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THE COMANCHES:

A HISTORY OF

White’s Battalion, Virginia Cavalry,

LAUREL BRIG., HAMPTON DIV., A. N. V.,

C. S. A.

Written by FRANK M. MYERS. Late Capt. Co. A, 35th Va. Cav.

Approved by all the Officers of the Battalion.

BALTIMORE:

KELLY, PIET & CO., PUBLISHERS,

174 and 176 Baltimore Street.

1871.

Entered, according to an Act of Congress, in the year 1871, by

KELLY, PIET AND COMPANY,

in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.

Exeter, Loudoun Co., Va., Dec. 2, 1870.

Captain F. M. Myers:

Dear Sir,—We, the undersigned, officers of the Thirty-fifth Battalion, Virginia Cavalry, C.S.A., having examined the MSS. of your history of the same, do most heartily endorse the said history, and must congratulate you upon the graphic manner in which you have related the story of their deeds of daring, their trials and sufferings for the “Lost Cause.”

Most respectfully, your old comrades and companions in arms,

ELIJAH V. WHITE,

Late Lieut.-Col. Thirty-fifth Va. Cav.

J. R. CROWN,

Late First Lieut. Co. B, White’s Bat.

BENJ. F. CONRAD,

Late Second Lieut. Co. A, Thirty-fifth Va. Cav.

GEO. W. CHISWELL,

Late Captain Co. B, White’s Battalion.

ED. J. CHISWELL,

Late Second Lieut. Co. B, Thirty-fifth Va. Cav.

WM. F. BARRETT,

Late First Lieut. Co. A, White’s Battalion.

WM. F. DOWDELL,

Late Captain Co. C, Thirty-fifth Va. Cav.

J. MORT. KILGOUR,

Late Capt. and A.Q.M., Thirty-fifth Va. Cav.

PREFACE.

To the Members of the Thirty-Fifth Virginia Cavalry:

The following pages have been prepared under many and great difficulties, and while they exhibit the history of the command we were so proud of in the dark days of the war for States Rights and the old Constitution, they are very far from[from] presenting a full history of our Battalion.

Almost all the papers relating to the operations of the “Comanches,” whether belonging to the field and staff or to company officers, were lost at the surrender of the army, in consequence of which I have been compelled to draw nearly all that is recorded from my own memory, assisted materially by Col. White, in the account of the “battle of Brandy Station,” and of the raids in Fairfax and Loudoun in 1863.

To Mr. John O. Crown I am under obligations for the use of his MSS., giving an account of the operations in the autumn of 1862, and of the last winter of the war, and to Lieuts. J. R. Crown and E. J. Chiswell for much that is interesting in the history of Company B; to the former especially, for a report of his fight with Cole’s battalion in Maryland, and of his capture by the same command in 1863.

The lists of killed and wounded for Company B were prepared by Lieut. Chiswell; for Company C, by Capt. Dowdell; for Company E, Lieut. Strickler, and for Company A, by myself.

From Company F, I regret exceedingly that I have not been able to obtain any information whatever.

As for the manner of the work, while I am free to confess that the story is by no means well told, yet, the men of the Battalion who, by education and talent, were well qualified for the task of preparing it, would not, and it has thus fallen to my lot to write this history; and, such as it is, I submit it to your judgment for approval or not, as you may decide; but among its faults I claim that violations of the "historian’s religion"—truth—will not be laid to its charge; and the thoughts, feelings, and impressions, unbiassed by the warpings of after events, have been presented as far as possible.

It is a story altogether of the past, and, as soldiers of the “Lost Cause,” we have nothing to do with the efforts of politicians, North or South, to galvanize the Confederacy into spasmodic action, and then cry—

"There’s life in the old land yet."

There is no attempt either to conceal or parade the grief we, as Confederate soldiers, felt at the furling of the “conquered banner.”

“For though conquered, we adore it,

Love the cold, dead hands that bore it.”

But while we do love so dearly the battle-flag of “Dixie,” we regard it only as the emblem of the “storm-cradled nation that fell,” and as the winding-sheet of its dead and buried glory, over whose gloomy tomb the brave, true-hearted men of the southland have raised a monument of noble deeds, which will defy malice, oppression, and time.

We know that the Southern Confederacy is dead, and all its mourning lovers ask is permission to bury their dead reverently.

“Hushed is the roll of the Rebel drum,

The sabres are sheathed, and the cannon are dumb,

And fate with pitiless hand has furled,

The flag that once challenged the gaze of the world.”

But the fame of its soldiers deserves to live on the pages of history, and, if I have aided in rescuing from oblivion the story of the gallant deeds performed by the men that followed Col. Elijah V. White through the bloody years of that desolating war, I am satisfied.

F. M. MYERS.

Loudoun County. Va., Nov. 27, 1870.

THE COMANCHES.

CHAPTER I.

In commencing the story of the brave deeds performed during the dark days of the great civil war in America by the gallant band known as "White’s Battalion," it will be proper to give a short sketch of the man who, as chief of the “Comanches,” gave to the Thirty-fifth Battalion, Virginia Cavalry, its existence, and led it through so many campaigns, battles and raids, to occupy a place in the history of the war second to no command of its numbers, and distinguished under the special notice of such men as “Stonewall” Jackson, Richard S. Ewell, J. E. B. Stuart, William E. Jones, Thomas L. Rosser and the gallant Butler of South Carolina; besides receiving the highest encomiums from the greatest cavalry commander since the days when Murat led the squadrons of Napoleon—General Wade Hampton—and of Robert E. Lee, before whose fame the most splendid garlands of glory that wreathe the brows of the noblest men of earth in all time, pale as does the silver moon-beam before the radiant rays of the noon-day sun.

Elijah V. White was born near Poolsville, Montgomery County, Maryland, on the 29th of August, 1832, and continued at his father’s home until he was sixteen years of age, when he was sent to Lima Seminary, Livingston Co., N. Y., to be educated. Here he remained for two years, at the expiration of which he attended Granville College, in Licking Co., Ohio, for two more years, when he returned to his home in Maryland.

During the war in Kansas, in 1855 or ’56, he went to that territory, and joining a company from Missouri, took an active part in the troubles that then threatened to overthrow the pillars of the old Constitution in the terrible maelstrom of abolitionism that afterwards swept away their foundations.

After the Kansas war closed, young White came home, and shortly afterwards bought a farm on the south bank of the Potomac, in Loudoun county, Virginia, where he took up his residence in 1857, and on the 9th of December of the same year married Miss Sarah Elizabeth Gott.

At the first signal of war, given by John Brown at Harper’s Ferry, in October, 1859, White was a Corporal in the Loudoun Cavalry, a company then commanded by Capt. Dan. T. Shreve, with which he took part in the scenes of excitement that followed this mad attempt of Northern fanaticism to sweep the twin scourges of fire and blood over the South. At the breaking out of the war in 1861, White was still a member of this company; but owing to a change of its officers, which, to a great extent, damaged its efficiency, he left it and attached himself to the company of Capt. Frank Mason, in Ashby’s Legion, with which he served until the autumn of that year, being engaged principally in scouting, much of which he did under the orders of Col. Eppa Hunton, who, during the summer, commanded in Loudoun county. On one of his scouts for Col. Hunton, in Maryland, he captured the first Yankee prisoner of the war in the person of one Costine, of Gen. McCall’s staff. When Gen. Evans took command in Leesburg, “Lige White,” as he was familiarly known, reported to him, and the night before the fight at Bolivar, the General asked “Lige” "if he didn’t want some fun," at the same time informing him that Ashby intended to attack Geary on the following morning; whereupon “Lige” started at 9 o’clock, reaching Ashby’s camp just as that commander was marching out to make his demonstration on Harper’s Ferry. In this brilliant affair he bore his full share, and when it was over returned on a furlough, to Loudoun, to make necessary arrangements for leaving his family in as comfortable circumstances as possible, while he followed the fortunes of the battle flag of Dixie. Early on the morning of the 21st of October, while driving to Leesburg from Mr. Henry Ball’s, in a buggy, with Miss Kate Ball, he heard the firing of the opening fight at Ball’s Bluff, and hastily returning to Mr. Ball’s, he mounted his horse and reported at once to General Evans for duty.

The General, who was somewhat the worse for whiskey, gruffly asked him what he could do; to which “Lige” replied that he could scout, could carry dispatches, or could go into the ranks and fight. After a few moments of study, Evans exclaimed, “Well, sir, go to the front and fight like hell and damnation;” and “Lige” rode off and reported to Col. Hunton, who was the actual commander in this battle.

The Colonel requested White to remain with him and scout for him during the day; and shortly after, when returning from a scout to the left to learn if the enemy was attempting any movement on the flank, he found fully one-third of the 8th Virginia Regiment in utter rout, caused by a misunderstanding of an order for that part of the regiment, which had been considerably advanced, to retire on the main line, and they taking it to be an order to retreat. With great difficulty the order was explained and the men rallied and brought back to the line, when Col. Hunton ordered an advance of his regiment which vigorously attacked the enemy, driving his whole right wing back to the woods bordering on the bluff, and capturing two brass howitzers, but the left of his line stood firm, and White was ordered by Col. Burt, of the 18th Mississippi, to go into the woods and bring up two companies of his regiment that had been stationed on the extreme right of the Confederate line to guard against a flank attack in that quarter, and form them on the right of the 17th.

As soon as this order had been executed, Col. Burt ordered his regiment to advance, which it did, the Colonel and White riding in rear of the line, and when in about fifty yards of a skirt of timber that grew along a ravine in the old field, the enemy, who till that moment had lain concealed, raised up and poured a most terribly destructive volley into the Mississippi line, by which about one hundred and thirty men were killed and wounded; in fact, by far the largest part of the Confederate loss on that day was caused by this one murderous fire. Col. Burt was mortally wounded by White’s side and the latter represents himself as being terribly frightened but untouched, and says the men of the 18th stood unflinchingly in the storm and soon drove the enemy from his position. Col. Burt, who was held on his horse by two of his men, asked White to ride to Col. Jenifer and inform him that he (Burt) was mortally wounded and must leave the field.

On his return he found Col. Hunton in front of the 18th Regiment instructing its Major to advance through the woods upon the enemy, but the Major objected, saying he did not know the ground; when Hunton said, "Come on, I’ll lead you;" to which the Major replied, “No, sir; I can lead my own men, all I want is a guide;” and Col. Hunton turned to White, saying, "Lige, my boy, won’t you go with them?" which settled the question of a guide, and “Lige” rode forward in front of the Mississippians, soon finding himself between two fires, the foe in front and friends behind; but the Yankees soon gave way, leaving a splendid brass 24-pounder rifle gun as a trophy to the gallantry of the noble 18th Mississippi. This closed the battle, and Col. Hunton again sent “Lige” on a scout to the left to see what the enemy was doing in that direction. It was now dark and White had not gone far before he was halted by a voice which he knew to belong to a Yankee, and replying in a low tone, “halted;” the man asked who he was; “Lige” answering by asking the same question, and the fellow replied—“I belong to the New York Tammany Regiment.” White, still speaking very low, called out excitedly, “You do!” “Come to me, come to me!” and the Yankee advanced close to him with gun at a charge bayonet, when White said to him, “Surrender, or you are a dead man;” at the same time levelling his pistol on him, but the Yankee was pluck, and exclaiming, “Never, to any man!” stepped back to bayonet his foe, and “Lige” at the same moment drew trigger but his pistol missed fire; hastily cocking it again he was just in time, and sent a bullet crashing through the Yankee’s brain just as he was in the act of driving his bayonet through him.

“Lige” now satisfied himself that the enemy had retired all along the line, and returned to Col. Hunton, who now marched his people back to their camp, ordering White to remain with Lieut. Chas. Berkeley, who with fifteen men was to remain on picket near the river during the night. The ladies of Leesburg had sent a kingly supper to the soldiers, and after satisfying their appetites, which had been sharp-set by a day of fasting and fighting, White proposed to Lieut. Berkeley that they take a scout to the river, for, strange as it may appear, not a single Confederate had been to the bluff, although they had fought to within a few yards of its edge. To this Lieut. B. readily agreed, and passing quietly along over the dead and dying, they reached the river, and soon heard a boat crossing over from the opposite bank. In a few minutes it struck the Virginia shore, and leaving Berkeley and his men, White walked up to the landing place where he found himself among a great crowd of Yankees, all eager to get aboard the one gondola, and terribly excited. To return to the Lieutenant and report was the next move, and “Lige” declared that he believed there were 800 to 1,000 Yankees down under the bluff, and asked Berkeley what they were to do, to which he replied, “We will capture the whole of them.”

White agreed to it, provided the fifteen would all promise to carry it through or die trying, when one of the men said to him that Lieut. B. was a rash man and he, for one, was not willing to follow him, as he feared they would all be killed; upon which “Lige” started to the camp of the 8th Virginia for reinforcements. On arriving there he found Lt.-Col. Tebbs in command, who said that if any of the men chose to do so they might go, but advised them to let the enterprise alone. On telling his story and asking for volunteers, Captain W. N. Berkeley said, "I’ll follow you," and at once some of Capt. B’s men responded with, "Yes, and we’ll follow you." So that in a short time quite a force had volunteered, composed as follows:—Captains, W. N. and Edmund Berkeley; Lieutenants, R. H. Tyler, L. B. Stephenson and R. Coe; Sergeants, F. Wilson, J. O. Adams and —— Gochnauer; Corporals Aye, B. Hurst, W. Fleshler, B. Hutchison and Wm. Thomas; and Privates, A. S. Adams, J. W. Adams, F. A. Boyer, J. L. Chin, G. Creel, R. S. Downs, W. Donnelly, G. Insor, C. R. Griffin, John George, D. L. Hixson, T. W. Hutchison, J. F. Ish, R. I. Smith, W. C. Thomas, J. W. Tavenner, J. M. McVeigh, L. W. Luckett, C. D. Luckett, M. H. Luckett, A. M. O’Bannon, Rev. Chas. Linthicum, R. O. Carter, George Roach, E. Nails, Howard Trussell, D. Rourke, Thomas E. Tavenner, P. Gochnauer, F. Tinsman, T. H. Benton, T. Kidwell, C. Fox, V. R. Costello, Will. Moore, J. Ellis, William McCarty, J. McClanahan, E. Herrington and R. Julian. With this force White started back to the river, where he had left Lieut. Berkeley watching the enemy, and on reaching it, after an absence of nearly two hours, found the situation unchanged, except that the number of the enemy was perceptibly lessened, the gondola having made several trips. Hastily arranging his forces, “Lige” posted Lieut. Berkeley on top of the bluff, just over the Yankees, while he moved the remainder down to the edge of the river and charged at once upon the enemy, firing and yelling like demons, when at the same moment Lieut. B. opened fire from the bluff with his party. The consternation was terrible among the Yankees, some leaping into the river and drowning themselves, some wading out in the water as far as they could, some running up the river bank, and some, too much paralyzed with fear to act at all, just fell down and screamed.

