The soldiers of Colonel White found their new Brigadier to be a handsome, soldierly-looking man, very different in manner, language and appearance from Gen. Jones, though not a whit behind that officer in the maintenance of discipline in his brigade; but it did not take them long to find that he was a genial, warm-hearted gentleman, and they respected and loved him accordingly. For several days there was very little done beyond some scouting along the Rappahannock, and an inspection or two by Gen. Rosser, but about the middle of November the brigade was ordered to join the division on the historic plains of Brandy Station, where Gen. Stuart purposed holding another of his “spread-eagle” grand reviews, which did no good except to give Yankee spies an opportunity to count the exact number of cavalry attached to the Army of Northern Virginia, and to display the foppishness of Stuart, who rode along his war-torn lines with a multitude of bouquets, which fair hands had presented to him, fastened in his hat and coat. After the review, Gen. Rosser encamped his brigade at Hamilton’s Crossing, on the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Rail Road, about On the 27th of November, Gen. Meade’s army effected a crossing to the south side of the river at Germania ford, and the cavalry were kept busy, night and day, watching his movements, but Gen. Rosser did not confine himself to watching alone, for on passing Spottsylvania C. H., he sent Lieut. Conrad, with Town H. Vandevanter, “Jack” Dove and Ed. Poland, to find the force and position of the enemy, with orders to report to him at Todd’s Tavern, and at the same time put Col. White in front with his battalion, and marched as rapidly as possible towards the plank road. On arriving at Todd’s Tavern, about midnight, and hearing nothing from Conrad, the General sent Capt. Myers out alone on one road, and Sergt. Lieut. Conrad and his party came in about sunrise, having gotten in among the Yankees and staid there all night, not knowing the country, and were very nearly being captured several times. They fought out of one difficulty with the 1st Jersey Cavalry, and passing on, charged and captured some prisoners from another regiment, finally coming out at the Court-house, where they had started from in the evening. When Conrad came up to Rosser in the morning the General On the morning of the 29th, Rosser marched his command to Parker’s Store, on the plank road, and found the enemy encamped there, when he at once opened the fight, by charging them, with the 7th regiment, which drove them from their camps, and in the chase many prisoners were taken, but heavy reinforcements came up and the fight was obstinate and severe for two hours. At one time a strong force of the enemy’s dismounted men took position on Rosser’s left, at a high bank of the Rail Road, with their flanks protected by swamps, heavy timber, and dense undergrowth. This force General Rosser ordered Col. White to charge, which he did, the battalion going into it in gallant style, and not only driving more than three times their number from the Rail Road, but pressing them through the thick timber until the marsh became too soft for their horses to go farther, when the men were rallied and reformed, and on reaching the plank road the balance of the brigade was found hotly engaged with a greatly superior force, and being forced back over the Rail Road. Here again the battalion charged just in time to save the brigade from rout, and all together drove the Yankees clear of the road. On the night of the 30th, Meade went back to his own side of the river so quietly that it was almost daylight before the movement was discovered, but as soon as Gen. Stuart found they were on the move he ordered all his cavalry forward, and harassed their rear-guard severely. The battalion, with the exception of Co. A, now returned to their old camp near Hamilton’s Crossing, and found the quartermaster’s department moved for safety towards Richmond, in consequence of which neither rations nor forage was issued for several days, and both men and horses suffered for the necessaries of life. Company A was detailed to picket on the river at Gold Mine, Ely’s, Germania, Banks’, and United States fords, and this, too, in the country that had been devastated by the great battle of Chancellorsville, so that they suffered more for supplies than the others, but they opened negotiations with the Yankees on the other side of the river, by which much trading of tobacco for coffee and crackers was effected, and the blue and gray pickets would mount their horses and meet in the middle of the river, where they would confer in as friendly a manner as near neighbors generally do. All their tents had been stored near Mount Crawford, in the Valley, at the time of General Jones’ march to Brandy Station, and in the preparation for the Pennsylvania campaign, General Lee had cut transportation so low that only one wagon for baggage was allowed to the battalion, in consequence of which, a