Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1897-08-03

from a successful raid on Sheridan
line, when about daylight / got in
forma alton that Blazer was camped 6
few miles off, at KabletowD. In
stantly the head of the column was
turned that way, an0 we started of
at trot. Blazer had been rowing
about the valley so long that my mer
were anxious to get to close quarters
and have hilt to hilt fight with him
L had exactly eighty men with me
and it was almost impossible to re
strain them from going at a gallop.
At last, when they got in sight of the
smoke from the camp fires, in spite
of my efforts to keep their rank;
closed up, they rushed to the en-
counter like an unhooded falcon when
it darts on its prey. 1t was about
sunrise. Blazer had broken up his
camp about two hours bofore and
gore towards Winchester.
Two successful affairs which Blaz-
er had with detachments of my COM
mand had excited the unbounded
confidence of himself and his men.
Once he got on the trail of q party
under the command of Lieutenant
Joe Nelson, and came upon them
asleep on sultry day in cove in
the BlueRidge Mountains. Although
surprised, Nelson at first rspulsed
the attack, but falling from his horse
with his thigh broken by a bullet,
and there being no other officer to
take command, the men scattered.
Several were killed, wounded, or
captured. Shortly afterwards he had
stampeded another small detachment
under Captain Mountjoy, and two of
my men, BraXton AMI Bredell, were
killed. Braxton was a grandson of
signer of the Declaration Of Inde-
pendence, and Bredell was son of
wealthy merchant of st. Louis.
AS we hand't gone hunting espe-
cially for Blazer, because we could
easily find every day all the people
we wanted to fight, he had gotten the
impression that my men avoided
meeting him. This was really the cause
of his downfall. / was great deal
vexed about the affair rofMountjoy's
which 1 attributed to carelessness.
Early's army had now withdrawn
from the lower valley. Sheridan had
taken a defensive attitude and gone
into winter quarters, and active op-
erations had ceased between the
main armies. / determined then to
turn my attention to Blazer for a
season, and not to allow him TO be
come 4 naturalized citizen in that
region. My plan was to take two
squadrons over to the valleY-one
under Chapman or Dolly Richards to
cross the ridge at Ashby's Gap, and
| with the other at Smokers Gap
and to keep up communications by
means of couriers, while scouts went
on ahead to keep us informed of
Blazers movements. In this way /
intended to camp on his trail until we
closed in on him, On the day my
command got ready for the expedi-
ton was suffering with n severe
cold and fever, so Chapman was sent
one way with his squadron, and
Richards in another direction with
the other. In each squadron there
were about seventy or eighty men,
1t was matter of Indifference to me
which should come first in contact
with Blazer. 1t was black gum
against thunder, but knew what
the result would be. The men felt
just as sure before the fight of wip-
ing out Old Blaze, as they called
him. as they did after they had done
it. 1t is plain that two such forces as
mine and Blazers could not long
move in the same sphere. There was
Lound to be a collision and wreck.
My men were burning to efface the
memories of the two affairs with him
and avenge the death of their com
rades, They had not understood the
strategic reasons that had so long
permitted Blazer to rove through the
valley unpunished. But the reason
for that policy had ceased. The
men had a proper respect for the
valor of Blazer, and knew that when
ever the collision came each foeman
might say as truthfully to the other
as Scott apostrophize6 James FitZ-
james in the contest with Roderick
Dhu:
Now, gallant Saxon, hold thine own
No maiden's hand is round thee thrown.
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