CHAPTER XIV.
Bardstown Engagement—I “Swap” Horses With a Federal.
The object of General Bragg’s advance into Kentucky was to form a nucleus for Kentuckians to rally around, our War Department having been importuned by leading Kentuckians to do this, claiming they would have a hundred thousand men to join us as soon as we could reclaim their territory. On this point, however, they were mistaken, as we gathered only about six thousand recruits and they all wanted to serve in cavalry. They joined us largely about half equipped for cavalry service, many of them with citizen’s saddles and shotguns or squirrel rifles and, while on the subject, I might mention here that over half of them deserted us before we passed through Cumberland Gap and soon after they found that we were unable to hold Kentucky. Gen. Bragg moved in there with about thirty thousand men, exclusive of General Kirby Smith’s force of about twelve thousand, which moved on Cincinnati and fought the battle of Richmond, where they completely defeated the Federal Army of about twenty-five thousand strong, capturing, killing and wounding nearly half, with the balance driven into Covington and Cincinnati.
While at Bardstown, General Bragg, finding that the real object of his campaign was a failure, decided to turn it into a raid; to collect valuable stores and move out again, through Cumberland Gap.
When Colonel Wharton took command of the brigade, succeeding General Forrest, General Wheeler with another brigade occupied the Taylorsville Pike, both brigades holding the enemy in check in their advance as best they could. Our little force at Taylorsville was drawn over to the Bardstown and Louisville Pike, where they met the balance of the brigade at Mount Washington. While at Mount Washington, drawn up in line, eating our lunch, a large force of Federal cavalry made a dash on us but were soon repulsed and driven back. In this engagement a messmate of mine, Roland Chatham, received a pistol ball right in the center of his forehead, just over the eyes, the ball penetrating his skull and burying itself in the brain. This however, did not knock him off his horse and he remained with us until after the enemy was driven back. Passing to the rear with his wound bleeding, he was noticed by some ladies in Mount Washington, displaying his pistol, when they were heard to remark, “Just look at that poor Texas Ranger; shot through the head and still he wants to fight.” In this connection I would state that Chatham was sent to the hospital and finally to Texas, never having been completely disabled on account of this wound, and with this ball imbedded in the brain, lived to a good old age, dying only a few years ago at Bryan, Texas, where he raised a large family. Here he started and operated a cotton gin manufactory, which proved a great success and enabled him to amass a considerable fortune. During all his lifetime his wound remained open but never affected his mind. This was, perhaps, one of the most remarkable cases on record.
The Federal advance through Mount Washington and Taylorsville continued daily as soon as it was light enough to discern anything. The enemy’s skirmishers would advance and, supported by their line of battle and artillery, would drive us from positions we had taken up. We would then fall back to another good position, perhaps a mile, and defend that as best we could, again to be driven from it in the same manner. I forgot to mention we had with us in this brigade, the First and Second Georgia and the Tennessee Battalion, under Colonel Baxter Smith, who is still living at Nashville, Tennessee.
When within nine miles of Bardstown, one morning (dark and drizzling rain) the enemy failed to make its appearance at daylight. Waiting until about nine o’clock, Colonel Wharton got suspicious, and sent a scout in our rear, who struck a large cavalry force of the enemy of about eight regiments, occupying the pike near the Fair Grounds. Returning, full speed, the scout reported to Colonel Wharton this condition. Immediately placing himself at the head of our regiment, drawn up immediately across the pike, Colonel Wharton sent couriers to the balance of our regiment and to a section of little brass six-pounders (originally the property of the Arkansas Military Institute) commanded by Captain Pugh of our regiment, a western Texas cowman, instructing them to come on and catch up with our regiment as fast as they could. Wharton at the head of the regiment in column of fours, struck a lope and soon arrived in sight of this body of the enemy’s cavalry. He then ordered a charge and when at a junction of a dirt road with the pike, about two companies of this cavalry formed in an orchard behind a rail picket fence, which are rails stuck in the ground, picket fashion, and fired on our flank point blank. About thirty or forty of us turned on them, halting in front of this picket fence with our bridle reins thrown over the horns of our saddles, and with a six-shooter in each hand, began to empty saddles. This caused them to break and enter a lane in their rear, having already let down the fence to provide for such an emergency, and fled up the lane in a northerly direction from whence they had come. Colonel Wharton with the balance of the regiment dashed into the solid body of the enemy in his front and scattered them. It soon developed that they were panic stricken and were driven over the open country, interspersed only by rail and rock fences, in detached bodies of twenty and fifty, and so on, by only a few Rangers, driving them like cattle on the prairies. Here was one of the most brilliant cavalry engagements we were ever in and resulted in our capturing a great many prisoners.
