Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1877-04-06

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"Close up, gentlemen and com
rades! Keep your horses well in
hand; but spur on-charge, and
charge home! Lurrah!"
a ball hummed pasta twenty.
four pound shot, apparently-and
where was Lilo, cl Beverley?
Doubled up-a dead and gas,ly
hcap-undcr dying and mangled
charger! The next who fell was my
friend MILFORD. If he was some
what of dandy in England, there
was no want of pluck in him here
Leading his troop, he fell close by
me, and l leaped my horse over him
rs he rolled past, churning mouth
full of grass and earth, his features
awfully convulsed, and his limbs
trembling in their death agony
Poor WiIford!
On and yet on! Many familiar
face is gone now; the gaps are fear
full, and men who we've in the tlanks,
now find themselves in the center.
On we still gallop through that
mouth of fire-on, and fearless. The
best blood of three kingdoms is in
our ranks, all well and nobly mount
ed, the flower of our noble cavalry
on yet like a whirlwind, the hearty
British "Hurrah! hurrah! hurrah" is
ringing in our ears; the hearts blood
seems mounting to the brain-and
now we are upon them! Now the
red flashing muzzles Of the cannon
are passed; the gunners are throw
ing themselves under the wheels and
timbers, where We cut them down,
and spear or pin them to the earth.
Others are rushing for shelter to
their squares of infantry, under
whose rifles they lay fiat and securely,
while sheets of lead are tearing
through us!
Oh, the superlative bitterness of
that moment, when, with all eur
horses blown, l look back and see
that we are without support!
The guns are taken-thc gunners
almost annihilated; our horses are
breathless. We have no aid, and no
resource but to ride back, under
such a concentrated fire rs troops
were never before exposed to.
''It's all up-threes about-retire!"
A single trumpet teebly gives the
call, and away We 60.
Shot in the heart, perhaps-my
Arab steed sank down gently be-
meath me; but l received a severe
blow from something, l know not
what-,he splinter of u shell, proba-
bly,, which crushed my lancer cap,
and almost stunned me. | must
have remounted myself mechanical
ly, for when We hacked our way
back, and reached the rear, | was
riding bay horse of the Eleventh
=. ussars, the saddle and hoS,lers Of
which were Shiny with blood. The
horse fell with me soon after, rs it
had been discmboweled by a grape
shot.
OF all those glorious regiments
who formed the Light Brigade, there
came back but one hundred aud
ninety-eight men; many Of these
were wounded and many dismount-
ed; and when the rcllS were called
over at nightfall it was found that
one hundred and nineteen were
wounded, and three hundred and
thirty-fve horses were killed, leav
ing more than one hundred and
thirty Dragons unaccounted for.
had not the heart to number the
forty men who represented the two
squadrons which followed Lionel
Beverley. There on the green Sward
of that Valley of Death, lay our gal
liant Colonel, cut in two by round
shot; Travers, torn to pieces by Il
grape shot; Seriven, slain by three
lance wounds Howard, '',he only
son of his mother and she was a
widow" Frank Jocelyn our old
Sergeant-Major, and an incredible
number of others killed. The flow
er of our lancers were there, and
among them my faithful follower.
Pitbalado, with a rifle bullet in his
leg.
Hot, breathless, stiff, sore, and
covered with bruises, | now dlScov
cred that in the mclee-though l
was unconcious of having struck Il
blow-there were, at least, twenty
notches in tie blade of my sword,
that / had received three very severe
lance prods, two sword cuts,and that
my uniform was torn to rags. When
we halted to girth up | threw my
self on the rich grass of the valley,
and, taking off my battered lancer
cap, felt the cool breeze most CRATE
full as it came from the distant sea.
Then l buried my face among the
verdure, less for GOODNESS than from
excess of weakness, and to hide the
sorrow that consumed me for the
losses we had sustained.
From distance came the cheers
of the Heavy Brigade, ayenging us
and completing the work we had be-
gun. Then the fierce excitement
the devil that had possessed me
passed away, and thought only OF
the dying and the dead.