Reminiscences of the Terry Rangers Page: 63
vii, 79 p. ; 26 cm.View a full description of this book.
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Sherman's Bluff Called; Ravages of War 63
executed and in every case giving his (Sherman's) officers the
preference.'6 General Sherman saw his bluff could not be carried
out for the reason, perhaps, that twice or three times as many
Yankee prisoners were captured daily as were taken from the Confederates,
for our scouts were exceedingly active, being on all
sides of the enemy almost daily, while the Federals were straggling
all out from the main body, trying to desolate South Carolina,
because they regarded her as exceedingly wicked in being the
first State to secede from the Union. The irons were promptly
removed from the prisoners and they were sent in to our camps
without the formality of exchange. These poor fellows came into
the camps full of wrath against the Rangers for their murderous
acts and said, "You men think it fine sport, but if you had to
take our chances as hostages you would play the game differently."
But their wrath and injunctions were wasted on their audience,
for the Texans were fully decided as far as possible to protect
the honor and property of helpless people against the vandalism
and destruction of an unprincipled antagonist, whose main ambition
seemed to be to make the Southern people realize that war
was hell as their leader was accustomed to say to them. Just what
there was in the truce conference held to cause the release of the
prisoners may be only surmised, but why General Sherman refused
to make the exchange sought seemed manifest at the time
to parties most interested.
The ravages of war were fearful to behold. Any one could
stand upon an eminence in the morning and tell by the smoke
from burning buildings just how far east and west General Sherman's
line of march extended. From the daily reports, which we
believed authentic, every living animal for use or food was taken
from the citizens, including all kinds of fowls, and their smokehouses
and pantries were stripped, and when the women and children
would appeal to General Sherman for food he would tell
them to call on their people in the northern part of the State.
There was just one article of food they could neither destroy nor
carry off and that was sweet potatoes, of which there was an
lThis correspondence may be found in Official Records, Series I, Vol.
XLVII, Part II, pp. 546, 596.-C. W. R.
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Blackburn, J. K. P. Reminiscences of the Terry Rangers, book, 1919; [Austin, Texas]. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth46826/m1/72/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .