The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-08-26

reaching them the enemy broke and fled in wild disorder through the wopos.
 FolIowing them in their flight brought l,s to the main road again and view of the open fields. Here scene was presented that caused the pulse 20 throb and the heart-beats to quicken
 It was Axhilarating beyond compare.
 Over that open field Tn wild disorder,
 hats dropping, canteens Hopping, om- cers yelling, steeds dropping their rid-
 ers and every man for himself and
 place of safety. madly rushed. scram-
 bled or hobbled, struggled and roared
 more than 2,500 defeated. demoralized
 Federal cavalry. while behind them,
 with pistols, sabre or carbine in hand, and yelling like Comanches, with their long hair flowing out behind, their nim-
 ble fingers pulling the triggers of their trusty six shooters. went the indom-
 itable. If not incomparable Texans and Arkansians, not more than 800 in num-
 bePs but evry a man a host. After pur-
 suing the discounted, routed Federals
 until they found shelter behind their infantry and artillery General Wheeler had recall sounded and we fell back to the line where we had first struck them, and, unmolested, held the field
 until nightfall There on the line where the sth Confederate had struck it's blow. within a few rods of each other, lay cold in death Sergeant Thompson shot twice through the body and with his skull split in three places by a poltroon's sabre: near him lay his captain, John S. McElderry close by was iS-year-old E. & Riddle, and near these were several dead Federals, and grouped close by was my gallant Orderly Sergeant. James W. Hardie, badly but not fatally wounded. and a number of others with slight wounds, while close by around the cottage, be- tween 100 and 200 unwounded Fed eral prisoners with a Colonel among the rest. Within a few feet of where Ross Riddle lay cold with bullet wound centrally in his breast, was the still form of a stalwart. red haired German with a wounded German conn rade iying close by so recently from the father land that he could neither speak nor understand but few words of English. Here was a group of fig ures on a battlefield presenting food for thought. Capt. John s. McElderry entered the service as Third Lieutenant of my company in July, 1881. from Tal- lageda County GA. W. Bowie being then eaptain.) His grandfather had fought for right and liberty with Greene at GuiIford c. H.; his father came from Tennessee with Jackson as soldier in 1873. and fought the h.
 dians at Taladesa Emulelefou. and Horse Shoe and in the early 30's had moved to and made his home in beautiful Chinnabee Valley in Talladega County. where he became a large landed pro- Prietor, the friend of Chief Chinnabee. prho was the friend of Jackson, and on his broad domain. under a monument erected by his friend and benefactor. row repese the ashes of th&s noble red rtan. Here, in this entrancing valley. John $. McElderry, under the care of his distinguished father and mother. and as one of family of highly gifted bl others and sisters. was reared, typi- cal Southern gentleman. He was member of Capt. A. W. Bowie's Noun tain Rangers, organized as State troops in 1sS9. and which, on the breaking out of hostilities. offered it's services to the Confederate States. He was sec ond in command of the company at Shi- loh. and, under orders from General BeauregaFd, rode through tempest Of shot and shell to deliver to General Bragg the order to withdraw his lines on the last evening of that sanguinary conflict. Lieutenant McElderry was desperately wounded while leading his company at Blackland. Miss. .on the 4th of June, 1862. and resigned his commission under the impression that he was permanently disabled. Upon recovering. however, from his injuries, hG returned 10 the regiment ana was at once elected Captain of Company "H.'' composer of men from Tallapoosa and Randolph Counties. Tall, slender. agile, used to ride to hounds, he graced the back of his noble steed Logan, a Palladin. indeed. Of warm hearted. generous impulses tender and consid crate for the men who had unani- mously chosen him to lead them. the sound of battle brought the flash of tn hfz axrG CT to the hilt of a sabre on whose bright blade no tarnish could come while it's pulse still throbbed as in trepid as Lonnes, with the dash of Murat and the bravery of Ney, as with blade he led his men in that brilliant charge on his last May morn