B00EF19YY8 EBOK, page 11
We headed into the trees which, mercifully, soon swallowed us up. It was now a game of cat and mouse. They could split up and send men in many directions. They would be bound to outnumber us. I also suspected that they might be keen to get their hands on our weapons; our former prisoners had often admired their efficiency and accuracy. We soon slowed down. It would not do to break the leg of a mount on the mountain trail and we did not wish to exhaust our horses either.
“Jack, you ride twenty yards behind us and keep a sharp ear out for them.”
I was the tail of the patrol and I would be the first to know if we were being closely pursued. I turned Copper to face the opposite way. I did not want to get a stiff neck. I took out a loaded pistol and I waited until I thought the rest of the men had moved away. Then I turned to follow. Every hundred yards I stopped and watched and listened. I could hear the pursuit but it did not appear to be closing. Each step east and south took us closer towards our own army and safety. Suddenly Copper’s head came up and I saw, less than twenty yards away a trooper. He was as surprised as I was for I had been still and he had no idea I was waiting. I just reacted and brought up the Colt. At that range I could not miss and the bullet took him out of his seat and threw him to the ground. I grabbed the reins of his horse and galloped hard. Every horse was worth over $100 to us!
I saw Harry’s horse. “They are right behind me. Ride!” Harry needed no urging and he kicked hard and shouted a warning to the others ahead of him. Soon we were all galloping as hard as we could manage through the forest. There was no trail and we had to just hope that we could find our way out. We heard the pop of pistols behind us. It meant that they could see us. Poor Jedediah’s horse had already been tired when he had reached us and the last gallop through the forest proved too much. His hoof caught a tree root and he was hurled from the saddle. Jedediah was a good horseman and he safely rolled clear of his dying mount. “Grab your guns. I have a spare horse.”
He quickly recovered his weapons and, as I fired at the approaching blue coats he sprang into the saddle. I could see from his face that he wanted to put his horse out of its misery but we had no time. He too, fired a couple of shots in the direction of the pursuers and then we galloped on. I was surprised to see the rest of the patrol spread out before us. Danny shouted, “Get on the end of the line and take out your pistols!”
The Yankees were as shocked as I had been earlier, especially when twenty two pistols fired a volley which ripped through trees, men and horses. We fired until our guns were empty. We could see nothing because of the smoke and Captain Boswell signalled that we head north and west. There was no shouted command and we all followed. By the time the smoke had cleared we were gone and I doubted that the enemy would have seen us move. We would have appeared to have been spirited away like ghosts. We halted half a mile away and waited. We all reloaded while we did so.
Jedediah said, “Thanks for that Jack. That was smartly done. I picked up a shitty carbine but I lost my two good holsters.“ He had had to resort to tucking his pistols in his belt and slinging his own carbine over his shoulders. He did look comical.
There was no pursuit and after an hour we headed south again but stopping frequently to listen for the enemy. We had no idea where the Union forces had moved to and for all we knew we were behind their battles lines and trapped.
Chapter 7
Jack
We found that we had travelled too far north and were close to Strasburg. “Too late to find the General tonight; we’ll find somewhere to sleep and then head on south in the morning.”
We saw a farm with the glow of oil lamps, and, as this was the Shenandoah Valley where we might find aid, we headed there for some shelter. It was still March and the nights were as cold as Ireland. The farmer was a little more sympathetic than Mr Pritchard had been and we were offered the barn. It was a real luxury; the hay was warm and we slept well. The farmer’s wife cooked us ham and eggs in the morning. This, washed down by hot black coffee, was as good as it would get. Just before we left the farmer told us that there were Union forces in Winchester. To Captain Boswell this seemed like too good an opportunity to miss. He sent two men to Mount Jackson to tell the general of the threat from the west whilst we headed north.