Very soon an Irish Captain, a gallant fellow, appeared and called a parley, when the firing ceased and the Captain asked who was in command, to which Capt. William Berkeley replied, “Gen. White,” and the Captain at once asked upon what terms his men would be allowed to surrender, and when told they should be treated kindly as prisoners of war, he called them up from their hiding places, saying, “the General assures me you shall be kindly treated; come out and give yourselves up.” This had the desired effect and they all came up, to the number of 320, and surrendered to the “brigade of General White.”

A few days after this, a recommendation was drawn up and signed by the regimental commanders, asking that White be commissioned in the Regular Army of the Confederate States, for meritorious conduct at the battle of Leesburg. This was approved by Gen. Evans, and cordially endorsed by Gen. Beauregard, but when “Lige” presented it to the Secretary of War, he was informed that no commissions in the Regular Army were being granted then, but that his name should be registered for the first vacancy. This did not suit him and learning that his old friend, Col. Hunton, was in Richmond, called upon him, and was advised by that officer to apply for permission to organize an independent company for service on the border, which he did, and through Col. Hunton’s influence succeeded without any difficulty in getting the appointment of Captain in the Provisional Army, with the authority to raise a company as proposed, and he now returned to Leesburg where he opened a recruiting office under very favorable auspices, the militia of the county having been called to that point by Gen. D. H. Hill, (who succeeded Evans in command of the Department soon after the battle,) to work on the fortifications in course of construction there, and it was natural to suppose that many of them would prefer ranging service on the border to wielding the shovel and the hoe in the breast-works.

CHAPTER II.

In the last days of December, 1861, Captain Elijah V. White, for such was his rank now, reported to General Hill, with fifteen men for duty, and was ordered by that officer to establish a line of couriers between Leesburg and Winchester, which he did on the 29th, stationing Ben. F. Conrad and James W. Harper at Leesburg, Richard Harding and William H. Luckett at Hamilton, Peter J. Kabrich and Frank. M. Myers at Round Hill, C. C. Wenner and R. W. Washington at Castleman’s Ferry, Joseph E. Conner and W. T. Cruzen at Berryville, and Richard Ferro at Winchester, with Gip. Peter in command at that end of the line, while the Captain himself remained at Leesburg. The company was thus employed until the 14th of January following, when an order was passed along the line calling all the men to assemble in Leesburg, and on reaching that point the Captain found he had about twenty-five men, whom he marched to Waterford and established in winter quarters at that place. Maj. Win. F. Barrett, of the 57th Regiment Virginia Militia, acted as Orderly Sergeant and Quartermaster, and with the Captain formed the board of officers of the company. The Madison Cavalry, under Capt. Graves, was also stationed at Waterford and picketed the Potomac from the Point of Rocks to Berlin, and Capt. White proposed to co-operate with these men in scouting, and guarding the line of river all the way to Harper’s Ferry; and here commenced the active duty of what was afterwards to be the famous Battalion, now not having enough men to entitle it to a company organization, but whose rolls afterwards bore nearly 700 names. About this time an officer was sent by Gen. Hill to muster the company regularly into the military service of the Confederate States, and this duty performed, the men considered themselves tied fast and were perfectly satisfied with their lot.

Among the first duties required of the company was that of executing an order of Gen. Hill, to collect the delinquent Militia of the 56th Virginia Regiment, and take them to their comrades who were at work on the fortifications around Leesburg, but this was no easy matter, many of them having crossed the Potomac—some to take service in the army of Abraham I, and others to escape doing any kind of military duty in the Confederacy—while a large portion of those who remained were Quakers, who, according to the tenets of their religion, could not perform such duty, and paid their exemption fines.

Another order of the General’s required Capt. White to go into south Loudoun and upper Fauquier[Fauquier], and impress into the service all the wagons, teams and negroes that could be spared from that section, and take them to Leesburg.

The execution of this order was entrusted to Henry K. Moore, who, finding the citizens exceeding loth to give over their property to the tender mercies of the C. S. A., took their excuses instead, and returned to camp with sundry promises on the part of the people to send the required articles at a “more convenient season.”

On making his report to the Captain, the latter expressed decided disapprobation of that style of executing a military order, and to show what he considered the proper mode, he only allowed Henry and his detail time enough to feed their horses, when he had them in the saddle again, and taking charge of the expedition himself, he sallied forth among the reluctant citizens of the favored region named in Gen. Hill’s order. And this time the wagons and contrabands came; but he left a very bitter memory among the people whom he visited, for they were just congratulating themselves that they had so easily escaped the fulfilment of the order which Henry had shown them, when White swooped down upon them and executed it promptly and to the letter.

It was the custom of Capt. White to leave his quarters about dark, on those long winter nights, and striking the Potomac at some one of the fords or ferries along that stream, lie quiet and watch for the Federals to come over, and also to look out for the people, who, loyal to the Lincoln dynasty but traitors to their State, would cross over, some to carry news to the Yankees and return with their blood money to gather more, and some to escape being called into the military service in Virginia.

Not the least however of his care, was to stop the exodus of the negro population who, on the border, were constantly being decoyed by Yankee emissaries away from their masters and their homes.

On one of these occasions he was accompanied by the Rev. Mr. ——, an Old School Baptist preacher, who, with his shot gun on his shoulder, agreed to act as pilot for the command in a little scout to the river opposite the Point of Rocks.

It was Sunday night and very cold, but a faithful negro had given information to the Captain that a party of his colored brethren had made an arrangement to run away that night, and that some Yankees were to meet them with a boat at the mouth of the Catocton creek.

On getting near the ground the men dismounted and tying their horses, walked to the position, when the Captain placed one man in the bridge over the creek at that place, and posted the others at the boat landing. The one man was to watch for the negroes and give quiet notice of their approach, while the others were to capture the party that brought over the boats.

Unfortunately the reverend gentleman remained with the picket in the bridge, and just when the boats were heard approaching, the poles grating on the river bottom and plainly heard; for the night was too dark to see anything on the water; the contrabands approached the bridge, and, instead of quietly retiring with the information, the picket ordered them to halt, whereupon they commenced to run, and in great excitement the preacher sprang forward, and, firing his piece, called upon them in language far more emphatic than elegant to halt.

At this the boats hastily put back and a volley of bullets from the Yankee side came whizzing over the river, the great signal lights on the Point at the same time beginning to swing to and fro, giving a weird and ghostly gleaming to the wild scene. The Captain and his party at once rushed to the bridge, hoping at least to catch some of the negroes, but they were gone, not even a wounded one left as the result of the preacher’s shot.

The company then returned to camp, and that was, I believe, the last, as well as the first, expedition ever made by the parson as a scout.

One night the Captain ordered the company to saddle up, and taking with him his negro boy “Baz,” went down near Harper’s Ferry, in search of news from “over the water.” Here he passed himself and people for Yankees, and had a very pleasant time among the loyal (colored) folks of that region; but his information, although very abundant, was not of much value; so after making free with the cherry-bounce, and frightening the little niggers at “old Taps” until their eyes were a great deal too large for their faces, he started “Baz” to a house near the crossing of the Shenandoah, just opposite the town, to try if he couldn’t get them to take him over, he representing himself as a runaway, and it being pretty generally understood that the family there was engaged in that business.

It so happened, however, that none of the men were at home, and “Baz” was persuaded by the ladies to wait till morning; but after some time he concluded to put off his trip, and returned to the company, about fifteen of whom were waiting for "Baz"—as part of his programme was to make arrangements for crossing, then return for a couple of friends who were going with him—and he had been so long about it that White, fearing he had got into trouble, or perhaps had turned the thing into earnest and gone over literally, had started to the house and met “Baz” a very short distance from it. His men at once surrounded the cabin, and Ferro, going on the porch, commenced to inquire of the women—who were still standing there—the news, but no sooner did he speak, than, apparently for the first time comprehending the situation, they threw themselves on the floor and began to scream—“Rebels, rebels; oh, my friends, come over here!—come quick!” &c., and the sentinels on the other side fired their muskets. At once the drums commenced to roll and very soon the troops were in line, when White ordered his party to retire, which they did at once; but the women kept on screaming, and the Yankees opened a fire which rendered the retreat of the scouts a very interesting operation until they reached the point where the grade turns the mountain. And thinking they had heard enough for one night they mounted their horses, and going up the Valley to the residence of a good citizen, above Neersville, turned in until morning.

Although returning empty-handed from his scouts, operations of this kind had a good effect on the border, for the reason that they diminished greatly, and at some points stopped the communications entirely, with the other side of the river.[river.]

In this manner January and February passed away, but during the latter part of February the business became a great deal more particular, and one Sunday evening the Captain returned to camp from Leesburg with an order to cross Goose Creek and make a scout into Fairfax. Leaving the camp at dark, as usual, the command marched through Leesburg, and on reaching the burnt bridge found the creek very high; in fact, some of the horses had to swim; but all crossed safely, and passing down the pike reached Dranesville, when the Captain turned to the right, and bivouacked his men in the house of a citizen. Here they slept until morning, and continuing the scout, met Lt.-Col. Munford, with a party of the 2d Virginia Cavalry, also on the hunt of the enemy; but nothing came of it, and White returned to his camp, with his men pretty badly used up.

Soon after this, Col. Geary of the 28th Pennsylvania, began to pay attention to the Loudoun side of the river, and needed a great deal of looking after on the part of our scouting company. One day the Captain, with a party, went up to the Loudoun Heights, and from the old blockhouses there, discovered that a pontoon bridge was nearly completed over the Shenandoah, which evidently showed an intention to cross the river. After staying there for an hour or two, in easy gunshot of the workmen, the Captain concluded to go across to the Short Hill and from the Eagle Rock take a look at Sandy Hook and the Rail Road generally. Just as he reached his observatory some of the men looked over at the blockhouses, which they had left a short while ago, and discovered that a detachment of the enemy was in possession of them, having gone up the mountain by one path while White’s command was coming down by another. This was decidedly interesting, and the next day the Captain took his boys up to the Short Hill again, to have another look at them.

Pretty soon after reaching the top of the mountain one of the boys saw a man in a blue coat lying behind some rocks, and showing him to the Captain he called upon him to come out and surrender, which he did, and just at that moment one of the boys, farther out on the mountain, slipped from a rock and accidentally discharged his gun. This created quite a panic, the scouts imagining that they were beleaguered by Yankees, and be it known not many of them had ever seen a Yankee except with the Potomac between them.

The trouble was soon over though, and the prisoner, who proved to be a Lieutenant in Co. D, 28th Pennsylvania, explained that he was one of a party that had crossed the hill there on the way to Lovettsville, and by stopping at a house for something to eat he had got behind, and as a consequence fallen into the hands of those whom he termed “guerrillas.”

No boy was ever prouder of his first pantaloons than White’s boys were of their first prisoner, and rapidly retiring from the mountain they made their best time down the country towards Leesburg, to show him, but great was their astonishment to see the citizens fly from their approach as if they had been a tribe of wild cats.

They couldn’t understand it all until, on reaching Wheatland, they met Major Peyton, of Gen. Beauregard’s staff, who informed the Captain that the people had heard he and his men were all captured, and they thought the party were Yankees coming to devour them.

Capt. White, with his prisoner, and some of his men, went with Major P. to Mr. Braden’s, and the others stopped at Mr. Orrison’s, where they got supper, and related their marvelous exploit, as they then considered it, and so scrupulously chivalrous were they towards the captured officer that the men took turns at walking in order that he might ride the whole way, and although he was provided with canteen, gum-cloth and haversack, everything in fact that a completely equipped soldier needs, they took nothing from him but his pistol.

The Lieutenant informed them that he and all his men were fighting for the Union, and not to set the negroes free; that if he thought for one moment the latter was the object of the war he would quit the army at once and either go home and stay there, or come South and join the Confederates.

After supper the company united and marched for Leesburg, but on reaching Clark’s Gap found that the men who had been left in camp, alarmed at the rumors they had heard, had loaded the wagons and moved everything from Waterford to the turnpike, and had the teams still hitched up ready to move further. Leaving the company here, Capt. W. took the prisoner to Gen. Hill, and in the morning came up and moved his wagons back to Waterford. This was Sunday morning, and a company of Michigan Cavalry came down to about one and a-half miles of the town, when White got his men in the saddle to meet them, but they were only on a scout, and after getting a look at the Southern pickets returned to their camp. The next day the Captain took his men again to the mountain, this time to capture the blockhouses on Loudoun Heights.

After reaching the top of the mountain, about two and a-half miles from the object of his expedition, he dismounted five men, to wit: T. S. Grubb, John Tribbey, R. Ferro, C. Cooper, and F. M. Myers, and putting the last named in command, sent them forward along the backbone of the Blue Ridge, as a forlorn hope, with instructions to get as close as possible without being perceived by the enemy, and then to fire and dash upon the houses, telling them that he would support them with the balance of the company, which now numbered about thirty-five men—and boys. The advance guard moved off, thinking that whatever their Captain said was all right, and that his orders must be obeyed at every hazard. They were deployed as skirmishers, the commander keeping as near the line of the mountain summit as possible, while on the right and left were two men, the first ten steps from the leader and the second the same distance beyond the first. In this manner they moved quietly along, with the understanding that as a signal their leading man, in case of need, should whistle once to cause them to lie down, and two notes from the natural bugle meant forward again. While on the way, Cooper asked to be allowed to shoot at the first Yankee he saw and as soon as he saw him, to which Myers objected, but finally agreed that if he was near enough to see the white of his eye he might shoot.

Almost before they knew it they were at the edge of the clearing around the blockhouses, and the Yankees were close by them, upon which the leader whistled and all lay down to look at the situation; but soon a tramp was heard, and looking to the right they saw a sentry walking his beat, which would bring him within ten feet of the forlorn hope, if he kept on, and on looking at Cooper he was seen with his gun across a stump, cocked, ready to fire, and aiming at the Yankee, the white of whose eye was plainly visible certainly, and it required all the signs in his power to make for Myers to prevent him from shooting the sentry, who passed on unconscious of treading so close to the heads of five rebels. There were about eight hundred infantry and five pieces of artillery at the blockhouses, and three of the guns were pointing exactly in the direction of the scouts. Here was a beautiful piece of work; thirty men to assault such a force as this; but they were going to do it, and the five only waited for the others to get in supporting distance, to commence the attack. It was not made, however, for while lying there they heard a shot in the rear, and crawling back through the bushes until out of sight of the enemy, they got up and traveled as fast as possible to the rear, and finally reached the Captain, who only pointed with his hand down towards the valley, and wheeling his horse dashed away. Looking in that direction they saw a force of cavalry and infantry moving up the grade, and already they were beyond Neersville, while in their rear some forage wagons were going along the grade.

They at once conjectured that their Captain was going to attack this party and hurried back faster than ever to get their horses, and as soon as all his people were together White dashed down the mountain and charged the foragers, but they were too fast for him, and after following them under the guns of the blockhouses he turned about and gave up the chase.

