As we felt satisfied our stay at Harrisonburg would be a prolonged one, and the weather being fine, Col. Herbert set to work to make the Battalion as efficient in drill and discipline as possible. He had taken advantage of the winter, when the men could not drill, to teach his officers their duties, and as most of them were totally inexperienced they required a great deal of instruction. By spring they were familiar with Hardee, and that, with the littletraining they had had in the fall, made them perfectly competent to handle their respective companies in company and battalion drill.
“To equal the First Maryland in drill and discipline,” I have heard Col. Herbert say, “is my greatest ambition.” And he was gratified, and more than gratified, for I think withoutanyexception the Second Maryland was the most perfect command that was or had ever been in the Confederate army. One great reason for it was that they had been properly mustered in, and no misunderstanding therefore existed as to the length of time they were to serve, as had been the case in the First Maryland.
Still another reason was that the officers, with scarcely a single exception, were a remarkably intelligent set of men, and took the greatest pride in the battalion. With all the love and fond remembrance I still cherish for the old First, I am compelled to admit, in all candor, that the Second was a superior command, and for the reasons I have stated.
On the 22d of May General Jones returned from his trip to West Virginia, which, taking everything into consideration, proved a failure. It is true he had destroyed a part of the railroad, but the damages had been as quickly repaired. He had captured horses, cattle and sheep in large numbers, and also some prisoners; but then he had sacrificed some valuable lives, and so completely broken down hismen and horses as to require a long season of rest before again ready for the field.
A short time after his return the Second Maryland and the Baltimore Light Artillery and First Maryland Cavalry were ordered to Fisher’s Hill, to relieve the gallant Major Sam Myers, who was stationed there with a small force of cavalry. Soon after our arrival we were joined by the lamented General Albert G. Jenkins, with a splendid brigade of Virginia cavalry.
Whilst at Fisher’s Hill it was determined by the officers of the Maryland Line to select a commander, it being then temporarily under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel James R. Herbert. By their unanimous voice Colonel Bradley T. Johnson was chosen, and Lieutenant Bussey dispatched to Richmond to notify that officer of the fact. Colonel Johnson was then a member of a military court, much against his will, with the rank of Colonel of cavalry, and he at once accepted the command, and started for it next day, but did not reach it until after the battle of Gettysburg (though he was in the latter part of that engagement, acting as aid-de-camp to General Ewell,) and upon looking into the matter, and finding the battalion of infantry cut to pieces, advised that the consolidation should be postponed for the present, whilst he himself was assigned to the temporary command of the Third Virginia Brigade, the same he commanded with so much distinction at the second battle of Manassas,and first invasion of Maryland, and to which General Jackson, before his death, had so long tried in vain to have him permanently appointed.
During our short stay here nothing of moment occurred with the exception of a slight skirmish in the streets of Strasburg, in which Captain John W. Torsch with three companies was engaged with a regiment of the Federal cavalry. The enemy was driven off with loss, and pursued beyond Middletown by a portion of the First Maryland cavalry, who were, however, unable to come up with them, so precipitate was their flight.
On the 10th of June the whole command moved down and went into temporary camp at Cedar Creek. Whilst here a company of the First Maryland cavalry, with a few of Jenkins’ men, all under the command of Captain W. I. Raisin, had the misfortune to run into a Federal ambuscade, in which he sustained a loss of four men killed, and thirty wounded and captured, the gallant Raisin being of the number, with a desperate wound in the head.
On the afternoon of the 12th a dispatch arrived announcing that General Ewell was at Front Royal with his whole corps. Great was our surprise, for we had little dreamed he was nearer than Fredericksburg. What it meant we could not conjecture, but that a movement was to be made on Winchester was apparent to all.
Late that night a second dispatch arrived directingColonel Herbert with his infantry and the Baltimore Light Artillery, (General Jenkins with the cavalry had left that afternoon to join General Ewell,) to move in the direction of Middletown immediately and protect Ewell’s wagon train, which had been ordered to that point.
The next morning, by order of General Ewell, we moved up the Valley turnpike, somewhere along which we were to await the arrival of General Early, who was to strike the turnpike near Newtown. We halted about two miles from Kearnstown, where shortly after a second order arrived directing us to halt at Newtown and there await Early’s approach. It was too late, however, for we had passed that place, and fearing the effects a retrograde movement would have upon his raw troops, Col. Herbert determined to take the responsibility of waiting for Early where he was. In an hour or two that General joined us with his division of infantry.
Our approach had by this time been discovered by the enemy, for a regiment of cavalry was descried in the road less than a mile in our front. A piece of Griffin’s battery was now run up and masked by a small party of horsemen, and a shell thrown into the midst of the surprised cavalrymen, who scattered in every direction. In a few minutes a battery made its appearance upon a neighboring hill, when a lively exchange of compliments took place between it and the Baltimore Light Artillery.
