Chapter 41 - The Death Of W. H. Shroyer

CHAPTER XLI

DEATH OF LT. W. H. SCHROYER

On the 15th of the month the company sustained a severe loss in the untimely death of Lieutenant Schroyer, whose death was the result of an injury received during the late battle.

Lieutenant Schroyer was one of the three Schroyer brothers who had enlisted in the company among the first and was the second one who had died in less than the nine months from the time that the company left Selinsgrove.  He was in the prime of life, having left a wife and family of small children giving the support of his strong right in defense of the government of his fathers and which had been so ruthlessly assailed by the armed cohorts of slavery and rebellion, and in whose defense he met his death.

As an officer and a soldier he was loved and respected by the members of his company and regiment, kind hearted and gener­ous to a fault, ever the protector and defender of the weaker and younger members of the company, always at his post, ready for his duty or an emergency that his command was called upon to face.  His death created a vacancy in the ranks of Company G that was never filled.  His remains, after being embalmed, were sent home and interred in the 1st Lutheran Cemetery, by the side of his brother and near to the last resting place of Sergeant Henry Baker.

We lay in the orchard camp until about the 20^th, when we were moved one half mile nearer the Landing to where the remainder of the Brigade was encamped.

Lot Ulrich was detailed and sent down to the Brigade Bakery.  It was here that Lot lost his four month’s pay and which was picked up by a little Irishman, who acted so suspic­iously that. he was suspected, and when upon a search being made on his person, the greenbacks were found and Lot was correspondingly happy.  The fellow was spiteful at Lot, and sought to quarrel with him, whenever the slightest opportunity offered itself, and one day he rushed at Ulrich with a large knife drawn.  Lot thought that prompt action was necessary, and accordingly knocked the belligerent mackerel eater down, convincing him that Lot’s muscle was to firmly knit to be trifled with.

General Geary, having been injured by the explosion of a shell at Chancellorsville, was absent and the Division was commanded by Gen. Greene the ranking Brigadier.  Gen. Greene was a rigid drill master and under his command Division drill was the order of the day.

A short distance from our camp was a beautiful tract of country, called Bell’s Plain, here the Division would assemble twice and three times a week to be exercised in the various military evolutions by the General.  Upon one occasion after the boys had been drilled several hours, in the hot sun, much of which time was spent in double-quicking, and when the General was about to turn the Brigades over to their respective commanders, the Generals daughter, a young lady of about seven years of age said:

“Pa, make the men trot again, I like to see it.”

And “trot” we did for the next half hour.  If that young lady would have heard the remarks made by the men that had to do the “trotting,” we do not think that she would have felt herself very highly complimented.

Afterwards whenever the General and daughter would ride past our quarters, the boys would sing out:

“Pa, make them trot again, I like to see it.”

As soon as General Geary returned, he commenced to erect forts and to make all necessary  preparations to resist an attack from the enemy.

The. members of the company were kept very busy, guarding, fatigue duty, company, regimental, brigade and division drill, in short, every available and practicable effort was made to place our division in a high state of military discipline.

Quite an unusual amount of sickness prevailed among the troops, and orders were issued prohibiting the sale of fish at the Landing to the soldiers.  This order caused the boys to adopt numerous ruses, whereby they might succeed in evading the argus eyed patrol.  Sometimes the boys were caught, and then a day’s duty at the lauding was the consequence.  Quite a number of the boys of the company did more duty than would have fallen to their lot by a regular detail, the writer has a feint idea of having volunteered (?) to do duty at the Landing, while the order was in force.