The company then returned to their quarters, and for several days did nothing but picket, the force being divided into two parties, one under Henry Moore and the other under Frank Myers, who would relieve each other every six hours.

This was soldiering with the gilding off, and many were the homesick boys, as during the stormy hours of those winter nights they sat on their horses peering through the dark for the enemy who threatened them always, but never came to drive them away, although their cavalry came near to us many times; on one occasion going to the old schoolhouse at Rehoboth, which had been occupied by the Southern cavalry as a shelter for their pickets, and burned it down, although they knew they were advancing and it could no longer be used for that purpose.

On another occasion some of them made a valiant descent upon Taylortown and captured “Stout” Williams’ Mill at that place, carrying off his books and papers, along with his flour and almost everything else that was moveable about the premises.

However, the hard duty performed by the little garrison at Waterford was soon to change now, for matters drew to a crisis very rapidly after McClellan’s army commenced to advance from the lines around Washington, and one evening Capt. White came up from Leesburg and informed his company that the time had come when the border would no longer be on the Potomac, for Generals Beauregard and Johnson were going to fall back from Manassas in order to draw McClellan into a battle away from his base.

The boys all thought the movement was a good one, and by midnight their wagons were loaded and everything in moving order, but all felt very sure they wouldn’t be away more than a month at farthest, for one more battle would, in their opinion, about end the war.

About 2 o’clock in the morning the pickets were called in, and the wagons started for Leesburg, while the companies of White and Graves prepared to guard them.

This ended the pleasant experience of camping in Waterford, and closed the Winter campaign for 1861 and ’2, the first in which Capt. White’s company had been engaged, and from this time forth they were no longer to play soldier, but act it out in sober earnest.

CHAPTER III.

On the morning of March 4th, 1862, Captain White marched from Waterford to Leesburg, and when they reached the top of Catocton Mountain they saw what desolation the retiring army was inflicting on the country, and knowing what would follow the Yankees in their advance, it did really appear that the people of their beloved and beautiful Loudoun must leave their homes or be burned with them, for all over the country could be seen the flames going up from the stack-yards and mills, and the morning air was dark and heavy with the gloom of the destruction which brooded over the land.

On arriving at Leesburg Gen. Hill’s troops were seen marching away, the General and his staff being mounted, ready to leave the town when the last soldier had gone out. Hill ordered White to remain and act as he thought best, but to watch the enemy, and keep him advised of all movements along the border.

The Captain remained in town until evening, when he went up among the Quakers and encamped for the night, and for several days hung around this section, watching for an opportunity to annoy the enemy, but they did not appear desirous of being annoyed by him, for it was almost two days after White left Waterford before the Michigan cavalry appeared in that place; but from here their march to Leesburg was rapid, and after that they remained very quiet for several days, being only engaged in arresting citizens and operating under the instigation of the tory citizens of the county who now flocked into the desolated land, and as far as their power went, destroyed every vestige of free will among the people, and turned loose the demon of political persecution upon those unfortunate people—whose only crime was loyalty to their old mother State.

The situation of the little company of scouts was now rather precarious, cut off from supplies from both directions—their homes and the army too—no regular organization of their own, no quartermaster, and what rendered the matter worse, the men had made no preparation for a campaign out of reach of their homes, and their supply of clothing was very scanty. The Captain bestirred himself to supply, as far as possible, all deficiencies, and made arrangements to get cloth from the factory at Waterloo; and pretty soon he learned that Lieut.-Col. Munford, with four companies of his regiment, had been left to operate along the border.

To this gallant officer and gentleman he at once applied to have himself and people admitted into his command, which request was readily granted, and in the welcoming speech of the Colonel he assured the little band of homeless wanderers that “the men of the mountains welcomed the boys of the Potomac, and would gladly share with them their blankets and their bread.”

Here they had a temporary home, and very soon their ranks filled up to the number required by law for a company, and on the 19th of March, under Col. Munford’s superintendence, the company was regularly organized, Capt. White being unanimously chosen to command it, with Frank M. Myers as 1st Lieutenant, Wm. F. Barrett 2d Lieutenant, and R. C. Marlow 3d Lieutenant.

Lieut. Marlow was placed in general charge of the quartermaster department, and Lieut. Barrett was sent to Culpeper on duty as a recruiting officer.

Col. Munford kept Geary’s forces in constant fear and trembling, so that his cavalry never ventured out of hearing of the infantry; and it was no easy matter to make anything out of them.

On one occasion the Colonel came from Salem to Rector’s Cross Roads, where he found some of the enemy’s pickets, and White, with about half a dozen men, tried to capture them, but with all speed they flew down the pike towards Middleburg, closely pursued by the Confederates. On reaching the town, White’s party was in striking distance, and succeeded in killing one and wounding another; but here they ran into the 28th Pennsylvania, just in the act of forming their line of battle, and but for a citizen, the Captain would have gotten into serious difficulty.

As it was, he turned quietly and rode back to Munford’s people, who, by this time, were almost in town, and the whole force moved slowly back towards Rectortown. Capt. White halted about a mile from town and watched the enemy, who marched out a short distance and commenced rapid firing from infantry and artillery, but they were too far away to do any damage at all.

Geary magnified this exploit, in the newspapers, into one the of most terrible incidents of the war, reporting that he had surprised the camp of the rebel guerrilla White, which was in a mountain cave, and had captured a great quantity of war material besides about one hundred prisoners.

In the course of Geary’s operations in Loudoun, he reported captures of White’s men to the number of over six hundred, besides the killed and wounded.

After Geary got his command on the railroad, Capt. White, by permission of Col. Munford, made a raid in his rear at Salem, and driving off the guard, took possession of all the baggage of the entire 28th Pennsylvania, which he carried safely off with him; and Col. Munford, soon after, came down on his commissary stores at Piedmont, making a heavy capture of flour and many other articles, as well as some negroes whom the Pennsylvania hero had stolen away from their homes.

In the latter part of April, Munford was ordered to report to his regiment, then lying on the Rappahannock, near the O. and A. R. R., and White went with him, but soon after reaching the camp of the 2d regiment, through Col. Munford’s influence, he was ordered to report to Gen. Ewell, to act on scouting and courier duty for that officer; accordingly, he started at once for his new field of action, and reached Gen. Ewell’s headquarters at Liberty Mills on the 1st of May. Soon after which the division marched to Jackson’s department in the Valley, crossing the Blue-Ridge at Swift Run Gap and establishing camp at Auglebright’s, in whose house Gen. Ewell had his headquarters.

The General was a stern, fierce old soldier, having been an officer of the old army and on duty among the Indians and on the frontier for many years. He was a rigid disciplinarian, and White’s men were a great deal more afraid of him than of Yankees. One of his abominations was to receive "don’t know" for an answer, and before very long every man detailed for duty at the General’s headquarters went with fear and trembling, for there were a great many things which they really did not know, and when asked about them they couldn’t say anything else.

It was an unfortunate time for such greenhorns as White’s people were to go on such duty as this, for the General had reached the Valley just at the moment when Jackson was starting on his McDowell expedition, and without any knowledge of the plans or intentions of his superior, Ewell was compelled to lie still in camp with his little army, while the troops of Banks gathered all around him, and he was rendered extremely cross and impatient thereby; but one day that peerless cavalier, Gen. Ashby, who had been with Jackson, rode up to Ewell’s headquarters, and meeting the General, saluted him and inquired how he did, to which Ewell replied, "I’ve been in hell for three days! been in hell for three days, Gen. Ashby. What’s the news from Jackson?"

Ashby replied, “Gen. Jackson says the Lord has blessed our arms with another glorious victory,” and then proceeded to give him the details of “Stonewall” and his army getting lost among the mountains, but being finally found by the Yankee Generals, Milroy, Schenck and Co., to their great discomfort.

The recital brightened the spirits of our General to such an extent that the boys began to think there might be a warm place somewhere away down in his rugged, iceberg of a heart, and they decided that he wasn’t such a savage old bear after all, but the change didn’t amount to much, and it was finally given up that “old Ewell” didn’t love but one thing on earth, and that one thing was “Friday,” the ugliest, dirtiest and most aggravating and thievish little wretch of an Indian boy in the country.

However, his staff was composed of very clever gentlemen, especially Capt. Brown, his special aid-de-camp, who was very accommodating and pleasant, and all the boys liked him very much. Major Barbour, A. A. General, too, was a favorite; so was Major Snodgrass, the Quartermaster. But some of the Brigadiers were far from being admired; and not one of the men would have acted as courier for Gen. Dick Taylor, if they could have avoided it.

On one occasion a courier went into Ewell’s headquarters to make some report, in the course of which he replied to one of the General’s questions with the remark, "I passed Taylor’s Brigade," upon which Taylor, who was present, exclaimed, “How dare you speak in that manner! I am General Taylor, sir;” but Gen. Ewell, with a glance of his fierce eye, remarked, “This is my courier, sir,” and went on with his questions.

Taylor was undoubtedly a splendid officer, but he was proud as Lucifer, and therefore unpopular.

Gen. Elzey also commanded a brigade in the Division at that time, and was rather popular with his couriers; but they were very fond of the good-natured Gen. Trimble, and it was never any trouble to get men to report to him for courier duty, provided Major Snodgrass was supplied, as the Quartermaster’s department was first choice always.

Gen. Ewell also had a small cavalry brigade, composed of the 2d and 6th Virginia regiments, and commanded by Col. Munford, who had been promoted to the colonelcy of the 2d regiment at the reorganization of the army in April.

It was sometimes necessary to send couriers with Major Wheat, of the celebrated “Tiger Battalion,” of Louisiana, who was very often on detached service in the Luray Valley, and was also a very popular man with White’s people. While camping at this place, some of the boys determined to visit their homes, and accordingly four of them deserted and made their way back to Loudoun and Fairfax.

About the middle of May the first heavy misfortune that befel the company occurred.

Gen. Ewell was always anxious to get the news from Banks’ army in the Shenandoah Valley, and Capt. White was always ready to exchange camp life for the privilege of scouting. So taking with him his first Lieutenant, and Capt. Brown of the 16th Mississippi Infantry, with a small detail of his men, he left camp in the afternoon, and crossing the river at Miller’s Bridge, they climbed the Massanutten mountains. It was quite dark when the party reached the top, and the night was cold, making the bivouac very uncomfortable, for without blankets or overcoats, they had nothing but the rocky brow of the Massanutten for a bed; and to crown everything, they had brought nothing to eat—for, until arriving on the mountain top, it had not been the intention of the party to wait for daylight to do their scouting—so with fasting and freezing the weary night wore away, but from their observatory the scouts looked down upon the camp fires of the Federal army, and the position of each regiment was clearly discerned.

When daylight came, which it did with a clear and bracing air to the men on the mountains—while yet the valley country was shrouded in mist and fog that fled from the day as the sun advanced, and rolling its huge masses up the gloomy mountain wall broke away and hid itself to wait again for the night to come down—the scouts bethought them of breakfast, as supper had occupied their waking hours during the darkness, and the Captain sent them all back to camp except Capt. Brown, Lieut. Myers and Serg’t Boyd Barrett, (recently transferred from Co. K, 6th Va. Cav., to White’s Company,) who, leaving their horses, descended the mountain on foot, intending to try their fortune among the Yankee foragers.

Near the foot of the mountain the party halted at a cabin and asked for something to eat, which, after some difficulty and a good deal of rather impatient waiting, was finally obtained; and along with the rations the Captain—by representing to the king of the wigwam that himself and comrades were Yankees—received some interesting information about the enemy, which he dispatched by Barrett to Gen. Ewell.

The scouting party—now reduced to three—walked cautiously out into the open valley country and soon found themselves inside of the enemy’s lines.

They saw several squads and companies of the blue-coated troopers, but did not come in contact with any, although several times they had to hide themselves while the enemy passed by them, and finally about noon reached the handsome residence of Mr. Rhodes, near Lacy’s Spring, where they endeavored to make themselves known in their true character as Confederates. This, however, was not so easily done, for their dress about as closely resembled one uniform as the other, and the “Jessie Scouts,” of Fremont’s hatching, were plentiful in the Valley; and besides this, the Yankee camp was less than half a mile distant, from which they were almost constantly receiving visitors; consequently, under all the circumstances, argument was thrown away, until, as a last resort, Lieut. Myers prevailed on one of the ladies to examine the Virginia buttons on his coat. This, with Capt. White’s elaborate argument, that “nobody but a Virginia soldier ever did wear a Virginia button,” convinced the family, and their dangerous predicament outside of the house was exchanged for a place in the parlor, where, with closed blinds, they enjoyed a splendid dinner and heard Mr. Rhodes detail the valorous doings of the defenders of the “star spangled banner,” in the way of making bloody assaults upon the hen-roosts, and fearless dashes into spring-houses and stables in the Valley Department. Among other things he informed them of two cavalrymen who had spent the night at a house of rather doubtful repute, a short distance away, and whose horses had left them during the night, but as soon as morning came they had gone off to replace them from some citizen’s pasture, leaving their saddles and bridles at the house, and Mr. R. thought it probable they had returned with the stolen horses by that time. White and his comrades decided at once to attempt the capture of the gentlemen, and they set about it as soon as it was ascertained that they were still at Cook’s.

Approaching the house, two fine horses, with full cavalry rig, were seen tied to the fence in front of the door, and White made for them immediately, leaving Brown and Myers to attend to the Yankees, one of whom, coming to the door to see what was wrong with the horses, was suddenly pounced upon by Capt. Brown and captured without difficulty; but Myers had more trouble with his man, who staid in the house and made no answer to the order to surrender, although it was backed by the presentation of a big horse pistol, but commenced to draw his revolver, and Myers, feeling extremely doubtful about his horse pistol going the first time—a thing it had never done yet—stuck it hastily in his belt, and snatching the Yankee’s half drawn revolver, twisted it out of his hand, with the remark, "Guess you’ll surrender now, won’t you?" to which the blue jacket replied, he “guessed he would.”

The two Captains then mounted the horses, and leaving Myers to follow with the prisoners, with instructions to wait on top of the mountain until they found their horses and brought them up, started back to their last night’s camp, but were unable to find it, and after the party had got together again White proposed going on foot with the prisoners, to Dr. Hansberger’s, while Brown and Myers should hunt up the horses and bring them down, saying he would have supper ready by the time they got there.

The arrangement was agreed to, and all started to put it into execution, but as White was going down the mountain he passed a house where several citizens were standing and inquired of them the road. They answered him and he pushed on, but as soon as he had passed, the citizens decided that it was a party of Yankees on a scout, and hastily arming themselves, five of their number followed, intending to capture them, and White, on seeing that he was pursued, thought at once that they were Union bushwhackers going to rescue the prisoners, and turning towards them he demanded why they were following him, to which they replied by asking, “What are you doing with those men?” White then drew his pistol, and Sheetz, the leader of the citizens, raised his double-barrel gun. Both drew trigger at once and both weapons missed fire, but the Captain was ready first, and just as the citizen’s gun was raised again, White fired, his bullet breaking Sheetz’s arm above the elbow. He immediately caught his gun with the other hand, and was in the act of firing when White’s pistol exploded again and his remaining arm fell, shattered at the elbow precisely as the first one was. The other citizens all run but one who hid himself in the fence corner along the road, and White did the same, but after waiting some time, became impatient, and raising his head above the top rail to look for his assailants, the citizen fired at him with a small sporting rifle, the ball taking effect near the right eye.

