by Unknown
I watched as Sergeant Ritchie got handfuls of rocks and spread them out on the earth where we had stood. I led the men and our horses through the rocks. It was difficult to judge direction in this jungle of rocks, trees and scrubby undergrowth but that aided us as it would make pursuit difficult. The land began to climb and I saw another ridge rising before us. The rocks gradually petered out and then we came across an open area, a wheat field. We had to turn left and follow the slight indentation on the land covered with bushes. Ahead of us I could see the Emmitsburg Road but, as it ran along the ridge we would be highlighted. Then I saw a small orchard. If we lay the horses down we might escape detection.
“Quickly men, get into the orchard and lie the horses down.” I waited until they had passed and then I followed with Sergeant Ritchie. “Any sign of them?”
“No sir but I can hear them in the rocks. They are still there.”
I looked at the sun which was beginning to set. That would be our only hope. Copper lay down easily enough but Wilson’s horse was a bit skittish. I wished that Sergeant James was with us for he would have calmed her down. Eventually, when all the rest had settled, so did she. There was total silence, save for the sound of the crickets and the fire flies dancing in the wheat field. We heard the troopers as they came up the slope. The creaking of their leather and the jingling of their equipment marked their progress. They crossed the wheat field and I could hear them talking on the other side of the wall.
“Well you had better report to General Buford that there are Rebs on this side of the road as well as to the west. Tell him we can’t be certain how many. We’ll return to the column.”
After they had left us I was in an even greater quandary. There were cavalry ahead of us and General Lee or at least elements from Lee’s army. I decided, after a short wait that we would risk crossing the road and heading west. We led our horses across the road into the woods on the other side. We all kept a close watch on both sides. Fortunately we saw no one and we plunged into the woods.
We mounted and headed as close to west as we could get. “Sir, where do you think the army is?”
“The Yankees believe it is to the west of us but it could be to the north or the south, sergeant. I take it as a good thing that the Union army doesn’t know where the general is. With General Stuart’s cavalry on the loose I have high hopes that we can win.”
As we trudged through the woods I was optimistic. I just hoped that I would meet some of our men sooner rather than later. I had the feeling that the Yankees were bringing their army up and were already fortifying the hills. As we went downhill I tried to imagine how hard it would be to attack troops who were dug in on the hill.
I suddenly heard a noise and I held up my hand to halt the men. I could see a camp fire in the distance. I left Copper with Trooper White and, with pistol drawn I headed towards the sound. I smelled tobacco and caught the glow of the cigar the sentry was smoking. Was he a Reb or a Yankee? I moved a little closer and caught sight of a butternut trouser leg and a bare foot. That could only mean one thing, a Reb.
I did not want to be shot by frightening the guard and so I said, “Captain Hogan of the 1st Virginia Scouts with a message for General Lee.”
He stepped towards me with musket levelled. We were just a yard or so apart. “Where the hell did you come from?”
I shook my head, “A long way from here, my friend.” I whistled and the rest of my troop appeared. “Where am I?”
“This is the 3rd Alabama and General Hill is the commander.” By now the officer of the day had arrived. “Sir I have despatches from General Stuart and they are for General Lee.”
He nodded. “Follow me.”
“Sergeant, see to the men.”
We trotted off through the lines of tents to a glow at the far end. I had never met General Lee but I had seen him before and I knew him to be a gracious gentleman. He beamed at me, “Ah Captain Hogan I believe. My nephew speaks well of you sir.”
I held out the leather pouch. “I have despatches for you sir; from General Stuart.”
As he opened them General Hill came towards me. I recognised him from other campaigns. “Tell me Captain Hogan, where is General Stuart?”
I pointed east. “Between Westminster and Hanover and there is at least two Union Corps between him and us.”
The general stopped reading. “Are you sure?”
“We passed one Corps of infantry, artillery and some cavalry close to Littlestown. I think there is a Cavalry Corps on that ridge yonder.”
