The National tribune., 1899-12-07

THE NATIONAL TRIBUNE:
one sheep. 1S chickens, a bnshel sack of
| beans. roasting ears, potatoes. and hay
| There were Is wagons altogether, with Is
or 20 Of the 2d Ind. Cav. as guards, besides
two men with each wagon.
a CHASE AND \ CAPTURE.
All went well until we got within two
miles of Murfreesboro and in sight of our
picket-post. was sitting on the top of our
load, thinking what a fine time ] would
have when We got to camp, when heard a
| single shot behind. ] saw the dust flying,
and the road about a half mile behind us
! full of disappearing men. and the Lieu
| tenant i'll charge of our guard with his men
coming with all speed hundred or so yards
| III our rear. Over in cOrnfeld To the
left l saw an lrishman OF Co. H, bare
headed and with both hands full of chickens,
running with all his might. Our teamster
got scared and pulled his team off the pike
and into the fence and stopped.
| | jumped off the load Of hay and was
about to run, but not wanting TO be called a
coward; stopped where ! was. The team
| next behind ours belonged to Co. & and WIS
driven by a red-headed man whom We
called Big Sandy" As the rebels APP
preached saw there We're about 4Ouf them.
! They belonged To Forests command. Two
of them shot each one barrel of their double
barreied shotgun into the body of Zig
Sandy but two or three feet away. He
fell off his mule. The same two came up 10
| the rear of the wagon where was and fired
at me. but as good luck would have il did
net scratch me. Then they ordered lis to
surrender. We only had four of our mules
with US. The teamster went TO the leaders
while | unhitched the wheel mules. / got
on the saddle and the teamSter on one Of the
leaders
We were in sight of our cavalry who
were on picket. SO 10 keep the men from
firing on them they put us in the rear. We
had gone back but a short distance
when the wagon mans mule fell down
with him and threw him off, and on getting
up his foot became entangled in the trace
chain. The mule got up and dragged him
about 30 or 40 yards, and doubtless would
have dragged him to death had not the
rebels stopped them.
They took us that evening 10 little town
on the Woodberry pike called Reedville,
where they stopped for their suppers.
We did not get off our horses. A young
woman about 20 years old brought a waiter
TO where We We're by the side of Il plank
fence, on which there We're nice lot OF
things to eat, and she handed it up to us,
thinking We were rebel soldiers. 1t was
so dark she could not see oIr uniform.
She stood there talking about the Yankees
and the war, and my comrade did the talk
ing, while did my share of the eating.
A MEETING WITH GEN. FORREST.
After we had eaten our supper We went
that night and passed through WoOdberry
and two miles south of Woodberry and went
into camp, the writer sleeping very soundly
between two rebel soldiers. The next
morning we were taken 10 house, where
We met Gen Forrest, a very sOldierly-look-
Ing man, tall and slender, with keen gray
eyes and steel-gray hair and pleasant face.
He looked 10 be about 40 or 30 years Of age,
He wore gray uniform trimmed with gold
lace. He rode large, fine, well-fOrmed
clayhank horse.
After We had eaten our breakfasts at the
same ia BILE that he had used, he had us lined
up in the north yard of the dwelling all
together. There we've "a of us. Address
ing me, he asked to what regiment ! be-
longed, where my regiment was, and 10
whose division it belonged; if had ever
been in fight: if had ever killed anybody. |
| told him | did not know. He wanted to
know if | ever tried TO kill any body. told
nm had. Then he asked me who was in |
command at MurfreeSboro. told him Gen. |
HaZen. He wanted to know how many |
troops we had. l said / did not know. He
asked II we had any cannon there. ! told |
him we had. Then he asked if he could |
take the place. told him no. He laughed |
and told us to go around into the other yard |
and sign our death warrant" meaning the |
parole. He then gave us $50 in Confed- |
crate money to bear our expenses back to
the Union lines.
BACK TO THE ARMY.
Forrest took his brigade and went out
near Woodberry, where he found Col.
irose, of the 36th Ind, with that regiment,
the 23dky., and a section of artillery guard
ing train of 100 wagons from McMinn-
vile to Murfreesboro. He undertook to
AXE them in, but made failure The
'ebelS made three charges on the train and
we're handsomely repulsed each time with
loss, our folks losing not a
nan killed or wounded.
Night overlook us paroled men when
within about five miles of Murfreesboro
We left the pike few hundred ya,ds and
ay down in a cedar thiclct and slept till
morning. We went on into Murfreesboro.
got there about 10 O'Clock and reported -
len. Hazen. That day | was called To his
ent and questioned concerning the conduct
II the guard that was with the train
was told that the Lieutenant who ran
,f and left us 10 our fate was dismissed
rom the service. Had he made stand
with the men he haC, i'll view of the fact that
We We're so near Ouf own picl.etS, he could
iave stood off" the rebels until all could
lave escaped.
In few days the whole army fell back TO
tushville and the paroled men were put in
amp with the hundreds OF convalescents
Who were there.