DOCUMENT: DOLLY LUNT BURGE

Dolly Lunt Burge, the widow of a Confederate officer andmistress of a plantation near Covington, Ga., met the left wingof Sherman's army four days into their march, on Nov. 19, 1864.Her diary, an extract of which is reprinted here, records rumoursof the army's approach days before their arrival, and the franticpreparations Burge and her neighbours made, hiding food andvaluables from Federal soldiers. It also vividly shows the humantoll of Sherman's march. Even die-hard Federals would be movedby the simple, stark account of her home being pillaged, andher horses--"my faithful servant so many years"--taken awayinto Union service. The discovery that an Illinois captain knewher brother reminds us that the war cut across lines of friendshipand family, which could unexpectedly reassert themselves. Mostcomplicated perhaps is the genuine concern she expresses forher slaves, several of whom were forcibly removed from the plantation,and whose goods were appropriated along with hers. (Comparethis with Coffin's meeting with slaves in Savannah.) This document is reproduced in its original form; spelling,grammatical, and usage errors are maintained. Nov. 8th 1864. To-day will probably decide the fate of thisconfederacy. If Lincoln is reelected I think our fate is a hardone, but we are in the hands of a merciful God & if He seesthat we are in the wrong I trust that He will show it unto us.I have never felt that Slavery was altogether right for it isabused by many & I have often heard Mr. Burge say that ifhe could see that it was sinful for him to own slaves, if hefelt that it was wrong, he would take them where he could freethem. He would not sin for his right hand. The purest &holiest men have owned them & I can see nothing in the Scriptureswhich forbids it. I have never bought nor sold & have triedto make life easy & pleasant to those that have been bequeathedme by the dead. I have never ceased to work, but many a Northernhousekeeper has a much easier time than a Southern matron withher hundred negroes. 11th Finished hauling in my corn. Have made about 1200 bushels.Have 900 put up but how uncertain whether I keep it. Commenceddigging potatoes. Cool & pleasant. 12th Warped & put in dresses for the loom. Oh, this blockadegives us work to do for all hands. 13th Been to Sandtown to church & heard bro Grayfrom the words: "Rejoice always & in everything give thanks."His best sermon for the year. Mrs. Glass rode as far as herhouse with me. Says they had a letter from Mr. Austin, her brother,who says the Federals have taken every thing from them savea pot, plate & knife, that bed & wearing clothing areall gone save what they had on, that they regret that they hadnot refugeed for they had as well perished away from home asthere. 16th As I could not obtain in Covington what I went for in theway of dye stuffs, & & I concluded this morning in accordancewith Mrs. Ward's wish to go to the "Circle." We took old Dutch& started. Had a pleasant ride as it was a delightful daybut how dreary looks the town where formerly was bustle &business. Now naked chimneys & bare walls, for the depot& its surroundings were all burned by last summer's raiders.. . . On our way home met bro Evans accompanied by John Hintonwho inquired if we had heard that the Yankees were coming! Saida large force was at Stockbridge & that a dispatch was receivedin Covington to that effect & that the Home Guard were allcalled out. That it was said that they were on their way toSavannah. We rode home chatting about it & finally settledit in our minds that it could not be so, probably a foragingparty. 17th Saw men going up from below to town. Did not believe thereport. Have been uneasy all day. At night some of those neighborscalled who went to town. Said it was a large force but couldnot tell what or where they were going. They moved very slow.What shall I do? Where go? 18th Slept very little last night. Went out doors several times.Could see large fires like burning buildings. Am I not in theHands of a merciful God Who has promised to take care of thewidow & the orphan? Sent off two of my mules in the night.Mr. Ward & Frank took them away & hid them. In the morningtook a barrel of salt which cost me two hundred dollars intoone of the black women's gardens, put a paper over it and thenon the top of that leached ashes. Fixed it on a board as a leachtub, daubing it with ashes. Had some few pieces of meat takenfrom my smoke-house, Henry & James Around assisting, &carried to the Old Place & hid under some fodder. Bid themhide wagon & gear & then go on to ploughing. Told themto hide all of their things. Went to packing up my & Sadai'sclothes. Fear that we shall be homeless. The boys came back& wished to hide their mules. Said the Yankees camped atMr. Gibson's the night before & were taking all the stockin the country. . . . O, how I trust I am safe. Think the armyhave gone down the railroad to Augusta & will not pass here.. . . 