Savannah morning news., 1886-05-09


that filed the air with the fragrance OF {
Southern spring. Early in the day Gen
Alfred PleasantOn, commanding the cav
alry division was sent to investigate q
movement of troops opposite Slckles
front.
lie soon picked up some prisoners and
learned that it was formidable BODY,
nothing less that ''Stonewall'' jackson e
corps with Stuart's Cavalry moving 10 the
nortbward with the obvious design OF
nanking the distinguished philanthropist
aforesaid and driving back his command
in hopeless TOut upon the rear Of the
main army. Forthwith PleasantOn sent
word TO Hooker by an aide, dispatched
an orderly to the Eleventh Corps himself,
snd rode back with his detachment to re-
| join the army.
"You were in Stonewalps corps then ?''
! said Hughes.
"Yes, was Sergeant in Iverson's
Brigade"
II always thought you must have had
hard march of it that day through the
wilderness roads round to our right. You
raised considerable dust, know"
'Oh that wasn't much of a march for
we uns.'" said Stewart laughing.
You uns' couldn't march like we uns'
could. But what were you and where
were you when we came out through the
wOOds?
Il? Oh. was right thar as you uns'
say. | was detailed as a mounted orderly
on Pleasanton's staff, aud he sent me TO
warn the Eleventh Corps to look out for
jackson In front. He told me tn wait
about headquarters as he (PleasantOn
would ride that way within an hour or
two. found the old man in the rear OF
his corps reading a copy OF the New York
ObSerrer. He glanced over the dispatch
and looked up at me.
"'DO YOU know the substance OF this,
orderly"
"'Yes, SIR said |.
"'Wnat is ltr
"'Gen. Pleasanton sends his compli-
ments, sir, and says that StOnewall Jack
sons corps is working round on your front
and ought to strike your picket line by 4
or 3 'in the afternoon.
"'Right! That's all. No answer. stop
minute, thO',' and he got up and trotted
into his tent and brought out three tracts
which he gave me, telling me impress
sively TO read them and they would do me
good.
Il thanked him and was just turning
away When my eve caught the title of the
top tract-'BEWARE OF THY GREAT
ADVERSARY.'
IL stopped with my horses bride over
my left arm made a half-face to the righ t
and saluted. He looked up again from his
paper.
"'w ell. Orderly, what is itY
"'Beg pardon, General, but this is
exactly the message | just delivered to
yOu,' and | he!d up the tract where he
could read the title. He looked at me and
flushed little angrily, thought, but he
merrily dismissed me and / walked away,
leading my horse of saddled' and rubbed
her down, got her some fodder and then
made myself comfortable with the detail
for corps headquarters, some Of whom
knew.
Presently there was a disturbance
down along the infantry lines in front, and
the first we knew two or three wild deer
dashed through a gap between two regi-
ments and fed to the rear with white tails
in the air, some OF the officers taking snap
shots at them with their revolvers as they
ran.
''Shortly afterward an officer calloped
up TO the headquarters tent and talked
to the General Tor a few minutes with
excited gestures. Presently he turned
away with muttered aud seemingly CRATE
full exclamation. Other messengers came
from time to time, and it was very
singular the amount of wild game deer,
rabbits, turkeys, partrdges. and the like,
not to mention buzzards, which
ran among us or flew over
when we found thatJ JacksOn's skirmishers
had swept the woods in an unbroken line
and cleared it of game.
RumOrs, too, began to circulate among
the men, and deemed IL best to sadd! !e
up, looking well to the girths. Poor Nell
That was the last time / ever smootbed
out her fOreloek. Word was quietly
passed to the headquarters teamsters to
hitch up without orders, aud some Of the
van rfNra aFafa nj r.ff1 g n
in and "take arms" without waiting for
instructions. Still there was no sign OF
anxiety on the part of the General. BY
this time it was 5 O'clock, and thought /
had beIter look up the cavalry head
quarters so | rode leisurely along in the
rear Of the line across the Grange plank
road, and into some cleared fields opening
toward the Chancellor's house. Here |
found two squacrOns Of the Eighth Penn
sylvania Cavalry, and lot OF artillery
parked on rising ground. The position
was well within the angle of the re-
ferred to above.) Learning that Pleas.
anton with his detachment was lust
across the open in the edge of the timber,
| stopped to see Maj. Peter keenan,, of the
Eighth, who had been a schOOlmate OF
mine. | found MIN lying under tree TAX
ing nap, so l didn't disturb him but sat
still on my horse listening 10 some music
III Ahc way VI a uiOpBiuE uIt away UdGh
on the right whence 1 had just come. 1t
walked the Major, too, aud he started to
his feet calling out for bugle to sound
boots and saddles. The senior Mai. Huey,
was temporarily absent, as ! afterwards
learned so that Keenan, was at the mo-
ment in command Of the battalion.
''Fhe men presently stood ready at their
horses heads, aud meanwhile the row-de-
dow increased over on the right, and
seemed to be coming toward US, helped
along by the yells that you uns' used TO
scare us with.
''Just then up rode an aide, some say
from Sickles. some from Pleasanton.
"'WhO commands this cavalry said he.
"'Maj, Hueyr SAID keenan,.
"'W here IL hep
"I don't know
"'Who is next in command
'''l am
"'The Eleventh Corps have broken.
Take your regiment into the woods and
| drive them up
"Keenan turned 10 his command: AT
tention. Mountp aud with rattle OF car.
bines and clank OF sa bres the men swung
into their saddles. Fours right! Head OF
column left. March! Trot! and down
the slope rattled the two squadrons OF the
( Eighth toward narrow road tnat opened
/ through the woods toward tde firing.
There was something Intoxicating in the
! al ir that npauunfgI mo IN ghfYly -. a. "a,