Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 33.djvu/369

 Graphic Account of Battle of Crater. 365

This practically ended the fight inside the fort, but the two armies outside continued firing- at this common centre and it seemed to us that the shot, shell and musket balls came from every point of the compass and the mortar shells rained down from above. They had previously attacked from below. So this unfortunate fort was one of the few points of the universe which had been assailed from lit- erally ever quarter.

THE AFTERMATH AND INCIDENTS. GENERAL BARTLETT'S CORK

LEG.

The slaughter was fearful. The dead were piled on each other. In one part of the fort I counted eight bodies deep. There were but few wounded compared with the killed.

There was an incident which occurred in the captured fort that made quite an impression on me. Among the wounded was the Yankee General Bartlett. He was lying down and cauld not rise. Assistance was offered him, but he informed those who were as- sisting him that his leg was broken and so it was, but it proved to be an artificial leg, made of cork.

One of our officers ordered a couple of negroes to move him, but he protested, and I believe he was given white assistance.

This general afterwards, so I have been informed, became an hon- ored citizen of Virginia, though at that time, I must say, I never would have believed such a thing possible. One of our soldiers see- ing the cork leg and springs knocked to pieces waggishly said, "General you are a fraud. I thought that was a good leg when I shot it."

As the dust and smoke cleared away the firing seemed to lull, but there was no cessation of firing that evening. Indeed, it was continued for months by the sharpshooters.

After dark tools were brought with which we reconstructed the wrecked fort. In doing this we buried the dead down in the fort by covering them with earth. The fire of the enemy was entirely too severe to carry them out. We were therefore forced to stand on them and defend our positions while we remained in the fort, which was until the following Monday night.

As we went over the embankment into the fort, one of my ser- geants, Andrew McWilliams, a brave fellow, was shot in the mouth, the ball did not cut his lips. It came out of the top of his head. He was evidently yelling with his mouth wide open. He fell on top