e little Barney Rogers
that I cut the breeches off from at Antietam. In a few days I got a
letter from Barney written by his son, in which was the statement, "I am
he." It went on to say that he was hit under the big toe by a bullet
that had probably gone into the ground, struck a stone and glanced up,
taking him as indicated. He said that he went off the field in the way I
have described, until he was out of danger, and then hopped along as
best he could. Finally, a soldier from a Connecticut regiment met him,
who had an extra pair of pants, which he gave to Barney. He got inside
of them as speedily as possible, and then waited for an ambulance, when
he was taken to a hospital, and finally discharged.

In this battle our flag was shot through a good many times and the
staff had a bullet go through its center just above the hands of Sergt.
Hugh Montgomery, who was carrying it.

All through the 18th we remained in position, hugging the ground. The
picket lines of the two armies were near together, and were blazing away
at one another on every opportunity. Our line of battle was so near to
the picket line that anyone showing himself would be fired on. One of my
company, Julius C. Kelsey of Smyrna, was killed while on this duty. The
Sixty-first lost in killed and wounded about one-third of its number,
and so was again reduced to the size of a full company.

Some one discovered on the 19th for "Little Mac," the "Young Napolean"
that the enemy had, during the night, fallen back and crossed the
Potomac at Shepardstown. If the commander of the Army of the Potomac had
been a brave and competent general, he would have disposed of Lee at
this time. As I have before stated, McClellan knew while we were at
Frederick that Lee was to divide his army, sending a third of it to take
Harpers Ferry. He ought to have known when we overtook Lee at Sharpsburg
that he had but part of his army there, and he ought, with his entire
force, to have made a rushing attack at once. In place of that, he
dawdled for two days, giving Lee all the time he wanted to take Harpers
Ferry from the old, incompetent Miles, and to unite his army to fight
him. There was good brave fighting at Antietam, but it was by piece
meal--a division or corps here and a division or corps somewhere else.
The best work done that day by Caldwell's brigade, was by the Fifth New
Hampshire under its able colonel, Edward Cross, and by the Sixty-first
and Sixty-fourth New York unde