s, against any odds,
and could not be discouraged.

Let us glance for a moment at Port Hudson, La., in May, 1863, assaulted
by General Banks with a force of which the 1st and 2nd Regiments,
Louisiana Native Guards, formed a part. When starting upon their
desperate mission, Colonel Stafford of the 1st Regiment, in turning over
the regimental colors to the color-guard, made a brief and patriotic
address, closing with the words:

"Color-guard: Protect, defend, die for, but do not surrender, these
colors." The gallant flag-sergeant, Plancianos, taking them replied:
"Colonel: I will bring back these colors to you in honor, or report to
God the reason why."

Six times with desperate valor they charged over ground where success
was hopeless, a deep bayou between them and the works of the enemy at
the point of attack rendering it impossible to reach them, yet strange
to say, six times they were ordered forward and six times they went to
useless death, until swept back by the blazing breath of shot and shell
before which nothing living could stand. Here fell the gallant Captain
Cailloux, black as the ace of spades. Refusing to leave the field though
his arm had been shattered by a bullet, he returned to the charge until
killed by a shell.

A soldier limping painfully to the front was halted and asked where he
was going. He replied, "I am shot bad in de leg, and dey want me to go
to de hospital, but I guess I can give 'em a little more yet."

The colors came back, but crimsoned with the blood of the gallant
Plancianos, who reported to God from that bloody field.

Shall we glance from this to Millikens Bend, La., in January, 1863,
garrisoned by the 9th and 11th Louisiana and the 1st Mississippi, all
Negroes, and about 160 of the 23rd Iowa (white), about 1100 fighting men
in all? Attacked by a force of six Confederate regiments, crushed out of
their works by sheer weight of numbers, borne down toward the levee,
fighting every step of the way, hand to hand--clubbed musket, bayonets,
and swords,--from three A. M. to twelve noon, they fought desperately
until a Union gun-boat came to the rescue and shelled the desperate foe
back to the woods, with a total loss to the defenders of 437
men,--two-fifths of their strength.

Shall we turn with sadness to Fort Wagner, S. C., in July, 1863, when
the 54th Massachusetts won its deathless fame, and its grand young
commander, Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, passed into the temple of
immortal