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KHINESAW V
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Vol. 11.
The Western & Atlantic Rail
road’s
HYMN OF PRAISE.
God of wisdom, who the minds lit
Which devised thisroval way,
Still Thy wisdom’s influence binds it
In faith’s counsels e’en to day.
God of battles, when death’s terrors
Flash’d like lightnings o’er our land,
Thou protecting then wast near us,
Shielded us beneath Thy hand.
God of mercy, when home’s treasure
Ruin smote, and chill’d our pride,
Then Thy grace was our sole pleasure,
In our hearts hope else had died.
God of love, with us, beside us
Dwell, and feast us with Thy love;
Take us by the hand and lead us,
Guide us to Thy courts above.
God of glory, when Thy splendor
Wondrous fills eternity,
By Thy Son’s blood, pure and tender,
Saved may we abide with Thee.
Jos. M. Brown.
Flowers for the Graves of Sol
diers.
April has witnessed in the south,
and May has witnessed in the south
and north the observance of “Memo
rial Day” for the Confederate dead
and “Decoration Day” for the Union
dead. On these days the men and
women of the south and of the north
have come with their children to the
last resting places of the fallen soldiery
to strew flowers upon their graves, and
to call anew to remembrance the af
fection in which the dead were held
when they went forth from home into
the battle storm twenty odd years ago.
It is an observance which does honor
to the hearts and hands of those who
are gathered in the “cities of the dead”
with
“Flowers, for the graves of our soldiers,
Who sleep ’till the dawn of the day,
When the bugle shall call to the last review
The ‘Boys in Blue and Gray.’
Flowers to fill the chasm
That divided our beautiful land,
Mowers, for the comrades gone before,
To join their last command.
Gone, to the great court-martial,
Where the love and prayers of our land
Shall form a strong Relief Corps,
Upheld by woman’s hand.”
A. humorous dare-devil—tine very man to suit my purpose. Bulweb.
THE “DEATH OF GENERAL FOLK" ZNTLTNTBEEL
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DEATH OF GENERAL POLK.
Gen. Slicnuan’s Account of Gen.
Polk’s Death.
* * * By the 14th, the rain
slackened, and we occupied a continu
ous line of ten miles, intrenched, con
forming to the irregular position of the
enemy, when I reconnoitered, with a
view to make a break in their line be
tween Kennesaw and Pine Mountain.
When abreast of Pine Mountain, I no
ticed a rebel battery on its crest, with
a continuous line of fresh rifle-trench
about half-way down the hill. Our
skirmishers were at the time engaged
in the woods about the base of this hill
between the lines, and 1 estimated the
distance to the battery on the crest at
about eight hundred yards. Near it,
in plain view, stood a group of the en
emy, evidently observing us with glass
es/ General Howard, commanding
the Fourth Corps, was near by, and I
called his attention to this group, and
ordered him compel it to keep behind
its cover. He replied that his orders
from General Thomas were to spare
artillery-ammunition. This was right,
according to the general policy, but I
explained to him that we must keep
up the morale of a bold offensive, that
he must use his artillery, force the en
emy to remain on the timid defensive,
and ordered him*to” cause a battery
close by to fire three volleys. The
next division in order was Geary’s,
and I gave him similar orders, Gen-
ATLANTA, CA., JUNE I, 1887.
eral Polk, in my opinion, was killed by
the second volley fired from the first
battery referred to.
*l* *4* *l* 4*
It has been asserted that I fired the
gun which killed General I’olk, and
that I knew it was directed against that
General. The fact is, at that distance
we could not even tell that the group
were officers, at all; I was on horse
back, a couple of hundred yards off,
before my orders to fire were executed;
had no idea that our shot had taken
effect, and continued my ride down
along the line to Schofield’s extreme
flank, returning late in the evening to
my headquarters at Big Shanty, where
I occupied an abandoned house. In
the cotton-field back of that house was
our signal station, on the roof of an old
gin-house. The signal-officer reported
that by studying the enemy’s signals
he had learned the “key,” and that he
could read their signals. He explain
ed to me that he had translated a sig
nal about noon, from Pine Mountain
to Marietta, “Send an ambulance for
General Polk’s bodyand late in the
day another, “Why don’t you send an
ambulance for General Polk?” From
this we inferred that General Polk had
been killed, but how or where, we
knew not; -and this inference was con
firmed later in the same day by the re
port of some prisoners who had been cap
tured,-(“Memoirs,” pages 52,53,54.)
Lieutenant-General Polk Killed
From the Atlanta Intelligencer, June 16, 1864.
Marietta, June 14, 1864.
Col. J. S. Thrasher: —
Lieut-Gen. Polk was struck by a
cannon shot to-day about eleven o’clock,
and was instantly killed.
Generals Johnston, Hardee and
Jackson were with him when he fell.
Douglas West, A. A. G.
Lieutenant - General Leonidas
Polk.
From the Augusta Constitutionalist, June 16,1864.
No event of personal description,
says the Atlanta Confederacy, since the
fall of Stonewall Jackson, compares,
in painful interest and in national
calamity, with the death of Ueuten
ant-G eneral Leonidas Polk. He was
every inch a soldier, gentleman and
Christian, and he was beloved and re
spected beyond the usual mark, both
in the army and in the church. Few
of the citizens of the south have led
so varied and distinguished a career,
and no one in his sphere of duty was
more useful and representative. He
was faithful in purpose, sincere of
heart, zealous by nature, and the
very soul of courage. His spirit was
as ardent as the most fiery knight of
the crusade, but there mingled with
his chivalry the temperance of prin
ciple. With an hereditary pride of
character, an inherent dignity and a
lofty presence, he united the modesty
and grace of piety in religion, and
charity in life. Excepting only
Gen. Robert E. Lee, the bearing of
no man in the south was so imposing.
It bore all the charm of a ready ad
dress, a frank manliness and good
humor, a graceful carriage, a personal
of symmetrical proportion, and a
countenance warm with gracious kind
liness, cheerfulness and culture. He
was generous and genial. His ele
gance of manner was rivalled by the
beauty and versatility of his conver
sation. Perhaps his only fault as a
commander was his social genius; but
had he followed the profession of arms
from the time he quitted West Point
to the present day, instead of spending
five and twenty years of the interim
in the church, this war would not have
known his superior. Those who know
him do not doubt that his natural
fitness was for the field.
As a churchman and prelate, Bishop
Polk reminded tlm stranger of the
ancient worthies of England, whom
Hume could not but respect, and...
whom Macaulay reveres ; but in the
saddle he was us clear an idea of Ju
piter Tonaus as we ever beheld, a dar-
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