We went quite gingerly; we wanted to see but not be seen. When we reached the outskirts of the town we left one man with the horses whilst the rest of us went in pairs to spy out the land. Harry and I made our way to the railroad line. There were a number of engines and cars in and there was activity around each one. It looked to both of us as though they had brought fresh troops but we couldn’t see them. Our problem was that we had to hide and move surreptitiously. Luckily our grey uniforms did not stand out as much as the Yankee blue and we wore our slouch hats much as the farmers and citizens did. We had left our carbines with the horses and just carried the one Colt with the flap on the holster open. I hoped it would be enough.
We walked along the railroad for the carriages and cars looked deserted. “Look!” Harry’s sharp eyes had spotted horse shit, more than could have come from one animal. We left the railroad tracks and followed the sign left by the horses. We emerged from the houses and saw tent after tent. It was a huge Union army. There were small open fires and stacked muskets. We lay behind a wall and took off our hats. We began to count flags and standards for that was always a good way to ascertain how many regiments there were. We estimated that we could see fifteen or so.
“That’s a lot of soldiers.”
“It sure is Jack but I can’t see any cavalry. That is a bonus.”
We made our way back to our horses, avoiding all the busy places we had encountered on our way there. We had a scare when we went down an alley behind a drinking establishment and three Union soldiers were relieving themselves. Harry had more brass than a twelve pounder and he just said, “Have one for me boys!” and they laughed. I suppose if they had looked up they would have taken us for their own men but a man who has his manhood out is focussed on one thing at a time.
The sergeant and the captain were both there when we reached the horses. We told them what we had found. “Good work. It seems that two divisions have left the Valley for Richmond and this fellow Shields is holding Winchester with just one.”
“Aye sir but it sounds like ten thousand men. How many does General Jackson have?”
“I am not sure but it cannot be more than four thousand. We have to get the news to him.”
We mounted and rode like the wind. We met the first horse pickets outside Woodstock. There was no sign of Stuart and the Captain reluctantly had to report to Stonewall Jackson. He took Sergeant Murphy with him.
We got to talking with some of the men of the Fourth Virginia, Jackson’s old regiment. “We keep seeing you fellahs around but we can’t work out your regiment.”
They were looking at our buttons and insignia. Harry stared back at them; he was never one to back away from a fight. “We aren’t regulars. We fight for Captain Boswell.”
“I hear you are nothing more than bandits.”
The soldier who made the mistake of insulting Harry was a big man but Harry’s fist planted a punch in the middle of his face and he fell backwards, unconscious. We were outnumbered and it looked as though it could turn ugly. I just whipped my Colt from my holster and held it in the face of the Sergeant. “Now let’s just calm down here. Words were said that shouldn’t have been said and your man paid for it with a little blood. Do we want a bloodbath or shall we leave it at that?”
The Sergeant breathed heavily. “I guess you got the drop on me Irish so we’ll back off but the next time I see you make sure your hog leg is ready because I don’t forget.” They picked up their unconscious comrade and dragged him away muttering threats and insults as they went. Sergeant Murphy emerged at the end and he looked at me and the gun in my hand. “Now what did I miss?”
Jedediah grinned. “We’ll tell you later but these two sure are wildcats sarge. They were ready to take on the whole of the Fourth Virginia when they called us bandits.”
Once again the captain left the general’s tent with a red and angry face. “Come on boys we are wasting our time here. Let’s head back to the camp.”
We rode hard and made it back to our camp close to Sandy Ridge. The slaves had kept it tidy and fed the horses but there was no food ready. While they cooked it Sergeant Murphy opened a jug of poteen. “I think we need this tonight and we will tell you what transpired.”
We were the most loyal soldiers one could ever imagine and I think that one reason for this was the openness and honesty of our two leaders. The captain took the first swig and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. He passed it to Danny. “Well boys it seems the General doesn’t believe us. Colonel Ashby’s cavalry said there were just four regiments of infantry and a couple of guns in Winchester. General Jackson believes him and he intends to attack as soon as he reaches Winchester.”
“But we counted almost ten thousand!” I was angry too.
