[4V50 Gary]

Earlier I related a dog story whereby some Union soldiers tricked their officers into eating a dog. Here's the Confederate counterpart:

"As I have finished the campaign of 1863, I will continue this chapter with a joke that some of the boys got on a lieutenant in one of the Georgia Brigades, as it was told to me by a responsible man of Hill's corps. He said that it was certainly the truth, or I would not tell it.

He said they had a regular rear guard commanded by a bigoted lieutenant (as we will call him D--). He would take everything he could from the boys who had been out foraging. He kept this up for some time till all of the boys got to hating him. They went out, caught and killed a real fat dog, dressed him nicely, cut off one of his hind quarters, cut off the foot, wrapped it up and came up in the rear of the guard in a real suspicious way, apparently trying to conceal something.

The ever vigilant lieutenant saw that they had something and asked them what it was. The fellow stepped back a few steps and the lieutenant cursed him and went to see. The man apparrently gave it to him very reluctantly, and said it was a piece of lamb. The lieutenant took it and gave it to his negro cook and told him to cook it for his supper. The boys went on to their camp well pleased.

The negro cooked some and the lieutenant sat down to eat it. He cursed the negro and told him that he had poisoned it, for he had never eated as strong mutton as that was. The lieutenant then cooked some himself, but it was no better. The next day he asked the man whom he had taken it from what it was. He said in a low, drawling way, 'Why Lieutenant, it was a piece of dog.' Such a laugh as that raised!

It was such a good joke it was all over the camps in a few hours. Men would hollow out, 'Who eat the dog?' and you would hear answered from all over the camps, 'Lieutenant D.' My friend told me they run that so far till 'D' ran away and quit the army."

Boys will be boys.