Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1863-04-24
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5A;ts.. Va. Anr,l =. 1858,

5Aita:, Va, Apt.l 4, 1868,
s'sssEs EciTrFs: II furnishing Tie rcadip
public with SIlef ks;ch OF this ey.raurdira
~ expedition, |! msy ba ptcsRss,y to pr.ac
|: with statement al tho object con.cmpla:s.
~ no accomplished by it. 1. is prcbsbly
known TO many ef your r-.dars that tha
part Of Western Virginia south of,be Kansshl
river, except the counties bordering ca ID,
Ohio'rivar. has not been brought fully uDde,
too Surveillance If the Pirrpont gove,E.ran!
T:iI fact vas alluded to ny NJ. Car!;:ls, il
the Ua,ie1 States Senate, during lae i,e. frs
sion, and q de,naud wss made upon tbs Eet c
rsl e ,vcrnmen: to furnisl suti:irrt ui!;.ry
prote ction IN entbia tae Onion men scattered
over that vast region to hold elsc!iors, cuu.ts
etc; and TO pu. tho pierp,nt gnvernnsn,
into practical working condition. These iRcis
heconias known ~ cur suthoti:iss, il bo:srGn
,ns,lsr cf great Importance to send a. <
peti!ion into that country to flu tr4is these
treaSaaub,s purposes. Far This chj.ct; Gen
Jenkins Was selected 20 tske auch portion Ct
his command 81 he might rcr prcpar, to PRO-
I'd into that section, md, if possible, to PEN
etrste oven to the Ohio river. But it was
hardly to tu hnpsi, by the most sanguir @,
that no would he .ble to advance Az fsr.
On the l2th OF March ;he OK peditian IN 1ved
ffotu tina pci,t and U,.t.si Depot, on tho
cars, and arrived s. Marion, Smyths couaty,
on tire 18Th. Ii consisted Of five co,rpani:s Of
the S'h Virginia cavalry. uc dor C"l. j 81.
GHrns; and Eve c5mpsn;ss rf:he 10Th Vir-
ginio cavalry, undor Col. N. J. Farguson,
also detached psrtl OF two Companies from
Msjo- Sweeney $ battalion The whole
foece, on s!srting, comprised only about
fvs hundred men, and of thcss nearly
ons huudted were Left On The way by fatigue,
sore feet, &C.. toforo they reached the emo.
my's lines, who returned to the railroad az
soon az shsy were able this reduced tho eff.
fective for CO ve:y materially.
The expedition constituted but very SINAI,
psrt Of Gen. Jenkins brigade; and tho CON-
pauies re!e-roa to we're composed exclusively
OF Iptu f'om tho imm.d ate section in which
the operations were expected to be carried
on. It was not considered prudent to t.ke $
large FARGO. IS the secret mountain p.ihs
which wero intended to ba followed were
utterly imp:ac!icibln for wagons, or even for'
pack mules; and the risk Of starvation wi.h
any considerable body of men on ruch q
march, wonld have been too great to iustif;
it; hence the small M nber OF mon sr.ec ed.
for this hazardous enterprise. For thia and
kindred csussa. although q csval,y force, the
officers and In'n were al disnounted, and
the expedition Was msdD on f,ct.
Moving from Mai n, by way Of Tszswel
O. d., transportation was secured 10 taxa the
provisions of tho comunsnd- consisting solely
uf hard crackers and jerked beef, to a point
twelve miles beyond tho last nsmod place,
where the road in'ersccts Ahb's Valley. Here
the wagons were returned, on the 18th, and
tho officers and luen, with tho General him
Golf III foot, shouliered in their double hkv-
eysscks their proper quota Of crackers and
bsef, snd proceeded on their toilSome march,
through county the widness and desols-
ton Of which is almost unparalleled. The
expedition followed the main road leading to
Wyoming and Lcgsn, leaving Tug Fork Of
S,rdy river 10 tho left.
