Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1905-08-14
DAILY SHORT STORY
THE LOST COMPANY.

copyright, 1865. by r. B. McClure.l
The orders were for Colonel Davis
of the Twenty-secOnd Federal regi-
ment, stationed about four miles from
Bulls Gap, in the Tennessee noun
tains. TO move by night and capture
Confederate signal station which had
| post upon a mountain crest ten miles
away. This station commanders the
pass so far as observation went, and
every move of the Federal force there
was at once reported.
The idea was to move slowly and
quietly, and this was carried out The
regiment had four hours and half TO
make the ten miles, and the vicinity
of the signal station was reached at
4 o'clock in the morning Three COM
panies were sent to the left, three TO
the right, and Company L was to make
| a long detour TO get in the rear Of the
station and hold a mountain road
made so quietly that no alarm was
given.
Day had just begun to dawn when
up from the valley came white mist,
cold as u shroud and thick enough to
cut out all objects twenty feet away.
The Confederates at the station could
| be heard moving and talking, but there
could be no attack until the mist dis
appeared. 1t hung over the mountain
for two long hours before the rising
sun began TO eat into it, and it was
near Z o'clock before the Federals
dashed forward. The surprise was
complete There were only fifty Con
federate soldiers there as guard, and
seeing the force opposed TO them they
prudently surrendered. Not a man
was killed on either side, although
there was considerable firing. The
regiments sent out on the TANKS were
up in time, and Colonel Davis supposed
that the firing would bring in Com
pany Z.
When an hour had gone by and
nothing had been heard of 1t scouts
were sent forward with orders for it
TO Join the main force at once At the
end of two hours the scouts returned
and reported that no trace of the com
pany could he found beyond a certain
| point.
The main column returned to camp,
and from hour to hour looked for the
| missing company. When day had
gone by without news from 1t two
scouts Avere sent out. There was fear
now that 1t had been gobbled up by Il
Confederate force. The scouts struck
| the highway and followed it 10 the
bend, but they brought back no news.
A native had gone along with 1t to
act as guide, and after three or four
days had passed it was concluded that
| he might have led the detachment far
enough to bring about its capture by
Confederate force. The matter rested
there for Il week. Then two COnfed-
crate prisoners wAre captured, but they
denied having heard the least news of
the missing company. Had it been
captured they must have known of the
event.
An advance by the ConfederateS in
| force just at this time prevented any
further search by the Federals. and for
| six,weeks the fate Of the hundred men
was almost forgotten. Then there was
an investigation ordered from Wash
| ington, and the result was the trial and
| dismissal Of Colonel Davis. The Fed
/ 81 dis IdO DtcLi hllN I'll OuI vi thiN Bdi
| of Tennessee and as q matter of fact
| they did not regain the ground again
until the close of the war. Flags of
| truce were frequently TesOrted 10 to
| gain news Of the missing company. and
all prisoners We're closely questioned,
| but the war came to an end at last and
the mystery had not been solved.
No move was made until n year
| later. and then Colonel Davis himself
took up the case. He was a wealthy
man. and be smarted under the dis
| grace put upon him by the court mar
| tiaI.
| Accompanied by two picked men he
| went over the route from Bulls Gap.
| From the Confederate signal station he
struck for the highway and reached II.
| There was but one house on the road
between that point and the bend, and
| the widow occupying it said that no
force had passed on that night. She
must have heard the company had it
marched that way. The scouts sent
out had never questioned this woman.
Returning over the highway Davis
and his companions had covered half
the distance when they noticed the
mouth OF Tavine to the right. II
started at the highway and descended
50 gradually that it might have been
taken in the night for another road. 1t
deepened as they followed it, and at
| the end of a quarter of mile, when
| it had become a rough and rugged
rayine, it came To n sudden ending.
/ This did not look at all natural and
an investigation lasting half a day
| brought 10 light the fact that there had
been a landslide there. Hundreds of
| thousands Of tons of earth and rock.
accompanied by hundreds Of trees, had
gone crashing down into the ravine
and filed 1t to a depth of twenty feet
| The I'LL was from bank TO bank. and
its length was about 500 feet. WeeSs
and bushes and young trees were al