The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1913-02-21
"reminiscences OF
the @ar-
Written IN 1908 by B. p. Gregory, Sr.
10 His Son, w. 7. Gregory.
Continued from last weekly

I was given 20 men from the regi-
ment to help take the Yankee picket
line at the railroad just in the edge
of the city. We advanced on them
about 9 or 10 o'clock in the night and
drove them back into the city with
very small loss, but we could not
hold it longer than daylight, when
they came back with line strong
enough to force us back. A few
nights later we tried it again and
took it back and held it until we left
Knoxville.
After leaving Knoxville, it being
so, long ago 1 can't remember the
places we went. We had some con-
siderable skirmishing at different
points but this has slipped my men,
ory, so l don't know much about it,
and will have to pass it by.
Some time after this 1 got fur
Tough to visit home, my second and
last furlough of the war. Captain
Douglass and myself sent our fur
loughs up to General Longstreet for
his approval, but he would not ap-
prove them just at that time, and
kept them awhile. 1 had about con-
cluded that he was not going to ap-
prove them at all, and 1 had been
sent off with a company up the
French Broad river to guard a wagon
train and on our way back l met
General Jenkins and eight or ten
others on their way home on fur
Tough. He told me my furlough was
at camp and would like for me to go
on with them as it was about fifty
miles or more, of dangerous noun
tain travel, and the larger the crowo
the better. 1 was alright, for while
out with the train I saw fine young
four-year-old horse offered for sale
and l bought him cheap, with the in
tention of selling him. to one of our
doctors who was needing a horse.
So turned around and went on home
with them, and it was the most tire
some riding I ever did in my life.
The horse was unbroken and scarry
and awkward. I rode him, all the
same, fifty-one miles the first day
and fifty-two the second. We had to
do that because there were so few
houses on the way and the mountains
were so high and ragged there were
but few places to put house. I got
home all right, but did not enjoy
my stay very much for I had large
rising on my leg that caused me a
great deal of pain nearly the whole
time I was at home. And while
was at home our little army moved
again to Bulls Gap. We were get
ting back toward Virginia now, our
old tramping ground. I rejoined our
regiment at Bull Gap and we stayed
in that part of Tennessee the balance
of the winter. AS Spring began to
approach we made our way into Vir-
ginia and joined Lees army at the
Battle of the Wilderness. A very
bloody battle it was, too, heavy loss
on both sides. The enemy and Lees
army had been fighting before we
got there, and we went into line next
morning very early and lay in the
edge of the woods with thick under
growth all through it, expecting the
enemy to advance on us at any min
ute, until IL o'clock or later. Neither
party could see each other, and the
Yankees had built breastworks, but
the country as far as could see was
of such a nature that artillery could
not be used to much advantage by
either side. While we were preparing
to advance on the Yankees General
Longstreet and General Jenkins were
riding along through the woods look
ing to see the way best for assault
ing the enemy and got around in
front too far and were fired on by
some of our troops, who thought they
were Yankees. 1 was near enough to
see them as the woods were a little
thin there at that place, but I did
not know who they were until after
we got the sad news that General
Longstreet was wounded and our
General Jenkins was killed. 1t did
look very discouraging to us, just
at the very moment we were about to
move on the enemy, to loose our gen.
eral. But we soon got the word,
Forward" and began advancing
slowly through the woods. We did
not go far before we came to where
they had fought the enemy before
we got to Lees army. And owing
to the density of the underground in
the woods they got within thirty or
forty yards of each other before they
opened fire and both parties, as well