This ended the fight, and when Brown and Myers rode up about half an hour later, they found the citizens in a terrible state of excitement over the result of their unfortunate attack, one of their number being stretched on the ground desperately wounded, while Capt. White sat in a fence corner almost dead, in fact all who saw him, supposed him to be dying. And the Yankee prisoners were expecting every moment to be immolated, for, said they, "If the rebels will treat each other in this manner, what won’t they do with us?" And no sooner did Lieut. Myers dismount from his horse than they ran to him for protection, and absolutely refused to leave him for a single moment, until he wanted one of them to bring some water from a spring near by, and the Lieutenant was compelled to actually drive him from him then. Capt. Brown rode immediately on to camp, to inform the company of the tragic winding up of the scout, and very shortly a considerable number of the boys, accompanied by their surgeon, Dr. William N. Lupton, with his ambulance, were on the march for the scene of conflict, and on their arrival, before learning the full particulars of the affair, it was all that Lieut. Myers could do to prevent them from killing all the citizens engaged in it.

Meantime the Captain had been making “his will,” and supposing he was soon to be in the land of spirits, gave to the Lieutenant quite a number of messages to be delivered to his wife and child in Maryland, but his mind dwelt upon his company too, and every few minutes he would exclaim, “Tell the boys to do as I did—never surrender!”

Dr. Lupton examined the wound and pronounced it a dangerous one, but not necessarily fatal by any means, and soon after he was placed in the ambulance, and in great misery, moved to the house of a kind citizen a few miles nearer to camp, where he remained for two or three days, when his men carried him on a litter to the hospitable home of Dr. Miller, on the river bank, where he remained until he had sufficiently recovered to ride over to his friends at Charlottesville.

CHAPTER IV.

The command of the company now devolved upon Lieut. Myers, and in a very few days Gen. Ewell marched his whole division to Columbian Bridge, about twenty-five miles lower down the river, where he halted for a time, and Myers and Barrett endeavored to put the business of the company into shape, as there had not been a payroll made off, and only one muster roll since the company had been in the service, but on the 21st of May, General Ewell sent for Lieut. Myers, and giving him a bundle of dispatches, told him to mount the best horse he could find and carry them to General Jackson.

Now be it known, nobody had heard from that officer for a long while, and the Lieutenant naturally desired to ask the question—“Where is Gen. Jackson?” but from former experience was afraid to venture it, and walked disconsolately from headquarters and the presence of the General, without any definite plan whatever in his mind, and sighing with the Psalmist for the “wings of a dove,” but Major Barbour had noticed his elongated visage, and divining his trouble, met him in the yard, where he proceeded to explain to him the road to Jackson, but while thus engaged, Gen. Ewell stepped out and exclaimed in his quick, spiteful tone, “Lieutenant Myers, go to New Market and take the turnpike road to Harrisonburg; be quick now, I want to see you again to-day.” The Lieutenant crossed the Massanutten and found some of Ashby’s cavalry at New Market, who told him Jackson was coming down the pike, and a nine mile ride up the Valley brought him to the marching army of “Stonewall,” and very soon he met a party of officers riding among the infantry, when selecting one whom, for the plainness of his dress, he took for a courier, he asked him to show him Gen. Jackson, supposing, of course, to have one of the finely dressed officers pointed out to him, but the courier simply replied, “I am Gen. Jackson; where are you from, sir?” After reading the dispatches, he wrote a few lines to Gen. Ewell, and cross-questioned the Lieutenant a short time, when he sent him back, saying, "I’ll see you at Luray to-morrow." On the way back to camp, the Lieutenant met Gen. Ewell on the mountain, and on reaching the river found everything moving towards New Market, but this was soon changed, and the troops took the road to Luray, where, on the following morning they met Gen. Jackson and some of his people, and the two Generals held a conference, after which Ewell pushed forward to Front Royal, reaching that place about 3 o’clock in the evening of the 23d of May. Here they found a force of the enemy, and a fierce battle ensued, at the beginning of which Gen. Ewell ordered Lieutenant Myers to remain near him with a party of his men, but after capturing Kenly’s 1st Maryland, and driving the rest of the Yankees from town, a force appeared on the river hills and opened a heavy artillery fire upon the Confederates, during which the shells howled savagely around the General and his escort, when, looking around, the old fellow broke out on Myers with “What do you mean, sir, by making a target of me with these men!” Upon which the Lieutenant replied, "Why, General, you told me to stay near you, and I’m trying to do it." “Clear out, sir, clear out,” roared the General, "I didn’t tell you to get all your men killed and me too," and that was the last time they troubled him that day, for the men deemed themselves discharged from further attendance upon him, and pitched in for plunder, every man doing his best to equip himself for service, they being as yet mostly armed with double-barreled guns only, and riding citizen saddles brought with them from home. Many of them succeeded in securing sabres and pistols, and nearly all possessed themselves of gum cloths, canteens and other articles of great value to soldiers.

That night the whole force moved across the river on the Winchester road, passing, as they did so, the ground where the Southern cavalry fought so well, and where so many gallant men found bloody deaths in charging the Yankee infantry, among them Capt. George Baxter, of the Loudoun Cavalry, 6th Virginia regiment, Capt. George F. Sheetz, who was said by many to be a better officer than Ashby himself, and Capt. Fletcher, the gallant commander of Ashby’s old company. General Ewell, who had been an old cavalry officer, and knew how to appreciate the splendid display of valor, skill and devotion made by Ashby’s troops at this point, worthy as it was of the “sons of the sires,” whom Light Horse Harry had led in days as dark and stormy, long ago, and here on the field of Front Royal added another leaf to the Laurel Crown, which Fame, in “Auld Lang Syne,” had woven for the honor of the cavaliers of the “Old Dominion,” spoke of this charge as one of the most gallant affairs he had ever witnessed, and no higher praise could be given than to say they fought under the eye of General Richard S. Ewell, and won his warmest admiration, for, like Jackson, he never bestowed it unmerited, and he meant everything he said.

In the bivouac that night the General had his escort near his headquarters, and as his staff did not join him for a long time after, he called upon Lieut. Barrett to act as A. A. General for him, and kept the Lieutenant busily engaged until a late hour in writing dispatches and reports for him, and the next morning he started the company on a scouting expedition, in which it was engaged all day, rejoining the General about dark, who was then marching towards Winchester with all his force. The weather was raw and chilly, but the night was spent in making reconnoisances and marching for short distances, but no fires were kindled or noises made which might apprise General Banks of the proximity of the rebels until about 3 o’clock, when the enemy’s pickets were found by Sergt. C. B. Barrett, who, with a squad, had been on detail at headquarters, and upon receipt of this information Gen. Ewell took a company of infantry and stirred up the Yankee picket lines by firing on their posts and driving them in. About an hour before daylight one of the couriers brought to Gen. Ewell a dispatch from “Stonewall,” which the writer saw as Gen, E. opened it, and it was simply a sheet of paper upon which was delineated the roads, streams, woods, &c., around Winchester, and showing the disposition of the enemy’s forces in Ewell’s front, as well as Jackson’s position on the Valley pike, and beneath the plan the words “attack at daylight” were written. No other instructions were needed, and with the dawning of that bright and beautiful Sabbath morning in May the regiments moved forward to the battle. For sometime everything went smoothly, and the enemy broke at every point, but by-and-by a large body of them were rallied and placed behind a stone fence, where they lay quietly and entirely unperceived by the 21st North Carolina infantry, which was moving over that part of the field, and when within twenty or thirty yards the Yankees raised up and poured a tremendous volley into their ranks, killing and wounding nearly one-third of the regiment, but the men were promptly rallied by their gallant Colonel, who instantly ordered a bayonet charge, which was executed in splendid style, and the enemy retreated in great confusion before the brave North Carolinians, but their victory was dearly bought, for Col. Strickland fell dead at the fence, and his men lay thick around him.

From this time there was no rallying point for Banks’ army except the Potomac, for just then Gen. Jackson bursted his column at Middletown, and with Ashby in their rear they rather flew than ran along the Valley pike to the thirty miles distant river; but in one wild scene of disorder and cowardice they raced that distance at such a speed that not even Mameluke cavalry, though mounted on Arabia’s choicest steeds, could have caught them, and just beyond Winchester “old Stonewall” halted his infantry and encamped his army.

Here White’s company, which had been scattered in squads, scouting and fighting, and acting as escort and body-guards for the different Generals, re-united about sunset, and nearly every man was completely armed and equipped with sabres, revolvers, and everything necessary to fit them for service, including Yankee bridles and halters, and many saddles bearing the letters U. S., which letters also embellished the shoulders of many of their horses and all their blankets.

Next morning Gen. Ewell gave them a box containing twenty new carbines of the “Merrill” pattern, which he directed should always be carried by the scouting details, and then ordered Lieut. Myers to take twenty men and proceed to Charlestown to take charge of the Government stores at that place, instructing him to take an inventory of everything and send to him in order that he might send wagons to move them.

Myers pushed on to Charlestown and found a large quantity of stores, arms, and everything needed by an army, which the enemy had abandoned; and sending a messenger to the General with the necessary information, he encamped, and his men were taken by the citizens to their houses and regaled with the best of everything the land could afford. These people had been under Yankee rule for more than two months, and the change almost made them wild with joy, so much go that they were ready to worship Gen. Jackson and his men for relieving them of the hateful presence of their tyrannical conquerors who, during all these weeks, had lorded it over them in the approved Yankee style of domination over a helpless people and their desolated homes; whence had vanished the glory which their household gods were wont to shed around them, but in spite of it all they were not conquered, and the “quenchless spirits, hushed by force, in dauntless eye burned brightly.”

While White’s cavalrymen were enjoying the good things provided by the tried and true in Charlestown, Major John Shack. Green, of the 6th Virginia Cavalry, rode up with a detachment from his regiment, and proposed to encamp near the town, which was done, and the next morning a scout came in saying the Yankees were at Halltown and still advancing, upon which Major Green moved his command down the road, took a position on the right, while Myers’ men formed to the left, and sending a little party to the front to look out for the enemy, they waited for events to determine their actions.

In half an hour the advance party was heard skirmishing with the enemy, and soon after a regiment of infantry appeared in the road, about half a mile away, and soon after two other regiments of infantry and one of cavalry appeared, escorting a battery of artillery.

The Confederates moved down and skirmished some, but very soon the battery opened fire, and Major Green retired slowly to a position beyond the town.

Myers kept his men in front for sometime, until finding that the Yankees wouldn’t advance a step with a Confederate force of any size in gunshot range, and seeing also the shells from the battery were passing over his position and falling in the town, he fell back to the other end of the town, and in a short time a force of cavalry moved up the road, supported by the infantry and artillery, and set fire to the stores, which were still in the market-house, in the very centre of Charlestown, after which they retired rapidly towards Harper’s Ferry, and Myers returned to Gen. Ewell to inform him that the necessity for sending wagons for the stores of which he had received an inventory, no longer existed, but he met Gens. Jackson and Ewell both marching, with a strong force, on Charlestown, and the next morning, after again enjoying the hospitality of the good citizens of Charlestown, Gen. Ewell ordered Lieut. Myers to dismount his company and find the force and position of the enemy in the direction of Halltown.

After moving about a mile, Ed. Oxley reported that he had found in a wheat field, the frying pans, blankets and other articles of the skirmish line. So halting the command, the Lieutenant made a reconnoissance, in which he discovered about, as he thought, two thousand infantry and a regiment of cavalry, on the road, which he reported to the General, and was very much astonished that an advance was not made at once, but after waiting some time, and seeing the enemy retire slowly, he resolved to see where they went, and taking Ed. Wright with him, the pair got into the mill-race which passes into Halltown, and hid from view by the high banks and bushes, waded safely to the miller’s house, which is right in town, and going to the upper windows had a full view of all the force there, which did not consist of over six hundred cavalry and a regiment of infantry; and, deeming this information of importance, they returned to Gen. Ewell and reported; finding both the Generals, Ewell and Jackson, on a hill about half a mile from the town, and on the same position the enemy had occupied in the morning.

The officers both expressed themselves highly pleased with the information and the manner in which it was obtained, but Gen. Ewell thought it would have been better if the scouts had returned to him immediately on getting it, instead of stopping at the miller’s house to eat a good dinner, which was on the table when they came down stairs; but it was too late then, for they had the dinner, and mentally resolved to do the same thing, when the opportunity presented itself, whether the General liked it or not, but they also resolved, in the same manner, not to tell him next time.

It appeared that General Jackson had no intention of making a fight here, but only to demonstrate upon the Yankees along the river until he could get his immense quantities of captured stores and baggage away from Winchester and the railroad, and he now had only a small force of infantry with a battery at Halltown.

While lying here watching the enemy, five of them came on the road, in good gunshot of the battery, and annoyed the men there very much, but were themselves perfectly safe, and, at the solicitation of Ed. Wright and Norman Smith, Lieut. Myers went to Gen. Ewell for permission to go and drive them away, which, for some time, he refused, but finally, on the third application, he rather testily exclaimed, "Yes; go on, go on; but you’ll come back faster than you go;" and away went the three with their new carbines to try their luck.

They managed to get a good position unperceived by the sharpshooters, and as only one of them could be seen, and he very imperfectly, it was decided that Myers, who was supposed to be the best shot, should fire first, and Smith and Wright take theirs when the Yankees raised up. They were all successful, and left three of the boys lying on the ground, but no sooner had they done so than they found themselves in a perfect hornet’s nest, for two companies of infantry, who had been lying all the while concealed among some trees on the hillside, just beyond the pike, opened a hot fire upon the three scouts, and they being now in an open clover field, had to run for their lives. Smith and Wright ran to a hollow and escaped easily, but Myers started directly up the hill to the battery, and being dressed in a new red shirt, had a lively time of it, and would scarcely have escaped at all but for the General opening on them with his artillery; as it was his red shirt got three balls through it, and his fright was well nigh mortal.

This affair brought on a heavy cannonade, which kept up nearly all the afternoon, and when night came the Confederates fell back, which they continued to do until they reached Winchester again, and the company of White had a long and hard scout to find Gen. Ewell’s ordnance train, which by some means had got off the road at Smithfield; and during this scout they found a box of sabres at Stevenson’s depot, which was sent back by a detail for the purpose, and the Yankees coming up about this time gave the boys carrying the arms a chase, in which several sabres were lost, but they boasted that all the scabbards were saved.

