The National tribune., 1904-01-14
CHAPTER XXXII.
NO GREATER LOVE.

CHAPTER XXXII.
no GREATER LOVE,
Bring me an axe. aud spade,
Bring me winding-sheet.
Sheridan, with 10000 men, rode around
Lee Il right flank and marched uIDen Rich.
tnaond. Stuart followed. and swith three
small brigades met the Federal cavalry
Fat Yellow Tavern some seven miles out
| from the Capitaf.
1t was the 11th of May. Wednesday.
Jennie West was married on this day. and
on this day Sheridan marched from Ash
Land upon Stuart, who faced northwest,
| his line across the road to Richmond.
From IL O'Clock until little impression
was made upon the Confederate lines
! the brigade of Wickham OH the right,
that of Lomax on the left, with reserve
of but part of one regimeat-the LIST Va.
Stuart's extreme left was west of the
road, two guns in the road, another upon
a hill farther toward THE flank.
At 4 clock Sheridan engaged the whole
Iof Stuart's line, and at the same time
threw forward Custer's Brigade to- charge
| the guns. on the Confederate left.
s At this time Gen. Stuart was with his
| right wing, half a mile away or more, but
the speedy report coming that mounted
| cavalry were threatening his guns, he
rode southwark in all haste.
Clusters charge was led by the LIST
Mich, Mai Howrigan at the head of the
leading squadron.
The Confederates, closely engaged along
the entire line. held to their work at every
point until Howrigan rode over the two
cannon on the pike. capturing guns and
gunners, cutting off Stuart's left, and
threatening the destruction of the whole
Confederate line.
Now Stuart stormed up, crying aloud
/ to his men to faIIy
| Yet the guns had been lost beyond re-
| cnvery. A great gap was in the line and
into the gap, and on, following the scat
tered Confederates, the 9th Mich. adj
Ivanced.
Meanwhile, all the right was holding,
and at the left of the captured guns still
stood some small companies firing into the
flank and rear of the Federals that had
moved through the gap-and with these
few men Stuart held, in the last effort of
| his life.
| The Michigan regiments. pouring
/ through the gap, were met by the 1St Va.
| Now the battle ragged along the right
/ where the rebel lines were yet unbroken,
| and all about the isolated left where Stu
art was. and behind this hill, where the
LIST Va was charging.
Stuart's old regiment. on that day,
| fought not only its last fight under the
j eye of it's first commander, but it fought
for his safety from capture. and its efforts
] were equal to the crisis--the enemy were
thrown back, and ,Stuart's person was
saved; yet even as the Michigan men We're
retiring, their fire, directed at Stuart's
group, wounded the General to death
The 1st Va. was already in disorder
from its charge; it's success had been but
partial, but monetary; already the
ground was spotted with it's best
/ On that little hill the bloody wave again
flowed back. and the Tederals held all the
line from which Sfuart's left had been
driven, and the .Confederates were forced
to form q new line of tile left wing, rest
ing at an angle upon the yet unbroken
right.
Now the balls from botl.ssides swept the
hill between the INES where lay blue
mem sl' and gray mon, and hgrses Of BOTH
The sun was setting Gloom and anger,
defeat and grief. upon the faces Of the
| Virginians. Their sun was setting. Stu
Tart had been placed imam ambulance and
| had been driven toward Richmond; men
said. in whispers that he had fought his
last battle.
at the rear he found old Squire, busy over
his cooking, near the line of household
erS.
| "Mahs Joe.s-said Squire, nervously,
| show come yon don't stay wi Mahs Chain
ley"
| Ihe negro Hau @rlseH, HIS hdHus were
clasped together; perhaps he read Joe
Lewis's face.
Squire, I'm afeared that George and
Charley are both of 'em down. Fact is,
know they're down, and I'm a-thinkin'
| we can't keep the Yanks from gittin' 'em;
but I'm a-hopin' neither one amt got it
hard"
Charley is. Tell me wllah dey is.
"Out in front between the lines-out at
| the left front. | got to go on. Squire;
| jest got to go on and git cartridges for
the company
They had fallen almost together, there
on the little hill over which from both
directions the bullets were flying.
Sency recovered some strength: yet
when he tried to walk he found he could
not; any motion was with great anguish.
He sat up, and saw riderless horses rush
| ing through smoke and dust, and off 1t
| the left heard a great mutter of hoofbeats,
which sound swelled out louder, and he
| lay fat again as a regiment OF horsemen
charged over the hill.
Sency again tried to reach Armstrong.
told of that nights horror has been little;
| he seemed always to shun its remem-
brance.
But we know that still there was fight
| ing-eyen until dark had set in, the Fed
erals making partial. attacks and being
repulsed. until i'm one combined assault
| they drove the Confederates from all their
new position: and that at IL o'clock Sher
| idan marched away from that field of vic
| tory and death.
While the bullets were flying both ways.
about nightfall, Sency heard cry, aud
answered as best he might-a cry and an
answer not for him who answered, but
4 for him, w cOu1d mt.
And then Sency became aware that a
negro had come.
The bullets were flying both ways.
Perhaps George Sency became uncon-
scious for while: he tells us nothing of
| detail the bullets were flying
both ways.
At dawn four men came. They lifted
sency to stretcher and bore him away.
At sunrise came other men. but these
bore no one away. They buried the sol
| der, and another body at the soldiers
feet. And then Joe Lewis stood alone,
weeping. bitterly.
| (The end.)
| Deaths In W. B. Earl Post.