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qualities which rendered him one of
the foremost leaders of the Confed
eracy.
A PRIVATE CONFEDERATE SOLDIER.
Responding to the first call of arms,
he joined the ranks as a private soldier.
Promotion followed quickly, and in
March, 1861, he was unanimously
elected captain of his company for hav
ing planned the surprise and capture of
the United arsenal at Little Rock, Ar
kansas. The energy of his character,
his quick perception of effect in causes,
the Hash of intuition often superseding
the slower process of ratiocination, and
the remarkable powers of organization
and discipline he displayed while in
command of his company, brought him
at once into notice, and he was soon
elected and commissioned colonel of
the first regiment raised in the State.
Having been placed under command
of Brigadier-General Thomas H. Brad
ley he was at once ordered to Bearsfield
Point, on the Mississippi, where his
regiment performed excellent service
until the State troops were withdrawn.
While at the Point his suspicions were
aroused about Bradley, who had been
suspected of disloyalty to the South,
ami when the latter caused the retreat
of the Arkansas troops from Bearsfield
Cleburne was so convinced of the
treasonable purposes of Bradley that
he deposed him and assumed the chief
command.
A charge of mutiny was immedi
ately brought against Cleburne, and a
court-martial was convened at Mound
City for his trial; but Bradley pre
ferred to leave the matter to General
Pillow, who at once decided that Cle
burne was to retain command of the
forces, which were then transferred to
the Confederate service and placed un
der Gen. Wm. J. Hardee, in South
eastern Missouri.
In the fall of 1861, Col. Cleburne’s
regiment was transferred to Bowling
Green, Ky.,and he was placed in com
mand of a brigade of Hardee’s divis
ion. Here he had an opportunity of
drilling and organizing the excellent
raw material of which our Southern
army was composed, and it is not too
much to say that no officer in the Con
federacy labored more indefatigably
for the improvement of the troops un
der his command. His own regiment
was admitted to be the most perfectly
drilled body of men in the army, and
his brigade excited the envy of every
commanding officer. And when he
came to command a division it was said
that his division “would make the rep
utation of any man who commanded
it” —a very high tribute to his success
ful work of organization. Cleburne
devoted himself daily to military
studies, and required the same of ail
his subordinate officers; in fact, drill,
discipline and arduous study were
obligatory upon all who served in the
“Irish Brigade.”
A BRIGADIER-GENERAL.
Wnen General Mitchell appeared
before Bowling Green with his forces,
Colonel Cleburne brought up the
rear in the retreat from that place in
such a masterly manner as to excite
the admiration of Albert Sidney John
ston, who was in command. On the
4th of March, 1862, Colonel Cleburne
was commissioned a full bragadier, and
commanded the advanced brigade of
Hardee’s corps on the march to Shiloh.
It was while Cleburne was in camp at
Corinth, Miss., before the battle of
Shiloh, that the writer first saw him*
TJie waiter was then commanding a
company of independent cavalry, and
when riding back and forth from his
camp to Corinth, noticed morning and
afternoon a certain brigade of infantry
regularly and industriously drilled.
The leader was a plain-looking officer,
dressed in faded gray, topped with a
weather-beaten slouched gray hat,
riding an ungainly gray-steed of pe
culiar power, the rider and horse being
singularly matched, and giving an
idea of rugged strength. That un
couth and indefatigable driller was
Cleburne.
On Friday afternoon before the bat
tle of Shiloh, my company arrived
near the field, General Johnston ex
pected to have opened the battle Sat
urday morning. But his troops did
not all arrive on the ground. Friday
night was a wild one, tempestuous
with shivering accompaniments of rain
and lightning. About nine o’clock,
when my troopers were huddling
around the feeble camp fires, an order
came from General Hindman to go
half a mile beyond the outer picket
line and establish a new chain of pick
ets. The order informed me that
Captain Phillips, of Cleburne’s staff,
would give all the necessary informa
tion.
