Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1893-07-20

Yankee army was upon them. We learned
afterward from some prisoners taken that
the whole of Longstreets corps stood in
line the rest of the night, expecting to be
attacked
GAS I was riding along trying to keep
up to my file leader my horse kept shy
ing every little while. Come to find out,
there were cavalry horses lying in the road
They had been ridden so fast that they had
dropped down dead by the wayside.
About two miles out we began to go
through the fields. We would go in the
fields for awhile and then back in the road
again. At one time we were so close to the
enemys camps that we could see the Con-
federates plainly by their campfires On
we went at full speed. l did not think at
first that they were Confederates. l said
to my file leader, William r. Guile: Bill,
what is the use of the colonel going far
ther2 Here are our troops Bill said:
They are not our troops. They are Con-
federates.' | said to Bill, we are goners,
for we will all be captured
when the advance reached Sharpsburg,
10 miles from Harper's Ferry, they made a
halt, so that we could close up and let our
horses get their wind, for we had been on a
keen scoot ever since we left the river We
|sdid not stay there long, perhaps half an
hour. Then we went on again across flats,
over fences, through creeks, as usual, We
had to travel on byroads, for the enemy
had pickets on all main roads. We had
gone through Longstreet's corps. A great
many would say that it was an impossible
ity for a force of 1900 cavalry to do that.
Had it not been in the night, and had the
colonel not managed just as he did, we
could not have done it, The Confederates
were taken by surprise, for they thought
we had n large force. So they waited for
us to attack them. But we had other bust
ness about that time. All we wanted was
to get out of there. If they would let us
alone, we would them.
after we left Sharpsburg we did not
come across any more Confederates until
we struck the pike running from Hagers-
town, Md, west to Williamsport on the
Potomac. just before we reached the pike
we halted in piece in the woods. We could
hear wagons rumbling along the road ahead
of us, The colonel went forward to recon
noiter, and when he got to the road he soon
found that it was Confederate wagon
train. AS soon as he saw them it came into
his head to capture that train. The train
was guarded by 500 or 600 cavalry and some
infantry. The cavalry was III the rear OF
the train, the infantry in front.
"When the advance of the wagon train
came along to the crossroad, the colonel in
sisted that they should turn to the right on
the pike that ran north into Pennsylvania.
After he got the train started on that road
he sent for the Eighth New York. This
was just before daylight. We went ahead
and took possession of the train. The
Twelfth Illinois cavalry kept the Confed-
crate cavalry in check while we were pass
ing by the teams to take our places One of
the Confederate teamsters said to me, To
what regiment do you belong?'
1.-The Eighth New York. l replied.
1.-THE hell you sayP
"Only the drivers of few of the head
teams knew then that they were prisoners.
The rest did not know it until after day