On reaching the division the train was found to have been in camp all the time, and now the fact that Fremont was coming down on one flank, and Shields on the other, both moving on lines that would unite them in Jackson’s rear, impelled that commander to move up the Valley, not thinking it very desirable to form a junction with the Generals named so far away from the Blue Ridge, which was always the great commander’s wall of defense under his faith in the Great Jehovah.

Sunday morning, June 1st, 1862, the army reached Strasburg, and at this point Gen. Fremont attempted to flank “Stonewall,” but the latter preferred not to be flanked, and to prevent it unlimbered his batteries and after an hour’s conversation by the brazen lips of these interpreters, Gen. F. decided that if Jackson didn’t want to be flanked, why he wouldn’t do it, and gave up the job, but from now on the Yankees closely pressed the rear, and Ashby with his cavalry and Chew’s battery fought them from every hill.

It was while on this march that Col. Sir Percy Wyndham bagged Ashby, an exploit by which he hoped to win a Brigadier’s commission, and undoubtedly would have done so if he had taken Ashby to Washington instead of allowing Ashby to take him to Richmond.

The couriers had extremely severe work on this march up the Valley pike, but the army encamped regularly every night, and never for one moment did the march take the appearance of a retreat, for the rear guard always held its positions as long as it was necessary. On arriving at Mount Jackson, Gen. Ewell established headquarters, and pitched his tent at the end of the bridge and on the bank of the river, but during the night a tremendous storm of rain came down and the stream raised so rapidly that before headquarters knew what was going on it was on an island, with the water rising every moment, and no boat to get out in. Everything was soon in confusion, but Gen. Ewell mounted his old gray horse, “Rifle,” and taking the little Indian, “Friday,” behind him, plunged into the water without coat or hat and swam over to the camp of his cavalry, leaving the staff and wagon to get out as they could, but the company went to their assistance and soon had the whole business moved over.

Next morning Lieut. Barrett was ordered to New Market, with a detail from the company, to act as provost guard, and the division lay in camp all day just beyond the town. Here the news of the battle of Seven Pines was received and of the wounding of General Johnston, at that time Commander-in-Chief of the Virginia army. There was a great deal of wonder and speculation as to who would succeed him, some thinking Beauregard would take command, while many of the men thought our own Stonewall was the man for the place, but nobody thought of Lee, until in reply to a question on the subject, we heard Gen. Ewell remark, "No, sir; I don’t know who will be General Johnston’s successor, but I shan’t be scared at all if the choice falls on Lee." This circulated from camp to camp, and many of the soldiers freely admitted that they would be scared, for they considered that Gen. Lee’s Western Virginia campaign a failure, and if old Scott did say beware of Lee on an advance, they were afraid that the change from following the retreating Johnston to that of rallying under the banners of the advancing Lee wouldn’t be very beneficial to the army or the country, and Gen. Beauregard always had whipped the Yankees without either an advance or a retreat.

These were only some of the many expressions of opinion on the subject of changing commanders, and only for the fact that for a short while they were lying quiet, with nothing to do, the subject would scarcely have had a place in the minds of Jackson’s men, for soldiers soon learn to submit blindly to the powers that be, and obey, unquestioningly, the orders of their officers.

“Theirs not to reason why,

Theirs not to make reply,

Theirs but to do and die.”

While halted at New Market, an incident occurred which banished all thought of the Richmond army from the minds of those who witnessed it, and filled each heart with pride, which claimed Virginia as its home, and that was the daring and almost miraculous escape of Gen. Ashby from the enemy, who attacked him at the bridge on the turnpike and chased him almost to town, killing his celebrated white stallion, but nearly every one of the seven pursuers were killed or wounded by Ashby and his single companion, although the General had no loads in his pistols and fought entirely with the sabre.

This was the last time we ever saw the great soldier on the war path, for he was killed the next day while leading an infantry regiment in the battle at Harrisonburg, (June 5th, 1862), and thus went down in a billow of blood the brilliant star of glory which promised to dazzle the astonished nations with the splendid blaze of chivalric light which now only blazons the fame of the knights of the olden time,

“Whose bones are dust, whose swords are rust,

Whose souls are with the saints, we trust.”

Whatever the world may say of the right or wrong of the “Lost Cause,” it will never deny that many of those by whom it was upheld, and who crowned its banners with glory in carrying them so gallantly and so far, were inspired by motives as patriotic, as pure and bright as ever burned in the bosom of mortal man. They were brave men; they fought as brave men fight, and died as brave men die. Upon a hundred “stormy heights and carnage-covered fields,” they attested their devotion to their cause, and among the truest and bravest of them all, the name of Gen. Turner Ashby shines with a radiant glory that will brighten still as it goes “sounding down the ages,”

“The knightliest of the knightly race,

Who since the days of old

Have kept the lamp of chivalry

Alight in hearts of gold.”

There was mourning in the camp that night, and every face wore a look of gloom as if in the calamity which had just befallen them, the soldiers felt that a harbinger of still greater desolation had been given them, and when Gen. Jackson appeared in the morning, all eyes looked eagerly to see how he felt the loss of the great cavalier, but in that calm and steady eye was an inscrutable look, and no man could form an idea of what were the feelings of the commander by the expression of the face that never changed, either in the glory of triumph or the gloom of defeat.

The army lay quiet all day, and the next moved towards Port Republic, encamping near the old Church at Cross Keys. Some of the men became very impatient at the constant and rapid marching, and one of them asked Gen. Jackson, as he passed along the column, where he was going to fight the Yankees. The General, with a half smile, replied, "We’ll fight them in Brown’s Gap," and the soldiers at once became exceedingly interested in that place, continually asking each other “how[“how] far it was to Brown’s Gap. Would the Yankees follow them there?” &c., little imagining that the ground upon which they then stood was to be their battle-field for the morrow.

Sunday morning, June 8th, broke bright, clear and hot, and by 8 o’clock every one knew that Ewell was going to match his division against the advancing columns of Fremont, for the cavalry, now commanded by Col. T. T. Munford, slowly retired before the Yankee infantry, and Gen. Ewell’s brigades moved out quietly and formed their battle lines. The scouts and couriers now had plenty of work again, and Lieut. Barrett, with a part of the company, was ordered to act as provost guard again, while Gen. Ewell ordered Lieut. Myers and Ed. Wright to scout on the right, and let him know when the enemy made any demonstration in that direction. The remainder of the boys were on duty as couriers with the Generals. The battle opened with some artillery firing, but pretty soon Taylor’s brigade met and whipped a line of Yankees that advanced upon Ewell’s centre, and all was quiet again for an hour, when Elzey’s men became engaged, and at the same time Myers and Wright discovered a heavy force moving by the flank to Ewell’s right. Gen. Trimble was the first man they met on their return with this important information, and communicating it to him, that officer promptly moved his brigade forward, and attacking the flanking party in flank, they were very soon driven off with heavy loss in men and all their artillery. About the time Trimble’s guns opened, General Taylor advanced, and for a while the battle raged with great fury, but General Trimble’s movement exposed the enemy’s left flank, and they fell back along the whole line.

This ended the battle of Cross Keys, with the exception of some cannonading on the left about sundown, and although some horses of the couriers had been struck, only one of White’s men was touched, and he very slightly, by a bouncing grape shot.

That night they slept upon the battle-field, but with the dawn everything moved rapidly towards Port Republic, for Shields, with his army, was moving up the river, and Gen. Jackson was going to "fight in Brown’s Gap" again.

On Monday morning “Stonewall” crossed the bridge almost alone, and rode into the town, but on his return found a Yankee Major with two pieces posted at the mouth of the bridge, and, without a moment’s hesitation, rode up to the officer, saying, “Turn your guns, sir, turn your guns; the enemy is coming from that direction,” pointing at the same time down the river, and without a question, the unsuspecting Major had his pieces wheeled about, in order to command the approach of the enemy, which to him was no enemy at all, and without waiting to explain any further, Gen. Jackson dashed rapidly across the bridge to his own people, but he had not a moment to spare, for the baffled Yankee had his guns going on him before he cleared the bridge.

Jackson instantly ordered his artillery up, and very soon the enterprising “boys in blue” were compelled to change their position, thus leaving the bridge open to the Confederates, and General Jackson’s old Division crossed the river, followed slowly by that of Gen. Ewell, with whom White’s cavalry moved.

Immediately on reaching the east bank, the line of battle was formed, and the fight commenced, and as soon as everything[everything] had crossed the bridge it was fired, cutting off Fremont’s army from that of Shields, and with it a company of the 6th Va. Cavalry, which acted as rear guard and was compelled to swim the river.

Here was begun and carried through to complete success one of the most brilliant displays of generalship witnessed during the war, or, in fact, in any war of modern times.

“Stonewall” had not only eluded the superior force of Fremont, but had actually whipped him, almost in cannon shot of his colleague, on the 8th, and now, on the 9th of June, was massing all his troops and crushing the army of that colleague—(Gen. Shields)—while Fremont, with his troops formed in battle-ranks on the hill-sides bordering the Shenandoah, was unable to do more than look at the battle and see the army of Shields annihilated; while, without a guard, and just in his front, moved the long train composed of all of Jackson’s wagons, all of Ewell’s and nearly every one of Banks’, besides some of his own; and standing still in all the circumstance and panoply of war, the blazing bridge cutting off his last and only means of doing harm to his wily foe, the savage Gen. Fremont, in pitiful helplessness and vindictive vandalism, could only fire his guns upon the empty town of Port Republic.

By 10 o’clock the battle was over and Shields flying down the river with the scattered remnant of his army, which Gen. Jackson only followed for nine miles when he returned to look after his trains and captures.

The enemy had lost all of his artillery, consisting of about fifteen guns, all of his wagons and a great number of prisoners, besides many killed and wounded, for Shields fought with more obstinacy than Fremont, although the latter had considerably more force than his adversary—Gen. Ewell—while Shields had an inferior one to the combined troops of Jackson and Ewell.

The couriers had very warm and exciting work to-day, as is usual on the battle-field, but although many narrow escapes were made not one was wounded, and they captured a full company of Ohio infantry.

Lieut. Myers was sent by Gen. Jackson, during the heat of the battle, with a dispatch to Col. Munford to charge, with his cavalry, a battery which was doing heavy execution, and remained with the Colonel until the enemy’s lines broke up in full retreat, when he rejoined Gen. Jackson and kept with him in the nine mile pursuit, which caused him to be the recipient of another scolding from Gen. Ewell, who informed him that he was no courier for Gen. Jackson, and that his business was to keep his (Ewell’s) Division supplied with couriers, and to obey his orders and nobody else’s. It is needless to say that the lesson was laid to heart and closely followed thereafter.

The army bivouacked in Brown’s Gap that night, and the next day the usual rain storm which follows a battle poured down upon them, as they still waited to see and do whatever “Old Stonewall” might decide upon as best for them; and two days after, the great commander put his people in camp at Mount Meridian, where, for several very beautiful June days, the troops passed away the time, fishing and bathing in the blue Shenandoah, and visiting the wonderful Weyer’s Cave, while each day a regular detail was made to go to Port Republic and “make believe” build a bridge as if Jackson intended to try another campaign down the Valley, when, in reality, he was preparing to march his army to the relief of the Confederate Capital, which was now closely environed by the magnificent army of McClellan, and was anxiously waiting the critical moment when the last spadeful of dirt should be thrown, and the “Young Napoleon” would replace his sappers and miners with the splendid battalions who were to immortalize the name of McClellan by taking, under his plans and direction, the now world-renowned City of Richmond.

White’s company was in splendid condition, the ranks full, the horses thriving and the men all armed equal to any cavalry in the army, and all they wanted was for their Captain to come up and take command again. While at Mount Meridian Gen. Jackson had divine service regularly, and appointed times for praise and thanksgiving to the God of battles who had crowned his arms with victory; while from all around our borders came news of Confederate successes, and rumors that foreign nations had recognized the independence of the Southern Confederacy. So that the future was brilliant with hope and no man in the army would have willingly exchanged his Confederate dollars for an equal amount of greenbacks.

CHAPTER V.

About the 20th of June the army crossed the Blue Ridge, and moved quietly towards the beleaguered capital; but the men did not know any more about their destination than the enemy, who never knew, until his artillery boomed upon McClellan’s flank at Richmond, that Jackson had left the Valley. On arriving at Charlottesville, Capt. White, now entirely recovered from the effects of his wound, rejoined his company, and it now appeared that the little band of scouts and couriers was to be the foundation upon which a larger command was to be built up, for here the news was received that Capt. George W. Chiswell, of Maryland, was on the march from that State with a full company to join White’s Cavalry, and all the boys began to look forward to the time when the irksome duty of waiting upon the Generals and playing telegraph for an army, was to be exchanged for the more congenial and pleasant one of once more scouting on the frontier. Encamped at Charlottesville they had seen a battalion of men commanded by Major John Scott, of Fauquier Co., Va., and organized by that officer to act as Partisan rangers. It seemed that mainly through the influence of Major Scott, a bill had been introduced into the Confederate Congress, and which afterwards became a law, authorizing the formation of such bands, and offering premiums in captured property for an independent border warfare upon the outposts and communications of the enemy’s army, and this idea struck the minds of White’s men very forcibly as containing the very principle upon which their company had been formed, and the one they most desired to have applied to their own particular case, and they believed that in strict justice, Capt. White could get the authority under the law to become a Partisan, as soon as his command was large enough to justify it, and all hailed with joyful acclamation the report that Maryland men were coming to join them; in fact the advance guard of the company met them at Charlottesville in the persons of Ed. J. Chiswell, Sam. White, Frank. Williams and Elijah Viers.

Some anecdotes of Gen. Jackson, and the manner in which he was regarded by his men, and the enemy too, were current in the army during this campaign, and were true in idea if not in detail. Before leaving camp at Mount Meridian, an order was issued instructing the men not to tell what or whose troops they were, and to answer all questions on the subject with Gen. Ewell’s abomination, "don’t know," as a precaution against the enemy getting a knowledge of Jackson’s movement from the Valley. One day the General saw a soldier crossing a field towards some cherry trees, and as the great abundance of cherries along the route had caused any amount of straggling, he resolved to make an example of this man. So riding up to him he inquired, “What division do you belong to?” "Don’t know," said the soldier. “What brigade?” asked the General; and again the soldier replied, "don’t know." “Well,” asked Jackson, “what regiment do you belong to?” thinking he had now found an answerable question; but again the man replied, "don’t know," and with some asperity of tone the General exclaimed, “What do you know, sir?” when the cute “gray jacket” answered—"I know that old Stonewall ordered me not to know anything, and damned if I ain’t going to stick to it."

The General turned and rode away without a word, smiling at the extremely literal construction of orders which had saved the soldier from the punishment he had meditated for him.

Gen. Jackson got aboard the cars at Louisa C. H., to go to Richmond, and took a seat in the same car in which a Yankee Major, who had been captured among some of the raiding parties on the Rail Road, was being carried also to Richmond.

