by Unknown
I stood, risking a shot but I needed my voice to carry. “Fall back!”
As I had expected the enemy heard this and charged. Fifty guns barked. I took out my pistol and emptied it. “Second group, fall back!” I made sure that I watched where I was running. The last thing I needed was to fall flat on my face with a horde of blue coats hot on my heels.
I saw a trooper fall close by me. It was Trooper Carberry. I ran towards him. The ball had struck him in the middle and it was a mortal wound. He looked up at me with a rueful smile on his face. “Didn’t run fast enough, sir.” He reached into his jacket and pulled out a small leather pouch. “Give these to the boys sir.” He winced and his eyes closed briefly. He opened them again. “And my gun its…” and then he died. I took the pouch with his few dollars in and his gun. My men shared in life and in death. I looked up and saw a line of men advancing.
Cecil shouted, “Down sir!”
I dropped to all fours and a volley erupted from my men. I turned over my shoulder and saw three men writhing on the ground, while the others had taken cover. I scrambled to my feet and joined my troop. “Thank you Sergeant Major.”
I could see the horses two hundred yards away. “The same again and we should make the horses.”
“Right sir.” He turned to his men. “Fire!” The shots rang out. “Fall back!”
I took out my pistol. “Fire!” I peered through the smoke. Our constant volleys had dented their enthusiasm and I saw an officer trying to organise them into a firing line. I lifted my carbine and took a bead on his back. I saw him thrown forwards and his men dropped to the ground. “Fall back!”
We all turned and ran. The ground was more open here and there were fewer bushes to trip and trap you. I saw that the Sergeant Major had mounted his men and they sat with pistols at the ready. I watched in dismay as Trooper Lythe pitched forwards. I ran to help him up. When I reached him I saw that the back of his skull was a bloody mess. He had died quickly. I grabbed his carbine and his pistol. They were both good ones. The trooper had been with us for a long time. I threw the guns I had gathered from the two dead troopers to Sergeant James. “There will be spare horses, take charge of them.” I wheeled Copper around and saw that the Yankee infantry was a hundred yards away and had formed a skirmish line. There appeared to be half a regiment.
“One more volley from every gun and then we fall back to the railroad line!”
Our guns roared and we escaped under the cover of the smoke. I heard the cheer from the Yankees as they chased after us. We now had open ground and rested horses. They would not catch us. When we reached the railroad line we set sentries. “Water the horses Sergeant James. Sergeant Major, make sure they eat.”
“Sir. Where will you be?”
“Trooper Ritchie and I will see how close the infantry is. Trooper Ritchie, with me.”
“Sir!”
We rode slowly back until we could see, in the distance, the infantry building a defensive line. They were expecting another attack. I had an idea. “Tie your horse to that tree and bring your carbine.”
We crawled along the ground until we were a hundred and fifty yards from the enemy. They had half of their men watching and the other half building.
“Go a hundred yards to the right. I want you to fire then move ten yards closer and fire again. Keep doing that until you are back here. I want them to think that we are dug in here.”
Ritchie was young and full of life. He was a quiet trooper but he was utterly reliable. “Yes sir.”
I crouched and ran in the opposite direction. I made sure I had my ammunition handy and then I knelt, aimed and fired at their lines. I knew it was unlikely that I would hit anyone but it would ginger them up. I heard Ritchie’s rifle as I ran and fired again. There was a ripple of fire as they shot at where I had been. By the time I met with Trooper Ritchie again the fire was all along the line and they were wasting ammunition firing at nothing.
“Back to the horses.”
We reached the others who were looking anxious as they waited for our return. The Sergeant Major was like a mother hen and he wagged an admonishing finger at me. “Sir, I thought you were just going to have a look.”
I grinned, “I just wanted them to know we were still around.” I glanced around and the grin left my face. “How many?”
“We lost ten men sir and there are twelve wounded. None serious.”
