The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1903-09-10
RIDING ARTILLERY HORSES.


nized, and the advantages of his peculiar
movements to the service were apparent
to the little army holding the Green River
line. In order to augment his hand of
cavalry scouts, an order was given to turn
over to him some Condemned artillery
horses, perhaps 80, upon which to mount
more of his men. Within I'm astonishing
ly brief time, by care and intelligent doc
toring," the animals We're carrying high
heads and champing bridle-bits as spirit
eddy as the ordinary CHARGERS. Having
jected" artillery horses, Morgan marched
IS miles in 20 hours, mich to the Won
derment of friend and foe. During several
weeks he continued to make long and
rapid marches. stirring up the natives"
and fitting with the eneny's outposts, not,
however, engaging i'll really bloody war
fare.
MoRGAN's FIRST FIGHT.
After having engaged in numerous
scouting expeditions, bloodless, but eX-
ceedingly pleasant episodes in the dull.
tedious life in camps, Morgan and Duke
arrayed their band in the early morning
of fine autumnal day, determined to
have a fight or a race with the Federal
foe. This daylight ride was departure
from their accustomed habit of making,
almost exclusively nocturnal marches.
Later, however, they resumed the practice
of starting on important hostile incur
sions under cover of night:
Border chieftains! their sole delight
The moonlight raid, the morning fight"
The story of Morgan's initiatory engage
ment with n respectable force of the enc
my is interestingly told by Duke, who was
second in command:
I'VE started out with only 10 of our
own company, % of the Tennessee cavalry
and 10 or 10 volunteers from various COM
mands, about 80 in all. After proceeding
some ~ miles in the direction of Nolin
Creek, the advance of our party suddenly
discovered body of Federal infantry
moving down the road toward us. Their
glistening bnyonets, just perceptible above
little rise 800 or 400 yards off. notified
our videts of their proximity. The enc
my not having yet seen us, we promptly
dismounted and posted ourselves in the
Tickets on both sides of the road, sending
the horses to the rear under charge of
eight or 10 men. No plan of battle was
adopted. However, under the inspiration
of the impending crisis number of sug-
gestions were made, now lost to history,
remember of one man giving his decid-
ed opinion that we ought to charge the
Il
horseback. Having emphatically an
nounced his views, he voluntarily and in
stantly galloped back to Green River to
report the situation to Col. Hanson. En-
joining his excited and loquacious parti-
sans to be silent, Morgan went forward,
alone, to house. probably $50 yards in
front of our position, and, looking from
a window which commanded full view
Of the approaching Federals he easily as
that the enemy was some GO or
20 strong, but he had to vacate the build
ing without learning whether the FEEDER
ais constituted the advance of larger
force, or were simply an unsupported de-
tachment. Fortunately the Captain eff
joined his men without discovery by the
enemy, who were yet unconscious of our
presence. They continued to march on
past the house, and toward our seques-
tered position, until, when within 40 or 80
yards of us, something. know not what,
made them suspicious and caused them
to halt. Capt. Morgan promptly stepped
ont into the road and Shot the officer who
was riding at the head Of the column.
Without returning the fire the enemy i'm
fell back to the house, already
mentioned, situated or, a long, low knoll,
through which, to the left, of the house,
as we faced it, was cut of the railroad,
a good position, which we should have
opened fire upon us, which would have
been very fatal if we bad been in the
tops of the trees instead offon the ground
behind them. Both sides then kept up
a rapid but Ineffective firing. On our side,
every man ought to have behaved well,
for each acted upon his OWE responsible
ity. Capt. Morgan, with q few of the
more eDterprising, and one or two per-
sonal followers who always kept close to
him, worked his way very near to the
Federal line, where he did the only shoot
ing that was effective, we having neither
drill nor any understanding among our
selves. The fight had been going on
some 10 or IL minutes, breathless
householder came from the rear ard
that the enemy, largely
was fanking US. The
receipt of this important intelligence
the withdrawal of the
forces and every man withdrew after
his own fashion and in his own time Our
loss was one man slightly wounded and
several shot through their clothes. The
ARRAY was as sanguinary as an affair be-
tween Austrian and Italian outpOsts. The
householder who brought information
from the rear, which led to our retreat,
was evidently u SOluler VINO nau careIully
studied military articles in the newspa-
pers, and spoke from the influence of sud-
den recollection of the science he had
thus acquired, rather than from accurate
personal observation. This may be safely
as we were not pursued by the
enemy, and when we returned to the same
place on the next day, we learned that
the Eederals were simply scouting party
like ourselves, and that they began to re-
treat about the same time we made our in
glorious retrOgrade movement. Two OR
three rapid riders, WHO arrived at Green
River headquarters in advance of Capt.
MOrgan's report, stated that We had en-
strong Federal column ad-
to drive our forces away from
that we had attacked. and
after hard fight checked it, but that IN
less Morgan was Immediately reinforced,
the Federal column would continue tri-
umphal march. This statement, generally
credited, created much excitement at
Col. Hanson, however,
treated the self-constituted cOuriers rather
cavalierly, and said, with an unnecessary
on a gallant arm of the service,
that the message brought him was moth
ing more than cavalry story"
(To be continued)
CAVALRY AT WAYNESBORO.
Gen. fitzpatrick and the sth Ind. Not Cap