 | MOTHER BYCKERDYKE. Women of the war : |  |
MOTHER BYCKERDYKE.
AMONG the many noble women whose names will be
forever enshrined with those of the brave defenders
of their country, that of Mrs. Byckerdyke, of Illinois, will
be held in especial honor. From no merely romantic impulse,
but acting from the dictates of her mature sense of
duty, she entered the service of the country as a volunteer
nurse for its soldiers early in the war, and continued her
work of patriotic charity until the war closed. By all
those who remain of the armies who conquered their way
down the Mississippi, Mrs. Byckerdyke is affectionately
and gratefully remembered, as one of the most constant,
earnest, determined, and efficient laborers for their health
and comfort in the hospital and in the field.
Mrs. Byckerdyke, who is a woman of middle age, commenced
her labors for the soldiers in August, 1861, when —
at her own solicitation, and because her judgment was
confided in — she was sent from Galesburg, Illinois, to
Cairo, to ascertain what was needed by the troops stationed
there. After ascertaining the condition of affairs there and
reporting, her Galesburg friends advised her to remain,
which she did, exerting all her energies to remedy the
many miseries attending the establishment of a large camp
of soldiers, nearly all of whose officers were as ignorant of
sent a large number of the wounded to the Brigade
Hospital at Mound City, she went there, and remained until
the most of them were sent to their homes.
Returning herself to her home, she barely continued
long enough to put her household in order for a more prolonged
absence. She had enlisted for the war. At the
bloody field of Donelson — where the sufferings of our
wounded were most distressing, from the lack of medical
attendance and the severity of the weather — she was untiring
in her efforts for the poor fellows. She took a
prominent part in shipping five boat-loads of wounded
men, her kind and motherly care doing more than aught
else to save the soldiers from neglect. Hardly through
with this severe labor of love, she was in a few days called
to Pittsburg Landing, to assist in the care of the immense
numbers of wounded men for whom the provisions of the
medical department were not half adequate. She stationed
herself at Savannah, ten miles below Pittsburg Landing,
where the most of our wounded were brought. An incident
of her experience while there will illustrate her
character better than anything we can say. It was told
us by an officer who was at Savannah at the time.
Governor Harvey, of Wisconsin, had been visiting the
field of battle, and the hospitals there and at Savannah,
to learn what was the condition and what were the wants
of the soldiers from his state. He had a small but excellent
staff of volunteer surgeons, and ten tons of the best
sanitary supplies. He saw every sick and wounded Wisconsin
soldier individually, and gave to all the medical
could not restrain the tears as he recalled the kind
acts, the cordial and sympathetic greetings of this noblehearted
governor, whose life was so suddenly ended in its
prime by a distressing casualty. After his work was
through, Governor Harvey met our friend at the Savannah
levee, perfectly satisfied that he had done all in his power,
and happy that he had been permitted to do so much good.
He had still five tons of sanitary stores left, and had been
in great doubt as to what to do with them. He distrusted
the surgeons in charge at Savannah, and finally concluded to
turn over the stores to Mrs. Byckerdyke. He had known
nothing of her antecedents, and had only seen her while at
Savannah. Still, as he told our friend, he observed how
efficient she was, with how much business-like regularity
she was performing her work, and that honesty, decision,
and judgment seemed written on her plain but good-looking
face. He would trust her, and no one else.
After the governor's death, Mrs. Byckerdyke began to
suspect that her supplies were diverted to the private uses
of a certain surgeon's mess. She resolved to stop that,
and did, in a very summary manner. Going into the tent
of this surgeon just before dinner, she discovered on the
table a great variety of the jellies, wines, and other comforts
belonging to her stores. She at once made a clean
sweep of these articles, went straight down to the levee,
took a boat to Pittsburg Landing, saw General Grant, and
within twenty-four hours had the guilty surgeon under
arrest. The surgeons had little disposition to interfere
with her or her stores after this example, and the sick and
won so complete a victory.
Occupied all the time of the Corinth campaign with the
wounded in the rear of General Halleck's army, she was
put in charge of the Main Hospital at Corinth, when our
force entered that place. While there her indomitable
force and determination to serve the soldiers had another
trial and another victory. Learning that a brigade was to
march through the hospital grounds, and knowing that the
soldiers would be nearly exhausted from their long march
under a burning sun, she got out her barrels of water which
had been brought for the men in hospital, had a corps of
her assistants ready with pails and dippers, and gave the
soldiers water as they passed through. When the commanding
officer came up, Mrs. Byckerdyke asked that the
men be halted; but he refused, and, going ahead, ordered
his men to march along. At the same time a voice in the
rear — that of Mrs. Byckerdyke — was heard giving the
reverse order, "Halt!" in very clear tones. The woman's
order was obeyed, and the "Tin Cup Brigade" worked energetically
for a few minutes, rejoicing in the triumph of
their commander.
