Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1876-10-19
perfectly unmolested, to White Sui

phur Springs. There l was joined
with 1900 men by General J. B
Floyd, who was my senior. He wen
to Carnifax, above the bridge on th
Gauley, and left me on the Lewisburs
turnpike to Gauley bridge to oonfron
Cox. With but 900 men l met Cox
forces at the Hawks Nest, and drove
him thirteen miles back to Bee creek
when I was met by all his forces
1900 men, on Gauley bridge, and
retired with impunity again. Gener'
al Floyd was driven from, Carnifal
by Roaecranz, whilst | was protect
ing his reag against Cox. He ISSUED
orders which l refused to obey, re-
ported me to the War Department
and retreated to Meadow Bluff, TWEEN
~ five miles distant, leaving me or
the east peak Of the Big Sc.
wall mountain, with only 1850
men, opposed to Roaecranz and
Cox with 1000 men. I had fought
them alone for thee days until Gen
eral Lee ordered Floyd back to me;
and there, under fire, I was ordered
to report to the War Department at
Richmond, at the instance of Floyd,
for disobedience. General Lee and
the President decided I was right,
and my command-no longera legion,
but brigade-was restored to ME as
soon as l rose from a two months ILL.,
ness, in the winter of 1912, and l
was ordered to the slaughter-pen of
Roanoke Islands, where with four
hundred and ten effective infantry,
after days bombardment by thirty>
seven iron-ciads, infantry force of
10000 to $4,000 men were, on the
second day of the fight, kept at bay,
under close fire, for five hours before
there was any surrender. l was at
Nays Head, PROSTATE with pleuro-
pneumonia, and was not even pursued
on the beach in very slow retreat to
the Cunituck peninsula. I did not
escape from the island, and nothing
could do me more injustice or the
the truth more violence than to say
General Wise afterward took no ac~
tiTe part in the war" NV brigade
was reorganized in the spring of 1862
and l was put in command of
Chaffin's BLUFF, just below Drewry's,
on the James, and commanded all
the Peninsula between the York and
the James; and with two regiments,
without orders, On the extreme right
under General Holmes, fought in the
two-days' fight at Malvern Hill; AFTER
wards secuted the enemy closely for
months, and made advertisement in
favor of Longstreet by getting in the
rear of the seventeen redouhts at
Williamsburg, and burning Whitaker's
mill and at least quarter of a million
of stores there at the headquarters of
the enemy. In 1868 I was sent to
the command of General Beauregard
in South Carolina, and took command
of the district lying between tho Ash
ley and the Edisto, except James's
Island, and with 1880 men repulsed
Schimel6uing with 5000 at the Haul
Over on Johns Island, and at the
Abhepoola nearly destroyed the Mar
blehead war steamer. In May, 1864,
I was ordered with my command back
to Petersburg.
A part Of it, under Colonel Tabb,
on the way back, at Nottoway bridge,
repalsed two impinging forces, front
and rear, of the enemy's cavalry on
the 9th of May, 1864, with but 800
men, I repulsed 5000 of Kaut's cav
airy on line of six and a half miles,
in their attack upon Petersburg and
in six days afterward, on the 18th of
May, rerulsed $4,000 men of General
Badly Smith, with exactly 1920 men
fighting all day from $3.50 A. NJ. to
1890 P. NJ. on the same line of de-
lenses around Petersburg; then led
the two brigsdes, my own and Martin s
Of North Carolina, at Bakehouse
creek, successfully against Butler in
the battle of prewry's Bluff, and
thereafter broke the lines Of the
enelay at Howlett's near Ware Bot
tom church, in a desperate charge,
and was necessarily under fire from
the 18th to the 2sth Of the month on
the Hewlett line, where General Grant
says General Butler was bottled up
like fly. l was then put in cons
mand of dangerous portion Of
trenches around Petersburg-from the
Crater to Revo's House; was con-
tinpally under fire until March, 1865
l was entrusted with the extreme
right of General Lee on Hatcher''
run. On the 29th of March, 1865
my brigade alone was pitched into the
forces under Gen. Meade-25, 900
strong-on the Mi itary road, ant
fought to check them in their advance
to turn our right; and again, the als
of March, on the White Oak road
| with Mc(Iowans hriuade alone. attack