It was a hard blow to take. Some of these men had fought alongside me for years. I did not have much time to mope for we heard the sound of battle from the north. Jackson had begun his attack. My problem was that I no longer had any orders. I had done my duty but I could not desert the field. I tried to put myself in the shoes of the colonel of the regiment we had just drawn south. How long would he wait while he heard the sound of battle to his rear? It was now noon. I decided to give the men an hours rest and then we would return and see if they were still there.
We distributed the ammunition from those too wounded to carry on the fight and they were assigned as horse holders if we should need them. Both the Sergeant Major and the sergeant were happy with the men and horses and we rode back towards the Union lines. They had not left! In fact they looked to be reinforced and were marching towards Catherine Furnace. This was more than a regiment and looked to be a division.
“Trooper Smith, ride to General Jackson. He should be closer to Wilderness tavern but any of his officers will do. Tell him that the enemy look to be moving towards him. He may be being outflanked”
“Sir!”
“Right boys, we are going to hit and run and try to slow down these Yankee soldiers. We do not want to die here so do not do anything dumb! Remember you ain’t Yankees!”
They all gave me a rousing cheer which made the blue coated enemy look up.
The Sergeant Major said, “How do we harass them sir?”
I looked around and saw that we had about fifty men who were fit enough to fight. “Divide the men into five groups of ten. We take it in turns to ride at their flanks and empty our pistols. Every time we ride at them they will have to slow down.”
“We won’t be able to hit much with our pistols.”
“All we have to do is fire at a large body of men. More will hit than you think but we just need to slow them down. Look yonder.” I pointed to the north west where we could see the smoke from musket fire rising against the sun which was begin to sink in the late afternoon. “That is General Jackson and his attack. We don’t want these to reach him before he has had time to rout his enemy.”
“Right sir.”
I was the first to ride in and fire. It was scary and exhilarating at the same time. The infantry had to stop and be dressed. By the time they had levelled their rifles we had fired and wheeled away. We reined in out of range while the next group charge in. We slowed them down to a crawl. They spent longer each time in line; anticipating our charges. I was wondering when they would send for cavalry when they did just that. I heard the cavalry call and yelled, “Fall back, cavalry!”
Just in time we managed to wheel into a column of twos before the troop of cavalry burst through their infantry and hurtled after us. Our horses were not the freshest and I had to hope that they were in the same position. My other worry was the ammunition. We had already used more than I would have liked. I led the troop towards the unfinished railroad. We knew it and they did not. As we rode I shouted, “All wounded and the spare horses go with Sergeant James back to camp.” I saw the shake of the head from Carlton. “That is an order sergeant.” He saluted.
When we reached the railroad the sergeant took off with the wounded. “Wheel and give them a volley then head west. Sergeant Major, lead them off. Trooper Ritchie, with me.” We had more ammunition than the others and I intended to irritate the Yankees.
I glanced over my shoulder. They had closed to within two hundred yards. I had to make sure that they followed us and not the wounded that were disappearing east into the gloom of the railroad cutting. “We are going to rid
e towards them, fire and then retreat after the Sergeant Major.”
“I only have two rounds in my pistol sir.”
“That will be enough. Aim for the officer and the sergeant. That should annoy them and let’s give a rebel yell. That always seems to make them mad.”
“Yes sir.”
They were a hundred yards away. “Charge!” We both gave the rebel yell.
I saw the look of shock on the faces of the leading group. “Now!” As we jerked on the reins to both stop and turn our mounts we fired. I was more fortunate than Trooper Ritchie and I had a full gun which I emptied.”
As we wheeled I felt something tug at my arm and it felt as though I had been stung by a bee. “Come on Copper; let’s show these Yankees a clean pair of heels.” I pressed myself low over my saddle as the lead buzzed around my head.
Ritchie risked a look under his arm. “They are coming sir!”
I could hear the thundering of their hooves. It was with some relief that I saw the horses of the rest of the troop ahead. I could also see and hear firing from ahead. Had we run into the rear of the battle for Chancellorsville? Suddenly my men veered left and I followed them. I saw the flags ahead of the 23rd Georgia. As I passed their front ranks their major shouted, “Fire!” and the pursuing cavalry were stopped in their tracks. My men all whooped and cheered. I looked at their horses. They could run no more.