The Major entered into conversation with the quiet officer, not knowing, of course, who he was talking to, and began explaining to him the absolute certainty of McClellan’s capture of the Confederate capital. After listening for some time to the manner in which each division of Lee’s army was tied up by a stronger force from the other side, “Stonewall” ventured the remark, "But suppose Jackson’s army should move from the Valley and strike McClellan in flank and rear while he is engaging Lee in front." “Oh,” said the Major, "there’s no danger of that, Jackson has been badly crippled in his engagements in the Valley, and is now hemmed in closely by Fremont’s army, so that he can’t move." “But,” persisted the Confederate, “suppose he should getaway and come to Richmond.” "No, I say it’s no use to talk about that," said the Major, "for he can’t get away, it is impossible." “Yes,” said the other, “and I say it is possible, for he has already whipped Fremont, and his army will be in front of Richmond in less than twenty-four hours.” The Yankee looked at him a moment, and with an anxious expression asked, “Who are you, sir?” “I am Gen. Jackson,” replied the hero; upon which the Major smacked his hands together exclaiming, “Whipped again, by God!” and at once subsided into silence.

When the army of Jackson reached its position and it was plain to everybody that the time had come for the great battle, the men who had followed “Stonewall” all over the Valley, and had seen his banner wave in triumph on every field, were rendered still more proud of their great leader by seeing, about noon on the day of “Cold Harbour,” the men whose names were already encircled with a halo of glorious deeds performed during the war, ride up and report to Gen. Jackson for instruction.

Longstreet, A. P. Hill, Magruder, and Stuart, all acknowledged the solemn soldier as their superior, and took his orders for the day’s work.

That day’s work too was a sad and bloody one, and when night ended the conflict, many were the corpses strewn over the carnage-stained ground, and terrible arose the groans and shrieks of mangled men; but the enemy still held the front and all thought the morning sun must look down on a repetition of the same unchristian work.

Gen. Ewell was found about midnight by the men who were sent to him to relieve the couriers who had passed with him through "Cold Harbour’s" baleful death-fires, lying along his lines, which were drawn close up to the enemy, waiting for some sign to commence anew the work of slaughter; but when daylight broke over the battle lines the men in blue had disappeared, and soon after, Gen. Lee found one of White’s boys and sent him to find Gen. Stuart and take him to the Commander-in-chief.

This conference ended in Stuart posting off to see what had become of the enemy, and it wasn’t long until that enterprising cavalier had found out all about him.

In the operations which followed, Gen. Ewell moved with his division to Despatch Station, on the York River Rail Road; and as a matter of course White’s cavalry went with him. On their way to that place they passed Yankee camps where the fires were still burning, the camp-kettles of old ham and vegetables, and the coffee, still boiling; while at many of them there were wagon loads, in some instances houses full, of supplies of all kinds on fire; but what created the greatest excitement of all, was a report that the Yankees had poisoned the wells all around their camps by throwing into them the supplies of medicines which their surgeons could not carry away in their hasty retreat.

These rumors grew out of the fact that large quantities of powder and cartridges had been tumbled into some of the wells, and those who drank the water readily imagined it to be poisoned, not only from the taste, but also that several of them were made sick by it; and all threatened summary vengeance on the prisoners, but the true state of the case was soon discovered and the excitement quelled.

On arriving at the Station Gen. Ewell caused the railroad bridge over the Chickahominy to be destroyed and a part of the track torn up, and being now between McClellan and the White House, waited for whatever force might come down the road.

About 4 o’clock in the afternoon a sound as of an enormous train of cars was heard on the railroad, and every man was on the lookout for something interesting to occur, supposing that the Yankees did not know the road was cut and were attempting to run some trains through, and knowing that if this should be the case they would certainly meet a bloody overthrow at the bridge. The 13th Virginia infantry was lying on the railroad, and White’s boys gathered on the bank of the river, when soon, in the distance, appeared the most singular looking affair any of them had ever seen on a railroad track. It was a train of cars certainly, but high up over the locomotive was built an affair that looked very much like a barn, being made of plank and very long.

The general impression of the men at first sight was that it was a contrivance from which the Yankees could fire at any rebels they might discover, and thus keep the track clear; but there was very little time to think much about it, for the iron-horse, under a full head of steam, was carrying it at a rapid rate towards them, and pretty soon the infernal machine leaped from the track into the Chickahominy, and at the same moment a blaze of fire went up from it that seemed to meet and melt into the blue of the sky, while an explosion, so terrible that men lying on the ground a hundred yards distant were lifted bodily, and in some cases had the blood forced from ears and nostrils, broke out on the evening air. Just as soon as they got their senses together White’s boys walked quietly off to their horses, which had been feeding in an oat field a quarter of a mile distant, and concluded they didn’t want to be around when McClellan run his trains to the White House. This curiously contrived affair must have contained three or four tons of powder and artillery ammunition, for shells were exploding constantly from the time the machine blew up until dark, but fortunately did no damage.

The next day Col. Bradley T. Johnson, of the 1st Maryland, (afterward Brigadier General of the Maryland Line,) and Capt. White were prospecting along the river for the enemy, the Colonel having with him a rifle cannon with which he occasionally “felt the woods” on the opposite side, and in the evening elicited a reply from several batteries, whose smoke rolled lazily up through the trees in white, foggy-looking masses, and showed that the “Young Napoleon” still had a line of battle there. During the firing Gen. Ewell, accompanied by White’s company, rode out to Col. Johnson, who showed him the Yankee positions, remarking, at the same time, “and by the way, General, I think I heard the long roll.” By this time the Colonel’s one iron gun was attracting considerable attention from the Yankee artillery, and their shells were flying very plentifully around him, when Gen. Ewell turned his horse, and remarking to his escort "we’ll go back now, boys," rode over the hill towards Despatch Station, and in so doing passed in full view of the enemy’s line, who now opened warmly upon him, and just before reaching the woods a heavy shot passed between the General’s head and his horse’s neck, causing the old fellow to make a very sudden backward motion, but he instantly righted up, and noticing that the shot had struck a large pine tree about twenty feet from the ground, and cut it off so clear and sudden that the upper part of it came down perpendicularly and stuck in the ground beside the stump, he exclaimed "wasn’t that beautiful; wasn’t that well done!" but some of the boys remarked afterwards that they didn’t know exactly whether he had reference to his dodge or to the cutting of the tree, and they were afraid to ask him.

On the 30th of June Gen. Jackson’s corps crossed the Chickahominy at Grapevine bridge, and pushing on after the retreating Yankees came up with them at White Oak Swamp, where he had to fight them several hours with his artillery before his army could get over. During the arrangement for this fight Capt. White marched his company along the battle-line with “Old Stonewall,” and after the latter had gotten his seventy guns in position, we halted to watch the result. The enemy was firing constantly, but Gen. Jackson made no reply until he had everything arranged to his notion, when he gave the signal to commence firing, and it was soon evident that he was more than a match for the Yankees. While the roar of the guns was waking the echoes of swamp and forest, Gen. Jackson rode along the line, where the shells from the enemy’s batteries were flying the thickest, and, greatly to our wonder, held one hand up as high as his shoulder nearly all the time, but wonder turned to reverence when found that our hero was praying to the God of battles to spare the lives of his men and crown their arms with victory. Before long the bridge over the swamp was uncovered, and Jackson’s infantry went across, capturing several of the enemy’s guns and many prisoners. Here White’s men got into a snap with some of the Pennsylvania Bucktail riflemen, but the Captain led them in a charge, in which they captured a whole set of German-silver wind instruments for a band, and several prisoners, killing and wounding some of the “Bucktails.” They also got a splendid suit of armor belonging to a Colonel, over which they had a great deal of amusement, but in their experiments with the breastplate they learned that it was bullet-proof against Colt’s army revolvers and all the guns they could find, with one exception, and that was the Maynard rifle, which tore a hole in it large enough for a hen’s egg to pass through.

On the 1st of July we went to Malvern Hill, and the company was busy enough during all of that long and bloody afternoon, carrying dispatches for the several Generals operating in connection with Ewell, and acting as provost guard to stop the soldiers from straggling.

At the close of the battle, which continued until dark, Capt. White took a detail of his men to Gen. Ewell, who had sent for him, and found that officer, in company with Gen. Whiting, lying on the ground to the left of the road, and with the advanced vedettes of the army, conversing in whispers, the enemy being so close that they could not talk in an ordinary tone without being heard by them; and when White and his boys had crawled up to the General, finding him with great difficulty, he sent them back, saying he was going to advance his infantry line pretty soon, and had no scouting to do, as he had found the enemy and they were in his front—so close that he could throw a stone over their line.

White and his men crept back in the same noiseless manner to their horses, where they waited anxiously for the opening fire of the intended advance; but it was not made, or, if made, the Yankees had gone, and the ever-memorable campaign of seven days’ battle around Richmond was at an end; while with it ended the Northern policy of conducting the war according to the established rules of humanity recognized by civilized nations, for now McClellan, who had treated the citizens inside of his military lines humanely, and had respected their rights and protected their property, as far as possible, from the usual pillaging that attends the movements of every large army, was to give place to another who had nothing but his brutality to recommend him to the favor of the “greatest and best government the world ever saw,” which was now represented in Washington City by a crew of foul birds of the devil’s own hatching, whose names will make the cheeks of Americans crimson with shame as long as American history is read; and Gen. Pope, from his “headquarters in the saddle,” announced that henceforth the business of his army should be to investigate the color of the coat tails of the rebels, and that the time had arrived when a new era in military tactics should dawn upon the astonished world through the transcendent genius of “John the Pope,” and that under him the battles of Abolitiondom should be fought with fire and sword, according to the most approved rules laid down by the aborigines of North America, with all the improvements which the Spanish greasers of Mexico had been enabled to add from the familiarity of their fathers with the horrible scenes of the infernal inquisition; all of which had been revised and corrected within the sound of Mr. Seward’s little tinkling bell for special use in the Grand Army of “John the Pope,” and the world was assured that the war had commenced in earnest; while those whose attention had heretofore been called, by accident, to the career of Mr. Pope, and had formed their opinion therefrom, predicted that women and children would suffer now, for the chosen Sachem of the little-souled Yankee Nation was on the war-path, and the influence of the Northern people in whose hearts the God-given principle of chivalric forbearance towards the weak and helpless had an abiding place, was literally smothered to death in the smoky vengeance which the nigger crusaders had manufactured for crushing the rebellion—“vide” Brownlow, Stevens & Co.

CHAPTER VI.

For several days after the close of the seven days’ campaign the army lay quiet, and White’s people had a delightful camp at Meadow Bridge, about 7 miles from Richmond, on the Rail Road, from which they could send to the city daily for such luxuries as the markets afforded; and during this time there was not much to do in the way of carrying dispatches, so that there was little to do except rest. Here the company held an election for Orderly Sergeant, which resulted in the choice of C. M. C. Whaley, for that important position, and the list of non-commissioned officers was now full, viz: Edward S. Wright, 2d Sergt.; Benjamin F. Conrad, 3d Sergt.; John Dove, 4th Sergt.; and J. Mortimore Kilgour, 5th Sergeant and Quartermaster; John T. Tribbey, 1st Corporal; Daniel C. Pettingall, 2d Corporal; William Snoots, 3d Corporal; and Peter J. Kabrich, 4th Corporal.

About the 10th of July, Gen. Ewell marched his division to his old camp near Liberty Mills, on the Rapidan, where for some weeks he remained watching “Mr. Head-quarters-in-the-saddle,” who was prospecting towards Gordonsville, in the new “On to Richmond” movement of his own and father Abraham’s invention, and ravaging all the country inside of his lines in the barbarous manner which had been predicted of him from the beginning of his reign, which was as literally a “reign of terror,” to the defenseless people under his dominion, as ever was the bloody revolution to the citizens of Paris during the days when flame and murder held high carnival at command of the devils incarnate who ruled in France.

White’s company had now increased to nearly one hundred men, and the Captain spent much time in scouting in Madison County, which was just on the border of the “grand army,” and very much infested with its cavalry raiding parties.

On one occasion, with about thirty men, he drove a strong force of infantry and cavalry from Madison C. H., making the citizens imagine that they were once more free from the terrible dominion of Pope. And again, from the mountain top near Wolfton, he discovered a company of cavalry engaged in plundering a farm-house, and as rapidly as possible came down on them; but owing to the fact that some of his men had been seen by the enemy as they descended the mountain, he was only able to catch about half a dozen, chasing, however, the remainder out of their hats, and into their camp. About the last of July, Capt. White left camp at dark, and marching all night, with twenty men, reached a farm-house five miles from Stanardsville about daylight, and halting his command, he sent Lieut. Myers, with the citizen pilot who had volunteered to guide him, to look up the Yankees. On reaching the Conway river, about sunrise, they discovered seven Yankees on foot, going from a camp over the river to a citizen’s house for breakfast, and sending the guide with all haste to inform the Captain, the Lieutenant took a position at the gate, about one hundred yards from the house, to watch the “boys in blue” until the command could come up and get them.

After about an hour’s watching and waiting, which, to the lonely picket appeared like four hours, the Captain came up with a part of his squad, and before the Yankees knew it, the rebels were in the yard; when, hastily leaving the table, they each “took a tree,” and with their carbines attempted to fight it out; but it was too late, and with what grace they could command, the foragers had to “on to Richmond.”

The next expedition White made was for the purpose of bushwhacking a patrol of cavalry, which daily passed over the road from Robertson river to Madison C. H., and reaching the road in the evening, he dismounted his men and placed them in the woods alongside of it, sending Lieut. Myers, with Ferro and Spicer, up the road as a decoy, expecting the Yankees to chase these men past the ambuscade, when the others would open on them with their double-barrels and buckshot; but the

"Best laid schemes o’ mice and men,

Gang aft agley,"

and the patrol failed to pass that evening.

In the morning the Captain moved his people by the Poorhouse to another point on the road; but, after waiting about two hours, found the enemy advancing in strong force of infantry and cavalry to occupy the Court House, and on exchanging a few shots found a full brigade developed against him, when he retired.

On the way to camp in the afternoon the Confederate pickets at Jack’s Shop, without any warning at all, fired upon the little company, fortunately without doing any damage, when the Captain galloped forward alone and succeeded in rallying the retreating pickets and convincing them that they were running from their own men.

When White’s men came up they found their Captain talking very sharply to the pickets about firing on him before they halted him, and high words were passing, when one of the firing party said "if you wasn’t a Captain you shouldn’t talk that way;" but the Captain exclaimed "no I ain’t; I’m no Captain; I’m Lige White, and can whip you any way! Come on! I dare you!" But nobody took up the gauntlet; and with a pleasant little malediction on cowards everywhere, but especially on picket, the ranger chief marched on to camp.

About the 6th of August Gen. Jackson commenced to show some uneasiness, and ordered Gen. Ewell down the road towards Louisa, but came back the next evening, and instead of halting at the old camp, kept right on towards Culpeper, and commenced picketing beyond Robertson river. The boys begun to have ideas that the man with the movable headquarters had better commence moving; but when they found that Jackson’s Quartermaster-General (Banks) was in front, they said they "just knew ’Old Stonewall’ was getting scarce of supplies and only came up after some."