When the regiment passed through Bardstown somewhat hurriedly, passing by the Newman residence, Miss Josie Newman, who was standing at the gate, watching them go by, saw a Major Jared Gross, a former acquaintance, loping up the column. She recognized him, clapping her hands and calling out, “Good-bye, Jared; I’m glad to see you running,” when the next moment she recognized a Federal, Major Watts, riding behind one of our boys, a prisoner, his face badly bruised and his clothes torn and soiled, having had his horse killed under him. This sight immediately brought her tears and she went back into the house, crying. She was a kind hearted, good young lady, full of spirit in her Union sentiment.
Now, to go back to the party of Federals in the orchard, fleeing up the lane from the direction whence they came: Captain Mark Evans, commanding one of our Western companies, and I, were the first ones to enter the lane and drive these fellows. We were followed by quite a number of others, who stopped at the fence with us when first fired into. In running up the lane we ran over a number of six-shooters and belts with sabre and six-shooters attached. The six-shooter was always a valuable capture for us, as we could readily sell it to men in the army who had money, which we were always in need of, and although we were virtually maintaining ourselves without the aid of the Government, we could not afford to stop and pick up these pistols, as everything depended on crowding these Federals, who outnumbered us at least ten to one; but, as before stated, they were panic stricken, which sometimes happened to the best of troops.
After passing about a mile up this lane, I noticed a very fine pistol. I recognized it as a Tranter, an English pistol, self-cocking, of which Colonel Terry had four, and I was always anxious to secure a pair of them. My first impulse was to stop and get this pistol; then again concluded not to stop, as so much depended on our crowding them, but, after passing it perhaps thirty or forty yards, I decided I would go back and pick it up, anyway. For this purpose, I wheeled and as my horse’s position was across the lane, in turning, one of our men just behind me, struck my horse’s neck and broke the headstall of my bridle, dropping the bit out of the horse’s mouth. He wheeled and ran after Evans and the Federals, running faster than ever I had known him to run before, and he would soon have carried me right in among them. But, when near Evans I called to him to stop my horse; at the same time one of the Federals dismounted from his horse and surrendered. He and Evans together stopped my horse, and as there was no time for swapping bridles, I slipped over on his horse, handing him my bridle rein which was still around my horse’s neck with the bit attached; grabbing his pistol, I went on my Federal horse and told the Federal to wait and turn mine over to some of the boys behind.
Continuing up this lane we discovered a bunch of about twenty-five or thirty, some hundred and fifty yards to our right, in a field, headed by an officer riding a magnificent horse and in magnificent uniform. We soon arrived at a big gate on our right, just beyond where another fence connected with the lane fence, this fence running due east, and which this bunch of Federals had to cross. When we reached this gate Evans said to me, “Run through that gate and head off this bunch,” which I did. I forgot to mention that this party was driven by only about a half dozen of our men. After passing through the gate I stopped, took position almost immediately in front of them and when the officer got near the fence I threw my pistol down on him and demanded his surrender, to which he paid no attention, but threw off the top rail, the rider of the fence, and made his horse leap the fence, passing right in front of me, running through an orchard and I have never been able to understand how he succeeded in avoiding the limbs of the trees without butting his brains out.
When the balance of his men came up and attempted to jump the fence, the first man broke it down and furnished an easier way for the balance to cross but, being headed off by me, they were forced to take right down the fence east, followed by our boys, whom I cautioned several times to hold their fire until the Federals would bunch up. To this, however, very little attention was paid and with my additional pistol, my shots held out longer than theirs.
Now, it must be understood that having to load our pistols with loose powder from the powder flask, which had a gauge attached, then ramming down the ball with a ramrod attached to the pistol, then putting a cap on the nipple, it was necessary to stop and reload, as an attempt at reloading, running, would have spilled the powder and caused confusion; hence, one after another of our boys dropped behind to reload. This found me alone, just after the Federals and I had turned the corner of a stone fence, starting due north again. When about a hundred yards from this stone fence I fired my last shot, when one of them looked around, discovered I was by myself, called on the others to “turn on him; there is only one by himself; give him h—.” I wheeled and the Yankees wheeled. When we had run back only about fifty yards, two of our men, who I think were Geo. W. Littlefield and Beardy Miller, turned the same corner of the stone fence. When this bunch of Federals saw this, they again wheeled, running north. When Littlefield and Miller came up to where I was they said, “Come on; come on.” I said, “No, I have got to stop and load my pistol,” which I proceeded to do, they continuing after this bunch of Federals. Having about three or four chambers of my pistol filled with powder and standing about fifteen yards from the fence, seven more Federals came around the same corner of the fence, running between me and the fence, after I had drawn back my horse about ten steps, giving them more room. If I had had one load in my pistol, I would have demanded their surrender, which I believe they would have done, but they never said a word to me nor I to them, and went flying after Littlefield and Beardy Miller, who were after the first bunch.