Hill looked at General Lee and said, “Seminary Ridge.” General Lee nodded. “Damn Pettigrew, he should have occupied it when he had the chance.”
“It is no use worrying about what might have happened we will have to deal with the situation in which we find ourselves.” He finished reading and then looked at me. “Are there guns on the ridge?”
“Not that I saw general.”
“Well that is a relief.” He turned to General Hill. “We will not see General Stuart today general. We will have to deal with the men on the ridge without his aid. Captain, when your men are rested I would appreciate it if you would act as scouts. I believe you know the area?”
“Yes sir.”
“Good.” He put his hand on my arm, “Well done sir. You have done well to breach their lines. Tell me, did you lose many men?”
“Just one sir.”
He shook his head sadly, “And that is one too many. Make sure you eat too. We may not have much but we will share what we have.”
I smiled, “Don’t worry sir, we bring our own. We always take from the Yankees. They are very generous.”
Even the dour A.P Hill smiled at that. He nodded, “You’ll do captain, you’ll do. If you would care to join me in my tent in an hour or so I will give you your orders.”
I returned to my men. They waited expectantly. As I had expected Sergeant Jones had arranged for food. He handed me a mess tin with some hot food.”It seems the Alabama boys had heard of us and when they heard that you were one of the men with a price on your head they insisted on sharing their food with us. They had been hunting.”
I greedily devoured the welcome food. “We are now attached to General Hill. I think it means that we will be used as scouts. Sergeant Jones, divide the men into three. I guess we will be in great demand.” I pointed to the east. The first job will be to find those Yankee cavalry for the general.”
We left almost immediately. I did not see the point in being briefed and then finding my men. We would need to get down to action immediately. General Hill came out to see me with a map in his hand. “I want to know numbers of men on these three ridges: Seminary, Herr and McPherson. We are blind at the moment without General Stuart’s cavalry.” He added bitterly.
I felt honour bound to defend my commander. “He is trying to get here general but the whole Union army is in his path.”
The general snorted. “Make sure you keep me informed of what you discover.”
I turned to my sergeants. “Sergeant Jones head north and scout Herr Ridge. Sergeant Ritchie, go with him and scout McPherson Ridge. I will take Seminary Ridge. Don’t risk the men unnecessarily. The General needs to know the enemy numbers.” I looked around. We will make our camp over there in the woods there. Good luck.”
I looked at the eight troopers with me. Troopers Lowe and White were the most experienced. “You two, as of now you are corporals.”
They both looked pleased, “We thank the captain.”
I smiled, “Don’t thank me yet. We are going to have to get really close to over five thousand men.”
General Pettigrew’s men were already rushing towards the east. I could hear the ripple of rifles and muskets firing ahead of us. I rode down the creek known as Willoughby Run. It hid us from the men on the ridge and I hoped to get behind them. I remembered that there were two creeks before the ridge and then the tangle of the rocks behind. That would be our observation point. We could hear the guns but we saw no-one as we wer
e cocooned in the shallow valley. After the small rise I headed east and crossed Pitzer’s Run.
I saw, in the distance, Union troops marching in column. I wondered if they would form on Cemetery Ridge. I could see no-one on Seminary Ridge as yet. Wheeling Copper north I led my patrol towards the ridge. We slowly climbed up and I constantly expected to see blue uniforms but there were none. I halted the troop and took out my pencil and paper. “You boys try to see where the enemy are.”
I could see that, towards the west, they had dismounted cavalrymen and they were desperately trying to hold back General Hill’s leading brigade. Away to the north I could see that there were infantry. I wrote it all down.
“Sir it looks like a Corps is heading from the east. I think it is the one we saw yesterday. “
“Well done Lowe.” That was valuable information as it meant we knew its rough numbers.
I turned to Trooper Grant. “Ride back to General Hill and tell him that it is just cavalry to his fore but there is a Corps on its way.” I pointed due west. “Try to get there the quickest route. We will come with you part of the way and see if we can help clear a path for you.”
I turned to the troopers. “Right boys, here is where we earn our pay. We are going to clear a path so that Grant can take the message to the general. Follow me.”
