THE CIVTL WAR. 487 



one of our Cohasset men, Corporal Oliver E. Simpson, 

 was among the thirteen killed in that first taste of battle. 

 His comrade, William F. Thayer, lifted the dead bod}^ 

 upon his own shoulder, and carrying it up back of a meet- 

 ing-house, buried it there, the first of our men to die in 

 the great cause. 



On the third day, July 2r, the memorable battle of Bull 

 Run was fought, followed by the retreat of the Union 

 forces. The four other Cohasset men escaped with their 

 lives. The work of William F. Thayer was that of a 

 commissary sergeant, who had to draw rations and to 

 issue them. A part of the time while the army of the 

 Potomac was moving from place to place, a drove of sev- 

 eral hundred cattle had to be guarded for use, being 

 slaughtered for daily food. P'ood that could not be used 

 nor safely carried away from a battlefield had to be 

 burned. On one occasion our sergeant, to prevent a lot 

 of provisions from falling into Confederate hands, burned 

 ten barrels of rice, seven barrels of salt pork, and ten 

 barrels of whisky. Rice was very unpopular stuff, be- 

 cause the company cooks had only iron kettles for boiling 

 it, and the rice would almost invariably burn on, to the 

 disgust of hungry soldiers. 



The duties of J. F. Doane were largely with the officers 

 as a clerk and a wagoner, while Forrester A. Pelby was 

 promoted in the regular line from sergeant to second 

 lieutenant, August 26, 1861, first lieutenant, July 18, 1862, 

 and captain, March 2, 1863 



The defeat of the Union forces at Bull Run was humili- 

 ating to the loyal citizens of Cohasset, and they began to 

 feel as never before the seriousness of the Rebellion. 

 During that autumn of 1861 and the winter months of 

 1862 there were many more citizens coming to the des- 

 perate decision to fight for the Union. The selectmen 

 reported thirty-four men furnished for three years' serv- 

 ice, in response to the general order of June 25, 1861. 