great quantity of it was stored for safety at Flint Hill, and fully expecting to find that as they had left it, the men had come out from their homes with almost nothing except what they wore; but on reaching Flint Hill they found that the people around that country had appropriated everything of value, only leaving for the depositors a few camp kettles, with the bottoms knocked out, and some scraps of leather that had formerly been valises. As an evidence that citizens had stolen the property, Lieut. Conrad found one of his shirts on the person of an old citizen, who stoutly swore that the shirt was always his, but the Lieutenant proved his claim and made the gentleman “come out of it.” The men clung to the hope that the brigade would be sent to the Valley, but after the last advance and retreat of Gen. Meade, their camp appeared Under such circumstances as these, the spirit of discontent culminated in the Loudoun companies, and on the night of the 14th, about sixty of A and C took a regular “French leave” and went home, determined to supply themselves with winter clothing, no matter what might be the consequences of their desertion, and we will there leave them for a time, in order to tell of an event that had a brightening effect upon the heart of every man in the Ashby brigade, which was an order for General Rosser to march his command to the Valley. On the night of the 18th December, the brigade crossed the Rappahannock at Fredericksburg and moved to Stafford C. H., where it encamped until morning, when the march was resumed, and all day long, through a drenching rain, the Valley men travelled on without a halt until about 11 The command marched on from Sangster as rapidly as possible, and on reaching Bull Run, about two miles from Centreville, found that stream almost impassable from the continuous rain which had been pouring down for nearly twenty-four hours, and with the greatest difficulty the crossing was effected, but just when the rear guard reached the stream a party of Yankees came down from Centreville, which produced a panic, and in the confusion some of White’s men were knocked from their horses into the stream. The night was excessively dark, and the country totally unknown to the men, and as the head of the column had waited for nothing, but marched quickly on as soon as the swollen stream was passed, the panic was increased by the fast riding of those who got across, and when Col. White got his men over there was no sign of the brigade nor The Colonel sent a courier to the General for assistance and on reaching the turnpike found the 12th regiment waiting for him, and order being now restored the command marched quietly on; but the wind had sprung up keen and cold from the northwest, causing the rain to freeze as it fell, and almost depriving the men of the power to keep their saddles, so intense was the cold, but as best they could the dismal march was continued, and at daylight the command reached Middleburg, in Loudoun county, and pushing on to Upperville halted to feed and rest, having traveled over ninety miles during twenty-four hours, with no halt except at Sangster, where one man was killed, and several wounded in the 7th and 11th regiments, and about two hundred Yankees killed, wounded, and captured. When the brigade reached Upperville the run-away boys from the battalion, who had come by way of Greene county and Luray Valley, were just coming in, and not wishing to risk so much to get home and be met and arrested by their command at the door, they had to go back into the mountain and wait awhile; so that those who came around with the brigade got home earlier than they who had been on the road four days longer. The facts of this expedition have been principally obtained from Messrs. T. H. Vandevanter, Co. A, White’s Battalion, and Jas. T. Robinson, 12th Virginia Cavalry, who were couriers for Gen. Rosser, and from Lieut. Conrad and Sergt. E. L. Bennett, of Co. A. The command moved from camp to Moorfield about the 25th of January, 1864, where it remained until Gen. Early, with a brigade of infantry and battery of artillery, came over, when it was resolved to attempt the capture of Petersburg, where a strong force of the enemy was reported to be located, and in pursuance of this plan Gen. Early marched up the right bank of the South Branch while Rosser, with his cavalry and one piece of artillery, crossed the river at Moorfield and gained the rear of Petersburg; but on reaching the top of the mountain and getting a view of the road leading to New Creek it was discovered that a long train of wagons, guarded by about 1,000 infantry, was quietly His first step was to throw a few shells into the head of the train, which brought it to a full stop, and then to charge upon it with his “people,” an operation which was entirely successful, and the whole train of ninety wagons and teams was captured, together with about two hundred of the guards, which were all the troopers could catch, as the others made such fast time to