We headed down the hill towards Pitzer’s Run. Ahead of us were the troopers holding the horses of the dismounted horsemen. It was too good a target to miss. “Grant, ride like the wind! Open fire!”
We blazed away with out Colts. Two of the men holding horses fell and another two went for their weapons. The noise of battle meant that we were in a private little war with these men holding their horses. They made the mistake of trying to use their carbines and we closed with them, firing at almost point blank range with our pistols. One trooper tried to grab Copper’s reins and he was rewarded by a bite on the arm. He fell screaming to the floor to be trampled by Corporal Lowe’s horse.
“Drive those horses!” There were enough loose horses now to cause a panic amongst the troopers who were busy fighting General Hill’s attack from behind the wooden fences. Finally an officer saw us and turned his men to fire at the new target. I emptied my gun and drew my second. I contemplated dismounting until Corporal Lowe shouted, “Sir! On the ridge behind us!”
To my dismay I saw that the leading elements of the Corps we had seen were forming up on the ridge. “Let’s get out of here!”
We had done all that was asked of us and now it was time to escape the two rocks which threatened to crush us. I saw a trooper fall but I had no idea which one it was. This was no time to stop. A blue coated trooper ran from the woods with his rifle aimed at me. He pulled the trigger and I expected a flash and then my demise but his gun either misfired or he had forgotten to load it. I grabbed the end of his rifle and pulled him towards my boot which crunched against his chin. I spun the rifle so that it was like a lance. It still had the bayonet attached. We galloped down the creek. General Hill’s men must have been pushing the vedettes back for blue troopers streamed down the slope to cross the creek. I slashed the bayonet across the face of one trooper and speared a second. My men were still firing as we galloped away from the fray and soon the creek bed was filled with dead Yankees.
We rode until our horses slowed with exhaustion. I turned in the saddle. I had six men left. We had lost two troopers. Climbing the bank I headed for our own lines but I kept a good watch; General Jackson had not been killed by our enemies but our own men. Soldiers would be more than a little nervous this day.
We reached the headquarters without incident. General Hill strode towards me. “Captain Hogan. Have you news?”
I knew then that Trooper Grant had perished. “I sent a trooper sir. The force in front of you is nothing more than a dismounted Cavalry Corps but the Yankees have reached Cemetery Ridge and are digging in.”
“Damn Pettigrew. Thank you sir. When you have rested could you ride to the Chambersburg Pike. Your men have not reported yet from the north.”
“Gladly sir.”
I made sure the men dismounted and watered their horses. The nearby creeks were a godsend but soon they would be brown and salty with men’s blood. I had now lost three men and it was barely eleven o’clock. General Hill had been correct; had General Stuart been on hand then the battle might already be over. A handful of troopers had caused a near collapse of part of the line. I imagined the effect of the best Confederate Cavalry.
“How are we for ammunition?”
The two sergeants went around the men. “We still have twenty or thirty rounds apiece.”
“Corporal Lowe, take two men and see what you can get from the dead Yankees.” While they were gone we reloaded our weapons and made sure we grabbed something to eat and drink. This promised to be a long day. I could not remember the last time I had slept. I could see stretchers returning with the dead Alabama men. I watched each one in case my men were amongst them but they were not.
Corporal Lowe came back with a healthy supply of balls and powder. We shared them out and then I mounted the men. “We are heading north. Keep your eyes open for our men.”
We had to navigate through brigades which were hurriedly being sent to shift the Union cavalry. They had sharpshooters who fired at us as we passed. Bullets and balls zinged around us. When we reached the Chambersburg road we could see heavy fighting. A major from a North Carolina regiment grabbed my reins. “Who are you boys with?”
“We are General Hill’s scouts, the 1st Virginia Scouts sir.”
He pointed to an unfinished railway line. “There are some Yankee cavalry holding us up there. Could you and your boys get around them and flank them?”
