The National tribune., 1894-01-25
Longest First Enlistment.
ADD THEIR TESTIMONY.
COrrOborating Letters About the Story of
Fighting Regiment.

COrfoDOrating Letters About the Story OF q
Fighting Regiment.
o. J. Jolley, Rockwell City, Iowa, writes:
1 have lately read the Story of Fighting
Regiment, and have filed away all the in
stalments. / remember well the afternoon
of Nov. 25 1864, at Duck River, spoken OF
by Comrade Rankin. He omitted to state,
however, that in addition to the scouts he
sent out at the time, he also sent Co. /, or
part of it, under Lieut.. Little, on a scout to
our left. do not think | will ever forget
the saber charge to the rear after we were
surrounded. When we drew horses at Nash
vile happened to draw tall, lean, gangled-
sided horse that had been in the artillery.
There was no bottom to him, and he nearly
gave out before we got to the front that day.
In making the saber charge / was in the
front set of fours in Co. l. We had not pro-
ceeded far on the charge before we ran into a
six or seven-rail fence. saw the fence be-
fore we reached it, and l thought my time
bad come, for / was sure my horse could
not clear it, and we had no time to throw it
down. As we neared the fence / dropped
my saber on my wrist, seized bridle-rein
in each hand, and when within jumping
distance, plugged both spurs in and literally
lifted my horse over the fence with BIT aud
aud had TO hoOf it into Nashville"
J. NJ. Thomas, Caldwell, Kan, adds this to
the Story: In December, 1862 some of the
7th Ohio Cav. left Camp Ripley and went
on raid into East Tennessee, under COM
mand of Gen. Carter, and burned a bridge
across the Watauga River at Zollicoffer. A
young smOoth-faced boy, who was a Bugler
in Co. A, was Killed at the Zollicoffer Bridge.
About six years ago l was taking dinner
with an old cOmrade. John Pope, of Dalton,
Kan, when he asked me the regiment
belonged to. / told him, when his wife
spoke up and said she had ]onged to see a
member of that regiment She said she
lived with her parents at ZoIlicoffer, Tenn,
and in December, 1862, a raiding party
came through the town and burnt the bridge
and the Bugler was killed near the bridge.
The command to which he belonged was
fired upon, and took to the mountains. She
was then Is years old. After they left, and
the rebels went in pursuit of our forces. she
with two other girls found this young
Bugler, with 7Ih Ohio on his cap, dead.
They carried him to a fence-eOrner, got pick
and shovel and dug grave and buried him
in the fence-cOrner. She requested me to write
and find out if he had any relatives living,
and she would write them the particulars.
"Now about the five men Capt. Rankin
captured at or near the bridge in the Morgan
fight at Cynthiana whom / took back to the
courthouse, where the prisoners were kept.
ut was in the Winter of 1868. l was
teaching a school in Clark County, Mo-, and
boarding with one Larkin Webster, near the
school-house. He had small house of three
rooms. His family consisted of himself,
wife, and an old Kentuckian called Joe.
Joe and l occupied one room.
II noticed they never talked about the
war, and l soon saw they had been rebels.
After / had been there two months, and not
a word spoken, the question arose as to what
Kentucky had done for its old soldiers in the
Mexican war; and about those that were
buried at the courthouse in Cynthiana. / told
them / had seen the graves, and remarked
had seen over 600 people in the courthouse.
Then Webster said l must be mistaken,
as the room would only seat $50. told
him they were standing. He wanted to
know when it was. told him the morning
we were run out of there, and had helped to
put part of the prisoners in there.
"He spoke up: Joe and / were with
Morgan, and we were captured down near
the river, and were covered with two re-
vOlvers by Captain on the other side of the
river, and two men ON the bridge took US
back to the courthouse
i asked Webster and Joe if they would
know the guard who took them back pris-
oners. This was a surprise question. They
looked silly, and Webster SAID I always
knew l had seen you some place; now l
know you.' Webster inquired who that
Captain was, and told him about Rankin.
After that it was all war talk, and the best
of friendship"