With difficulty, in the storm and
darkness, Cleburne’s quarters were
found. All had gone to sleep. A
sentinel directed me to a tent, and I
called among the sleepers for Captain
Phillips. A gruff voice from the dark
ness asked what I wanted. I told my
purpose. The gruff speaker curtly re
plied that Captain Phillips had work
to do to-morrow, and needed rest, and
that General Hindman must furnish
his own guide. Just then Captain
Phillips awoke and kindly offered his
services, remarking, “General, it won’t
hurt me.” The gruff' voice still in
dulged in some muttered objections,
and then invited me in while Captain
Phillips was getting ready. The speak
er was Cleburne. This was our intro
duction, and it is needless to say I was
not pleasantly impressed. In the bat
tle of Shiloh Cleburne commanded the
left brigade of the first line of the at
tack, and lost one thousand killed and
wounded, the heaviest loss of any bri
gade in the field. But he pu-hed on
within four hundred yards of the ene
my’s intrenchments and drove the fu
gitive enemy behind the cliffs of Pitts
burg Landing.
During the second day’s battle of
Shiloh the fighting was terrific, with
occasional lulls. It seemed as if both
sides spent themselves at intervals, and
rested their fury in utter exhaustion.
With straining desperation our line
held its own under fierce and repeated
assaults. The pressure at times of
overwhelming numbers upon our deci
mated ranks was frightful. Thous
ands of demoralized soldiers ignomin
iously straggled back, deaf to entreaty
or menace. The order was issued for
the cavalry to be dispersed into squads
and bring the straggling infantry to
the front. The shame of that day,
glorious in the splendid audacity and
heroism of the few who stood immova
ble against every assault, was this dis
tressing desertion. It did not often
happen to the Southern soldier, but
the enjoyment of unusual camp luxu
ries, captured from the enemy, had
spread a strange timidity or something
else unwonted to our steady soldiers.
CLEBURNE BRIGADELESS.
The writer was pushing these strag
glers to the front, when a familiar
voice hailed and inquired what I was
doing. It was Cleburne alone, with
out even a staff officer, his brigade
scattered to the four winds, not a man
to follow him. In the fearful carnage
of the twu. days’ fight his command
had dwindled to nothing, and he was
a leader without men. He joined me
in my duty. Sometimes we found ten
or fifteen men, with an officer, buried
in the bushes, shirking the danger. 1
THE KENNESAW GAZETTE.
would that I could pass over these
facts, but the truth must be told.
Spots they are upon an admitted and
magnificent chronicle of gallantry. I
can recall Cleburne, with pistol in
hand, ordering such fellows to the
front in a harsh, loud voice—a voice
dissonant in its high notes, but sweet
in its low tones.
Later in the afternoon we met Col.
Carney, a volunteer aid on Hardee’s
staff, who told us that General Beau
regard had ordered a retreat; and
still later we met Gen. Breckinridge,
who had charge of the rear guard,
who confirmed the intelligence; and
still later we met General Hardee, sit
ting at the foot of a tree, unblanched
and cool, as he always was amid the
worst disaster. We spent an hour or
two destroying ammunition and pre
paring for the retrogade, Cleburne do
ing a private’s part. We heard groans
in the wood oH from the road, and dir
covered a poor fellow lying in a sitting
position against a log, pallid, faint,
dying, bowels torn out, suffering un
utterable agony, and begging God for
merciful death. There was nothing
in which to remove him ; he could not
bear touching if we had had an ambu
lance; there was no relief for him but
speedy death, the quicker the better,
and we had to leave him in the falling
night to faintly moan for the dissolu
tion of body and soul that alone offer
ed surcease of his measureless misery.
It was a cruel and suggestive case of
war’s horrors. With a “poor fellow !”
as tenderly uttered as a mother could
speak to a sick babe, and a tear in eyes
that in battle blazed like fire, Cleburne
left him.
A MEMORABLE SUPPER.
As we passed through a camp we
saw some immense hard-tacks, a buck
et of butter and a half sack of corn.
The writer lifted the corn to the front
of Cleburne’s saddle, by his direction.
