The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1902-05-15

,, was then on duty at Harrisburg as
slstant Adjutant General OF the uhi.e
States, but always spent one or l"
Il days with Sunday at my home AZ Chan
& bersburg. " hen l arrived at III
Chambersburg depot OH one OF III
ia home visits for brief rost / was sun
moncd by the telegraph operator TO bl
/, private office. He had just receive
G several dispatches from Mercersbur
: stating that a Confederate cavalry 1orc
was then in possession of that tow
8 end was moving in the direction o
8 Chambersburg. 1t was startling intel
0 ligence, indeed, and it seemed incrcdi
1 bic that a Confederate force would at
tempt to raid Chambersburg, only al
? hours distance from lIagerstown
| where there was large Union force
with ample time and equipment tt
bring it to any point in the Cumber
land Valley. l waited for an hour and
was advised Of the progress of the Con
felerate force as it moved steadily TO-
ward Chambersburg. | tcleSraphed to
the Union commander at llagerstoWn,
not knowing who he was, stating the
facts and suggesting as matter of pre-
| J
and artillery should be hurried to the
defence of the town. In charity will
not give the name of the Union COM
mander, who answered that the sug-
gestlon of q Confederate folce entering
Chambcrsburg was too absurd to be
considered. Halt an hour later the
advancing COnfedcrates had reached
Chambersburg turnpike, and were NOV
ing directly upon us and only ten miles
distant. then repeated an appeal to
the Union commander at Hagerstown,
stating Tie facts and urging him to
scnd II force to intercept the enemy, as
| there was yet AMPLE time to do so, but
the only reply was an intimation that
| military commanders had no time to
waste on lunatics. Finding it impos-
sible to get any relief from the Union
army, as | could not hopefully COM
municatc with amy officer beyond IIag-
erstown, L went to my Office and sat
down to await events aud accept the
situation as philosophically as possible.
FIRST MEETING WITH HAMPTON.
Soon after dark several Confctlcrates
appeared at the western part OF the
town with white rag tied on a stick,
and announced 70 the first citizens
they met that they bore flag of truce
from the Confederate army and desired
TO be conducted TO the Union COM
mander Of the town. AS there wclc
no troops in Chambersburg they were
so informed, and they asked TO be con-
Quoted to some citizens of the town
with whom they could communicate
the wishes Of their commander. They
were brought TO my oilice, where they
courteously announced that they were
there by orders of their commander to
ask for the surrender of the city.
told them that there were no troops to
oppose them, and that there was moth
ing TO hinder them from entering
Chambersburg whenever they chose to
do 80, but as this first invasion of the
enemy naturally produced the widest
CONSERVATION in the community said
to the bearers of the truce that 1 wish
ed TO know what assurance of safety
could be given to the people. asked
who their commander was and was
told that his name could not be given.
| then asked where he was and that
information was also refused. then
inquired whether they could take me
to their commander and assure my
safe return. They said they would,
and, accompanied by Col. Thomas j.
Kennedy, then a prominent lawyer Of
the town and now president Of the
Cumberland Valley Railroad, we
mounted horses and rode TO the front.
1t was pitch dark, and when we had
iddcn out beyond the suburbs we were
| now in the presence Of the Confederate
commander. 1t was only barely posi-
bic to see that a body of men were in
front of us, but what they looked like
we could form no conception. When
we stopped an officer rode up to us and
announced that he was Gen. Hampton,
commanding part of the Confederate
force, and that he desired to know
whether they could enter Chambers
burg. We assured him that there was
no force to oppose him, and that we
desired simply to learn from him what
assurance could be gwen to quiet the
people of the town ,whcn the
Confederatcs entered. He promptly
answered that they made no war
upon private citizens and non-com-
batants; that the people should be
advised to remain in thcr homes, as
they would not be disturbed, and that
no property would be taken from any
once except such as was needed by the
army. He then directed Mr.. Kennedy
and myself to lead his forces into
Chambcrsburg, and in a very short
time the town was practically filled
with them. The people were at once
assured that they had nothing to ap'
prchend and there was no tendency to
panic.
: a PERSONAL INCIDENT.
, In crossing The Centre square shor
f time after lIampton's force had en-
{ tered | was iamiliarly slapped on tho
shoulder, and, turning around, re
cognizcd Hugh Logan, then captain
q III the Confederate army and the guide
y of the raid, as he had been born ant
a grown up on the South Mountain, il
t Franklin County, and had once sue
:. cessfully defended him when charged
n with kidnapping. He was one of tn
n rugged mOuntainccrs whose fidelity /