Show BRAVING MOUTH OF A CANNON Veteran of Oak Park III ill Tells ol of Terrible Fighting Experience at A portion of the battle of Spottsyl vania vanla court house houseS which extended from May 8 to May 18 1864 staying for a time the inevitable advance 01 ol Grants Grant's army toward the end of all things at Appomattox Is remembered by F. F M. M Ellis an Oak Park Ili architect as bS one of the most terrible portions of the war that have hav coma come under his bis notice It was about two o'clock In the afternoon of May 12 said Mr Ellis Elils llIs hen when oui battery was ordered to take Its place on the line We were near hear a t turnpike road and advanced along this but were soon halted for foi foia rora a wait walt of ot some minutes and sent into parking arkIng at the tho side of ot the road We Ve had been there probably not more than two minutes when a n shell sheU burst bear near by The captain then gave orders orders or ders pers to dismount but Just as the order order or or- der came another shell burst directly over us The fuse had be been n cut a little longer A large fragment of the shell descended on us and tore the saddle from the swing or middle team of the tile gun I was on killing one of the hOJ horses ses Then we to get out of f the pirking The pike was filled with wounded men len going to the rear like Uke the crowd In Ia a u Chicago street and there were strings of ambulances continually passing We drove droye against the current current cur cur- rent to the place where our batteries of or long range guns had been set up and waited there for a while In order order or or- der to be of service we must be nearer near nea nearer er the enemy and In a short time we advanced beyond our battery line Une We Ve descended into a ravine and cUmbea the other side unlimbering our four guns under the brow of the hill Before Be He fore COle us at the right there was open ground to a point half a mile distant where the timber began At the left i the woods came came- almost to the ravine I and here the Second Michigan l infantry infantry try was stationed Near the trees halt half a mile mUe distant a little at our right were four Confederate Confederate Con Can federate regiments This point was waft supposed to tobe be one the oneo-the of the weak places 1 I Ii i fi U s regiments tf tL r m. m li nt a breach We I e a d they ked Into I Ith the woods at our ett We were dep deI de- de I p l c men men at the left Iet to to r v p t ln i the the- the woods woods- I I Whether dId did not or whether the I I pickets were unable to give the alarm I I do not know I du snow Know that sudI suddenly sud sud- I denly the Confederates appeared at atthe atthe the edge of the woods within tW Tl coat w wit I Ut r cry cry Who says were we're not 1 I men He lie grasped the the- sponge star and rammed borne a charge of cants ter Out the enemy dame came again from frOID the woods and no braver men ever lived d or died looking Into the cannons cannon's can ran non's mouth They had to form Term into heavy columns pressing forward an and n walking over the dead to fill fili the bro bra braken broken broken ken ranks To uTo me as 1 I stood In partial parUa cover holding the horses It seemed an age but In la reality It must have e been a 8 short time Indeed before the crates fell feU back again There had bad been more of them killed before our battery than there were AmerIcans Americana killed on the firing tiring line In all aU aUthe the Spanish American warWe warWe war We had received the full tull force of 01 he the fight The Michigan Infantry at mr nir left had helped us but hey they had bad I lot been fired on on I believe belleve only one f them was lost and that was a man mani i bo ho had bred gone to drawn one of ou our I wn wounded out of danger |