On reaching Tux river again, rains. which
had fallen il the Meantime, had swollen it
almost out Of its banks, and presented So
rious and seemingly impassabis obstacle to
fcr!her progress. The usual InsthCd of fol-
liog large es, on tho edg of the hank, 80
ss to reach ACROSS the stream. which had
been successfully practiced heretofore, wsa
repeatedly tried, but in vain. The laygast
trceq, when made tn fall fton opposite sid.s
If Tho rivsr, so os To mest ii the niiddls,
vere swfpt away ny the impetnous torrear
Tso small troughs male for FEEDING c!ttIc,
wore procured aTd their ends bound together
With grape vines; long g!s2e-vines Wore tnnu
fastened together aud stretched acrog, the
.i7ar; End IN this way An initstion CT roos
r,rry was 6 e5!isbcd, but tie strong, swlf.
current ranae,ed httcup's to Cross iuprsc.i-
c.bls. The & al o vnsa q ere broken and the
frouohs c;rried Isr DIVA the cuerect. Fur
daya the weather haj been 10 'snsriy ssve.,,
raining, sleetirg a.; d freezing alternately: sc
tho scauty stock Of provisions carried b. tie
Zen rapidly diminiSsin; So irttnss!y -.
ysre bad hsen tbs woa.her, and 20 cons = ut
h.d been the fall of rain and elect, ths; i.
.be last two nights the men had boon uuSb' t
10 sloep, and were compelled TO tnDlcJ sL<u.-
aelVea bueiy in keeping up thei; fl es to- 20
vent their pos,shing from vet aud colo. /:
vas, indeed, enough 20 discourage tho stgu:-
EFT haart; hut relihe ofti:erg or ,asD ssva
yay to d.pre-ainu. Tbs trouShs wnes rak-r.
af:rc g."as Gitlcalty, 20 poin. fu,thn +
lie ,iye,, wacre tho current wta rot 81
swift end the slow wo,k Of fer.yirs was
resumed; s,yen were tie most thst could hr
taken over at 8 single trip, snd two Of :huse
bad to return each time To take the crsfL back
.r.in. The whole day, tho succeeding night
nnd part of tho next DAY were occupied 10
This tedious operation.
o, the 2Ist, tho vhnls command beire
SAFELY over, it resumed the march and crossed
Whit j, known 10 tho "Indian Ridge" As
teri :bls az had hecn tho suf-Iuss Of The
ucn he-ato(orc, they were worse than ever
Oh hi. DAYS march. The weu.her was 10.
tsncsly cid. Such = sleet was never known
b foe in tie County. Vast numbers q
treea wera up-ootoh BY the icy burdens on
t,,ei: h,ancLea AMI fell crashing into frag
ruents urrn tho path Of the march, "a the
command Insde Its toiisnme ascent mp the
precipi:ous mountain. 1h= grhunf Was Gov
aged several inches dap with sleet and
broken branches Of The treas, covered
With ice Many of the NEIL literally bare
footed not a vsstigs of leather, and, III some
csses, nct svrn tho sisn OF sock protecte
thor lscerated f ct Even some Of those who
started with TO. fectly new shoes were in this
condition, their shoes having come entirely
to pieces from being constantly wet win
rain and wsding the streams, and from being
burned by thn csmp fires a. night. Tbs tx
hanst;un of tho MEN WAS intense; ore poor
fellow, Chapman, Of Lieut.. Kintley's COM
m.ud, laid down, and il few minutes
bfeathed his last upon that 10y suu,rui!-
ARRANGEMENTS were made. for his decent IL
terrcnt each weary comrads droppsd 6
tear % be passed, aud the expedition pro-
csedsd On its psinful match.
After passing the mountain. and thsrcs
over upon the wsi.rs Of Little HUI, the
mach was continued down that stream to q
,p,th sc.oss O,ab cre.h; theuce over tn
othtr mountain to the waters Of G bert,
and tn, nee to tn, main Gnyaniotts rivsr, in-
tarsecting that stream at poin. ninety miles
above lis mouth, and about twenty uilea
from Logan Courthouse. Proceeding thsncs
down to the mouth of Big Huff the cnm
m.nd was forriea across in csnoes. BY this