Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1905-12-06

l
and sulphur smoke, the nearest bat
across the field, and in spite and fury
the black sh ellis burst in whistling hail
over the startled heads of the second
brigade. Out beyond the first battery
trot Wooding and Carpenter, forming
faction front on the slope little to
| the northwest of Groveton, and so
three batteries are suddenly hurting
| their swift fire upon the now halted
column. Now see 'em take to covert"
shout the seasoned ones by the gun
side, as the left half battery echoes the
right, and all the front of Starke's bri-
gade is now covered by flashing guns,
|. believing in chorus, the men. leaping
in and out to reload, dimly seen
through the billowing battery smoke,
and still, screaming and shrieking the
shells sail high across the rolling earth
sea. See 'em take to cover" indeed.
| Well might they do so, for just be-
| yond the pike the woods lie thick and
unbroken, but, sudden as the shot,
each regiment has ''fronted" to it's
| left. The steel ramrods of the fore
| shrill voice of Old Graybeard, squirting
back to his colors, has yelled the order
| to load at will, and not until they're
bitten and poured and rammed and
| capped does he follow that with "Lie
down." The right of their line is
| fiat On it's belly at the edge of the field,
| while sIarring, flashing and bounding,
cannoneers racing alongside like mad,
well-handled battery-Gibbon's own,
as Poague and Ewell more than sus-
pect-the beloved of the brigade out
on the field, comes front into line
at breakneck pace, whirls without
hating its bronze beauties about, and
in another moment the lOud-ringing
light twelves" are out-bellowing the
trio of batteries blazing there northwest
OF Groveton, sweeping their sections
with spherical case" Five, ten, ff-
teen minutes the duel of death goes on.
Gibbons gunners are all regulars, lords
OF their trade, and old Ewell sees it
and knows it. Timber up. Poague!
Back all of you! They are too heavy
for our guns!" is the order, and Paul
Ladue spurs to carry it. Out of the
way, gentlemen gunners! It's onr
time now, goes the word from Starkes
eager ranks, and so on down the long
line. Into their saddles leap the field
staff and commanders. The sun has
gone down; the dusk is at hand the
night must not come until that stub
born brigade has been swept from the
earth. Who shall do it, Ewell Or Talia-
ferro?
From the westward now, from the
far right flank, daring battery whips
out on the field and unlimbers where
its guns can enfilade Gibbons tri-
umphant boomers, and young Talia-
ferro's little brigade, till now held in
rear, goes striding off behind it's fell
lows, and so on to the extreme right
as though in support And still it is
battle OF guns and gunners, for Jack
son holds his hounds in leash, down
charged at heel, crouched at the edge
of the woods.
And then comes the surprise of the
day, the event of the hour, the marvel
of the campaign. Even as Ewell and
Taliaferro are deciding that the mo-
ment has come for attack, 10! to the
amaze of the men of the StonewalI
brigade, still the extreme right of the
line, there is CLINT of steel in the op-
posite grove and dark column bursts
from the depths of the wood. Nimbly
swarm of skirmishers leap from their
covert and come dancing out over the
sward. Straight for the guns drives
the daring blue line, backed by eight
solid companies, closed on the colors
and marching abreast. Fancy the can
airy defying the cat! Fancy the ter
rier boarding the tiger! Fancy the
lamb assailing the butcher. and yol
have the sensation that thrills the wait
| ing divisions as griZzled Georgia
colonel slaps down his field-glass and
turns to his men with delight in his
eye and five words on his tongue: "The
Black HatS-by Goad!"