The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-04-08
SIR PERCY WYNDHAM
Interesting Story Of What Was
Goinp on When He Was Captured

~ ilC.FA INV vi WI 80.
Sir,-I noticed In The Timcs-Dispatch
Of Sunday, March IS, 1906, the above
inquiry: However, l. did not see the pre-
ccdlng inquiry, to, which you made men
ton, and while not desiring to disregard
the Injunction of Mr.. Richardson. better
let the matter alone unless some one Is
cock-sure Of his facts; nevertheless,
your Confederate column has Strengthened
sc many tangles. has done so much Tor
your state and Southland. so much that
/, and will continue to be appreciated, that
T feel 1t a duty to make this my first
attempt at n war "Reminiscences, n 1t is
done because It will put you on the
track Of the man who captured Sir Percy
~NVyndham.
MY recollection is that Jackson had with
him at the time of Sir Percy's captures,
the Second, Sixth and Seventh Regiments
of Virginia Cavalry, and had none other.
1t is quite probable that the Seventh was
not at that time organized and known
as the Seventh. but the men then with
Ashby were at least a part OF what was
nfterward known as Ashby's old regi-
ment, the Seventh. The Sond was Mum
ford's: the Sixth, Flournoy's, and the
Seventh, Ashby's, and all of them under
the command Of General Turner Ashby.
I was with the Second Regiment, and
the first saw of General Ashby that
day, was on the crest Of hills overlook
Ing Harrisonburg, where he had driven
rell-mell Sir Percy's cavalry. lie was
riding backward and onward betweon
his men and the bullets of the enemy's
infantry, with an old black rain coat
around him, forming his men in line as
they came up In pursuit of the stnm-
peded cavalry, and ! saw him smile and
heard him say: STEADY, boys, there's no
danger In the bullets they are shoot
ing" Tho bullets were fired by the "Buck-
tails a Pennsylvania regiment. whether
or not the same of which Jack
son captured n part near Richmond, ! do
not know.
Three hours later, / saw General
Ashby's dead body on the way back to
Fort Republic. I met the ambulance in
the road, and a glance at the men ac-
commanding it, satisfied mo that some i'm
porthnt officer was In it,Snnd ] asked
who is wounded. The reply was General
AshDy.' l asked, IL seriously, and, tho
answer: Dead Only n fow days before
Jackson was at Harper's Ferry, a hun-
dred miles away. with an army In front
of him and another south OF him. But
never were men more mistaken than those
that followed him, for they thought him
trapped and on the run. They expected to
capture or destroy him. and now when
fully forty years have passed away, I
ask, was the expectation an unreasonable
one? Could he expect to successfully meet
tho great odds against him. He could
choose only ono of two things; fight both
armies or leave the Valley. lilo would
know the choice he made and the result
na well, s ha
Sir Percy Wyndham. an English noble
man. commanded the Federal advance,
and continually attacked our roar guard
|. {v. n, F. CT M ,,ul,, ruEt n Is Tp rricoph1rr IA JDnSS.
ing Hnrrisonburg to the west. less than
q mile, is n road leading south to Fort
Republic, and that is the road jack
son took when leaving the Valley Pike,
and on that road scarce two miles from
1Inrrisonburg, q trap was aid for Sir
Eercy.
BY whom, I do not Know, It$awas
simple, but effective, As already stated,
Sir Percy had repeatedly attacked our
lear guard, II Jackson had not per-
mittcd his cavalry while on the Pike to
bring on an engagement with fremont.
p"J Sir Percy evidently had taken Jack
SIMS rapid retreat rs q flight, and he
was spelling for q fight, He did not know
fnckSon's way, nor could he be expected
to know 4. for no was but a sojourner on
his first tour of observation, but very
soon io earned that the lion whose track
Ia had so closely followed, had stopped,
auil naintr to rest or surrender, but TO
fight, and Sir I'arcy's command was
swept as tho stuhle before the storm,
a squad from the Sixth Regiment WAS left
in tho road as n decoy, and Sir Percy,
like the proverbial bull tn'tho flag, charged
with all his might. The Second Regi-
ment was not far beyond this decoy, and
grazing their horses In line IN n clover
field to the west of the road. The first
intimation It had of his coming were tho
PISTOL shots fired across the rail fence.
Colonel breckenridge gave the order to
charge, and his men responded by charg-
ing through the gaps made In the fence,
when entering the field but they DID Old
not await the coming OF the SECOND lltes-
imont. The Second, beyond q gun cap
tuIed, accomplished little because II
could not overtake them, ! never knew
fully VIVA, caused the stampede for we
We're not In n position TO SEQ just what
occurred in front of Ms, and the move
OF attack ebbed so hastily that we could
not to oycrtakc ~.