The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-01-21
A CONFEDERATE HoRAT1Us.
The Story of One Of the Wars Bravest
Deeds.
From the Chattanooga Times.


From the Chattanooga Times.
Your correspondent had an interview
to-day with a man who performed an act
of heroism during the civil war of equally
cool courage and under circumstances of
far greater personal danger than that for
which Horatius Coolies has been cele-
brated in song and story for more than
1900 years, for the soldiers of Lars Por-
SIENNA were not armed with modern guns,
as were the asSailants of the nineteenth
century hero-neither was he equipped
with shield and coat of mail, as was the
brave defender of the bridge across the
Tiber.
James Keelin was a member of bat
talon of confederate cavalry known as
Thomas Legion, which was afterward
merged into a regiment commanded by
Col Love. The Legion" was composed
of hardy mountaineers from Western
North Carolina and was attached to the
brigade commanded by Gen. "Mudwalli
jackson $50 called to distinguish him
from the immortal "Stonewall," and pos
sibly for some other reason.) Keelin was
only an ordinary private soldier, without
any education, and his military training
consisted chiefly in being firmly impressed
with the fact that his first duty was to
obey orders.
In November, 1852, Keelin was detailed
with some six or eight others of his COM
mand TO guard the bridge at Strawberry
Plains This information was doubtless
conveyed to Brownlow's troops, for on
the Sth, at the dark hour of midnight, a
party of federal raiders numbering forty
men appeared near the bridge with the
evident intention of attacking and setting
fire to the structure.
AS soon as he saw the armed force
making for the bridge Keelin's compan-
iou-in-arms fed, carrying his gun with
him and leaving Keelin alone with a sin
gle gun and big knife of the "Arkansaw
toothpick' variety to defend the bridge
as best he might.
AS hopeless as the task appeared Kee-
lin bravely determined to stand his post,
despite the tremendous odds against him,
and do his best to keep the enemy from
burning the bridge. He posted himself
on the top of a bank underneath the
bridge and awaited the attack. He held
his gun at a ready" and when one of
the party advanced with a lighted torch,
prepared to climb up the woodwork of
the bridge, Keelin shot him dead in his
tracks. The survivors fired a volley at
the solitary guard, and with wild yell
made a rush for the bank Though Kee-
lin was wounded three times by the volley
in the hip, whore he still carries a
bullet, in the left arm and in the side
ne bravery STOOD MS ground; and not
having time to reload his muzzle-loading
musket he drew his big knife and
awaited the onset. Fortunately for him
the ascent was narrow, and the attacking
party could only climb up the steep bank
one or two at time. With his knife he
killed two of the invaders and wounded
six others, hurting them gashed and
bleeding down the embankment. Once
he stumbled while aiming blow at one
&c ba a,.trv ouA haf -
with a heavy knife He threw up his left
arm to ward of the blow from Ms head,
aud severed his hand at the wrist, be-
sides inhicting an ugly cash upon the
scalp. He also received dangerous cut