“I know, Jack, but we are not regulars and have no standing. They doubt everything we say until it is backed up by regulars.”
“How many men does Jackson have?”
“No more than four thousand.”
“It will be a bloodbath.”
“I know.”
There was an air of despondency in the camp that night and we all drank a little too much. We all felt for Captain Boswell. He had tried to do the right thing and had been rebuffed. It was hard to see what else we could do. We knew that their information was wrong and General Jackson has been misled but we were powerless. The captain decided to leave the Shenandoah Valley and find General Stuart who was rumoured to be in the Peninsula; there, at least, he had an ally.
What none of us knew was that the Yankees were moving south to meet Jackson’s threat and were heading for the Valley Pike. As we lay in our tents that night we were about to become part of a battle, the only battle that General Stonewall Jackson would lose.
I had not drunk as much as the rest and had elected to take the early morning watch. Just before sun up I roused Aaron and the other slaves to prepare coffee. I was not sure the men would be ready for food. As they got the food going Aaron went to his tent and returned with my hide jacket.
“Here suh. I finished it while you boys was away.”
I was touched; he had done a remarkable job. “This is perfect Aaron. I reached into my pouch for some coins.
He waved them away. “Don’t worry Mr Hogan. I had plenty left over and I can make some fine little knick knacks. It is my pleasure.”
I don’t doubt that many slaves were abused by their owners and treated badly but I have to say that Captain Boswell’s slaves were as loyal as any freed man. The slaves we had had with us could have easily run when we were north of the Potomac. They were in the land that was free of slaves but they elected to stay with us. I often wonder what would have happened had shells not been fired on Ford Sumter. Much later I was told that the south could have seceded and been a sovereign country but the firing on the Federal fort was an act of war. Had that happened then I do not know what my life would have been like but events outside of my control were dictating my destiny.
I was nearing the horse lines when I heard the noise of marching men in the distance. I saddled Copper and then went to wake the Sergeant. “Sergeant Murphy. I can hear soldiers. I am going to investigate.”
As hung over as he obviously was, the big Irishman nodded and waved me away. I felt happier knowing that he would organise things. The sounds that had alerted me appeared to be coming from beyond Middle Road. At the tree line I halted. I could see blue coats marching towards the top of Pritchard’s Hill. As yet there appeared to be no troops on the road or towards the ridge. I wheeled Copper around and headed back to the camp.
Sergeant Murphy had, indeed, roused the camp and all was frenetic activity. Everyone halted as I galloped in to the middle of the mayhem. I pointed to the east. “Union troops are digging in on the top of the hill but the road is empty as yet.”
The captain looked relieved. “Good. Well done Jack.” He turned to Aaron and the slaves. “Take your boys down the road to Harrisonburg. William and Matthew, please escort them there and find a camp. We will join you whenever we can.” He looked around and found Jedediah. “Jed, ride to the General and tell him that there are Yankees on Pritchard’s Hill but Sandy Ridge is empty and he could flank them this way. Join William at Harrisonburg when you have done that.“
In a remarkably short space of time the tents and equipment had been packed on the horses and into the wagon Stuart had given to us and they headed south to safety. There were now but eight of us left for Dago and the others were still with the mapmaker, Hotchkiss. We all looked at the captain for orders. He gave a rueful smile. “I guess we can’t do much with just eight men but I think we will let them know who we are.” So far we had kept our standard furled but the captain now took it and handed it to Harry. “Here Harry, let us carry this today.” He grinned at us. “There are simple orders for today, follow the flag. And Harry, I want you closer to me than my underwear!”
We all laughed and Sergeant Murphy growled. “And, before you get too excited, check that you are fully loaded, today could be a hot day.”
We headed east across Middle Road towards the trees which lined the base of Pritchard’s Hill. We could see the caissons and limbers of artillery as they were dragged into position. Obviously there were Confederate forces to the south of them and we could see the lines of soldiers as they hurried to form defences behind the walls of the farm. It meant that their attention was not upon us and we made it to the tree line without discovery.