On the morning of the 9th, as White’s boys were lazily lying around the shady yard of the house where General Ewell’s headquarters were, talking about the prospects, in imagination, of ever seeing Loudoun again, and listening to the General’s baby-talk to some little children he had coaxed to come to him on the porch, Gen. Jackson rode up, and very soon the two were studying intently some maps and papers which they spread out on the floor.

Gen. Ewell’s ideas appeared to be in accord with "Stonewall’s," and they soon laid themselves out for a rest; but after dinner everybody got busy all at once, and it wasn’t very long until we found ourselves face to face with a Yankee line of cavalry deployed as vedettes, and apparently bent on investigating the rebel operations and ascertaining why they came so near to Gen. Banks’ wagon trains at Culpeper C. H. Their cavalry was commanded by Gen. Prince, who had been a classmate of Stuart at West Point, and was a fine officer, and a gentleman. His troops were splendidly drilled, and the first that White’s men had seen who performed their evolutions on the field at the sound of the bugle. About 3 o’clock Capt. White and Lieut. Myers rode out on the lines, to gratify their curiosity, to see what was going on, and before they were aware of it almost, were witnessing the movements of a regiment of cavalry, that deployed most beautifully as the bugle notes floated musically on the air, and in a short time had advanced to a fence not a hundred yards from the curiosity hunters, who quietly rode off as a shell from one of Jackson’s guns exploded in a group of Yankee cavalry. While riding up the line a Yankee approached them from the woods, but scampered away again as Capt. White called to him “come here to me, you rascal.” About an hour after this Gen. Ewell called for his cavalry to go with him, and riding at a gallop, soon reached the foot of Slaughter Mountain, where White’s boys, by order of the General, dismounted, and dragged Lattimer’s Battery of artillery to the top of the mountain, where the “Napoleon of the Valley,” as General Jackson called Capt. Lattimer, commenced firing as soon as his first piece was in position, and until his own men came up with the remainder of the battery, White’s men acted as gunners for him. By this time the blue and the gray were getting into a very warm fight down on the plain at the foot of the mountain, and Lattimer’s first shot was a fine one, exploding exactly at a Yankee battery, but the blue jackets instantly replied with one gun, which sent a shell within two feet of the muzzle of Capt. L.’s piece, striking the trail of the gun-carriage.

The shells and solid shot now hailed thick around the Confederate position on the mountain, and the Louisiana brigade, which had taken post there, enjoyed it hugely, some of the men being on the open ground in front, instead of in rear of the battery, where they belonged, would run to the places where the Yankee shot tore up the earth and coolly sit down, saying they were safe now, “as lightning never struck twice in the same place,” but some of them lost their heads by the operation in spite of the proverb.

The battle raged with great violence until dark, and even when her sable wing had spread over the wild scene of blood and death, the artillery continued to fire, and if there is anything in war that can be called splendidly beautiful, it is a night cannonade, when high overhead, in the very middle, apparently, of the black field, the hissing shells fly in curving lines of beauty, leaving behind them a track of sparkling flame, until the explosion blazes a lurid glare all around the sky, which can he likened to nothing better than to the fitful flashings of Aurora in her most gorgeous masquerades.

When the firing ceased White’s men had left the mountain and advanced to a house near where the Yankee battery which had been the recipient of Lattimer’s first compliment had stood, the enemy having been driven back a considerable distance, and here they laid down and slept soundly till daylight, when their first notion was to look around for Yankees and plunder, in which interesting occupation they passed the time until noon, having secured a number of prisoners and quite a large quantity of arms and other trophies of the battle-field.

About 1 o’clock the company retired to a large spring, near the house before spoken of, and unbitting their horses, turned them out to graze, while the men lay in the shade of the trees around the spring reading the Yankee papers they had gathered up. The Captain was very busily engaged in conversation with Mr. Henry Ball, who had just come from Loudoun, and brought to the Captain the delightful intelligence that his wife was near the old camp at Somerset, having accompanied Mr. Ball through the Yankee lines without difficulty.

A small detail of the company was assisting Major Christie, ordnance officer of the division, to remove a quantity of ammunition from a broken-down wagon, about a quarter of a mile above, when the officer in command of the infantry skirmish line passed along and informed the Captain that the pickets were all withdrawn from his front and he must look out for Yankees. “All right,” responded White, and straightway forgot all about it in the interest of his talk with Mr. Ball.

Soon after this a commotion was heard in the direction of the ordnance detail, and before the men had time to get up, a squadron of Yankee cavalry charged down upon them, firing, yelling, and making everything look very blue. There was of course great consternation among White’s people, but all scrambled to their horses—the Captain mounting his own before putting the bit in its mouth—and as soon as they found themselves in their “headquarters,” the confusion manifestly subsided, so that when Capt. White called on them to follow him in a charge upon the enemy, they responded gallantly, and chased the Yankee squadron in most splendid style over the same track they had come, at the same time rescuing Major Christie and his detail from the hands of the Yankees. Two of the men who were with the Major had already effected their escape, viz: Jas. H. Mock, by splendid riding, and Thomas Spates by literally outrunning his horse, a thing until then entirely unheard of. The old Major was doing his best to get away on foot, but the enemy had him surrounded and were striking him over the head and back with their sabres, but they instantly left him when the pistols of White’s boys begun cracking among them, and the old man mounted behind Lieut. Marlow, who carried him out of danger; and always thereafter there was no difficulty in Capt. White’s men getting all the ammunition they wanted from the ordnance department of Ewell’s Division.

The horses of Lieut. Myers and Sergt. Conrad carried them some distance in pursuit of the enemy after the balance of the company had retired, and were not stopped until the two men found themselves exposed to the fire of a line of infantry, which wounded Conrad’s horse, when they too fell back, but not until the Sergeant had cursed heartily the Yankees who shot his steed. From his position on the top of Slaughter Mountain Gen. Ewell had witnessed the whole of the gallant affair, and he complimented the Captain very highly, calling it “a beautiful thing.”

This advance of the Yankees, and skirmish of White, brought on a fight among the cavalry of both armies, which resulted in the discomfiture of the enemy and capture of Gen. Prince.

The next morning Capt. White obtained permission to visit his wife, and the command of the company devolved upon Lieut. Myers, who was called upon to go, with a few men, to see that the Yankees did not raid upon the wagon train, and on reaching them found everything in great confusion owing to a report that the enemy’s cavalry was about to attack the train; but the Lieutenant and his party soon rallied, and formed into line, about two hundred infantry stragglers who were about the wagons, and thus restored order among quartermasters and teamsters.

After dark, when the company had rejoined the General, the division withdrew from the mountain, and White’s men were left to keep up the fires and make the Yankees believe the whole force was still there; and once, when Sam White and John Marlow piled hay on a fire, making a blaze that lighted up the side of the mountain, the General threatened to “throw a pistol ball among them if they did so any more,” but they quietly promised to return all the pistol balls he threw them; however, they put no more hay on the fires. About midnight the General ordered Lieut. Myers to take his company and march rapidly to the bridge at Liberty Mills, with instructions to hold it and prevent the Yankees from destroying it before the infantry could get up. About daylight they reached the bridge, and in half an hour an order came to send ten men, as couriers, to report to the General on a road north of the Rapidan, but after considerable difficulty in finding that number of men whose horses could stand the trip, the detail was sent on the wrong road and missing the General, excited his ire against Lieut M., and when he reached camp and met the Lieutenant he abused him considerably for not obeying his order, winding up with asking why he had not sent the detail; and as the Lieutenant commenced to explain he unfortunately used the expression, “I supposed, General,” when the General broke out, “You supposed; you supposed, you say; what right had you to suppose anything about it, sir; do as I tell you, sir; do as I tell you.” That was the end of it, and during all the whole tirade of words the subordinate had only had an opportunity to use three. The whole force was again in the camp at Somerset, and now the Captain and his people began to talk about a raid to Loudoun for the purpose of chastising a band of renegades and Yankees which, under Sam. Means, was reported to be harassing the people of that county very severely; but, like foreign recognition and rumors of peace, it appeared to be more talk than anything else, and the men, as a general thing, hardly thought it possible to reach the “promised land,” although it was the heartfelt aspiration of each to once more behold it and enjoy the pleasure of sweet companionship with homes and loved ones again. On the 16th, one week after the battle of Cedar Run, General Jackson marched across the Rapidan towards Culpeper C. H., and now hope burned brightly in Southern hearts, for all the men believed that Gen. Lee could march into the North Country and conquer a willing peace treaty from the Government at Washington.

Pope made a stand on the Rappahannock, and while waiting for the Southern army to drive him back again Capt. White perfected his plans for the Loudoun expedition, and at Warrenton White Sulphur Springs got Gen. Ewell’s sanction to it. When, on the 25th of August, “Stonewall” left the main army and started on his flank movement to Manassas, White marched with him, crossing the river opposite Orleans, after which he made as fast time as possible in order to gain the front of Jackson’s corps, which he succeeded in doing at Salem. Just as his company passed the last regiment the men, who had halted to rest, called out, "you wouldn’t have caught up with us if the Colonel’s horse hadn’t given out." At sunset the raiding party, having cleared all the troops, marched to the Bull Run Mountain, which point they reached about daylight, and where they proposed to lie over until night of the 26th. During the day the true-hearted citizens of the neighborhood brought in plenty to eat, and some of them spent a great part of the day in the camp, among them Mr. Ball, Mr. Simpson, Mr. Wynkoop and others.

When the dark came down over the mountain the Captain formed his men, consisting of about twenty of his own company, with Lieuts. Myers and Marlow, about twenty of Capt. Randolph’s company, with Capt. R. and Lieuts. Redmond and Mount, and half a dozen of Gen. Jackson’s scouts under that splendid soldier Dr. Gallaher. After the line was formed White made a short speech, telling his command that his object in the expedition was to whip Means’ men, and that no matter how much force they had he intended to do it; that he knew where they were, and if the expedition failed it would be the fault of his own men; closing by saying with King Henry, if any man among them had no stomach for the fight upon such terms he was now at liberty to return. The little force, augmented by the addition of Messrs. Henry Ball and J. Simpson, now took up the line of march for Waterford, passing along the mountain all the way, and arriving at Franklin’s Mill an hour before daylight, when a halt was ordered and scouts sent out to ascertain if any changes had been made in the disposition of Means’ command.

While lying here a party of eight was heard passing the road from Leesburg, who, from their conversation, were rightly judged to have been scouting all night to learn if there was any movements of the Southern army to the northward, and their words proved that they were perfectly satisfied and felt entirely secure, for among other things their leader was heard to declare, as they watered their horses within ten feet of one of White’s scouts, that "there wasn’t a rebel soldier north of the Rappahannock."

As soon as this party passed beyond hearing, White moved his people to Mr. Hollingsworth’s barn-yard, where about twenty of them were dismounted, under command of Capt. Randolph, and ordered to march to the enemy’s quarters, which were in the Baptist meeting-house, about one hundred yards distant, with instructions not to fire until they entered the house, or, in case the enemy was outside, to get into the yard with them before firing, and then to rush upon them and go with them into the house. The Captain held the remainder of his men mounted, and rode to the brow of the hill in the road by Hollingsworth’s gate to wait for the movement of Randolph to drive the Yankee boys from their quarters, when the cavalry would dash down and capture them.

Dawn was just beginning to turn the black of night to the gray of early morn when the movement commenced, and on Capt. Randolph’s party getting near enough to see, they discovered Means’ whole force standing in the yard listening to the report of their scouting party, which had just come in, and though they looked wonderingly at the infantry advance of White’s army, not one of them said a word; but in spite of his orders, which could have been executed with perfect safety, Randolph ordered his men to fire as soon as they reached the corner of the palings around the yard, which caused the Yankees to break and rush into the house in great confusion, having their commander, Lieut. Slater, badly wounded; and now, instead of following them, as his orders required, Randolph retired to Virts’ house, just opposite; but the gallant Gallaher, with Jack Dove and a few others, tried to execute the order, and while Gallaher, springing into one window, fired his revolver bullets among the demoralized “boys in blue,” the others poured their buckshot in at the other windows.

As soon as the firing commenced White brought his cavalry down the road at a gallop, and halting long enough to fire a round or two at the side windows of the meeting-house, discovered quite a number of Means’ men leaping from the windows and making the fastest kind of time across the lots below the house, so calling on his boys to follow the Captain made a dash down into town, but only succeeded in capturing two of the fugitives. From here some of the men galloped down to Means’ house in the hope of getting that gentleman, but he was by that time “over the hills and far away,” according to his custom when rebel bullets were on the wing.

Returning to the meeting-house, in broad daylight, White found his infantry laying close siege to it, and standing in the vestibule was the daring Webster, who had assumed command of the Yankees, and who, seeing White’s mounted men riding up, supposed them to be a reinforcement for himself, and began firing upon Randolph’s men at Virt’s house, calling, as he did so, for his own men to come out and fight. A few pistol balls near him showed him his mistake, when he deliberately turned on the cavalry and emptied his revolver at them, after which he stepped back into the house and commenced to barricade the doors. White’s whole force now dismounted and opened a brisk fire at the windows, which was returned by Webster, Cox, and a few others, whom Webster succeeded in bringing from under the benches long enough to take a shot; but pretty soon it was discovered that ammunition was running short in White’s ranks, and knowing the impossibility of taking the place by assault now, the Captain prepared to withdraw his people, but on reaching the horses of the dismounted men he resolved upon shooting the horses of the Yankees, which had been tied in the yard during the fight, and presented to the gaze of the now baffled Confederates a prize well worth fighting for, composed as they were of the very best horses of Loudoun, a land always noted for fine ones, and equipped in the most superb style of the U. S. A. Previous to this, however, an attempt had been made to negotiate a surrender by sending Mrs. Virts, under a truce, to make the proposition, but on her second mission the enemy informed her that if she came again they would shoot her; and now nothing remained but to get away in safety, which could only be done by depriving the Yankees of the means of following; and collecting the remaining cartridges a detail was sent to kill the horses; but while this party was getting in position around Virts’ house it appears that the enemy were so badly frightened they were trying to force their commander to make terms, and a few shots from Ben. Conrad and Ross Douglass at some Yankees they saw by a window, precipitated matters and brought Webster out with a flag of truce. He demanded the usual terms in such cases, viz: his men to be released on parole, their private property respected, and officers to retain their side arms; which White immediately granted, and the affair was concluded as soon as possible, the victors getting fifty-six horses, saddles and bridles, about one hundred fine revolvers and as many carbines, with a vast quantity of plunder which they were unable to carry off; and paroling twenty-eight prisoners, which, with the two previously captured, made thirty in all.

White lost Brook Hays, killed, and Corporal Peter J. Kabrich, mortally wounded; both gallant soldiers as ever drew a sabre. A few others were slightly injured. The enemy lost about seven or eight in killed and wounded.

