The Semi-weekly Shreveport news. [volume] (Shreveport [La.]) 1862-1864, 1862-04-08

LETTER FROM THE SHREvEPoRT
9 RANGERS.

FIJI and AHtAentic particulars If The
:: BATTLE OF ELKHoRN
| VAN buren,, ARKul
.ae March l6, 1862. !
Dear .Nezcs A few words of the
great battle may be interesting. We
left the Boston Mountain OH Tuesday
March 4. and camped near Fayette-
vile, Gen. Price's command in adj
vance. "Wednesday . uprnins we
passed through Fayetteville, our train
being. left behind. We camped for
the night at Elem Springs, Ark, le
miles from, Fayetteville. 1t showed
heavily all day, making the roads A.
most impossible. We learned next
morning that the enemy was at Ben
tonviile, about $4,000 strong, and we
took up the line Of march for that
place. The weather was piercing
cold. Our advance guard engaged
the enemy, who was in'full retreat,
one mile north Of Bentoilville, and
fought him all the way to Camp
Stepllens,a distance of seven miles.
l have not learned the loss of the ene-
my, ours was three wounded. We
alw two of the enemy dead and one
wounded, on the road side. The
woods ali along the read were ,strewn
with dead horses. We arrived at
Camp Stephens about dark. almost
sfroze." and starved, having only one
biscuit for breakfast that morning,
and no prospects ofanythipg for cup
per. We built fires and sat around
them, waiting for the wagons to ar
rive: just as they came up we were
ordered to march. We left camp at
10 o'clock that night, without any
supper and no. blankets to keep off
the damp night air. We marched
about seven miles when we We're ors
dered to rest which we needed very
much, having marched &c miles that
day and night. We made fires out
of the fence rails, and. laid around
them until morning. 1t was ianpossi-,
bic to sleep for the night was bitter
cold. No one will evw know how
much we suffered from cold and hur-
Scr--no tongue or pen can paint it,
Friday morning, March I. came a,
last, and with it the order of Fall
in" The Hangers fell in IA 4 man,
but such a worn-out set of men,
never saw. They had nat one single
moutht4lSof provisions toteat that
morning. We marched about FIVE
miles, then comtcr-marched, and
came back that road about s miles,
Gen. Price had opened the battle On
the Telegraph road, near the ELK
Hork" tavern, about 10 o'clock. a. nj.
The enemy had possession of the
hills between the Telegraph and the
road we were on. All the Infantry
and cavalry of Gen. McGufloch's di-
vision were drawn up in line, the Sd
Louisiana regiment was sent forward
to open the engagement on our side.
While we, were walking through a
lane. with some. Texas and Indian
cavalry on our right, we Were sudden
ly fred on ty a masked battery, about
800 yards distant, not expecting an
attack so soon, we We're thrown into
considerable .confusion,> from which,
however, we soon recovered, to wit
ness one of the most brilliant charges
of tire campaign, by Col. Youns's
and other Texas cavalry. AS soon
as the battery opened on US the hpgle
sounded the charge. Like flash of
lightning two columns ofthe cavalry
dashed out, completely surrounding
it, and capturing it in less time than
it takes to write it. The enemy's
infantry and cavalry, who were sup
porting the battery, fired one round
and run. We We're marched in
southeast direction, Major f. Tun-
m I'd .oornn1>,ndinn Ganf Hnrt,. IL