The National tribune., 1903-07-30

by marching and riding,
By swimming and sliding,
BY thawing and freezing.
BY dodging and squeezing,
BY fasting and waking,
BY hoping and quaklnS,
We went down to Salem,
And tore up the railin
We had just finished tearing up the
track of the Richmond X Tennessee Rail
road for a stretch of is miles, ut Salem,
Va, and had inflicted Il severe blow to the
ConfeGeracy by the destruction of supply
depots and bridges, and We're just max
ing preparations to go into camp along
side the little town of Salem, when news
reached Gen. Averell that his colleague.
Jubal Early, instead of presenting h MS If
and his veterans i'll person, had Stealthl!y
marched to his rear and was taking pos
session of all the passes over the Alleghan-
les by which we could hope to escape.
So. instead of going into camp, the cry
was Hitch up!'' Saddle up" and now
began Il nine-day march, by day and by
night, that for hardships and privations
is uneXcelled in the annals of the clyil
war.
| was at this time an Hospital Steward
in the Regular Army, for the time being
on duty ut Gen. Averell's headquarters,
Gen. Averell and | were the only "Regu
officers, supposing that the General and |
were necessarily chums, were in the habit
of Salut!ng when they met me. knowing
that their courtesy WAS based on miscon-
ception, / modestly refrained from return
ing their SaluteS. and became known as
that stuck-up Regular who is too proud
to acknowledge the courteSleS of volunteer
officers
During the raid under consideration l
A. I a. To- Il fhn Il
vance, tomorrow with the rear. or along
side of some acquaintance in one of tho
regiments though my proper place was
with the ambulances. Gen. Averells com
mand consisted of four Virginia and two
Pennsylvania cavalry regiments. the 18th
Ohio. and two batteries of field aItil-
lery-aS near as | can remember. The
faidine force consisted of 2.5Uu cavalry.
six field pieces, six ambulanccs. and u
wagons.
Marching all night and all the next day
over soft, slushy roads, the three leading
ambulances, in the first of which reposed
our Assistant Adjutant-General, Capt.
Markbreit. and the ambulance officer,
Lieut.. Adams, ran into Il detachment of
Early's troops, who made off with them,
officers and ALL without attempting to cap
ture the rest of the train. An hour or so
later, about p. m, we came upon the
Jackson River to find the railroad bridge
spanning it in flames, and the river a rag
ing torrent, made so by a three days rain
and snow. 1t seems that Gen. Averell
had waited couple of hours for the train,
which could not keep up on those roads
with the cavalry, and concluding that it
had been captured by the rebels who were
on all sides of us, had himself fired the
bridge and cut us off.
CAPTURING A CONFEDERATE OFFICER.
We now went into bivouac alongside
the burning bridge, and about an hour af-
Ter dark Capt. Brown, Chief Quartermas-
ter Ghe same Brown who, as Captain, 9th
u. S, Cav. committed suicide in Il New
York hotel some years afterwards), called
for volunteers to 90 with him on a recon-
noissance. Lieut.. Koringsberger, Chief
Commissary, two headquarters orderlies,
and |, responded
We had proceeded about three -fourths
OF mile along the track of the railroad
when suddenly three ambulances loomed
up out of the darkness, coming toward US:
at their head was 4 mounted man and be
hind the ambuances we could make out
several more mounted men. We thought
of course, that these were our own three
ambulances returning, but were puzzled
how to account for so many mounted men
with them. Draw your pistols" said
Capt. Brown, and when the leading horse
man was within about 20 PAGES we all
covered him with our siX-shoOters, and
Capt. Brown demanded ''Who comes
there:" "a friend" was the answer.
Are you a Confederate?' was Capt.
Browns next question. Yes" Follow
us.' said Capt. Brown, who at once
turned his horse and headed back for our
bivOuac, we following him with the cap
tured rebel in our midst. This man proved
to be Captain in the rebel ambulance
corps.
The three ambulances followed their
leader for a few hundred yards until the
road passed through little gully; in this
they stopped. / called out to Capt. Brown
that the ambulances had stopped, but he
kept on until our bivouac fires were
reached, where he turned his prisoner over
TO the Colonel Of the 18th Pa Cav, which
regiment guarded the train.
A Lieutenant and 20 men were now or
dered TO proceed and bring in the three
ambulances. The Lieutenant came to me
and asked if / would not do him the favor
TO go and see where the ambulances now
were, and how many men were with them.
while he was getting his men ready. /
consented, and calling upon two ambu-
lance corps men to go with me- | started
on my errand, but had not gone 300 wards
before, from both sides of the road. |
heard the clicking of numerous gunIocks
and at the same time came the challenge
Halt! Who comes thereI" "A friend"
L answered. advance one" was now the
command. "You CO." said to one of the
ambulance men. He rode forward, the
while / turned my mules head around
drove the spurs deep into his fianks, and
clattered over the now frozen road in the
direction of our bivouac; the third man
had thrown himself from his horse and
run into the dead brush. and thence back
to the train. Not a shot was fred. and
we never heard from the man again whom
i ordered to go forward and answer the
challenge, though there is not the least
reason TO believe that the rebels killed
him.
CROSSING THE JACKSON RIVER.
/ now reported that the ambulances
were nearer than they had been, and that
at least 20 men were with them; where
upon two companies were ordered to go
and bring them in, but when, after an
hours getting ready, they reached the
spot, the birds had flown, and it was
deemed inadyisable TO pursue them in the
darkness. The night passed quickly. Next
morning a farmer showed the Colonel
commanding the most available ford. not
far from the bridge, where our horses