I almost laughed at him; seven men to make a flank attack? It was ludicrous but I could see the pleading in his eyes and the dead men lying on the Pike.
“Yes sir, we will do our best. Follow me.” I led the men down the Pike away from the battle. It would have taken infantry much longer to cover the same distance. I could see the ridge ahead and I took us towards the railroad line.
I was about to begin to move down it when there was a sudden movement from our left. All hands went to our guns until I saw it was our men. It was Sergeant Ritchie and seven men. “Thank heavens it’s you sir. We were knocked about a bit. “
I gestured with my thumb. “As was I. Come on Sergeant Ritchie, we are going to make a flank attack on the cavalry.”His eyes widened in surprise but he said nothing.
We approached in single file. We passed the bodies of the men killed in the earlier encounter. I held up my hand and slipped my carbine out. I dismounted and gestured for horse holders. Two men took the animals and I crouched as I led the men forwards. The men to the right of the railroad were firing at the major’s men and they were exposed. I knelt and took aim. When I was sure that we were all in position I shouted, “Fire!”
We were only a handful of carbines but the shock of that volley on an unprotected side was devastating. “Pour it into them boys!”
We were either kneeling or lying down and the uncoordinated rifles did little damage as the Union soldiers fought back. Suddenly my carbine jammed. I slung it across my back and drew my Colt.
“How are we doing, Sergeant Ritchie?”
“Trooper Wainwright is dead and Trooper Dunn is wounded, otherwise we are doing well.” He paused, “Considering our asses are hanging out in the wind here.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll move as soon as we can.”
I was contemplating pulling back to the horses when the troops before us ran back to form a new line. I heard a bugle sound the advance and knew that they had reinforcements. We had done enough here. “Pull back.”
As we passed the dead Yankees we took their weapons and ammunition. I hoped that my carbine could be repaired but our master gunsmith, the Sergeant Major was many miles away. We rode back the way we had come. The major swept his hat off. “Thank you very much Captain. You bought us just enough time to bring up some
fresh troops.”
We waved and galloped back to General Hill. Even as we rode I could see that we were advancing, albeit slowly. There was no one taking pot shots at us this time. The camp appeared devoid of any senior officer and I was directed towards Willoughby Run.
“Sergeant Ritchie, get the camp organised and find some food.” Although we could still fight our horses were so exhausted that another patrol might result in a serious injury and we had no way of gaining remounts. I stood patiently while the general spoke to his colleagues. He gestured me over when he had finished.
“Sir, we now have a continuous line to the north. When I left the Chambersburg Pike the Yankees were throwing in their reserves.”
He clapped me around the shoulder. “That is excellent news. Now if General Ewell can do as General Lee has ordered and take Cemetery Ridge then we can win this battle tomorrow.” He suddenly seemed to see me for the first time. “Captain you get some rest for you and your men. We will need your eyes and ears tomorrow. I can guarantee that.”
I was dog tired and I think the general’s words had made me realise just how tired I was. Walking Copper back to our lines I heard the crump of the cannon as they added their firepower. This was no longer a skirmish. This was the battle which would decide the war and the future of America. The Confederacy had their best generals and their best men. If we could not defeat them now then we never would. It was a sobering thought.
Chapter14
Gettysburg- Day Two
Attribution: Map by Hal Jespersen
Sergeant Jones and his men had arrived and, like us, had lost men. We had lost men before but never so many and in such a short space of time. I hoped that the rest of the regiment was faring better.
We had food and we sat around our fire as the afternoon drifted towards evening. We had no tents but it had been a hot day; it was still warm and we would sleep beneath the stars. As Sergeant Jones pointed out, we were better off than our dead comrades.
After we had eaten I fiddled on with the carbine but it stubbornly remained broken. It would have to wait until the Sergeant Major returned for a repair. The whole company sharpened swords and cleaned weapons while there was still light. I berated myself for allowing the carbine to become damaged. It had been a lack of care which had caused it. I knew that I could pick up a single shot carbine but I would stick with my three Colts. Perhaps I would pick another up the next day anyway.