At the siege of Vicksburg Mrs. Byckerdyke undertook
the difficult task of correcting abuses in the use and distribution
of sanitary supplies. The lasting gratitude of the
sick and wounded, and the approval of the higher officers
in command, attest the fidelity and efficiency with which
she executed this trust. She was not at all times a welcome
guest to the agents and officers having in charge
sanitary supplies. One of these latter applied to headquarters
the complaint of improper influence. "Who is she?" inquired
the general. "A Mrs. Byckerdyke," replied the
major. "O, well," said the general, "she ranks me; you
must apply to President Lincoln."
After the battles of Mission Ridge and Lookout Mountain
she remained in the field thirty days, till the last of the
wounded were removed to northern hospitals, working with
all her remarkable energy, and with her untiring determination,
that the soldiers should be well cared for. On the
Atlantic campaign she followed the army with a laundry,
and had daily from fifteen hundred to two thousand pieces
wsahed, besides the bandages and rags used in dressing
wounds. In addition to this work, which was more than
enough for one woman to perform, she superintended the
cooking for the field hospitals, and, when the commissary
stores failed, supplied the tables from those of the Christian
and Sanitary Commissions. To meet emergencies,
she has been known to take passage in an afternoon train,
ride fifteen miles, get her supplies to the hospital, and
have the bread baked and distributed to over a thousand
patients the same day, and in proper season.
Perhaps a good idea of the nature and value of the labors
of Mrs. Byckerdyke can best be given from an extract of a
letter, written from Chattanooga by Mrs. Porter, — another
noble laborer for the soldiers, — soon after the battle there.
Mrs. Porter says, —
"I reached this place on New Year's Eve, making the
trip of the few miles from Bridgeport to Chattanooga in
twenty-four hours. New Year's morning was very cold.
out of town, where I found Mrs. Byckerdyke hard at work,
as usual, endeavoring to comfort the cold and suffering
sick and wounded. The work done on that day told most
happily on the comfort of the poor wounded men.
"The wind came sweeping around Lookout Mountain,
and uniting with currents from the valleys of Missionary
Ridge, pressed in upon the hospital tents, overturning
some, and making the inmates of all tremble with cold and
anxious fear. The cold had been preceded by a great rain,
which added to the general discomfort. Mrs. Byckerdyke
went from tent to tent in the gale, carrying hot bricks and
hot drinks, to warm and to cheer the poor fellows. `She is
a power of good,' said one soldier. `We fared mighty
poor till she come here,' said another. `God bless the
Sanitary Commission,' said a third, `for sending women
among us!' The soldiers fully appreciate `Mother Byckerdyke,'
— as they call her, — and her work.
"Mrs. Byckerdyke left Vicksburg at the request of General
Sherman and other officers of his corps, as they wished
to secure her services for the then approaching battle. The
field hospital of the fifteenth (Sherman's) army corps was
situated on the north bank of the Genesee River, on a
slope at the base of Missionary Ridge, where, after the
battle was over, seventeen hundred of our wounded and exhausted
soldiers were brought. Mrs. Byckerdyke reached
there before the din and smoke of battle were well over,
and before all were brought from the field of blood and carnage.
There she remained the only female attendant for
four weeks. Never has she rendered more valuable service.
which Mrs. Byckerdyke had the pleasure of using, as she
says, `just when and where needed;' and never were sanitary
goods more deeply felt to be good goods. `What
could we do without them?' is a question I often hear
raised, and answered with a hearty `God bless the Sanitary
Commission,' which is now everywhere acknowledged as
`a great power for good.'
"The field hospital was in a forest, about five miles from
Chattanooga; wood was abundant, and the camp was
warmed by immense burning `log heaps,' which were the
only fireplaces or cooking-stoves of the camp or hospitals.
Men were detailed to fell the trees and pile the logs to
heat the air, which was very wintry; and beside them Mrs.
Byckerdyke made soup and toast, tea and coffee, and broiled
mutton, without a gridiron, often blistering her fingers in
the process. A house in due time was demolished to make
bunks for the worst cases, and the brick from the chimney
was converted into an oven, when Mrs. Byckerdyke made
bread, yeast having been found in the Chicago boxes, and
flour at a neighboring mill, which had furnished flour to
secessionists through the war until now. Great multitudes
were fed from these rude kitchens. Companies of hungry
soldiers were refreshed before those open fireplaces and
those ovens."
We will merely add a few words in conclusion. Mrs.
Byckerdyke not only performed a great work in the field,
but several times visited the leading cities of the North-west,
and by her judicious advice did much to direct aright the
enthusiastic patriotism and noble charity of the ladies of
from the outset of her efforts by her practical
good sense, firmness in maintaining the rights of the soldiers,
and an unceasing energy, she was soon known among
all the western soldiers as one of their best and most
faithful friends. In addition to the consciousness of having
performed her whole duty, Mrs. Byckerdyke has another
reward in the undying gratitude of the thousands of gallant
fellows who have received or witnessed her motherly
ministrations. May she live long to enjoy both of these
rewards for her good deeds.
| MOTHER BYCKERDYKE. Women of the war : | |