The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1903-08-05
WAR STORIES.
In Many Hard Fought Battles, but Called on
to Face Death but Once.
(FoR THE INTELLIGENcER.)

During the movement Of Granite
army from the Potomac around below
Richmond to inaugurate the seige Of
Petersburg, Gen. Kauts' cavalry was
IN front of Grants army, whose part
was to clear the way for Grants in
fantry and artillery.
To checkmate this dashing cavalry
movement Gen. Mart Gary, with his
brigade Of cavalry of Hampton divis-
ion, was assigned to the task of Wei ng
with Gen. Kauts. Gen. Gary was in
his glory then, for he had often told
his men that he could take the 7th s.
g. Cavalry (Gary's h.yenas) and rout
q whole brigade of Kauts' cavalry.
Gary's Hyenas, the 7th 8. c., had
unbounded confidence il "Old Mart"
and when Old Mart sai.i we will take
those trenches or sut that column Of
cavalry to pieces, they v II knew that
their gallant commander would be
with them and among them in the
hardest part Of tbe battle, and that
sthe thing would be done; for Gen.
&ary knew no such thing as failure
aa any attack or the meaning Of the
word surrender.
Kauts and Gary fought on the Aauka
and IN Che rear Of each other almost
daily while this transfer was going on,
and | doubt if any of these cavalry
Gghts were ever recorded, unless it
was old Church, Ridley's Shops and
EBgles Mill, for in those days of great
daathes unless hundreds of men were
a,ct dseo the fight was too small to
szeu< ~ battle, where hundreds, and
esollc' INES thousands, were cut down
an few hours, although the fight
where the man gets killed or wounded
1s the same to him, whether there is
one or thousand killed.
twas during one Of these "mixup"
cavalry fights by Eauts and Gary be-
dow Richmond that the writer was
called upon to march right into what
appeared to be the veritable jaws of
death alone. l was then small boy
an my teens, member of Co. G., 7th
s. Q. Cavalry, originally Co. B, Rut-
dedge Mounted Rifemen, which con-
pany had joined after becoming un-
able to walk longer with Orr's Rifles.
| think it was in August, during
this campaign, and little to the right
of the Nine Mile Road, in woods,
with thick underground, that Gary's
cavalry were dismounted and drawn
up 10 double line, when Gen. Gary
rode down in front Of US, saying
Boys, there are few Yankees in
the trenches in front of US, and we
are going to run them out" Just
then the command was given that
every twentieth front rank man march
out sixty PAGES to the front and "count
of by regiment" I being one OF the
unlucky twentieth men marched out
to what I thought my doom. It was
the crucial test Of my lifo, for I knew
that twice 20 made 40. and caloula-
Aed IL we found tho enemy four deep,
es We often did, that meant thatit was
my lot in the fortune of war to be
called out as living target for eighty
men to shoot at, in order to draw their
Gre and thus protect my comrades
from this witheripg concentrated storm
of IRE and lead that was then beipg
held in deadly stiffness for us. While
my mind was thus engaged at sizing
up my lot, an officer "a stranger to
me) rode By saying: 'Men, at the
sound Of the bugle march straight for
ward and keep your distance until
you find the enemy, thon fire. II
,there was any one put in charge OF
this thin line Of "feelers" we never
heard u command from him. After
THE bugle had, sounded forward, and
we had gone some 200 yards, creeping
through The thick bushes. we could
hear few low commands and the
rustling, roaring sound Of our army
= nsVing through the woeds behind US
81 that sounded very like a great storm
: OF wine. A little farther on we came
: to q, natural open space in the woods,
Sand |our vidette line had .hinned down
TO only one man in sight, and my cal.
culations had grown from 80 men to
something like 200 men orouohed over
there, ready for each one Of US to step
~Jut in chat opening TO be slaughtered,
) for escape seemedimpossible.
Now, standing up in line with COM
rsadss on either side OF you ct the bat
des.3 Gold Harbor, Gaines Mill and
s.uaany other battles where many fell by
ones side, was quite tame affair be,
side being marched up in front Of o