Meanwhile Early was engaged getting his troopsinto position. Three companies of the Second Maryland, under the command of Major W. W. Goldsborough, were thrown forward as skirmishers, with orders to advance until the enemy were developed in force. Griffin’s opponent had now retired, and the whole command moved forward in line of battle. In a little orchard, near Kearnstown, which was flanked on the right by a strip of woods, the skirmishers first encountered them, and a sharp fight ensued. Steadily the Marylanders pressed forward, and although subjected to a severe artillery fire from a battery on a hill a short ways off, drove the enemy before them.
General Early had in the meanwhile formed his troops for a charge, and in a few minutes a yell on our left announced it. It was Gordon with his splendid brigade of Georgians. In beautiful order they dashed forward and drove the enemy pell-mell into Winchester.
That night (one never to be forgotten, for the rain poured in torrents until morning) we held a position at Hollingsworth’s Mills, but half a mile from Winchester.
At early dawn the rain ceased and the troops were all on the alert. Shortly after sunrise the skirmish line along the whole front got in motion and approached to within two or three hundred yards of the suburbs of the town. Here they halted for a few minutes exchanging shots with the enemy, when the Marylanders charged into the town, anda lively skirmish ensued in the streets of Winchester. Although opposed by a greatly superior force they held their ground for some time until ordered back by General Gordon.
Reluctantly they withdrew, the enemy following, until they reached a stone fence about two hundred yards from the town, when the fight was renewed, and continued several hours, the enemy holding a position in cemetery lot. This the Marylanders finally drove them from with loss.
We afterwards ascertained that it was the Fifth Maryland we had encountered, nearly the whole of which was captured next day.
While this little affair was transpiring, Early was placing his artillery in position and moving a column of infantry (Hays’ Louisianians) in the rear of the town to storm a strong fortification, the key to the enemy’s works. About four o’clock the artillery opened, and under cover of it the Louisianians charged on the run, and in the time I am relating it, had possession of the place; and when had they ever failed in the assault?
Holding these relative positions, darkness came upon the combatants, and we felt confident unless Milroy retired during the night he would be assaulted in the morning.
Having command of the skirmish line I was instructed by General Ewell, who had come up that morning with the main body of his corps, to keep a watchful eye upon the enemy, and if I saw anysigns of his withdrawing from his works to report the facts to him immediately. I therefore kept my scouts in the town all night, who constantly reported that everything indicated such a move, which intelligence was communicated to the commanding general, who hastened several brigades by a circuitous route around to the rear of the town, and about three miles distant, to intercept them should they attempt to escape by way of the Martinsburg road.
Thus the night wore away, and at the first peep of day, agreeable to orders, I put my skirmishers in motion and entered the town. All was still as death. Not an enemy was to be seen as I cautiously moved along the deserted streets. Presently I met a citizen, who in reply to my interrogatories told me he thought Milroy had retired during the night. To make sure he was not mistaken I ascended with him to the upper story of his house, from whence I could see into the main fort, and although the flag seemed defiantly flying from the flag-staff I could see it was deserted. I had scarcely regained the street when the roar of artillery and the crash of small arms some two or three miles up the Martinsburg road confirmed my belief.
Pushing rapidly down the main street, I did not halt until I reached the Taylor Hotel, where I encountered a half dozen unarmed Federal soldiers, who informed me their companions were all gone, and they had been left behind to attend the sick and wounded at the hotel, which had long before beenconverted into a hospital. I immediately moved up and took possession of the Star fort, where I found about two hundred of the enemy who had preferred to remain behind rather than follow the fortunes of Milroy.
On looking around the fort I discovered twelve splendid rifled pieces, which were but indifferently spiked; the ammunition had been destroyed by throwing it into a well.
The sound of battle had in the meanwhile ceased up the road, and in a short time a long line of prisoners, numbering over two thousand, made their appearance, who had only surrendered after a desperate fight.
During the whole day prisoners continued to come in, until the number was much augmented, and we had the satisfaction of knowing that the miserable hordes under the brutal Milroy were pretty much all in our hands, but to our chagrin we found that the wretch we had so long wished to lay our hands upon had escaped.
Such was the battle of Winchester, or rather one of the battles of Winchester, and a complete surprise it was, for not until the day after our first attack at Kearnstown was Milroy induced to believe it was a force of any magnitude that was in his front.
We found the town full of stores of every description, and our captures amounted to considerable, for besides twenty pieces of artillery we captured severalhundred horses, an immense train of wagons, ambulances, several thousand stand of small arms, &c.
The loss of the Second Maryland in this affair was as follows:
Company A, Captain William H. Murray.—Killed, none; wounded, Sergeant E. S. Dorsey, severely; privates, Sommerville, Sollers, slightly; John Wilson, slightly.
Company B, Captain J. P. Crane.—Killed, none; wounded, privates J. E. Joy, mortally; H. Corry, slightly; William Herbert, slightly.
Company C, Captain Ferdinand Duvall.—Killed, none; wounded, Captain F. Duvall, severely.
Company D, Captain Joseph L. McAleer.—Killed, none; wounded, private John Devres, mortally.
Company E, Captain John W. Torsch.—Killed, none; wounded, Lieutenant W. K. Byus, slightly; captured, Lieutenant Joseph P. Quinn.
Total, 9 wounded and 1 captured.