The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-10-04

ed in line of battle near White Ponds confronted by Kupatrick's command. Gen. James Hagen was in command of the Alabama Brigade. We were not expected to make stand or engage the enemy in battle but as tempor- ary check. The plan of battle seems to have been to form each regiment in line across the road a few hundred feet apart with gap at the road to let the regiment in front pass to the rear in columns of fours after firing and again form in the rear. The Stn was the front line. Az it was a cold day we dismountAd while waiting for the enemy and Captain Nance and l lay on the ground near each other dis cussing the prospects of the close or the war when he remarked that he would regret very much to be killed now as he had passed so much hard ship and danger and he believed the war would sDon close. As he made this remark we saw the enemy ad- vancing and we mounted our horses and waited until they were in two hundred yards of us. Then we fired and in columns of fo.~s were gallop- ing through the regiment in our rear to give them an opportunity to fire bur hy the time We had cleared the road, so they could fire, the enemy were upon us. The Yankees, believ- ing we were retrating when we retir- ed te the rear, Kilpatricks whole com mand charged us. The brigade retreat ed in, disorder. every man for himself and the Yankees took the hindmost
 We retreated about half a mile through a lane where General Hagan had posted himself. As l reached the end nt the lane he called to know b he could get men enough to check them. halted and called to my men. About fifty or sixty of the regiment ofo fNrn1Hd linA along the fence and began firing, when the ene- my slowed to O walk Then Captain Nance alone ch5reed down the line, waving his hat above his head. Within fifty yards the Yankees stopped but began to flank us on either side. Cap tain Nance slowly turned his horse and rode leisurely out of the lane, the enemy now advancing and firing, shot Captain Nance from his horse when only forty yards from him. The Yam kees buried him where he fell The officers refused to let their men take anything from his Lody or search his pockets. The Yankees said he was the bravest man they had met durink the war Captain Nance was detailed by order of General Wheeler through our Col. James c. Malone. in the spring of 1883 to report to the commander of Wheeler's Elite Corps to be train ed for an oficer and in the fall of 'eS was ordered to take charge of com pany as captain in his regiment and acted as escort for General Longstreet in East Tennessee. served durins the four years of war with Captain Nance and never saw him show any precaution, except one time. In the early spring of 1S63, in Tennessee. we were in tke act of crossing a swollen stream. Captain Nance unbuekled his pistols from his waist and was putting them on the horn of his saddle. At this
 moment General Wheeler rode up and saw him and said, Captain give me your pistols and will carry them across for you" Captain Nance buck. led the pistols around his neck and as he charged his horse into the river General Wheeler remarked, "that will do." No braver soldier ever died for his country than Captain James T. Nance.