I forgot to mention that before we had reached this far, we heard heavy firing of infantry and artillery. We knew it was infantry by their first volley; then a very rapid, scattering fire, as also rapid cannonading in the direction of the Fair Grounds, which we concluded to mean that the balance of our brigade were passing down into Bardstown, around this infantry and artillery, which had been sent in support of their cavalry.
After having completed the loading of two of my pistols, I discovered a bunch of about eighty or a hundred Federals running towards me, cut off by the long fence running east. When they struck the fence, in place of crossing it, continuing in their course north, they turned right down the line of fence east, on the south side of it. By this time the firing at the Fair Grounds had become more scattered and distant, and the artillery had ceased firing, but I was afraid to venture back the way I came, by myself, therefore, decided that I would let down the fence, getting on the south side of it, follow this last bunch east, until I was about four or five miles east of Bardstown, then turn due south and strike the Springfield Pike, on which I knew our infantry were moving from Bardstown to Perryville. I finished loading my pistols, then crossed the fence and started east in the wake of these Federals, keeping a sharp lookout ahead and, after riding about three or four miles, passing through woods-lots and fences, I emerged from the woods, up on a ridge, and discovered these fellows about a quarter of a mile below me in a field, drawn up in a line, facing in my direction. I resorted to a ruse, taking off my hat and waving it behind me, then started at them, but this would not work and immediately they started after me. I turned south and put my Federal horse to his best and soon got out of sight.
Having run in this direction some three or four miles, coming out of a woods-lot through a big gate to a large, white house I stopped and called, hoping to get some information about the best way to get to the Springfield Pike. After calling some little time, an old gentleman came out of the door, to the front porch, when I called to him that I was a Confederate soldier and wanted some information about striking the Springfield Pike, four or five miles east of Bardstown. Having heard the firing of the infantry and artillery, which no doubt greatly alarmed him, he talked so fast and rambling that I was unable to understand him, and I begged him to come to the gate, which he started to do. When about half way, I heard the woods-lot gate creak, looked around and here were my Federals, coming single file, which of course started me again, running south into a short lane running east, and when at the mouth of this lane, only about three hundred yards long, I looked across the corner of this man’s field and found about a dozen or more of these fellows bunched up at his gate, talking to the old man. I immediately turned south again, putting my horse to his very best. When about three miles from there, I struck a lane with a dirt road running towards Bardstown. I kept a sharp lookout for the Federals behind me, whom I never saw again and don’t believe they followed me any further. Looking up the lane east, I discovered five Confederate cavalrymen coming in the direction of Bardstown and when they got up to where I was waiting for them in the lane, having crossed the fence, I found that they were three Georgians and two of our own regiment. I then tried to get them to go back with me, telling them that I believed that we could pick up quite a number of prisoners, but the Georgians were unwilling; they too, had heard the firing at Bardstown and did not think it safe for us to go back in the direction of where I left these people scattered over the different fields.
I now suggested we strike south again until we reached the Springfield Pike, which we did in due time and struck Anderson’s Division of Infantry, reporting to General Anderson our engagement and telling him I was satisfied we could pick up many prisoners if he would only send back with me a couple of companies of cavalry. He stated he did not have a man to spare and was unable to do so, but told me to wait there, that General Hardee would come up pretty soon and might act on my suggestion.
In about half an hour General Hardee, with his staff, came up, and I reported the engagement to him and found he had had no particulars. Being unable to tell him whether the balance of the brigade with the two little popguns had got through safely to Bardstown, made him somewhat apprehensive, but he was, nevertheless, gratified to know that the Rangers had come through all right.
General Hardee, in response to my request to send some cavalry with me to pick up these stragglers, said that he did not have a man to spare and told me we had better stay at his headquarters that night. The next morning we would find our command at a certain point on this pike, he said. This we decided to do, being very hungry and tired. The next morning we started for our camp and, on my arrival there, found my horse with the saddle, everything all right, but no one in the company could tell who delivered him or where he came from. Captain Evans, I suppose, being too much engaged in collecting his scattered forces, had not made any report on my exchange of horses. I never found out what became of my good Federal who held him for me and swapped with me. My comrades, who had concluded that I was perhaps killed, shot off of my horse, had given me out and, when I rode in on my Federal horse with the Federal overcoat and other equipments, you can imagine their surprise.
Miss Josie Newman, just before Major Gross passed her house, had called to some members of our company to know where I was and their answer was that I was left on the field, either dead or wounded and this caused her and her mother, with friends, to look over the field for several days, hunting me or my body, so Mrs. Cannon reported after a visit to her home, several years after the war.