WHY I GOT IN BED WITH A CORPSE.
BY E. I. KILLIE, JASPER, TEX.
I enlisted in the Confederate army in Texas in 1861, at the age of sixteen, and went to Missouri and saw my first fighting at Oak Hills, then at Elkhorn Tavern, in Arkansas, after which our command was dismounted and sent across the Mississippi River and was attached to the Army of Tennessee. After taking part in the battles of Farmington, Iuka and Corinth, we were again mounted, and our Texas brigade, under Gen. L. S. Ross, was assigned to Jackson's Division and took part in all the campaigns of that army. It is not the fighting I desire to tell about, so will skip that and relate my personal experiences in another matter.
Our division was on the left wing of Johnston's army all the way from Dalton as Sherman flanked us back to Atlanta. It was fight, fight, fight all day and often at night, and we were nearly worn out. In a hard fight at Dallas, Ga., my messmate and chum caught a Minie ball through his left arm, at which he rather rejoiced, exclaiming: "Got a furlough at last!" That night he persuaded me to go with him to his sister's, who lived, he said, about sixty miles south of Atlanta.
I agreed to go with my wounded comrade and see him safe at his sister's, and my captain said; "All right, go ahead and come back as soon as you can." We were given dinings, picnics, parties, and dances until I forgot about there being any war and that my duty was with my command, after about three weeks of pleasure, I came to my senses one morning and told my chum that we must go back, his arm having healed. He replied: "No. sir, not under sixty days for me."
The third day of my return trip I found the citizens of a little town gathering their forces, old men and boys, to meet a Federal raid that was reported coming to burn a bridge at West Point. Finding I was a veteran, I was put in command, and with some four hundred old men and boys we formed on the east side of the river and remained all day, when we learned that the Yanks had changed their course. I bade my valiant command good-by, rode on toward Atlanta, and at a little town (I think Hamilton) I met up with a Lieutenant Black, who belonged to the 3d Texas, whom I knew well. He had been badly wounded and was returning to his company. I was glad to get with him. as the home guards had several times tried to arrest me. I told the Lieutenant where I had been and he said: "All right, we'll go on together."
As dark approached we saw a large two-story house some distance back from the road and concluded to try our luck on getting to spend the night there. We rode up to the gate, and soon a gentleman came out, to whom we explained our wants. When he found out that we were going to the army he told us to get down, saying that he would gladly take care of us, and adding: "Come right in. I'll have your horses cared for." He took us through the house and out into the dining room, which was detached from the house. Seating us at a table full of good old Georgia victuals, he called a negro woman and told her to wait on us excusing himself to go see about our horses. He soon came back and conversed with us about the war and its outcome until we were through eating. The Lieutenant said: "My friend, we will not stay for breakfast, as we are anxious to get to our command; and if you will show us to our place to sleep, we will retire." "O, I can give you breakfast anyway. We have plenty of negroes; but I will show you where to sleep." I had noticed several women and two or three men about the place, but never thought anything about it. "Young man," he said, turning to me, "you go upstairs," designating room.
On arriving at the top of the stairs I saw a door open and a candle burning on a table in the corner. A Confederate candle was a poor affair for giving light. However, I supposed that room was intended for me. The bed was in the far corner, and I went over to it and saw there was some one in it; but, it not being uncommon to put two soldiers in a bed, I thought nothing about it and, taking off my jacket and pants and shoes, blew out the candle and rolled in. In getting into the bed I rolled against the other fellow on purpose, thinking I'd wake him and let him know I was there also. He didn't move, however, and I turned over and went to sleep. How long I had been asleep, I have no idea; it might have been but a few minutes or an hour; but I woke up suddenly, hearing voices in the room. Some one said: "Why, who put out the candle?" The candle was relit and a man and a woman took seats at the table, the woman facing me. I kept wondering what in the world they were doing in the room. I could occasionally hear part of their conversation, but could catch on to nothing that related to me. I could not go to sleep, and kept watching them as well as I could from my position and wishing they would get out. Finally the lady said in rather an indignant voice: "You ought to be ashamed to be talking about love in the presence of the dead."
In less time than I can tell it I realized that my bedfellow was dead; that I had got into the wrong room. I knew I was in bed with a dead man, and I didn't intend to stay. Without thinking anything about the consequences I sat up and looked toward them. The lady saw me first, and with a scream that, it seemed, would take the roof off the house she jumped clean out of the room. The man looked toward the bed and with a yell and a leap he kicked over the table, and those two people got down those stairs in a hurry. I got out and. gathering up my duds, scampered across the ball into another room (the one intended for me. I guess) and, fastening the door, rolled into bed.
The commotion that was going on downstairs soon had everybody, negroes and all, aroused. I could hear the women call for camphor and all manner of restoratives, and the men were running about to beat the band. It took some time to find out what was the cause of all the trouble: but finally I heard them coming up the stairs and heard the Lieutenant ask where I was. They told him I was in that room, and he made me let him in, and I played off so sleepy that I couldn't understand that a dead man had come to life in the room opposite. They were all apparently afraid to go in, until the Lieutenant said, "Give me the candle. If he is not dead, he needs attention;" and in he went. He went up to the bed and found the sheet turned down as I had left it, and said: "Why, the man is dead. The wind just blew the sheet off."
"No, sir, that man rose and was sitting up looking at me," exclaimed the man who was in the room when I got up. He doubtless thought so.
There was no sleep for me the balance of that night, and as soon as the chickens began crowing for day I went and saddled up our horses, woke the Lieutenant and we rode off. I have ever since had remorse of conscience for not telling our host before I left how the whole thing occurred.
That day after we had ridden ten or twelve miles I told the Lieutenant about it under promise of secrecy. He got off his horse and laughed until I got mad and left him, and he failed to keep the secret. He related the incident to General Ross, who used to laugh heartily. One time when he was our Governor he got me to relate it to some friends in his office.
We reached the command in the midst of the terrible fight