The scene at the surrender, when Means’ men, after being formed in line, laid down their arms, was a curious one. Many of them were old friends, and had been schoolboys with some of White’s men; and in one instance, brothers met: one, Wm. Snoots, being a Sergeant in White’s company, and the other, Charles, a member of Means’ command. Rebel and Yankee had swallowed up the feeling of brotherhood, or rather, that feeling had intensified the bitterness and hatred with which enemies in the hour of conflict regard each other; and the rebel would have certainly shot his Yankee brother, even after the surrender, but for the interference of one of the officers. As soon as possible, after getting everything in movable shape, and arranging for the care of Kabrich, who was too badly hurt to be moved, and for the burial of Hays, the raiders turned their faces towards the South again, expecting to rejoin Gen. Jackson that night. At the point where the line of march diverged from the Leesburg road, Capt. White left Lieut. Myers in charge of the column, and taking with him a small detail, galloped into Leesburg, where he created quite a commotion, causing a few Yankee soldiers there to depart in the shortest time imaginable, and making the Southern people of that extremely Southern town almost wild with joy.

They had been under the galling rule of Yankeedom, as administered by such as Geary, until simple endurance had almost culminated in despair, and the advent of White, so unexpectedly, among them, was hailed as an omen that their day was beginning to dawn; and consequently, in their freshly blooming hope, they petted and lionized to their heart’s content the little band of boys in gray who came to assure them that soon they would be free from the rule of their hated tyrants.

The two parties united about sunset, at Aldie, where all partook of an excellent supper at Mr. Henry Ball’s, and where the Captain again met his wife, but not for long could he remain in this earthly Eden, for while here the Rev. John Pickett notified the command that he had found a brigade of Yankee cavalry at the Plains, on the Manassas Gap Rail Road, and immediately the overloaded little band prepared for a night march to Manassas, making the third night of sleepless travel.

But all kept up, and about 9 o’clock on the morning of the 28th August, Capt. White reported to Gen. Ewell, and when evening came the boys carried their General from the battle-field to the house of Mr. Buckner, he having been badly wounded in the leg. And it now appeared that what they had considered as irksome duty, that of acting as couriers for Gen. Ewell and his brigadiers, was to the company the easiest and most pleasant they had ever or would ever perform; and they felt bitterly the loss of the best friend, of influence, they had in the army, in the person of Gen. Ewell. After this the company took but little part in the battle, but lay quietly in the yard around the house where their General was, until the close of the battle, when the country was cleared of the enemy to such an extent that people from the border could get out to the army, and here many young men came and enrolled themselves in White’s company.

Citizens, also, who had heard of the capture of Means’ horses at Waterford, came to look at the stock, and as that command had been mounted on horses taken from the people of Loudoun, and Capt. White invariably returned their property, it was not long until all the captured horses, so far as White’s men were concerned, were among the things that had been.

Pope’s army, too, as an army, was in the same situation, and the quarters for “Stonewall Jackson and 16,000 prisoners,” which the mighty bummer had ordered to be prepared at Washington, were not occupied—for John had to “skedaddle,” and just in his rear “old Stonewall” with that identical little party of 16,000 “foot cavalry” pushed bravely on, and with him went White and all his mounted men fit for duty, while Myers was sent to Loudoun in charge of dismounted men, and such as had broken down horses, for the double purpose of recruiting in both men and horses.

CHAPTER VII.

Never were the veteran hearts of the men whom Lee and Stonewall led to victory, so thrilled with triumphant pride as on that morning in September, when the wild refrain of “Maryland, my Maryland,” echoed from a thousand throats, rolled on the morning breezes over the border, and the ragged men in gray marched through the waters of the old Potomac which some of them had made to run red with the life-blood of the invading hosts of Yankeeland, who made their boasting advance, at almost the same point the year before, and added the name of Ball’s Bluff to the list of Southern victories.

But none other than those born on the soil of Maryland could fully enter into the feelings that filled the heart of our Captain when he saw the army that had tramped over the heaps of dead men, strewn from the blue and billowy James to the dashing surges of the Potomac, actually marching through the boundary that had, up to this time, been considered the de facto line of separation between the two Confederacies, and felt that of a truth the hour had come when another star would blaze in the Southern Cross, and that star the sign that Maryland, by aid of the iron legions of the Southland, had broken the rod of the Blackamoor’s god, and joined, at last, her sisters in their crusade for freedom.

It will avail nothing, however, to revert here to the bitter disappointment which quenched these proud feelings in the hearts of the brave sons of the State of Maryland, who had been battling for the cause of Southern rights, when they found no responsive greeting from the now pitifully cowed spirit of poor, conquered Maryland, and felt that in spite of the hero-blood that had baptized the wreath of glory woven for her queenly brow by such hands as Carroll, Howard, May, and a thousand others, who, in the days of yore, had made her name so famous, she was now a subjugated thing, too much afraid of the power that had bound the slavish chain upon her very soul, to lift the folded hands from which the tyrant’s fetters had just been so bravely torn, even though upon her own soil the conquering battle-flag of Dixie waved high above the bloody Northern standard.

Through treachery at the council board she had been betrayed into the power of her enemies, and had not enough spirit left to do more than gaze with sad-eyed wonder upon the war-worn soldiers whose mission to their State was to give her people an opportunity to draw their swords in an equal fight for their desecrated altars.

Maryland was dumb before her shearers, and lamb-like she submitted, while the Southern army looked vainly for the lion to awake to glory again.

At Frederick City, Capt. White fell under the displeasure of General Stuart, and was ordered by that commander to return with his company to Loudoun County, Va., but the Captain protested, saying that he was a Marylander by birth and had fought as hard as any man for the privilege of fighting once upon the soil of his native State.

The General seemed only to want an excuse to become offended with him, and exclaimed, “Do you say you have done as much as any man, for the South?”

“No, sir,” said Capt. White, “I did not say that; but I have done my duty to the South as a soldier, so far as my ability extends, as fully as anybody.”

Again the General broke out with, “You did say you had done as much as any man.” And the Captain replied, “I did not say so.”

Thus the quarrel went on, and finally Stuart ordered White to go back to Loudoun and watch for a flanking force of the enemy expected by way of Dranesville, or Fairfax C. H., from Washington. But White refused to go, saying he would go see Gen. Lee.

“Come on,” said Stuart, “I’ll go with you.” And the two proceeded at once to Army Headquarters. Arrived there, Gen. S. passed in, and White saw that Gen. Jackson was also there.

Gen. Lee met White at the door and asked him his business, when the Captain replied, “I want to see you, sir.” “Very well,” said the General, "just wait a little while and I’ll see you."

Pretty soon General Jackson came out and approached White, who was walking in front of Headquarters, and actually so much excited over what he considered the injustice of Gen. Stuart, that he was crying.

“Stonewall” asked him his difficulty, and was told that Stuart wanted to send him back to Loudoun, and he didn’t want to go. The General appeared surprised, and remarked, “Why, I just heard Gen. Stuart tell Gen. Lee that you desired to be sent back, and recommended that it be done.”

At this the Captain tried to tell Gen. Jackson that it was not so, but before he could explain, his feelings so overcame him that he completely choked down and could not say anything.

Presently, Gen. Jackson said, “Capt. White, I think I can understand your feelings, for I was once situated just as you are now. During the Mexican war I was ordered to the rear just as a battle was about to take place, and I knew of no reason why I should be so unjustly treated; but I obeyed, and it so happened that by doing so I had an opportunity to acquire distinction that I never could have had in front. And Captain, my advice to you is to obey orders, no matter how unjust they may be. We are poor, short-sighted creatures at best, and in the very thing that seems hardest for us to bear, Providence may have hidden a rich blessing for us. Go, Captain, and obey orders.”

White says he knew Gen. Jackson was too good a man for him to talk to, and consequently he made no reply. But Gen. Stuart now came out and calling him to his side said, “Capt. White, did you say you was a Marylander?” “Yes, sir,” said White. “Ah!” said the General, "I didn’t know that. Gen. Lee wants you. Go in and see him."

As may be supposed, the Captain lost no time in appearing in the presence of the Commanding General, and his orders were to scout towards Harper’s Ferry and report to Gen. Lee. This meant that for the present he was free from the spite of Stuart, and he at once commenced his scout, learning of the condition of affairs about Harper’s Ferry, and gathering much valuable information; without, however, being required to engage the enemy.

"He had now been joined by the long-expected company of Capt. Chiswell, and on Saturday night, September 12th, the two companies crossed the river into Loudoun County, and on Sunday evening marched down to Waterford, where they bivouacked in the same meeting-house which Webster had tried so hard to hold against White’s men a few weeks before. Here they were joined by Lieut. Myers, whose detachment had grown into a very respectable company; and the next morning White moved with his squadron towards the river, intending to make an examination of the enemy’s force which was following Lee’s army up through Maryland.

On the top of Catocton mountain, they had a partial view of the cannonading at Harper’s Ferry, where Gen. Jackson had penned up Gen. Miles in the “nose of the tunnel,” just as Jo. Johnston had declared, in 1861, that he (Johnston) would not be caught.

About noon Capt. White reached his own farm on the river, and in the bottom, near the ford, discovered a party of Yankee infantry and cavalry, which he immediately charged, capturing all the infantry, in number thirty-five, with the Lieutenant in command, but the cavalry made their escape over the river. From here the command went to Leesburg, from which place a detail from the two companies was made to guard the prisoners, and Lieut. Myers placed in charge, with orders to deliver the Yankees to the Provost Marshal at Winchester, while the Captain moved his command back to Waterford, where he spent the next day; but on the 17th he received a notice that a force of the enemy was advancing on Leesburg from towards Washington, which caused him to hastily return to Leesburg. On arriving there he found the troops preparing to leave the town, but he prevailed on them to remain for a short time at least. The force there consisted of Co. A, 6th Va. Cavalry, under Capt. Gibson, and about forty Mississippi infantry commanded by Capt. Young, who was the Provost Marshal of the town. Captain White, owing to the rapidity of his march from Waterford, did not have more than thirty of his men with him. The force of the enemy was about four hundred cavalry, with four pieces of artillery, under command of Gen. Kilpatrick, who had come up to see if there was any Confederate force in Loudoun county.

Capt. Young, with his infantry, halted on the turnpike above town, and Capt. Gibson did the same, while Capt. White moved his command below Leesburg, and found the enemy still advancing, but rather slowly. Here he exchanged a few shots with them, and seeing them placing a battery in position he retired through the town and halted near Capt. Young.

Kilpatrick now, in perfect wantonness, and without any warning, opened fire from his artillery upon the town, and the women and children of Leesburg only knew that they were to be bombarded when the shrieking shells came crashing through walls and roofs in the centre of their town.

After awhile a party of cavalry advanced, and the tiring having stopped they marched through and came out on the road near where the little force of Confederates were standing, upon which Capt. White ordered his men to charge, but just as he was riding forward the infantry fired a volley at the Yankees, one ball from which struck him just under the shoulder blade, and lodged under the skin in front of his throat. This unfortunate affair stopped the charge which, had the Captain not been wounded, would undoubtedly have routed Kilpatrick’s whole force, as citizens on the road reported him and his men to have been very much excited and in great confusion when the party which the infantry had fired on returned at a run from their advance through Leesburg. Capt. Gibson’s men and the infantry of Young now retired, and White’s men, bearing their wounded Captain, followed them slowly up the turnpike as far as Rice’s house, where they left him in charge of Boyd Barrett, and went an to Hamilton, where Lieut. Myers and his party from Winchester met them. Myers at once took command of the squadron, and as it was now dark halted for the night in the village, and when morning came marched back to Leesburg; shortly after which the Captain was moved to Colonel Vandevanter’s, where he remained for a few days; but the battle of Sharpsburg having now been fought and the Southern army forced back across the Potomac, and the border country, in consequence, being overrun with parties of the enemy’s cavalry, it was thought best to move him nearer the mountain, which was done, and for some time he sojourned at Mr. Humphrey’s, near Snickersville, care being taken not to let his whereabouts be known, as the Yankees desired nothing better than to get possession of Capt. White, the guerrilla, as they called him; in fact, a party of them had come very near capturing him while he was at Colonel Vandevanter’s, only missing him by having been wrongly informed as to his location, they having gone to Mr. Washington Vandevanter’s instead of the Colonel’s. After this Lieut. Myers established his camp in Snicker’s Gap, from where he scouted the border to Fairfax C. H., under the orders of Gen. Jackson, and reporting directly to that commander, whose headquarters were in Winchester.

Some time passed in this manner, the two companies operating actively in Loudoun and Fairfax, occasionally picking up a few Yankees, and to a great extent stopping their incursions in the country, except in large bodies, one of which came near gobbling up the little command. Maj. Foster, of the Quartermaster’s Department, had been instructed by Gen. Stuart to call on Lieut. Myers for assistance in bringing out a lot of cattle from the Lovettsville country, and had fixed upon the 16th of October to meet at Wheatland for that purpose; but Myers, knowing that Gen. Kenley, with a strong force of infantry, cavalry and artillery, was somewhere near Leesburg, thought it best to let the cattle alone for that day. He, however, sent scouts to find where the Yankees were, and with about thirty men went to Wheatland, according to instructions, where he halted, and threw out pickets.

Pretty soon the picket on the Waterford road, who happened to be a young soldier (E. H. Tavenner) on his first tour of duty, came in and reported the enemy advancing, saying they had came within fifty yards of him and refused to stop when he told them to do so; and being asked why he didn’t fire on them, he replied that he “did try, but his carbine kept snapping, and that was why they got so close to him before he left his post.” The Lieutenant concluded that as green a man as that didn’t know a Yankee when he saw him, and sending "for the other pickets to come in, trotted off to see for himself, and before getting to the post his picket had occupied, he saw, and heard too, for the advance guard of Kenly’s brigade opened fire on him from a turn of the road, and charging upon him at the same time, nearly captured him with Dick and Sam. Grubb and Ben. Conrad, who came to his assistance; but they were in luck and escaped without injury, or losing any of the command.

That night, John DeButts, with Tom. Spates and one or two others, captured Kenly’s pickets near Hillsboro’, and the General marched to Harper’s Ferry before day.

Previous to this, a company commanded by Lieut. James Anderson, one under Capt. John H. Grabill, and one under Lieut. Wood, had reported to Lieut. Myers, and these with the two companies of White and Chiswell, and about fifty men raised by R. B. Grubb, formed a battalion which Myers did not feel disposed to command. The companies of Chiswell and Grubb, not being yet organized, and were moreover attached to the old company as a part of it, he could manage very well, but Capt. Grabill refused to command the whole force and the delicacy Myers felt in assuming the command of officers higher in rank than himself, made the matter a very awkward one in the new battalion, but all the officers insisted upon his occupying the position, and he finally did so, and commanded until the 19th of October, when Capt. James F. Trayhern, whose company, under Anderson, was already in camp, came in and assumed the command.