by Oliver Optic
CHAPTER XVIII
THE EVACUATION OF TULLAHOMA
On the afternoon of this 23d day of June, General Granger had leftTriune, with his forces, and after but little fighting had driven theConfederates back to Christiana, a small village on the road fromMurfreesboro to Shelbyville. At the same time the cavalry under GeneralMitchell--commonly called Stanley's cavalry, although the major-generalwas absent--moved along as already told, having with them theRiverlawns. The two commands met at the village mentioned, and after abrief conference it was decided that both should proceed onward in anendeavor to drive the enemy from Guy's Gap back into the rifle-pits atShelbyville.
Going into the Gap after the Confederates was no easy task. The way wasrough in some spots, and knee-deep with mud in others, and the forceswent forward in the lightest marching order possible. It was out of thequestion to use one road alone, as each regiment that passed over itrendered it all the more torn up and difficult of travel, and troopswere consequently sent on in several ways.
Colonel Lyon rode at the head of his column, with Deck beside him. TheRiverlawns were riding by fours, but now the way widened, and thehorsemen came up by eights. For half an hour no enemy had been sighted,but now the vedettes came back announcing several battalions just abovethe bend.
"And some of the company are sharpshooters," said the leader. "Theypicked off poor Rolloson at a distance of three hundred yards."
Without hesitation Colonel Lyon summoned Major Belthorpe to his side andexplained the situation. "I wish you would send Captain Knox's companyto the front. I think it would be as well for him to spread his men tothe left of the road, but he can use his own judgment after he sees thelay of the land."
As we know, Captain Knox's men were more or less experts at shooting,they being Kentuckians who were used to handling firearms almost dailyin the woods and on the border. The order was transmitted to Life, whotook his command ahead on the double-quick. This accomplished, theremaining companies continued on the road until another bend was gained.
The Confederate sharpshooters had stationed themselves behind some heavybrush, not daring to climb the trees for fear of being surrounded. Nosooner had the seventh company of the Riverlawns appeared than theyopened a sharp fire, wounding two privates.
The flashes of fire and the smoke served to locate the sharpshooters inspite of the downpour of rain, but instead of answering the shots atonce, Life took his command around to the shelter of some other brush.Then he commenced to work up on the Confederates' rear, picking offthree men in less than as many minutes.
By this time Deck had his battalion ready for a rush, and as soon asLife sent word where he was located, the young major started forward ona gallop. He, however, went but two hundred yards, just enough to givethe enemy the impression that a direct attack was contemplated. Up camethe Confederates, as expected, firing as rapidly as they could. Then,realizing how they were caught between two fires, they started toretreat, only to find themselves faced by Life Knox's command.
"Take aim! Fire!" cried the tall Kentuckian, and the command dischargedtheir weapons, not as a regular company would, but as soon as a proper"bead" could be drawn. This fire was most deadly, and when Deck orderedanother advance, the Confederates began to flee in confusion, about halfof them taking to the main road of Guy's Gap, and the balance taking tothe mountain trails.
"Forward, men, we have them on the run now!" shouted Major Deck, wavinghis sabre. His illness was now forgotten, and he rode well in advance,by Captain Abbey's side. The first battalion was far in advance of therest of the regiment, and as it swept along, Life Knox's company joinedit in the rear without waiting for Major Belthorpe's battalion toappear.
The road now led upward, and at the top of a rise, the Confederate forcetook another stand. There were in all about four hundred men, about thesame number Deck possessed, counting the seventh company in with hisown. Without hesitation the major ordered the charge, and up the hillwent the cavalry at full speed, firing as they advanced.
The cracking of guns was incessant, and now came a fierce hand-to-handconflict, as the first and second companies of the Riverlawns rodedirectly upon the front rank of the enemy. Infantry and cavalry splashedand slipped in the mud, and many a sabre-stroke fell harmlessly upon theflying ends of a water-soaked army cloak. But the top of the hill wasgained and held, and with a yell of defiance the Confederates fell backto where their main body was located, at the other end of the Gap. Deckthen halted, to allow the rest of the regiment to overtake him.
