Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1900-07-14

up more dead in the dark ravine.
When morning came, he stood On 4
knoll and looked down upon the sun
bronzed and waiting veterans and IL
was like knife in his heart TO give the
order TO attack A single hugie call.
and the column dashed forward There
was never a 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 Ii was all over
The wall had been reached and fought
over, but il could not be held As the
last few living Federais came iiInpins
back the brigadier sat down and wept
Orders. orders. orders. And yet he
felt himself n murderer More Confed-
crates had fallen. but the force was yet
strong enough to hold the gap II he
could not carry il, he would be dis
graced- Like the brave man he was,
he took the one way out of IL. At high
noon the column was formed again.
and the brigadier pat himself AT the
head of it, Officers groaned and pri-
Yates murmured to see him there. but
he was firm. He led in the dark-he
was the first TO reach the wali-he
mounted il and cheered his men in the
fight which won il. But when il 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 Federals had not
broken through Then another brigade
came marching up, and there was an
other brigadier to take command. He
saw the situation as the dead general
had seen il. but he had less feeling.
Column after column was formed up
and dashed against that third wall anst
driven back, but in the end he Won 1t
was 20 lives for one every time. but
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
his card and won. Not a gap had been
carried, and the news of his where
abouts had come from other sources.
There was last stone warT in Thor
oughfare gap. Behind 1t 100 Confed-
crates crouched and waited. Their two
fieldpieces were useless for the want
of ammunition. and their muskets We're
alone to be depended on AS the sink
ing sun filed the ravine with deeper
gloom 500 Federals made last charge
They had to tread the dead under foot
to do it. That was the fourth charge
of the day. and ii was checked as the
others had been. 1t simply meant
more dead and wounded to choke that
narrow way. Hundreds had been
| ORA gged ont. 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 hill and into PENNSYLVANIA
| -forward-marchr
| And when the long night had passed
| and daylight come again the Federals
| found the stone wall updefended and
| clambered over ii and ran to the mouth
| Of the gap to shout to each other:
Lee has passed, and we are too
later