19th Slept in my clothes last night as I heard the Yankees wentto neighbour [William S.] Montgomery's thursday night at oneo'clock & searched his house, drank his wine, took his money,&c. As we were not disturbed, I after breakfast with Sadaiwalked up to Mr. Jo Perry's, my nearest neighbour's, where theYankees were yesterday to learn something of their movements.Saw Mrs. Laura in the road surrounded by her children seemingto be looking for some one. Said she was looking for her husband,that old Mrs. Perry had just sent her word that the Yankeeswent to James Perry's the night before, plundered his house,drove off all his stock, &c., & that she must drivehers into the old fields. Before we were done talking up cameJo, Jim & George Guise from their hiding place. Jim wasvery much excited. Accidentally I turned & looked behindme and saw some "blue-coats" coming down the hill by old Mrs.Perry's. Said I, "I believe there are some now." Jimimmediately raised his gun swearing that he would kill themanyhow. "No, don't," said I, & ran home as fast as I could,with Sadai. I could hear them holla, "Halt! Halt!" & theirguns in quick succession. O God, the time of trial has come.Give me firmness & remember thy promise to the Widow &Orphan, "upon which Thou hast caused thy Servant to hope." . . . I hastened back to my frightened servants & told them theyhad better hide & then went back to the gate to claim protection& a guard. But like Demons they rush in! My yards are full.To my smoke-house, my Dairy, Pantry, Kitchen & Cellar, likefamished wolves they come, breaking locks & whatever isin their way. The thousand pounds of meat in my smoke-houseis gone in a twinkling, my flour, my meat, my lard, butter,eggs, pickles of various kinds, both in vinegar & brine,wine, jars, & jugs, are all gone. My eighteen fat turkeys,my hens, chickens, & fowls, my young pigs, are shot downin my yard & hunted as if they were the rebels themselves.Utterly powerless I came to appeal to the guard. "I cannot helpyou, Madam; it is the orders." & as I stood there, from my lot I saw driven first, OldDutch, my dear old Buggyhorse, who has carried my dear, deadhusband so many miles & who would so quietly wait at theblock for him to mount & dismount, & then had carriedhim to his grave, performing the sad offices to dear Lou-- &who had been my faithful servant so many years; then old Mary,my brood mare, who for years has been too old & stiff forwork, with her three-year-old colt, my two-year-old mule &her last little baby colt. There they go! There go my sheep,& worse than all, my boys, my poor boys, are forced to getthe mules. But, alas! little did I think while trying to save my housefrom plunder & fire, that they were forcing at the pointof the bayonet my boys from home. One (Newton) jumped into thebed in his cabin & declared himself sick, another crawledunder the floor, a lame boy he was, but they pulled him out& placed him on a horse & drove him off. Mid, poor Mid,the last I saw of him, a man had him going round the gardenlooking as I thought for my sheep as he was my shepherd. Jackcame crying to me, the big tears coursing down his cheeks sayingthey were making him go. I said: "Stay in my room," but a manfollowed in, cursing him & threatening to shoot him if hedid not go. Poor Jack had to yeild. James Arnold, in tryingto escape from a back window, was captured & marched off.Henry, too, was taken, I know not how or when, but probablywhen he & Bob went after the mules. I had not believed theywould force from their homes the poor doomed negroes, but suchhas been the fact here, cursing them & saying that JeffDavis was going to put them in his army, but they should notfight for him but for them. No indeed! No! they are not friendsto the slave. We have never made the poor, cowardly negro fight& it is strange, passing strange, that the all-powerfulYankee Nation with the whole world to back them, their portsopen, their armies filled with soldiers from all nations, shouldat last take the poor negro to help them out against this "littleConfederacy" which was to be brought back into the Union insixty days time. My poor boys, my poor boys, what unknown trials are beforeyou. How you have clung to your mistress & assisted herin every way you knew how. You have never known want of anykind, never have I corrected them. A word was sufficient. Itwas only to tell them what I wanted & they obeyed. Theirparents are with me & how sadly they lament the loss oftheir boys. Their cabins are rifled of every valuable, the soldiersswearing that their Sunday clothes were the white people's &that they never had time to get such things as they had. PoorFrank's chest was broken open, his money & tobacco taken.He has always been a money-making & saving boy. Not infrequentlyhad his crop brought him five hundred dollars & more. Allof his clothes & Rachel's clothes that dear Lou gave herbefore her death & which she has packed away, were stolenfrom her. Ovens, skillets, coffee-mills, of which we had three,coffee-pots--not one have I left. Sifters all gone. Seeing that the soldiers could not be