I then buttered for each of us one of
the huge areas of biscuit, and, swing
ing the bucket on my own arm for
further use, on we rode, eagerly munch
ing the tough provender. I often af
terward joked the general upon his
comical appearance holding with one
hand the bulky sack of grain on his
saddle pommel, and with the other
grasping a sneet of cracker as broad
as the map of the United States, and
cramming it in heavy relays down his
throat. The rain began to fall, adding
to the gloom of the disaster. It be
came heavier until it grew to a steady
pour, and the road was converted into
a deep slop and the way impenetrably
dark, and we could go only by the oc
casional flash athwart the Cimmerian
darkness. We fed our horses about
nine o’clock, and then resumed our
weary ride to Corinth. Men and ani
mals were worn out. We rode sleep
ing, and would be awaked by jostling
against some one, or a deep oath from
some startled tramper. The horses
would stop to drink in crossing branch
es and fall asleep. Frequently I would
awake and find my horse stark still,
and a blinding Hash of lightning would
reveal the general’s gray hugging
closely to my mare, the general snooz
ing away as if he had made a special
contract to sleep.
At length, far in the night, we ar
rived at a broad creek,'and let our
stock drink, and, of course, the writer
went to sleep. 1 was awakened by a
deafening clap of thunder. I called
for my companion but he was gone,
and I saw him no more for several
days. Cleburne told_ me., afterward
that he awoke and found me missing,
and shouted lustily for me, and then
rode on and brought up finally at a
farm house. The roads forked beyond
the creek, and we took different routes.
This experience was the beginning of
a warm intimacy that never knew
change or had a change. And upon
one occasion General Cleburne ex
pressed the desire unsolicited to add his
indorsement in recommending the
writer’s promotion.
INTO KENTUCKY.
At the battle of Farmington Cle
burne was again engaged, and distin
guished himself in the brilliant affair
of “Shelton House.” From Tupelo
he joined Kirby Smith’s army at Knox
ville, Tenn., and in the summer of
1862 he entered Kentucky in command
of his own and Preston Smith’s brigade.
The column under Kirby Smith was
to penetrate byway of Cumberland
Gap and form a junction with Bragg’s
main army. Cleburne led the advance
into Kentucky, and with his two brig
ades of less than three thousand men
he commenced the famous battle of
Richmond, Ky., and defeated General
Manson in the first fight of that memo
rable day. This was one of the most
complete victories of the war, result
ing in the overthrow of the Federal
forces in Kentucky, the capture of a
large number of prisoners and a great
amount of necessary stores. During
the action Cleburne received a severe
and singular wound. While in the
act of giving a command to his troops
a minnie-ball entered his mouth and
passed out the left cheek, carrying
away five of his teeth without fractur
ing the bone. The loss of his two
front teeth gave his voice a peculiar
hissing sound, which was very unpleas
ant when he spoke in an excited or an
gry manner.
For his gallant and meritorious ser
vices on Richmond fiekl he leceived a
vote of thanks from the Confederate
States. The severity of his wound
prevented his participation in the after
movements of his brigade until it was
determined to retransfer him to Bragg’s
army. Before he had fully recovered
from his injuries he rejoined his com
mand at Frankfort, Ky., and moving
forward, occupied Shelbyville. The
rapid advance of Buell’s forces soon
compelled him to fall back, and he
joined General Bragg on the 7lh of
October, the day before the battle of
Perryville. In this action he had two
horses shot under him and was again
wounded. While leading his men in
a desperate charge he was struck by a
cannon-ball, which disabled his ankle,
but did not keep him from performing
his duties in the field. An incident
occurred during this action that will
serve to illustrate his power over the
troops he led. Seeing the critical mo
ment arrive to advance, Cleburne
turned his horse’s head toward the
point of attack, rose in bis stirrups,
and, pointing in the direction of the
enemy,. he shouted with a ringing
voice, “Come on, my boys, and give
them hell!” His division Hashed after
him at the double-quick to victory.
Just at that moment the Bishop-Gen
eral Leonidas Polk, rode up, and wish
ing to encourage his own men, yet not
daring to swear, he shouted, “Go on,
boys, and give them what Pat Cleburne
says!”
A MAJOR-GENERAL.
The promotion of this brilliant sol
dier was uncommonly rapid. On the
13th of December, 1862, he was ap
pointed major-general and placed in
command of Buckner’s division. Th s
promotion was made by the President
of the Confederate States in pers< n
while on a visit to the Army of Ten
nessee. On the 31st. of December,
1862, Cleburne had his division in the
battle of Murfreesboro, and with a sin
gle line of battle he drove five succ s
sive lines of Federals. His mast<-i»
handling of his troops on this occasio i
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