From "Hard Marching Every Day," pages 179-180:
Last Friday we were taken out to witness the execution of
two deserters that belonged to our brigade. Their names
were John Tugue and George Blowers. The first was from
Co. A, 5th regiment, and the other was from Co. A, in our
regiment. They were sentenced to be shot to death by mus-
ketry on the 18th of December [1863], in the presence of
the division. There were seven soldiers that suffered the
same penalty in this army on that day. I never was obliged
to witness a sight like that before, and I sincerely hope
a long time may intervene before I am thus called upon
again. . . I believe that I never have witnessed that from
which any sould shrunk with such horror, as to see those
two soldiers shot dead in cold blood at the iron decree
of military law.
In fact, this passage makes it clear that at least ten executions
for desertion are mentioned in this work.
Eric Johnson