, 1884-10-01
IMBODEN'S CAVALRY.
A Days Stern Chase in the shensr
dosh Valley.
Daredevil Dash OF Harry GIlmore's
wild Horsemen-A sabre that
Looked Long as n
Fence Rail.


OF p cavalryman, and was as much at home
In the saddle for a three days ride 70 aid an
outpost As he would have been playing bean
poker for apple brandy in a Crossroads
grocery In the Shenandoah mountains.
@Ou the morning of Oct 1s, 1853. not an
hour after sunri-e. had my batteries out
drilling, on the high ground at the western
foot II Maryland heights. across the Potuma
wien / heard guns to the southwark, away
beyond Bolivar. and riding out to the redoult
above the river was signnled in a short time
10 come at once with my command TO head
quarters, Col. Revere Of the Tenth Maryland,
receiving the same orders. Igave the same
Instructions 10 battery commanders. and
started OF at once with a lieutenant and cur
ordcrlies. and in a half an hour or 50 reported.
No one vet knew the trouble, but the lookout
from Bolivar heights located the firing at or
very near Charlestown, and Col. Wells Of the
Thirty-fourth Massachusetts, infantry was
started out, Miners Indiana battery, with
which ! went, and Coles battalion OF the
cavalry accompanying.
I'VE soon found out what the trouble WAS
Gen. J. D. Imboden, with n small force OF
cavalry, perhaps 500, and a section OF artil-
lery, had started from Berryville at ? o clock
that Sunday morning, nearly twenty miles
away. and marched to Chnrlestowu. where no
arrived about sunrise, aud succeeded in sur
rounding the place before a single officer or
man discovered the least sign OF his APP
preach.
Imbodsn demanded a surrender. but Col.
Simpson II the Ninth demanded an hour for
consideration-probably wanted 10 drill his
troops. Imboden wouldn't have that. and
sent word that he would give five minutes
before he opened fire. and advised Simpson
n send the women and children out Of the
way. Simpson answered gallantly to Take
me II you cam and firing at once began.
Imboden had his guns posted within two
squares II the court house, and they were
served so well that In less than five minutes our
people got out in the streets and tried to skip
out FOR Harper's Ferry. Just at the edge OF
town Imbod0n's brother and Harry Gilmore
met them, and after firing only one volley
our troops downed their arms and surren-
dered-not 10 n single man, however, for at
the first shot Col. Simpson, his Lieutenant
colonel, whose name / don't recollect, AMI
FIVE other Mounted officers lit out. potthrough
the rebs, and rachel Bolivar heights.
"Well. in not much more than two hours
after the first shot was fret Col Wells had
rushed his co1'men1 -o hard N.f 900
Jumped into Imboden, WHO had cen
hastily improving lis time IN gathering
together his prisoners and the lonailec.
able quantity Of plumber he had secured in
the way Of arms, ammunition, acoontre
ments and supplies, and had started them III
to the s%outhwnrd on tho Berryville pike.
at was not long before matters began TO
warm up. and the game began, and tho
fighting all that beautiful day was kept up
in echelon. almost as regularly as II IA French
general Of brigade was exercising In tactics.
A section of the battery was limhefed to tho
front a couple Of hundred yards at the gallon,
supported by a portion OF the other trooI >,
and "A hot engagement would follow for
twenty. or ten, or five minutes, As the case
might be, Tmboden resisting enough
to check a continual movement for
ward. and retiring as the other sec.
lions and portions Of the mma
came up and passei on to right or left. so
thai for most Of the time there was c%ontinu-
Gus fighting over almost every inch Of the
way from Charlestown TO q point a few miles
below B~erryville, when the night came on
and the pursuit WINS reluctantly stopped.
"Once late in the afternoon, at a point
somewhere between Fairfield blacksmith
shop, grocery, etc. and Berryville. Miner
had gone into battery with all its guns in a
rolling field off to the right Of the road,
where Imboden made what threatened to he
a determined stand, as the ground WAS all he
could have wished for II he had picked il out.
our front Closr by our right. and 400 or
500 wards from the road. was a patch Of
woodland that seemed to have hean well
thinned out, and had e thick ssoonl growth
OF scrub pine that you 80 often SCI m Viz
ginia, and apparently lapassall'. | say
apparently adVisedly. for had ridden over
10 b. maj En Of the woods and conld see no
trace Of road. either wagon or bride path.
Tho guns were well at work, and as Miner
was hort OF officers | WAS directing one OF
LIS 4%e-tinns. when, with n wiioop and
a VII. Gu OF that thick underground, a lit
tie 10 the rear, came a couple OF Harry Gill
NOR, suuadrona. with that daredevil sahreur
leading them. straight down on us, every
man with his saber pommel at the thigh, md
looking as IL thare was a whole division II
them. / wasn't more than fifty yards away.
and ~ course II didn't take long for them to
get There JOSH
'~Our support at the time was one Of Cole's
troops and two companies Of the Thirty
fourth, and the rush was so sudden and nm
looked for-an episode In fact, that the
support gave way and Gilmore made straight
for the guns. | WINS dismounted Mt the time,
and actually, before anything could be done,
they redo right over and past the guns,
sablrs slashing and pistols firing as they went
l had been Juggling like blazes at my huge re
volver-army pattern, weighing as much as n
carbine almost-but couldn't get the
blamed thing cut, and as they rod over us a
long legged. rod headed fellow made a
vicious slash al me over the wheel with his
sabra. ! promptly lodged under the muzzle
u TIC kAAif anu A0 ~ = NRNh AA@ AA1A "
my satisfaction.
-Four, left wheelr' rang out. AMI back
they came before YOU could draw a breath
with any Subtraction. and when they did laid
for tho soa OF "A sibcr that reached for me
before. for / had got out my gun by this
time, and got around in the rear OF the piece
by the trail. 1 didn't see my red-leldei
friend, but hapI ened to look up suddenly
Just as "a handsome, dark-moustached Young.
ster, a boy in looks. was making n point h.
run me through. bern my buttons, gentle
men. but II that saber didn't look as long
as n fencernil, and Rs bright as an
electric light, I'll let my pay this month
20 into the conscience fund. II .eemcd to
me as II | Just stood still a half an hour look
ing at il; but that was just fancy, for ]
dropped fat under the gun axle and the boy
swept on past, By this time the support had
rallied and began work. and in n second Cr
stand II canister emptied q couple OF sad
dies and the thing was practically over
But il was warm weather FOR tho IN 'ment
As far as my own experience and observa
ton 20. that dash OF Harry Gilniores was
the handscnest thing OF the kim that took
place during the war. You see, he and his
men knew every blessed inch Of that whole
country, and had just slipped around our
fiank by an almost unnoticeable bride path.
I'd like 10 run across that young fellow some
time. If he pulled through the war alive, and
talk that over. | would like to know just
how he felt when he thought he had me 50
sn.
Little Joker is the best smoking to-
bacco.
Standard Manufactures