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

parties
bent on catching them. The other
three men behind sgd passed the
man lying fiat on his face: they did
not stop, for on occasions of this
sort their motto was to 90 let the dead
bury the dead and they thought
Sgd had killed him. Al last the pur-
suit was over, ard they started back
to where the fight had commenced
! They came npon the man whom sgd
had knocked off his horse, still lying
prone on his face by the way-side.-
The men called to him, but received
no answer. sgd thought his blow
might haue stunned, but could not
believe il would have killed man, as
it seemed to have done. So he got
off his horse and turned the soldier
over. He tLen detected the ruse;
the man was playing possum. They
made him mount his horse, and
started off with him without suspect
ing who their prisoner was.
| Presently they met citizen who
had been captured that morning by
the same prisoner, and he immedi-
ately recognized his captor-Captain
Blazer. Richards had lost young
man (Hudgin) killed and seven
slightly wounded; Blazers loss was
tweut y-four killed, twelve wounded,
and sixty-two prisoners, including
himself. In proportion to the num-
ber engaged, it was one of the most
destructive cavalry fights on record.
AS 4 fair and square mounted COM
bat, boot to boot and hilt to hilt, and
as an illustration of pluck and tacti-
cal skill, nothing in the war sur
passed it. As soon as the fight was
over, the victors and the vanquished
were on the friendliest terms, and
was tempered with all the grace of
chivalry. Blazer shared the contents
of his canteen with Harry Hatcher,
and in the refreshing draught they
found oblivion of all the trials and
dangers of war. That night Blazer
and his captors had n high jinks.-
Richards treated him with all the
courtesy that the "BIack Prince"
showed to his royal captive. Blazer.
too, had The consolation of the fallen
monarch-if he had lost the battle,
he had not lost his honor.
This fight occurred a few miles
from Harper's Ferry, and when the
news of it reached there the COM
mandant sent the following report TO
Colonel Forsyth, Sheridan's Chief
of Staff:
HARrEB's FERRY, November 18th, 1854.
Lieutenant Colonel i. w. ForsyDh, ChifJ Of
!StdG, ETC., in the field:
CoLoNEL.-Two of Captain BlnZer's men
came in this morning, privatcs Harris and
Johnson. They, report that Mosby, with 300
men, attacked Blazer near kabletown yester-
day about eleven O'Clock. They say that the
eutire command, with the exception OF them
selves, was either captured or killed have
ordered out Major COngdon with 800 Twelfth
Pennsylvania Cavalry to kabletown to bury
the dead, take care of the wounded, aud report
all facts he could learn. Shall Immediately
furnish report as soon received.
Respectfully,
Brigadier- General.
A comparison of this despatch
with the one sent by Sheridan to
Augur, before quoted, suggests what
Mr. Webster once said about a IA
nous pronunciamento, 1.-The per-
formance did not quite come up to
the manifesto" In a work on the
history of cavalry by the Adjutant-
General of Canada the fight with
Blazer, and another in which Rich
ards commanded few weeks after
wards at Millwood, are referred TO as
among the most wonderful cavalry
affairs of the world. In q combat
which did not last over half an hour
more men were killed by our six
shooters than were killed by sabres
during the whole Franco-Prussian
war.
Shortly afterwards Sheridan sent
out two more bodies of cavalry to
scour the country infested by us. IL
was Richards's good luck to meet
and to annihilate both; they did not
even have the Temporary success of
Blazer Richards is now a member
of the Louisville, Ky, Bar, and has
obtained high judicial honors in his
adopted State. Blazer, after the
war. re turned to steamboating, and
in 1878 1 saw a notice of his death
(Concluded on fourth pdge.)