the mountain that it was given up to be folly to attempt their capture. The train was carrying fifteen The first squadron of the battalion, under Lieut. Conrad, was sent forward to drive a party of the enemy from Ridgeville, which was done in the same gallant style that characterized all the performances of Conrad, and the brigade moved forward in the morning to Petersburg, but found that the enemy had evacuated it by a mountain road during the night, and that Gen. Early was gone back to Moorfield, whither the captured Just here it is necessary to briefly call attention to Major Harry Gilmor’s statement of this affair, in his “Four Years in the Saddle,” by way of making a correction. The Major says, that by Gen. Rosser’s order he commanded White’s first squadron in the attack on Patterson’s Creek Station, but Lieut. Conrad and his men say that he did no such thing. Conrad says that Gilmor came to him on the road saying that Gen. Rosser had sent him there to get a detail of eight men to go with him to procure artillery horses, and Conrad refused positively to let him have a man until he had got through with his business, which he told him was to whip the Yankees at Patterson’s Creek, when Gilmor remarked, "Very well; Soon after this, Gen. Rosser rode up and asked hastily, “Where are the Yankees?” To which Conrad’s men replied, “Here are the prisoners.” Lieut. Conrad says, that there were desperate attempts on the part of some of the men to burn a large brick water tank at the Station, while others set fire to the Rail Road bridge and tried to learn how often they could ride over it on a hand car before it fell in, but the main body engaged in securing the plunder, of which there was a great quantity. After damaging the Rail Road as much as possible and securing all the plunder and prisoners, the column turned towards home, but on reaching the graded road from New Creek to Romney, some scouts reported to Gen. Rosser that Kelly was advancing The situation was not very pleasant now and Rosser turned back, but he soon struck a new mountain road, and ordering White to take the front, pushed rapidly forward, coming out on the grade about four miles east of Burlington, and here Lieut. Conrad and John Stephenson, who had been scouting, reported the road barricaded and camp-fires in front. Col. White advanced cautiously to the barricade, and finding no enemy there he approached the camp-fires, but they, too, were deserted, and he soon learned that Averill had marched from them only half an hour before, under the impression that Rosser was marching on Cumberland. This left the road clear, and now the raiders moved quietly along once more, and took with them a large drove of cattle, marching until late in the night, when the General halted his people, but had them moving again by dawn. The Yankees soon learned that their game had slipped them and turned to follow, but all the circumstances in the case showed that they didn’t care to overtake them, and Averill’s march from Burlington was evidently made to avoid contact with Rosser, for he simply moved out of the road and when the rebel brigade had passed he quietly While retiring slowly towards the mountain the Colonel had his horse killed dead by a sharpshooter, fully one thousand yards distant, and he would have been captured by a party of the enemy that advanced up the road, at the moment, only for the devotion of J. Clendenning, of Co. C, who dismounted and gave him his horse. This, and the horse of John Stephenson killed in the charge at Patterson’s Creek, was all the loss sustained by the battalion during the raid, The battalion reached camp on the 5th of February, and on the 6th the first squadron, now under Capt. Myers, was ordered to Brock’s Gap on picket, where it remained for three weeks, during which time the brigade marched to a camp near Weyer’s Cave, where the Colonel organized a court-martial for the trial of the deserters, and on the return of the first squadron, Company A, now having about eighty-five men, placed seventy-seven of them under arrest for absence without leave, while Co. C had all her boys, but about a dozen, in the same predicament; but the court worked fast, and soon had them all released on double duty for a month, and for a few days only two incidents broke the monotony of the camp; the first being a grand horse race, and the second a grand speech from Capt. J. Mort. Kilgour, to the brigade, on the origin and ultimate results of the war; in which he located the origin in the “rule or ruin” spirit that made the Puritans desolate England in the days of Cromwell, and who, on the overthrow of their power there by the death of their leader, emigrated to America; and with prophetic finger he raised the curtain from the future and showed its ultimate results to be the abolition of negro slavery and the Christianization of Africa. As the part taken by Rosser’s brigade in this most intolerable piece of audacious foolishness, on both sides, was of little importance, I shall merely give a brief journal of the marching and counter-marching from the outset. March 2d.