We heard the pop pop of fire from skirmishers to the east. The battle had begun. I just hoped that the captain’s message had reached Jackson in time. Already we could see columns of Yankees moving from Winchester towards the hill. We made it to the edge of the trees and we tethered our horses to their branches. We were less than a hundred yards from the right flank of the Union Army and we were unseen. We could see, beyond the cannons and the infantry, cavalry skirmishing on the Valley Pike. From the direction of the church we could see columns of grey advancing. Jackson was attacking.
“That damned pig headed fool. Good men will die today because of his dislike of me!” He took out his own carbine. “Right boys. There are only eight of us but I want them to think that there is a company. Empty your carbines and then be ready to run at my command.”
It was much easier resting our carbines on our knees or steadied against a tree than from the back of a moving horse and we were able to aim much more accurately. I targeted my carbine on a sergeant of artillery. He was standing behind his cannon smoking a cigar. I waited for the command and as soon as it came I fired. I watched him spin around the cigar flying into the air. I chambered another round and aimed at the gunner clearly identified by his lanyard. He was moving but I still managed to strike him on the shoulder. The smoke from our guns and the muskets of the enemy now made a fog of war but the Yankees were tightly packed and any rounds fired through would strike something. We heard the whinnies and neighs of horses mixed in with the screams and shouts so we knew we were hitting their mounts and draught animals as well as men. I heard the empty click. I was out of ammunition. “Jack! Move!” I turned and saw that we were falling back to the horses. We quickly mounted and I saw that all eight of us had survived.
“Unfurl the flag!” Harry shook the standard to make it flutter and Captain Boswell led us down the meadow towards Middle Road. As we galloped I could see why, there was a huge column of Union infantry moving along Middle Road towards the hill.
Harry gave a rebel yell, “Yeehaw!”
Sergeant Murphy, his face filled with the joy of battle roared, “Ride you Wildcats, ride!”
There was a ragged volley from behind us but, at a distance of over a hundred and fifty yards they might as well have been spitting at us. The Captain led us obliquely across the front of the advancing Union army. I was at the back and I could see why he had chosen this course of action. Jackson’s army was marching up the hill towards the cannons and Union lines. Had we tried to join them we would have been cut to ribbons by the fire of both sides. Sandy Ridge looked to be the safest place. There we would be on the flank of the Union Army and could move in any direction.
Once we made the edge of the trees we reloaded and rested our horses. To our horror we saw the attack repulsed and the grey coated warriors retreated down the hill. Harry attracted the attention of the Captain. “Sir, it looks like there are some of our lads heading this way.”
“Good he can outflank them. Let us go down and meet them.”
We had not gone far when we came upon a stone wall, the boundary of some property. I was at the rear and as we slowed to cross the obstacle I glanced over my shoulder towards Pritchard’s Hill. They had turned their lines to face the threat and I could see an enormous column of men half a mile away. “Sir you had better hurry for the Yanks are coming.”
Just then the first of the Virginians reached the wall. The captain shouted to the lieutenant leading the troops. “I would get your men behind this wall lieutenant! There is a brigade of Yankees ahead of you and they outnumber you.”
He touched his kepi and drawled. “Thank you suh! I am much obliged.” He turned to his men, “ Twenty Seventh Virginia hold the wall!”
As we crossed behind them a sergeant asked, “Are you with Colonel Funsten?”
Sergeant Murphy laughed, “No, we are Boswell’s Wildcats!”
As we descended through the advancing army we could see that there were pitifully few of them. The captain recognised the General’s aide, Sandie Pendleton. “Sir, there is a huge column of Yankees advancing. These boys will struggle to hold them.”
“Thank you Boswell.” He closed a little and said in a quieter voice. “Sorry that the General didn’t heed your advice or use you. You should know that there are many of us who think you should be fighting with the army. I will pass on your news and I am surely grateful to you.” He saluted and rode back to the General.
