Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1865-05-27

lWnelming odQsI SurnlnE the. euemy's left
aud prot ably. deciding the battle in our
favor. IA Mount jackson, onithsi2sd, it
tegain behaved admirably,
On September 24thy 1854, Col. d. Cape.
hart, ofi0hiQG VAS iapp1inted to the com
9Aad tofsthe brigRde "a The appointment
hassfn1Iy vindiOated theR isdomJ ofithe ap.
pointing power, as.the 5O6l8neI 6ss i1stly
established a. reppt atioA ut which any of.
hcer might well bslproud1 The fret day
the Colonel commanded tka brigade, they
Killed I7t6f RosseFas 0aFa ~ On Septem-
Der 26, the enemy was driven from WierSs
Cave through BFpFnis Gap on the 2Tth
was fought the' battle Of Wiers15 Gave, In
which We suffered sseyere ,zAbopt the
9th 6f October the bft sdS 56ts an honor
able part fn5the suesEssfr econnois issSnce
70 PeEryyille a. asl alsp later at Guard Hill,
and still later it acq nitted itself with honor
IN the two successive attaes ct Milford. !. :
.S ssi ID the fearful battle Of gsdar Greek on
the 18th, our cavalry, of which the Third
Wasthe most; pFominenta brigade, held in
check theehemy's cavalry; And, prevented
one: forces from being hanked, and is
thought by many to have changed the fore
tunes of that fearful day. ID, s.gs... ss,.
- on;the 18th of of November the battle of
Ni1eyah, was fought by thiB brigade alone.
II WAS one of the cleaneat Victories ever
achieved in the Valley. Among the can
tprea were two pieces Of artillery, two bata
tle.hRgsj two hundred prisoReFs, and Nc
Gausland.s entire wagon train. The bri.
gadei boweSer, wascall led 70 mourn the un-
timely loss of Capt. Prendegast,so ,sof the 1st
Wy. Lincoln Cavalry whSs was killed in.
statly while bravely dischsFgitg kis duty.
Al. the battle of Rich's Hiil, earlysin De-
eemoer, 1854 the brigade again acquitted
1tselt In asmanner. worthy Of all praisS.-
1t was reserved, however, for the results
otIthe late great cavalry campaign of Gen.
Sheridan that started ont from Winchesters
Va, on the the 21thaot. Februsry last, TO
give to this brigade such chssFepatatton for
ethciencyi and bravery in action as must
permanently identity 1t Rtth,the history of
the CT nahing out OF, this, terrible rebellion:S
L On the plght. or, me 2Sth' OF Februsry we
stood at place called Lacy Springsi and
on the morning OF the Let OF March, Dol,
Capehart1 commanding the Third Brigade,
was ordered to takeIhe advance, the order
reading nearly as follows: "The BreVet
Major General commanding directs that the
advance move with great caution, looking
we'll to the hanksr as, from Trustworthy in :
formation, We are nearing an enemy in
considerable force ready to u.s." The
order required the brigade to move at 8 a.
me- The positiOn.was exceedtngl yperilous,
so much so that it was said BY a staff Off.
Ger that the brigade was placed in the adj
vance because it wasIknoWn tobe the best
lighting brigade tnt the army and because
aot the known ,rqst%orthtness OF Its com
manolngi ohcers l4izLga9 lst41p 1-sl s.=e
I, Indeed, jnstice requires US to say lat to
aIWiser, more, prudent or cooler mind in
the hour Of danger, the execution of such
an order could not have been committed.
4, The brigade moved out. the Sd Virbinia
lin the advance, in q dense darkness that
was Egyptian-no one knowing the doom
that the terrible fates that was tZrinnine in
the darkness might have in store. at the
dawn of day we had some skirmishiuR and
one or,two hair breadth escapes, however,
nothing serious occurred uutillwe reached
Mount Crawford, whers7 we fouud the
bridge over the Worth River on, fire and
the. floor partly removed. The rebels in
very considerable numbers were posted bes
hind strong works erected upon an advan-
tsgeous elevation near the bridge, when the
Sd Virginia charged directly up to II under
q CALLING fire, which iproVidentially, how.
ever, did little damage. Capt. Sexton was
knocked from his horse by apartially spent
ball, and was caught in the arms of Adju.
tant Melleri of the, same regiment. he,
however, soon rallied and did good service,
as he always does in action.
Nearly the entire brigade plunged at once
into the cold aud much swollen stream,
swimming across and charging the enemy
IN fne style, saving the bridge, and captur-
ing many prisoners and seven wagons
loaded with commissary stores. The COL
onell continued the charge 10 miles, saving
the bridge over Middle river, and went into
camp four miles from Stsunton.
On March I'd the brigade advanced
through Ssaunton, taking the Ohsrlottes-
vile road, by way Of Waynesborough.-
The day, takeiL all in all, was just such as
weahope never to see the like again. There
was q cold and mean fog, the rain falling
hIiskly, and every drop freezing to ice as
soon as it touched you. Thea the mud
was shocking. II varied in depth from one
to four feet. - :. s--y 81, n II