The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1884-01-17
ANDERSON S. c., THURSDAY MORNING, JANUARY II, 1884.
Risen From the Dead.

just twenty years ago to deg tn
Ihirty.seventh Virginia Regiment, unde
Col. Bob. Claiborne, now Prosecuting
Attorney Of the st. Louis Court O
Criminal Correction, sailed forth from
Moorhcad Va, to meet that holy terro
of all Confederales, the celebrated
"Stoncman brigade" Gen. Stouemar
was on his famous raid the object o
which was to assai Lees army in til,
rear, while the army of the Potomac at
tackled him in front lie had alread,
met aud whipped hafa.dozeu bands O
rebels, and Col Claiborne's regimen
WIS the most formidable antagonist h,
had yet ecountered. The. engagement
was not an important one. and Purvis
Record Of the Rebellion" is the only
history of the war which mentions it
But it was remarkable for the daring
bravery of two men, who proved them
selves the only true soldiers out of &
whole company. IN the early part oI
the day Col. Claibornc's regiment was
with the exception of one company
bearing tho whole brunt of Stoneman's
terrific onslaughts. by 3 O'Clock in the
afternoon the fiue body of men which
that morning formed the Thirty seventh
regiment had been reduced To a mere
handful They had been decimated
again and again. One moro attack and
not soul would have been left. With
the best of their men either killed OF
wounded, and the balance ready to sue
cumb with fatigue and wounds, there
seemed no possibility of escape for any
one. But suddenly The missing compa.
ny appeared on the field, and though
even with the re.enforcements, the figh.
was hopeless, n shont Of relief vent I'd
from tho weafied and bleeding survivors.
There was only one chance fer them, and
their commander was quick to see it.
In flash lie had leapcd from his horse,
and, calling on tho new arrivals, he
shouted: Every man dismount and
follow mel
But at that moment the blue coats OF
Stoncman's brigade appeared over the
crest Of the hill In front, and the cheers
of the Union soldiers were ringing in
the ears Of the Confederates. Iu vain
did their Colonel try to rally them and
urge them ON. The solid line of steel in
front was too appalling and almost to a
man they broke and fed. A second later
h"A W.. SihiooAuC iUuuu ulLllS6ll OcuGEL.
ed by all his men but emo. That man
was rough back.woodsman from North
Carolina, whom he had, but short time
before, taken from the ranks and promo.
ted to Captaincy for brave and daring
conduct OH the battle field. His name
was Roberts, and as be pressed close be-
side his commanding officer he shouted !:
III stay by you, Colonel, if lose every
drop Of blood in my body" The words
were hardly out of his mouth before be
fell full length OH the ground with a
rifle. ball through his chest.
The next moment Col. Claiborne was
surrounded by the boys in blue and cap.
tured. lie afterward reported to the
Confederate Government the death of
Capt. Roberts, and from that day until
yesterday, exactly twenty years, he has
heard nothing of the man who aided
him in his charge OH Stoneman's brigade.
Yesterday morning Col. Claiborne,
while looking over his letters, came to
o"c with the postmark Raleigh, N. c."
addressed in lead pencil to Maj. G. II.
Claiborne, St. Louis. On opening it the
first thing he saw was The name Capt. T.
Is. Roberts. Jumping to his feet he ex-
claimed to n bystander: "My God,
have got letter from the dead. I saw
this man shot and killed with my own
eyes at the battle of Morehead, Dec, 81,
1863, and here he is writing to me-"
Ehe letter, however, explained how
Capt. Roberts escaped and as all the
circumstances are so remarkable. it is
produced here verbatim:
RALEIGA, N. c., Dec. 26.-dkaj. CYai
bourne: have been trying to find out
your address ever since the war; have
asked hundreds Of people about it, and
have only just succeeded. believe
would rather see you and talk to you
than any other man on God Almighty's
earth. DO you remember when you rode
up to me az! made mea Captain at the
battle Of Orange Court.h house? was
only tarheel soldier before that, but
when you done what you did would
have died for YOU. Then do you remem-
ber the fight at b1orehead, whea you and
l started alone to charge Stoneman's
Brigade? tell you that fellow Stone.
man was the worst cuss in the whole
Yankee army for us fellows to tackle.
But that d. company of mine.
Want. the meancst. most cowardly -
of - you ever saw? tell you they
"SiS thC "oioI Sou "A cftT IlAu u
hand in making. No decent man would
have run off and left you in the lurch
the way they did. IF they bad felt like
me they would have died, every .!-n
mothers son of them, FIST.
You thought was de1d, didn't you
Well, Pm the healthiest dead man in
North Carolina. / got an ugly wound
in that scrimmage at Morehead, and
never did know how It all turned ont,
but long after you had all gone oama TO
and found hoss there and managed 20
get on to him and ride until I found
some friends who took care of me and
brought me out 0. K.
Now, Major, want you to write Els a
long letter, and tell me all about yourself
and what you arc doing. Your true
friend, CAPT. T. b. ROBERTS.
Overseer at the State Prison, Raleigh,
N. G.
Capt. Roberts speaks of Col. Claiborne
as Major, because he frat knew him be.
fore he was made Colonel. The latter
said to Globe. Democrat reporter yestsr.
day that he should spend most Of bic
time to day writing to his old cemzade.