It was decided by General Mitchell to follow up every advantage gained,and soon another advance was ordered, directly along the main road ofGuy's Gap, and for nearly two hours the battle raged, the Confederatestrying vainly to hold their own. At last they broke, and fled directlyto the rifle-pits in front of Shelbyville.
"We've got them pretty well back now," said Artie, to Life Knox, afterthe engagement had been going on for the best part of two hours. "Idon't believe General Mitchell will want us to charge those rifle-pitsto-day."
"There is nothing like keeping at them when they have been retreating,"answered the tall Kentuckian. "By to-morrow they may be braced upagain."
"Yes, but Wheeler is here with a very large force of cavalry, Life."
"So I've heard. Well, we'll obey orders, I reckon, no matter what theyare," concluded the commander of the seventh company.
Orders were not long in coming. It was about six o'clock in the evening,and now General Granger joined Mitchell with his infantry once more, andanother advance was ordered, with the cavalry again to the front. Awaywent the horsemen, straight for the trenches. Many took flying leapsover the openings, sending the mud into the very faces of the surprisedand bewildered Confederates. The attack was short and sharp, and unableto withstand the shock of cavalry backed up by Granger's fine infantry,the enemy threw down their arms and started pell-mell for Shelbyvilleproper. The Union forces pursued, and captured a number of Confederatesnear the bank of Duck River. The larger portion of the Confederatecavalry, under General Wheeler, however, escaped by swimming theiranimals across the turbulent and swollen stream. At seven o'clock thetown had surrendered, giving up a number of small arms, three cannon,and a quantity of corn, which proved highly acceptable.
The corps commanders were now called to general headquarters and eachreceived his orders in writing. McCook was to advance on the Shelbyvillepike, turn to the left on the Wartrace road, and seize and hold LibertyGap; General Granger to threaten Middleton; General Thomas to advance onthe Manchester pike, and hold, if possible, Hoover's Gap; some cavalryunder Turchin to establish a lookout toward McMinnville, and the balanceof the cavalry under Mitchell to attack the rebel cavalry at Middleton.
These movements were executed promptly, despite floods and the wretchedcondition of the roads. The fighting was sharp, the Confederatesdisputing every foot of territory. Both sides suffered heavily, and theweather made matters worse, yet nobody grumbled, for the enlisted menwere now becoming hardened to the campaign, and realized that thisfighting was only the introduction to the tremendous battles still tocome.
The morning of the 28th found Thomas ready to start the move which wasto bring the campaign to a climax. McCook and Crittenden were slowly butsurely concentrating at Manchester. Thomas's first movement was to sendColonel Wilder to Dechard, where this command destroyed about threehundred yards of the railroad which the Confederates had been using. Thenext day the Tracy City railroad was also placed in a useless condition.
On the 29th of June the army was ready for the final blow at Tullahoma.The advanced troops were within a mile and three-quarters of the city.The corps of McCook and Crittenden came up and closed in, and the mainbody of the cavalry, including the Riverlawns, arrived at Manchester.Thus it was felt Tullahoma was, after a nine days' campaign, completelyat the mercy of the Northern forces.
A surprise now awaited General Rosecrans. A citizen of the town came toThomas with the report that General Bragg had fled, taking all histroops with
him. At first the Union commander could not believe thenews, and, to make sure, he sent General Steedman ahead to make aninvestigation. The general marched into Tullahoma, captured a fewprisoners, and verified the report. Instantly General Rosecrans laidplans to pursue the flying Confederates. But though a few skirmishesresulted, and a brave stand was taken by both sides at Elk River, thepursuit proved of no avail, and Bragg crossed the Cumberland Mountainsunmolested, leaving, as the fruits of the campaign, Middle Tennesseefree from Confederate domination.
It has been said by several authorities that the Tullahoma campaign wasthe greatest conducted by General Rosecrans, being even superior to thatwhich came immediately after. The enemy was dislodged from first onestrongly fortified position and then another, and sent flying over themountains in the wildest confusion. Nearly seventeen hundred prisonerswere taken, and also eleven pieces of artillery and an immense amountof army stores. The loss to the Union army was about five hundred inkilled, wounded, and missing.
