Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 27.djvu/99

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to do was to leave this ^iin and save the rest, if we could. Pegram did not think so, and he quickly gave the order:

"Action, front! Fire double charges of canister!"

While we obeyed this order under his personal direction, the drivers replaced the dead horse, and again the bugle sounded: " Lim- ber to the rear! Cannoneers mount! Retire! " which was instantly obeyed, for the enemy were within less than 100 yards of our guns and in great force.

We galloped away with all of our guns, but reinforcements coming up, we soon had our old position back. After this, Pegram heard the men discussing how near we came to losing the gun. He merely said: " Men, whenever the enemy takes a gun from my battery, look for my dead body in front of it." And he kept his word.

From a private in an infantry company, he rose to be a colonel of artillery, and commanded at one time, as high as sixty guns in bat- tle. He never lost a single piece until the final break-up at Five Forks. He died, aged 22, in Gilliand Field, in a little redoubt, by the side of the first gun the enemy had ever captured from his com- mand, and his eyes were closed in death 'ere they claimed the prize.

What Napoleon said of Ney might well be said of Willie Pegram, the boy artillerist: "What a man! What a soldier!" Of boyish form and face, in camp and on the march he had the voice and man- ners of a school-girl. Kind and gentle to his men, still a stern dis- ciplinarian, requiring every one to do his whole duty. Amid the roar of his guns on the battlefield he became a giant in voice and stature, and seemed to know in the hottest battle just which gun was doing the best work, even when he had forty in action, and never failed to give praise even to a private when due, but just as quick to censure if it was deserved. He once heard that some of his men had censured him for volunteering to go into a very desperate posi- tion, where a whole gun's crew were cut down with one shell. He immediately called the company into line, and said:

" Men, I have heard that I have been blamed for the disaster that occurred to our company at Manassas. Every man who is not wil- ling to follow me wherever I choose to take him, will please step to the front. If a majority, I will resign and go into the ranks; if a minority, I will give them a transfer to such other commands as they may select. ' '

He waited some time. Not a man stirred. "Then," said he, " let us have no more of this talk. A soldier should always seek the most desperate post that has to be filled."