There was a small skirmish on the 16th of September, but on the 17th the battle opened in earnest. Hooker's force near Keedysville did some hard fighting and was supported by Mansfield's command, the gallant commander losing his life on the field. The divisions of Sedgwick, Richardson, and French were also to the front, and aided by the artillery, helped to make the Confederate position too hot to be held. Burnside was ordered across the creek, and went, although somewhat delayed. Then some two thousand fresh Confederate troops appeared, and Burnside was compelled to retire, when darkness put an end to the fighting, which had already lasted fourteen hours.
In this battle the Twenty-third Ohio Infantry fought with the Kanawha division. This division made a disastrous charge during the closing hours of the battle. As they were advancing, the enemy suddenly came forth from a neighboring cornfield and poured a deadly fire at them, shooting down their colors and several of the officers. For the instant there was a panic, but the soldiers rallied around Major Comly, who secured the fallen flag and raised it up, and then another rush was made. Soon a battery in the rear came to the aid of the Ohio troops, and the Confederates retired as quickly as they had come.
As commissary sergeant, William McKinley was not supposed to play a prominent part in the battle, yet the records show that he exhibited rare bravery in doing something which had never been done before, and which has seldom been done since.
The soldiers had had an early and scanty breakfast when called into action, and so rapid were their various movements that by noon many were faint and hungry. But the provision wagons were miles away, and it looked as if they must continue to fight on empty stomachs, no matter how much they craved food and drink.
With the provision wagons was Sergeant McKinley, and soon word reached him that the boys were hungry and thirsty, and dropping out right and left.
"If you could only give them a can of coffee, they'd be satisfied," said his informer.
"They shall have coffee and other rations too," cried the young commissary sergeant. "Here, help hitch up these mules!"
The provisions were in two wagons, and soon McKinley, aided by several army stragglers, had the mules hitched to these, and the journey to the front began. The way was uncertain, shot and shell flew in all directions, and while one wagon got stuck in a mud-hole, the mules of the other were disabled by the firing. But, undaunted, McKinley pushed on, driving the leading wagon himself and picking up a stray pair of mules as he went. At last he reached the field of battle, much to the amazement of many officers and to the intense delight of his command.
"Hurrah, here's Sergeant McKinley with rations!" was the cry. "Hurrah!" And somebody else added: "What have you got, Mac? Be sure and give us the best, for we may be dead men by next meal-time!"
And give them his best Sergeant McKinley did, boiling up coffee and handing it around by the cup, canteen, and kettle, along with the rest of the provisions. One poor fellow, who was shot and who was leaning against a tree, received his portion of coffee with a muttered "God bless the lad!" that went straight to McKinley's heart and repaid him, so he said, for all the trouble he had taken.
And what was the result of this unexpected devotion to duty? When the fighting was done, many laughed at the young sergeant, and some commissary men sneered at him for "going beyond his line of duty," as they put it. But Colonel Hayes did not sneer. Instead, when he heard of it, he was deeply impressed, and, later on, told Governor Todd the particulars.
"Such a fellow deserves promotion," said the governor, and at once wrote to headquarters, requesting that McKinley be made a lieutenant. The request was favorably considered, and on September 24, 1862, William McKinley became a second lieutenant. A loving attention to duty had won him his shoulder straps. Of this incident, Ex-President Hayes, in making an address years afterward, said: —
"From Sergeant McKinley's hand every man in the regiment was served with hot coffee and warm meats, a thing which had never occurred before under similar circumstances in any army in the world. He passed under fire and delivered with his own hands those things so essential to the men for whom he was laboring."
As a lieutenant McKinley was warmly received, although some mourned over losing such a conscientious commissary sergeant. Of his days as a private, McKinley himself wrote: —
"I always look back with pleasure upon those fourteen months in which I served in the ranks. They taught me a great deal. I was but a schoolboy when I went into the army, and that first year was a formative period in my life, during which I learned much of men and affairs. I have always been glad that I entered the service as a private and served those months in that capacity."
Early in October the regiment returned, with the rest of the Kanawha division, to West Virginia, marching by way of Hagerstown. There was a report of a Stuart raid in Pennsylvania, and a quick march was made in that direction. Quick marches were the order of the day, and on returning to Hancock the regiment ate breakfast in Pennsylvania, dinner in Maryland, and supper in Virginia, which was certainly a remarkable accomplishment when it is considered that the troops covered the ground largely on foot.
In the middle of November the regiment went into winter quarters at the falls of the Great Kanawha. The records show that during the campaign of 1862 it marched about six hundred miles. It had lost several valuable officers and a large number of men; in round figures, over two hundred. Many were sick, and the camp equipments were no longer of the best. More than this, the eyes of every volunteer were now wide open to the fact that the soldiers of the South could fight just as bravely and sturdily as those of the North, and that the war was likely, in consequence, to last for a long while to come.
"Tell you what, it ain't going to be no picnic, after all," drawled one of the privates. "It's going to be hard work and plenty of it."
Yet for the time being there was little to do. The regiment remained where it was until the middle of March, 1863, when it was ordered to Charleston, Virginia, remaining there several months. During this time Lieutenant McKinley was occupied in drilling a portion of the command. His spare time was used in reading history and the biographies of noted military men, for he was now thinking strongly of making the army his chosen profession. In speaking of those days, one old veteran has said: —
"He was a model officer, and a good fellow to boot. To be sure, there was a certain reserve about him, so that one couldn't get too familiar, but he was never harsh, and he never swore at us as some officers did. He never seemed to care for rough stories, and I don't think he ever told such a story in his life, even though he would occasionally make a good-natured joke. He was a great fellow to read and to watch how matters were going in camp, and he kept his uniform and equipments as clean as the cleanest."
At this time Morgan's guerillas were doing much harm in the vicinity of Buffington Bar and Hockingport, on the Ohio River, and about the middle of July the regiment moved upon the noted raider, in company with other commands.
Morgan's raid was remarkable in the dash and fire with which it was carried out, and also in the amount of property which was either carried off or destroyed by the raiders. The daring guerilla had under him several thousand cavalrymen, almost as daring as himself, several regiments from Tennessee, and a battery of artillery. With this force he, late in June, set out from Sparta, Tennessee, and marched into Kentucky. After one or two small encounters, he reached New Market, and then set out for Lebanon. This town was guarded by a force of four hundred men who fought for seven hours, but were at last forced to surrender. Entering the place, the raiders supplied themselves with all they desired, and then pushed on to Bardstown and other places. At Shepardsville, a train was stopped, and the guerillas captured a number of soldiers, and confiscated a large amount of valuable mail matter.
The next stop was made at Brandenburg,
