El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-09-07

10 nanu uSnt now, anu every IudH WIS
n devil. and after quarter of an hour
of bloody fighting the Federals held
the position. The dead lay three deep
below the wall, but the living stood
upon its crest and cheered and cheered
again. But the cheering soon died
away in growls and oaths. A quarter
of a mile above. at a bend of the ra-
vine. there was another stone wall, and
the Confederates had simply with
drawn to the new position. They had
lost 150 men, but the Federal brigade
was no longer a brigade. 1t lacked
full regiment. That night the briga-
der had another wound. and again
there were orders from the major gen.
eral:
I'VE must have news of Lee at every
hazard. Unless you break through
at once your resignation will be accept
ed"
A dark and narrow ravine, up which
only eight men abreast could make
their way at once; at the turn a stone
wall. defended by two guns; behind
the guns the muskets of the infantry.
SYou must break through" repeated
the brigadier over and over again. He
knew that he could not do it. He knew
that the best he could do was to pile
up more dead in the dark ravine.
When morning came, he stood on a
knoll and looked down upon the sun
bronZed and waiting veterans, and it
was like knife I'm his heart to give the
order to attack. A single bugle call.
and the column dashed forward. There
was never Il cheer nor a shout Men
who feel that they are going to certain
death do not cheer. They draw a long
breath. choke back the gasp in the
throat and rush forward with heads
down. In ten minutes it was all over.
The wall had been reached and fought
over. but it could not be held AS the
last few living Federals came limping
back the brigadier sat down and wept
Orders, orders. orders! And yet he
felt himself q murderer. More Confed-
crates had fallen. but the force was yet
strong enough to hold the gap II he
could not carry 1t, he would be dis
graced- Like the brave man he was,
he took the one way out Of it At high
noon the column was formed again.
and the brigadier put himself at the
head OF Ii. Officers groaned and prt-
Yates murmured to see him there. but
he was firm He led in the dark-he
was the first to reach the walHhe
mounted II and cheered his men tn the
fight which won 1t But when 1t was
won he lay among the dead, and the
Confederates retired less than half a
mile to a third wall. Two days had
passed. and yet the FesieIals had not
broken through. Then another brigade
came marching up. and there was an
hrS fn a 10 nd 10
saw the situation as the dead general
Column after column was formed up
and dashed against that third wall and
driven back. but in the end he won. 1t
under his orders he could have doubled
the sacrifice.
At dusk on the evening of the third
day the last Confederate infantryman
had passed the gap on his way to the
Potomac, and the head of the column
was in Pennsylvania Lee had played
carried. and the news of his where
abouts had come from other sources.
There was n last stone wall in Thor
oughfare gap. Behind it 100 Confed-
crates crouched and waited. Their two
fieldpieces were useless for the want
of ammunition, and their muskets were
alone to he depended ON. AS the sink
Ing sun filed the ravine with deeper
gloom 500 Federals made a last charge.
They had to tread the dead under foot
to do it. That was the fourth charge
Of the day, and 1t was checked as the
others had been. 1t simply meant
more dead and wounded to choke that
narrow way. Hundreds had been
dragged out, but hundreds still re-
manned. When night came down, so
men with powder stained faces, who
had scarcely broken their fast or closed
their eyes for 20 hours, silently march
ed out of the gap and headed for the
north In the wake of the invading
army. There was no colonel, no cap
tains. no lieutenants. A sergeant COM
manded the remnant, and his COM
mand was:
"Out of h-ll and into Pennsylvania
And when the long night had passed
and daylight come again tile Federals
found the stone wall undefended and
clambered over it and ran to the mouth
of the gap to shout to each other:
Lee has passed. and we are too
later