I turned and took off my hat, sweeping it before me. “My compliments sir. Your intervention was timely.”
The major bowed back. “It is our pleasure sir. My men love to kick Yankee ass. Your horses look a little weary might I suggest you rest them awhile.”
It was now dusk and I could see the flashes to the north where Jackson’s attack was proceeding. “I will sir, but first I will make sure the Yank cavalry have withdrawn.”
I left the brave Georgians and led my men back the way we had come. I was sorry to hear that they were all captured later that night. I worried that we might have caused their incarceration.
As we rode down the railroad track we passed the bodies of the dead cavalry. Feeling like a vulture I had the men take as much ammunition and equipment as they could from the dead men. By the time we reached the stream we had all filled our pouches and we began the weary journey back to camp. Had we met any Union soldiers I doubt that we could have resisted them. We had been on duty since the previous night. We reached a camp devoid of soldiers save the wounded and Sergeant James and his charges.
As the exhausted horses were led away I stood with the Sergeant Major and watched as the remnants of my troop crawled into their tents.
“Well Cecil we did what the general asked but what a cost eh?”
“You’re right sir and that’s without the losses the major might have suffered.”
As we waited for the rest of the regiment I hoped that it had all been worth it. Suddenly Cecil looked at my bloody sleeve. “Sir, you have been wounded.”
I looked at my left arm as though it was a stranger’s. I had been wounded? I tried to think back; the bee sting. “It doesn’t hurt.”
“Never mind let’s go and see the lieutenant.”
Lieutenant Dinsdale had seen to the other wounded and was cleaning up his operating table. He saw me and shook his head, “I might have known that you would be the last one in sir. Sergeant Major, get his jacket off.” He washed his hands as Cecil took the jacket off as carefully as possible. I had not been lying; I felt no pain. It was sort of numb.
He cut the sleeve from my shirt, “Hey that is a good shirt.”
“And now it is good for a bandage or cleaning your gun.” He frowned and jabbed a sharp needle into my lower arm. “Did you feel that?”
“No.” I looked at the needle, almost expecting it to be blunt. “It is probably the shock.”
I could see that he wasn’t convinced. He repeated the action with my left hand. “Anything?”
“No.”
”Let me just tend to the wound and then we’ll try some more tests. “He swabbed the wound down and then quickly stitched it. “The ball looks to have struck your elbow and then spent itself.” He cleaned his hands. “Wiggle your fingers.” I did so. “Good. Now raise your hand above your head.” I did that too. “Well the good news is that you can use your hand and your arm.”
“And the bad news?”
“You will have no feeling in your left hand and arm below the elbow. The ball damaged the nerve endings. I’m sorry.”
I shrugged, “So I can’t feel anything. That won’t be a problem.”
He looked serious. “I am afraid there is a problem. You could put your hand in a fire and not feel it but your hand would still burn. Boiling water… the list is endless. You will have to be careful.”
“I told you sir. You have to look after yourself. You are lucky, not immortal.”
As I went to my tent I reflected that he was right.
Chapter 6
The regiment arrived with the rest of Stuart’s Cavalry Corps. They were weary and their numbers depleted but they had been successful. We met in the mess tent and Irish cooked us up some ham and eggs he had somehow acquired. We didn’t ask where he had got them from but they tasted mighty good.
“We spent all day putting ourselves between the Yankees and the line of Jackson’s march. Their cavalry kept trying to shift us but they can’t fight worth a damn.”Dago had a low opinion of Union cavalry.
Danny was less bullish, “Things slackened off in the early afternoon. They began to shift men to the south.”
I smiled and Harry said, “Don’t tell me, Jack, that was you.”
“After Jackson had gone he said to harass them. I guess we did.”
Danny pointed at my arm, “That where you got hit?”
