest,
big as it may be," answered Shorty. "The more o' you there is the
better, for we kin finish up the job then, and be done with it, instid
o' havin' to run you down an' knock you on the head one at a time.
We've more men, too, than we had at Stone River. There was enough of
us before, but Old Abe just gethered up the men in three or four new
States, and sent 'em down to us to help make a clean, quick job of it.
All we want of you fellers is jest to stand up and give us a square
fight. We're no grayhounds, to run you fellers down. We came down here
to fight, not to trot races with you.
"Well, yo'uns'll git yer bellyful o' foutin' over by Tullyhomy," shouted
back the prisoners as they were marched away under guard.
"It certainly does look like we're to have a bigger scrimmage than we
had at Stone River," said Si, as he and Shorty were once more alone.
"Our army is much larger, and it's all been gathered right around here.
There's bin great rivers of men pouring through all these gaps for days,
and we've talked with fellers from every division and brigade in the
army. There's entirely too many men around here for the country to
hold. Something's got to bust soon, and when it does bust there'll be an
explosion like that you read about."
"Well, let her bust," answered Shorty. "The sooner the better. I want
to see it right off. It's got to come before the war kin end, and for my
part I don't want to march a step further to find it. They can't nohow
git up a worse time than we had at Stone River, and we managed to live
through that; so that I guess we kin pull through another. If we don't,
this 's just as good a place to go to Heaven from as we kin find, and
we'll save a whole lot o' worry by finishin' up now."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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