Heroic dog story from the Civil War

Tom Ricks's award-winning daily blog on ForeignPolicy.com, The Best Defense, has a regular feature about heroic war dogs. The current entry was written by Rebecca Frankel and features a rousing tale about Union Jack, a true hero for the Union during the U.S. Civil War:

Jack's story makes for quite a war-dog yarn. It seems that before fighting for the North, Jack, a "young dog of the mastiff breed, of medium size and jetty blackness, except a white breast and a dash of white on each of his four paws," belonged to a rebel jailer in Front Royal, VA. As the loquacious reporter for Harper's Weekly tells it, Jack took a liking to the men of the First Maryland regiment while they were there on provost guard duty, and left behind his Confederate beginnings to accompany the Union soldiers to the battlefield. And it was there that he displayed his valor and loyalty.

Quoting from the Harper's Weekly piece dated Nov. 8, 1862:

"On the road, when our parched men were fainting from thirst, he would always run forward, and whenever he discovered a pool of water would rush back, barking loudly, to tell them of it. When ... our poor fellows were literally dying from starvation, this noble animal has been known to go and catch chickens for them and to bring them in his mouth! or he would waylay  every rebel horse or wagon passing with food, and bark imploringly for them to bring relief. On one occasion, when a sick and exhausted Union soldier had been left behind, Jack staid with  him for several hours until a wagon took him up."

History is full of the tales of heroic dogs. Union Jack is a reminder of how loyal and courageous our canine companions have proved themselves, time and again.