"We've cleared them out!" cried Artie, enthusiastically, when the newswent the rounds that the Confederates had really crossed the mountainsand were on their way to Chattanooga.
"Yes, and the two armies are just about where they were last summer,"answered Deck. He was resting on a cot in his rain-soaked tent, whilehis brother sat on a camp-stool, writing a letter to the folks at home."My, but what a washing-out we've had!"
Despite the hardships, however, Deck was feeling better steadily, untilit could almost be said that he was his old self again. He had madeseveral inquiries about Thomas Derwiddie, the Confederate whose life hehad saved, but nothing had been heard concerning the escaped prisoner.
In a skirmish on Duck River, Colonel Lyon had been struck in the leg.The wound was not serious, but the officer was told by the surgeon whoattended him that he had best keep out of the saddle for a while, andthis advice was now being followed. As a consequence, the command ofthe Riverlawns had fallen upon Lieutenant-Colonel Gordon.
The soldiers were feeling good, and the Fourth of July was celebrated incamp in a rousing fashion, with huge camp-fires, a double supply ofrations, and the roasting of several small porkers confiscated atManchester, when that town was first entered. In the evening severalpieces of "home-made" fireworks were set off, and the more hilarious ofthe boys in blue got up a dance, ladies being represented by severalcavalrymen who had appropriated portions of feminine attire found indeserted houses that had been passed. The "boys" were bound to havetheir play at any cost, no matter how tired the recent hard marching andriding had left them.
The appearance of the Army of the Cumberland in the centre of Tennesseeonce again filled the inhabitants with dismay. Bragg had assured them ofhis protection, and the planters had taken him at his word and tilledand cultivated their fields. Now, instead of these products going toenrich the Confederacy, they were confiscated by the Union forces, as anecessity of war. As was natural, the farmers protested; but theseprotests were of no avail, excepting in rare cases, when payments weremade for what was taken.
The Riverlawns had been ordered to Manchester, and were encamped not farfrom the railroad. They were now ordered to Salem, and reaching there,found themselves brigaded with Major-General Stanley's entire force.
"Something is up," remarked Major Deck to Major Belthorpe. "But what itis I can't imagine."
"I heard something said about a shortness of horses," answered KateBelthorpe's brother. "Perhaps we are to go on a raid and see what we canround up."
Major Belthorpe's surmise proved correct, as Deck soon learned by theorders given him. The entire cavalry was to combine in a grand sweep toHuntsville, Alabama, rounding up as many horses and as much cattle andother live stock as possible. The advance was to cover several miles ofterritory, and a dozen different roads were pursued, the start beingmade on July the 12th.
As Lieutenant-Colonel Gordon was suffering from an attack of chills andfever, Major Lyon was placed in command of the regiment. He wasinstructed to move almost directly southward, by the way of a smallvillage called Crespin, the name of which has since been changed. Theroad was a fair one, and ten o'clock in the morning saw the Riverlawnson the move. It was not intended that the round-up should last more thanfour or five days, and the cavalry went in the lightest possiblemarching order.
Less than ten miles had been covered when the scouts in advance, underCaptain Ripley of the eighth company, sent word back that a smalldetachment of Confederates were in advance, driving about thirty horsessouthward just as hard as they could. Besides the horses, they had threeUnion prisoners, one of whom wore the uniform of a captain of artillery.
"Three prisoners and thirty horses," mused Deck. "We must stop them, byall means." Without delay he sent for Majors Truman and Belthorpe andgave the necessary orders, and soon the Riverlawns were making the bestpossible speed over the torn-up pike. A distance of two miles wascovered in less than twenty minutes, when another report came in thatastonished Deck beyond measure. The report was as follows:--
"Confederate force, horses, and prisoners have utterly disappeared. Nobuildings or woods for them to hide in. Cannot guess what has become ofthem. Looks as if the earth had swallowed them up, but the quicksandsare not quite bad enough for that. Will keep our eyes wide open, butthat is all we can do."
Without delay Deck, accompanied by Major Belthorpe, rode forward toinvestigate.