—Marched from Charlottesville, by Gordonsville, and encamped near Orange Springs about 10 o’clock, P. M. Got corn, per M. G. Hatcher, from Gen. Lee’s headquarters. March 3d.—Left camp early, and wound around on a very cold trail after Kilpatrick. Halted 8 miles from Spottsylvania C. H., about 3 o’clock, to feed. Mounted at sunset and traveled all night, reaching Hanover Junction at 9 o’clock A. M., March 4th, and at 3 o’clock moved down to 6 miles of Richmond. Raining very hard, and nobody knows where Kilpatrick is. March 5th.—Lying in camp all day and the rain pouring down. Drew three days rations of corn meal and bacon—about enough for three meals. March 6th.—Still in camp. Four orders to saddle up and move, and four countermands. Plenty of horse feed, by stealing a little. March 8th.—Nothing to eat, and raining fast. Marched to Louisa C. H. and laid over. Still no rations. March 9th.—Came to Gordonsville and camped. Drew some mule meat and hard-tack about four o’clock—first rations since 7th. March 10th.—Lying in camp all day near the nastiest and meanest hole in the Southern Confederacy, to wit: Gordonsville. Found a grocery store and bought it out. Cheese, $10 per pound. Butter, $10. Ground Peas, $1.50 per quart. Tobacco, $5 per plug. Lead pencils, $3 each. March 11th.—Still at this sweet-scented little place waiting for something to turn up, which it did, about 4 P. M., in the shape of an old, long-legged, razor-backed, slab-sided, black sow, poorer than Pharaoh’s kine, and the last one left in the county, but we killed and eat her, and the only meat we’ve had since the mule gave out. March 12th.—Left camp at sunrise, and marched by Orange Springs to plank road, thence by the " old familiar Parker’s Store to Chancellorsville, and encamped upon the famous battle-field. March 13th.—Marched at sunrise, and to-night went into the same old camp at Gordonsville. March 15th.—In camp at Gordonsville. More mule. March 16th.—Marched through Charlottesville and camped. Weather cold as Christmas. March 17th.—Moved early by Hillsboro’, Afton, Brown’s Gap, to Waynesborough. March 18th.—Marched at sunrise through Greenville to camp near Brownsburg, and the Kilpatrick-Dahlgren campaign is ended; the Yankee nation is indelibly disgraced by the objects of the expedition, and Stuart’s laurels wilted by his failure to annihilate the whole party. On the 31st of March the battalion moved its camp, passing Lexington and halting at a superb place for a camp about eight miles from the Natural Bridge, and now the men prepared for winter quarters at last, when the winter was almost over, but as they were always hungry it may well be imagined that their enjoyment was limited. The ration was reduced, by Gen. Lee’s order, to a quarter of a pound of meat and one pound of meal per day, and this always fell short by our Quartermaster’s scales; nor did the horses fare better, for with no hay at all they only got seven ears of corn a day; and the Southern soldiers often seriously doubted if the Revolutionary Fathers could show a record of greater privations than they endured. If the old Continentals were The month of April, 1864, was passed very pleasantly, notwithstanding the privations that naturally fall to the lot of men who support an impoverished cause; and when, on the 27th, the baggage accumulated during the winter was stored away at Waynesborough, the soldiers felt that in the approaching campaign the question of independence or subjection would be decided, and they prepared for it with hopeful hearts, for they believed White had moved from his Lexington camp on the 25th, to the Saltpetre works, near Waynesborough, where the battalion remained until the 1st day of May, when the brigade was ordered to cross the mountain and join the army on the Rappahannock, but just before marching Co. D was disbanded and its members became absorbed by the other companies. The reason of this was that it had no officers and very few men for duty, and all who remained earnestly desired to disband. The command moved quietly over the Blue Ridge into Greene county, and learned that Gen. Grant’s army was crossing the river, and that Gen. Lee was preparing everything for the inevitable meeting with the foe, and strange enough there were no murmurs now, as in all such movements, from the men of Rosser’s brigade, about leaving the bright Shenandoah Valley, for they seemed to have learned from the experience that they were soldiers, subject to the powers that be, and whether they approved or not they must obey orders. On the march an incident occurred in Co. F, of the battalion, which, although condemned generally at the time, proved to be highly beneficial in its results. This company had been without an actual commanding officer during almost the On the evening of May 4th, the “Comanches” encamped in the pines on the Cataupin road, near the right of Gen. Lee’s army, and about six miles from Orange C. H. |