restrained, the guardordered me to have their things that remained brought into myhouse, which I did, & they all, poor things, huddled togetherinto my room fearing every moment that the house would be burned. A Mr. Webber from Illinois & a Captain came into my houseof whom I claimed protection from the vandals that were forcingthemselves into my rooms. He said he knew my brother Orringtonof Chicago. At that name I could not restrain my feelings butbursting into tears implored him to see my brother & lethim know my destitution. I saw nothing before me but starvation.He promised to do this & comforted me with the assurancethat my dwelling house would not be burned though my out buildingsmight. Poor little Sadai went crying to him as a friend &told him they had her doll, Nancy. He begged her to come tosee him & he would give her a fine waxen one. He felt forme & I give him & several others the character of gentlemen.I don't believe they would have molested women & childrenhad they had their own way. He seemed surprised that I had notlaid away in my house flour & other provisions. I did notsuppose I could secure them there more than where I usuallykept them for in last summer's raid, houses were thoroughlysearched. In parting with him I parted as with a friend. Sherman with a greater portion of his army passed my houseall day. All day, as its sad moments rolled on were they passing,not only in front of my house, but they came up behind; toredown my garden palings, made a road through my back-yard &lot field, driving their Stock & riding through, tearingdown my fences & desolating my home, wantonly doing it whenthere was no necessity for it. Such a day, if I live to theage of Methuselah, may God spare me from ever seeing again! Such were some of the scenes of this sad day & as nightdrew its sable curtains around us, the heavens from every pointwere lit up with flames from burning buildings! Dinnerless &supperless as we were, it was nothing in comparison to the fearof being driven out homeless & houseless to the dreary woods.Nothing to eat, I could give my guard no supper & he leftus. I appealed to another asking him if he had wife, motheror sister & how he should feel were they in my situation.A Col from Vermont left me two men but they were Dutch &I could not understand one word they said. My Heavenly Father alone saved me from the destructive fire.My carriage house had in it eight bales of cotton with my carriagebuggy & harness. On top of the cotton was some corded cottonrolls, a hundred pounds or more. These were thrown out of theblanket in which they were taken & a large twist of therolls set on fire & thrown into the boat of my carriagewhich was close up to the cotton bales. Thanks to my God thecotton only burned over & then went out! Shall I ever forgetthe deliverance? This was after night the greater part of the army had passed.It came up very windy & cold. My room was full, nearly,with the bedding of & with the negroes. They were afraidto go out for my women could not step outside of the door withoutan insult from them. They lay down on the floor. Sadai got down& under the same cover with Sally while I sat up all night,watching every moment for the flames to burst out from someof my buildings. The two guards came into my room & laidthemselves by my fire for the night. I could not close my eyesbut kept walking to & fro watching the fires in the distance& dreading the approaching day which I feared, as they hadnot all passed, would be a continuation of horrors. 20th This is the blessed Sabbath, the day upon which He whocame to bring Peace & good will upon Earth, rose from Histomb & ascended to intercede for us poor fallen creatures.But how unlike this day to any that has preceded it to me inmy once quiet home. I had watched all night & the dawn foundme watching for the moving of the Soldiers that were encampedabout us. Oh, how I dreaded those that were to pass as I supposethey would straggle and complete the ruin that the others hadcommenced, as I had been repeatedly told that they would burneverything as they passed. Some of my women had gathered up a chicken that they had shotyesterday & they cooked it with some yams for our breakfast,the guard complaining that we gave them no supper. They gaveus some coffee which I had to make in a tea kettle as everycoffee pot is taken off. The rear-guard was commanded by ColonelCarlow, who changed our guard leaving us one while they werepassing. They marched directly on none scarcely breaking ranks.A bucket of water was called for & they drank without comingin. About ten o'clock they had all passed save one who came in& wanted coffee made which was done & he too went on.A few minutes elapsed & two couriers riding rapidly passed;back again they came & this ended the passing of Sherman'sarmy by my place leaving me poorer by thirty-thousand dollarsthan I was yesterday morning. And a much stronger rebel. Source: James Robertson, Jr. (ed.), "The Diary of DollyLunt Burge," Georgia Historical Quarterly 45 (December1961).