The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1898-08-24
Copyright, rSoa

closed in and grappled with each 9TH
er. The confederate was after the
flag and the federal was fighting to
keep it. Their horses galloped along.
side by side while the men grasped at,
each other, and this lasted for 80 min
utes. Twice the confederate got pos!
session of the flag, but it was wrenched!
away from him. He struck the fed;
eral in the face with his fist and
brought the claret, and in return got a
blow which almost closed his eye. By
and by the tired horses stopped and
the breathless men drew apart. Each
demanded the surrender of the other,
and each defantly refused. In the end
they saluted each other and rode away.
At one period of the struggle the two
men passed close to 300 dismounted
confederate cavalry, but the fear OF
killing their own man preventeda shot
from being fired.
Capturing n Wagon Train.
When the federal Gen. Sturgis was
outfought at Guntown, Miss, and
obliged to retreat on Memphis there
was the widest kind of panic in his
beaten army for the first 80 miles OF
the retreat. He had over 200 wagons
with him, together with 70 ambu-
lances, dozen suffers and many out
fits belonging to cotton spectators.
1t had been raining heavily and the
roads were in bad condition. 1t was
about dusk when the federal rear
guard took up the retreat, and the
trains had an hours start. AS the con-
federates pursued captain named
Wiseman, whose regiment is not re-
corded, asked and obtained leave to
attempt a bold trick. Partly disguised
as federal, he pushed ahead on horse
back, and at midnight reached the
head of the wagon train. At spot
where the road narrowed and was
badly cut up a halt was made to
fill up a mud hole before crossing, the
captain began storming at the drivers
and ordered them forward. The result
was an upset which completely
blocked the road, and instead of seek
ing to clear it the fugitives abandoned
everything and pushed ahead on foot.
The advancing confederates had moth
ing to do but take possession as fast
as they came up. They captured 200
wagons, all the ambulances, two bat
teries, the headquarters baggage, all
the spare ammunition and several
thousand horses and mules. In addi-
tion they captured over 1000 pris-
oners, and the number of muskets Sc
cured was over 1000. Most of this good
luck was brought about by the eff
forts of one single person, and is
strong proof that queer things hap
pen in war. The retreat was over a
road 10 miles long, and it may be men
toned that among the first to arrive
at Memphis were three brigadtr gen.
erals and seven colonels, to say moth
ing of dozens of minor officers. At Rip
ley 32 federals, all of whom had lost
their guns, surrendered to two armed
confederates and were marched to the
rear.
Hunting for Dead Man.
Early in January 1865, Lieut.. Fitch,
of the Twelfth regulars, who had been
on duty at Murfreesboro, Tenn, was
ordered to report to Nashville, and
while making his way to the latter
point was captured, with two other
officers, by euerrillas. AS first pro-
ceeding they were robbed of all their
personal effects and then stood up to
be shot at. AS volley was about to
be fired the guerrilla leader changed
his mind, and for two or three days the
prisoners were retained in camp and
well used. Then they set out under a
small guard to go to Gen. Forrest. Aft
er plodding along for few miles the
party turned aside into ravine, and
when out of sight of the road the cor
poral of the guard turned and said tc
Fitch:
Its too much trouble to go on, and
we are going to finish you here!"
With that he shot the officer
through the head, and the other two
were fired upon at the same time
Fitch fell to the earth apparently
dead, but after time recovered an!
crawled to the nearest house. He wa.
taken in and cared for, but after {
J few hours the guerrillas heard shat HI
was alive and returned to finish him
They would have shot him as be lay il
bed, but the woman of the house pro
, tested:
: Don't you see that he is breathin!
his last? He can't live over an hour
and it is no use to waste more bul
, let's"
As soon as the guerrillas retired tw
: men carried the officer to anothe
! house mile away. When the fellow
, returned for the second time the
= were told that the man had walked of
l They knew he was at deaths door, an
l some of them believed that the dea
=, had walked. A hunt was entered upOr
however, and kept up for a week, bu
S the federal was passed from house t
| house or hidden in sheds and thicket
] and they did not find him. The ba
passed clear through his head, bu
queerly enough, he was almost as goo
: as new at the end Of six weeks. Seve
S different families gave him shelte
r though each and every one of thel
x was confederate. On one occasion tn
: fugitive was carried out and hidden
l. an empty rain barrel at the corner {
a the house, and. though twas dayligh
$ and the guerrillas were searchin
q around for two hours, they did uS
G find him.