“Yeah. Didn’t seem much at the time but David reckons I have lost all feeling in my left hand.” I shrugged. “I’m alive anyway.” I drank some more of the coffee. “Did we win?”
“We are still here and the Yankees aren’t so I guess we did.”
Just then a rider galloped in to the camp shouting, “Stonewall Jackson’s been wounded!”
All of us ran from the tent. The courier was in the middle of the field. “How bad?”
“It is touch and go if he will live but he will lose an arm at the very least.”
The fact that he still lived was some consolation. We all knew that he was the best general we had apart from General Lee. Many held the view that he was better. It was a moot point. He could still lead even with one arm. I looked at my bandage. I could have lost my arm too.
The news then spread around the camp that the Northern Army had retired back across the rivers they had crossed and all of the fords were back in our hands. We truly had won. This was a major victory and all down to General Jackson. That night, men drank toasts to him. When we discovered that it was our own side that had shot him there was disbelief and then anger. Lee had wisely sent the erring unit to the western theatre. This was seen as far sighted, later, when General Jackson contracted pneumonia.
We only heard the news sporadically for General Stuart sent us to Brandy Station. The Union army had left the whole of the country south of the Rappahannock and we were to establish the cavalry camp there. The good news was that Colonel Boswell was returning and he had forty volunteers from Richmond and Virginia with him. We left in high spirits. We had done all that was asked of us and more. We were still undefeated both as an army and as a regiment.
It felt strange to be travelling openly through the same country we had recently attacked and raided. We found discarded Union equipment littering the roads as we headed north. Most of it was unusable but some we took. The damaged guns and harness would be repaired or used as spares. We were very resourceful. It took just four hours to reach the small town. It was three miles from the river and three miles from Culpepper.
As we rode in we saw Confederate flags hurriedly raised. I was cynical enough to realise that the Union ones would have been raised just as swiftly. Ridi
ng down Main Street Danny sent Harry off to find a suitable camp site and me and Dago to see if there was any Union equipment which had been left behind. We left Danny organising Jed and the rest of the regiment.
Dago pointed to the south east. “You know that Kelly’s Ford is just over there.” He shook his head. “All this fighting and we have barely moved.”
I pointed north. “And Leesburg isn’t that far away either.”
Just then we heard the Sergeant Major shout, “Sir! Warehouses.”
We were close to the Orange and Alexandria Railroad and there were four warehouses close to the line. Their doors were wide open as though they had been emptied in a hurry. “Dago you take that one. Sergeant Major you take the one on the end and Sergeant James the one on the right.”
I led my ten troopers to the warehouse with the gaping door. Inside there were scattered boxes and packing crates. Some still had their contents undisturbed. They were breeches and trousers. The fact that they were blue didn’t matter. Some of the troopers had worn theirs through and these would come in handy. For once we were in the favourable position. We also found some shirts and a real find, socks!
We emptied the warehouse properly and joined the others. There were no weapons but they too had found some food as well as other items of uniform. We headed back to the major in even higher spirits. The camp was established on the north eastern side of the town. We knew that our job would be to protect the army which would be at Culpeper while scouting and harassing the Union forces towards Washington. We straddled the river called, Flat Run, and were close to the railroad. If we ever managed to get some trains then we might just be able to get supplied.
We chose socks, breeches and shirts. We looked like a rag tag army but at least some of our clothes looked new. I knew that the dark blue would soon fade in the bright Virginia summer. Our jackets and hats were still grey. We were still Rebs.
The rest of the cavalry arrived the next day and I have never seen so many before or since. Someone told me that Stuart had gathered over nine thousand cavalrymen. The smell from the horses soon made it obvious who we were and where our camp was. Colonel Boswell and the new men rode in from Front Royal the next day. The major had issued all the new uniforms we had found and we formed two lines as the smartly dressed recruits rode along the Main Street and into the camp. I could see the colonel was quite touched by the gesture. Being the first ones in the town meant that we had managed to acquire the limited supplies that were available. We had a fine meal to welcome our leader. He did look a little thinner but then his wound had been life threatening.
